School Days-Winter 2012

WHATʼS INSIDE: First-ever ChallengerDay | Pg. 6

Blazer Blast rewards students for acts of kindness | Pg. 7

Spotlight on:GRAD/PLC Center | Pg. 8

Tis the SeasonTh e most noticeable thing about Anna Wong, a senior at Tucker

High School, is her love of life and kind demeanor. As the grandchild of Chinese immigrants who came here with nothing, she has been raised to not only appreciate everything and everyone around her,

but to give back as much as she possibly can.

see TIS THE SEASON, Pg. 3

Happiness and goodwill ema-nate from her, even if it’s just in passing.

“I have such a full, amazing life,” Wong said. “Everything comes easy for me, so I have to give back more.” For weeks, as she was trying to fall asleep, Wong would have passing thoughts of what she could do to really make an impact. She had volunteered at

Little Sisters of the Poor and the Daily Planet, but wanted to do something diff erent, something big.

Finally, it came to her. She would organize a show where students and teachers could perform, and the pro-ceeds from the show would go to help those in need. She would call it “Move-ments,” in reference to people being moved to move others.

“I think helping people is some-thing that comes from within,” Wong said. “Even though we are all so diff erent and we go through diff erent struggles, it’s important to come together and help each other.”

Tucker students and staff took the theme of “Movements” to the stage in the form of music, monologues and poetry. As word got out about the show,

students were ready and willing to help in any way they could. Wong said “Movements” evolved into something extremely emotional and personal for everyone involved. Th e show was every-thing she hoped it would be and more, raising nearly $2,000 in monetary dona-tions and items for the Daily Planet. She was inspired by how intimate many of the

H

2 December 2012 school days

Reflecting on all we can be thankful for

As we celebrate many holidays this season, it reminds us how fortunate we are to work and

live in a county that continues to be supported and committed to quality education. Thanks to the vision of the Henrico County School Board and the support of our Henrico County Board of Supervisors and County Manager, Henrico County Public Schools continues to thrive and pro-vide an outstanding education to all students. With this support and ev-eryone’s expectation for excellence in our schools, it is no wonder that the HCPS vision is to be The PREMIER School District in the United States. We had a great 2012-13 school opening in spite of some transpor-tation difficulties, which have now been resolved. Teachers and staff started preparing our students for the rigors of our education system on the very first day of school. We are so fortunate to have one of the best, if not the BEST, group of pro-fessionals and support staff teach-ing and working with our children. Please know and be assured that every one of our staff members is

truly dedicated to the education and support of the students in Henrico County. Some of the highlights of Henrico County Public Schools as we progress through the 2012-13 school year include:• 97percentofschoolsarefully accredited • 25percentoverallfour-year reduction in the number and instances of student suspensions • Higheststudentenrollmentin AP classes to date • OurfocustoclosetheAchieve- ment Gap and continue our vision for our Excellence with Equity Initiative• Theimplementationofour 2nd Advance College Academy offering at Highland Springs High School, which will be our 13th specialty center in HCPS

Over the past three years,Henrico County Public Schools has experienced a $58 million reduc-tion in allocated revenues which has resulted in a 14 percent overall

budget reduction. We are now op-erating at the same budget figure as weoperated at during the 2006-07school year. While we have been challenged to maintain our level of financial support, we have not com-promised the level of educational excellence in our school division. We will continue to be challenged in this area as the county has projected an additional $11 million reduction in revenues for the 2013-14 school year. The School Board and admin-istration will again develop a budget around three major points:• Everyfull-timestaffmember will have a position for the coming school year;• Staffsalaryraises;and• Minimalimpacttoinstructional programs

Again, thank you for all your past and continued support in our pursuit of education excellence. Together, we will continue to work toward our vision of becoming The PREMIER School District in the United States – and we will succeed!

Sincerely,

Dr. PatrickRussoSuperintendent of Schools

The ABCD award is presented to various Henrico County Schools’ support personnel who

have made significant contributions that improved job efficiency, quality of services, safety, or conserved resources; performed a humanitarian or heroic act; or who responded proactively by anticipating needs and solving prob-lems without specific direction and have gone Above and Beyond the Call of Duty. The Henrico Education Foun-dation in partnership with the Hen-rico Federal Credit Union joins us in recognizing these individuals by providing a check to each recipient. The winners for October were:Vicki Lawson of Longan ES, Sandy

Lowell of Longan ES and Darlene Thompson of Ridge ES. The winners for November were: Constance Durvin of Harvie Ele-mentary School, Pat Zirkle of Tucker High School and Sherry Bowman of Transportation.

