April 11, 2025 Newsletter

Dear Patriot Families,

Happy Spring Break! We wish everyone a safe and restful week off. A reminder that Monday, April 21st is a grade preparation day; no school for students.

We would like to recognize the amazing staff members below and share our deep appreciation for everything these staff members do for our students, colleagues, and community. Please take a moment to thank these valued members of our team!

• Paraprofessional Educator Appreciation – April 2nd
• Librarian Appreciation – April 4th
• Administrator Appreciation – April 7th

Dr. Kevin Clark, Principal

In this message:

• What’s Happening at Yorktown
• Counseling Corner
• Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Corner
• Activities Updates
• Senior Updates
• Upcoming Dates

WHAT’S HAPPENING AT YORKTOWN

April is Alcohol Awareness Month 

April is Alcohol Awareness Month, which seeks to raise awareness and understanding of alcohol use and misuse. It offers communities a chance to gain more understanding of how individuals struggle with alcohol use and can offer resources and support. Yorktown’s Substance Abuse Counselor, Jenny Sexton, is available to provide facts and information and to support students and families. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) provides more resources and information here. It is always a good time to have a conversation with your child(ren) about alcohol use and the negative impacts it can have.

Some additional resources here: Impaired Driving: Talk with your kids; Facts on Underage Drinking

Reminder: End of Year Calendar Update

For planning purposes, here are some highlights from the end of the school year. More information forthcoming.

• Senior Final Exams: April 24-30
• AP Testing: May 5-16 (Late testing May 19-23)
  • NWEA MAP Growth Reading: May 6th – Testing Day – NWEA Reading (grades 9 & 10), AP Testing. Students not testing will have an asynchronous learning day with assignments to complete from their classes
• SOL Testing: May 19-22 (Testers only in the morning, 11:00 arrival for all students)
• June 4th -Graduation Day & Asynchronous Even Day
• Final exam schedule. At a glance:

• Thursday 6/12 – Pd. 2 Final
• Friday 6/13 – Pd. 1 & 3 Finals
• Monday 6/16 – Pd. 4 & 6 Finals
• Tuesday 6/17 – Pd. 5 & 7 Finals
• Wednesday 6/18 – Make-up Finals

 Yorktown Students Receive National Scholastic Art Awards

More than 100,000 teens from across the country and Canada entered more than 340,000 works of art and writing to the 2025 Scholastic Awards. Around 2,500 works received National Medals this year. This year’s Yorktown national medalist recipients are:

Art Awards – Gold Medalist

• Ian Alcorn: “Pearly Whites” Yorktown, Grade 12, Ms. Jina Davidson
• Travis Dai: “Sharp Touch“ Yorktown, Grade 12, Ms. Christine Bolon
• Lily Dezfulian: “Resonant Structure“ Yorktown, Grade 12, Ms. Monica Stroik

Art Awards – Silver Medalist

• Travis Dai: “Toxic Trait” Yorktown, Grade 12, Ms. Christine Bolon

Art Awards – Portfolio Honorable Mention Medalist

• Felix Ko: “Symmetry/Asymmetry” Yorktown, Grade 12, Ms. Christine Bolon
• Morgan Shelton: “Progression and Connection” Yorktown, Grade 12, Ms. Christine Bolon
• Travis Dai: “Seeing Through the Flow” Yorktown, Grade 12, Ms. Christine Bolon
• Amy Walsh: “Then and Now” Yorktown, Grade 12, Ms. Monica Stroik
• Julia Markowitz: “Absurdism in Daily Life” Yorktown, Grade 12, Ms. Monica Stroik

Writing Award – Silver Medalist

• Lily Dezfulian: “A review on pockets in the form of 10 Macys Yelp comments“ Yorktown, Grade 12

Guitar Concert Upcoming 

The concert will be April 25 at 7:00 PM in the black box. The concert will feature a mix of classical and contemporary music on nylon string and electric guitars.

FBLA State Competition Winners 

Congratulations to the following students who earned accolades at the recent FBLA State Competition.

• 1st  Business Communications – Max Yoon
• 2nd  Intro to Marketing – Walter Shiu
• 3rd  Intro to Financial Math – Duarte Faria
• 3rd Agribusiness – Damen Maher
• 4th Business Management – Grant Buckley and Hayden Buell
• 4th International Business – Ian Birnie
• 4th Management Information Systems – Liam Quinn and Evan Reilly

COUNSELING CORNER

Advisory Information

Tuesday, April 22nd

• 9th Grade: Introduction to the Meta Moment: Students will identify and analyze personal emotional triggers

• 10th Grade: Emotions and Learning: Students will identify helpful and unhelpful emotions associated with their class schedule, and build out strategies to optimize learning

• 11th Grade: Healthy Relationships: Students explore the connections between emotions and healthy relationships

• 12th Grade: Senior wrap up and Senior Survey

  Thursday, April 24th

• 9th-12th Grades: Option to complete Tuesday lesson, Academic Check in meetings, or students can leave with a pass

End of Quarter 3 Dates

The 3rd quarter/marking period ends today, April 11, 2025.  Monday, April 21, 2025 is a teacher work day with no school for students.  Report Cards will be viewable in Parent/StudentVue beginning at 10:00am Monday, April 28, 2025.

