Week of October 11, 2017

The HOMECOMING PICNIC is TODAY!

The HOMECOMING DANCE is Saturday, October 14, 2017 at 7:30 p.m.





DOCUMENTARY FILM THIS SUNDAY



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Do stories of those overcoming great adversity inspire you? Would you like to understand the challenges of poverty and violence that plague our Central American neighbors?   Do you wonder what it would be like to live and go to school in a compound surrounded by concrete walls and serpentine wire? Are you curious about poetry writing as a means to healing? If you answered yes to any of these, then check out the documentary, Voices Beyond the Wall: Twelve Love Poems from the Murder Capital of the World showing at the Byrd Theatre this Sunday, October 15. This moving documentary follows a priest and poet who travels to Our Little Roses Home for Girls (OLR) in Honduras to help orphaned girls find their voices in poetry, heal traumas of their past, and prepare for an uncertain future.

Grace Locke ('19, Richmond) has been going to OLR in Honduras for three years. “When I went the first time I was overwhelmed by the poverty in Honduras and nervous about meeting the girls at OLR.  I had been given so much relative to these girls who had been abused and abandoned.  What could we possibly have in common?”  She soon found out: love. “These girls mean the world to me. They are full of strength and hope, and are part of my family now."

When Grace returned from Honduras last year, she decided she wanted to do more for her friends at OLR, so she is bringing Voices to RVA as a fundraiser on Sunday, October 15 at 4:30 p.m.  Tickets to the film are only $12, and all sales and donations go to OLR’s post-high school education fund. For more information, including the film trailer, you can click on the Eventbrite link below or visit the Facebook event page.

Please join us at next week's General PTSA meeting, to be held on Tuesday, October 17 at 8 a.m. in room 153. The meeting will be hosted by Maggie Walker's Senior Counselors and GRASP Financial Aid Advisor Susan Teerlink, presenting important information about applying for college financial aid. With the FAFSA recently released, it is a great time to learn about the process and have your questions answered. The presentation will be geared toward Junior and Senior parents, but is open to all. We hope to see you there! 






CONGRATULATIONS CHESS TEAM

Congratulations to the Maggie Walker Squad- John Corson ('20, Chesterfield), Trey Johnson ('18, Richmond), Varun Natarajan ('20, Henrico), Kevin Ren ('20, Chesterfield), and Nicholas Xie ('20, Henrico) for going 5-0 against Deep Run in our first Greater Richmond High School Chess League match today! Follow our team's progress at http://www.grhscl.org/  Go Dragons!









ATTENTION SENIOR PARENTS




All seniors should plan to meet with their senior counselor within the next month if they have not done so already. If there are no timeslots available on the sign-up sheet in the Counseling Center, students should reach out directly to their counselor to schedule a meeting.
  
A description of all scholarship opportunities sent to MLWGS can be found on Naviance. Please note that this list is not exhaustive- students are still encouraged to do their own scholarship research. See the “Scholarship and Financial Aid” page of the School Counseling website for tips. All deadlines listed in Naviance are subject to change- MLWGS is not always notified of annual date changes; therefore, it is important that students confirm all deadlines on the scholarship organization’s direct website. Please contact Kierstin Streitel in the School Counseling Office with any scholarship questions.

Teacher Recommendation Request forms are due at least two “school” weeks prior to the college/program deadline (winter break not included). Extra forms are in the School Counseling Office.

Transcript Request forms for deadlines November 15 or earlier were due last week. A Transcript Request Form is due to counselors by 3:30 p.m. on November 15 for any deadlines November 16 or later. Extra forms are in the School Counseling Office.

Students are allowed four excused absences for college visits per year. Students must get and turn back in a pre-approval form to Ms. Bowman in advance. Students should let their teachers know ahead of time that they will be missing class and it is up to them to inquire about and complete any missed work.





NEWS FROM THE GOVERNOR'S SCHOOL FOUNDATION



The Governor's School Foundation Board of Directors has approved $20,000 worth of student aid for use in the 2017-18 school year.  Student aid can be used to pay for everything from semester fees to class-related travel expenses to SAT/ACT reporting fees for students in financial need.  If you are interested in accessing student aid funding, contact Dr. Wendy Ellis, Associate Director of Curriculum and Instruction.  The administration screens all requests for student aid, and the identity of the student is always kept anonymous.  Please do not hesitate to ask Dr. Ellis if you believe your student could benefit from student aid funding.  It is there to open up opportunities at MLWGS!





FALL FESTIVAL RECAP

The 21st MLWGS Fall Festival was a huge success, raising over $16,000!  The weather was beautiful! The club booths were incredibly innovative and clever.  Our students created delicious culinary delights.  It truly was a feast! The performances were outstanding. We have incredible talent at Maggie Walker... from standup, a cappella, orchestra, jazz, dance, and solos to name a few. Our emcees kept the crowd laughing throughout the Fest.

Special thanks to all the parents and students who came early and stayed late to make our festival happen. We could not have pulled it off without you.

A big thank you goes out to the generosity of our sponsors. We surpassed our goal allowing for more tents, more booths, and many other incidentals.

Gold Sponsors:
Ashby
Patient First

Silver Sponsors:
Louis Reed, CPA, PC 
MLWGS Parents in support of ASK Childhood Cancer Foundations 
Moran Reeves Conn, Attorneys at Law 
Spectrum Wise- College consulting for students with ASD/Asperger

2018 Class Sponsor:
Nyfeler Associates
Another big thank you to the organizations that provide everything from the stage, the tents, supplies for the kidzone, and their time. Again we could not have had such an amazing Fall Festival without them!

  • Henrico Parks and Recreation
  • James River Transportation
  • Container First Services
  • Richmond City Police
  • Charles Aldridge
  • Dr. Robert Lowerre, Max Smith, and Barbara Marshall
  • Governor’s School Foundation
  • MLWGS Security and Maintenance
  • MLWGS Parent and Kid Zone Volunteers

Finally, the festival could not have happened without the hard work of our committee.  Our committee has been meeting and planning for six weeks.  They did an incredible job.

Co-chairs: Samantha Mier and Debbie Taminger
Logistics: David Hanzlik and Mike Winters
Setup: Liz Vantre and Dena Neuwirth
Booths: Michelle Hobbs and Sarika Malani
Entertainment: Elizabeth Brady and Ingrid Hale
Tickets: Gopal Bhagavatula, Deepthi Kalluri, and Raquel Watson
Drinks: Amy Franco and Kristi Turner
Clean Up: Peggy Feldman and Mary Johns
Publicity/Sponsors: Debbie Taminger and Kathleen Staley
Signage and Kidzone: Jennifer DiMattio
Kidzone: Gloria Amoako
T-shirts: Ashar Manisha
Food Safety: Martha Kapatinov and Izola Coleman
Faculty Representative: Paige Hawkins
Foundation Representative: Suzannah Stora
PTSA Treasure: Christine Pimblett
PTSA President: Anthony Taylor
Student Representatives: Rachel Zhao ('18, Henrico) and Thomas Green ('18, Henrico)