June 3, 2022

Farewell, Class of 2022!

Last week we celebrated with families, teachers, students, and staff as Friendship 12th grade students graduated from our high schools! This was not an easy journey, especially in the midst of a global pandemic. By demonstrating Friendship’s values - including commitment, persistence, and integrity - Friendship’s senior class overcame obstacles to take this important step. We look forward to supporting our scholars as they begin their college journeys, and we are optimistic that they will soon return to the community as college graduates, eager to make their mark in the world.

Both FPCS Collegiate Academy Early College High School and the Titan Tough graduates of FPCS Technology Preparatory High have a 100% graduation and college acceptance rate. Across both graduating classes, seniors earned over $17 million in scholarship awards!  Our students are working hard and getting paid!

If you missed the ceremonies, you can watch the playback on our Youtube Channel: youtube.com/friendshippcs. 

To our seniors, parents and families, teachers and school staff, we are so incredibly proud of and grateful for you.

Thank you for choosing Friendship.

Sybrina Fulton, Mother of Trayvon Martin

Gwendolyn Carr, Mother of Eric Garner

Mothers of the Movement Forum

“Our children go to school with a book bag and leave in a body bag!”

- Sybrina Fulton, Mother of Trayvon Martin

“They can take our baby's formula off the shelves but not the guns off the street!”

- Gwendolyn Carr, Mother of Eric Garner

Two powerful quotes that speak volumes about America, spoken by two mothers mourning the loss of their sons at the hands of gun violence and the people put in place to protect us - the police. Too often we live through and hear about losing our black youth this way: gun violence, racially motivated attacks, and police brutality. When will it end? 

Friendship was graced by the presence of the Mothers of the Movement, Sybrina Fulton and Gwendolyn Carr who shared their insights on fighting for justice and how they continue to move through the world given ongoing injustice and violence.

The conversation opened the floor for questions from many of our scholars - thank you to MSNBC's Michelle Bernard for moderating the conversation. The stream is available for replay here.

Virtual High Five! 🙏

Shout out to Woodridge’s very own, Ms. Tiara Mintz who recently presented at the National Council for the Social Studies. Tiara represented Friendship’s social studies team in the development of lesson plans that incorporated the content and principles of The 1619 Project. In collaboration with a cohort of educators, Tiara assisted in implementing the units and lesson plans for the school year. You can learn more about The 1619 Project and access the lesson plans here.

Way to go, Ms. Mintz! #WoodridgeEaglesSoar 💙 💛 🦅

Tech Prep Titans are on a mission to save the world!

Career & Technical Education and Freshmen Seminar Teacher Philisha Adkins-Lewis and the Friendship Tech Prep High School scholars secured their first EcoRise Grant award to create a recycling program for all the plastic water bottles used at the school. This program required vigorous research and determination to reduce the amount of plastic waste generated at their school. 

The Tech Prep Titans will present at the 3rd Annual Student Innovation Showcase at John Lewis Elementary on June 9th from 5:30-7:00. RSVP here to attend. 

You all are saving the planet one (less) water bottle at a time! Congratulations scholars! ✨ 🌎 ✨

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Vaccine Requirements for Students in the 2022-23 School Year

In accordance with the Coronavirus Immunization of School Students and Early Childhood Workers Amendment Act of 2021, beginning in the 2022-23 school year, the COVID-19 vaccine is required for all students who are eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccination that is fully approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for their age. As of May 4, 2022, the FDA has fully approved the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for individuals age 16 and older and the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for individuals age 18 and older. If additional approvals occur, OSSE will communicate those updates as soon as possible. 

Any student age 16 or older at the start of the 2022-23 school year must have received their primary COVID-19 vaccination series— or be proceeding in accordance with the series— or they will risk being removed from school. OSSE has revised the Immunization Attendance Policy for the 2022-23 school year to support schools and families with understanding and implementing this new requirement. Additionally, schools may refer to the OSSE website for new resources on this requirement, including COVID-19 Vaccine Requirements for DC Schools and COVID-19 Vaccination Compliance Steps. Facts about the COVID-19 vaccine are also available on the OSSE website, and from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and at coronavirus.dc.gov/vaccine. 

To find locations offering the COVID-19 vaccine, families may visit vaccines.gov or vaccinate.dc.gov. For questions about the Immunization Attendance Policy, please contact OSSE.SchoolHealth@dc.gov. For questions about immunization information, data and locations where families can receive immunizations, contact DC Health at DOH.Immunization@dc.gov or visit the DC Health Immunization Program webpage.