Lily Dunlap of Herndon Middle Wins Peace Poster Contest
Lily Dunlap, an eighth grade student at Herndon Middle School, won a competition sponsored by the Reston Lions Club.
French Immersion at Herndon Elementary in Jeopardy
Program at Herndon Elementary could be changed to Spanish Immersion, parents object.
Herndon Elementary School has announced a proposal to discontinue the school’s French Immersion Program, one of two in the county, and replace it with a Spanish Immersion Program. Principal Ann Gwynn said that the French program would continue until 2019, meaning incoming first graders next year would be the last students who could take the program to completion.
News Briefs
As Democratic delegates fight to keep firearms further from school property, Republican Bob Marshall (D-13) is pushing legislation to bring more guns in. Marshall is the chief patron of HB 1557, which would require every school board in the state to designate one volunteer to carry a concealed weapon on school property. Training for selected volunteers would be provided by either the Virginia Center for School Safety or the NRA, of which he is a member.
Making Schools Safer
Two Northern Virginia Democrats take part in panel to consider school security.
Do Virginia schools need more guns? That question is at the heart of a debate that’s now reaching a fever pitch in the commonwealth, especially after a man with a Bushmaster assault rifle blasted his way into a Connecticut elementary school and killed 20 children and six adults before killing himself. Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell responded to the tragedy by creating a School Safety Task Force, which is considering a proposal for every school in Virginia to have an armed school resource officer.
Week in Herndon
Hutchison Elementary Receives Donation From Time Warner Cable
Students and teachers at Hutchison Elementary School will be able to purchase and use additional supplies for their STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) initiatives as a result of a $70,000 donation from Time Warner Cable
Oakton Rules the Pool
Oakton High School’s Varsity Swim and Drive teams continued their undefeated season with a win over Herndon High School Friday night, Jan. 11. The girls won with a score of 197 points over Herndon’s 112. The boys won 194 to 121.
Area Roundups
Resiliency Expert to Speak at Robinson
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) will host a presentation by resiliency expert Nan Henderson—Resiliency in Action: How Families, Schools and Communities Create 'Bounce Back’ Kids—on Tuesday, Jan. 29, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at Robinson Secondary School. This free presentation is designed for parents, school staff, and community members.
My Year in The USA
Why are we doing this? Why are we going away from our families for one year and move into a family's house we don't know? We are exchange students and we wanted to learn more about another country, about the culture, the language and the people.
Herndon High Cadets Go to National Championship
Herndon High’s Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (NJROTC) cadets are actively preparing for the Orienteering National Championship, to be held on Feb. 16 and 17 at the Patuxent River Park in Upper Marlboro, Md.
Readers of the Pack
What Fairfax County residents read in 2012.
According to Mary Mulrenen, spokesperson for the Fairfax County Public Library, Fairfax County readers selected many of the same fiction and non-fiction favorites that caught the attention of book-lovers nationwide. Dr. Seuss, science-fiction and, once again, lawyers (John Grisham’s 25th legal thriller) topped the charts.
Enhanced Security Around Schools
FCPS releases message about Connecticut tragedy.
On Sunday, Dec. 16, Superintendent Jack Dale sent an email message to all FCPS families and employees. He said the Fairfax County Police Department will be increasing patrols and visibility this week around all FCPS schools, including elementary schools, in response to Friday's tragedy in Connecticut.
Brief: Herndon, Oak Hill Students Perform in The Nutcracker
Conservatory Ballet celebrates 40 years of holiday magic.
Brief: More than 30 elementary, middle and high school students from Herndon and Oak Hill will dance in the Conservatory Ballet’s 40th anniversary production of the holiday classic, “The Nutcracker.”
Editorial: Learning in a Global Community
Students in Fairfax County speak 160 languages.
This week our ongoing series about immigration in Fairfax County takes a look at county schools, and some of the joys and challenges of having a diverse student body that speaks as many as 160 different languages at home.
Herndon High Performs ‘Brigadoon’
Theater department puts on annual fall musical.
For many cast members in the Herndon High School Theatre Department, the musical "Brigadoon" wasn’t a familiar title to them. The story of two New Yorkers who stumble upon a mystical disappearing Scottish village features one of the young men, Tommy, who falls in love with one of the town’s residents, only to be confronted by the fact that the town only appears once every hundred years.
Schools Using Diversity for Student Benefits
Immersion, ESOL programs aim to take advantage of area cultures.
As Fairfax County has experienced massive growth in its international population, its effects have spread to its educational institutions. Forty-four percent of the Fairfax County Public Schools students come from homes that speak a language other than English, which includes 160 different languages.