Now you see it. Now you don't.
Prince William County School Board Chairman At-large Dr. Babur Lateef deleted a post to a Twitter account he uses to communicate with constituents. In the Tweet, he encouraged people to "never forget" and to "never forgive" politicians, press, and public health officials for, in his words, providing misinformation that led to an extended closure of public schools during the coronavirus pandemic.
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About 90,000 students will return to classes across the county. Except for the youngest children in the county's Head Start program, who must continue to wear face masks, the start of the school year will feel more like pre-pandemic times.
No facemask or social distancing requirements are in place, and the school division won't conduct contract tracing to identify who's contracted the coronavirus.
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Dr. Babur Lateef posted to Twitter today a message asking residents to "never forget" the school closures that led to students across Virginia falling behind in math, science, reading, and writing, according to the latest Virginia Standards of Learning scores released Thursday, August 18.
"NEVER FORGET what misinformed and misled public health officials, politicians, constituencies, and media did to stop the busses and close schools," Lateef stated.
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The Virginia Department of Education released new Standards of Learning data today.
The SOL tests measure student math, science, reading, and writing performance.
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The state's second-largest public school division, Prince William County, rolled back most of its coronavirus mitigation strategies.
When school starts Monday, August 22, schools will look and feel like the pandemic never happened, with a lack of masking, social distancing, and contract tracing requirements that were common last year.
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A teacher who works at Rippon Middle School and lives at a nearby elementary school faces a weapons charge.
The suspect lives in an apartment at Covington Harper Elementary School near Dumfries, about six miles from Rippon Middle School, and had guns and ammunition inside the apartment, sources said.
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Schools in Spotsylvania County also reopened today, welcoming back about 24,000 students, while Fredericksburg City Public Schools reopened to more than 3,500 students. School divisions across the region are facing shortages of teachers and bus drivers. Prince William County Public Schools, the state's second-largest division, hired 900 new teachers for the new school year. The division is short 300 teachers, states Superintendent Dr. LaTanya McDade. Prince William County Public Schools reopen on August 22, welcoming back more than 90,000 students.Stafford High School rolled out the red carpet to welcome their students to the first day of school. @shsindiantribe #StaffordIndians pic.twitter.com/KDVTsiRmVk
-- Stafford Schools (@SCPSchools) August 10, 2022
Called the “Courageous Four,” Fannie Fitzgerald, Mary Porter, Maxine Coleman, and Zella Brown took teaching positions in county public schools in 1964, about 10 years after the U.S. Supreme Court Brown vs. Board of Education decision that struck down segregation in schools.
Until then, the county schools had largely been segregated.
The Prince William County Historical Commission will unveil the marker at Fannie Fitzgerald Elementary School, 15500 Bentia Fitzgerald Drive in Dale City, at 2 p.m. Saturday, September 10.
Attendees should park at the Ferlazzo Government Building, 15941 Donald Curtis Drive in Woodbridge. Shuttle buses will provide transportation to the unveiling ceremony.
Fitzgerald Elementary is named one of the Courageous Four. Another school in Woodbridge, Mary Porter Traditional School, is named after one of the original four teachers.
Rob Orrison of the Prince William County Historic Preservation Office interviewed Fitzgerald for an oral history project in 2008.
When I interviewed her, I had questions about the challenges she faced and how different the kids were back then. And she said, ‘kids are kids, they were no different,” Orrison told Potomac Local News.
Fitzgerald initially taught at the Macrae School, near Haymarket, originally established in 1870, and educated black children between 1914 and 1953. The school no longer stands.
Orrison said when compared to other jurisdictions forced to
integrate their schools, the process in Prince William County is considered one of the most successful classroom integrations.
The Prince William County Historical Commission approved the new marker a year ago.
There are two family connections to Fannie Fitzgerald Elementary School. While the school’s namesake died in 2016, Fitzgerald’s daughter, Kim Fitzgerald Lennon, teaches kindergarten at the school. She’s worked there since 2008.
Finally, the street on which Fannie Fitzgerald Elementary School sits is named after Fitzgerald’s daughter, Benita, who also has a historical marker erected in her honor.
Still living today, Benita Fitzgerald Mosley was an athlete on the U.S. Olympic Teams of 1980 and 1984. She graduated from Gar-Field Senior High School in Woodbridge in 1979.
Following their annual performance review of the Superintendent, on June 12, 2022, the Prince William County School Board voted to approve a one-year extension of Prince William County Public Schools (PWCS) Superintendent Dr. LaTanya D. McDade's four-year contract, with a revised contract end date of June 30, 2026.
"The contract extension unanimously approved by the School Board is an affirmation of the exceptional leadership of Dr. McDade. Following a tumultuous period in PWCS she has brought clarity, vision, and a steadfast focus on improving teaching and learning," said Prince William County School Board Chairman At-Large Dr. Babur Lateef. "Public education is at an inflection point in history, the pandemic has left its mark on our students' learning and wellbeing. Dr. McDade is the right person, at the right time, to ensure our students, teachers, employees, families, and community accelerate our work together to achieve the educational outcomes that every child deserves."
