News: School Starts Monday for 66,266 Public Schools Students in Loudoun

Special to VivaLoudoun via Loudoun County Public Schools

(Aug. 28, 2011) - Loudoun County's 80 public schools open Monday, August 29th, expecting an estimated 66,266 students for the new school year. This year students start school before Labor Day for the first time since 2005. The earlier starting time will allow school to close on June 8th, eight days earlier than last year.

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For 2011-12, LCPS will welcome one new middle school and open an annex for Freedom High School freshmen, located at Mercer Middle School. The new school opening this year is:

J. Michael Lunsford Middle School
26020 Ticonderoga Road
Chantilly, VA 20152
(703) 722-2660
Neil C. Slevin, Principal

Annex for Freedom High School at Mercer Middle School
For the 2011-2012 school year, Freedom High School freshmen will be splitting their time between Freedom's main campus and the Freedom High School annex at Mercer Middle School. Freedom High
School will have more than 2,100 students enrolled this fall. This temporary accommodation is the best way to help Freedom's freshmen academically, socially and emotionally.

LCPS will provide bus transportation for the freshmen to and from the Freedom annex. Freedom High School teachers and staff will provide full-time instruction at the annex.


LCPS Wins 2011 EPA Energy Partner of the Year
Loudoun County Public Schools was named 2011 EPA Energy Partner of the Year. LCPSwas one of two school districtswithin the U.S. in 2011 to have won this distinction. LCPS was alsothe recipient of the2010 EPA Energy Partner of the Year Award.

Student Enrollment Continues to Increase
The largest elementary school class will be 5,812 students in the second grade. The largest middle school class will be 5,351 in the sixth grade. The largest high school class is the freshmen class with 5,141 members.
The Class of 2012 is composed of 4,469 seniors enrolled in the county's 12 high schools, compared to the 2,320 members of this class who entered the first day of kindergarten in 1999 (a 52 percent increase). In 1999, LCPS enrollment was 26,787 and the school system had 44 schools.

834 School Buses on the Road by 6:30 a.m.
As early as 6:30 a.m. on the first day of school, LCPS' 834 school buses will begin traveling the county's roadways taking more than 63,000 students to school. During the 2011-12 school year these buses are expected to travel more than 9 million miles. LCPS Transportation Supervisor Alvin E. Hampton IV reminds drivers to watch for school busses picking up children and to be aware of children walking or biking to school. Virginia law requires all vehicles to stop for school buses loading and unloading students.

500 New Teachers Join Instructional Team
For the 2011-12 school year, LCPS hired more than 400 new teachers.

This year, LCPS hired 75 new teachers who are graduates of Loudoun County Public Schools.

New teachers reported for orientation and in-service training began on August 12th. All instructional staff reported for work August 17th for staff development activities and to complete preparations for the opening of school. School principals have been preparing for the opening of school since August 2nd.

New Principals
LCPS welcomes the following seven new principals for the 2011-12 school year:

- Blue Ridge Middle School: Brion E. Bell, former assistant principal at Smart's Mill Middle School.

· John Champe High School (opens fall 2012): John G. Gabriel, former assistant principal at Park View High School.

· Countryside Elementary: Richard L. Rudnick, former assistant principal at Guilford Elementary.

· Evergreen Elementary: Michael A. Pellegrino, former principal at Lucketts Elementary.

· Horizon Elementary: Jennifer N. Ewing, former assistant principal at Horizon Elementary.

· Lucketts Elementary: Brenda M. Blue, former coordinator for Pupil Services.

· J. Michael Lunsford Middle School: Neil C. Slevin, former assistant principal at Stone Hill Middle School.

Public Invited to School Board Meetings
The School Board meets monthly in open session in the School Board Meeting Room at the LCPS Administration Building, 21000 Education Court, Ashburn 20148. Meetings are held on the second and fourth Tuesdays with the exception of December, July and August when no fourth Tuesday meetings are planned. Loudoun residents are encouraged to attend and participate in meetings.

Agendas are available on the LCPS website: lcps.org under Board Docs. Those who wish to speak at a School Board Meeting may call (571) 252-1020 to have their names placed on the speakers' list in advance of the meeting. They may also add their names to the list at the time of the meeting. LCPS-TV broadcasts on Comcast cable television channel 18 and Verizon channel 43, providing live, gavel-to-gavel coverage of scheduled School Board meetings held monthly on the second and fourth Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. Meetings can be viewed live and on-demand via webcasts on the LCPS website at www.lcps.org.