Prince William County Public Schools: “Over 300 PWCS employees who have dedicated much of their lives to teaching our students, leading our schools, and fulfilling important roles in the division, were celebrated in a retirement ceremony on June 1.”
See the full list of retirees.
“Our innovative program raises awareness about the advantages of skills training and eliminates cost as a barrier to getting it,” said Patrick Small, Economic Development Director for the City of Manassas. “We have high-tech, high-wage jobs open with world-class employers in our community that don’t require college degrees,” he added. “We want our residents to get our jobs and are investing local resources to make that happen.”
Rustic Pathways: “16-year-old Khadeejah Alsheikh and Yusur Al Ogaidi [Osbourn Park High School outside Manassas] are featured in Rustic Spirit Spotlights for their amazing impact work – Their focus is on educating the Muslim community about environmental issues and implementing recycling practices.”
“They have introduced new recycling procedures, recycling boxes and replaced disposable utensils with reusable ones at the Mosque. They have provided educational sessions to the community, particularly the youth, emphasizing the positive impacts of recycling.”
Brennon Christopher Craig of Woodbridge is one of 332 Mars Hill University students named on the Honor Roll of the Academic Dean at the end of the spring 2023 semester.
Ten local students recently received scholarships from the Park West Lions Club at a dinner meeting to recognize each recipient. Scholarship recipients were Zachary Gruninger, Battlefield High School; Jayden Turner, Patriot High School; Elena Shropshire, Battlefield High School; Evan Davisson, Patriot High School; Audrey Basler, Patriot High School; Anandita Hussain, Battlefield High School; Rebecca Violett, Patriot High School; Alexis Francis, Patriot High School; Cameron Kacala, Patriot High School; and Diya Patel, Patriot High School.
“The investigation revealed the victim, a 14-year-old female juvenile, was in the restroom of the school when another female student, identified as the accused, entered the restroom. The accused approached the victim from behind and grabbed the victim’s hair pulling her to the ground.”
“While on the ground, the accused struck the victim multiple times before leaving the restroom. The victim went to the school nurse and was later transported to an area hospital where they determined her injuries were non-life threatening. On June 6, following the investigation, the accused, identified as a 14-year-old female juvenile, was arrested.”
Prince William County Public Schools: “To this day, through her passionate efforts to promote reading, Samantha Boateng continues building on work she started back in high school. Boateng, a 2014 graduate of Gar-Field High School, began a service project during her junior year there that developed into a nonprofit organization.”
“Read 2 Lead provided books to children in Ghana, Africa, and eventually expanded to funding the building of libraries there. That work and the partnership between Boateng and the students and staff at Gar-Field High has never stopped. Read 2 Lead continues to make a difference in the lives of children in Ghana, and the students at Gar-Field continue to support that important work and reap the benefits of the opportunity it presents for service, international connection, and the development of academic strengths and career-related interests.”
“Tracy Blake, a 46-year-old candidate for the Neabsco District School Board seat this fall, faced a number of legal challenges between 2006 and 2011, Prince William County Circuit Court records show, ultimately landing Blake in jail with a one-year sentence. Blake’s arrest record began circulating on several schools-related Facebook groups over the weekend.”
Manassas City School Board member Sara Brescia “Next year MCPS will be piloting a public preschool program for 3-year-olds out of Round Elementary (but open to students in all geographies), which is targeted towards students who otherwise would not have access to private preschool. The pilot program will not require any additional staff as there is already resource capacity available from our existing 4-year-old program.”
“Preschool is an important piece of the student achievement puzzle to get students introduced to academic concepts and behavioral expectations and can quicken the pace of English language acquisition for ESOL students. However, while there is a body of research showing the benefits of preschool, there is also some disturbing evidence that at least some public preschool programs are counter-productive.”
Prince William County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. LaTanya McDade: “June 3, PWCS will hold an Instructional Job Fair at the Kelly Leadership Center. I invite you to complete our registration form and help us recruit top talent by spreading the word about instructional opportunities or any of our classified positions, such as bus drivers, security, finance, human resources, and information technology professionals. I encourage you to refer family, friends, or recent graduates, especially former PWCS students – you belong here!”
“As a reminder, June 15 is the last day of school and will be an early-release day. This ensures final exams, grading, and year-end obligations are met for students and staff before the summer break.”
