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Fluvanna County School Board Announces Superintendent Search
PRESS RELEASE – December 15, 2020
For Immediate Release
On December 9, 2020, Mr. Winkler, Superintendent, announced his retirement effective June 30, 2021, and at this time the Fluvanna County School Board announced they will begin the process of hiring a new superintendent. The Fluvanna County School Board has selected the Virginia School Boards Association (VSBA) to assist the Board with the superintendent search. The first step in this process is seeking input from the community regarding the qualifications and characteristics they would like to see in the next Superintendent.
The School Board has created a survey related to superintendent criteria, which is available at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/FluvannaCoSurvey and on the home page of the Division’s web site (www.fluco.org). Hard copies of the survey are available at the School Board Office (former Palmyra Elementary School) and each school location. Please return all hard copies to the Fluvanna County School Board Office to the attention of Brandi Critzer, Executive Assistant to the Superintendent and Clerk to the School Board.
In addition to the survey, the board will hold a public hearing:
Date:
January 13, 2021
Time:
6:30 p.m.
Location:
Fluvanna County School Board Office 14455 James Madison Highway Palmyra, VA 22963
“Hiring a new superintendent is the biggest task a school board will face and we want to make sure that the public has a voice in this process,” said School Board Chairman, Perrie Johnson “We hope that parents, staff and residents will take time to fill out the survey or attend the public hearing.”
FCPS November 2020 Return to School
Dear Fluco Families,
At their October meeting, the Fluvanna County School Board voted to resume in-person learning on November 5, 2020 under a hybrid model for all PreK-12 students. Families will still be given the choice to continue with the virtual learning option.
Our current instructional calendar will be adjusted slightly, and November 2nd-4th will now be scheduled staff days for teachers in order to prepare to make this shift from virtual to in-person learning. Additionally, January 29th will be a staff day to accommodate the semester change, and the second semester will begin February 1st.
The FCPS Health Mitigation Plan will be followed by all staff and students who attend in-person. Face mask coverings will continue to be required for all staff and students at all times, with the exception of designated mask breaks. Health screenings, temperature checks, and 6 feet social distancing will also be implemented.
Health mitigation strategies will also apply to FCPS provided transportation. In addition to required face coverings, social distancing on the buses will limit capacity to approximately one-third of our typical ability to transport. We are asking assistance from families to please consider transporting your child to and from school if you are able. Bus passes will not be issued due to the planning needs to ensure reduced capacity on our buses.
School instructional hours for hybrid in-person have been adjusted to accommodate for reduced capacity of transportation, teacher planning time and fatigue due to wearing face coverings for the duration of the school day:
- West Central Primary and Central Elementary 8:00 am – 2:00 pm
- Carysbrook Elementary and Fluvanna Middle School 7:45 am – 1:45 pm
- Fluvanna County High School 9:00 am – 3:25 pm
Under a revised hybrid model, students will continue to receive 5 days of instruction through in-person and/or virtual/remote. Wednesdays will now be a virtual/remote learning day at home for both “A” and “B” students to maintain 5 days of instruction each week. Every effort will be made to keep your student’s teachers the same; however, please know this will heavily depend upon the overall response we receive from parents. Schools will communicate directly with families regarding any changes in teacher assignments.
The following schedules are samples for in-person hybrid instruction. Virtual instruction will continue on a modified schedule in order to reduce the amount of screentime for students. These are samples. Your child’s school and teachers will be communicating updated schedules directly with families prior to November 2nd.
West Central Primary and Central Elementary
We are requesting that you please complete this intent form for each student in your household by October 20th regarding your instructional choice to move to a hybrid in-person instructional model, or remain virtual. A commitment of your choice for the remainder of the school year is needed in order to make preparations necessary to support family choice and the implementations of our health mitigation plan.
If you are choosing to return to in-person instruction under the hybrid model, please contact your child’s school if there have been any changes to emergency contacts or medical information.
