New Chair Selected
<bt>Isis Castro (Mount Vernon) was chosen as the Fairfax County School Board's new chairman Thursday night, Jan. 9, by a vote of 8-4. The Republican-endorsed members favored Christian Braunlich (Lee) to replace Stuart Gibson (Hunter Mill). The board elects a new chair each year at the first meeting in January.
In supporting Castro, Kaye Kory (Mason) said: "Isis is the only board member to have taught in the district she represents and is the only Hispanic elected official in the Commonwealth."
At-large member Rita Thompson, who made the nomination for Braunlich, said: "Mr. Braunlich has provided strong leadership on this board."
Catherine Belter (Springfield) was elected vice chair by a 10-0 vote, with Thompson and fellow At-large member Mychele Brickner abstaining.
<sh>Other Board Actions
<bt>The School Board approved the following actions at its regular business meeting, Thursday, Jan. 9.
* Adopted revised policy 1203.1, Division Superintendent's Role, to incorporate the division targets into the superintendent's responsibilities.
* Adopted revised policy 1400.1, Charter Schools, pertaining to the maximum number of charter schools to be allowed, waivers of School Board policy and state regulation, a charter's term and school division reporting. Vote: 12-0.
* Adopted revised policy 1365.3, Distribution of Materials, which clarifies nonprofit organizations' limited nondiscriminatory access to distribute materials to students and to ensure that distribution of those materials "remains subordinate to and consistent with the schools' educational mission." Vote: 12-0.
* Adopted revised policy 3009.3, Challenged Materials, which creates "standing," meaning challenges raised by parents, students or schools' staff directly affected by the materials will have priority over challenges raised by non-affected citizens. It also requires complainants to completely fill out the necessary paperwork to accompany the challenge. An appeal to the School Board of decisions rendered by the appropriate department or the superintendent would be heard only if four School Board members agreed to hear the appeal. Vote: 9-3, with At-large members Rita Thompson and Mychele Brickner, and Christian Braunlich (Lee) opposed. In addition, Thompson proposed an amendment requiring the board to read the challenged materials before deciding whether or not to hear the appeal. Vote: 10-1, with Ernestine Heastie (Providence) opposed and Robert Frye (At-large) abstaining. Three other amendments proposed during the meeting failed.
<sh>Essay Contest
<bt> The Virginia State Bar and its litigation section will be holding the 11th annual Law in Society Award competition for high-school students. This year students are asked to discuss the legality of online file sharing, such as peer-to-peer networks that provide for online swapping of music files. Since almost all of the music files being exchanged are someone's copyright property, posting a copyrighted song for downloading by others, as well as downloading a posted song file, is infringing copyright laws. These and other issues are posted in a hypothetical that challenges the students to explore the ethics of online file sharing.
Awards are given to students whose essays show a superior understanding of the value of law in every day life. The essay competition is open to all Virginia high-school students age 19 or younger. The essay and entry forms must be received at the offices of the Virginia State Bar no later than 4 p.m., March 5.
The top-three winners receive a $1,000 savings bonds, or $500 in cash, for first place; $750 in bonds, or $375 in cash, for second; and $500 in bonds, or $250 in cash, for third. Seven runners up each receive a $100 saving bond, or $50 in cash. The first-place winner's essay will be published on the State Bar’s Web site. All winners will also receive a Law in Society plaque and a two-volume dictionary and thesaurus set.
Students interested in reading the hypothetical or obtaining entry forms can e-mail, lawinsociety@vsb.org, call 804-775-0586, or access the Web site at www.vsb.org/publications/lawinsociety/index.html.
<sh>FCPS Events Calendar
<bt>Wednesday, Jan. 15, 7 p.m.
School Health Advisory Committee meeting. Devonshire Center, 2831 Graham Road, Falls Church.
Wednesday, Jan. 15, 7:30 p.m.
* Gifted and Talented Advisory Committee meeting. Lacey Center, 3705 Crest Drive, Annandale.
* Adult and Community Education Advisory Committee meeting. Pimmit Adult Center, 7510 Lisle Ave., Falls Church.
* Advisory Committee for Students with Disabilities meeting. Belle Willard Center, 10310 Layton Hall Drive, Fairfax.
Monday, Jan. 20
Martin Luther King Jr. holiday for all Fairfax County Public Schools.
Tuesday, Jan. 21, 7 p.m.
School Board work session, finance & budget. Luther Jackson Middle School, 3020 Gallows Road, Falls Church.
Wednesday, Jan. 22, 7 p.m.
Human Resources Advisory Committee meeting. Human Resources Center, 6815 Edsall Road, Springfield.
Thursday, Jan. 23, 8 a.m.
Professional Technical Studies Advisory Committee. Walnut Hill Center, 7423 Camp Alger Ave., Falls Church.
Thursday, Jan. 23, 7 p.m.
School Board regular business meeting, capital improvement plan and principal of the year recognition. Luther Jackson Middle School, 3020 Gallows Road, Falls Church.