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October ABCD winners (L to R) Vicki Lawson of Longan ES, Sandy Lowell of Longan ES and Darlene Thompson of Ridge ES.

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November ABCD winner Sherry Bowman. Constance Durvin and Pat Zirkle are not pictured.

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2nd Corporate

April 11, 2013at University of Richmond’s Jepson Alumni Center

3:30 - 6:00 pm

The Henrico Education Foundation’s

Call 652-3869 to learn more.

Sponsor a team.

BEE part of the BUZZ!

www.HenricoFoundation.org

school days December 2012 3

withallthesuppliestomake“OrganizedRecess” at Montrose a big success. Capital One volunteerscame out to repaint the blacktop and then again aft er the makeover was complete to show students how to safely use the equipment in a variety of games that aimed at fostering participation and fair play. Each classroom also received a bucket full of new recess materials that encourage students to interact and play with one another in a collaborative way.

“Th is is a great opportunity that CapitalOnegivesustogivebacktothecommunity and the neighborhood,” said TimGunn,aCapitalOneemployee.“It’sbeenagreatexperience.Oneofthekidseven said it was better than fi eld day, so that’s just sort of the icing on the cake for us.”

“Organized Recess” at Montrose a big successM ontrose Elementary School

students jumped rope, played hopscotch and participated

in games of foursquare on their newly painted blacktop during recess. Onlynow, recess for Montrose students is a little diff erent. With the help of a grant fromCapitalOne,Montrosewasabletolaunch“OrganizedRecess,”atimeofdaywhere students can participate in coop-erative games that double as “teachable moments” in the areas of social skills and good citizenship. “We have done some research and gathered that organized recess decreas-es discipline incidents,” said Montrose Principal Dana Baldacci. “So we decided this year we’d do several days a week of organized recess, and through this grant, we are able to do it.” Baldacci said she wanted to give specialthanksto5th-gradeteacherNicoleField for spearheading the grant process and to Dixie Sports for coming through

Capital One volunteers re-paint the blacktop at Montrose Elementary.

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Students fr om Montrose Elementaryplay on their newly painted blacktopduring “Organized Recess”.

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songs and monologues were, as students and teachers both exposed some of their most private thoughts and experiences on stage.

Wong’s favorite thing about Tucker High is the diversity she encounters every day. She even partially attributed the diverse backgrounds of its students to the show’s success. “I hate that I live in this huge happy bubble while others have so much hurt in their lives,” Wong said. “Th e greatest thing I had to off er was something that shared my strengths and the strengths of people around me.”

TIS THE SEASON

An excerpt from Anna’s “Movements” monologue

I love when the sun wakes me up in bed every morning. I love living in a comfortable home with

a loving, unbroken family. I love eating breakfast cereal. I love anything sweet. I love food. I

love going to school here. I love the diversity around me. I love snuggling up with a good book.

I love going on runs in the neighborhood every so often. I love to sing. I love my friends. I

love being a girl. I love talking to bo

ys! I love going to church and being surrounded by faith-

ful people. I love water. I love baking. I love the smell of dinner and the sound of my brother

playing the piano. I love sitting on the porch during thunderstorms and drinking hot chocolate

with cookies when it snows. I love laughing so hard that my stomach hurts. I love watching

movies and eating popcorn. I love Paula Deen. I love walking on the beach. I love…loving my life.

[pause, mood shift]

But at the same time…you wouldn’t guess that I’m pretty full of hate too. Would you?

I like to say that I don’t believe in hating. Especially people. And I wish I could say that

honestly. Now, I don’t think hating the bad stuff is a bad thing…but by itself, a bad feeling

towards a bad thing is never what makes it better.

I do hate. I hate a lot of things about this world. I hate that while I get to be in this full,

happy, luxurious bubble, so many other people have never been able to indulge in anything. I

hate that Paula Deen and I are stuffi ng ourselves silly with huge, unabashed smiles on our

faces, people are starving, perpetually marked by grimaces of hunger. I hate that I struggle

to resist snacking while others eat little due to circumstances far graver

than body image

problems. I hate that people who are smarter and sweeter and more deserving than me will

never have the opportunity to go to a school like this, or be surrounded by people eve

ryday

who believe in their futures. I hate that people live amidst peril, fear, and violence, while I

have never even broken a bone. I hate that some kids will never know what it’s like to be a

ble

to fi ght with their families, slam the door shut, and know they’ll always be welcomed back

inside. I hate that some parents don’t teach their kids how to love. I hate that she couldn’t

have her baby. I hate that he was so unhappy he thought living wasn’t worth it. I hate that

good people have such bad luck. I hate that they never got to grow old together. I hate that

sometimes, I can’t look him in the eye because it hurts too much to know what he’s going

through. I hate that I just don’t care enough for people sometimes because I’m too busy

caring about myself. I hate that many people will never experience the fullness of my life, and

I will never be able to appreciate the diffi culty of theirs. There is suffering I will never know,

and pain I will never understand.

