John Marshall Community Newsletter

Excellence is the gradual result of always striving to do better. When a team outgrows individual performance and learns team confidence, excellence becomes a reality. Excellence is a better teacher than mediocrity. The lessons of the ordinary are everywhere, however truly profound and original insights are to be found only in studying the exemplary. We are what we repeatedly do, therefore excellence is not an act, it's a habit. When we settle in the fact that perfection is not attainable, while chasing perfection, we can catch excellence!

I'm on the chase, catch me if you can!

Dear John Marshall Family:

It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to the 2023-24 school year! Whether you are new to our school community or a returning family, we are beyond thrilled to have you with us! Our faculty and staff look forward to partnering with you to ensure you and your family have the tools, resources, and support needed to make your child’s educational journey run as smoothly as possible. We are always available to answer questions and know that together, we will have an incredible year.

Monday, August 21 is the first day of school. The following information is important for you to know this year:

Student Arrival

• The school day for John Marshall High School is from 9:00 am - 4:00 pm for 9th-grade through 12th-grade students. The doors open for students at 8:30 am; instruction begins at 9:00 am. Students are considered tardy at 9:01 am. After 9:00 am, students are to report to the attendance office to receive a tardy pass as they must have a pass to enter the classroom. Attendance will be recorded daily by the teacher.

• All students will enter thru door 3 and report directly to the gym. If students would like breakfast, they will be released from the gym to receive breakfast in the cafeteria.

• When dropping students off, it is imperative that we keep the traffic moving. We ask that you remain inside your vehicle when dropping off students. We will have multiple monitorial staff members to ensure students enter the building safely daily.

Student Dismissal

• Bus Riders will be boarding the bus in the Henderson Parking lot.

• Car Riders/Pickups will be picked up from the front of the building. No cars will be allowed to enter the bus loop. We ask that you remain inside your vehicle when picking up students. We will have multiple monitorial staff members to ensure students enter the building safely daily.

• Student Drivers: Student drivers must park in the YMCA parking lot. All student drivers must complete the VDOE High School Parking Pass Application. Parking passes will be required and distributed during the 2nd week of school.

• It is our goal to keep all of our students safe and we will take all necessary precautions to do so. Any changes to how students go home must be in writing with the parent’s signature. Changes will not be accepted over the phone (no exceptions).

• Early dismissal students must be signed out at the main office window before 4:00 pm; all adults must present a picture ID and be listed on the student emergency sheet. Changes will not be accepted over the phone (no exceptions).

Communication between school and home is critical. I will provide information to parents via Remind messaging, our school website: https://jmhs.rvaschools.net/ and social media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Jayem4225

• Instagram: @JM_Justice

• Tiktok:@JM_Justices

• Twitter: @Jm_Justices

Please ensure your information is up-to-date in Aspen. If you need assistance updating this information, please email Ms. Dark, SISOP at mdark@rvaschool.net. Additional contacts for support are as follows:

• Monica Murray, Principal: mglass@rvaschools.net

• Patrick Cheatham, Assistant Principal: pcheatham@rvaschools.net

• Allen Vernon, Assistant Principal: avernon@rvaschools.net

• Natasha Jackson-Jones/Camilla Battle, Student Counselor for students' last names A-F: cbattle@rvaschools.net

• Shannon Bryant, Student Counselor for students' last names G-P: sbryant3@rvaschools.net

• Charita Harris, Student Counselor for students' last names Q-Z: charris3@rvaschools.net

• Ms. Carol Trent, School Instructional Compliance Coordinator for all students with Disabilities: ctreant@rvaschools.net

• Barbara Scott, School Nurse: bscott@rvaschools.net

If you ever have any questions, please feel free to contact our main office at 804-780-6052.

Food Services

• All RPS students qualify for free breakfast and lunch. Students have the option to eat school breakfast/lunch or bring a packed breakfast/lunch. Each student will be given a barcode to scan when getting lunch.

• Students are encouraged to bring their water bottles daily as the water fountains are unavailable. Students will have access to a hydration station to refill their water bottles.

Title I Back-to-School Night will be held on Thursday, August 17 at 6:00 pm at John Marshall. Park in the YMCA parking lot. Registration and schedule pick-up will be held in front of the auditorium. Join us for the opportunity to learn more about our curriculum, meet building administration and staff, receive schedules, and more. We will also be available to answer questions and provide important updates.

