<mh>Teachers Receive NEA Grants
<lst>Michelle Greaver and Kristina Hedberg, teachers at Deer Park Elementary, recently received the National Education Association Foundation's learning and leadership grants. Greaver, a second-grade teacher, and Hedberg, who teaches English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), have implemented a literacy program for second-grade students with limited English skills. The program is designed to help the students learn to read, write and speak English through one-on-one guided reading, hands-on activities and a books-on-tape take-home program.
<mh>Bjork Makes High Honor Roll
<lst>Lars T. Bjork of Centreville was named to the High Honor Roll at Governor Dummer Academy in Byfield, Mass. A member of the class of 2002, he achieved a GPA of 3.3 or higher.
<mh>Dwyer on Dean's List
<lst>Matthew Dwyer, a 2000 graduate of Chantilly High School, was named to the fall Dean's list at Denison University. A sophomore political science major, Matthew is the son of Jeanie and Kevin Dwyer of Mother Well Court in Herndon.
<mh>Kindergarten Registration
at Centre Ridge School
<lst>Centre Ridge School is currently planning kindergarten registration for the 2002-03 school year. Children who will be 5 years of age on or before Sept. 30, 2002, must be enrolled in kindergarten for the 2002-03 school year, unless parents or legal guardians notify the school in writing. To schedule an appointment to register your child, or to request additional information, call Peg Peixotto at (703) 227-2600 between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
<mh>Westfield Pyramid Traveling Art Show
<lst>March is Youth Art Month — a month to celebrate and appreciate art in the schools. In the Westfield Pyramid, art teachers have been working together to plan events for the month. For the second year in a row, teachers from Virginia Run, McNair, Cub Run, London Towne, Floris, Deer Park, Stone Middle and Westfield High have exchanged student artwork for the Westfield Pyramid Traveling Art Show. Each school selects 10 pieces of artwork to be exchanged. The student artwork is then displayed at different schools for the month of March. Each school gets to display artwork that ranges from elementary to high school — thus allowing students to experience different levels and types of art from local artists like themselves.
<mh>STEP Tutors and Mentors Wanted
<lst>STEP — Saturday Toward Excellence Program — is in need of tutors and mentors. The program offers nonprofit tutoring and mentoring at Chantilly High School for students in elementary, middle and high school. Tutoring sessions run from 9:30-11:15 a.m. The following subjects are in need of tutors: calculus, geometry, algebra, general math, chemistry, physics, biology, general science, social studies, Spanish, French, reading, elementary math, reading and language arts. Call Barbara Tyler, STEP coordinator, at 703-830-8039.
<mh>Virginia Run PTA Meeting
<lst>Virginia Run Elementary will hold a PTA meeting on Thursday, March 7 at 7 p.m. to discuss Learning Community Options, including multiage classrooms and the possibility of a full-day Kindergarten. Full-day Kindergarten is a keystone of the Success by Eight model.
<mh>Regional Science Fair at Robinson
<lst>Students from 27 Fairfax County public and private schools will compete in the 47th Annual Fairfax County Regional Science and Engineering Fair, scheduled for March 8, 9, and 10 at Robinson Secondary School.
More than 600 high school students will enter projects in the fair. Judging will take place on Saturday, March 9, and the fair will be open to the public on Sunday, March 10, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Winners will be able to compete at the state and national levels, and grand prize winners will have the opportunity to have their projects reviewed for possible patent applications.
<mh>GBW Family Dance
<lst>Greenbriar West Elementary will hold a Family Dance on Friday, March 8 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. in the school cafeteria. The dance will feature Bristol Sounds DJ, group dances, and group activities such as limbo, hula hoop and twist contests.
<mh>Artists At Play
<lst>In honor of Youth Art Month, two schools have come together to collaborate on a project called "Artists at Play." Students from Westfield High and Virginia Run are creating artwork that uses the theme "places where we play." Students from Mrs. Bark's Advanced Photography Class visited Miss Poll's fourth-grade class in art to talk about the artist David Hockney, work in small groups to take photographs with digital cameras, and then recreate the places from the images. The artwork will be on display at Starbucks on Stone Road for the month of March. The opening reception for "Artists at Play" will be Friday, March 8 at 6:30 p.m.
