Dear Family and Friends, May is upon us, and, although it is a work-filled month, there is time for cele-bration and play as well. The annual Junior/Senior Prom will take place on May 16 at 8:00 P.M. at the Riverside Conference Center. This formal event will be followed by the very popular After-Prom Party to be held at Fun Land in Central Park from midnight until 4:00 A.M. on May 17. Several highly important academic events are scheduled this month. The Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) will be administered on May 2, Benchmark Testing will take place May 4-8, and Advanced Placement exams are sched-uled for May 4-14. Student interim reports for the fourth nine weeks will be distributed on May 1 and 22. Also, our teachers will begin to conduct exten-sive reviews in preparation for the end of the year testing which will begin on June 3. James Monroe solicits your encouraging remarks to your student in preparation for taking the state mandated SOL tests and end of course exam-inations. In the first of a series of events which will showcase our talented students during the month of May, the drama students will perform a collection of scenes entitled All Emojis! May 8 and 9 at 7:00 P.M. and May 10 at 2:00 P.M. in the auditorium. The performing arts students will be in concert on May 18 (Choral), May 19 (Concert Band), and May 20 (Orchestra). The DECA club will hold a school-wide talent show on May 21 in the auditorium at 7:00 P.M., and admission is $5.00 the night of the show. This is also the time of year when we recognize our students for their out-standing academic achievements. On May 27 the Underclassman Honors Assembly will be held in the auditorium beginning at 8:30 A.M. The Seniors will be honored on June 4 at 7:00 P.M. at the traditional Senior Honors Even-ing, where Seniors will be recognized in full graduation regalia. Thank you for your support during this significant month. Please remember May 8 will be an early dismissal for students, and school will be closed on May 25 in observance of Memorial Day. Sincerely, Dr. Taneshia Rachal Principal

Inside this issue:

Senior Reminder Prom Tickets on Sale Band Receives Grant Spring Drama Presen-tation Spanish Club Com-petes

2

Student Athletes of the Month for March Cross Country Informational Meeting

3

Spring Testing Calendar JMHS Teacher of the Year Announced

4

JMHS Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees Announced

5

JMHS Principal’s Newsletter May 2015 Page 2

Any senior whose name is on the debt list will not be allowed to attend the Prom, attend Senior activities, or receive a diploma at graduation. Debt includes but is not limited to: overdue library/textbooks, class dues, parking tickets, overdrawn lunch accounts, and athletic uniforms not returned. Please check with Ms. Franke in the main office to resolve debt issues.

Any senior who would like the name of the college they have selected to attend listed in the graduation program must advise the counseling center. Please place a star next to the college chosen on the ac-ceptance board in the counseling center no later than May 20. After May 20 there is no guarantee that this information will be included in the gradua-tion program due to printing deadlines.

Tickets for the Junior/Senior Prom are on sale. The prom will be held on May 16 at the Riverside Confer-ence Center from 8:00 P.M. until midnight. Tickets are $30.00 per couple or $16.00 per single and can be pur-chased from Mrs. Griffin in Room 122. All student debts must be paid in order to purchase a prom ticket.

The band program has received a grant from the Community Foundation to purchase a new marimba. The grant of $4000.00 was funded by The Haven Make a Difference Fund. The marimba, made by Ad-ams Percussion, will provide an additional instrument for the growing percussion program and will be used for school and community performances. We would like to thank Aude Mann, the band boosters, the school’s ad-ministration, and the Community Foundation for their support.

Congratulations to the Spanish team for an out-standing performance at the World Language Day competition at the University of Mary Washington in March. The theme for this year’s event was Ex-pand Your World through Language. The follow-ing students were awarded honors: 1st Place Spanish - Advanced Spelling – Nathalia Calderón Maldonado 1st Place Spanish - Advanced Poetry - Nathalia Calderón Maldonado 3nd Place Spanish - Advanced Poetry – Geraldo Roblero 1st Place Spanish - Advanced Extemporaneous Speech – Nathalia Calderón Maldonado 2nd Place – Spanish - Advanced Extemporane-ous Speech – Geraldo Roblero 2nd Place –Spanish Poster “Connections through language“ Sara Mahgoub, Makayla Swain Congratulations also to Mehak Juda, Momal Ju-da, Afia Obeng, Whitney Vite, Aaleigha Brandon, and Miquela Poland for their hard work and contri-butions to the team. ¡¡Felicitaciones a todos!!

