Principal's Note - Feb 23, 2024 (2024)

By Serena Giron

Principal's Note

February 26, 2024

Hello Holmes Families!

The week of February 27 - March 3 is Public Schools Week. It is an annual celebration that brings together school leaders, educators, parents & community leaders to recognize the importance of our nation’s public schools.

Students Rights and Responsibilities Midyear Review

All students in FCPS have rights and responsibilities which are documented in the SR&R Handbook. Students receive lessons at the beginning of the school year. The lessons focus on the contents of the handbook which explains their rights as FCPS students, as wellas the responsibilities and expectations FCPS has for their behavior.

On February 29 and March 1, Holmes administrators and discipline support staff will visit P.E. classes to review some of the highlights of the SR&R, emphasizing topics such as bullying and harassment, conflict resolution, technology use, supportive adults in the building, and disciplinary processes. We encourage you to review the same content at home with your student. Consistent messages from home and school will help all our students grow as caring and respectful members of society. You can use the information in this pageto help you guide that conversation at home.

If you have questions, please reach out to your student's administrator.

Mr. Hartman - @email: Last names A-K

Mr. Meador - @email: Last names L-Z

Early Identification Program

WHAT: The Early Identification Program (EIP) is a multiyear (5 year) college preparatory program for students who will be the first in their family to attend a four-year college in the United States. EIP is a collaborative effort between Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) and George Mason University (GMU). The EIP is one of four programs that comprise the College Success Programs in FCPS. EIP goes from 8^thgrade through 12^thgrade.

HOW: Nominated students apply to the program at the end of the 7^thgrade and enter the program in the 8^thgrade.

Here are today's newsletter topics:

Holmes Updates

Student Services Information
Admin Team Information
2023-24 Blue/White Schedule
2023-24 Bell Schedule
After-School Program
From Ms. Oncho, Our Family Liaison
Important Upcoming Dates
Holmes MS PTA
How to Stay Connected to Holmes MS

FCPS & Community Updates

February Observances
Little League Baseball for Kids, Teens and Adults with Special Needs
Family Engagement Survey to Open March 3
Share Your Thoughts on Schoology
Career and Technical Education Courses Prepare Students for the Future
Summer Camps and Learning
Stay Connected with FCPS

Please feel free to reach out and let us know what questions you have. Thank you, and we'll see you very soon!

Sincerely,

Serena Giron

Principal

After-School Program Weekly News & Notes from 2/19-2/23

Student(s) of the Week
- The After-School Program Student of the week: Drisha Singh
- Staff nominated Drisha for her positive attitude, consistent participation, and contributions to many clubs in the program.
- Congrats Drisha!

ASP Schedule 2/26-3/1

Students Leaving After-School before 4:45 pm

Any student staying after school must be signed out of the main office by a parent or guardian if leaving before 4:45.
Walkers with parent/guardian permission, may sign themselves out any time after 3:30 when first block ends.
Students are not permitted to leave school grounds before checking out in the main office .

Questions/Concerns

Contact the After-School Specialist, Matt Kruk, @email

Tuesday, 3/5 - NO SCHOOL / School Planning Day
Friday, 3/22 - 3rd Quarter Ends
3/25-3/29 - NO SCHOOL / Spring Break

Don't forget to check out these important links:

Holmes Attendance Form: https://holmesms.fcps.edu/about/attendance-form
Buy SpiritWear: https://bit.ly/HolmesSpiritWear
Join the PTA: https://bit.ly/SupportHolmesPTA
Missed the meeting: watch the recording by clicking hereOR access the slideshow/presentation onour website OR access audio language interpretation in Spanish, Urdu, and Arabic by clicking the language button in Zoom.

Please stay in touch with us throughout the year by:

keeping your contact information up-to-date throughout the year
visiting the Holmes MS website
signing up for News You Choose
following us on Twitter
monitoring your student's progress with SIS Parent Account
join the Holmes MS PTA and attend meetings

February Observances

Black History Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history. Learn more about the heritage months, celebrations, and traditions celebrated in FCPS. Learn more about Black History month.

