Principal's Note - August 26, 2022
Good afternoon, Holmes Families!
We had a very smooth start to the school year this week! While we have some details to iron out and a few tweaks to make, we were very happy with the first few days of school! Buses arriving on time, the kiss-n-ride line, students finding their classes and remembering their lunch pin numbers...everything is going very well. I hope the same was true for your students. Please reach out to your student's counselor or administrator (contact information below) if you have any questions or concerns. We want to ensure that they have what they need to be successful.
Back to School Night
Please be sure to join us on Tuesday, August 30th, when we will have our Back to School Night from 5-8 pm. A team from Thomas Jefferson High School will present an information session at 5:00, and our class visits will begin at 6:00.
Laptops & Supplies
Students received their laptops and supplies this week. All students should have a laptop, charger, binder, and dividers. Inside the binder should be the bell schedule, the blue-white schedule, and the behavior matrix. We also recommend that students keep their schedules in the front sleeve of the binder until they have it memorized. If your student is having any issues with the laptop, the best time for them to visit Mr. Rossen and Ms. Mollick in M56 is before 7:30 am or during lunches.
Lockers
Now that students feel more comfortable getting to their classes and understand the schedule a little better, we will begin using lockers on Monday. We have built in time to practice during SOAR class on Monday and will have a "staycation" (stay inside) for recess to make sure they have enough time to feel successful opening the combination locks.
Recess
Recess was also a success this week! We have changed our structure this year so that all students can take advantage of the great fields, basketball courts, and soccer pitch that we have in the back of the school.
EHall Pass
This week, students were trained in our new electronic hall pass system, eHallPass. We are already seeing the benefits of this program as it allows a way for students to request a pass to leave the classroom for different reasons. It allows staff to approve passes with minimal interruption to instruction. Students are permitted to use 3 passes a day and should communicate with the teacher if they have an emergency. This program also allows us to have conversations with students when they are out of class too long or too often to stress the importance of being present in class to learn. We also have the capability to limit how many students are out of classrooms at one time and to keep students who may be having a conflict (or making poor choices together) from being out in the hallway together at the same time. We have already noticed the difference in our hallways and believe this additional safety and security measure will support all of our students' success.
Staffing Update
The good news just keep coming with our staffing at Holmes!! Here is the latest:
- Business & Information Technology: Our new teacher, Mr. Morris-Jones started on Tuesday, 8/23!
- Family and Consumer Sciences: Our new teacher, Ms. Riegel Cruz, started yesterday (Thursday, 8/25)!
- Special Education/6th Grade History (showing as "Powell" on student schedules): We have a hired an experienced Special Education teacher, Mr. Damian Phillips, who will be starting at Holmes in a couple of weeks! In the meantime, our long-term sub, Mr. Stephen O'Shea, will be substituting in those classes.
- Theater Arts: Our theater teacher, Ms. Murphy, is currently on maternity leave through November 11th. Our permanent substitute, Mr. Coaquira, has been substituting in her classes this week. Her long-term substitute with theater experience, Ms. Hill, should be starting after Labor Day.
Remember that FCPS needs teachers, counselors, bus drivers, substitutes, student monitors, etc. If you know of someone who is looking for work, please send them to explore our Career Opportunities.
Behavior Expectations
Phones & Earbuds
Students have been doing a great job this week keeping their phones and earbuds away for the day. We do have a few instances where students' phones and/or earbuds were turned into the office this week. Below is our process for addressing students who are having difficulty following this expectation:
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On-Time Arrival to Class
Students have also done an excellent job getting to class on time. To reinforce this, we will begin having conversations with 7th & 8th graders next week who had 3 or more unexcused tardies in a week. (NOTE: This includes students who arrive late to school in the morning, and the tardy is unexcused. Students whose buses arrive late will not be marked as unexcused. Students who arrive late in Kiss-n-Ride when there has been a unique traffic issue will not be marked as unexcused.)
IMPORTANT REMINDERS
SR&R Parent/Guardian Signature Sheet
Please log on to your SIS ParentVue account and sign to acknowledge review of this document OR sign and return this form to your child’s school by September 30, 2022.
