Manchester Middle School

Coffee & Conversation offers connections

Coffee & Conversation is an easy way to connect with experts offering advice on topics helpful to parents. The free online gatherings take place 1-2 p.m. See the full schedule and register here for topics of your choice:

• Oct. 30 topic is “The College Mindset.”
• Nov. 6 topic is “Real Ways to Handle Peer Pressure.”
• Nov. 20 topic is “Supporting Your Child’s Self-Esteem.”
• Dec. 4 topic is “Managing Screen Time.”
• Dec. 11 topic is “Recognizing the Signs of Human Trafficking.”

When to expect first report cards for 2024-25

The first nine weeks of this school year ended Oct. 23 for students at every school except Bellwood Elementary, which follows a year-round calendar. On Nov. 8, printed report cards will be issued to students and digital report cards will be posted to ParentVUE at every school except Bellwood Elementary (where report cards were issued Oct. 16).

• Parents can find easy-to-follow directions for accessing ParentVUE online. ParentVUE is also available as a free app from the App Store and Google Play. Parents who do not have access to ParentVUE should contact their child’s school to get login information.
• Get more information about report cards here.

Student holidays

• Nov. 4-5 student holidays: At every Chesterfield County school, students will be on holiday Nov. 4-5. Also, parent-teacher conferences will take place Nov. 4.
• Complete student calendars for 2024-25 are available on this webpage, including English and Spanish versions of the regular school year calendar and the year-round calendar for Bellwood Elementary.

Put the brakes on misbehavior on school buses

Oct. 21-25 is National School Bus Safety Week. This seems like a good week to share a video reminding students about what to do and what not to do on school buses.

Learn about bullying prevention

October is National Bullying Prevention Month, making this a great time to talk about bullying and what to do if it happens. Watch this CCPS in the Know video to learn more about bullying prevention. Do you have a question that you’d like answered via CCPS in the Know? This video series gives quick-but-helpful insights into central Virginia's largest school system. If you have a question for CCPS in the Know, then ask it here. We’ll cover as many topics as we can. You can see all of the videos via this playlist, with captions available in English and in Spanish for each video.

Thank You, Team Chesterfield Week

Chesterfield County Public Schools is launching a weeklong celebration to honor and appreciate all staff members. Thank You, Team Chesterfield Week will take place Oct. 28-Nov. 1, and everyone is encouraged to express their thanks to teachers and school employees. The goal of Thank You, Team Chesterfield Week is to encourage and uplift all teachers and all employees of Chesterfield County Public Schools. Unlike days or weeks that focus on one group or another, this week of appreciation covers everyone working in Chesterfield County Public Schools: teachers, cafeteria staff, office workers, bus drivers, skilled tradespeople, custodians, technology employees and all other people working in our schools and central offices.

Specialty center fairs and open houses offer info for eighth grade families

Each fall, Chesterfield County Public Schools eighth graders explore their options for high school and decide whether or not to apply to a specialty center, governor’s school or regional technology school. This video gives an overview of how those schools provide unique opportunities to explore special interests. Complete information about the application process is provided at bit.ly/CCPSoptions. That includes the online application form, links to specialty center websites and everything eighth graders need to know about the process. Here are important dates to keep in mind:

• Online application opened Oct. 1 and closes Dec. 6 for specialty centers and governor’s schools.
• Online application opens Jan. 6 and closes Feb. 14 for CodeRVA.

Informational fairs and open houses offer opportunities for eighth grade families to visit those schools. Here are upcoming dates:

