Countywide

Several Fairfax County supervisors this week signaled an interest in expanding the “Beyond the Bell” child care program following a reportedly successful pilot over the previous school year. 

County staff proposed at the Board of Supervisors’ Health and Human Services Committee meeting on Tuesday (June 16) transitioning all existing School Age Child Care (SACC) sites to Beyond the Bell over the next few years, starting with an additional 21 schools this fall. 


News

The Fairfax County School Board expects to spend about $2 million on engineering and designs for renovations to remake a private school south of Herndon into the new Skyview High School.

At its meeting on June 11, the board directed Fairfax County Public Schools staff to finalize an approximately $1.99 million contract for architecture and engineering services with Grimm + Parker Architecture.


Countywide

The Fairfax County School Board voted last week to approve a new policy that prioritizes full five-day school weeks throughout the year, confirms the length of spring and winter breaks, and sets a framework for the calendar year going forward.

After a tense discussion, the school board voted 8-4 on June 11 to approve a motion by Providence District member Karl Frisch revising an earlier draft of the policy.


News

A Senate committee and Virginia State Police have concluded their separate investigations into a Centreville High School teacher’s claims that school staff facilitated abortions without parental consent, Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Michelle Reid said this week.

“Neither investigation found any evidence of wrongdoing or any need for further action,” Reid wrote in a letter to the school’s staff and families. “This situation has had a significant impact on all of those involved, and it reminds us of the responsibility we all share to act thoughtfully, with integrity, and compassionately as a caring, connected community.”


Countywide

After a contentious debate, the Fairfax County School Board will give parents the opportunity to opt out of take-home laptops and tablets in the upcoming school year and study stronger screen limits and restrictions.

At its meeting Thursday (June 11), the board discussed restrictions on screen time and school-provided devices for students amid local, regional and national pushback against technology in classrooms, particularly in elementary schools.


Weather

It’s going to be another hot, humid day in Fairfax County, which will be under Heat Advisory from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. today (Friday).

As it did yesterday, Fairfax County Public Schools has canceled all outdoor activities on school grounds during the time covered by the advisory, including recess, extracurricular activities and recreational programs by community groups.


Countywide

Fairfax County planners want to expedite their review process for public school facilities with several projects on the horizon.

The county Planning Commission’s schools committee held a meeting to discuss Fairfax County Public Schools’ upcoming capital projects on June 4.


News

Three people employed by Fairfax County Public Schools were arrested this week for different crimes at local schools, including one case of allegedly inappropriate behavior with a student.

According to the Fairfax County Police Department, Langley High School math teacher Matthew Thorsen, 38, was taken into custody at his home in Reston yesterday (Thursday) after detectives found that he had “engaged in unlawful and inappropriate contact with a student.”


Countywide

A Muslim civil rights group is suing Fairfax County Public Schools for suspending several students after they created a “kidnapping” video for social media to promote their chapter of the Muslim Student Association (MSA) last fall.

The video was intended to depict a “playful overreaction” in response to a “specific, viral comedy skit circulating nationwide,” according to a filing submitted by the CAIR Legal Defense Fund today (June 4) in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in Alexandria.


News

Fairfax High School’s response to reports that a student was groping female peers was fully consistent with Fairfax County Public Schools protocols for handling sexual misconduct, Superintendent Michelle Reid says.

FCPS hired an outside law firm in March to conduct a review of how staff and administrators handled the complaints against 18-year-old Israel Flores Ortiz after multiple parents of victims told WJLA that they felt the school had “diminished” their children’s experiences and “attempted to sweep it under the rug.”


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