NOVA’s JumpStart2NOVA Program

This program is accepting applications for summer 2025! New information session dates have been added, and the registration links are included below.Upcoming Info Sessions:

• JumpStart2NOVA Info Session – Wednesday, April 23, 6:00–7:00 PM [Register Here]
• Planning Your Course Schedule – Tuesday, April 29, 6:00–7:00 PM [Register Here]

Help us spread the word! Encourage your students to take advantage of this opportunity and get ahead on their NOVA journey! Questions? Contact [email protected]

No Early Final Exams

The following is a friendly reminder about requests for early and late final exams:Students will not be permitted to take their final exams early, with the exception of families receiving military or foreign service orders.  Proof of these orders must be submitted to the counseling office.  Students may take late finals, and grades will be calculated with a zero for the final until they are taken, and then updated based upon the final exam results.  When possible, arrangements should be made in advance for any late finals.

DIVERSITY, EQUITY & INCLUSION CORNER

Jewish American Heritage Month (May)

APS is proud to celebrate the rich history, culture, and contributions of Jewish Americans year-round and particularly during Jewish American Heritage Month. As part of the celebrations, APS is inviting students (and staff) to submit short videos sharing what this month means to them and how they plan to celebrate or honor Jewish American heritage.

Please submit video submissions in the Dropbox by Wednesday, April 23rd. 

Guest Speaker: Thursday, April 24 | 1:40 – 3:10

The Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) Holocaust Speakers’ Bureau will provide a speaker who will share an inspiring, personal story of the Holocaust designed to encourage audience connections with their personal Holocaust experience. In cultivating personal connections, they hope to touch the minds and hearts of the next generation. Students may sign up to attend by obtaining a permission slip from Ms. Patrick. This event is sponsored by the Jewish Student Union.

ACTIVITIES UPDATES

Club of the Week: Ethiopia & Eritrea Club

The YHS Club of the Week is The Ethiopia & Eritrea Club. The purpose of the Ethiopia & Eritrea Club is to appreciate the Habasha cultures and food and introduce the Yorktown community to other cultures and foods. All are welcome to join. See Ms. Bhatti or Ms. Berhane for more information.

New Athletic Registration 

In the coming month, all families who are currently registered to play sports should receive an email from Arbiter or RSchool indicating a transition in the registration system we use.  This is a forced conversion as Arbiter purchased RSchool which is our current provider.  The email should include a link to create a new username and password.  Once completed, all prior information will be accessible as families begin to register for the 2025-26 school year.

New Athletic Physical Requirements

An upcoming change in state law necessitates a change in physical requirements which will benefit some families, but also will create in-season challenges for student-athletes. All physical examinations will be valid for 14 months from the date of the examination.  Families who wish to complete one physical for the entire 2025-26 school year and not risk a student being pulled mid-season due to an expired physical exam should schedule the annual physical for April 15, 2025 or later. Yorktown will continue to offer on-site physical exams as a fundraiser for our athletic training department on a date in early June with the exact date announced in mid-May.

Spring Sports Ticket Information

With spring sport competition beginning last week, a schedule of events is available on www.yorktownsports.org. Games held on the turf field are available online on www.nfhs.com Tickets for events in the stadium are available online at www.gofan.co with season passes available for adults. Cash will still be accepted at the gate. Backpacks as well as outside food or drinks are not permitted.

Spring Turf Sports to Stream on NFHS

After many years of High Definition handheld streaming thanks to the Yorktown Athletic Boosters, we will transition to the automated NFHS Network for all stadium field sports this spring. Lacrosse and soccer games will be available on the NFHS Network with a subscription.  The subscription to the network allows online access to home volleyball and basketball games as well as most gym and field events in Fairfax County and around the country, including playoff games.

Where to find Athletics Information

Athletic Website – www.yorktownsports.org

Athletic Twitter – @yhssports

Athletic Instagram – @yhssports

Athletic Specific Sport Information – www.teamapp.com

Athletic Registration – https://yorktownhs-ar.rschooltoday.com/

Home Events after Spring Break

Looking Ahead – Fall 2025 Sports

For planning purposes, Fall sports will begin as early as July 31 with most beginning on August 4. Check Team App or the website for more information.

Please note that playing a high school fall sport requires a commitment to be present for the duration of tryouts and daily practices thereafter. Families are advised that vacations planned after the start of fall sports will not be considered favorably during the tryout process because there is limited practice time to build a team prior to the start of scrimmages and games in mid to late August.

Looking Ahead – Homecoming 2025

Homecoming weekend will be October 10 and 11, 2025.  The football game is against West Springfield and the dance will be Saturday, October 11.  Please note this is a three-day weekend for students with no school on Monday, October 14.  While not ideal, it is the best viable option given the home football schedule.

SENIOR UPDATES

Senior Dues

Senior dues are $80. Senior dues cover the cost of cap and gown, diploma, diploma covers, as well as other senior activities. Senior dues can be paid at https://arlingtonva.schoolcashonline.com/.

Senior Send Off & BBQ

The PTA is working hard to enhance this year’s traditional senior BBQ and it will be an amazing event with a live band, mechanical bulls, inflatable axe throwing, dancing and lots of food.  The event is Friday, May 16 from 11:30-1:30.  Check out this Senior Send Off & BBQ flier for more information.

Graduation

Class of 2025 Graduation is at 7 p.m., Wednesday, June 4, at DAR Constitution Hall. Graduation rehearsal will take place the morning of graduation. After rehearsal, students will pick up their cap and gowns and five (5) graduation tickets. Additional graduation tickets can be requested, but are not guaranteed, between May 1st and May 11th using this google form that will be active on May 1.

UPCOMING DATES

For more details, refer to the YHS or APS calendar.

• Monday, April 14-Friday, April 18 – No School, Spring Break
• Monday, April 21 – No School for students, Grade Preparation Day