Page County Public Schools

It's School Library Month and we are celebrating. Ms. Cindy Bush --Shenandoah Elementary School As an only child in the wilderness, my summers were spent with trees, wildflowers, critters, and books. In elementary, middle, and high school I spent my free time helping the librarians. It was always something I knew I'd love to be. My undergrad degree came from JMU in English, and I became a third grade teacher for 20 years, and my favorite part of teaching was reading aloud to children. While teaching, I got my masters degree in library science from Longwood and became the librarian at Grove Hill the year before it closed. I then went to teaching third grade at Shenandoah, and waited for the perfect librarian job to open for me! I've been the librarian here for the past two years. I absolutely love it. I am blessed. Thank you, Ms. Bush, for instilling your love of reading in children. You are appreciated.

This is a reminder that the school board meeting originally scheduled for Thursday, April 14th, will be held this evening, Monday, April 18, 2022. Agenda: https://go.boarddocs.com/vsba/pcss/Board.nsf/Public Comments: https://forms.gle/7p7ue4NQ43vV9p786 View LIVE: https://www.youtube.com/c/PageCountySchools/live Thank you, and please share.

This is a reminder that there is No School for students, Tomorrow, Friday, April 15th, or Monday, April 18th. Monday, April 18, 2022, will be a regularly scheduled professional development day for staff. Thank you, and enjoy. Photo Credits to the National Park Service (Wildflowers in Shenandoah National Park)

Important Message from Page County Public Schools: Tonight's regularly scheduled School Board Meeting has been POSTPONED. The meeting will now occur on Monday, April, 18, 2022, at 6:30 p.m. at the Central Office Board Room. We apologize for the inconvenience. Thank you, and please share.

It's School Library Month, and we're celebrating. I began my career as an elementary school classroom teacher. After 18 years in the classroom, I was able to achieve my lifelong dream of becoming a school librarian. I began my career in the library at Luray Elementary School. After 3 years at LES, I became the librarian at Luray Middle School when we opened in 2009. I absolutely love my job! As a history buff, I love to read historical fiction and nonfiction. As a librarian, I believe that deep inside everyone has a love of reading -- we just need to find the genre and topic that sparks their interest. I love helping students discover what they enjoy reading! Outside of school, I enjoy spending time with my daughter (who is also a teacher) and her husband, my son (who just graduated from college with a teaching degree), and my 5 crazy yet adorable dogs. I also love to read (surprise!) and shop.

It's School Library Month, and we're celebrating! Mrs. Jewelee Painter --Luray Elementary School I love creating a space that is welcoming and accessible to everyone, from the strongest readers to our reluctant readers. As a child I was not a reader. I didn’t really become an avid reader until college, a late bloomer. It was a college professor that absolutely inspired me and changed my life by putting Chinua Archebe's, Things Fall Apart, in my hands. From that moment I was hooked. I wanted to read deeply, understand more, and discover worlds I didn’t know existed. The best part of my job is instilling a love for books at an early age. I want our students to see reading, not as a chore to be completed, but as a joyful experience. I have worked in libraries for 17 years, as a school librarian for 9 years. While not at school, I enjoy spending time with my favorite character, my husband. Our five boys keep us very busy.

This is a reminder that tonight, Thursday, April 14, 2022, is the regularly scheduled school board meeting. The meeting will be held at the Central Office Board Room at 6:30 p.m. and may be viewed LIVE on our YouTube Channel. Comments are due by 4 p.m. Thank you. Agenda: https://go.boarddocs.com/vsba/pcss/Board.nsf/Public Comments: https://forms.gle/7p7ue4NQ43vV9p786 View LIVE: https://www.youtube.com/c/PageCountySchools/live

We're celebrating School Library Month! Mrs. Carrie Campbell--Luray High School When asked to tell a little bit about herself Mrs. Campbell responded, "I love words. My favorite is hippopotamus. As a child, my favorite part of the school day was reading and library time. I usually got in trouble during both, because I would get so excited about what I was reading (or the filmstrip we were watching--Madeline and Tikki Tikki Tembo were favorites and still are) that I would talk to anyone who would listen. I taught English for 11 years and naturally transitioned to the library where I am encouraged to talk to as many people as I can...about books! I love pairing a person with the just right book. As Jefferson said, "I cannot live without books." Thank you, Mrs. Campbell, for all you do for the students of Luray High School. You are appreciated.