<mh>Chantilly High Dance Fund-Raiser
<lst>All Chantilly High School parents are invited to an adult dance to mingle and boogie with fellow Chantilly High parents. Entertainment will be provided by "Peter Warren and the Dial Tones." This fun-filled event takes place on Saturday, March 9 from 8-11 p.m. in the gym. Tickets are $20 per couple and will not be sold at the door. To purchase tickets, call 703-378-8384 or 703-631-1573. Proceeds will benefit the Alcohol-Free, Drug-Free All-Night Graduation Party for the Class of 2002.
<mh>Poplar Tree Elementary Carnival
<lst>Poplar Tree Elementary School PTA will host its 12th annual Spring Carnival on Saturday, March 9 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Poplar Tree Welcomes the World with an international theme featuring flags from countries around the world. There will be carnival games, a full food court with baked goods, hot dogs, chili, pizza and more, two moon bounces, cake walks and animal walks, a 50/50 raffle and a "basket" raffle. The event will be held at the school on 13440 Melville Lane in Chantilly and is open to the public. Call 703-803-1030.
<mh>Trends of Alcohol, Tobacco, Substance Use
<lst>Suzanne Martone, FCPS teacher and Cluster Liaison for Alcohol and Drug Awareness, will be conducting a presentation concerning substance use by our youth. It will be held Tuesday, March 12 from 4:30-6 p.m. at Centreville Elementary School, 14330 Green Trails Blvd. The presentation will address current trends of alcohol, tobacco and other dangerous and illegal substances being utilized by our students.
<mh>SW County Middle School PTA Meeting
<lst>An organizational meeting for the new PTA at the Southwest County Middle School will be held Thursday, March 14, at 7 p.m. in the Union Mill Elementary cafeteria. Information will be presented, and principal Audra Sydnor will be on hand to meet the parents. The initial focus will be on getting volunteers, committee chairmen and candidates to run for positions on the PTA executive board. Call Jill Mullins at 703-266-4660.
<mh>Music Together Demonstration Class
<lst>Music Together, a music and movement program for children ages 0-4, will be holding a free demonstration class on Thursday, March 14 at 10 a.m. at Little Rocky Run Recreation Center #1. The program builds on your child's natural enthusiasm for music and includes songs, rhythmic chants, instrument play, movement and finger plays. Call 703-370-0258 to RSVP.
<mh>Lees Corner Fun Fair
<lst>Travel Back to the Future at Lees Corner's Fun Fair to be held Saturday, March 16 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Have your cosmic fortune told by "Madam Jetson," take the 50/50 Raffle Chances, and watch out for some Out of this World games and old favorites.
<mh>Apply for Pleasant Valley Preschool
<lst>Pleasant Valley Preschool, a non-profit cooperative preschool, is now accepting registrations for the 2002-03 school year. The school is located in the Greenbriar Community Center on Stringfellow Road. It currently has openings in the 3-year-old program which meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Children must be 3 by Sept. 30, 2002 to be eligible.
Class size is limited to 15 children. Contact Sue Comer at (703) 830-6169 or the school at (703) 378-6911.
<mh>Westfield Coalition Holds Drug Program
<bt>The Westfield Community Coalition will hold a program on Monday, March 18, from 7-9 p.m. at Westfield High School. Kevin Angelo, of the Fairfax County Safe and Drug-Free Youth Section, will present his program on drug paraphernalia and terms parents need to know to be more alert to the drug culture in our area. Attorney Charles E. Collins of Fairfax will also discuss the legal consequences of substance abuse. Substance abuse, its prevention and the results of a survey of 14,000 teens in Fairfax County Schools will be discussed with professionals. The program is free and open to all adults. Baby-sitting and refreshments will be provided. A separate, age-appropriate program will be held for school-age children. Any questions, contact Jennifer Campbell at 703-266-1742.
<mh>Community Input Sought in Naming New Middle School
<lst>Fairfax County Public Schools is seeking community input to name the new Southwest county middle school, scheduled to open in September 2002. The public is welcome to attend a community meeting on Tuesday, March 19 at 7 p.m. in the Union Mill Elementary School cafeteria. Union Mill is located at 13611 Springstone Drive in Clifton. Questions about student assignments to the new middle school can be directed to Gary Chevalier, director of facilities planning services, at 703-246-3608.
