Schools

Aperture, a band comprised of Loudoun County students, will participate in the Battle of the Bands Saturday, Feb. 19, at the 9:30 Club in Washington, DC.

The Loudoun County School Board reopened its previously adopted FY13 operating budget during its regular meeting late Tuesday night, a move that was not on the meeting agenda and caught staff--and a handful of board members--flat-footed.

Monroe Technology Center will host an open house from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 8.

René Dickerson, an artist from Lovettsville, has set up shop inside the school office to paint a 9-by-15 foot mural. He is donating his time and the materials to complete the mural in honor of the school's namesake, J. Michael "Mike" Lunsford, who worked as the transportation director for Loudoun County Public Schools before he passed away in 2009.

Balls Bluff Elementary School visual arts teacher W. Scott Russell has been selected to help write national education standards. Russell is one of 11 visual arts educators in the United States selected to be on the National Coalition of Core Arts Standards. The committee is comprised of 10 people from each of the fine arts associations for visual art, music, dance and theater; Russell is the only elementary school teacher and the only educator from Virginia on the committee.

As the Loudoun County School Board made motion after motion Tuesday, targeting several line items of the superintendent's proposed budget for cuts, it seemed as though the directors of the various departments held their breath with each vote count.

They crunch numbers, create line graphs and pie charts, track future housing developments and frequent the U.S. Census Bureau website to keep a pulse on potential population changes.

They could be heard from the school office.

Mark and Amy Denicore want to teach their three young children about personable responsibility. They ask each of the kids, all under the age of 10, to get themselves ready for the school day-brush their teeth, get dressed and get a good breakfast.

School Board member Jeff Morse (Dulles) will host an informal discussion on Loudoun County Public Schools' FY13 operating budget at 4 p.m. today at Mercer Middle School. All residents are encouraged to join in the discussion.

The Joint Board of Supervisors and School Board Committee, made up of all newly elected representatives, drew up its list of goals for the year at its first meeting Thursday.

You won't hear it from him, but a Middleburg Academy senior has caught the attention of the who's who in the world of golf.

After a heated public hearing and a long night of debate, the School Board did not adopt a budget Tuesday, pushing the decision back to Feb. 7, the same day the county's proposed budget will be presented to the Board of Supervisors.

Many families in western Loudoun have seen deliberations over Loudoun County Public Schools' budget as a chance to speak up about a longtime frustration of theirs--long bus rides.

Eighth grade students from Loudoun Country Day School celebrated one of the private school's longheld traditions Friday morning. They invited their families and their teachers to grab a cup of coffee, sit back and listen to poetry.

While not much is yet known about the details surrounding the alleged incident, social media sites Thursday evening were abuzz with reports of students caught with brownies laced with marijuana at Farmwell Station Middle School.

Loudoun Education Foundation recently received a hefty donation.

Patrick Henry biographer Thomas Kidd will present a free lecture at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 1 at Patrick Henry College.

Loudoun County School Board has pushed back the adoption of the school system's FY13 operating budget one week to allow the board members, most of whom are new, more time to work on it.

Woodgrove High School's Winter Cheer squad was recognized this week for its Treats for Troops program, which has collected items for care packages for soldiers stationed in Afghanistan. So far, the cheer team has sent five care packages to the 4-1 Field Artillery Army Unit from El Paso, TX.

RICHMOND - More than 300 educators raised their voices in protest of the budget gaps local school divisions are facing because of the General Assembly's decision to defer Virginia Retirement System payments in 2011.

Thirteen middle school students were recognized for their essay writing at a ceremony put on by the Valor Foundation Friday.

Just as the first principal of the new Frederick Douglass Elementary School begins his role next week, parents and students of the future school are stepping up to make it their own.

Fear of a dip in education funding at the state level has lawmakers and educators speaking up on behalf of local schools.