The John Marshall Family is excited for the upcoming school year and we can’t wait to see you on August 21!

Respectfully,

Monica Murray

Monica Murray

• Standardized High School Parking Pass Application (PDF) - As required by § 22.1-205.1 of the Code of Virginia, any public high school student who applies to park a vehicle on school property must provide evidence that the student possesses a valid driver’s license or driver privilege card. It also requires that each public school utilize a standard application form, developed by the Virginia Department of Education, for students to use to obtain a pass to park a vehicle on school property.

Dear Parent or Guardian

We are pleased to remind you of a new method for you to receive your child’s Virginia Assessment Program test results.

The Virginia Assessment Parent Portal, located at https://va-results.pearsonaccessnext.com, is a new web-based portal where you will create a user account and gain access to your child's test results for specific statewide assessments.

You will be able to review your child’s Student Detail by Question (SDBQ) Report for each test completed, and, in most cases, you will be able to view a personalized video that accompanies the SDBQ Report for your child. This is a customized video that provides an overview of the SDBQ report, explains specific details from your child’s SDBQ report, and directs you to resources on the Virginia Department of Education’s website (https://tinyurl.com/VAparentpage) to assist with your child's academic needs.

To access the VA Parent Portal parents must:

1. The website to the parent portal is https://va-results.pearsonaccessnext.com
2. Parents will be prompted to create a user account
3. Then to access their student's test results, they will need to enter the following information:

• Student's first name
• Student's last name
  
• Student's birthdate
  
• claim code
  

Once your account has been created and activated, you will use your child’s information and the Claim Code to add your child’s test results to your account.

• Claim codes can be found on your child’s final report card or in the Richmond Public School’s Parent Portal.

Please note, the Claim Code must be entered exactly as it appears. It is case-sensitive. This code will enable you to access your child’s test results securely.

If you have questions about accessing the Virginia Assessment Parent Portal or your child’s test results, please contact Valenta Wade at vwade@rvaschools.net or 804-780-7905.

I thought you might be interested in supporting this GoFundMe, https://gofund.me/065dec81.

Even a small donation could help Leonard Hopkins reach their fundraising goal. And if you can't make a donation, it would be great if you could share the fundraiser to help spread the word.

Thanks for taking a look!

Parent's did you know that you can have access to ASPEN to track your students? If you are interested in getting an ASPEN login, please complete the form below and Ms. Dark will get it set up for you!

It's a fact: Students who attend school regularly learn more and are more successful in school than students who do not. Parents who make regular school attendance a priority also are helping their children learn to accept responsibility, and that’s an important lesson for a successful life. Attendance patterns are formed early in life. Children who develop good attendance habits in the early grades will be more likely to continue them throughout their school career, as well as into their chosen career. Regular attendance is critically important, because students who miss school miss out on carefully planned sequences of instruction. They miss out on active learning experiences and class participation. They miss out on the opportunity to ask questions. As a result, they are more likely to fall behind, and they are more likely to drop out.

Student Attendance and Absences/Truancy

Excused Absences

• An excused absence results from conditions beyond the control of the parent/guardian and/or the student or school. Acceptable absences could include personal illness, death in the family, court appearance, religious holidays, and extenuating circumstances as approved by the school administration.
• Schools are required by state law to take specific actions if a student accumulates a certain number of unexcused absences.
• Students shall not be absent (excused or unexcused reasons, excluding suspensions) for 18 or more school days per year or 18 class periods.
• Any student who misses 18 or more days of school will not be eligible to receive course credit and/or will be subject to retention.
• A waiver for these attendance policies may be considered for medical hardships or other very unique circumstances as determined by the Division Superintendent or his designee.
• Parents and guardians are required to provide a note requesting that the days absent be considered excused absences within five (5) schools days of the last day of school missed. If a note for the day(s) absent is not provided within five (5) school days of the last day of school missed, the period of absences will be considered unexcused.

Unexcused Absences

• Early intervention with the student and parent or parents takes place for repeated unexcused absences.
• Please see School Board Policy linked below for further details about how unexcused absences are handled.

Tardies and Early Dismissals

• Students should start and remain in school for the entirety of the school day. No student shall be allowed to leave school early except in cases of sickness or for some pressing emergency. Parent/guardians are encouraged to make medical and other appointments outside of school hours.
• Students with excessive unexcused tardies or early dismissals may receive sanctions as determined by the superintendent or their designee. Tardies are defined as being more than 30 minutes late to school and early dismissals are defined as leaving more than 30 minutes early.
• Students obtaining permission to leave school during school hours due to sickness shall be required to return a special form properly signed by the parent or legal guardian. All notes of excuse or requests to leave school shall state the reason for such excuse or request. The principal shall judge the validity of all such excuses and requests.

