The Jefferson County Schools Pre-K Family Education Series begins at 6:30 tonight! (Oct. 21) Please joins us for lots of fun games and lessons you can use at home with Pre-K aged children.
New outdoor classroom space at Page Jackson Elementary School is taking learning beyond the classroom for students and teachers! Thanks to everyone at PJE for sharing their work with the community. Check it out for yourself on WDVM!
https://www.localdvm.com/news/west-virginia/page-jackson-elementary-school-has-new-outdoor-classroom/
Jefferson High School Senior Jacob Dodge worked with other Eastern Panhandle students who attend James Rumsey Technical Institute to thank School Resource Officers. Dodge was joined by Jefferson County Sheriff Tom Hansen and Principal Mary Beth Group as he surprised Sgt. Ben Williams with a flag he made at JRTI.
Thanks to all of the teachers, families, students, and volunteers who helped make the new outdoor classroom space at Page Jackson Elementary School a reality!
The Jefferson County Schools 2021 Pre-K Family Education Series starts tomorrow, Oct. 21! If you have a Pre-K student in your family then please joins us for this fun opportunity to learn and engage!
Jefferson County Schools students and staff will participate in a remote learning drill on Friday, Oct. 22, 2021. Students will not be coming to school, and will instead have an opportunity to go through the process of transitioning to and receiving instruction online, just as they might during an event like a virtual snow day. For more information, visit www.jcswv.org!
The DAR, Daughters of the American Revolution, has graciously donated literature to the middle schools of Jefferson County, commemorating the 200th anniversary of the Santa Fe Trail. They not only have provided literature, but also teacher lesson plans and resources.
We are excited to celebrate the cultures and diversity of our students and staff with JCS Themed Months! The focus is on respect and civility as we learn more about each other all year long. Check out the story on WDVM!
https://www.localdvm.com/news/west-virginia/jcs-themed-months-to-build-respect-and-civility-amongst-students/
Tomorrow (10/15/21) all JCS schools will dismiss students three hours early. This schedule change will allow teachers and service personnel additional time to complete the behind-the-scenes work that keeps students learning and in school. We appreciate your ongoing support and urge you to visit our website www.jcswv.org/page/sustaining-excellence to learn more about how we are working with community partners to support you. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work hard to ensure that your children receive the education they expect and deserve.
Our themed months for the 2021-2022 school year will let students and staff celebrate the many customs, cultures, and traditions in Jefferson County Schools with Respect and Civility! Check out the full schedule here!
https://jcswv.org/page/jcs-themed-months-2021-2022
Thank you for the strong support you have shown JCS staff during a time of historic employee shortages. We want you to know the ways we we are working to support you. Please visit our website and see how we are helping our students, staff, and families.
https://www.jcswv.org/page/sustaining-excellence
ATTENTION: A pair of accidents this morning, Oct. 8, are impacting Jefferson County Schools' bus schedules. The first does not involve any JCS School Bus but is causing significant delays across the county. Buses may be 45 minutes to an hour late this morning as our drivers navigate traffic. The second accident did involve a JCS school bus. Neither students nor the driver were injured. Families of those students have been contacted directly. Thank you for your patience as we continue to put the safety of students and staff first.
This is a reminder that all Jefferson County Schools will be closed for students on Monday, Oct. 11, for a staff development day. We appreciate your support while we give JCS employees this opportunity to enhance their skills and knowledge to better support their children.
Last week, members of the Washington FFA Chapter participated in two of their year-long community service projects. On Monday, members prepared a community meal at Asbury Methodist Church. Members purchased the ingredients for the meal at a local grocery store after school, prepared the food in a kitchen and served over sixty meals. On Saturday, in partnership with members from the Washington High School National Honor Society, students picked up trash along Huyett Road as part of the Adopt-A-Highway Project.
Thanks to the Rotary Clubs of Charles Town and Shepherdstown for supporting literacy at Jefferson County Schools with their annual reference book distribution. Working with Jefferson County Schools, the two clubs facilitate the order, distribution and delivery of books to nine elementary schools. Each third grader in the county receives a dictionary, while fifth graders each get a thesaurus. The Rotary Clubs also provide printed nameplates in each book with a space for students to write their names.
Staffing shortages are impacting school systems across the country. For Jefferson County Schools (JCS), the shortages have significantly affected our staff time to complete critical behind-the-scenes work that goes into sustaining excellence in teaching and learning. Beginning October 15th, Jefferson County Schools will dismiss students 1/2 day every Friday. Staff will spend 3 hours completing all non-student supervision work (planning, SAT/IEP meetings, creating instructional materials, deep cleaning, etc). A full explanation of the factors leading to this change and expectations for staff in using this time can be found in the “Sustaining Excellence Plan” on the JCS website https://5il.co/101uz
The Jefferson High School FFA chapter harvested potatoes from their land lab this week as part of Project Feed JC. The potatoes will be donated to the food pantry at Jefferson County Community Ministries in a couple weeks once they have undergone a curing time in the cooler.
A threat posted on social media against an unidentified school led to precautions at two schools in Jefferson County Thursday. Although this incident was investigated in Berkeley County, law enforcement could not initially determine whether the threat was local or if it targeted a specific school.
In an abundance of caution, Jefferson High School modified the bus arrival pattern. Wildwood Middle School entered into a temporary modified lockout, limiting visitors and keeping students inside the building while maintaining a normal schedule. The lockout was lifted by noon Thursday.
Jefferson County Schools (JCS) puts the safety of students and staff first and applauds local law enforcement and our administrators for quick action. As always, JCS takes any potential threat seriously. We are grateful to and fully support our partners in law enforcement in their efforts to determine the validity of these threats and what risk they might pose to children. We appreciate the continued patience and support of our families, students, and community as we work to keep our schools safe.
Congratulations to JHS Golf for becoming the 2021 Region Champions!
Thanks to Kyle Hibberd, Andrew Sudduth, Will Turner, Colin Walker, Ashton Klein, and Coach Brent Freeburg for all of your hard work!
Students and staff in Jefferson County Schools (JCS) will continue wearing masks to reduce the risk of mass quarantines and keep students in class after a vote from the Board of Education Monday, 9/27. The board will review the decision during their board meeting on 10/25.
