11/03/24
School will be closed on Monday November 4th for Parent/Teacher Conferences and on Tuesday November 5th for Election Day. School will re-open on Wednesday November 6th.
Fall Parent/Teacher Conferences:
Conferences will be held in two separate sessions tomorrow, November 4th:
Session 1: Noon – 3pm
Session 2: 4 – 7pm
Please use the Zoom meeting links below to access your teacher conference rooms at your scheduled time:
While conference signups have closed, here are the schedules for each session:
Email MWTech ([email protected]) with any technical issues.
Civility
As we move closer to the November 5th elections, we stand firmly in our commitment to examining civics, socio-political issues, and dialogue through academic and cultural lenses as a Governor’s School for Government and International Studies.
We also acknowledge that this season is marked by a surge in communication and content that can, at times, be unproductive and even harmful.
As always, our first priority is to ensure the physical and psychological safety of our students. This is also necessary to foster the community of inquiry, civil discourse, and intellectual diversity for which we strive.
We are here to support students and families, through this election year and beyond, in the following ways:
- Highlighting our shared responsibility to maintain a safe community and make decisions in alignment with our school mission and civility statement
- Encouraging care and consideration for self and fellow community members, being mindful of the potential impact of speech/expression choices on relationships at school
- Asking students and teachers to lean in on classroom norms and structures to guide complex discussions
- Empowering and equipping students to address issues as they arise through the student advocacy flowchart
- Reminding the community that tropes, slurs, stereotypes, and other harmful language are unacceptable
- Increasing visibility around the availability of our in-school resource staff and systems, including School Counseling, Social Workers, Strategic Engagement Coordinator, and Anonymous Alerts
We sincerely thank you for your cooperation and support from your homes. Your partnership fortifies our continuation of care at school.
Post-Election Listening & Conversation Space during Lunch on Nov. 6
It’s probable that whatever the outcome is on Election Day, including a delayed result, there will be students who arrive to school on Wednesday deeply impacted by that outcome. Our amazing counseling team, as they are on all school days, will be available for students with immediate, intense needs for support. As another layer of support, the library will be reserved during lunch as a listening & conversation space for One Small Step participants who want to discuss their response to the election in a group likely to include students who see things differently from them politically. The agreements below will apply. Gratitude to Ms. Harger for collaborating with me (Ms. DeGroat) to provide this opportunity, and to the Counseling and Administrative teams for their support.
Post-Election Conversation Agreements
- Silence cell phone and place it in designated box before sitting down.
- Treat each other with respect.
- Refrain from using any harmful or derogatory language.
- Share time.
- Avoid interrupting each other.
- Avoid making assumptions about each other.
- Listen actively and fully, with compassion and curiosity, focusing on learning about each other rather than arguing or debating.
- Speak for yourself and about your own experiences. You do not represent an entire political party or group of people—nor do your classmates.
- Recognize that sometimes taking a moment to breathe or sit silently may be needed more than continuing to speak.
- Maintain the confidentiality of what is shared here unless the person who said it gives you permission share it.
Winter Sports
All students who want to participate in Winter Sports starting November 11th must have all completed documents and turned into [email protected] one week prior to the start date. https://mlwgs.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/24-VHSL-Forms-1.pdf
Winter Concert
The Maggie Walker Music Program has a longstanding tradition of combining Band, Chorus and Orchestra for the winter concert. After performing our fall concerts to full houses, it has been determined that our auditorium no longer accommodates the winter program. Please read below for important venue change information.
Concert Location:
Highland Springs High School
200 S Airport Dr
Highland Springs, VA 23075
Concert Date:
Friday, December 13, 7:00PM (unchanged)
Concert Day Student Itinerary (December 13):
3:30PM: Students depart MLWGS by bus or personal vehicle
3:50PM: Arrive at HSHS
4:00-5:45: Dress Rehearsal
5:45-6:15: Dinner provided by MLWGS Boosters
6:15-6:45: Dress out and individual warmup
7:00: Concert Begins
8:30 (approx) Concert Conclusion
Students must be picked up (or drive home) from Highland Springs. There will not be a group traveling back to MLWGS.
