F.C. Supt. Noonan Gets Distance Learning Award
Dr. Peter Noonan, Superintendent of Falls Church City Public Schools, has been honored with the prestigious Gold Award in the K-12 category by the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA) for his exemplary leadership during the pandemic. This award highlights Dr. Noonan’s outstanding efforts in “Leading with Love: Pandemic Performance & Minimizing Learning Loss in the Pre-K-12” across Falls Church City Public Schools.
The USDLA, a premier organization dedicated to fostering excellence in distance and digital learning, recognized Dr. Noonan’s proactive measures that ensured minimal disruption to education during challenging times.
“Each year, we seek to highlight those who have innovatively implemented distance learning strategies to ensure continuity and quality in education,” said Wendy Pate, Board of Directors Awards Committee Chair. “Dr. Noonan exemplifies this with his commitment to maintaining high educational standards through thoughtful and effective distance learning solutions.”
Upon receiving notice of the award, Dr. Noonan expressed his gratitude and reflected on the challenges faced by educators and students alike. “It is an honor to receive this recognition on behalf of all the dedicated staff and students in our district,” said Dr. Noonan. “This award is a testament to the hard work and love that we put into ensuring our students not only continued to learn but also felt supported throughout the pandemic.”
The award will be presented at the USDLA National Conference on June 19. Dr. Noonan’s approach has set a benchmark for distance learning in the educational sector, demonstrating the power of leadership and compassion in overcoming obstacles to student learning and well-being.
Fairfax Co. Facing ‘Difficult Budget,’ Board Chair Says
“We are facing a difficult budget year. As I have mentioned many times before, one of the greatest challenges we continue to face in our annual budget is the chronic underfunding by the state of Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS). That underfunding is not just of FCPS but of all public K-12 school systems in the Commonwealth,” said Fairfax County Board Chair Jeff McKay in an online post published Tuesday.
“I have heard from residents how challenging the rising cost of living is in our area, particularly the impact of rising values of homes they bought years, sometimes decades, ago. While the Board of Supervisors has no role in determining the value of homes, we do share the responsibility with the state and federal government of funding core services, and we have been given very few tools from the General Assembly to do that. Our Board is committed to continuing to find ways to lower the tax burden on our homeowners through tax relief, and especially through the diversification of revenue, and still deliver high quality core services,” he wrote.
F.C. Police Host Drug Take Back Day April 27
The Drug Enforcement Administration’s spring Drug Take Back Day is on Saturday, April 27 and the City of Falls Church Police Department will host a collection site near the Public Safety Entrance outside City Hall (300 Park Ave.) from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
The public can safely and anonymously drop off potentially dangerous prescription drugs and/or unwanted or expired over the counter medications during Drug Take Back Day. Accepted materials include pills, tablets, capsules, transdermal patches, prescription ointments, and other solid forms of prescription or non-prescriptions drugs (including pet medications).
Vaping devices and cartridges are accepted, provided lithium batteries are removed. Liquids (including intravenous solutions), syringes and other sharps, pressurized canisters (inhalers/aerosol cans), and illegal drugs will not be accepted.
According to Falls Church Police, the Drug Take Back initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. “Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the United States are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs,” a release stated.
At its last Take Back Day in October 2023, the DEA collected over 300 tons of unwanted drugs at 4,675 Take Back Day sites nationwide. In Virginia alone, 16,454 pounds of unwanted medications were collected at 177 collection sites across the state.
