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Mason District Community,

We have passed the halfway point of the first quarter and there is much to celebrate in the Mason District. Homecoming celebrations and activities such as football games are on-going.  Remaining homecoming games for Falls Church and Justice high schools will occur on October 10, Edison and Woodson high schools are scheduled for October 17, and TJHSST will take place on October 24.

As we inch closer to the end of the quarter on October 31, be sure to visit ParentVue to track your student’s progress. Parents/Guardians are also encouraged to review the new Digital Consent portal to manage their student’s digital consent. The site has been streamlined to improve the user experience for parents/guardians to provide their authorization for students to participate in SEL and Wellness screening, FLE education and many others. 

This month, the community will be given many opportunities for engagement:

• The Comprehensive Boundary Review meetings will provide an opportunity to view and provide feedback on the updated draft boundary scenarios.
• The Superintendent's Community Conversations allow time for parents/guardians and interested community members to provide comments and ask questions. The next community conversation is scheduled for this Friday, October 3, at Annandale Terrace Elementary.
• The Poe MS AAP Center community meetings will serve as a forum to provide details about the proposal and allow the community to ask questions and share their feedback.
• The deadline to complete the School Start Times Survey has been extended until October 6. There have been significant concerns about the options provided and if none are ideal, please be sure to share that as well. 

Thursday, October 2 is National Custodian Appreciation Day. If you have the chance, take a moment to thank a member of the Mason District custodial team for keeping our buildings clean and safe.

I value the input I receive from the Mason Community and am happy to address questions or concerns via email or phone. You can reach me by email at rjanderson@fcps.edu. If you are interested in scheduling a phone call, please reach out to my assistant, Cristy Coffey, at cmcoffey@fcps.edu to arrange a time.

In this issue:

Mason Moments

October is National School Principals Month

Please join me in celebrating the incredible work of our Mason District school leaders!!  We are grateful for their vision, dedication, and focus in promoting the success of our students.

National Merit Semifinalists

Five Mason District high school students are among the 2026 National Merit Scholarship Corporation semifinalists. 

More than 1.3 million juniors entered the 2026 National Merit program by taking the 2024 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which serves as the initial screen of program entrants.  

The nationwide pool of semifinalists, determined by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors.  Merit Scholarship winners will be announced next spring.

Congratulations to:

• Jayden Nguyen from Falls Church High School
• Christian Ata from Justice High School
• Joey Park, Grace Sprano, and Ruilin Wang from Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology

Alumni Hall of Fame Congratulations to the three Annandale High School Alumni who were among the impressive 11 inductees to the FCPS Alumni Hall of Fame this year: Jim Acosta (Class of 1989) - award-winning broadcast journalist and anchor at CNN. Mr. Acosta served as CNN’s chief White House correspondent during the Obama and the first Trump administrations. Amir Abu-El-Awa (Class of 2005) - Chief of staff for the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman. He also served as chief of staff for the Mason District Supervisor from January 2024 to May 2025. Dennis Scarborough (Class of 1985) - Air Force veteran currently serving as the executive director of operational readiness at the U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA).

Day of Service Mini Grant

Congratulations to Westlawn Elementary School - recipient of the 9/11 Day of Service Mini Grant through the Virginia Service Foundation to support the Westlawn Rocks service project.

Green Flag EcoSchools Mason District students attend eight schools which were recently recognized as 2024-2025 Green Flag EcoSchools. These schools have earned the highest level of recognition from EcoSchools U.S. for their commitment to creating a healthier, more sustainable future. Each school developed and took action on a student-led sustainability action plan, teaming up with local partners. Congratulations to: Annandale Terrace ES, Beech Tree ES, Belvedere ES, Braddock ES, Mason Crest ES, North Springfield ES, Thomas Jefferson HSST, and Woodson HS.

2026 Graduation Dates

FCPS News

Second Graders Testing

Beginning in October 2025, all second grade students and select students in grades three through seven will take the Naglieri General Ability Tests (NGAT). 

This assessment measures a student's general intellectual ability in three key areas: verbal, nonverbal, and quantitative. Abilities tests are differentiated from achievement tests as students should not be preparing for the assessment. 

An abilities test is one of several tools that school staff use to better understand a student’s reasoning strengths and learning profile. Teachers review results to help plan instruction. Results also determine student eligibility for advanced academic services.

Individual schools will send notification letters to families for students scheduled to participate in this assessment. Parents/Guardians can refer to the testing requirements for each grade level in FCPS on the Grade Level Tests page.

SAT School Day and PSAT/NMSQT Testing Day 

SAT School Day and PSAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (NMSQT) exams will be held at each high school on Wednesday, October 8, at no cost to families. The digital SAT School Day exam is offered to 12th grade students, and the digital PSAT/NMSQT exam is provided to 10th and 11th grade students.

Because of the testing, most ninth grade students will not have school on October 8th. Ninth grade students with disabilities who receive low incidence special education services will still receive in-person instruction with a two-hour early release on October 8th. 

Contact the Student Services team at your child’s school with any questions. Learn more about SAT and PSAT assessments in FCPS.  

Varsity Tutors Provides On-Demand Support at No Cost Every student is able to access Varsity Tutors’ services at no cost, which includes weekly live online classes; on-demand 24/7 chat tutoring; essay editing; and study resources such as recorded content, practice problems, and diagnostic tests. Learn more about online tutoring with Varsity Tutors.

No-Cost Virtual Therapy for High School Students Virtual therapy sessions are available to FCPS high school students at no cost to provide a safe space to address concerns such as:  Mood/behavior changes, motivation, grief/loss Anxiety, worry, fears Social skills, bullying, peer and family relationships Academic stress Parents/Guardians may refer students by calling 571-749-2940 or by contacting the school's counselor, social worker, psychologist, or director of Student Services. Visit the FCPS Teletherapy webpage for more information.

Expanded Online Safety Tools

FCPS is committed to keeping students safe and focused while learning online. To support this effort, FCPS Department of Information Technology (DIT) uses Lightspeed Systems technology to protect students from inappropriate online content on school-issued devices both in school and at home.

Beginning October 12, 2025, parents/guardians will automatically receive a weekly Lightspeed Student Online Activity Report delivered by email every Sunday. Each report provides:

• A summary of the websites your student visited during the previous week.
• A link to register for the Lightspeed Parent Portal, where you can view more detailed browsing information and even pause internet access on your student’s FCPS laptop during non-school hours, such as dinner time or bedtime.

This automatic weekly report makes it simple for parents/guardians to stay informed. Parents/Guardians who wish to opt-out will be provided a link to do so in every emailed report. 

Visit the Lightspeed Parent Report page on the FCPS website for more details.

Opportunities

Community Boundary Review Meetings

By mid-October, Thru Consulting, the Boundary Review consultant, will have updated the Boundary Explorer Tool with the latest draft boundary scenarios. These scenarios will be presented during 12 community meetings in October. Each meeting will focus on two school pyramids. Meetings scheduled for pyramids serving the Mason District are listed below. A full list of meetings is available on the Community Boundary Review Meetings website.

• Friday, October 17, 6:30-8 p.m., at Falls Church High School
  For Marshall and Falls Church High School Pyramids
• Tuesday, October 21, 6:30-8:00 p.m., at Annandale High School
  For Justice and Annandale High School Pyramids
• Monday, October 27, 6:30-8:00 p.m., at Fairfax High School
  For Woodson and Fairfax High School Pyramids