The dress rehearsal, original scheduled for December 10th, will now take place the day of the concert at Highland Springs. Please erase the December 10th dress rehearsal date from your calendars.
Please email questions to directors Nick Merillat, Allison Barnes, or Joseph Revell.
Looking for Host Families for Japanese Students in March 2025
I am excited to announce that students from our partner school in Japan are visiting Maggie L. Walker next March. We are currently looking for families who are willing to host the Japanese students during their two-week visit. The planned dates for the visit are March 1st (Sat)– March 15th, 2025 (Sat). The responsibilities of a host family are to pick up and drop off the student at Richmond Airport; to provide housing and food for the student; to ensure the student can get to and from school each day; and to include the student in family activities in evenings and on weekends.
Our partner school, Chiben Gakuen, is in Wakayama, Japan, about 2 hours and 30 minutes south of Kyoto via train. The exchange is supported by our school, and we are planning on having 12 high school students from Japan visit.
There will be an information session on Tuesday, November 19th, at 7 pm on Zoom to provide more details about the exchange and the hosting experience. Your child does not have to be learning Japanese to be a host family. If you are interested in hosting a student, please fill out the survey below by Friday, November 15th. I will email you the Zoom link.
Link: https://forms.gle/N5wfH53eVqPyEFgh6
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Yoko Eshita, the Japanese teacher, at [email protected].
Robotics
The Mech Tech Dragons will be hosting a FIRST Lego League tournament for local elementary and middle school teams on November 17th. In order for the event to go smoothly, there is a need for community members (engineers, artists, business owners, etc.) to spend the day with teams and serve as competition judges. Training is provided and no previous experience is required to be a judge. If you are available and willing to serve as a judge for the event OR would like more information, please reach out to the event directors – Cheryl Kaplan ([email protected]) or Mark Sailer ([email protected])
Attention Juniors & Seniors!
Please see the link below if you are interested in applying to the TJ History Honor Society:
All applications for Juniors and Seniors are due by Monday, November 11th by 3:30 p.m. Please see Mrs. Voight or Ms. Lee if you have any questions.
ATTENTION FRESHMEN
Are you a history enthusiast and want to show off your impressive skills? The Thomas Jefferson History Honor Society is hosting jeopardy for the freshmen class on November 6th in the forum. Five individuals will face off in a fierce and fun competition! The winner will receive a gift card and endless glory. Sign up using the link below. Contact co-presidents Simone Spalding or Alexis Paraschiv with any questions!
AP Exam Fee Payment
Attention Advanced Placement (AP) students and their parents: AP exam fees were incorporated into student fees this year. We realize that AP exam fees can be costly and may need additional time for payment. As announced earlier in the school year, families may pace themselves through paying for AP exams through November 1st. Beginning November 2nd, the $40 College Board late fee will be applied.
All details about AP exam ordering and the timeline leading up to May testing can be found here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hlRy5aJqGrIL4rzVlf8MbMvnCA2cWqgt/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=107178821893099947385&rtpof=true&sd=true
Foundation News
Mark Your Calendar for the 23rd Annual Night of the Dragon!
The 23rd Annual Night of the Dragon–Sneaker Ball–will take place on Saturday, March 22. This fun-filled evening is the social event of the year for the MLWGS family and the Foundation’s largest annual fundraiser. Stay tuned in the coming weeks for ways you can get involved by attending, volunteering, donating items, and becoming an individual or corporate sponsor. Can’t wait? Contact Ginger at [email protected] to learn more now.
Got Stock?
Did you know you can contribute appreciated securities to the MLWGS Foundation? It’s simple and offers possible increased tax advantages. For info about making a gift via stock, check out our financial securities one-pager or contact Ginger O’Neil at [email protected].
It has been a great 1st quarter in the Dragon Nation! As a learning community, have found a way to have fun with the fall events while still remaining focused. As Myles Munro said, “Our life is the sum total of all the decisions we make every day, and those decisions are determined by our priorities.” Let’s keep making the right choices with our priorities and have a great run up to the winter break!
Have a great evening and GO DRAGONS!
