April 2 – 8, 2020
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School Board Votes to F.C. M����� R������ End School Year Early Unanimous Move Changes End Date to June 4
BY NICHOLAS F. BENTON
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS
Among a mountain of important issues deriving from the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact on the Falls Church City Public Schools’ educational mission this spring, after a three-hour virtual, online-only meeting Tuesday night the F.C. School Board voted unanimously to adopt Superintendent Peter Noonan’s request to officially move up the end of the school year from June 17 to June 4. It was done given the cancellation of and revisions to many of the year-end student standards of learning (SOL), International Baccalaureate and Advanced Placement tests and evaluations and the need to prepare for a more robust online summer session. Noonan said a decision will be made tomorrow, Friday, on
the grading system for the spring semester, with a pass/fail option being considered. Noonan stressed that all George Mason High School students who were on target to graduate when Governor Ralph Northam ordered all Virginia schools closed on March 13 will graduate in June, and that working with students, plans are being developed for a “suitable celebration” of “such a great milestone” in the lives of the students and an opportunity for caps and gowns and the turning of tassels to occur for all graduates, even if restricted to some virtual online format, given the ongoing “social distancing” requirements needed to limit the pandemic. The School Board Tuesday also voted to turn Friday, April 24, into a teacher planning day. Also,
THE CITY’S FARMERS MARKET was back last weekend, although it looked a little different, after a one-week hiatus. With only eight vendors and operating as a pick-up only event, the Falls Church market was adapted to comply with new pandemic guidance and regulations issued by the state in recent weeks. The to-go market will be back in action this Saturday, Continued on Page 4 with more vendors, in front of City Hall. See story, page 5. (P����: J. M������ W�����)
Stay-at-Home Order Issued for Virginia BY JODY FELLOWS
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS
In an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus, Gov. Ralph Northam has issued a stayat-home order for the state, he announced at a press conference Monday. The declaration came the same day Gov. Larry Hogan
and Mayor Muriel Bowser issued similar orders for Maryland and Washington, D.C., respectively. After citing instances of packed beaches over the weekend in the state, Northam said “It is clear more people need to hear this basic message: stay home.” Per the executive order, residents of Virginia must stay at home unless
they need to leave for work, groceries, medical supplies or to seek medical care. Residents can also go outside for exercise and to get fresh air, as long as they adhere to strict social distancing requirements. “You should stay home at the greatest extent possible,” Northam said Monday. Northam said authorities have
the ability to enforce the order criminally and that anyone who does not comply is subject to a Class 1 misdemeanor. Executive Order 55 also directs all higher education institutions to stop in-person classes, shuts down private campgrounds for short-term stays and closes beaches except for fishing and exercise. The order is effective immediately and will remain in place until June 10. With 288 people testing Covid-
19 positive, the Fairfax Health District, which includes the City of Falls Church, City of Fairfax, Fairfax County and its towns, has almost 20 percent of Virginia cases. There are at least three positive cases in the City of F.C., including a City employee who was reported positive last week. However, since Fairfax health officials are no longer releasing the details of each individual case, that number may be higher.
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SEE STORY, PAGE 15
SEE STORY, PAGE 19
While face mask supplies run low throughout the area, two Falls Church business owners are stepping up and making their own homemade masks in an effort to help area healthcare workers and at-risk members of the community in need.
Restaurants throughout the country have been gutted by the coronavirus pandemic, but that hasn’t stopped several empathetic owners in the Falls Church area from crafting new ways to help out and bring their food to the people.
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Northern Virginia’s own “Rockin’ the Suburbs” podcast from Falls Church’s Patrick Foster and Ashburn resident Jim Lenahan will take their show to Jammin’ Java’s stage next Wednesday. SEE PRESS PASS, PAGE 14
INDEX
Editorial....................................................... 6 Letters......................................................... 6 News Briefs ................................................ 9 News & Notes....................................10–11 Comment .................................. 7–8,12–13 Calendar ...................................................14 Business News .........................................15 Classified Ads ...........................................16 Comics, Sudoku & Crossword .................17 Critter Corner............................................18 Crime Report ............................................19