<mh>Reality Store at Mountain View School
<lst>With the help of the Herndon/Dulles Area Chamber of Commerce and Digital Focus, Mountain View School will have its Reality Store Event on Thursday, March 21 from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Through the project, adolescents envision the life they want for themselves, choose a career and a lifestyle and enter the "Reality Store" to pay their monthly bills. The objective is for the participants to learn to make wise financial decisions, and have money left at the end of the store.
<mh>Capitol Steps to Perform at Westfield High
<lst>The Westfield and Centreville High School Orchestras are collaborating to host two 90-minute performances of the Capitol Steps on Sunday, April 7, in the Westfield High School auditorium. The showtimes are 5 and 8 p.m. All tickets are $25 each for general admission seating. Tickets can be purchased by calling 703-488-6363, ext. 7203.
Capitol Steps is a comedy troupe of former congressional staffers who, for more than 20 years, have been aiming their wit at their former employers, politics and current events to provide an evening of musical humor.
For the Centreville High School orchestra, this will be the third time the Capitol Steps have come to visit. In the first two years, tickets sold out several weeks in advance of the event. Centreville High School's Orchestra Boosters through Principal Pam Latt and Orchestra Director Cheryl Cooley generously shared their success with the newly opened Westfield High School orchestra last year. Now Westfield High School Orchestra is returning their kindness by coordinating and hosting two performances of Capitol Steps.
<mh>Clifton Elementary School Plant Sale
<lst>The Clifton Elementary School PTA is conducting a spring plant sale fund-raiser. Nursery quality annuals and perennials are being shipped straight from the grower on Saturday, April 13. Proceeds from this fund-raising event will be used to provide additional computers for classroom instruction. For information and to request an order form, e-mail: cliftonplantsale@aol.com.
<mh>Chantilly Pyramid Holds 2002 Teach-In
<lst>The Chantilly Pyramid Minority Student Achievement Committee (CPMSAC) is sponsoring its 2002 Teach-In (formerly Lock-In). The event will be held on Friday and Saturday, April 26-27 at Chantilly High School. The theme of this year's event is "A Call to Commitment: High Academic Achievement." Several workshops will be held to help motivate and educate our children with the skills and attitudes needed to move to the "mountain top" (academic excellence, self-motivation) at school and in their personal lives. The workshops are intended for students in grades 6-12 and their parents. The cost is $5 per student with a family cap of $15. The $5 will be used to offset the cost of the food and sodas, which will be provided. Student participants and their parents must complete and return a registration form to CPMSAC by April 18. Featured speakers and expert participants will be provided. Free educational support materials for parents will be supplied. Call Berdia Foster at 703-803-8533, or Johnny L. Nelson at 703-968-2471 in the evening.
<mh>Design the Westfield High 5K Logo
<lst>The second annual Westfield High 5K Race and Bulldog Dash Committee is sponsoring a logo design contest for this year's race, scheduled for Saturday, May 11 at 8 a.m. The winning designer will receive a $50 cash prize, and his or her work will be displayed on all print and Web site promotions for the 5K Run including fliers, posters, entry forms and T-shirts. The design must be camera-ready or created as a high-resolution image. Logos can be in black and white or in color. Submit entries to the Westfield Art Department by Feb. 20. Contact art teacher Diane Giaccone at 703-488-6300.
<mh>Theater Scholarships Available
<lst>NVTA, formerly known as Northern Virginia Theatre Alliance, announces its sixth annual theater scholarships for high school seniors. NVTA is a non-profit organization comprised of community theaters throughout the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. Each year NVTA offers $1,000 scholarships to talented young people who intend to pursue the dramatic arts, musical theater or technical theater in college. The technical scholarship includes the areas of set design, costuming, lighting and make-up/hair design. The application deadline is Feb. 16, 2002. Call Anne Ridgway at (703) 330-ARTS.
<mh>Chantilly High Reunion
<lst>Chantilly High School's Class of 1992 will hold its 10-Year Reunion on July 20 at the Waterford at Fair Oaks in Fairfax. Call First-Class Reunions at 888-327-1984 or visit the Web site at www.fcreunions.com to update information.