It's School Library Month. Celebrate with us! Mrs. Tricia Runyan--Springfield Elementary School I've served as librarian at Springfield Elementary School for the past 3 years. Before that, I was an 8th grade English teacher at Luray Middle School. Before coming to Page County in the summer of 2013 I served as a high school English teacher and Librarian for Colonial Beach Schools. In addition to my role as librarian at Springfield, I also serve as the division's Communications Specialist. In this role I provide upkeep to the web pages for each school, maintain the county Facebook page, help send out alerts for schools and the district, and work with the media outlets. While each job I hold is very different, I enjoy them both immensely. There is nothing better than seeing the smile on the face of child who has found just the right book to take home, and the satisfaction of knowing that you are doing your part to encourage and inspire each of them to find a reason to love reading. When I'm not at school, I enjoy reading and spending time with my husband and our children. We have three kids ages 27 to 17 and we are expecting our second grandchild at the end of next month! If there's one thing I've learned, it's that being a grandparent is, by far, the best part of getting older!! Moving to Page County, going on 10 years ago, was the best decision we ever made as a family. It is a pleasure and an honor to work for the school division.

Mark you calendars for the upcoming Art Show at Page County High School! This Art Show will feature work by students from Stanley Elementary, Shenandoah Elementary, Page County Middle School, and Page County High School. Thursday, April 21, 2022, from 6-8 p.m. We hope to see you there!

It's School Library Month! Celebrate with us. Ms. Tammy Rhinehart--Page County Middle School What does Ms. Rhinehart love most about the library? "I have always loved the library and being surrounded by so many books. There is something new to learn and teach everyday. I love seeing kids learn and talking to them about books." Thank you, Ms. Rhinehart, for all you do for your students and for Page County Middle School. You are appreciated.

Per our health plan, we stated we would notify the public of any positive cases relevant to our school system. Please click on the links to read the letters regarding notice for 4/11/22. PCMS https://5il.co/18nvi https://5il.co/18nvj LHS https://5il.co/18nvh

It's School Library Month! Help us celebrate! Next, we have Ms. Elizabeth Kite, Stanley Elementary School Librarian. What's your favorite thing about being a school librarian? "My favorite thing about being the school librarian at Stanley Elementary is getting to work with every single learner in the student body, all 365 of them! She says, "We learn so very much about the world, about who we are, and about who we hope to become through stories. It is an incredible feeling and a powerful responsibility to be a part of that." Thank you, Ms. Kite, for exposing our children to the world of reading and all there is to learn. You are appreciated. p.s. Ms. Kite chose to use a recent portrait of her drawn by a 1st grader at Stanley as her picture. LOL

Per our health plan, we stated we would notify the public of any positive cases relevant to our school system. Please click on the link to read the letter regarding notice for 4/8/22. https://5il.co/18mlk

