We are breaking the rules here. Newsletters are supposed to be short. We know it is a long list - but trust us, it is worth scrolling down to see some amazing things going on in our schools.

Fairfax High School

• Four students accepted into the 2015 Virginia Governor's Foreign Language Academies.

• Science Olympiad team earned 4th place in the  state. Honored as the state's team of the year for their leadership in Virginia Science Olympiad. Five students earned first place medals.

• Fairfax HS ranked 32nd - and 8th among FCPS high schools - in a Washington Post listing of the region's most challenging high schools.

• FHS students were state champion for gymnastics all-around and for outdoor track 1600-meter run.

• One FHS student selected DECA Virginia State Secretary. Nineteen students finished in top 8 in Virginia DECA leadership class.

• Three students recognized at national level of Scholastic Art awards program.

• One Grand Prize Winner and 10 First Place Winners at Regional Science Fair.

• TSA Robotics team finished second in the DC region Mini-Urban Challenge and participated in national competition.

• Field hockey team were regional champions and advanced to state semifinals.

• Earned Virginia Honor Band status.

• 30 students recognized for their performance on the National French Exam.

• 47 students earned a medal on National Latin exam and 33 students recognized at Virginia Junior Classical League Latin Convention.

• 12 students invited to participate in the Governor's School programs this summer.

• Our spring musical, BIG, received nine Cappies nominations and won two Cappies awards.

Fairfax Academy for Communications and the Arts

• Social Media Marketing is a new academy class starting this fall. Students will learn to create and manage advertising campaigns and public relations campaigns through Social Media Sites.

• A Fairfax High School Academy student received a foreign exchange scholarship to Korea for the summer to continue her training in the Korean Language.

• Academy applications have been simplified. Counselors can sign up a student online with a parent request, just by inputting the student id number.

• A record number of students in Musical Theater and other academy classes received scholarships for their continuing education.

• Grace Medrano and Abhi Opesh, Chinese Level 2 students, will be participating in this year's Chinese Bridge summer camp in China. The camp is sponsored by China's Confucius Institute headquarters. Grace and Abhi will spend two weeks in China visiting Beijing and other cities in July.
  

Lanier Middle School 

• Lanier Middle School will welcome a new principal, Erin Lenart next year (see side photo). Mrs. Lenart joins LMS from West Springfield HS and Thoreau MS. Look out for more about our new principal in future newsletters.
• LMS continued to participate in food donation program where parents and volunteers pick up uneaten, unopened food to the Lamb Center.
• School counselors recognized in RAMP program, as a national model program.
• Continued environmental leadership in county and state
• Welcomed Chinese foreign exchange students and teachers in summer 2014. The students met with current LMS staff, discussed differences between the two countries and met with students for a picnic.
• Expanded Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and is one of the leading middle schools in the county integrating technology in the classroom.

Providence Elementary School

• Welcomed new assistant principal, Janice Suitte.
• PES SCA donated two boxes of toys to Inova Children's Hospital through a school-wide toy drive.
• FCPS National Title I Distinguished School Nominee.

• The PES Staff raised over $1000.00 towards Kidney Cancer Research at Lombardi Cancer Center in memory of their dear friend and colleague Barb Jelinek.

• PES held its 3rd annual Autism Awareness event "Understanding Friends". Understanding Friends is an interactive, sensory and coordination program for general education students grades 3rd-6th to increase understanding classmates with autism. 

• 2015 Science Olympiad School/Team of the Year
• 2015 FCPS Web Star Award for outstanding website and communications
• FCPS Mentor of the Year, Robert Sowell. Profiled on NBC News here.

Daniels Run Elementary School

• Welcomed new assistant principal, Dustin Wright.
• DRES held their first Read-a-Thon and students read for over 117,000 minutes! 

• Six DRES teachers recently attended a Kagan Workshop and are implementing new strategies for student engagement in higher level discussions.

• Conducted a "Literacy Symposium" for 20 teachers in continuing drive to increase literacy among all students.

• DRES PTA was recognized by National PTA as a PTA School of Excellence.

• Welcomed a small touring group from the American Boy Choir that performed for the students in May. Twenty-nine male students volunteered to 'audition'  with a conductor to feel what a real audition was like.

• Named a Virginia Naturally School for the 9th consecutive year.

• Worked with FHS students to create a "reading buddies" program, where high school students came to read to and with kindergartners and first graders.