[Long pause]

I hate feeling helpless. Why is it that I feel like I can do the least for the people I care

about the most? There’s this feeling of frustration and horror in the pit of my heart

sometimes. Like when… it kills me when somebody cries in front of me, and I can’t cry with

them. I don’t mean a superfi cial kind of crying either—I’m talking about the kind of tears

that

make you feel a certain depth of emotion and empathy, which I believe makes humans powerful…

I think that’s why I am so desperate to give something to people. I can’t give them my tears

or even my understanding. I know that thrusting your own happiness in the faces of people

who are unhappy is one of the most obnoxious things you can do, sometimes—but how else

can I share this pure….happiness, then? I know it’s not wrong to feel happy, but it seems

wrong to hoard it to myself.

So I’m still searching for ways. I’ve been searching

since the seventh grade, maybe even earlier…

I’m…desperate. But I feel that struggling to make more out of what I love is a better use of

my time than dwelling bitterly over the things I hate.

— Anna Wong

songs and monologues were, as students and teachers both exposed some of their most private thoughts and experiences on

Wong’s favorite thing about Tucker High is the diversity she encounters every day. She even partially attributed the diverse backgrounds of its students

“I hate that I live in this huge happy bubble while others have so much hurt in their lives,” Wong said. “Th e greatest thing I had to off er was something that shared my strengths and the strengths of

An excerpt from Anna’s “Movements” monologue






































[pause, mood shift]

But at the same time…you wouldn’t guess that I’m pretty full of hate too. Would you?






towards a bad thing is never what makes it better. honestly. Now, I don’t think hating the bad stuff is a bad thing…but by itself, a bad feeling

towards a bad thing is never what makes it better. honestly. Now, I don’t think hating the bad stuff is a bad thing…but by itself, a bad feeling

I do hate. I hate a lot of things about this world. I hate that while I get to be in this full,

happy, luxurious bubble, so many other people have never been able to indulge in anything. I










HEF on the fairway to

success

Dean Jarrett, the HEF board president, brings the pain as he putts one in for a birdie.

Pat O’Bannon of the Board

of Supervi-

sors drives the ball t

oward the green.

The Henrico Education Foundation (HEF) could not have asked for a more beautiful day at its 14th An-

nual Golf Tournament held at Hunting Hawk Golf Club. Th e event raised more than $44,000 for the foundation, which helps schools and students around Hen-rico County. Th anks to the 24 teams that came out to support HEF, the foundation will be better able to enrich learning ex-periences, provide grants for educators and develop community collaborations for the 2012-13 school year. “Th e Tee-Off for Education event has grown signifi cantly since its beginning 14 years ago. It is a major fundraising event for the foundation, but also a strong com-munity event,” said Susan Stanley, HEF’s executive director. “County government offi cials, school board members, educa-tional leaders and business executives come together for a great cause and enjoy a day of golf. It can’t get any better than that.”

Pat O’Bannon of the Board

of Supervi-

Stuart Roberson of Moseley Architects

starts his engine and is on his way to tee

off for education at the 14th Annual HEF

Golf Tournament.

The New Client Team, (from left to right)

Bob Dupke, Jeff Hall, Teki Hall and Pete

Toole took fi rst place at the tournament,

beating out Slait Consulting for t

he title.


Students in Ashley Cogbil’s class have been learning the history of Greek and Native American culture for the past few weeks,

but Mrs. Cogbil is not a Social Studies teacher. Mrs. Cogbil is the art teacher at Springfi eld Park Elementary and she made it a point to bring in a professional artist from the area to talk with students and help teach them throughout a cou-ple of class periods. When she looked at the history/social science SOL require-ments, she thought David Camden, a professional potter from Ashland, would be the perfect match. He is well versed on pottery styles ranging from Raku to Pueblo and has had more than 30 years

experience teaching this art form all over the Richmond area. Ms. Cogbil’s third, fourth and fi ft h grade classes took to Camden immediately and delved into the historical signifi cance of pottery from many diff erent eras while also getting a hands-on learning experi-ence. Cogbil emphasized how important it is for students to be able to learn in a more interactive way.