Si usted necesita ayuda con la traducción de este documento, favor de llamar o textear a Jocelyn Stevens a (434) 981-4910; o se puede poner en contacto con ella a jstevens@apps.fluco.org. Nos alegra poder brindarle servicios de interpretación o traducción a su familia.
FLUVANNA COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT COMMENDED IN 2021 NATIONAL MERIT® SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
Troy Stephens, FCHS Class of 2021
PRESS RELEASE – October 1, 2020
Fluvanna County High School announced today Troy Stephens has been named a Commended Student in the 2021 National Merit Scholarship Program. A Letter of Commendation from the school and National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC), which conducts the program, was presented to this scholastically talented senior.
Although they will not continue in the 2021 competition for National Merit Scholarship awards, commended Students place among the top five percent of more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2021 competition by taking the 2020 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/MNSQT®).
Troy is the son of Troy Stephens and Rachel Kelly of Kents Store. He is a member of the Blue Ridge Virtual Governor’s School (BRVGS). He competes in track, cross country, lacrosse, basketball, and baseball. He is a member of the Beta, Trebuchet, Interact Clubs and is a Boy Scout. Troy has been recognized by the High School staff for excellence in: Geometry, Algebra II, Biology, and Pre-Calculus. Troy plans to major in physics and applied mathematics at the collegiate level. He is applying to Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard, and California Institute of Technology.
“Those being named Commended Students have demonstrated potential for academic success,” commented a spokesperson for NMSC. “These students represent a valuable national resource; recognizing their accomplishments, as well as the key role their schools play in their academic development, is vital to the advancement of educational excellence in our nation.”
Troy joins a list of academically talented students from Fluvanna County High School who have received National Merit Recognition including:
Claire Kent (2020)- National Merit Commended, University of Virginia
Liam Bridge (2018)- National Merit Commended, York College of Pennsylvania
Bayley Leshon (2018)- National Merit Commended, College of William and Mary
Harrison Lee (2017)- National Merit Finalist, Carnegie Melon Institute
Jonathan Corbin (2016)- National Merit Finalist, U.S. Naval Academy
For additional information about PSAT testing at the High School, contact Angie Blevins, School Testing Coordinator at ablevins@apps.fluco.org or 434-589-3666.
For more information about the National Merit®, contact Brenda Gilliam, Executive Director for Instruction and Finance at bgilliam@apps.fluco.org or 434-589-8208.
Fluvanna Continues to Surpass the State Average for On-Time Graduation 2020 Cohort Report
PRESS RELEASE – September 30, 2020
The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) released state-level, division-level, and school-level cohort reports that detail outcomes for students who entered the ninth grade for the first time in 2016 and were scheduled to graduate in the spring of 2020. High school cohort reports for schools, school divisions, and the Commonwealth are available for viewing and downloading in the Virginia School Report Card section of the VDOE Web site: http://www.doe.virginia.gov/statistics_reports/graduation_completion/cohort_reports/index.shtml
This is the twelfth calculation by the state of a longitudinal dropout rate, which tracks students beginning with their ninth-grade year, rather than an annual reporting for a particular school year. The graduation rate is indicative of those students who earned advanced, standard, special, or general achievement diplomas. Students earning a GED are not included in the calculation. The dropout rate reflects those students who permanently left school and does not include students who are continuing to seek a diploma beyond the four years.
Fluvanna’s on-time graduation rate of 95.6 percent surpassed the state’s rate at 92.3 percent. The county’s dropout rate of 2 percent in 2020 was lower than the state’s average of 5.1 percent.
Compared with the 132 school divisions across the state of Virginia, Fluvanna ranks 26th for fewest dropouts and 28th for On-Time Graduation.
The state’s report disaggregates the graduation and dropout data to reflect student subgroups. Fluvanna exceeded the state’s performance in 13 of the 14 areas for on-time graduation and dropouts.
