News From The Nest
LHS Parent Newsletter--Year 20, Volume 9, December 7, 2020
Welcome, Dr. Johnson!
At its Tuesday, December 1 meeting, the Virginia Beach School Board approved the superintendent’s recommendation and appointed Dr. Paula Johnson as the next principal of Landstown High School. Dr. Johnson has a distinguished career in education with over 30 years of service. She has served as an elementary, middle and high school teacher, school improvement specialist, high school assistant principal and currently serving as the principal of Bayside Middle School. Dr. Johnson says she feels as though she is returning home having served as a teacher at Landstown from 2001 – 2005, assistant principal at Landstown from 2006 – 2013 and now returning as principal.
Dr. Johnson is a dynamic leader with an incredible work ethic. She knows the Landstown community and already loves our kids. LHS will flourish under her leadership and I know you will join me in welcoming her back to the Eagle Nation family.
Over the next two weeks, Dr. Johnson and I will work together to ensure a smooth transition. She will also be working to transition Bayside Middle to her successor. I will remain in the building through Friday, December 18 and will be available remotely through the end of December. Dr. Johnson will be in the building full time starting Monday, December 21.
Return to Virtual Learning
As of December 7, the COVID-19 health metrics for the Eastern Virginia Region are at 477.7 cases per day and 10.1% for percent positivity. Per the division's Fall 2020 Plan, that puts us in the red/red zones, therefore we will continue with virtual instruction, and this will now include the designated groups of students with disabilities who had recently returned to in-person learning.
Please know that teachers are expected to begin every lesson synchronously (live) at the start time listed on the published bell schedule. Synchronous instruction for each course will be approximately 45–60 minutes per class period. Teachers and students are expected to remain available during the entire class period. If your student is experiencing difficulties with internet connectivity or accessing a class for the entire block, please feel free to contact your child's counselor or administrator for assistance. We are committed to helping our students successfully navigate this virtual environment.
Meals on Wheels!
Food service will continue. VBCPS is providing breakfast, lunch and dinner at no charge to ALL children (age 18 and under) at all VBCPS schools, regardless of individual eligibility or whether they receive instruction virtually or in-person. Meals are provided via the drive by/pickup model, with bagged meals provided Monday–Friday, 10:30 a.m.- 1:30 p.m., with the Friday bag containing food for Saturday and Sunday. The bus delivery service will also continue to select neighborhoods. The chart below shows the Landstown HS zones serviced by bus delivery.
Heritage Week Poster Contest Winners
1st Place--Maui Yeager
When I think of “Power of Us” I think of a community full of inspiring people who has unique abilities, strengths, skills, and determination. These people assist those who are in need of help, like a guiding light. Which brings me to my artwork, “Guiding Light”. My illustration consist of multiple hands holding a candle that is ignited, illuminating the page with inspirational words that relates to “power”. For the hands holding the candle, it represents different races of people uniting to help make a difference by holding the ignited candle to brighten the room as the flame represents “power”. The radiating “power” or flame gives off meaningful and inspirational words such as hope, freedom, equality and more while it helps the darkness disappear! When you put the hands, guiding candle, and inspirational flame all together into one picture, you have an artwork called “Guiding Light” that represents “The Power Of Us”.
2nd Place--Gabriel Arlanza
The painting shows an eagle formed in the body of color splotches. These color splotches represent every skin color of every kind that goes to Landstown, along with a background filled with splotches of the school colors.
3rd Place--Elizabeth Trouslot
My piece is about our ancestors giving us power. I’ve connected the theme of heritage and the theme of “the power of us” in my piece. The hand of an African woman is holding up and supporting those currently protesting for the rights of black people in the United States. When we fight, whether that be for black lives, gay rights, women’s rights, or anything else, we need to pay homage and remember those who came before us. We need to highlight how long our fight has gone on and show that we’re still fighting against everything that has ever stood in our way and our predecessor’s way. With the power of us and the power from those before us, we can accomplish anything.
Congratulations to our November Students of the Month:
Freshman: Trenton Frey, nominated by Mrs. Euman
Sophomore: Victoria Crenshaw, nominated by Ms. Wong
Junior: Jada Cumberland, nominated by Mrs. Morris
Senior: John Brickhouse, nominated by Mrs. Wood
Password Reset and Recovery in ClassLink
Effective November 30, secondary students will be required to configure and enable password reset and recovery in ClassLink. The process is simple and involves setting up a mobile number or a series of recovery questions that students can use to reset or recover a forgotten password. Secondary students will be prompted to complete this configuration when they login Nov. 30.
Additionally, effective December 14, a policy will be enforced that will require secondary students to change their passwords every 90 days. Secondary students who have not changed their password in the 90 days prior to December 14 will be required to do so when they attempt to log in on that date. This is the same policy that was temporarily relaxed in March to simplify student access to network and digital resources.
We strongly recommend that secondary students change their passwords at some point prior to Dec. 14 to avoid any instructional impacts on that date. Please note also that this 90-day password change policy will be implemented for elementary students at the beginning of their second semester (Feb. 2, 2021). Reinstating the 90-day password change policy will help to ensure network and data security.
Resources for Military Families
Tutor.com is a free resource for military families. Many military families use this resource and find it helpful. In addition, free coaching is available for military parents. The links below give more information.
Flyer on tutoring subjects with study skills and life skills education for students
https://www.tutor.com/cmspublicfiles/WWW/2020_MIL_Subject_List.pdf
Facts about tutor.com for military parents
https://www.tutor.com/cmspublicfiles/WWW/MIL_T10_Parents_2019.pdf
Free coaching available for military parents
https://www.tutor.com/cmspublicfiles/WWW/2020_Mil_ParentCoaching_RackCard.pdf
Click on the QR code above to access a wealth of resources available to our students and families!
Announcements & Reminders
COVID Website: The division had created a new COVID website. You can see it here.
AP Registration: AP Registration opened on November 16th. You will register and pay for AP exams via Total Registration. More information is forthcoming. In the meantime, make sure your student has joined the AP Classroom of his or her teachers. If your student does not know the code, have them email the teacher.
Accessing the Building: Access to the building must be made through an appointment. Office hour appointments are now between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Call the main office at 648-5500 if you need an appointment.
Parent-Teacher Conferences: Our amazing School Counseling department coordinates parent-teacher conferences through Zoom approximately twice a month on Thursdays. To register for a conference, please use this form. A couple days before the conference, your child’s counselor will email you the specific time and Zoom information. You are also encouraged to check out the LHS School Counseling website to see the all the information and resources available.
REPEATED ITEMS
Reflections Contest
Senior Portraits
Parent/Teacher Conferences
Please Log Your Volunteer Hours!
VBCPS values and promotes active engagement of the community in all our schools. The Office of Family and Community Engagement coordinates many volunteer opportunities for community members to interact and contribute to the academic achievement of our students and the overall continuous improvement of VBCPS. Volunteer opportunities may include:
Serving in a PTA/PTO/PTSA
Serving as tutors, mentors or guest speakers
Providing assistance in classrooms, cafeterias, libraries or main offices
Organizing student enrichment and recognition activities
Supporting special events, athletics, school planning councils and advisory boards
Please be sure to log your volunteer hours through the VBCPS Get Connected database. VBCPS uses this information to quantify the value of volunteer service and apply for divisionwide federal grants that benefit our schools and students!
Landstown High School
Email: cheryl.askew@vbschools.com
Website: http://www.landstownhs.vbschools.com/
Location: 2001 Concert Drive, Virginia Beach, VA, USA
Phone: 757-648-5500
Twitter: @LandstownEagles