“I think it brings learning to life and makes it more relevant and meaningful,” Cogbil said. “It gives (students) a chance to problem solve and use critical think-ing skills to bring it all together. It’s not just words in a textbook.”

Camden, whom the students endear-ingly call “Clayman,” completely agreed. Oneofhisfavoritethingswhenwatchingstudents create is how imaginative and resourceful they can be.

“It’s really important to me that it is their design, that we will launch their idea but ultimately it’s their own,” Camden said. “I love that they are so open and they

just enjoy the process…its been so much fun for me, I’m constantly reminded that they don’t get this freedom very much, it’s such a structured environment a lot of the time.”

Award-winning author visits Holman Middle School

Professional artist David Camden helped teach Mrs. Cogbil’s class about pottery fr om diff erent time periods and places. He also taught students new and creative design techniques.

Students at Springfi eld Park learn history through art

Students from around the county got a treat when Donna Jo Napoli visited Holman Middle School to oversee a writing workshop and

discuss her work. Fift y students from every middle school in the county were in attendance and the event was also live-streamed on HCPS-TV so all stu-dents were able to listen. Donna Jo Napoli’s books chosen for Henrico students are “Bound,” “Th e Magic Circle,” “King of Mulberry Street,” “Beast” and “Alligator Bayou.”Inher68

books for readers of all ages, her writing ranges from contemporary fi ction and fantasy to historical novels. Her books have won national awards, including the Sydney Taylor Award, the Parents’ Choice Gold Award, the Golden Kite Award (and an honor book), the Anne Izard’s Storytellers’ Choice Award, the Frances and Wesley Bock Book Award, the Sons of Italy National Book Club selection, as well as numerous American Library Association best book awards.

Award-winning author Donna Jo Napoli signed books for students aft er teaching a writing workshop for middle school students across the county.

tHenrico’s newest elementary school named

During a surprise presentation at the October SchoolBoard Meeting,

Dave Kaechele learned that students would soon be attend-ing a school named aft er him. Kaechele has represented the Th ree Chopt District for nearly 33 years and the Henrico com-munity, as well as the Henrico County School Board thought it only appropriate that he get recognition for his many years of service. “I am honored by this, but if you could fi nd a name that people could pronounce per-haps…you’re going to have a lot of explaining to do over the years,” Kaechele said with a laugh. “It’s been a great honor to serve for all those years…and it’s nice to enjoy it.” David A. Kaechele Elemen-tary School, located in Short Pump on Pouncey Tract Road, is slated to open next Fall.


community, and have an opportunity to engage in a lot of sports activities that help build so much resiliency and self confi dence and communication skills, (which are) things that we really want our students to have to be successful.” Capital One provided more than200 volunteers for the eff ort. Volunteers helped teach students how to catch, hit and throw and some were part of a rather large cheering squad as well. “I know a lot of these kids may never have had the experience to play base-

First-ever Challenger Day hits one out of the parkE arly on a cool, fall morning volun-

teers and organizers from all over the county gathered at the Tucka-

hoe Little League complex and hurriedly organized last-minute touches in prepa-ration for the fi rst-ever Challenger Day Event.At8:45a.m.,thefirstsetofstudentsgot off the bus to cheers and applause and then rushed over to Challenger Field, many of them experiencing baseball for the fi rst time.

Th e HCPS Exceptional Education staff , Th e Henrico Education Founda-tion (HEF), I Have A Dream-Richmond, CapitalOneandTuckahoeLittleLeagueworked together for nearly fi ve months to create an event that would allow more than 300 students with signifi cant disabilities to participate in a fun and hands-on learning experience.

“We are working with our com-munity partners…to help students with disabilities work on their social skills,” said Bondy Shay Gibson, the assistant superintendent of Exceptional Educa-tion and Research and Planning. “Th ey have more opportunities to interact with their peers and interact with adults in the

Students were welcomed and cheered on by parents, teachers, staff and more than 200 volunteers at the start of Challenger Day.

ball,” said Sarah Midkiff , a contractor forCapitalOneand one of the organiz-ers of the event. “I played soft ball…when I was a kid and remember how much I loved it and that feeling that everyone is rooting for you and right now I could not be more thrilled.”

