

Riverhawk Reminders
Week of March 3rd
Belmont Ridge Mission Statement
Belmont Ridge Middle School cultivates a safe, empathetic, and accountable learning environment where every student thrives. We educate the whole child by ensuring high expectations for each and every Riverhawk and by fostering resilient learners who act with integrity as they navigate adolescence.
Newsletter topics include:
- Upcoming Events
- Association of Middle Level Education - Student Sound Off Contest
- LCPS Family Survey
- Rising Seventh Grade Immunization Reminder
- Dean's Presentation
- The Power of Words
- Grade Expungement
- Yearbooks for Sale
- Screen Sanity Event
- All Pro Dads
- Garden Volunteers
- MIlitary Child Month Save the Date
- Science Olympiad
- Civics Bee
- American Math Competition
- Department of EL FACE Updates
- YAS Updates
Tuesday, March 4th - All Pro Dads at 8am in the library
Tuesday, March 4th and 5th - The Power of Words - Understanding & Challenging Biased Language
Lessons through ResourceWednesday, March 12th - PEP Event (VIRTUAL)
Thursday, March 13th - Musical Presentation for students by RVHS Peer
Thursday, March 13th - Screen Sanity Event at 6pm in the library
March is Middle Level Education Month
March is Middle Level Education Month (MLEM) - a time to celebrate the unique opportunities of the middle grades and the transformative years of early adolescence. One of our favorite ways of elevating the middle school experience is the Middle School Student Sound Off Contest. Now in its third year, AMLE’s contest is a global celebration of student voice.
Here are the Details:
Who? Any student aged 10-15 can submit. They must have the support of a sponsoring teacher and a parent/guardian.
What? Students are invited to sound off by creating submissions that share their experience as a middle schooler in 2025. AMLE has provided a series of prompts to get those creative juices flowing!
How? Because we all have different talents, interests and ways of expressing ourselves, students can submit in the format that most appeals to them.
When? Submissions are due by midnight on April 4, 2025.
Why? AMLE will select submissions to feature on our website, in our publications, and at AMLE25: The 52nd Annual Conference for Middle Level Education. Plus, there are some cool prizes in store for participants!
LCPS Family Survey
We need to hear from you!
The LCPS Annual Family Survey will be emailed to you on February 24. The LCPS Annual Staff, Student and Family Survey is the most extensive and influential feedback survey conducted by Loudoun County Public Schools each year. We use the results to assess the learning climate in our building and make plans for the following year. We want to hear from everyone so that we can make the best decisions for ALL our students!
The parent/family survey will only take a few minutes of your time. You will receive an email from Dr. Aaron Spence that will include a link to take the survey. You will be asked to fill out a survey for each school in which you have a child enrolled (elementary, middle, high or program). For more information go to Stakeholder Surveys 2025 Information webpage.
If you do not receive a survey email by February 24, contact research@lcps.org.
Thank you for sharing your opinion with us!
Rising 7th Grade Immunization Reminders
While the 2025/26 school year is still several months away, it is not too early to schedule vaccinations for rising 7th / rising 12th-grade students. Students in grade 7 / grade 12 are required to have the following immunization(s).
Required Vaccinations for All 7th-grade Students:
One dose of Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis) given at age 7 or older
One dose of Meningococcal Vaccine, MenACWY (MenQuadfi, Menveo), given at age 10 or older
Encouraged Vaccinations for All 7th-grade Students:
HPV (Human Papillomavirus) vaccine
Required Vaccinations for All 12th-grade Students:
One dose of Meningococcal Vaccine, MenACWY (MenQuadfi, Menveo), given at age 16 or older
Once your student is vaccinated, please provide our school with the appropriate documentation. For more information, please see LCPS' Immunization Requirements webpage. For more general information about back-to-school immunizations for students of all ages, see the Virginia Department of Health website. Vaccinations are required by Virginia law and they help keep all of us safe. Thank you!
The Power of Words - Understanding & Challenging Biased Language Resource Lesson
During resource time this Tuesday and Wednesday, students will take part in our No Place for Hate lesson. We want every Riverhawk to feel safe, included, and valued at Belmont Ridge and to embrace a culture of kindness. Students will watch a video called "The Lie," where fourth-grade students share stereotypes they have heard about themselves. It can be found HERE. The groups will then discuss sample stories of mistreatment and answer these questions:
- What was said that was hurtful?
- How did it make the person feel? (How would you feel?)
- What could you do to help?
These lessons will be conducted by our unified mental health team, our admin team, and our equity leads.
Expungement for High School Credit Courses
Middle school students who have taken a high school course while in sixth, seventh, or eighth grade may elect to have the course expunged (grade and credit omitted) from the student’s high school records. The high school credit courses available to middle school students include the following, Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra II/Trig, Robotics and World Languages. Student’s GPA and class standing will not include the grade from the expunged course, nor will the student receive a credit toward graduation for this course.
Students are not required to repeat a high school-credited course that has been expunged, unless it is a prerequisite and needed to fulfill a graduation requirement. LCPS requires that courses taken in mathematics and world language follow a sequence of courses that include prerequisites and no pre-requisite course may be expunged without repeating.