The tables below provides a breakout for all subgroups compared to the state and the previous year’s results.
| Subgroup | Cohort | Graduate | Dropout | |||||||
| 2020 | 2019 | 2020 | 2019 | 2020 | 2019 | |||||
| Fluvanna | Fluvanna | State | Fluvanna | State | Fluvanna | State | Fluvanna | State | ||
| All Students | 293 | 274 | 95.6% | 92.3% | 93.4% | 1.8% | 2.0% | 5.1% | 2.0% | 5.5% |
| Female | 146 | 132 | 99.3% | 94.3% | 93.9% | 1.5% | 0.0% | 3.9% | 0.7% | 4.0% |
| Male | 147 | 142 | 91.8% | 90.5% | 93.0% | 2.1% | 4.1% | 6.3% | 3.4% | 6.9% |
| Black | 49 | 49 | 89.8% | 91.3% | 91.8% | 2.0% | 4.1% | 5.0% | 2.3% | 6.0% |
| White | 222 | 197 | 96.4% | 95.2% | 94.9% | 2.0% | 1.8% | 2.5% | 2.2% | 3.1% |
| Students with Disabilities | 42 | 43 | 90.5% | 90.4% | 90.7% | 2.3% | 7.1% | 7.6% | 2.6% | 9.5% |
| Disadvantaged Students | 117 | 86 | 90.6% | 89.1% | 86.0% | 3.5% | 4.3% | 6.8% | 3.6% | 7.8% |
Fluvanna’s graduates earning an Advanced Studies Diploma was 53.9 percent, which was 8.6 percentage points higher than the previous year. The Advanced Studies Diploma prepares students to enter higher education and requires additional credits in mathematics, laboratory science, and history and social sciences as compared with the Standard Diploma requirements. The Advanced Studies Diploma also requires students to complete three years of foreign language and three additional Standards of Learning Tests. The chart below outlines the diplomas awarded to the class of 2020.
| Board Approved Diplomas
Class of 2020 |
||||||
| 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | ||||
| Fluvanna | State | Fluvanna | State | Fluvanna | State | |
| Total Diplomas | 95.6% | 92.3% | 93.4% | 91.5% | 95.6% | 91.6% |
| Advanced Studies | 53.9% | 51.8% | 45.3% | 51.5% | 49.8% | 52.0% |
| Standard | 38.9% | 38.1% | 44.9% | 37.2% | 45.7% | 39.6% |
| GED/Other | 2.7% | 2.6% | 0.0% | 3.9% | 2.4% | 2.9% |
For additional information, contact Brenda Gilliam, Executive Director for Instruction and Finance, at 434-589-8208 or bgilliam@apps.fluco.org.
Parent Feedback Survey: FCPS Revisiting Reopening Plans
Dear Fluco Families,
On Wednesday, October 14, 2020 our school board will be revisiting discussions regarding reopening plans, and we would like to provide them with updated feedback from our families now that we are a month into virtual learning. We will provide an additional update regarding our instructional plans following the meeting.
In accordance with our current COVID mitigation strategies, we would utilize our Hybrid Instructional plan to return to in-person learning two days per week. In this proposed hybrid model, the majority of our teachers will be assigned to either in-person or virtual/remote students. This will allow our teachers to focus their instructional efforts exclusively on one group, ensuring a quality experience for every student. This means that your child may not have the same teacher they have had since September 8th. Schools will communicate directly with families regarding teacher assignments.
There is a possibility of additional days per week for in-person instruction if classroom and bus capacity meets the criteria of our Health Mitigation Plan. Ultimately, the number of days that students will attend on-site will depend on the interest for in-person learning that we receive from families. Face mask coverings will continue to be required for all staff and students at all times, with the exceptions of designated mask breaks and outside activities.
Please know that even if there is a decision to return to in-person learning, we will continue to provide the choice for virtual/remote learning to our families for the remainder of the 2020-2021 school year. We are requesting that you please complete this survey for each student in your household by October 6, 2020 to provide information regarding your instructional preference for your child.
