Welcome to the LHS Parent Teacher Student Association Website

Upcoming Events
AP Exams, May 5-May 16* PTSA Meeting, May 7 No Late Opening, School Begins at 7:20am, May 7* Senior Salute, May 9   *See below for more information	Langley Students Welcome Nick to KKI in Baltimore

New Principal Announced, May 6

Audra Sydnor announced the new principal for Langley High School today, May 6,  at a faculty meeting.

Matt Ragone, an Assistant Principal at Chantilly High School, will be our new principal. The PTSA would like to welcome Mr. Ragone to the Langley community. The PTSA will host a reception in August to welcome Mr. Ragone.

Audra Sydnor's letter to the Langley Community

May 6, 2008

Dear Langley Staff Members and Parents,

I am proud to announce that Matthew Ragone, assistant principal and former summer school principal of Chantilly High School, has been appointed as principal of Langley High School. His official start date will be Tuesday, July 1, 2008.

Matthew has had a successful tenure as an instructional leader in the Fairfax County Public School System.  A hallmark of his leadership style is the ability to establish meaningful relationships with students, staff, and parents. He has attained two noteworthy awards:  finalist for the prestigious FCPS Nancy Sprague Leadership Award and the Chantilly High School Student Choice Award.  He has also received awards for outstanding humanitarianism. Matthew is adept at recognizing and developing the individual strengths of his staff members and enjoys mentoring new and experienced teachers. When he is not engaged with his family, other priorities are exercising, sailing, playing the piano, and reading history books.

Prior to becoming an assistant principal, Matthew served 13 years as a teacher at Chantilly HS, McLean HS, Falls Church HS, and Lake Braddock Secondary School.  He also served as department chair at Chantilly HS.  In May of 1997, he won a technology grant.  He has supervised the departments for foreign language, technology, mathematics, ESOL (English Speakers of Other Languages), the Honors Program, and the AP (Advanced Placement) Program.  Additionally, Matthew has had experience as a curriculum specialist and writer, where he co-authored and presented the FCPS Program of Studies for World History and Geography II. 
 
Matthew received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in History from Mary Washington College, a Masters in Curriculum and Instruction from George Mason University, and his Education Specialist Degree from Virginia Tech University. 

Please join me in welcoming Matthew Ragone as the new principal of Langley High School. He is very excited to become a member of the Langley family of students, staff, and parents!

Sincerely,

Audra Sydnor
Assistant Superintendent, Cluster I

Message from Matthew Ragone

Langley Faculty, Staff, and Parents:

Thank you all for your warm welcome this afternoon. 

I enjoyed meeting many of you today and will try to process all the names.
If I did not get a chance to meet you, I look forward to meeting you in the near future. 

As I mentioned to the group, please don't hesitate to send me an email, if you like.  I would like to know from you what Langley's attributes and it's challenges - if any - are for next year. 

What I have learned so far is that this is a dedicated staff, community, and student body.  Your hard work has paid off with national recognition and a great reputation throughout the county.  I hope to live up to the high expectations that made all that possible.  

I look forward to face to face conversations starting this Spring and into the Fall until I get to know you all. 

Until then, enjoy the Spring. 

And, thanks again!

-- Matt

Matthew J. Ragone
Assistant Principal
Chantilly High School
703-222-8145

May 2008 Issue of the LHS PTSA Newsletter

Click here to read the May 2008 issue of the LHS PTSA newsletter.

Wednesday Regular Opening begins May 7th

Wednesday, April 30 is the last Wednesday for delayed class start time.  In May and June, classes will begin at 7:20 every day - Monday through Friday. 

AP Exams, May 5- May 16

Both the Collegeboard and the Virginia Department of Education have established policies and procedures that govern student conduct during exam and test periods. The following excerpts of these policies relate specifically to cell phone and other electronic deveices.

AP Exam Security Policies and Procedures
The AP Program's standards and procedures for administering exams have two primary goals: giving students the same opportunity to demonstrate their abilities, and preventing students from gaining an unfair advantage. To promote these goals, the AP Program reserves the right to cancel any grade, when, in its judgment, any of the following occur: 1) Violation of exam security policies and procedures, 2) Disclosure of secure test items, 3)Misconduct, 4) Testing irregularities, 5) Identification discrepancies, and 6) Invalid grades.

