Midlothian High School

Summer graduation Almost 100 Chesterfield County Public Schools students who fulfilled high school diploma requirements this summer will graduate during a 6 p.m. ceremony on July 25. The graduation will be livestreamed here: https://www.youtube.com/live/vK_cmx-bvjM?si=InI2UpyGdIFonD_y.

Partnership with police department

Chesterfield County Public Schools and the Chesterfield County Police Department have a close connection, working as partners to protect students and school staff members. A memorandum of understanding, which is updated regularly, provides a framework for the partnership. The Chesterfield County School Board invites public comment on an updated memorandum of understanding.

• To read the draft updated memorandum, click this link or copy the url and paste it into your browser: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LPF2X_l5E4aZPXf7CYW3NLk2W0-XVZdD/view
• Email comments to ccpsinfo@ccpsnet.net before Aug. 4.

Award-winning teachers

Congratulations to CCPS world language Teachers of the Year:

• Jane Baskerville Excellence in Teaching Award: Tessa Wilkey, German teacher at Manchester High
• Jane Crouch-Rieder Excellence in Teaching Award: Amira Moncada-Ossorio, Spanish and heritage teacher at Midlothian High
• Exceptional World Language Leader Award: Kelly Burleson, Latin teacher and world languages department leader at Manchester Middle
• Novice Teacher Award: Nic Barker, Spanish teacher at Clover Hill High

School bus road-e-o

CCPS bus drivers gathered June 3 for a road-e-o, a friendly competition to demonstrate skills needed to safely transport students. The road-e-o included spotting safety problems and navigating an obstacle course. Some school system leaders also tried driving a bus (accompanied by an experienced trainer). School Board Chair Dot Heffron, Chief of Operations Josh Davis and Transportation Director Calvin Frye only knocked over a few cones on the obstacle course!

Retrieve your student’s medication June 3-4
Parents and guardians must pick up their children’s medications from the school clinic, but the medications must be available for student use through the last day of school on May 31. All remaining student medications, including over-the-counter medications, may be picked up from the school clinic during normal school hours June 3-4.
After 4 p.m. June 4, all leftover medications will be packed and turned over to the Chesterfield County Police Department for disposal. Once medications are packed for police collection, they cannot be retrieved so it is important for parents to pick up medications on time. Late pickups are not permitted, and medications cannot be stored at the school during the summer.
All medications must be picked up even if your student will attend summer school. At the beginning of summer school, parents will need to provide children’s medication to the summer school coordinator at your child’s summer site. Please contact your child’s school nurse to request a copy of the medication order for all medications being administered during summer school.

El Librotazo, the big book party, is planned for July 9: During this event, each child in attendance from birth through high school will select 3 to 5 books to keep to add to their home libraries. Additionally, attendees will enjoy activities, cultural performances, a mobile exhibit from the Children’s Museum of Richmond, music, food and more. This free event will be held Tuesday, July 9 from 5-8:30 p.m. at the Chesterfield County Fairgrounds. Chesterfield County Public Schools will host the event in partnership with the Chesterfield Education Foundation and Dominion Energy.

Prom closet seeks community donations

This video shows how Monacan High is helping trim the cost of prom by offering free dresses, suits and accessories for students. As a service learning project, students run the Chiefs Closet like a boutique — complete with attractive displays, business communications and social media promotions. Community donations to the prom closet are welcome and can be left in the front office of Monacan High (11501 Smoketree Drive). This year’s prom is May 11. If you have questions, please email teacher meredith_shuman@ccpsnet.net.

Spring Into Wellness on April 29

Families are invited to a mental health resource fair organized by Chesterfield County Public Schools. Spring Into Wellness will take place 4:30-7:30 p.m. April 29 at CTC@Hull (13900 Hull Street Road). Registration is required for this free event. In addition to more than 30 wellness vendors, speakers will cover these topics: Motivation and goal setting for tweens and teens; Understanding your child’s nature for happier parenting; and College prep and student wellness. Register at https://bit.ly/48EpdGM.

Polar plunge supports Special Olympics - Midlothian High raised more than $5,000 for the Special Olympics, then to celebrate that success about 30 teachers and administrators plunged into cold water as students cheered from the bleachers. Each plunger chose a walk-up song like “Ice Ice Baby,” “Cold as Ice” and the theme from “Rocky.”

Black History Month - Midlothian High kicked off Black History Month with a breakfast, a performance of “The Penny Executive: The Maggie Lena Walker Story” and a field trip to the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.

A virtual Coffee & Conversation discussion will focus on intellectual disabilities. The Family and Community Engagement Office of Chesterfield County Public Schools will host the free webinar 1-2 p.m. Feb. 28, and a representative of Chesterfield Mental Health will be the featured speaker. Click here to register and to see upcoming Coffee & Conversation topics.

CCPSOnline classes are open to students in grades 9-12. With learning available 24/7 in a no-bells, no-limits virtual environment, the flexibility of CCPSOnline classes can help high school students create the schedule they want. Act now to take advantage of this Chesterfield County Public Schools opportunity:

• CCPSOnline registration for summer 2024 and for the 2024-25 school year is open through April 28, and the website offers details including registration form.
• Students and parents are invited to a virtual info session about CCPSOnline at 6:30 p.m. March 4; click this link to join the discussion.

Parents can create list of books their student cannot check out

Chesterfield County Public Schools continues to be at the forefront of ensuring that parents and guardians have transparency about school library books.

