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RiverHawk Updates
Week of January 27th - January 31st
Updates from the Admin Team
Happy Sunday RiverHawks! I hope you are having a great weekend! January is moving quickly and February will prove to be just as busy!
- Within the next few weeks, we will begin course recommendations/selection for the 2020 - 2021 school year. If you have any questions about the process, please contact your child's grade level counselor. Specific dates for course selections will be listed in the calendar section.
- Please see below for important information regarding information on Belmont's Equity Initiatives.
- We have seen an increase in students wearing hats and their hoods up at school. Please note students are not permitted to wear head coverings unless it is for religious or medical reasons. We need to be able to readily identify students in case of an emergency. Please reach out to an administrator if you have specific questions regarding your child(ren).
- We will conduct a lockdown drill this week.
January Recognition Days:
January 27 - International Holocaust Remembrance Day --> On this annual day of commemoration, the UN urges every member state to honor the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust and millions of other victims of Nazism and to develop educational programs to help prevent future genocides.
National Get Organized Month --> if your child needs support staying organized at school, please contact your child's counselor, an administrator, or any member of the BEMS Unified Mental Health Team.
National Thank You Month --> take some time to reflect on the reasons why you are grateful. Share your thoughts and good deeds with us on Twitter @BelmontRidge. Use the hashtag #bemsgratitude.
National Book Month --> Did you know that only 46% of students read fifteen minutes or more each day? Belmont- let's not be part of this terrible statistic. Need help finding a great read?- please see our awesome library staff, reading specialist, and/or English teachers for some great ideas. Share what you are reading @BelmontRidge with the hashtag #bemsreads. Our Admin team is reading White Fragility for our book study this month and our schoolwide book club is reading Taming the Team. Mrs. Johnson is also reading Jessica Lahey's The Gift of Failure.
At Belmont Ridge, we value Academic Excellence, a Culture of Equity, and a Safe, Supportive, and Positive Learning Environment. Thank you for all you do to support us as a school!
** Our Newsletter's email address, noreply.belmontridge@lcps.org is not monitored. Please use our website to locate the email addresses of any staff members you need to contact. Thank you. **
BEMS Important Dates
January 2020
January 27 - Report Cards available in ParentVue - 4:00 pm
January 27 - 31 - WIDA EL Testing
January 28 - Strings 6 Concert at 7:00 pm (BEMS Auditorium)
January 29 - Rising Night at RVHS at 6:30 pm (RVHS Auditorium)- For Rising 9th Graders (current 8th graders)
January 30 - 31 - Equity Presentations in resource for students
February 2020
February 3, 5, and 7 - DARE Education for 6th Grade during resource
February 7 - Principal's Coffee at 9:00 am (Scheduling Insights and State of the School)
February 12 - 6th Grade Honor Roll Assembly at 2:45 pm
February 13 - 7th Grade Honor Roll Assembly at 2:45 pm
February 14 - 8th Grade Honor Roll Assembly at 2:45 pm
February 19 - Rising 7th and 8th Grade Parent Night at 6:00 pm (BEMS Auditorium- current 6th and 7th-grade parents)
Principal's Coffee
Friday, Feb 7, 2020, 09:00 AM
Belmont Ridge Middle School, Upper Belmont Place, Leesburg, VA, USA
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
Rising 7th and 8th Grade Parent Night
Wednesday, Feb 19, 2020, 06:00 PM
Belmont Ridge Middle School, Upper Belmont Place, Leesburg, VA, USA
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
BEMS Scheduling Updates
Current 6th Graders and 7th Graders:
The course selection process for the 2020 - 2021 school year will take place in Resource classes on Thursday, February 20th for rising 7th-graders and Friday, February 21st for rising 8th-graders. Parents and students will be able to make changes to course requests through StudentVue from February 20th to February 28th. Please reach out to your child's counselor with any questions.
Current 8th Graders:
Monday, February 10th and Tuesday, February 11th, the school counselors from Riverside will be coming into all advisories to present on course selections for their 9th-grade year. They will share course descriptions, graduation requirements and more. They will also have the students input their elective choices, however, these will not be finalized until later in the year so they will have time to come home and discuss their choices with you.
If a student wishes to change their core class recommendation (English, math, science and social studies), they will need to talk to their counselor directly. If you have any questions on courses for 9th grade, or over their 4 years in high school, please attend Riverside’s Curriculum Night on 1/29 at 6:30 pm. The night will begin with a 9th grade-specific presentation.