February Is Career and Technical Education Month

By enrolling in a Career and Technical Education (CTE) course or program, students learn the technical applications of many occupations while preparing for higher education or entry-level employment. A core program of CTE courses is offered in every middle and high school including Business and Information Technology, Family and Consumer Sciences, Health and Medical Sciences, Marketing, Technology and Engineering Education, and Trade and Industrial Education. Since this is an elective, course offerings may vary by school. Learn more on the CTE website.

CTE also offers summer programs for students to explore their programs. Enroll now!

Love the Bus Month

VSBA School Board Appreciation Month

Thank you to the Fairfax County School Board for all they do throughout the year: hiring and evaluating the superintendent; reviewing and approving the FCPS budget, calendar, policies, and more! Want to contact your school board representatives to share your appreciation? Visit their website to find your school board member and contact them.

Family Engagement Survey to Open March 3

FCPS is partnering with independent research firm K12 Insight to administer a Family Engagement Survey, which will be open from Sunday, March 3, to Friday, March 22. Your feedback is critical in helping FCPS to better recognize, understand, respect, and address family strengths and needs throughout the district. Survey topics include:

Welcoming environment
Communication
Student success
Advocacy
Family and school partnerships
Community partnerships

The survey will be available in English, Amharic, Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, Korean, Pashto, Spanish, Urdu, and Vietnamese.

Parents/caregivers will receive the survey link via email from K12 Insight. A public link will also be posted on FCPS’ website. Paper surveys will be available in our front office. Please stay tuned for more information.

Share Your Thoughts on Schoology

FCPS will be conducting voluntary, anonymous surveys on the use of Schoology from Monday, March 11, to Friday, March 22. Surveys will be delivered to:

Elementary students (grades 3-6) through the Schoology App Center.
Secondary students via email from Naviance.

Student feedback will inform the school division’s use of Schoology and help improve its processes, communication, and professional learning for staff. FCPS’ Instructional Services Department will also be reaching out to families through focus groups.

Please contact [emailprotected] if you have questions.

Career and Technical Education Courses Prepare Students for the Future

February is Career and Technical Education (CTE) Month. Hear from students how CTE courses and Academies are helping them explore and prepare for careers while still in high school. One student has earned more than 20 industry certifications in two years!

Watch this video to learn more about opportunities in Fairfax County Public Schools’ CTE and Academy programs.

Sign Up for FCPS Summer Camps and Learning Programs

Registration is now open for several summer camps and learning opportunities offered by Fairfax County Public Schools for all students.

Career and Technical Education (CTE) camps and Institute for the Arts camps will be held in July at Lake Braddock Secondary School from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Bus transportation will be available from select FCPS middle and high schools.

CTE programs are available for grade 6-11 students to explore CTE program areas, develop skills, and begin career exploration. IFTA allows students to select from nearly 90 classes in art, dance, health and physical education 9, music, and theater. Visit the IFTA webpage to register.

Summer Learning

Programs are also available for high school students to fulfill the Economics and Personal Finance course requirement, earn a high school course credit via this summer’s online campus program, or recover one high school course credit through the Credit Recovery Academy.

FCPS’ free online class for English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) provides FCPS middle and high school English Learners the opportunity to continue developing their academic, reading, and writing skills in online discussions with an ESOL teacher.

Find session dates, registration links, and registration deadlines on FCPS summer programs.

CTE Summer Academy

Tech Adventure Camp

Stay Connected with FCPS

Being connected to your school and division is important every year, and even more so now as we navigate our return to school. The best way to stay informed is to sign up for newsletters through News You Chose.

Your school and FCPS have a variety of topics you can choose from, including:

School Newsletters- featuring everything you need to know about your child’s school
FCPS This Week- a weekly newsletter featuring news and happenings from across the division, published Wednesday mornings
School Board Meeting Update- a recap of important news coming out of school board meetings, published the Friday morning after the meeting
FCPS Employee News- weekly updates just for staff, published Tuesday mornings