Poe Family Newsletter November 3, 2025

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RAVEN REPORT

Wow! I can’t believe we are already in November. I hope you all are enjoying some extra sun this morning, I look forward to getting to work in the morning and it not being pitch black! It’s also hard to believe that the first quarter is over. Today our staff came together for a general session to reflect on where we are with our school priorities: meaningful relationships and support, strong collaboration and collective ownership, and high quality instruction. I’m proud of the work we are doing and look forward to another wonderful quarter with your students!

Follow us on Social Media: To see the latest from Poe MS follow us on Instagram at @poeravensfcps!

Important Dates

11/3: School Planning Day- Student Holiday

11/4: Teacher Workday- Student Holiday

11/5: Open Gate (Weapons Detection System) Roll Out

11/10: Youth Survey (during advisory no 4th period)

11/11: Holiday

Raving Ravens

This Saturday I had the pleasure of seeing our cross country team in action. Our assistant athletic director, Tracey Copley, and our coaches Katrina Schwein and Yasmin Paraskevas, work so hard to support our students and despite the challenges, they are there cheering students on and working behind the scenes to provide opportunities for them. And our students are working so hard and it was so great to see so many of them challenging themselves and trying something new. Thank you to our staff and community for continuing to support the team either by donating or coming out Saturday to cheer them on- we are stronger together!

FRED Cards: Here’s what people are saying about our amazing staff. Below are some of the highlights from the recent FRED Cards that were submitted. The person’s name is who is being highlighted followed by what was said about them by a colleague. I will continue to highlight them in each Raven Report so keep them coming!

Marcela Ardaya: “You are such a treasure! Poe is so incredibly lucky to have a teacher who cares as deeply and passionately as you! You are such a bright light, and I am so glad to know you!”
Leslie Carl: “I don't know what we would do without you! You always are willing to help and even if you aren't the "right person" to ask for something, you still make it happen!”
Sarah Ummen-Miller “Thank you for befriending me at Poe and always being willing to answer my questions!”

Opportunities

Thank a Teacher Art Contest: Together with The Supply Room, the Virginia Lottery is excited to announce that the 9th annual Thank a Teacher Art Contest is officially open for entries! This contest celebrates the creativity of Virginia’s K–12 public school students and the incredible educators who inspire them. We invite you to encourage your students to participate and showcase their artistic talents! This contest is open to all K-12 students and the entry period is from October 20- February 2, 2026. Winners will receive a $200 gift card, their art classrooms will receive $2000 in supplies, and the winning art will be featured throughout Virginia. Click here to apply!

Winter Olympics Camp: Thanks for your past support of Annandale Camps. Annandale High School's Booster club is hosting two Winter Olympics Camps held at Poe Middle School December 22 and 23rd and Annandale High School December 29 and 30th. Your child(ren) will have an incredible time with our wonderful coaches for a very affordable price of $80 each camp. Camps run each day from 8:30am to 3:00pm. If you are going to be in town, make some time for yourself and make sure your kids are having fun and getting some exercise. Attached is the flyer and here is link to sign up https://bit.ly/Winter25Camp.

Important Information

Download the New FCPS Mobile App! The FCPS mobile app offers a customized platform to help keep families connected and informed, directly from their smartphones. You can download the Fairfax County Public Schools mobile app by going to the Apple App Store or Google Play Store and searching for “FCPS.”

With the app you can:

Stay up-to-date:Get the latest news from Poe MS and FCPS.
View school calendars:See events, activities, holidays, and early dismissals.
Check school menus:See what’s for lunch and breakfast today, tomorrow, or next week.
Tap to contact:Quickly call attendance lines or email school staff.
Access key links:Jump to ParentVUE, Schoology, and the FCPS website in one tap.

Users can access updates and content without having to sign in, making it easy for everyone to stay informed. Learn more about the new mobile app, including feedback from parents.

FCPS Honors Nominations: It’s that time of the year where we honor our amazing staff at Poe by recognizing those who exemplify FCPS excellence. Please take some time to nominate a colleague for the following nominations:

Outstanding Teacher: nominees from this category must be teachers who have completed their first three years of teaching. Nominees must be teachers who:

Instill in students a desire to learn and achieve.
Understand the individual needs of students, encourage their talents, and foster their self-esteem.
Showcase a thorough knowledge of subject matter and the ability to share it effectively with students.
Proactively facilitate cooperative relationships with their colleagues, students, and the community.
Demonstrate outstanding leadership.
Foster an environment where diversity in all of its forms is valued and appreciated and demonstrate keeping equity at the center of their work.