If you see a student out of school between 7:25 am and 2:00 pm, call the RPS Attendance Support Hotline at (804) 780-4646.

What is Remind?

RPS is excited to launch the Remind Plan to provide 2-way communications with families and students!

Remind allows teachers who choose to use text messaging to communicate with parents and students. With Remind:

See instructions below on how to sign up or re-subscribe to receive Remind notifications from your school and RPS. If you need to update your contact information, please reach out to your school!

If you would like to opt out from using Remind, step by step instructions are available here.

• Parents can choose how to receive messages – text, email or app. For students, texting is available for ages 13 and over.
• It allows for safe and secure messaging that is available in multiple languages
• It has a call feature, so teachers may use it to make calls without using their personal number.

Sign-Up to Receive Text Messages!

To receive Remind text messages, text @jmjustices to 81010 (including the @) on your mobile device. You can also sign-up online by clicking here.

Check out our profile to see our current accreditation standing and academic growth.

Monday through Thursday from 4:00-6:30 pm, students can stay back for academic enrichment and participate with other clubs around the school. Food and transportation are provided. Click below or email Ms. Bland, dbland@rvaschools.net, for more information.

Come out and support our Justice athletes at their various games and meets this month. Click the button below to see their schedules!

JAYEM gear and school store items are for sale

Purchase or online or in person

• I need and want your help!!! Fundraisers, community service projects, or sponsorship ideas, please share! dsmith10@rvaschools.net

• JM Face Masks fundraiser is still available for sale, $12 each. They may be purchased each Monday & Tuesday and Thursday & Friday from 9-2pm in the main office. Please email AD Smith (dsmith10@rvaschools.net) if you would like to make arrangements for pick-up.

• JMHS apparel items are now being sold at Walgreens, 2924 Chamberlayne Ave., Richmond, VA 23222 and Dollar General, 5236 Chamberlayne Rd., Richmond, VA 23227

• Michelle Andrews , Class of 2011

• Camilla Battle, Class of 2000

• Danette Bland, Class of 1997

• Milondra Coleman, Class of 1989

• Morgan Dark, Class of 2007

• Stevenson Fox Jr., Class of 1997

• Elijah Freeman, Class of 1991

• Gregory Jones, Class of 2017

• Tanya White, Class of 1990

We have some leftover yearbooks for sale. If you are looking for a yearbook, please email the year and quantity to Mrs. V. Thompson. She will follow up with you about inventory and cost.

Calling all Alumni! Want to know how you can help? Commit to honoring each year since you've left Jayem! We are asking each alum to give a one dollar ($1) for every year that you have earned your Alumni status. This is a fundraiser that alumni of all ages can participate in!

Here are some examples:

• 2022 Grads - $1
• 2021 Grads - $2

• 2020 Grads - $3

• 2019 Grads - $4

• 2015 Grads - $5

• 2010 Grads - $10

• 2000 Grads - $20

• 1990 Grads - $30

• 1980 Grads - $40

• 1970 Grads - $50

This will be a recurring donation. Each year you will add $1 to your donation. It's that simple! Your gift will help with Athletics, Academics, and Accomplishment Celebrations! Click the link and choose Jayem Forever Fundraiser.

Alumni, YOU DID IT!!

A new marquee - Done!

A new scoreboard - Done!

Now, we need YOUR help once again. We are working to procure a new PRESS BOX.

Either we need a construction company to donate a press box or 50K to purchase a new one.

Any and all donations are welcome. You've done it before, we know your support can help us meet our new goal.

Families,

Please take a moment to complete this short survey from Rite Aid. We have a target of 25 participants. We only need 10 more sign-ups and we will earn 2500.00!!! Help us earn these funds.

support.rxfundraising.com/JohnMarshallHighSchool

Don't forget to follow us on Instagram @jm_justices and use the hashtag #jm4225 any time you mention Jayem!

Email: mglass@rvaschools.net
Website: jmhs.rvaschools.net
Location: 4225 Old Brook Road, Richmond, VA, USA
Phone: 804-780-6052
Facebook: Facebook.com/jm4225
Twitter: @jm_justices