Neighborhood Notes

Prince William schools are making progress on hiring as the new year gets underway — Starting her second year heading up the county’s schools, Superintendent LaTanya McDade proudly told reporters that the school system was finally “getting out of the health care business” after the two pandemic-marred school years. [Insidenova.com]

Police emails to Fairfax schools about counselor’s solicitation charge bounced back — Emails from the Chesterfield County, Virginia, police department aimed at informing Fairfax County Public Schools that a middle school counselor had been arrested and charged with soliciting prostitution from a minor were sent to faulty email addresses, police said Monday. [WTOP-FM]

Prince William County schools to hire ‘temporary teachers’ to fill classroom vacancies — In an effort to help fill hundreds of vacant teacher positions before the start of the new school year, Prince William County schools aims to hire about 70 new teachers who are not yet licensed but have at least a bachelor’s degree and the equivalent of one year of experience working with children. [Prince William Times / Paywall]

Spanberger flips the script on policing in race against auxiliary deputy — The ad sounded just like a Republican attack straight out of 2020: “She voted against our police and sheriffs,” a narrator says. But the digital ad — released this week — is in fact from Virginia Democrat Abigail Spanberger, accusing her Republican opponent in the 7th Congressional District race, Prince William County Board Supervisor Yesli Vega, of not funding police by voting against the county budgets. “Yesli Vega won’t keep us safe,” the ad’s ending note says. [Washington Post]

School supplies and backpacks are ready to go to Stafford County Public Schools — Stafford Rotary Club learned of the need for supplies and backpacks for students at all levels. Knowing that basic needs are essential for students and help them engage in lessons, they got to work and collected 65 backpacks along with numerous school supplies for first-grade through 12th-grade students. [Fredericksburg.com]

North Stafford club installs new officers — The small but mighty North Stafford Rotary held an initiation party for the new officers of the club, whose terms began in July and continued through June 2023. [Fredericksburg.com]

Prince William schools drop most COVID-19 protocols for the new school year (paywall) — Prince William County schools will begin the new year like it’s 2019. The school division will no longer post COVID-19 case numbers on its website; gone too will be mask requirements, social distancing and contact tracing. [Prince William Times]

New Route 28 intersections proposed in Manassas Park — The city is asking for over $18 million in Smart Scale funding from the Commonwealth Transportation Board for intersection changes from Manassas Drive to Spruce Street along Route 28. [Insidenova.com]

Potomac High School graduate Kyle Honore dies after being hit by a train near Wingate University — g Keith Honore led Potomac for 17 seasons before retiring after this season as the Panthers’ head boys basketball coach. [InsideNova.com]

Stafford officials push to bring broadband access to more homes — The latest effort to provide the service to residents primarily in the eastern and western regions of the county comes with a $10.23 million price tag that county officials hope a 2023 Virginia Telecommunications Initiative grant will help fund. [Fredericksbrug.com]

More homes sold in Prince William County last month vs. a year ago –– In Prince William County in July 2022, a total of 676 homes were sold across the month of July, this is a noticeable decrease of 32.80% percent in comparison to July of 2021. New listings showed a slight 12.57% decrease with 918 new listings as opposed to 1,050 in July of 2021. [Realtor Association of Prince William]

Virginia Department of Education proposes no longer calling George Washington the “father of our country” on tests — From George Washington to George Mason to Thomas Jefferson, changes may be on the way for how Virginia students are tested on history in public schools. [WJLA-TV]

Inspector General: Virginia agencies mishandled I-95 snow incident — A new inspection report found the Commonwealth did not implement lessons learned during the Interstate 95 snow incident that occurred in January 2022. [WRIC-TV]

Prince William public safety career fair — The Prince William County Police Department, including Crossing Guards, the Department of Fire & Rescue, the Sheriff’s Office, Public Safety Communications, and the Adult Detention Center, will hold a career fair on Saturday, Aug. 27, 2022, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. [Press release]

Virginia launches playing cards designed to solve cold cases — Attorney General Miyares today announced that playing cards to help close unsolved homicides have been distributed to inmates within the Richmond City Justice Center for recreational use. [Press release]

Discover Occoquan coming up — The annual Discover Occoquan week of activities kicks off this Saturday, August 13. This weekend will feature the start of the Scavenger Hunt Passport Event, the naming of our Town Hall Building for the late Mamie Davis and June Randolph, and our 14th annual Duck Splash race, the proceeds of which benefit the Occoquan 501(c)(3) organization Patriots for Disabled Divers. [Press release]

Free expungement clinic to be held in Manassas — On August 20, 2022, an Expungement Clinic will be held in Manassas. This is the second expungement clinic to be held in the area. [Press release]