Outstanding New Teacher: nominees from this category must be within their first 3 years of teaching. Nominees must be teachers who:

Exhibit superior instructional skills
Interact exceptionally well with students
Demonstrate excellent ability to communicate and engage with faculty, staff, parents and the community
Foster an environment where diversity in all of its forms is valued and appreciated and demonstrate keeping equity at the center of their work

Outstanding Leader: nominees from this category must currently work as a full time school based administrator and have completed one year of employment in FCPS. Common positions from this category include associate principal, assistant principal, director of student services, director of student activities. Nominees must be leaders who:

Provide a unique and exceptional contribution to FCPS through their work.
Demonstrate outstanding leadership in the workplace and commitment to their field.
Strengthen and improve the FCPS working or learning environment through their work.
Foster an environment where diversity in all of its forms is valued and appreciated and demonstrate keeping equity at the center of their work.

Outstanding New Principal: nominees from this category must currently work as a full time principal and are in their first three years of principalship in FCPS. Nominees must be leaders who:

Gather, analyze, and use data for student achievement.
Communicate a clear vision for school improvement and stakeholder engagement.
Maintain effective discipline and foster a safe environment for students and staff.
Exhibit effective communication skills when working with staff and community members.
Model professionalism and promote the professional growth of others.
Foster an environment where diversity in all of its forms is valued and appreciated and demonstrate keeping equity at the center of their work.

Outstanding Professional Employee (School-Based): nominees from this category must currently work in a position that supports school leadership. Common positions in this category include Dean of Students, SBTS, TSSC, assessment coach, social worker, speech pathologist, instructional coach, social worker, school psychologist, counselor, and safety specialist. Nominees must be employees who:

Provide a unique and exceptional contribution to FCPS through their work.
Demonstrate commitment and leadership in their field.
Foster cooperative relationships with colleagues and/or the community.
Foster an environment where diversity in all of its forms is valued and appreciated and demonstrate keeping equity at the center of their work.

Outstanding Operational Employee: nominees from this category must have completed one year of contracted work in FCPS. Nominees from this category typically include administrative and office assistants, custodial staff, food services staff, IAs, PHAs, PHTAs, and family liaisons. Nominees must be employees who:

Provide a unique and exceptional contribution to FCPS through their work.
Demonstrate commitment and leadership in their field.
Foster cooperative relationships with colleagues and/or the community.
Foster an environment where diversity in all of its forms is valued and appreciated and demonstrate keeping equity at the center of their work.

All nominations are due by November 7. Please find the submission form here.

Family Academy Offers Opportunities to Support Parents and Guardians: The FCPS Family Academy offers resources and in-person and virtual classes, workshops, webinars, and programs for families. The following webinars and workshops will take place in November:

ABA Family Training: Prioritizing Skills to Teach at Home
Co-Parenting: Two Parents, Two Homes (in Spanish)
Supporting Your Military-Connected Student in Secondary School
Moving on to Life in the Community

Other Family Resource Center webinars will cover topics such as communication with twice exceptional children, family engagement in the special education process, restorative justice practices in schools and at home, and improving routines.

Visit the Family Academy Catalog to learn more about these and other resources.

Impact of Federal Shutdown on Local Community: Fairfax County is home to around 80,000 federal employees and thousands of federal contractors. Its Federal Workforce Resource Hub is intended to help navigate current and future issues for residents, government employees, active military/veterans, contractors, nonprofits and businesses who may be affected by actions, changes, or disruptions to federal services or employment. Community Resources for Families in Need: Through partnerships with community-based organizations and other Fairfax County agencies, Fairfax County Coordinated Services Planning (CSP) provides information, referrals, and advocacy to help individuals connect with services, including: basic needs (food, shelter, clothing), financial assistance, health care services, and referrals to services and resources.

Visit the CSP website or call 703-222-0880 for assistance.

How to Access or Donate Food to Those in Need: View the Emergency Food Access Providers webpage to see where to access food or donate to your local food bank.

