Prince William County Public Schools

School Board Meeting April 6, 2016

Select this link to view the agenda on the Electronic School Board webpage.

Select this link to view the School Board Meeting on PWCS-TV.

The School Board Approved:

• April as National Autism Awareness Month;
• April 18‒22 as Public School Volunteer Week;
• April 24‒30 as Administrative Professionals Week and April 27 as Administrative Professionals Day;
• May as Jewish American Heritage Month and Asian Pacific American Heritage Month;
• May 1‒7 as Teacher Appreciation Week and May 3 as National Teacher Day;
• May 2‒6 as Exceptional Children's Week and School Food and Nutrition Services Employee Week;
• The agreement between the Prince William Board of County Supervisors and the Prince William County School Board to allow PWCS to use the Confined Space Training Prop/Facility located at Fire Station #24 for staff training;
• The contract award to Kenbridge Construction, Inc., for the addition/renovation at Antietam Elementary School;
• The contract award to Sumter Contracting Corporation for the addition/renovation at McAuliffe Elementary School;
• The contract award to Hess Construction + Engineering Services, Inc., for the renewal/renovation at Saunders Middle School;
• The dedication of right-of-way and easements at Kyle R. Wilson Elementary School for the widening of Minnieville Road;
• The naming of the Library at Leesylvania Elementary School in honor of Mrs. Rebecca Wheaton;
• The Payrolls for February 2016;
• The School Board meeting minutes of March 16; and
• The appointment of Ms. Victoria Cole-Rolon to represent the Neabsco District on the Safe Schools Advisory Council for a two-year term.

Citizens' Comment Time:

Citizens addressed the Board on the following topics:

• Career and Technical Education and Project Lead the Way at Woodbridge High School;
• ESOL and the gifted programs;
• Godwin Middle School renaming;
• School Library Month;
• Bullying; and
• MakerSpace labs.

Presentations:

• Mr. Mickey Mulgrew, associate superintendent for High Schools; Mr. Neil Beech, principal of Osbourn Park High School; and the Osbourn Park Teacher Team, presented on continuous student achievement and best practices at Osbourn Park. Click to see presentation slides.
• Mrs. Rita Goss, associate superintendent for Student Learning and Accountability; Mr. Ken Bassett, director of Student Learning; and Mr. Jeff Girvan, supervisor of History and Social Science, gave a presentation on the textbook adoption process for History and Social Science textbooks.

Superintendent's Time:

Dr. Steven L. Walts, Superintendent of Schools, made the following comments:

• Henderson Elementary students, Patrick and Avrie Mosley, earned a full ride scholarship to Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama this summer.
• Students and staff at the Independent Hill School/PACE East Program placed first in the state in the National Recycle Bowl competition for the second consecutive year.
• Mrs. Shelia Coleman, assistant principal of Woodbridge High School, and Deputy Superintendent Rae Darlington, received the Educational Leadership Award at the Dale City Multicultural Achievement Awards and Scholarship Banquet.
• Parents are invited to attend a special session on bullying prevention scheduled for Monday, April 11, at 7 p.m. at Benton Middle School. Bob Garrity, a respected mediator and bullying prevention trainer from Charlottesville, will be on hand to deliver practical tips and suggestions for parents on how to communicate with their children about bullying. Members of our Student Services staff will be there as well to share strategies on what schools and staff are doing to prevent bullying behavior.
• The Under Secretary for the United States Department of Agriculture, Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services, Kevin Concannon, recently visited Enterprise Elementary School to recognize our School Division's accomplishments in school food operations. He toured the kitchen to see first-hand the outstanding job our schools do in preparing breakfast and lunch for students.
• The Student Leadership Conference was held on the campus of George Mason University. More than 1,200 PWCS middle and high school students attended this event. Presenters included many of our own teachers, administrators, counselors, and social workers, as well as business partners and Prince William County police officers.
• Dr. Walts stated that he attended several School of Excellence celebrations recently and congratulated staff at Porter and Pennington Traditional Schools, and McAuliffe Elementary on their outstanding achievements.
• The 46^th Annual All-County Arts Festival was held at Hylton High School. It was great to see the creative talents of students in our K‒12 Visual and Performing Arts programs.
• April is designated as "Month of the Military Child" to show support for military children and to thank them for their strength and sacrifices. We ask all of our families, staff, and students to participate in "Purple Up Day" on April 15 by wearing purple as a special way to recognize military families.

School Board Matters:

Topics raised by School Board members for Board discussion and possible action:

• Board members rejected a proposal to undo their previous decision to rename Godwin Middle School. Consequently, the school will be renamed in honor of George M. Hampton, effective with the start of the 2016-17 school year.
• The Board suggested that Policy 854-1, "Naming of School Facilities and Building" be discussed at the next School Board meeting.

Volume 11, Number 14 - Publication date: April 8, 2016

Information and Public meetings of the School Board are broadcast on pwcstv.com

(Select "Video on Demand"), Comcast Channel 18, and Verizon Channel 36.

School Board Meeting Information

School Board meetings are held in the School Board Meeting Room at 14715 Bristow Road, Manassas. Citizens who wish to address the School Board under Citizens' Comment Time may notify the Board Clerk in writing, by phone, or by email prior to noon on the day of the meeting.

Please include your address, phone number, and topic of discussion. Your contact information will not be shared with the public. Clerk to the School Board, P.O. Box 389, Manassas, VA 20108, Phone: 703-791-8709 - Email: pwcsclerk@pwcs.edu

Citizens may also sign up to speak prior to 6:55 p.m. on the day of the meeting.

Closed Sessions start at 6 p.m. and are followed by public sessions, which start at 7 p.m.