The following statement regarding electronic devices is included as a violation of exam security policies and procedures:
You may not bring cell phones, MP3 players, pagers, or PDAs into the testing room.

SOL Testing and Cell Phones
According to Virginia Department of Education State Testing Memo 657, dated October 2007:

Students are not permitted to have cell phones or other electronic devices on their person during SOL testing. During the March and May/June testing sessions, students must put cell phones in their backpacks or bags, which will be placed in a designated area. Test examiners will make an announcement prior to the beginning of each session and will collect and store any electronic devices still carried by students. If any student is found with an electronic device during a test session, the device will be confiscated, a testing irregularity will be filed and the test will be marked as a “cheating violation” whether or not the electronic device is in use or even turned on. The student will receive a score of “0” on the exam, and the state may or may not allow the student to retest in the same testing window. Electronic devices stored in bags must be turned off, as required by the Student’s Rights and Responsibilities. Any electronic device that goes off during a testing session will be confiscated, and a “disturbance irregularity” must be filed.

AP & SOL Exam schedule

A Midnight Masquerade, May 31st

The Class of 2009 is proud to present PROM '08- A Midnight Masquerade- on May 31st at Westfields Marriott from 9 pm to 1 am. Tickets are $60 each and will be available for purchase during all lunches on May 14-16 and May 21-23. In order to purchase a ticket for a guest, who is not a current LHS student, a completed School-Sponsored Special Event Guest Form must be presented at time of purchase.

Bill Clendaniel Announces Retirement

How do you begin to measure the impact of one person on a school community of thousands? Each year at Langley High School, many benchmarks in testing, graduation, and staff retention are met and routinely exceeded. But other contributions that defy measurement are even more vital to our community.

Bill Clendaniel frequently is the first person to arrive and the last to leave. His workday never seems to end: he would be part of numerous school activities each day, both on and off campus.  During Bill’s tenure as principal, Langley experienced tremendous measurable growth in many academic areas.  Langley’s rank in the Washington Post challenge index rose to 2nd in Fairfax County behind TJ and 4th in the Washington metro region. In US News & World Report’s first ever ranking of U.S. public high schools, LHS was 37th in the nation. 

It is not unusual to find Bill in the hallways during break and between classes conversing with students. He knows our kids and is always available to them, as well as their parents. Bill looks out for those who may be struggling socially or academically.  The impact of this genuine empathy cannot be measured, but for the students and families, it is enduring.  A natural “people” person, Bill could always lighten our day with his enthusiasm for life, quick wit and wry comments. 

We wish Bill and his wife, Michelle, the best in his well-deserved retirement.  We look forward to hearing about his new adventures in travel, as a grandparent, and on the golf course.   And we know that there will be many lucky young people whose lives he’ll continue to shape and inspire.  Thanks for your great energy and passion, Bill; Langley is a better place because of you.

Summer School Information

FCPS is in the midst of a difficult budget year. To help reduce costs, summer school will not be offered in the same manner as it has been in the past. Summer learning opportunities for FCPS elementary and middle school students in 2008 will be school–based. Programs will focus on meeting the identified academic needs of student participants and is tailored for each location.  Individual school administrators are completing their plans for summer programs at their locations and will be an excellent source of information about the new summer programs being offered in 2008. Please visit http://www.fcps.edu/news/summer.htm for the latest information about summer offerings.

Fairgrades

Co-founders of the parent coalition, FAIRGRADE, have collected compelling data demonstrating the effect of FCPS grading policies on college admissions, college merit scholarships, and admissions to college honors programs.  

For more information visit www.fairgrade.org or e-mail fairgrade.fcps@gmail.com. 
          

Please send information you would like posted on the LHS PTSA website to ayoub.nc@gmail.com.

“This page reflects the views of the Langley High School PTSA. Fairfax County Public Schools does not control or guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of this information.”