Course Progressions:
If a high school math course is expunged in 7th or 8th grade, the results will be one of the following:
Student will retake the course in 8th or 9th grade or,
Student will retake the course in the summer (if applicable)
If a high school world language course is expunged in 7th or 8th grade, the results will be one of the following:
Student will repeat the course in 8th or 9th grade, or
Student can switch to a different World Language Elective, or
Student can switch to a different elective
Student can retake the course in the summer (if applicable)
If a middle school student receives a grade of “F” in a high school credit bearing course, that grade and course will automatically be expunged by your student’s school counselor. No permission click response needed.
Students do have an opportunity to enroll in summer courses through Virtual Loudoun Online Learning. Summer courses taken following the promotion of 8th grade are not eligible for expungement.
Strong consideration should be given for expunging low grades in credit-bearing courses. Below are some additional examples to consider:
Grades lower than a B- will equate to less than 3.0 GPA
Mastered or feel confident with the content? Expunging and repeating gives students an opportunity to increase their understanding of the content and improve the grade
If you wish to expunge the grade for a high school course taken in middle school, the expungement form must be completed through Permission Click. Expungement requests should be submitted to the school counseling department no later than the end of the first quarter of the 2025-2026 school year.
Please note the following:
If your student is a current sixth or seventh grader, please submit the form to your student's middle school counselor. This link can be found at the bottom of your Middle School Web site and is linked below
BEM Rising 7th/8th link to expunge
If your student is a current eighth grader, please submit the form on or before the end of the first quarter of the 2025-2026 school year through your student’s home high school link. Please assure you are using the correct link.
Riverside Rising 9th link
If your student is attending a different high school, please reach out to your student’s school counselor to receive the correct link.
Courses taken in middle school cannot be expunged after the end of the first quarter of the 2025-2026 school year.
To successfully meet the prerequisite requirements for course sequencing students may be enrolled in the same course they are expunging for the upcoming school year,
Example: Algebra 1 is expunged in 8th grade, must repeat Algebra 1 in 9th grade
Please be advised that the decision to expunge a grade is irreversible.
If you have questions, please contact your child's middle school counselor.
Thank you.
Is your family in need of a little screen-life balance? Save the date for our Screen Sanity Parent Night, an event that will equip you with tools and techniques for raising happy, healthy kids in an increasingly digital world. RSVP below.
Screen Sanity Parent Night
Thursday, Mar 13, 2025, 06:00 PM
Belmont Ridge Middle School, Upper Belmont Place, Leesburg, VA, USA
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
Our next All Pro Dad meeting is coming soon, on date at time. Join us for this month’s topic: First Rate Sidekick We will spend intentional time encouraging our kids with fun activities and character-strengthening conversations!
We would love to see you and your kids there! Please RSVP here: https://allprodadchapters.com/chapters/15314
For more information or questions, contact our team captain, Mr. McKenzie at david.mckenzie@lcps.org.
Garden Volunteers Needed!
We're thrilled to announce that our new school garden is ready to be brought to life! We're planning a special volunteer day to get the garden up and running, and we need your help.
This is a fantastic opportunity to contribute to a project that will benefit our students and the entire community. The garden will provide hands-on learning experiences for all of our students in a variety of classes and projects.
We need volunteers to help with tasks such as:
- Preparing garden beds (weeding, turning soil)
- Planting seedlings and seeds
- Building simple garden structures
- General cleanup and organization
Time and Date in March TBD
Even an hour of your time would make a huge difference! Students are welcome to participate alongside an adult.
Please contact Kelly Merritt (FACS Teacher and Green Team Lead) at kelly.merritt@lcps.org with any questions.
We appreciate your support in making our school garden a success!
Save the Date
Congratulations Mehna!
Congratulations! Mehna Majjiga has been selected as a local finalist in the National Civics Bee®!
AMC8 Results: Congratulations to Our Top 3 Winners!
We are excited to announce the outstanding achievements of our students in the AMC8 (American Mathematics Competition). After a challenging and inspiring competition, we are proud to recognize the top three winners:
- Hanna Hong, 8th Grade
- Akanksha Jha, 8th Grade; Jack Garvin, 8th Grade (Tie)
- Kavin Nair, 7th Grade; Nathan Nair, 7th Grade; Vidhu Reddy, 6th Grade (Tie)
These students demonstrated exceptional problem-solving skills and mathematical talent, and we couldn't be prouder of their hard work and dedication. Congratulations to all participants for their efforts and hard work!
Division of EL, Family and Community Engagement (EL FACE) Office Presentations
The Welcome to LCPS EL Family Workshop is designed to provide a brief orientation to new EL families about the U.S. School System and LCPS. Sessions are held at the Historic Douglas High School in
April 3rd
May 1st
June 5th
See Welcome to LCPS flyer to learn more.
Virtual Event
This virtual informative session will include information about LCPS and the U.S School system and a toolkit to support student's transition to LCPS will be shared.
Thursday, March 6th - 6:30pm-7:30pm
Sessions will be available in English, Spanish, Arabic, Farsi/Dari. Please see flyers below to access the meeting link:
Families can register by completing this Google Form.
Contact Sarah.Ocampo@lcps.org, DEL FACE Supervisor, with any questions.
Reminders
** Any messages sent from BEMS through our Blackboard account (noreply.belmontridge@lcps.org) come from an account that is not monitored. Please use our website to locate the email addresses of any staff members you need to contact. Thank you. **
Belmont Ridge Middle School
Website: https://www.lcps.org/o/bem
Location: 19045 Upper Belmont Place, Lansdowne, VA, USA
Phone: 571-252-2220