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Hello MUES Families,
Thank you for a wonderful first week of school! It has been exciting to welcome our students back and see them settling into their new classrooms and school routines. Throughout the week, students began learning about the exciting topics and skills they will explore during the school year, reviewed our school-wide expectations, and had opportunities to practice new routines and procedures. We are so proud of the positive energy, enthusiasm, and effort our Mustangs have shown as we begin this new school year.
Don't forget that next Thursday, September 3rd is our annual Back to School Night. We will offer two session- you will only need to attend one. Session #1 begins at 5:30 PM with Session #2 beginning at 6:15 PM. Back to School Night will provide families with an opportunity to meet their child’s teacher again, learn about classroom expectations and routines, and gain an overview of the curriculum, learning goals, and experiences students will have throughout the school year. This important event also helps strengthen the partnership between home and school by providing families with information and resources to support their child’s academic and social success. We hope you can make time to attend one of the sessions.
Have a wonderful weekend, Mustang Family!
Your Proud Principal,
Mrs. Goddin
MMGoddin@fcps.edu
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- August 28th: McNair's 25 Years of Excellence Celebration: 5:30-7:30 PM/McNair Elementary School
- September 3rd: Back to School Night
- Session #1: 5:30-6:15 PM
- Session #2: 6:15-7:00 PM
- September 4th & September 7th: Labor Day Break; school closed
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 Below are some new announcements and updates for you to read through.
 Save the Date, Mustang Community!
Join us on Friday, August 28th from 5:30 PM -7:30 PM to celebrate 25 Years of Excellence at McNair Elementary!
We will kick off the evening with a special anniversary ceremony, followed by a variety of fun activities for all ages. Come reconnect with friends, celebrate our shared journey, and honor the wonderful memories we’ve created together over the years. Stay tuned as more exciting details are coming soon!
Remember to Complete Permission Forms for School Resources
Families can now easily grant consent for their children to access a variety of school resources through the Parent Digital Consent system. This online tool can be accessed using your SIS ParentVUE account login. Parents can easily opt their child in or out of a variety of resources, including online educational tools, school counseling services, and more.
Visit the Parent Digital Consent webpage to access the system. Watch this video to see how to use the tool.
Opt In or Out to Student Devices Being Sent Home for Grades 1-6
New this year, families can opt out of having student laptops sent home with their student.
- If you do not want your student to bring their FCPS-issued device home, please toggle the Opt Out button to a check mark and confirm by pressing Save Selection.
- If you would like your student to bring their FCPS device home, no toggle action is needed. Confirm by pressing Save Selection.
Students whose families opt out will continue to have access to an FCPS-issued device during the school day. Please reach out to your student’s teacher to understand expectations for homework and any learning activities that may require access to technology outside of the school day.
You Can Make Student Web Access at Home
At McNair Upper, we acknowledge that parents/guardians are our students' first and most important teachers. Parents/guardians now have greater control over their child’s FCPS-issued device outside of school hours through Lightspeed Parent Portal.
In addition to monitoring weekly internet activity, parents/guardians can now also customize web access at home on FCPS devices through Lightspeed using Schedules and Web Rules.
With Schedules, you can set tailored times to automatically pause or restrict internet access. This makes it easier to enforce rules around homework time, family dinners, weekends, or bedtime.
In Web Rules, you can create Custom Block Lists to block specific, individual websites they do not want your child accessing at home. This allows parents greater control over what is happening online, under their own roof.
These new custom controls take effect at home, outside of school hours, and when the device is off the FCPS network. They will not override standard district filtering policies during the instructional day.
Customize Your Lightspeed Settings
All parents/guardians should be receiving weekly Lightspeed Online Student Activity Report emails. To set up these new features, click the “Log in or Register” button at the bottom of your weekly Lightspeed Online Student Activity Report email.
Visit the FCPS Lightspeed Parent Portal Guide for more information. If you have additional questions, submit a Parent Technology Support Ticket.
Parents/guardians are encouraged to discuss internet boundaries with their children so that they can understand the reasoning behind any limits and the differences between access at home and at school. Get tips on talking to your children about technology safety.
 Join us on Sunday, September 20th, for the Asha-Jyothi 18th Annual 5K & 1-Mile Fun Run at Fairfax Corner! How to Support McNair Upper:
Register here
Use coupon code AJ4SCHOOLS at checkout.
Using this code sends a direct donation straight to our school.
 Below are some friendly reminders for you to read through.