MySchoolBucks
This is just a reminder that students must pay for breakfast and lunch this year. If you would like to add money to your student's account, you should use MySchoolBucks. You can also use this app to pay for fees for some classes like music and FACS. Students can also pay with cash. If you need to access free and reduced meals, please be sure to complete the application (link below in newsletter) as soon as possible.
Here are today's newsletter topics:
Holmes Updates
- Student Services Information
- 2022-23 Blue/White Schedule
- 2022-23 Bell Schedule
- Apply for Free & Reduced Meals
- Required Immunizations for School
- From Ms. Oncho, Our Family Liaison
- Important Upcoming Dates
- How to Stay Connected to Holmes MS
FCPS & Community Updates
- School-Required Vaccinations For Free
- Say Yes to FCPS Food & Nutrition Services
- Consider joining Fairfax County Neighborhood and Community Services Team
- Stay Connected with FCPS
Please feel free to reach out and let us know what questions you have. Thank you, and we'll see your students on Monday!
Sincerely,
Margaret Barnes
Proud Principal, Holmes MS
#TeamHolmes
HOLMES UPDATES
Student Services Information
2022-23 Blue/White Calendar
Most classes at Holmes are 85-90 minutes blocks. Blue days are odd periods, and White days are even periods. This calendar will also be posted to the website, and each student will receive a copy on the first day of school.
UPDATE: This week, we caught a mistake in our blue-white calendar for the week of February 27th. We will update you as we get closer to those dates.
Apply for Free & Reduced Meals
All students will have to pay for breakfast and lunch this year unless they qualify for free and reduced meals.
Families will need to apply for free and reduced-price meals, which they have not had to do since the onset of the pandemic in 2020.
- Online applications are now available.
- Paper applications will be available at schools (except ones designated as a CEP school) at a date to be determined.
- Approved FRM eligibility letters may also be used to provide additional benefits.
- Please know that we will not share your data or personal information with anyone else. See FCPS’ Trust Policy.
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When applying for FRM, don't forget to complete the "Consent to Share"
The Consent to Share Information Letter informs parents that their children may be eligible to participate in several fee-based programs (art, music, Family & Consumer Sciences, etc.) at either no cost or a reduced cost, if they participate in the Free and Reduced-price meals program, and provide a consent to share information form.
Some students are directly certified (i.e. Medicaid recipients) as receiving Free and Reduced-Price Meals. Even though they do not need to submit a Free and Reduced-Price Meals application, they will need to submit the Consent to Share Information form to be eligible for additional benefits.
The FRM application also includes a section with the Consent to Share information for other programs. If section four of the application is completed, the Consent to Share Information form does not need to be filled out.
Required Immunizations for School
All students need to have all of their required immunizations to attend school this year. All students are required to be immunized against certain communicable diseases to attend school in the state of Virginia. It is important for all students to receive the required immunizations.
Please talk with your family health care provider about whether or not your children are up to date on their vaccines before the new school year begins. Submit updated immunization records to Holmes as soon as possible by bringing them into the main office or scanning and sending a copy of the immunizations to Wendy Alfaro at @email.
More information on immunization requirements and the necessary documentation is available online.
From Ms. Oncho, Our Family Liaison
Important Upcoming Dates
- Tuesday, 8/30, 5-8:30 PM - Back to School Night (open to all families)
- Friday, 9/2 & Monday, 9/5 - NO SCHOOL / Labor Day Holiday
How to Stay Connected to Holmes MS
Please stay in touch with us throughout the year by:
- keeping your contact information up-to-date throughout the year
- visiting the Holmes MS website
- signing up for News You Choose
- following us on Twitter
- monitoring your student's progress with SIS Parent Account
- join the Holmes MS PTA and attend meetings
FCPS & COMMUNITY UPDATES
School-Required Vaccinations For Free
Say YES to FCPS Food and Nutrition Services
Stay Connected with FCPS
Being connected to your school and division is important every year, and even more so now as we navigate our return to school. The best way to stay informed is to sign up for newsletters through News You Chose.
Your school and FCPS have a variety of topics you can choose from, including:
- School Newsletters- featuring everything you need to know about your child’s school
- FCPS This Week- a weekly newsletter featuring news and happenings from across the division, published Wednesday mornings
- School Board Meeting Update- a recap of important news coming out of school board meetings, published the Friday morning after the meeting
- FCPS Employee News- weekly updates just for staff, published Tuesday mornings