The Mustang Spirit

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Dear Mustang Families,

This week has been filled with joy and hope. With the heinous acts witnessed in the U.S. Capitol a week ago and everythig we have been through with this horrible pandemic, we were so happy to see the joyous and hopeful scene on Inauguration Day. And, perhaps even more so, the joyous and hopeful scene in our brand new high school cafeteria in which more than 400 employees received their first dose of the COVID vaccine, thanks to the work of our brave partners at the Fairfax County Health Department. And, to culminate this week of hope and joy, we are pleased to announce that we will be bringing back all our high school students in a hybrid model beginning Tuesday, February 23.

Thanks to the work of our Mustang student leaders, who have been an important voice at the table as we move toward safely reopening. Our students are the ones who can help guide our future in the right direction.

We would also like to thank our teachers and staff, who have worked tirelessly to adjust curriculum, develop new learning strategies, and engage all our students in this virtual format. They are energized and optimistic about our reopening plan.

Today, we also felt energized, as we gave tours to our students, many of whom were 9th graders who were experiencing high school for the first time.

The work is not done. This awful pandemic is still here and dangerous. Combating it takes the collective responsibility of our whole school community. We continue to encourage our families to follow safety protocols in place in the community. In this newsletter, you will find our mitigation protocols for school reopening. We encourage families to review this and to watch the accompanying video, which shows how some of these strategies will be in place.

Thank you for your continued support,

The Mustang Admin Team

Today, I am making the “local decision” based on what is needed to remain safe and healthy--and provide consistency and stability for our students, our staff, and for you.

Therefore the FCCPS decision-making process and reopening plan for the coming weeks are being altered, and moving forward will be:

• Cohort 1 (Special Populations) will continue in hybrid instruction with our Special Populations given the very small nature of the programs working to a gradual increase over the next couple of weeks to 4 full days per week as appropriate for each program.

• Cohort 3 (Grades 6-12) will remain in virtual instruction until February 22, when they will all return to hybrid instruction with a teaching force of staff who are fully vaccinated.

Upon our return to hybrid instruction, all cohorts will remain in hybrid. Any moves to virtual will be based on the need to “pause” isolated groups to allow for contact tracing or other similar issues. FCCPS will make these decisions in collaboration with the Fairfax Health Department.

This decision is based on Health Metrics, the COVID variant, the Wednesday/Friday decision cycle, instructional/operational issues, and the newest tool in our toolbox - the vaccine!

We had our first group of Mustangs tour our new building this afternoon and we will continue with our second group on Monday. Tours are only for students, so we ask parents/guardians to please wait inside their cars or come back for pick-up. Tours will take approximately one hour. We ask students to please wear a face covering, maintain social distancing, follow the schedule below, and arrive at their designated time. Students will be dropped off in front of Henderson MS, then walk along Mustang Alley to the entrance of the new building. Parking will be available on the Route 7 side, in front of the old building. Pick-up is also in front of Henderson MS.

If your child is to return virtual versus hybrid, a later tour date will be added to accommodate virtual students.

Monday, January 25

Students with last names beginning with the letters L - Z

1:00 PM - Grade 9

2:00 PM - Grade 10

3:00 PM - Grade 11

VOS is happy to offer underclassmen photo retakes and makeup sessions on Friday, January 29 from 2:00-4:00 PM (if demand is high, VOS will add more slots through 6:00 PM) in the Mustang Cafe.

Retakes:

• Please sign up by clicking this link.
• At your appointment time, bring back the package you purchased.
• The photographer will retake the photo and reprint the same package that was originally ordered.

Makeups:

• Please sign up by clicking this link.

Information for Senior retakes and makeup sessions will be shared next week.

Commemorate your seniors by sending them a Yearbook Recognition Ad. This is a great way to share your child's achievements and important milestones at George Mason High School! Please click on this link for more information on prices for different ad sizes. The deadline for purchase is February 11, 2021. For Senior families in need of financial assistance, please contact Principal Hills at hillsm@fccps.org.

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#BetterTogether

Matt Hills

Principal

Email: HillsM@fccps.org
Website: gm.fccps.org
Location: 121 Mustang Alley, Falls Church, VA, USA
Phone: (703) 248-5500
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fallschurchcitypublicschools
Twitter: @MasonMustangs