Services for Hearing-Impaired and Visually-Impaired Students: Students with sensory disabilities require special services and support to access instruction that is typically presented auditorily (by means of hearing) and visually. FCPS provides educational services to students who are deaf, hearing-impaired, or visually impaired. They are supported in various settings, including at their school site or through itinerant specialists who travel to different schools to work with students, rather than being based in a single school. Learn more about Services for Students Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing and Services for Students Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired.

The Virginia Department of Education also provides information about Additional Resources for Serving Students with Sensory Disabilities.

Inspire Immunization Events for All FCPS Students: Inspire Health Alliance, in partnership with FCPS, will be providing school-required immunizations and optional flu shots for all FCPS students.

immunizations will be provided at no out-of-pocket cost to students or families.
Registering families will be required to provide insurance information, if applicable, but students without insurance may still participate.

Current event dates are listed below. Additional dates will be made available throughout the school year, 4-5 weeks prior to the event, on the public webpage.

Willow Oaks Administrative Office, 8270 Willow Oaks Corporate Drive, Fairfax, VA:

Thursday, November 6; 3-6:30 p.m.
Tuesday, November 18; 3-6:30 p.m.
Wednesday, November 19; 3-6:30 p.m.
Thursday, November 20; 3-6:30 p.m.

Frost Middle School, 4101 Pickett Rd. Fairfax, VA:

Saturday, November 15; 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

For more information, or to help families schedule an appointment for their student, please visit our FCPS and Inspire Health Alliance Student Immunization Events | Fairfax County Public Schools webpage.

Youth Survey: We will be administering the Youth Survey on November 10 to 6th and 8th graders during an extended advisory session. Students will not have 4th period this day. To make up for the missing 4th period, we will have no advisory on November 14. Parents and caregivers can opt their student out of participating in the survey if they so choose. Please email Mr. Tyler Miller at tmiller@fcps.edu if you would like to opt your child out. Visit the Fairfax County Youth Survey webpage for more information and to review the opt-out forms.

Return Your Federal Impact Aid Survey: FCPS is asking all families to fill out a Federal Impact Aid Survey. The form is available in SIS ParentVUE under Online Packets, which is in the upper right corner of the screen after logging in. Please complete it as soon as possible. We will provide paper forms to families who have not completed the survey in ParentVUE starting Wednesday, November 12.

Completing this form for each school-aged child in every household is important. This year, FCPS expects to receive approximately $4 million in Impact Aid funding. These funds are used to support all Fairfax County public schools and centers.

For more information, visit the Federal Impact Aid Survey page.

Register for ParentVUE: Learn how to activate your SISParentVUE account, so you can easily submit your survey and have access to other helpful information about your child.

Technical support for using ParentVUE or submitting the survey online is available by submitting a Parent Support Request ticket. Select SISParent in the Application dropdown menu and type “Federal Impact Aid Survey” in the Issue Description section. You may also call the Parent Technology Help Desk at 833-921-3277 (833-921-FCPS).

SIS ParentVUE End-of-Quarter Closure: The Gradebook in SIS ParentVUE and StudentVUE will be closed for the end of the first quarter from Friday, October 31, 4 p.m. to Monday, November 10, 6 a.m. Activate your ParentVUE account to easily access grade reports.

How Bond Projects Are Selected: Each year, the School Board and FCPS staff members work with the community to develop an updated, five-year Capital Improvement Program (CIP) for school building and renovation projects. To develop the CIP, the school system assesses changes in expected enrollments, academic programs, and facility conditions to determine priorities for new construction, renovations, and other capital facility projects. The School Board then evaluates the affordability of these school needs against other countywide requirements to determine the bond proposal.

Because of this, while FCPS and the School Board generally try to follow the CIP, changes can be made year-over-year depending on the evolving needs of the school division.

The School Board is committed to protecting the community’s investment in schools and other buildings, which have a combined present value approaching $9 billion. Not only do these facilities wear out over time, but they also become outdated, both technologically and instructionally. FCPS renovates its schools to ensure that students, countywide, have effective and efficient learning environments to thrive and grow.

Read more about the FCPS 2025 Bond Referendum. Learn more about registering to vote. Make a voting plan and vote on Tuesday, November 4.

Changes to Middle and High School Report Card Feedback: With the first quarter of the school year ending on Friday, October 31, families can expect student report cards to be available the week of November 10.

FCPS has revised the way teachers provide feedback on report cards, so you may notice some new comments. Specifically, comments have been revised to provide more detailed feedback for students and families.

Also, teachers will now include a Work Habits mark each quarter for each student. This