We Notice awards and a visit to Walton
We Notice awards and a visit to Walton

Happy Friday, everyone! It looks like it the weather back to being springtime again!

On the eve of Teacher Appreciation Week, let me be among the first to say to all of our ACPS teachers, happy teacher appreciation week! You deserve every accolade, every expression of gratitude, every treat, and every break you get not only in the coming week but year round from all of us. To revisit the thought for the week, it is my observation that our ACPS teachers and all of our employees love bringing learners and learning together every day. And every day you make a positive difference for students, families, your colleagues and community. Thank you! 

 

Speaking of appreciation, we had more than 1,300 submissions from students, families, and colleagues for the We Notice employee recognition program this spring! Our students and families truly value and appreciate our ACPS employees, and you clearly value and appreciate one another. As a reminder, the We Notice program was initiated by the County Student Council more than a decade ago, and the students support the endeavor annually. Wednesday, our HR Director Dan Redding hosted his first We Notice program as well as our first in-person program in two years. In addition to the after-school ceremony, we held a program at the Vehicle Maintenance Facility (VMF) for bus drivers, since they cannot usually attend after school. 

For employees who did not attend the recognition program, we will be delivering your certificates and prizes to you at your workplace. 

I had a terrific visit to  Leslie H. Walton Middle School on Monday, and I brought along a special guest: Kate Acuff, School Board Member representing the Jack Jouett District. 

It was great to see Frances Wood and Lutrice Cooper in the main office before Principal Josh Walton sent me on my way. I enjoyed visiting Thallya Diaz’s Spanish II Immersion Class. This class was a blend of ESOL students on monitoring status and students who began studying Spanish in the immersion program at Mountainview. One student with whom I spoke had started in the program in first grade. Reviewing vocabulary in preparation for the upcoming STAMP testing, students were playing Spanish Pictonary, so I played along as best I could. Before I left, students logged into Schoology for a reading comprehension formative assessment based on the history of Cuban Americans. 

I made my way to two science classes. First, I visited with Heather Kepple, whose eighth-graders were studying time and motion, and then on to Kathryn Durkee’s sixth grade class, studying hurricanes. My favorite part of Ms. Durkee’s class was the five-minute brain break. Students chose to exercise during that time. Ms. Durkee distributed two dice to each table: one with exercises on the sides and one with numbers. Students at one table invited me over. We took turns rolling the dice and then completing the number of reps of the exercises, arm climbers for example. After five minutes, we were back to work!

All of the teachers I visited had multiple activities that built upon each other during their lessons, and each integrated formative assessment with feedback. What a pleasure to see evidence-based pedagogy for middle school students in action, and I know their work exemplifies that of all of our educators! Thank you to the Walton Middle School staff for a great visit! 

 

The 2022 Life After High School Transition and Resource Fair sponsored by the ACPS Parent Resource Center in collaboration with the Piedmont Regional Education Program’s (PREP) Parent Resource Center will be held at PVCC on April 30th from 8:30 am – 1:00 pm.  The transition fair is an opportunity for students with special needs, their families, and fellow professionals to learn from each other as we strive to set our young people up for success! 

 

Some media links for your viewing: A wonderfully inspirational story aired this week on CBS 19, profiling the leadership of Monticello's Girls Softball Coach, Heidi Freitager, who is recovering from breast cancer.  Her student athletes recently raised money for breast cancer research.  As of yesterday, Heidi's team had outscored their opponents this year by 101-20.  Last evening's game with Albemarle also featured a special commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the enactment of Title IX, which greatly expanded athletic programming opportunities for female student athletes across our nation.

Freitager Finds Sanctuary in Monticello Softball

Two videos this week highlighted the evocative student artwork on display in the Crozet Library and during this week's Senior Art Show at Western Albemarle:

Senior Art Show

Crozet Library Hosting First ACPS K-12 Art Show

And, one of our Walton social studies teachers, Alex Groff, discussed how culturally responsive teaching has impacted him personally and his students' academic success during an NBC 29 interview:

NBC 29 Community Conversation

 

Upcoming Observances