Coming off the great success of Shrek the Musi-cal in March, the Drama Department is preparing for their spring showcase entitled All Emojis! The show is a collection of scenes directed by, and in some cases written by students. The show runs May 8 and 9 at 7:00 P.M., and May 10 at 2:00 P.M. Tickets will be “Pay-What-You-Can” at the door. All proceeds support the James Monroe Drama Department. As always the Drama Department is interested in your help. If you have anything you can donate such as the contents of your attic, a monetary contribution, or time and skills, please contact Mr. Mark Wright at markwright@cityschools.com. We are open to help from the community and are thankful for your support!

JMHS Principal’s Newsletter May 2015 Page 3

Edward Hoffman – Junior Tennis – “Edward is a sec-ond year player and plays #5 and #6 on the boys’ ten-nis team. He is 2-0 this year in singles and 2-0 in doubles. Edward is a leader on the boys team and is a very hard worker on the tennis court. He is a won-derful teammate. Edward is an outstanding student and academics always comes first.” Coach Christoforatis

Alexis Clark – Freshman Track & Field - “Alexis is nationally ranked in the shot put and discus. At the J.R. Tucker meet she was 1st in the discus and 2nd in the shot put. At the Taco Bell Classic (largest high school meet ever held) she placed 4th in the discus and 8th in the shot put. Alexis is currently ranked #1 in Class 3A shot put and discus.” Coach Bunch

Girls’ and Boys’ Cross Country Teams

Important meeting for all interested students grades 8-12 in the Fall of 2015

Monday, May 11

3:00 P.M. or 6:00 P.M. Room 215 (Art Room)

Runners and Parents Please Make Plans to Attend

To Be Strong...Pre-Season Base Mileage Begins June 1!

For More Information Contact

Coach Lovegrove

JMHS Principal’s Newsletter May 2015 Page 4

May 2 S.A.T.

May 4 Chemistry, Environmental Science (A.M.) Psychology (P.M.)

May 5 Calculus AB, Calculus BC (A.M.) Chinese Language and Culture (P.M.)

May 6 English Literature and Composition (A.M.) Japanese Language and Culture, Physics I: Algebra Based (P.M.)

May 7 Computer Science A, Spanish Language and Culture (A.M.) Art History, Physics 2: Algebra Based (P.M.)

May 8 German Language and Culture, U.S. History (A.M.) European History, Studio Art (P.M.)

May 11 Biology, Music Theory (A.M.) Physics C: Mechanics, Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism (P.M.)

May 12 U.S. Government and Politics (A.M.) French Language and Culture, Spanish Literature and Culture (P.M.)

May 13 English Language and Composition (A.M.) Statistics (P.M.)

May 14 Comparative Government and Politics, World History (A.M.) Macroeconomics, Italian Language and Culture (P.M.)

May 15 Microeconomics, Human Geography (A.M.) Latin (P.M.)

June 3 A2 SOL/Exam

June 4 B1 SOL/Exam

June 5 Period 1/A1 SOL/Exam

June 6 S.A.T. (Registration deadline May 9) JM Not a testing site

June 8 Period 2/B2 SOL/Exam

June 9 Period 3 SOL/Exam

June 10 Period 4/B4 SOL/Exam

June 11 Period A4 SOL/Exam and Expedited Retakes/Make-ups

June 12 Expedited Retakes/Make-ups

June 13 A.C.T. (Registration deadline May 9)

Congratulations to Mrs. Jewell Cun-ningham, the James Monroe High School teacher of the Year for 2016. She is pictured here (from left to right) with FCPS Administrators Mr. John Russ and Dr. David Melton, Mrs. Jewell Cunningham, and JMHS Ad-ministrators Mrs. Pamela Diggs, and Mr. Justin Woodside.

JMHS Principal’s Newsletter May 2015 Page 5

An Induction Ceremony will be held for the 2015 Class of the James Monroe High School Athletic Hall of Fame

On May 7, 2015 Reception and Dinner 6:00 P.M. Awards Immediately Following At James Monroe High School

2300 Washington Avenue Fredericksburg, VA 22401

Tickets are $15.00 and may be purchased in the main office.