Join us in celebrating School Library Month! This month we are celebrating School Library Month, and we would like to recognize our school librarians and thank them for all that they do to promote a love of reading for our students. First, we will recognize Mrs. Jennifer Bracken--Page County High School "For the first ten years of my career, I taught high school English in another school district. It was during that time that I started to think about doing something different in the education field. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do and started to research different Master's programs. It didn't take long before I found the cohort for School Library Media Science through Longwood University that was starting in the fall. I knew at that point that that was what I was meant to do. I started into the cohort to get my Master's and become a Librarian and loved every minute of it. I knew in my heart that I was meant to be one. That was 2009 and I finished in the Fall of 2012 and was hired shortly after at Page County High School to become their Librarian. The rest is history and I've loved my job ever since. Not only do I love getting to instill the love of reading into my students and put that perfect book into their hands, but I also love getting to work will all of the students in the building and all of the subject areas. It is so much fun to be able to co-teach with so many and learn new things with the kids in those classes. When I am not at Page County High School doing the many things in the building that I do, I am a mom, wife, and student. I am taking graduate classes through JMU to add the school leadership/administration certification to my Master's. My two kids, ages 15 (son) and 13 (daughter), are three-sport athletes. They both play football, wrestle, and run track. They both wrestle year-round and compete in tournaments all over the country. My husband and I are kept very busy with all of their activities. When we have a little free time, we love to go hiking, camping, off-roading, and kayaking. The great outdoors is our favorite place to be." Thanks, Mrs. Bracken, for sharing your love of reading with your students and for all of the other ways you assist at Page County High School. You are appreciated.

Last night, rising 9th graders of PCMS and their parents participated in a transitional information night at Page County High School, where principal, Mr. David Cale, spoke to parents, and their rising 9th graders, about what could be expected when students transition from middle school to high school. Mrs. Debra Lucas and Mrs. Lindsay Croft, school counselors at Page Count High School, spoke about scheduling and course requirements of high school students. Tonight, a similar program, for rising 9th graders of Luray Middle School, will take place at Luray High School at 6:30 p.m.

Springfield Elementary School students model their new bracelets for the Be Kind. No Exceptions, initiative.

Be on the look out for some great pictures coming your way. Today, we continued our Kindness Initiative by distributing Be Kind- No Exceptions bracelets to every student and staff member of PCPS. This message was shared with all students during morning announcements. "Each day we interact with many different people who are experiencing many different things. How do we make a difference for each one of those different people? By being kind. Sometimes it only takes one act of kindness to change someone's life. Page County Public Schools continues its kindness initiative by reminding everyone to spread kindness. To help do that, we are distributing kindness wristbands as a reminder to be kind whenever possible, and it's always possible! We are so proud of all of our students and staff, and we know that all of you will continue to show kindness in a variety of ways. A simple act of kindness can change a person’s life. Be Kind. No Exceptions."

Update from Page County Public Schools Regarding Kindergarten Registration: This message is to remind the parents/guardians of Kindergarten students not enrolled in PCPS that they will need to access the preregistration link (https://pagecounty.powerschool.com/public/formbuilder/form.html?formid=626603) to begin the process of enrolling their Kindergarten student for the 2022 - 2023 school year. You will receive an email back with instructions on how to create a Power School Parent Portal account and associate your student with the account. (Please check your SPAM folder if you do not receive an email in return). In your Power School Parent Portal account, you will complete all the necessary electronic paperwork to register your student. All of this information can be found, in detail, at https://5il.co/16vb4 The Next Step: For those parents/guardians who have already pre-registered and have created your Parent Portal login, it is VERY important that you log in to your Parent Portal account and complete the ENROLLMENT PACKET FORMS prior to your scheduled screening appointment at your home school. Also, if you have not yet received your Enrollment Process email after having already completed the preregistration information, please contact your home school. Please share.

This week we tip our hats to a hard working group of people in our division. Happy Assistant Principal's Week, and thank you for all you do for Page County Public Schools. We couldn't do it with out you. If you see them out and about this week, be sure to let them know you appreciate them! Shenandoah Elementary: Mr. Corey Harlow Stanley Elementary: Mr. Frank Comer (interim) Luray Elementary: Mrs. Jodi Foltz Page County Middle School: Mr. Matt Capuano Page County High School: Ms. Shannon Hawkins Luray High School: Ms. Tara Meadows Luray Middle School: Mr. Nolan Jeffries (interim)