Celebrate Squirrel Awareness Month by keeping count of the bushy-tailed critters as you take a family walk during this beautiful fall weekend. Have a nutty time seeing how many types of squirrels your children can spot, and guessing different ways squirrels use their tails. (Some examples include as shade, as an umbrella, as a built-in blanket, for balance and even as a rudder when swimming!)
Board Notes
The Oct. 8 School Board meeting was packed with valuable updates and discussions. If you missed it, watch a video at http://acpsk12va.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=2 . If you don’t have time to view the entire meeting at once, just click on a specific agenda topic to go straight to that part of the video.
The Superintendent’s Report included updates on:
*our rising enrollment (up about 4 percent this year)
*class sizes (some adjustments are being made at George Washington)
*graduation rates and test scores for students receiving special education services and
*frequency of disciplinary incidents (decreasing)
Related documents are posted online at
http://esbpublic.acps.k12.va.us/public_itemview.aspx?ItemId=1913&mtgId=207
A detailed SAT report with an interesting historical analysis and four specific recommendations was presented. The findings in the report are varied, showing some strengths and many areas of concern. The report is posted at http://www.acps.k12.va.us/mes/sat/ .
Child Find
The Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) Preschool Child Find and Early Childhood Special Education Services new location is Room A324 on the third floor of George Washington Middle School, 1005 Mount Vernon Ave., Alexandria. The new phone number is 703-706-4639, and the new fax number is 703-706-4551. Read more at http://www.acps.k12.va.us/news2010/nr2009100904.php
Parternership Forged
On Wednesday, Sept. 23, representatives from Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) and Tenants and Workers United signed a memorandum of understanding to commemorate their newly forged formal partnership to improve academic achievement for all students in ACPS. Read more at http://www.acps.k12.va.us/news2010/nr2009100903.php .
Equity and Excellence
Starting Oct. 10, ACPS-TV presents the most recent in a series of excerpts from the recent three-day “Equity and Excellence” conference. This video features Dr. Yvette Jackson, chief executive officer of the National Urban Alliance. Read more at http://www.acps.k12.va.us/news2010/nr2009100902.php .
Get Real
The Fall 2009 edition of “Get Real” magazine, a product of the Alexandria Campaign on Adolescent Pregnancy (ACAP), is now available online at www.alexgetreal.com under New Features. It is also available in print. To receive copies for your organization or youth group, contact Kim Hurley at 703-746-5030 or kim.hurley@alexandriava.gov. Read more at http://www.acps.k12.va.us/news2010/nr2009100901.php .
Calendar
Check out all the latest happenings, from PTA meetings to school assemblies, listed in the ACPS online calendar at http://www.acps.k12.va.us/events/ .
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