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Principal Demetri Sermons, Ed.D.
Click above to read the latest message from our Principal!
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RPS Direct Update - July 9, 2020
Dear #RPSStrong Family, Please note that we have a School Board meeting this evening at 6 pm, which you can watch live on our Facebook page. The main topic tonight is our draft school reopening plans. If you can't tune in this evening – or if the discussion goes until the wee hours of the night and you don't last – don't worry! I'll make sure to provide a summary of where things are headed in my Monday RPS Direct (RPS is closed tomorrow).
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RPS Direct Update - July 8, 2020
Dear #RPSStrong Family, Please note that we have a School Board meeting tomorrow evening at 6 pm. You can watch it live on our Facebook page. As I shared yesterday, we'll be discussing two possible school reopening plans: Plan A A fully virtual option PLUS A hybrid option that includes 2 days of in-person instruction and 3 days of virtual instruction each week PLUS 5 days of in-person instruction each week for students with greater academic needs (e.g., certain students with IEPs and certain English Learners) Plan B A fully virtual option PLUS A fully in-person option Please note that the Board will not be voting on these plans tomorrow. They'll just be reviewing and discussing them.
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RPS Direct Update - July 7, 2020
Dear #RPSStrong Family, I hope you all had a restful July 4th weekend! I had the chance to do some hiking along (and in) the James River this weekend with my sons. Hands down, it was one of the best experiences we've had since moving to Richmond. To navigate the current in a particularly tricky spot, my eight-year-old grabbed my hand as the water rushed around our legs. After we both wobbled our way through, I said: "I'm not sure if I was helping you or you were helping me." To which he replied: "We were helping each other, Daddy." Indeed. Because RPS is never far from my mind, I immediately thought of the many difficult decisions we're facing about how to reopen this fall. At the end of the day, no matter what path we take, we're going to need to help each other through it.
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RPS Direct Update - July 3, 2020
Dear #RPSStrong Family, Since we're closed today, I wasn't planning on sending an RPS Direct, but I wanted to clarify what's happening with meal distribution on Monday, July 6. The RPS distribution will be closed, but the city's Parks and Rec meal distribution will be open (RPS will be open again on Tuesday, July 7). Please see below for locations and times of the Parks and Rec program. With great appreciation, Jason Click above to view meal schedules!
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RPS Direct Update - July 2, 2020
Dear #RPSStrong Family, This morning, I had the opportunity to tour the new River City Middle School on the Southside with Mayor Stoney, School Board Chair Owen, and School Board Vice Chair Burke. The school is stunning – and huge! See below for pictures of the main atrium, one of the science labs, the media center, the auditorium, the full-service kitchen, and the athletic fields. I'll admit I was borderline giddy when I walked through River City today. It's beautiful, full of all the amenities our children deserve, and primed for 21st Century learning. Our students will know that we love them very much when they walk through the doors this fall. Click above to read more!
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RPS Direct Update - July 1, 2020
Dear #RPSStrong Family, What a historic day in Richmond! Enormous gratitude to Mayor Stoney for taking decisive action this afternoon to remove the Stonewall Jackson statue from Monument Avenue. As the skies darkened and the rain poured, it seemed for a moment as if the Lost Cause was staging one final campaign to preserve the past. But the removal crew – and the hundreds of cheering supporters – remained. And in the end, the statue came down and the skies cleared. As I shared when we renamed J.E.B. Stuart Elementary to Barack Obama Elementary, changing names and removing statues doesn't eliminate any of the injustices encoded in our laws and policies – but these actions matter nonetheless. Click above to read more!
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RPS Direct Update - June 30, 2020
Dear #RPSStrong Family, I'm thrilled to announce that we've hired a new Chief Talent Officer! Sandra K. Lee is coming to us from Gallup-McKinley County Schools (GMCS) in New Mexico, which serves the Navajo Nation and the Zuni Pueblo. She officially joins us starting tomorrow. Before coming to RPS, Sandra served as the Director of Human Resources for GMCS. Among other roles, she has also served as a teacher and principal in both GMCS and the San Francisco Unified School District. Click above to read more!
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RPS Direct Update - June 29, 2020
Dear #RPSStrong Family, As a reminder, we have a special School Board work session this evening at 6 pm focused exclusively on our reopening plans. You can watch it live on our Facebook page and you can access all the data from the reopening surveys by clicking here. If you can't make it tonight, don't worry! I'll provide a summary in tomorrow's RPS Direct. I also want to take the opportunity this evening to acknowledge an Instagram account – BlackAtRPS – where Black staff members have shared their experiences with racism as employees of RPS. I take these accounts extremely seriously. To all who posted, thank you for courageously sharing your stories. RPS – like the rest of America – is not immune to the 400 years of racism that preceded George Floyd's murder. Those four centuries infect us all. Click above to read more!
