Dale City Elementary School Principal Brian Slater high fiving a student on the first day back to school in 2025

Dear PWCS Families, Employees, and Community,

Happy New Year! We are thrilled to finally have our students back with us for the first day of school of the new year.

Our primary concern is always the safety of our students, staff, and faculty. As we learned throughout the pandemic, school systems are called upon to provide more than academics. Our schools, teachers, and staff provide critical support, resources, and care for our children.

When our schools are closed, many students’ basic needs go unmet. Of the number of families reporting, nearly 32,000 students in PWCS are identified as economically disadvantaged, and many more rely on the resources provided by our schools. Closing school also disrupts the educational progress of our students and the schedules of our families, impacting childcare and work arrangements. Therefore, the decision to close schools for any reason is a challenging and consequential one that I do not take lightly.

Weather-related school closure decisions are not made in isolation. It is a collaborative effort made with expert advisors from facilities, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), and local and national meteorologists. On Wednesday, January 8, I met with regional VDOT engineers to assess our roads, address and treat poor road conditions, and ensure bus routes were safe for travel prior to making the decision to reopen schools.

As we move into 2025, there will undoubtedly be more days of inclement weather, and we must find new and innovative ways to overcome challenges that threaten access to education. PWCS is developing snow emergency routes to expedite normal operations during future weather events. We will continue prioritizing the safety and well-being of our students and our core business of education—because we can do both.

I wish to recognize our dedicated employees who work tirelessly to prepare our schools for reopening after weather-related events. Thank you to our facilities, custodial, maintenance, and transportation staff for their work during the first significant winter storm of the season. I also would like to express my gratitude to our bus drivers for their commitment to transporting students to school safely.

With an immense amount of gratitude, I also wish to recognize those school leaders, teachers, parents, and volunteers who have stepped forward and helped clear the residential sidewalks, parking lots, and bus stops in the community for our students to get to school on time. Ensuring student safety and educational access is the collective responsibility of the entire PWCS community. It takes everyone working together with a common mission to realize our vision for every student to create a thriving future for themselves and their community.

Access to education begins with engagement. PWCS offers several opportunities for parents and guardians to positively impact their child’s education by continuing to offer workshops and webinars through the Family Engagement Series and Parent Resource Center. As always, our sessions are free and provide crucial information to keep our PWCS families and communities informed and engaged as partners in education. We have many upcoming sessions, including:

This week the School Board held its first meeting of 2025. The Board elected Tracy Blake, of the Neabsco District, as the Vice Chairman of the Board. I look forward to continuing work with the School Board to launch thriving futures for our students.

Next week, PWCS joins Virginia in celebrating Virginia Schools Principals Appreciation Week. This annual event recognizes the leaders who contribute to the success of our schools. Principals play a key role in setting standards of excellence, fostering relationships that support student and staff achievement, and leading with core values. We acknowledge their leadership and the hours they dedicate to making schools effective environments for learning, growth, safety, and belonging.

Thank you for your ongoing support and participation as we strive to make 2025 a year of opportunities and success.

Sincerely,
Dr. McDade signature
LaTanya D. McDade, Ed.D.
Superintendent
Prince William County Public Schools