September 1st, 2024

I hope you are enjoying a restful, long holiday weekend. We look forward to welcoming students back on Tuesday, September 5th. Please read below for important information regarding this week.

• September 2: NO SCHOOL, Labor Day

• September 3: Senior Portraits (by reservation only); Girls Home Volleyball game vs Freedom South Riding (JV - 6:00PM; Varsity - 7:00PM)

• September 4: Senior Portraits (by reservation only); Girls Home Volleyball game vs Gainesville HS (JV - 6:00PM; Varsity - 7:00PM)

• September 5: Girls Home Field Hockey game vs John R. Lewis HS, 6:00PM

• September 6: First Home Football Game vs Woodbridge Senior HS, 7:00 PM

• September 25: Save the Date! Hispanic Heritage Night, 6:00PM

• September 28: Save the Date! Senior Parent Breakfast, 9:00AM

• October 9: PSAT Day (Grades 9-11)

• October 18: Homecoming Game

• October 19: Homecoming Dance

All PWCS students in grades 3-12 are asked to complete the student needs assessment between August 21st and September 6th. This annual student emotional needs assessment serves as a tool for school staff to identify students who may need more support at school. Students at Unity Reed HS will be completing this assessment on Wednesday, September 4th during W.I.N. block 5. Students whose parents filled out an opt-out form will not participate.

Report your child’s absences: Parents should notify the school before, or at the start of, the school day when their child will be absent. Parents must send written or electronic communication citing the reason(s) for the absence to the school no more than five school days following the date of the absence.To report an absence at Unity Reed HS, please call the school at 703-365-2900, submit the note via ParentVUE or have your student submit a written note to the main office. For early dismissals, please call the main office at 703-365-2900.

How sick is too sick for school? For information about when your child should go to school or when they should stay home due to illness, visit the When to Keep Students home webpage. If you have additional questions, please contact our school nurse, Nurse Lawton, at lawtonst@pwcs.edu.

Planning a prearranged absence? We understand that some absences are unavoidable, however we encourage parents and guardians to schedule appointments and trips on scheduled days off for students throughout the school year. View the 2024-25 school calendar website to view days off for students.

We appreciated our families understanding that attending school every day helps our students build a solid foundation for their future in school and in life. Please contact our Attendance Officer, Ms. Gilliam at 571-598-3216 or gilliadb@pwcs.edu; or our School Social Worker, Mr. Jahanian at 571-598-3232 or jahanir@pwcs.edu; if your family or child are in need of resources to have a successful school year.

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act, most recently reauthorized as the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), states that parents in Title I schools have the right to request certain information about their child’s teachers. The information that you have a right to request about your child’s teacher is:

• Whether the teacher has met state qualifications and licensing criteria for the grade levels and subjects the teacher is teaching.
• Whether the teacher is teaching under emergency or other provisional status through which state qualification or licensing has been waived.
• The baccalaureate degree major of certification or degree held by the teacher, and the field of discipline of the certification or degree.
• Whether the child is provided services by paraprofessionals and, if so, their qualifications.

At Unity Reed HS, we are extremely proud of our teachers and paraprofessionals and are happy to provide you with any of the information above pertaining to your child’s teacher(s). If you have such a request, please call the school at 703-365-2900 and ask to speak with your student’s administrator to obtain the information you are interested in.

Victor O'Neill studios will be at URHS for Senior Portraits on Tuesday September 3, and Wednesday September 4, 2024. Don’t miss this opportunity to be photographed for the yearbook! The required attire for the school’s yearbook pose is traditional Tuxedos and Drapes; provided by us! In addition to the free yearbook session, we also offer sessions that include casual/personality portraits and Cap and Gown portraits. As a friendly reminder, appointments are needed for Senior Portraits. If you have any questions, please email our Senior Portraits Team: seniors@vosphoto.com Please kindly include your Senior’s First and Last Name and “Unity Reed Class of 2025” when emailing, for faster assistance. Please follow the link below to choose your session type and appointment time: www.vosphoto.com/unityreed

Save the Date! Saturday, September 28, 2024, at 9:00 AM for our Class of 2025 Senior Parent Breakfast. Here, parents and seniors will learn about important senior class events, college, career and scholarship information, ordering caps and gowns for graduation day, and more. More details forthcoming soon – we hope to see you there!

Save the Date! Wednesday, September 25, 2024, at 6:00 PM. Join us for our first annual Hispanic Heritage Night: “Embracing Our Roots” in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15 - Oct. 15). Experience a vibrant evening filled with diverse foods, exciting games, captivating performances, and much more from a variety of Hispanic cultures. All are welcome! Stay tuned for more details coming soon.

• Weekly LIONS’ ROAR: This will include the latest updates with pertinent information for the upcoming week and will be emailed to students and families every Sunday. This information will also be posted on our school website.

• URHS website: This will be updated more frequently so that we can share the most up to date information with you. In fact, click here to view our school website.

• School Status: This is our messaging system, and it allows staff to send text messages, emails, or make phone calls to families. When an email comes to your inbox with this system, the sender will be listed as School Status or Teacher name. A text message will include the staff member’s full name in the message but will be a random number. This system allows the recipient to respond directly to a message.

• The PRIDE Newsletter: This is a monthly newsletter where we celebrate and highlight the incredible accomplishments of our students, staff, and community at Unity Reed High School. Each month, we will showcase achievements, events, and milestones that make our school proud. Stay tuned for inspiring stories, academic successes, athletic triumphs, and much more. All this information will also be available on our school website for easy access and sharing.

I encourage you to continue to stay in touch with important updates by visiting our website. We are here to support you. Please reach out throughout the school year with any questions, concerns, or to share general feedback, and thank you for being part of our school community, as our STRENGTH is IN UNITY!

Sincerely,

Milagros Polanco
Principal, Unity Reed High School