Thursday, May 17, 2012
Michele Menapace, a parent advocate, questions some of the school board's budget decisions
In testimony to the Fairfax County School Board on May 15, I expressed concern that our school system has a serious credibility problem. Yes, it's easy to dismiss such a comment as out-of-touch or not consistent with the remarkable successes of our students and teachers. But ask yourself ... Do you think it's credible to approve a monitoring report (from the Department of Communications and Community Outreach) that asserts FCPS has 100% fulfillment on FOIA requests? On March 22, I asked for the details of Undelivered Orders for 2010 and 2011 to see why FCPS is spending more than 2% of its operating budget on purchases in the final two months of the fiscal year. I have sent three followups and, as of May 15, don't have that information to …
Friday, May 11, 2012
Rachael's entry was selected from close to two dozen nominations.
It's hard raising one child, nevermind five. But that's what the 2012 "Best Mom in Fairfax County" is doing. Her daughter, Rachael, called her "amazing." Rachael's entry was randomly chosen from almost two dozen that Patch received. Rachael and her mother won a $50 gift card and, of course, bragging rights. See all the entries here. Congratulations and Happy Mother's Day!
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Whether your mom is a designer, a photographer, artist or moviemaker--the right tools are often the best gifts
As a mom myself, I generally don't recommend getting tech tools as Mother's Day gifts. Seriously, unless mom specifically requests a new vacuum cleaner, socket set or ironing board, she want gifts that are more personal and less task-oriented. Giving her a present that allows her to further her skills, or discovering new means of expression can be the most meaningful gift you can give. There are many non-technical tools that can help her develop her creative side, of course (flowers and a card), but as more and more artistic expression is digital, giving the right gift means looking to technology. Here are some great ideas for creatives of all sorts--mom or not. For the Photographer While a digital SLR would be an ideal gift for someone …
Saturday, May 5, 2012
For a chance to win a $50 gift certificate, upload a photo of your mom and a note about why she rocks.
This contest is now closed and we'll be notifying our winner shortly! Poets write about them. Strong men cry in their presence. We honor them each year with a special day punctuated by hearts and flowers, and perhaps even breakfast in bed. Don't just settle for all the customary ways to celebrate how awesome your mom is. Instead, upload a photograph of her to this article and write a caption telling us what's so great about the moms of Fairfax County. Next Friday, May 11 at noon, we'll randomly pick a winner and call her the "Best Mom of Fairfax County." Now that's a gift. But if that's not enough, we'll also award you a $50 gift certificate to spend any way you want on mom. (C'mon, dads, if your kids can't upload a photo of your …
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
What do you think about the Fairfax County budget?
- OPINION
-
Wednesday, April 25
Earlier this week, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors met to discuss the county’s fiscal year 2013 budget, allocating more for employee pay. From Tuesday’s article: For the first time since 2009, full compensation adjustments have been restored to county employees. More than $16 million of the adjusted funding will go towards pay increases, including a 2.18 percent market rate adjustment (MRA) effective in July, merit increments and longevity steps for public safety employees, and a 2.5 percent performance-based increase in January for non-public safety merit employees. Speak Out: Do you support pay increases for county employees?
Be watchful: Flashback Trojan infects more than 500,000 Macs
Last September, Oracle announced that their Java plug-in had a security flaw that needed to be patched. If left un-patched, users could inadvertently install malware such as the Flashback trojan and the-just discovered trojan, Backdoor.OSX.SabPub.a. Both of these seem to connect users to a botnet (a network of infected computers that can receive commands from a remote location, without the permission or knowledge of the computer owner). The number of computers infected is quite large, well over 500,000 have been infected. Russian security firm Kapersky even reported 274 computers in Cupertino, Calif., the home of Apple, had checked into the botnet servers after infection with the malware. Apple released an update for their two latest OS …
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Delegate Eileen Filler-Corn updates residents.
- OPINION
-
Saturday, April 14
Dear 41st District Voter, During this year's General Assembly session, I introduced House Joint Resolution 107 designating April 14, 2012 as the first annual “Hold Out for Hunger” Day in Virginia. I wanted to take this opportunity to share with you a few facts about hunger in Virginia. Over 11.8% of Virginians struggle with food insecurity. This translates to over 900,000 Virginians being forced to choose between providing food for their families or paying their rent or mortgage, transportation or medical bills. These tough choices are being made everyday across the Commonwealth. Through the assistance of local agencies and volunteers, our Virginia food banks are able to provide nutritious, fresh foods to Virginians struggling with hunger…
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Some say the new penalty for offenders is too much.
Beginning in July, Virginia will enforce a new drunken-driving penalty that requires first-time offenders to install ignition devices in their cars that will test the their blood alcohol level before the cars will start. The Washington Post has reported that the new requirement — the toughest in the region — will affect more than 18,000 people and has sparked a debate between groups fighting against drunk driving and people representing offenders. The new law will affect people arrested for drunken-driving offenses, regardless of the level of their blood alcohol concentration. That means it affects people who are only slightly above the legal limit. Speak Out: Should first-time drunken-driving offenders be required to use ignition devices…
How much do you love your phone?
Do you resent your work PC as being slow or “boring”? Is your cute smart phone the first thing you check in the morning and last thing you look at before sleep? Not many of us have emotional attachments to our household tools, but often we have strong feelings about the tech we use at home, work or out and about. More Than Just Hardware When Google announced changes to its privacy policies, people went online to say how much they “loved” Google and its products or how they felt “betrayed” by the business practices of a corporation that managed their interaction with the Internet, videos and email. With the latest news of Facebook buying photo app Instagram, Twitter news feeds filled up with people saying they would delete their accounts to…
Thursday, April 5, 2012
A luncheon and fashion show featuring styles from Lord & Taylor drew guests to Fair Oak's Waterford convention center.
The Fairfax Salvation Army Women’s Auxiliary staged its 32nd Annual Fashion Show last week in Fair Oaks with over 200 guests. Held at the Waterford center, the event featured not only a fashion show, but also entertainment, a luncheon, a silent auction and a jewelry corner. Three dedicated women were responsible for this occasion. As the fashion show and luncheon coordinator, Fairfax Station resident Angela Ganey headed the event. Ida Mae Speeks, a longtime Fairfax County Public Schools administrator, provided support as President of the Salvation Army Fairfax Women’s Auxiliary. Corps Officer Major Janice Fitzgerald, who along with her husband Major Earl Fitzgerald, commands the Fairfax Unit of the Salvation Army. Major Fitzgerald thanked …
38.82255
-77.31747
Salvation Army
4915 Ox Rd, Fairfax, VA
/articles/fashion-show-presented-by-the-salvation-army-women-s-auxiliary
1301026
/locations/6726206
Michele Menapace
8:39 pm on Thursday, May 17, 2012
I could not agree more with Greg's solution in the Baldridge Performance program. Just reading the MoCo schools' budget was an amazing experience--honest assessment, alignment of resources clearly tied to performance and meaningful outcomes, no excuses, acknowledgment of shortfalls. In short, transparent and accountable. Thank you, Greg, for reminding us of this. more ›