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) provides a comprehensive, sequential Family Life Education (FLE) program for students in grades kindergarten through grade twelve. Instruction is seen as a partnership among parents and guardians, the school, and the community in supporting the learning essential to the development of strong families, positive relationships, and a healthy community.
Parents/guardians may choose to opt their child out of all or part of the Family Life Education program. Students who are opted out are provided with age-appropriate, nonpunitive alternative health instruction, and every effort is made to foster respect for family choices. If you wish to opt your child out of all or part of FLE for this school year, opt out forms will be included in your child’s back-to-school/orientation packets and are available online for Elementary (K-6) Please fill in the opt-out form and return it to your child’s school prior to Family Life Education instruction.
Detailed grade-level program descriptions are available online at Elementary (K-6) . FLE grade level-specific lessons and media that FCPS has streaming rights for are available for parents online in Schoology. Parents/guardians login to Schoology using the same username and password as their Student Information System (SIS) Parent account. Grade level-specific lessons are also available at the City of Fairfax Regional Library (this location does not have media). Grade level-specific lessons and media that is not streamed online are available for review at your child’s school library. Due to copyright permissions, we are unable to stream all media online. You are invited to attend an evening opportunity to preview the Family Life Education media and lessons and to talk with school staff about the program. The meeting will be held on Thursday, September 3rd at 4:30pm in the library. All program materials and media for all grade levels will be available for your review at this time.
Program questions may be addressed at your child’s school or by contacting Instructional Services at 571-423-4550 or fle@fcps.edu.
Understanding Student Rights and Responsibilities Updates: New Universal Grade Matrices for Families
Families are encouraged to review the updated FCPS Student Rights and Responsibilities (SR&R) document, which explains expectations for student behavior and adult responses in order to enhance school safety and to create a fair, equitable, and supportive school environment.
Updates for the 2026-27 school year include new Universal Grade Matrices (UGMs). UGMs are charts that show behavior expectations and school responses by grade level (K-3, 4-8, and 9-12). These at-a-glance resources (in Appendix D of the SR&R) are designed to make it easier for parents and caregivers to understand how schools respond to different types of behavior concerns.
Personal Electronic Devices Update
On July 16, 2026, the Fairfax County School Board passed Main Motion #6 regarding student use of personal electronic communication and computing devices during the instructional day.
Under the new requirement, students may not use personal electronic communication or computing devices, including personal laptops, tablets, smartwatches, smartphones, and similar devices, during the instructional day. Students must use FCPS-issued devices for school-related digital activities.
The requirement includes the following exceptions:
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Students may use a non-FCPS-issued personal device when the use of that device is explicitly required or permitted as a necessary accommodation in the student’s Individualized Education Program or Section 504 Plan.
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A principal or the principal’s designee may approve a limited, course-specific exception for a student enrolled in a specialized class when the curriculum requires a technology tool or software application that is not available on a standard FCPS-issued device.
Visit the SR&R webpage for more information and to review additional updates to the SR&R for the 2026-27 school year.
FCPS will continue with limited early release Wednesdays for elementary schools during the 2026-27 school year. The number of days has been reduced from eight to four.
Early release Wednesdays provide elementary teachers with a dedicated block of time to prepare lessons, participate in professional development and training, and collaborate with their peers. A well-supported and continuously improving teaching staff leads to better educational outcomes for students.
Please view the dates for McNair Upper's early release Wednesdays below:
- October 21st
- December 2nd
- February 10th
- May 5th
Visit the FCPS website for more information about early release Wednesdays.
 McNair ES PTA Updates & Back-to-School Announcements
- Please click on the link below to find out how you can become a member of the McNair PTA and what your membership does for our school community:
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2026–2027 PTA Memberships & Pre-Orders: Support our students and staff by joining or renewing your PTA membership today! Options include:
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Family Membership ($60): 2 adult memberships, stickers, magnet, early competition sign-ups, and a McNair insulated lunch bag.
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Adult Membership ($35): 1 adult membership, sticker, magnet, and early competition sign-ups.
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Teacher/Staff Membership ($15): 1 staff membership, sticker, and priority access to classroom supply grants.
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Reduced Dues Pre-Order ($15): Discounted pre-order for families on free/reduced lunch or facing financial need (confidential honor system). Email board@mcnairespta.org for the private link.
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Join or Renew Here: https://mcnairespta.givebacks.com/shop?category=25434
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Volunteer Opportunities: We are running with a small, nimble team this year and need your help with newsletters, social media, events, welcoming new families, corporate partnerships, or flexible tasks you can do from home. Learn more and sign up here: https://www.mcnairespta.org/volunteer
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