Aft er getting some time on the fi eld, students got to bowl, play beanbag toss and participate in other excit-ing games, they got a team

photo taken and created a handprint collage.

“Challenger Day is a great example of what can happen when community partners and school staff collaborate to design meaningful activities for kids,” said HEF’s Program Manager, Paula Roop. “Th e Exceptional Education staff from the top down had a ‘can do’ at-titude, thinking out of the box to make magic happen for students. HEF was proud to work with everyone to make Challenger Day such a success.”

The Godwin High chorus sang patriotic

songs during a Veterans Day Ceremony.

Veterans Day: November 11, 2012

Fairfi eld Middle School band students play

songs during the FMS Veterans D

ay assembly.





The Godwin High chorus sang patriotic Fairfi eld Middle School band students play

songs during the FMS Veterans D

ay assembly.

Veterans visited history classes at Hermitage High School and spoke to students about their combat experiences overseas.

Capital One volunteers helped students learn how to hit during the fi rst-ever Challenger Day, held at the Tuckahoe Little League complex.


Principal Mike Dussault’s voice boomed over the microphone as students trotted happily into the auditorium at the first Blazer

Blast event of the school year at Twin Hickory Elementary. He congratulated students on an overflowing “Coat Cor-ral” that housed gently used coats that students donated to the less fortunate, and thanked the packed house of parents and community partners for coming out to support the Trailblazers. No sooner than students sat down, did the Chick-fil-A cow and Twin Hickory’s own mascot, Blazer the dog, come out to congratulate students on an exceptional first quarter. Students went into a frenzy and danced to “WhoLettheDogsOut”asBlazercamedown the aisle. The quarterly Blazer Blast is a way to get students excited about being leaders, doing good deeds and lending a helping hand. A committee of parents and teach-ers came up with this innovative concept as a way to recognize good character traits in students, support those in need

in the Twin Hickory community, and increase school spirit. According to Mr. Dussault, over the years, the school has built on those three core concepts and Blazer Blasts have taken on a life of their own. “Imagine attending an event that combines the Academy Awards, the Super Bowl, and a Mega charity event, all rolled into one. That’s the best way to describe a Twin Hickory Blazer Blast,” he said. Throughout the year, students get “character coins” for various positive be-havior or acts of kindness throughout the day, and the more they earn, the more

likely they are to get prizes or participate in games at Blazer Blast. “This year in particular we are fo-cusing on what it means to be a leader,” Dussault said. “Teachers are highlight-ing classroom discussions and activities that revolve around imagination, coop-eration, determination, and compassion. These character coins help teachers rec-ognize students who are going above and beyond.”

Teachers stomped on tomatoes to make ketchup as a part of Twin Hickory’s

fun-filled Blazer Blast.

Twin Hickory ES teaches students the value of good character, giving back

Mr. Dussault got students excited to play a chil-dren’s engineering game during the first Blazer Blast of the year.

Varina High School takes it to the house...of worship

Last winter, Varina High School held a meeting and spaghetti dinner for families and students who were having trouble aca-

demically. The turn out was low and the staff at Varina was discouraged. They be-gan brainstorming ways in which Varina staff could successfully reach out to the community, and the idea for “Take it to the House” was born. Principal Tracie Omohundroandherstaffmadeitapointto go where families in Varina go to reach out to them…church. This summer, the staffidentifiedmorethan35majorcon-gregations throughout the Varina district and sent out letters hoping to build rela-tionships within the church community. They have already attended several ser-vices to speak to parents of current and rising Varina students about the school. “We attended Gravel Hill Baptist Church and St. John’s Catholic Church.

Wereachedover250communitymem-bers and several dozen school commu-nity members,” Omohundro said. “Wediscussed academics, extracurriculars, parent involvement, graduation require-ments, safety and facilities. We were well-received and inspired by the posi-tive response of the students, parents and community members.” OnNovember11th,AssistantPrin-cipal Cody Streightiff and staff mem-ber Gena Jones went to Village of Faith Ministries and spoke to the congrega-tion during the service with the hope of increasing community participation and to inform the public about all the great things going on at Varina. “The biggest thing we want people to know is we’d love to have support and have people come out to not just football games but to all the other

great things we’re doing,” Streightiff said. At the end of the service, Varina parents crowded around an information table, asked questions and made con-nections. “We want to send the message that if we are already doing all these great things now, look how much more we could do if the community came together,” Jones said.

t

Gena Jones speaks with a Varina High School parent after the church service at Village of Faith Ministries.


