James Monroe High School

Locked in and mission ready 🫡🧡🖤 JM teachers and staff showed up in their “Mission Ready” shirts for the first day of SOL testing to cheer on and support our Jackets. You’ve got this, Jackets, we’re all rooting for you! #MissionReady

Looking ahead!

Please save the dates for our upcoming Special Education Advisory Committee meetings in October and December.

Recently, local school board members were treated to an impressive display of creativity and faced some tough decisions in selecting the 2026 winners in the Virginia School Boards Association’s Northeastern Regional Art Contest on May 12, 2026. Student art from the elementary, middle, and high school levels representing each school division in the competition, were judged at the regional forum for area school board members.

FCPS is proud to celebrate our own 2026 VSBA Art Contest Winners, who will be recognized at the June 8th School Board meeting.

Mental health matters, and you are never alone.

Students and families can reach out to our mental health staff, counselors, and teachers for support.

If you need immediate help, call or text 988. The Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is available 24/7.

Together, we can support each other and break the stigma. 💚

James Monroe High School was proudly represented on May 6 at the public reception for the 23rd Annual Claudia Emerson Teen Poetry Contest, sponsored by the Central Rappahannock Regional Library. Out of more than 100 high school entries, our JM poets, all multilingual learners, earned incredible recognition: Adrian Hernandez Tapia received an Honorable Mention, Helen Hernandez earned 3rd Place, and senior Kimberly Santos Dominguez took home 1st Place in the 2026 contest. We are so proud of these talented Yellow Jackets! 🧡🖤

James Monroe High School was proudly represented on May 6 at the public reception for the 23rd Annual Claudia Emerson Teen Poetry Contest, sponsored by the Central Rappahannock Regional Library. Out of more than 100 high school entries, our JM poets, all multilingual learners, earned incredible recognition: Adrian Hernandez Tapia received an Honorable Mention, Helen Hernandez earned 3rd Place, and senior Kimberly Santos Dominguez took home 1st Place in the 2026 contest. We are so proud of these talented Yellow Jackets! 🧡🖤

In January 2025, we launched a new tool called Alongside. This app provides an extra layer of support to provide students with helpful mental health resources and help our staff catch signs that a student might be struggling. It helps by providing access to tools, check-ins, goal setting, and optional chatbot support. It’s meant to supplement, not replace, real human help, like school counselors, therapists, or crisis services.

Since its launch, the app has already helped us identify students in immediate need and connect them with important support services.

Fredericksburg City Public Schools is committed to building relationships with families. Parents and guardians can help by participating in the 2025-2026 FCPS Parent Survey! Share your thoughts around important topics impacting your students’ success. Survey results will be used to develop a plan to improve family and school partnerships in our schools. Please complete the survey by May 29, 2026.

Visit our website to complete the survey👉 https://www.fxbgschools.us/

A huge Jacket THANK YOU is in order for the James Monroe Alumni Association! They treated our teachers and staff to Chick-fil-A last Friday during Teacher Appreciation Week! Your generosity means so much, and we are truly grateful for the way you continue to support our JM community. Once a Jacket, always a Jacket. 🧡🖤

⚾ Play ball this summer, FCPS!

Registration is now open for the Fred Nats Baseball League, running June 1 through August 31.

Open to boys and girls ages 8–18, this league is a great way for students to learn the game, build confidence, and stay active all summer long.

✔ Scholarships available (free entry for qualifying students)
✔ Local fields at James Monroe High School
✔ Welcoming environment for all skill levels

📲 Register using the link below.
https://clubs.bluesombrero.com/sunshinebaseball

Every student deserves support when they need it. Thanks to our partnership with Hazel Health, FCPS students can connect with licensed therapists through free telehealth services, at school or from the comfort of home.

🔗https://www.hazel.co/get-started

Earlier this week, Instructure Inc., an international provider of educational software, announced that it had suffered a cybersecurity incident in late April affecting Canvas. Although the security of the Canvas system has been restored, data related to students and educators at hundreds of school systems and universities around the country were subjected to unauthorized access.

Canvas has assured us that they are investigating the matter.

Fredericksburg City Public Schools utilizes Canvas as our online learning system. According to the information currently available, the data potentially involved may include certain personal information; however, Instructure has indicated that passwords, dates of birth, government-issued identification numbers, and financial information do not appear to have been affected.

Planning and preparation have been at the forefront of our actions. We have spent considerable time monitoring and discussing this situation as well as collaborating with neighboring school divisions, insurance companies, and data experts.

Again, the breach was limited to Canvas internal systems, while the security of our network was never disturbed.

We are taking the Canvas data breach seriously and will continue to keep you informed as we learn more.

📰Fredericksburg School Division Chosen to Participate in National Student Mental Health Initiative📰

🔗https://www.fxbgadvance.com/p/fredericksburg-school-division-chosen?utm_source=publication-search

Our JM poets showed up and showed out! ✨

At the Claudia Emerson Teen Poetry Contest reception on May 6, James Monroe High School students earned top honors among 100+ entries:
🏆 1st Place: Kimberly Santos Dominguez
🥉 3rd Place: Helen Hernandez
👏 Honorable Mention: Adrian Hernandez Tapia

🔗https://www.librarypoint.org/teen-poetry-contest/

💻 FREE Virtual Mental Health Series for Families – May 💚

Families are invited to join a FREE virtual mental health series this May, presented by ParentGuidance.org through The Cook Center for Human Connection.

🕖 All sessions are offered at:
👉 7:00 p.m. & 9:00 p.m. ET

⭐ Special Highlights Include:
• Ask a Therapist LIVE – May 12 at 8:00 p.m. ET
• The Effects of Screen Time & Your Child’s Mental Health – June 1

✅ Expert‑led
✅ Virtual & convenient
✅ Free for families

🌟 Mental Health Spirit Week Is Coming! 🌟

📅 Join us for Mental Health Spirit Week!
This week is all about self‑care, kindness, connection, and well‑being—and we want students and families to participate together!

✅ Dress up
✅ Try daily wellness activities
✅ Start conversations about mental health
✅ Have fun while supporting healthy minds

🧠💚 Every day brings a new theme to remind us that mental health matters for everyone.

📰‘We are playing catch up’: FCPS hatches plan to go from zero to hero in CTE📰

🔗https://bit.ly/4uv128M

📰Transportation Opt-In, Walking Zones On the Table for Next School Year in Fredericksburg 📰

🔗https://www.fxbgadvance.com/p/transportation-opt-in-walking-zones