Current Issues and Concerns

• FCPS FY2011 Budget Shortfall: Fairfax County Public Schools is projecting a significant budget deficit for FY2011 (beginning July 1, 2010):


• The Bottom Line: New newsletter from FCPS regarding the FY2011 budget status. Click HERE.
  
  
• 2/4/10 School Board Adopts Proposed Budget: Press release and more info HERE.
  
  
• Official information from FCPS HERE.


• 2/5/10 Press Release from Governor McDonnell Regarding Undoing the "LCI Freeze.


• Virginia PTA link to write a letter to the Virginia General Assembly to support K-12 education HERE.


• Easy-to-understand review of the events and timeline on the Frost MS PTA website HERE.


• Advocacy Group Efforts as a Result of Proposed FY2011 Budget Cuts:


• Save Full-Day Kindergarten from FY2011 budget cuts: Flyer HERE, Facebook page: HERE, petition HERE.
  Updates:
  - 1/19/10 Updated letter & instructions HERE.


• FACE ("Fairfax Arts Coalition for Education"): Effort to preserve the elementary band & strings program from potential budget cuts. Website is www.FaceAdvocacy.org; a petition is HERE; and the FaceBook site is HERE. (Added 11/09)


• FLAGS ("Foreign Language Advocacy for Grade Schools"): Effort to preserve the Foreign Language in Elementary Schools (FLES) program from potential budget cuts. There is a website at www.FairfaxFlags.org, a petition available HERE, and a recent Washington Post article HERE. FLAGS has also invited any Mantua parent interested in becoming a liaison to contact Sandy Knox at sandygknox@yahoo.com or 703-802-0998(home)/571-212-9697(cell). (Added 10/09)
  Updates:
  - 2/21/10: Plan for joint meeting with all other advocacy groups supporting fully funding the FCPS budget on 2/24, 7-9pm. More information HERE.
  - 1/5/10: Letter regarding the January 25-26 School Board hearings HERE.


• Advanced Academics Program--Student Transportation: The 1/07/10 proposed budget version proposes to eliminate school buses to/from Advanced Academic Program Centers (a/k/a “GT centers”) for students who have a Local Level IV services at their base school. Under this proposal, parents retain the option of driving their children to the AAP/GT Center-based program or moving their children to their base school’s Local Level IV class in order to obtain bus service. For more information, visit the Fairfax County Assn. for the Gifted website at www.fcag.org.



• Legislative Effort to Change School Year Start- and End-Dates: Effort from the Fairfax County Council of PTAs (FCCPTA) and the Virginia PTA to endorse current state legislation allowing school systems to set their own start- and end-dates for the school year. Further information HERE, and Virginia PTA info HERE. Added 01/25/2010.



• Virginia PTA: HERE is information on current matters that the state PTA is concerned with -- they encourage parent participation.



• FEC ("Fairfax Education Coalition"): New coalition that proposes to use its collective influence to advocate for improved accountability, transparency and community participation in the Fairfax County Public Schools’ decision-making process. Coalition group members include representatives from: The Fairfax Coalition of Advocates for Public Schools (FairfaxCAPS), the Fairfax County Association for the Gifted (FCAG), The Fairfax County Federation of Teachers (FCFT), The Fairfax Education Association (FEA), FAIRGRADE, SLEEP, and Zero Tolerance Reform. Website at www.FairfaxEducationCoalition.org. 1/20/10 Press Release HERE.



• SLEEP ("Start Later for Excellence in Education Proposal"): Their goal is to increase awareness of teen sleep needs and to change Fairfax County Public School (FCPS) middle and high school start times to later in the morning. SLEEP website at www.SleepInFairfax.org



• FAIRGRADE ("Fair Grades for Fairfax County Students"): Effort to change FCPS grading system from a 6-point scale to a 10-point one. FAIRGRADE Website at www.FairGrade.org