Henrico County School Board Contact Us Awards & Credits

Diana D. WinstonChairThree Chopt District

Lamont BagbyFairfi eld District

John W. Montgomery Jr.Varina District

Beverly L. CockeVice ChairBrookland District

Lisa A. MarshallTuckahoe District

Dr. Patrick RussoSuperintendent

P.O. Box 231203820 Nine Mile RoadHenrico, VA 23223-0420804.652.3600www.henrico.k12.va.us

School Days is an award-winning publicationproduced quarterly by the Department of Communications & Public Relations of HCPS. If you have questions about this publication, call 804.652.3725 or email [email protected].

Natalie Allen - EditorChristie Harman - Production ManagerLarry Willis Jr. - Website Manager

piva

Spotlight On: Th e GRAD/PLC CenterA fresh start to an on-time graduation

This year, Henrico County Public Schools launched two new pro-gram centers, the Generating Re-

covery of Academic Direction (GRAD) Center and the Performance Learning Center. Th e GRAD Center off ers students a fresh opportunity to work in a small group setting to develop the skills and curriculum knowledge necessary to be successful, while a blended instruc-tional model allows high school students in the Performance Learning Center to acceler-ate through coursework in a non-traditional setting to earn a high school diploma.

“For us, when students come into our building, everyone is given a fresh start,” said Christie Forrest, the principal at the centers. “You get to leave your home school en-

vironment where you may have had some problems…and we don’t focus on that, we focus on who you are and the person that we see when you come in our door. We are here to support you. For many students, because they had some challenges in their previous

school environment, com-ing here gives them a new opportunity to recreate themselves.” According to Forrest, students don’t have to worry as much about peer pressure and are in more of a businesslike environ-ment. Class sizes are a little smaller, and

teachers are able to give students the individualized attention they need.

Teachers devote more time to each student, and in turn, students are motivated to do better. Th e hope is that these centers will help empower struggling stu-dents and they will stick it out in order to graduate from high school.

“Th ere is no stigma attached to needing support here,”

Forrest said.

Some students only need a few credits in order

to reach the required amount to get a high school diploma. Th is

environment allows them to complete the credits required with few distractions. As of October 2nd, the center had its firstgraduate and according to Forrest, sev-eral more students are expected to earn diplomas before winter break.

“We expect that the GRAD Center and Performance Learning Center will help to improve graduation rates for our students in Henrico County,” she said.

a fresh opportunity to work in a small group setting to develop the skills and curriculum knowledge necessary to be successful, while a blended instruc-tional model allows high school students in the Performance Learning Center to acceler-

everyone is given a fresh start,” said Christie Forrest, the principal at the centers. “You get to leave your home school en-

had some challenges in their previous as much about peer pressure and are in more of a businesslike environ-ment. Class sizes are a little smaller, and

teachers are able to give students the individualized attention they need.

Teachers devote more time to each student, and in turn, students

GRAD Center principal Christie Forrest and Communities in Schools liaison Jasen Cooper celebrated the center’s very fi rst graduate, Christopher Orpiano.

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Nuckols Farm named 2012 National Blue Ribbon School

Students looked like a sea of blue as they sat excitedly in the audito-rium at Nuckols Farm Elementary during the school’s Blue Ribbon

Celebration. Th e school held a ceremony and was visited by Deb Delisle, assistant secretary for the Office of Elementaryand Secondary Education from the U.S. Department of Education as well as many diplomats from around Henrico County. Nuckols Farm was one of seven public schools and two private schools in Virginia to be named a 2012 National Blue Ribbon School.

Th e National Blue Ribbon Schools Program recognizes public and private elementary, middle and high schools where students perform at very high

levels or where signifi cant improve-ments are being made in students’ levels ofacademicachievement.Since1982,theU.S. Department of Education’s National Blue Ribbon Schools Program has hon-ored America’s most successful public and private elementary, middle, and high schools.

“We are just so excited,” said Nuck-ols Farm Principal Mary Cox. “Nuckols Farm Elementary has a tremendous staff and community that are dedicated to ex-cellence every day and the success of each one of our students. Th is award is such an honor and we see it as a springboard for continuing to grow and achieve.”

Principal Mary Cox hugged Deb Delisle, assistant secretary for the Offi ce of Elementary and Secondary Education fr om the U.S. Department of Education, during the Nuckols Farm Blue Ribbon Award Ceremony.

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School Days-Winter 2012