On Tuesday, the 28-year-old educator who works with children with autism at an elementary school in Woodbridge was shown the door. Administrators suspended her without pay because she didn't get a coronavirus vaccine and refused to comply with the division's weekly-testing mandate.
After three years on the job, Simms misses her students and their parents, with whom she's formed close bonds.
This article is exclusively for our Locals Only members. Please Sign In or upgrade to become a Locals Only Member today!
Your support helps us continue delivering more in-depth community news that matters to you.
Palmer Denny, 17, a Junior at Colgan Senior High School, recently performed a study at his school. He wore the hat with the words "Trump 2024: Take America Back." He spoke about the study at the January 12 School Board meeting.
He received multiple responses from his peers in school -- everything from nasty comments to death threats. He logged each one as part of his research.
This article is exclusively for our Locals Only members. Please Sign In or upgrade to become a Locals Only Member today!
Your support helps us continue delivering more in-depth community news that matters to you.
A new strategic plan for Prince William County Public Schools involves:
- Improving student scores.
- Applying families in the learning process.
- Developing new hiring strategies for teachers while focusing on equity and inclusion.
- Ending "get tough" approaches to student discipline.
Schools Superintendent Dr. LaTayna McDade will present the plan at a School Board meeting scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday, January 12.
This article is exclusively for our Locals Only members. Please Sign In or upgrade to become a Locals Only Member today!
Your support helps us continue delivering more in-depth community news that matters to you.
A plan to enhance pedestrian safety outside Yorkshire Elementary School just got a funding boost.
The Prince William Board of County Supervisors transferred $83,000 in leftover funds from a project to widen Purcell Road, near Dale City, to a plan to complete a portion of the sidewalk near the school and improve the street on which the school is located, Old Centreville Road.
This article is exclusively for our Locals Only members. Please Sign In or upgrade to become a Locals Only Member today!
Your support helps us continue delivering more in-depth community news that matters to you.
Residents hoping to ask questions about Critical Race Theory and its possible application in the classroom left disappointed Monday night.
More than 100 people attended a town hall meeting about Culturally Responsive Instruction on Monday night at the Prince William County Public Schools headquarters. They were not permitted to ask about CRT -- a decades-old framework that views all facets of society through race.
Woodbridge District School Board Member Loree Williams organized the town hall. She wouldn't entertain questions about CRT, a hot topic during the November 2 Virginia Gubernatorial Campaign that swept Republicans into statewide office, including Governor-Elect Glenn Youngkin, after two years of Democratic control.
This article is exclusively for our Locals Only members. Please Sign In or upgrade to become a Locals Only Member today!
Your support helps us continue delivering more in-depth community news that matters to you.
[Updated 9:55 p.m] Prince William County Public Schools added another layer of protection for students and employees, vowing to not discriminate based on race, religion, gender, or gender identity.
The county School Board passed a new regulation affirming equal rights, adding to an existing policy that contains the same language. The School Board approved the new regulation at its meeting on Tuesday, October 20.
School Superintendent Dr. LaTayna McDade told elected School Board members the new regulation puts the government school division into compliance with state and federal laws banning discrimination.
This article is exclusively for our Locals Only members. Please Sign In or upgrade to become a Locals Only Member today!
Your support helps us continue delivering more in-depth community news that matters to you.
On Wednesday, October 6 (tomorrow), the Prince Willliam County School Board will hold its first meeting since police forced out all attendees at its September 15 meeting.
Last month, several people packed the meeting space to protest the school division's equity policy and its mask requirements for children.
In a first at the school headquarters, security guards rifled through the bags of anyone coming to attend the meeting at a newly-posted security checkpoint at the front door. Also, officials placed a new 53-person cap on the number people same room with the School Board during its meetings due to the school division's social distancing concerns.
This article is exclusively for our Locals Only members. Please Sign In or upgrade to become a Locals Only Member today!
Your support helps us continue delivering more in-depth community news that matters to you.
The tennis courts at one area high school are looking better than they did six months ago.
This past spring, Potomac Local News told you about concerns parents and students at Forest Park High School near Dumfries had about the safety of the school's tennis courts.
The courts had been falling into disrepair for almost a decade. Large cracks appeared, and uneven surfaces formed, interfering with play and proving a hazard for players. At one point, the damage was so bad teams were playing at other schools.
This article is exclusively for our Locals Only members. Please Sign In or upgrade to become a Locals Only Member today!
Your support helps us continue delivering more in-depth community news that matters to you.
The school superintendent announced that the more than 11,000 teachers and employees of the Prince William County Public School division must get a coronavirus vaccination or submit to weekly testing.
LaTanya McDade briefed the School Board about the vaccine mandate, as well and the few remaining attendees in the room after police cleared the room earlier in the evening due to security concerns.
School employees who do not get the jab will need to submit to weekly testing, said McDade, who did not provide a deadline for vaccination during the shortened meeting.
This article is exclusively for our Locals Only members. Please Sign In or upgrade to become a Locals Only Member today!
Your support helps us continue delivering more in-depth community news that matters to you.
You won't be hearing your favorite band take the stage at a major concert venue, nor will you be boarding a flight.
However, if you're going to the Prince Willam County School Board meeting on Wednesday, your bags will be subject to search. In an unprecedented move, the public school division announced late Tuesday everyone coming into the county school division headquarters, known as the Kelly Leadership Center at 14715 Bristow Road at Independent Hill, must conform to a new set of security measures.
The school division did cite a specific incident that triggered the new bag-search policy. The searches will be conducted by private security at the main entrance,