Equity at Belmont Ridge
As we continuously strive to create the most supportive, respectful, and safe learning spaces for all students, unfortunately, we have had some incidents of hurtful language used by students. We adamantly denounce any language and behavior that is racist, hurtful, and disrespectful. As a school, some of our next steps will include a presentation on equity for all students led by the administration and our mental health team: counselors, psychologists, social workers, and restorative circles as a response to any incident.
Below you will find both the Superintendent's Statement on Equity as well as the presentation we will share with students in resource this upcoming Thursday and Friday. We (the Belmont Ridge Administrative Team and the Belmont Ridge Unified Mental Health Team) will discuss the terms of equality and equity and how they differ, share with students data from our student climate survey, and work collaboratively to discuss the next steps in ensuring equitable experiences for all Belmont Ridge students.
Superintendent’s Equity Statement
Loudoun County Public Schools is committed to providing an inclusive, safe, caring, and challenging learning environment, which serves as the foundation for student growth. In response to a systemic equity assessment that LCPS commissioned in 2019, Superintendent Eric Williams issued the following statement on August 19, 2019, to clearly outline the LCPS stance on creating an inclusive, safe, caring, and challenging learning environment viewed through an equity lens.
LCPS is committed to providing a safe, empathetic, respectful and supportive learning environment in order to empower every student to make meaningful contributions to the world. When students and staff experience racial insults, slurs, and/or other hate speech, we lack the positive culture and climate that supports students’ growth.
LCPS calls for all students, staff, families, and other members of our community to engage in the disruption and dismantling of white supremacy, systemic racism, and hateful language and actions based on race, religion, country of origin, gender identity, sexual orientation, and/or ability. LCPS rejects racist and other hateful behavior and language, recognizing that it encourages discrimination, hatred, oppression, and violence.
Every individual is valued in Loudoun County Public Schools. Let’s celebrate the diversity that helps define us as a school division.
Eric Williams, Ed.D.
Division Superintendent
Lost and Found
Sneaker Drive
Updates from the PTO
We are currently seeking gift cards to be used as prizes for PBIS incentives as well as a contest that the library will be running in February. Please visit the signup and consider contributing a gift card or two: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0848afaf2aa1fc1-gift1
8th-grade parents: planning for the 8th-grade celebration events will be starting up this week. If you're on Facebook, please join the RVHS Class of 2024 Facebook group that has been created for this. If you're not on Facebook, no worries...this is just an additional avenue to ask questions and get information. Important 8th-grade year-end dates are listed on the House A tab of the BEMS website.
BASAP news: the spring session of the PTO-sponsored BASAP (Before and After School Programs) will open for registration next week. This session will begin the week of February 24. Be on the lookout for more information in next week's newsletter!
Newsies Update
Newsies news: The cast and crew lists are final, but we could still use some additional students for the Newsies orchestra. If you are interested, please contact our producers at Riverhawkproductions@gmail.com.
Rising Night for Freshmen at Riverside High School
Wednesday, Jan 29, 2020, 06:30 PM
Riverside High School, Upper Belmont Place, Leesburg, VA, USA
Riverside HS Rising Freshmen Parent/Athlete Info Night
Come hear from the Riverside Athletic Department about important dates, eligibility requirements, and FAQs.
Also, get a chance to meet coaches from all sports offered at Riverside (Fall, Winter, and Spring).
Wednesday, Mar 11, 2020, 07:00 PM
Belmont Ridge Middle School, Upper Belmont Place, Leesburg, VA, USA
The Positivity Project
This week's topic -> Perseverance
Belmont Ridge will again partner with the Positivity Project to foster character building and social-emotional learning.
The Positivity Project is thinking big. We know that powerful aspects of the civilizing process, like empathy, are in retreat. Yet, we believe that armed with a deeper understanding of character and an #OtherPeopleMatter Mindset, together, we will create citizens and leaders who will enhance our communities and country.
Thank you to our PTO for funding the transformation of the courtyard into two outdoor classrooms!
Belmont Ridge Middle School
Email: katie.johnson@lcps.org
Website: https://www.lcps.org/Page/124256
Location: 19045 Upper Belmont Place, Lansdowne, VA, USA
Phone: 571-252-2200
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BEMRiverHawks/
Twitter: @BelmontRidge