• 6:30-7:30 p.m. Oct. 9 informational fair at Clover Hill High (13301 Kelly Green Drive) featuring information about all high school options for eighth graders in Chesterfield County Public Schools
• 6:30 p.m. Oct. 10 open house for Governor’s Academy for Health Professions and Therapies at Monacan High (11501 Smoketree Drive)
• 6 p.m. Oct. 15 open house for CodeRVA Regional High School (2601 Durham St. in Richmond)
• 6:30 p.m. Oct. 15 open house for Humanities Specialty Center at Monacan High (11501 Smoketree Drive)
• 6:30 p.m. Oct. 16 open house for International Baccalaureate at Meadowbrook High (4901 Cogbill Road); this International Baccalaureate program is for students zoned for Bird, Thomas Dale, Manchester, Matoaca and Meadowbrook high schools
• 6:30 p.m. Oct. 16 open house for International Baccalaureate at Midlothian High (401 Charter Colony Parkway); this International Baccalaureate program is for students zoned for Clover Hill, Cosby, James River, Midlothian and Monacan high schools
• 6:30 p.m. Oct. 16 open house for Meadowbrook Academy for Developing Entrepreneurs at Meadowbrook High (4901 Cogbill Road)
• 6:30 p.m. Oct. 17 open house for Center for Spanish Immersion at Manchester High (12601 Bailey Bridge Road)
• 6:30 p.m. Oct. 17 open house for Appomattox Regional Governor’s School for the Arts and Technology (512 W. Washington St. in Petersburg)

Free online tutoring via Stride is available for grades 3-12

Free online tutoring is now available for students in grades 3-12 via Stride Tutoring. To provide this service, Chesterfield County Public Schools is using funds available through the Virginia Department of Education’s ALL In initiative as well as other funding sources. Students can access free tutoring through Stride as long as funds are available. To access Stride Tutoring, students along with their families should go to the backpack icon on the RapidIdentity dashboard using their CCPS-issued Chromebook. Click the Stride Tutoring icon under the “District Applications” heading. No additional login credentials are required. Students can reserve time for online video meetings with tutors licensed in subject areas in which they need additional support. Students and families select a tutor based on expertise and availability to fit their schedule, with tutoring available in the evenings and on weekends. Students do not need a teacher referral to schedule a tutoring session. There is no limit to the number of tutoring sessions at this time. Information is available at oneccps.org/tutors.

Gifted education referrals for students in grades 2-12

Gifted learners are students who show the potential for advanced thinking and reasoning, creativity and high achievement. So that schools can support, challenge, enrich and engage gifted students, Chesterfield County Public Schools conducts an annual referral process to identify gifted students. Students are evaluated during the current school year for services that will formally begin in the 2025-26 school year.

• Parents, teachers, community members, and students can refer a student for gifted evaluation by filling out this online form.
• Oct. 25 is the deadline to refer students currently in grades 2-12 in Chesterfield County Public Schools.
• Oct. 25 is also the deadline to refer students in grades 2-12 who are not enrolled in Chesterfield County Public Schools but who are residents of Chesterfield County.
• For more information, check out the gifted education overview and the gifted education webpage.

What to do when problems arise

Everyone within Chesterfield County Public Schools works to support students and help them grow into strong young people. When problems arise that get in the way of learning, schools want to connect with students and families to solve those problems. But we can only solve problems that we know about, so communicating to school staff members is how problem-solving starts. That’s the topic of this CCPS in the Know video. Bonus: This easy-to-understand chart is a handy reference. Do you have a question that you’d like answered via CCPS in the Know? This video series gives quick-but-helpful insights into central Virginia's largest school system. If you have a question for CCPS in the Know, then ask it here. We’ll cover as many topics as we can. You can see all of the videos via this playlist, with captions available in English and in Spanish for each video on our YouTube channel.

County libraries will forgive fines Sept. 12-16

Are fines keeping you from fully accessing everything the Chesterfield Public Library has to offer? Read Away Your Fines! Stop by any Chesterfield County library Sept. 12-16, read for 30 minutes and tell a staff member about what you read. It’s that simple, so don't let fines hold you back any longer. This opportunity is open to anyone with an overdue fine with the Chesterfield Public Library. Find your nearest location via this webpage.

Students: Your presence matters

This is Attendance Awareness Month, and we want students to know that their presence matters. When students are in school, they help create a vibrant and complete learning environment. Chesterfield County Public Schools is here to support families and ensure every student is able to show up ready to learn in class.

