Saturday, May 25, 2013
In budget approval, school board members divided on how best to keep teacher pay competitive moving forward.
After months of debate on how to fairly compensate Fairfax teachers and keep pace with salaries in other jurisdictions , the Fairfax County School board voted for a $2.5 billion budget Thursday that will give employees a 2 percent mid-year market-scale adjustment. Much of the Fiscal Year 2014 spending plan is dedicated to changing demographics and unprecedented student growth — 3,089 students are expected to join the system next year, pushing total enrollment to 184,625. To view the full budget, click here. The pay raise was the biggest hurdle in this year's budget, school board members said Thursday night as they debated several salary options. The school system received $61.7 million less than it had asked for in its annual transfer …
Friday, May 24, 2013
In budget approval, school board members divided on how best to keep teacher pay competitive moving forward.
After months of debate on how to fairly compensate Fairfax teachers and keep pace with salaries in other jurisdictions , the Fairfax County School board voted for a $2.5 billion budget Thursday that will give employees a 2 percent mid-year market-scale adjustment — making good on a commitment from school board members to provide some sort of compensation relief during this fiscal year. Much of the Fiscal Year 2014 spending plan, which passed on an 8-4 vote, is dedicated to changing demographics and unprecedented student growth — 3,089 students are expected to join the system next year, pushing total enrollment to 184,625. To view the full budget, click here. The pay raise was the biggest hurdle in this year's budget, school board …
Friday, May 17, 2013
Fairfax County School Board will hold listening sessions next week to help develop a strategic plan for digital learning.
Teachers, students and parents in Fairfax County didn't have the smoothest experience with digital learning in 2012-2013. As Fairfax County Public Schools rolled out a new online math program in Fall 2012, students and teachers complained they had difficulty navigating the books, saying there were publisher errors and inconsistencies, technology roadblocks and student difficulty in accessing the information, among other complaints, like a lack of teacher buy-in to the program. They said the program, instead of advancing learning and achievement, was pushing it back, calling the $10.4 million initiative "a big disaster" with no clear solution. The short-term solution was to re-negotiate contracts to get some hard copy books back in the …
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Teacher pay and foreign language cutbacks are also concerns as Fairfax County School Board looks for another $30 million in reductions for next year's budget.
If push came to shove, Jane Lipp would give her right kidney to keep an instructional coach at her school. The principal of South County High School, which has a 49 percent minority population, said that's the kind of sacrifice she'd make, drama aside, to keep a position that's been 'instrumental" in helping her teachers push the school's diverse student body to succeed. More than a dozen of the 40 speakers who addressed the school board Tuesday night in a public hearing about Fairfax County Public Schools' budget spoke about the role coaches play in the day to day lives of teachers and students, including their help toward narrowing student achievement gaps. The public hearing comes as the school board prepares to adopt a $2.5 billion …
Monday, May 13, 2013
Some school board members say "disconnect," mistrust still exists between principals, parents.
As the Fairfax County School Board prepares to vote on another round of changes in a years-long push for reform of its discipline policies, board members are struggling to find common ground on when parents should be notified if their child could be suspended or expelled. Fairfax County Public Schools staff returned to the school board Monday with a number of proposed changes to the Student Rights and Responsibilities Handbook, some of them based on a list of 52 recommendations to overhaul discipline practices systemwide a community committee put forth earlier this spring. See all proposed changes here. But parental notification — an issue on which there has been little agreement since the push for reform began following the suicide of two…
Superintendent of Fairfax County Public Schools had surgery for an aortic aneurysm May 7.
Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Jack Dale was released from the hospital Sunday after emergency heart surgery May 7. FCPS spokesman John Torre told Patch in an email Monday that Dale had been released from the hospital to recover from surgery at home. Dale was taken to INOVA Fairfax Hospital on May 7 after telling coworkers he hadn’t been feeling well that day. He had surgery after suffering an aortic aneurysm that night. Torre said Dale was expected to return to work sometime in early June. “He is making progress and is not expected to return to work until early June on a part time basis,” he wrote in his email. Dale is planning to retire this summer. Deputy Superintendent Richard Moniuszko is managing superintendent duties …
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Dale underwent surgery for an aortic aneurism Tuesday evening.
Jack Dale, the outgoing Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent, underwent emergency heart surgery Tuesday evening after suffering an aortic aneurism. The Washington Post reported Wednesday that Dale, 64, was conscious and resting at the intensive care unit of Fairfax Inova Hospital in Falls Church. He was taken to the hospital in an ambulance Tuesday evening after telling coworkers he was feeling unwell, the Post reported. As of Wednesday afternoon, he was in stable condition. Hospital officials were unable to comment further on Dale’s condition Thursday afternoon. Dale is planning to retire this summer but it’s unclear whether he will return to his post after recovering from surgery. FCPS spokesman John Torre told Patch on …
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
After medical emergency, Fairfax County Public Schools leader in stable condition at a local hospital.
Update 1:18 pm: "We are optimistic Dr. Dale will return to work before his scheduled retirement," Schools spokesman John Torre said. Original: Just more than a month before he is set to retire, Fairfax County Public Schools superintendent Jack Dale has been hospitalized after a medical emergency. Fairfax County School Board Chairman Ilryong Moon said Dale had a medical emergency late Tuesday afternoon. He is in stable condition at a local hospital, Moon wrote. Deputy Superintendent Richard Moniuszko will step in to manage superintendent duties, Moon said. "On behalf of the entire FCPS community, our thoughts and prayers are with Dr. Dale and his family and we look forward to his return," Moon wrote. Schools spokesman John Torre said no …
Thursday, April 18, 2013
Superintendent from Lubbock, Texas will step in as leader of Fairfax County Public Schools on July 1.
Karen Garza was officially appointed Thursday as the next superintendent of Fairfax County Public Schools. Garza, currently the superintendent of the Lubbock Independent School District in Texas, will start July 1. The school board approved Thursday a four-year contract for Garza, through June 30, 2017. Read: New Fairfax Superintendent: 'I Am A Constant Learner' In remarks after the unanimous vote, Garza said her primary focus will be on teaching and learning, "for that is our core work." "To our stakeholders, our employees, our parents and our business and community partners, I pledge to be responsive and accountable to all Fairfax County schools stakeholders," she said. Garza also said she planned to be "very visible," noting the best …
Fairfax County Public Schools new leader says she'll focus on teaching and learning as she succeeds Superintendent Jack Dale, who retires June 30.
In her first public appearance in Fairfax County, incoming superintendent Karen Garza said her focus would be on teaching and learning and responding to students and their needs — a philosophy she intends to continue if she begins work here this summer. At a press briefing late Thursday afternoon, she said she'd seek input from a wide range of stakeholders when approaching difficult situations. "I think every decision you make and every challenge that you face, having various voices included in those solutions ... makes for a much better decision," she said. Garza, currently the superintendent of the Lubbock Independent School District in Texas, was officially appointed the next leader of Fairfax County Public Schools at the school board's…
Michael
1:22 pm on Saturday, May 25, 2013
It's not strictly true to say that the Board of Supervisors "could not provide a pay increase" to their employees. The truth is they could have, and CHOSE not to. Nobody prevented them from offering a raise. They adopted a tax rate lower than advertised and CHOSE to devalue their employees. It is simply dishonest to suggest otherwise. more ›