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Westfield HS PTSA
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PTSA E-Tidbit News
PTSA E-blast 6-15-14 DATES TO REMEMBER:
6/15: Girls LAX State Championship game, 4:30 pm at Lake Braddock HS-NOTE CHANGED DATE/TIME
6/15: Baccalaureate
6/16 and 6/17: Graduation Rehearsal (Required!)
6/16: Sports Physicals Night/WHS Merchandise will be available for sale
6/16: Senior Awards Night (Letters were mailed to those receiving awards)
6/18: Graduation! No school for underclass students
6/18: All Night Grad Celebration – Tickets still available/Must purchase inadvance
6/19: Final PTSA Meeting of the year, 7 pm
Here are several updates from the PTSA and several groups around WHS:
- Congratulations to the girls Lacrosse team! They will be playing in the State Championship game TODAY at 4:30 pm at Lake Braddock HS. The team will face Oakton. Please support the team and go see some fantastic LAX! Tickets: $10 (This is a changed time, due to storms late last week.)
- Congratulations to the WHS Theatre Department for 14 Cappies Nominations! And congratulations to the winners in 4 categories: Samantha Dempsey (Lead Actress in a Musical), Julian Sanchez (Featured Actor), Kristen Chiama and Allison Tickner (Lighting), and Stephen Cox, Sarah Dickenson, David Koenigsberg and Emily Tobin (Props).
- PLEASE HELP support WHS by volunteering for a 2014-2015 WHS PTSA vacancy! The time commitment varies for each position with some being minimal and others needing a little more time. The following positions are available: Mulch Chair/Co-Chair (late winter-spring), Directory Chair (early in school year), Bulldog BBQ Co-Chair (summer—NEEDED asap—learn how it’s done from an experienced co-chair), Legislative Representative (year long), and Parent Programs Coordinator (plan 2 events per year). Please consider donating a little of your time to helping make Westfield a success! Rising 9th grade parents are encouraged and invited to volunteer – what a great way to get to know the school. Thank you to Kristi Finn for assuming the Membership Chair position, Karen Lowe for taking the Back to School Nights Bulldog Café position, and Nancy Monaghan for becoming the new Special Education Chair!
- The final PTSA Meeting of the Year will be this Thursday, 6/19 at 7pm in the library. Please join us as we recognize our volunteer of the year, hold elections, and give updates on recent and future events.
- Staff/Teacher Appreciation Lunch Thank You: Thank you to everyone who helped make the staff/teacher appreciation lunch so great! A special thanks to Karen Fiala for organizing.
- ANGP Tickets-Did your student forget to purchase a ticket? The absolute final deadline is Monday, 6/16: The price is now $75 per ticket. Ticket order form, payment and permission forms must be turend in Monday. This is a “will call” event – no physical ticket will be given to your student. As long as your student’s name is listed on the PTSA website (see link below), your student should check in at the event between 11:00 pm and midnight. A volunteer will call the parent of any student who does not arrive by midnight. Copies of the permission forms are in the main office and on the PTSA website at ptsa.westfieldhs.org under the ANGP ticket tab. Every attendee must have the forms completed, even if they are 18 years old. Contact Jeannie Donahue with questions at jr.donahue@verizon.net To see the list of who has purchased a ticket so far, visit: http://ptsa.westfieldhs.org/students/see-who-is-coming-to-the-party.html Reduced price tickets are available for those who qualify (see your guidance counselor).
- Senior parents: There is still time to order the senior class panoramic picture that was taken last fall. The link to order is: https://vando.imagequix.com/1299019766 Also, as an fyi, images from graduation will be uploaded to the same gallery a few days following graduation.
- Changing school start times is in the final stages of discussion by the School Board and FCPS. As it has been presented, there will be a change in the start times for FCPS schools, beginning in the 2015-2016 school year. Please be informed and let your opinion be heard. There are pros and cons to both sides of the issue. The cost for the transportation changes alone will be several million dollars ($2MM to $7MM, depending on the approved plan – according to FCPS published information). The total cost for the changes is not known, according to a FCPS representative at the Centreville HS community meeting. Let all members of the School Board know your thoughts. For more information on the four possible changes to the FCPS start time schedule, please visit http://www.fcps.edu/news/starttimes.shtml and please complete the Online Survey about start time changes: FCPS offers an online survey regarding the changing start times. Visit fcps.edu or https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/starttimes to take the survey.
- Centreville HS meeting on Changing Start times update: At last week’s community meeting at Centreville HS regarding changing the start times, the majority of people voted for option #5, which was written in as an option. Option #5 is “no change at all to the current start times”. A presentation was made by the Children’s National Medical Group that performed a FCPS school board sanctioned study. In the presentation, statistics were presented about the impact of lack of sleep on teenagers. However, when questioned, the speaker and other representatives revealed that the statistics were not presented fully and completely and some numbers were included without full representation for what they stood for. One example was a figure of 1800 accidents in Fairfax County involving young drivers during a sample period. When asked, the presenter could not specify what time of day these accidents occurred, whether they were attributed directly to lack of sleep or if lack of experience or other issues may have been factors. Additionally, the presenter could not identify a school system as large as FCPS, or close to the size of FCPS, that has made a change such as this that will impact as many people as this will (185,000 students/1,000,000 family members, staff, etc). While no one seems to be suggesting that kids can’t use more sleep, the majority in attendance did not agree that changing start times was the answer. Impact research needs to be done and accurate data on the total cost of the proposed change needs to be figured. As Montgomery County, MD just realized as they cancelled their plans to change start times, the total cost is most likely significantly higher than the transportation costs outlined in FCPS options #1-#4. Please complete the survey (link above, #6) and make your voice heard.
- Budget Impacts at Westfield: While the plans to change start times and add millions of dollars of expenses to FCPS are underway, there are budget shortfalls that have and will directly affect Westfield. Class sizes will increase, several teaching positions have been eliminated, and the attendance office will be closed, to name a few.
- The Westfield Sports Physical Night is scheduled for Monday, June 16th. This is a great way to get your student’s VHSL physical for the 2014-2015 school year and it supports the awesome Athletic Training Department! Rising freshmen are eligible and invited to attend this event. To register, visit http://www.fcps.edu/supt/activities/atp/ppe/register-athlete.shtml
- The indoor concessions stand will be open during the sports physical night. Available for sale will be Westfield merchandise. Cash and checks accepted. Remember, WABC members receive a 10% discount on most merchandise.
- Yearbooks are being distributed! Students should go to Mr. Whitten’s room to pick up their yearbooks. A photo ID is needed. All yearbooks have been sold but many still need to be picked up.
- Westfield Reads Program announced: This year, all students and staff will read Peak, by Roland Smith. For more information on Westfield Reads and other summer assignments, please visit the WHS website: http://www.fcps.edu/WestfieldHS/index.html
- Ordering from AMAZON? Please go to the PTSA website and click on the Amazon link that is on the right side of the page, about half-way down. Once you click, you’ll be taken to Amazon and can order as usual. A percentage of your order total will be donated to the WHS PTSA – at no cost to you! Thank you for your support of this “silent fundraiser” set up by our Ways and Means Chairperson, Bhavani Koneru!
- Class of 2018 Bulldog Bootcamp registration is ongoing. Information available at: http://www.fcps.edu/WestfieldHS/academics/summerassignments/summerassign/bootcamp.pdf
- Summer Sports Camps/Information: Information is available at http://www.westfieldathletics.org/ regarding summer basketball camps. Lots of information available about all Westfield sports at this website.
The Westfield High School PTSA
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