Well EXCEL family this is it - the LAST issue of the Eagle's Nest! It's been an amazing five years being able to share with you through this venue. The purpose was to keep you informed of what was happening at school and things around the district and in the community that impacted your families and your scholars. I hope I was able to do that.

Moving forward, our charter operator, SEED, has ensured that the lines of communication between home and school will continue to flow and you will be kept abreast of the things you need to know. They will also assign someone to eventually take over the social media accounts and website, so keep your ears open for that.

Please know that I am aggressively pushing to ensure we have staffing in our newly-created positions, as well as in some positions where we know there will be an upcoming vacancy. To date, we have filled 60% of the 10 newly-added positions and one holdover vacancy from this school year (6th grade reading.) I still have interviews through the end of this week and hope to have even more holes filled by then. In the meantime, I would like to thank and congratulate my group of teacher-leaders who served on and facilitated the interview panels, some for several rounds. This would not be possible without their leadership:

• Ms. Anderson
• Ms. Bradford
• Mr. Boysaw
• Mr. Bryant
• Ms. Dye

• Ms. Green
• Ms. Henry
  
• Ms. King-Harris
• Ms. Theodore
  
• Ms. Walsh

As for me, my official last day is June 30th, although my last day in the building will be June 21st. We transition to virtual summer work on June 24th and I will be on vacation beginning June 26th to celebrate my 25th wedding anniversary! Interestingly enough I was on vacation during my 20th anniversary when I received the call (on the beach) that I was being offered this position - so now this becomes a full circle moment in more ways than one.

I appreciate ALL of you who have extended warm wishes, hugs, and the biggest smiles and congratulations. Although I am leaving EXCEL Academy PCS I will never truly LEAVE - a piece of me will always remain and I will always carry you with me. I pray that, as in all cases, I have done something to leave your children's lives, and yours, better in some way than it was before.

Thank you for the opportunity to serve.

This week we celebrated all our students, but specifically our students in 8th grade, 5th grade, and kindergarten as they each made a major transition from one educational level to the next. As usual, we celebrated with the scholars and families, who were all smiles and excited. It's always a great time to celebrate the academic accomplishments of our babies and encourage them along their journey to colleges and careers. Be sure to call us when they have their ACTUAL graduation when they leave 12th grade and complete the cycle, but in the meantime, enjoy the video below!

Every summer we have transitions in the building but a few have already begun and I wanted to be sure that we properly recognized three people who will officially be transitioning out of EXCEL as of this summer. Let's congratulate them and thank them for their service:

• Ms. Autumn King-Harris, our ELD teacher, will be transferring to another school to be closer to her family. We want to thank her for being our FOuNDING full-time ELD teacher and her persistent smile, diligent service, and positive attitude!
• Ms. Farrezzel Lofranco, Our Special Education Chair and Elementary Resource Teacher, will be transitioning to another school to be an ELD teacher. Ms. Lofranco returned to EXCEL this year and helped us organized the influx of caseloads as we nearly doubled the number of students with IEPs. She handled the task with grace and diligence and, despite staffing vacancies, implemented a structure that will be a great foundation to build on next year.
• Mr. Grainger Browning, III who started his educational career here at EXCEL has accepted a promotion and will be transitioning to another PGCPS school as a Community Schools Coordinator. We want to thank him for his service as a Special Education teacher for so many years, developing relationships with scholars and parents while supporting their academic development.

You should hear additional communication about others who are transitioning once things are finalized. As stated, leadership is working collaboratively to ensure vacancies are filled before the start of school in August.

Happy Father's Day to the men of EXCEL Academy Public Charter School! Daddies are oftentimes the unsung heroes in the lives of children and research shows that those who have an active father are more likely to be successful later on in life. We appreciate everything the Dads of EXCEL do for our scholars - we see you at drop off and pick up, volunteering, in meetings, advocating, correcting, and loving!

We hope you had an amazing day and were loved on by those who love you!

The SchoolMax Family Portal will be accessible until June 22 for you to review student grades. Report cards are scheduled to be mailed out during the week of July 8.

Please note that SchoolMax will be inaccessible after June 22 as we prepare for the transition to Synergy. The Synergy ParentVue portal will replace SchoolMax, and you will receive information about enrolling in it starting in July.

EXCEL Academy Public Charter School develops compassionate lifelong learners through inquiry-based learning experiences. These experiences cultivate intercultural understanding through innovative teaching techniques and community partnerships, with rigorous and culturally engaging academic and social learning opportunities.

Email: excelacademy.pc@pgcps.org
Website: http://excelacademypcs.org
Location: 6700 Bock Road, Fort Washington, MD 20744
Phone: 301-925-2320

Social Media:

• EXCEL on Twitter
• EXCEL on Instagram
• EXCEL on Facebook