The district recently added a feature to the online catalog for school libraries that offers another avenue for families to be involved in what their children read. Starting now, parents can create a list of books that their student will not be allowed to check out. (This new feature is in addition to existing opportunities for parents that provide online access to their student’s school library accounts and the ability to opt in to receive an email when their student checks out a book.)

Follow these steps to take advantage of this new method of overseeing what your child can check out from the school library:

• Look up your public access catalog login ID by going to ParentVUE using a web browser on a computer or mobile device (not using the mobile app). In ParentVUE, go to My Account to find Adult ID#. (Contact your school if you need help accessing your ParentVUE account.) Your public access catalog login ID is your ParentVUE adult ID number with G added to the front. For example, if your ParentVUE adult ID number is 123456, then G123456 is your public access catalog ID.
• Select your child’s campus on the school system’s library catalog page.
• Click My Account on the left side of the screen.
• You will be prompted for a library card number and PIN. Your library card number is your ParentVUE ID number with G added to the front. Your PIN is the last four digits of your ParentVUE ID number.
• Add books you do not want your student to be able to check out to a prohibited resource list. This document provides details about how to build a prohibited resource list for your student.

ADHD is topic of Feb. 7 Coffee & Conversation

A virtual Coffee & Conversation discussion will focus on ADHD. The CCPS Office of Family and Community Engagement will host the free webinar 1-2 p.m. Feb. 7, and Melissa Ackley of Chesterfield Mental Health Prevention Services will be the featured speaker. Click here to register and to see upcoming Coffee & Conversation topics.

Marching toward winter break - Superintendent Merv Daugherty’s winter break video may be the best thing you see today. Huge shoutout to Clover Hill High’s Marching Cavaliers and band director Brianna Gatch!

• Winter break for students and teachers will begin Dec. 22 and continue through Jan. 5.
• School offices and school system buildings will remain open to the public Dec. 22, Dec. 27-29 and Jan. 2-5.

Learn about earning college credits while in high school - Parents and students are invited to learn about the advanced academic programming available in Chesterfield County high schools. The Dec. 6 virtual session is for rising 11th and 12th grade families; the Dec. 14 virtual session is for rising 9th and 10th grade families:

• Families of rising 11th and 12th graders: Are you interested in learning about college readiness, advanced academics and opportunities your student has to earn college credit in high school? Rising juniors, seniors and their families are invited to a virtual information session at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 6 to learn about advanced academic course offerings, talk about expectations for participation in rigorous courses and discuss how these can benefit students in their college experience. Also, Brightpoint Community College will discuss dual enrollment courses. Register here for the Dec. 6 session. The meeting link will be emailed to you before the event.
• Families of rising 9th and 10th graders: Are you interested in learning about college course readiness and advanced academics? Rising 9th and 10th graders and their families are invited to a virtual information session at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 14 to learn about pathways of rigorous, college-level courses that will count for high school graduation while simultaneously earning college credit. Also, Brightpoint Community College will discuss dual enrollment courses. Register here for the Dec. 14 session. The meeting link will be emailed to you before the event.

Special education information for parents

• Survey due Dec. 15: Parents of school-age children and youth with disabilities who receive special education services are asked to complete the Virginia Department of Education annual parent involvement survey. The survey is open through Dec. 15. Please complete one survey for each of your children who received special education services in the 2022-23 school year. If you have questions, please email Chiquita Seaborne or call 804-225-3898.
• Updated guide to special education: Available now from the Virginia Department of Education is the Virginia Family's Guide to Special Education. The department developed this new guide to help those involved in special education, whether as families, teachers, school administrators, advocates or students. Meeting the needs of children with disabilities requires an understanding of rights and responsibilities, which include the child’s rights and the school’s responsibilities to meet their needs. This guide includes a description of the special education process and what is required during each step of that process. The guide is currently available in English; translations will soon be available in Spanish, Arabic, Amharic, Urdu and Vietnamese.
• Website: Lots of helpful information is available on the special education for families webpage of the Virginia Department of Education.

Families invited to free showing of “Screenagers Under the Influence” - Chesterfield County Public Schools invites parents and teens to a free showing of "Screenagers Under the Influence: Addressing Vaping, Drugs and Alcohol in the Digital Age" at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 12 at CTC@Hull (13900 Hull Street Road). A panel discussion with health specialists will follow the screening. Get more information and reserve your free tickets here. "Screenagers Under the Influence: Addressing Vaping, Drugs and Alcohol in the Digital Age" examines the impact of technology on teens' decision-making about vaping, drugs and alcohol. Exploring the latest research and learning more about the personal experiences of teens and families, the film highlights the changing landscape of the substances, offering solutions for how to best empower teens as they face decisions about what they will and will not be influenced by. The film debunks myths and depicts strategies parents and schools can use to encourage healthy decision-making, support teen mental health, set limits and create healthy home environments. The film also includes many ways young people are using their wisdom and strength to help each other and themselves through this complicated terrain around substance use. https://tinyurl.com/ysgpmwv7

Register for upcoming Coffee & Conversations, scheduled through January. The next of these virtual gatherings is titled “Helping Your Child With Self-Regulation” and will take place 1-2 p.m. Dec. 6. Coffee & Conversation is hosted by the Chesterfield County Public Schools Office of Family and Community Engagement.