Attention Parents of Eighth Grade Students! See the announcement below from the football coach at Meadowbrook High School: Meadowbrook Football will be hosting Football tryouts starting Thursday August 1st 3:00-8:00pm. You must have a current sports physical dated after May 1st of 2024 to try out. Please bring tennis shoes and cleats. We are actively looking for rising 8th graders to join our Junior Varsity program. Contact Coach Rudd at 804-839-3066 for any further questions.

Partnership with police department

Chesterfield County Public Schools and the Chesterfield County Police Department have a close connection, working as partners to protect students and school staff members. A memorandum of understanding, which is updated regularly, provides a framework for the partnership. The Chesterfield County School Board invites public comment on an updated memorandum of understanding.

• To read the draft updated memorandum, click this link or copy the url and paste it into your browser: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LPF2X_l5E4aZPXf7CYW3NLk2W0-XVZdD/view
• Email comments to ccpsinfo@ccpsnet.net before Aug. 4.

Award-winning teachers

Congratulations to CCPS world language Teachers of the Year:

• Jane Baskerville Excellence in Teaching Award: Tessa Wilkey, German teacher at Manchester High
• Jane Crouch-Rieder Excellence in Teaching Award: Amira Moncada-Ossorio, Spanish and heritage teacher at Midlothian High
• Exceptional World Language Leader Award: Kelly Burleson, Latin teacher and world languages department leader at Manchester Middle
• Novice Teacher Award: Nic Barker, Spanish teacher at Clover Hill High

School bus road-e-o

CCPS bus drivers gathered June 3 for a road-e-o, a friendly competition to demonstrate skills needed to safely transport students. The road-e-o included spotting safety problems and navigating an obstacle course. Some school system leaders also tried driving a bus (accompanied by an experienced trainer). School Board Chair Dot Heffron, Chief of Operations Josh Davis and Transportation Director Calvin Frye only knocked over a few cones on the obstacle course!

Retrieve your student’s medication June 3-4
Parents and guardians must pick up their children’s medications from the school clinic, but the medications must be available for student use through the last day of school on May 31. All remaining student medications, including over-the-counter medications, may be picked up from the school clinic during normal school hours June 3-4.
After 4 p.m. June 4, all leftover medications will be packed and turned over to the Chesterfield County Police Department for disposal. Once medications are packed for police collection, they cannot be retrieved so it is important for parents to pick up medications on time. Late pickups are not permitted, and medications cannot be stored at the school during the summer.
All medications must be picked up even if your student will attend summer school. At the beginning of summer school, parents will need to provide children’s medication to the summer school coordinator at your child’s summer site. Please contact your child’s school nurse to request a copy of the medication order for all medications being administered during summer school.

El Librotazo, the big book party, is planned for July 9: During this event, each child in attendance from birth through high school will select 3 to 5 books to keep to add to their home libraries. Additionally, attendees will enjoy activities, cultural performances, a mobile exhibit from the Children’s Museum of Richmond, music, food and more. This free event will be held Tuesday, July 9 from 5-8:30 p.m. at the Chesterfield County Fairgrounds. Chesterfield County Public Schools will host the event in partnership with the Chesterfield Education Foundation and Dominion Energy.

Hello, MCMS Parents, The end of the school year is upon us. Please check your student's grades to determine if they need to attend Summer School. If you have already registered your student for Summer School, or intend to register your student for Summer School by the May 28th deadline, please take note of the following: If your student is attending summer school, you will need to complete this transportation request form. This form will allow you to make changes for your child's summer school transportation arrangement OR, if your child will use the same type of transportation as this school year, (i.e. bus, parent pick up, alternate address for a certain day of the week, etc), then you will complete the form and check the box stating there are no changes. If you have any questions, please contact me at: kristal_mcintire@ccpsnet.net As always, thank you for your support of your student's education. Here is the link for transportation https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfusOm2B-i9476zqzO2uF0iA-EQn23Bw9U_OG_xMR7IfzjJjg/viewform

As we begin teacher appreciation week, We would like to thank everyone for their donations thus far. We are less than 10 gift cards away from our goal for our teachers so any other donations would be appreciated. We will begin our distribution of gift cards on Thursday May 9th Once again thank you for your support