City of Fairfax Schools: Roadmap to Success

About the Roadmap to Academic Success K-12

If you could pick one thing that City Schools Superintendent Ann Monday and the City School Board wants all parents to do, it would be to envision what they want their children to be doing the September after their senior year of high school — regardless of how old that child is now.

Monday asks: Will they be walking into their first college class? If so, what school are they attending? If they aren’t at college, are they entering the military, or the work force? Whatever your hopes and dreams, one thing is certain: “To make those aspirations a reality, your child must take the most rigorous and appropriate courses they can handle in high school,” says Monday, who refers to author Stephen Covey’s bestseller, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People — Habit 2: Begin with the end in mind.

“I realize many parents haven’t heard this before, but even in elementary school they need to stop worrying about how well socialized their kids are and start concentrating on academics,” she says. “If they have strong math skills, they need to take compacted math when it is offered [in 3rd through 6th grade].”

And most importantly, she says, students need to be excellent readers and writers — skills that will help them master all subjects. “Reading and writing are two key skills that open doors to students when they graduate from high school,” he adds. “After spending 40 years in the education business, I have seen writing as the skill that opens kids up to endless possibilities.”

That’s why Monday is so eager to share the information in the *Roadmap to Academic Success: K-12.” Spearheaded by former City Schools Superintendent George Stepp — along with City Schools Director of Instruction Dr. Jan Mulvaney, and Fairfax High’s Director of Student Services Carole Kihm — this easy-to-read map will help parents understand what classes their children need to get them where to the academic destination they dream of.

For more information, click here for a list of other useful resources.

Road Map to Academic Success: Begin at the End, 9-12

The High School Years: What kids need to know by the time they graduate from high school
Close-Up, May-June 2007

THIS STORY IS THE FOURTH IN THE CITY SCHOOLS four-part series to help parents prepare for their child’s future by having them “Begin at the End: 12th grade.”

That is the advice of both the current City Schools Superintendent Ann Monday, and former Superintendent George Stepp, who retired June 30, and spearheaded the Road Map to Academic Success. Their hope for students is that they work as hard as possible and take the most challenging classes.

“My wish for every City School student is that they take at least three Advanced Placement classes in their four years at Fairfax High,” he explains. “To do that, they need to have worked hard in elementary and middle school, and developed excellent study skills. I promise, though, that their hard work will pay off.”

Then Fairfax High Principal Scott Brabrand, who was promoted to Assistant Superintendent for Cluster IV in the fall of 2009, says students also need to be highly motivated. “Many students think of high school as an ending, but it is truly the beginning of independent inquiry and thought. In reality, high school is the end of learning for school’s sake and the beginning of learning for life’s sake.”