Principals' Update

Dear Freedom Hill Families,

Thank you for another wonderful week "On the Hill", with fabulous community participation at our 6th Grade Silver Diner Night Out, as well as our annual Thanksgiving Luncheon. I know that our students greatly enjoyed having all of the company at these events.

This week, we ask for your support in completing the annual FCPS Impact Aid Form (details below). This is an important item that our front office staff support each year. Please help them and our school by completing it for us if you have not already.

Please keep in mind that this week will be a shortened week as we move into our Thanksgiving break. Students will be dismissed on Tuesday, November 25, and will return to school on Monday, December 1.

As we head into the Thanksgiving holiday, we’d like to share our appreciation for our amazing school community. This season of gratitude gives us a chance to pause and reflect on all the things we’re thankful for. We wish you a safe, relaxing, and joyful Thanksgiving filled with time to connect with family and friends. We are grateful for you!

Nicholas Zapadka, Principal

Tim Scesney, Assistant Principal

Holly Sims, Assistant Principal

Upcoming Dates for Your Calendar

2025-26 FCPS School Calendar

Freedom Hill Family Resources

Breakfast/Lunch Menus

November 26 - 28 - School Closed, Thanksgiving Break
December 4 - PTA Meeting, Library & Virtual, 6PM
December 6 - Chorus Holiday Performance @ Wolftrap, 3:30PM
December 8 - PTA Winter 2026 teacher-led enrichment classes will be available for registration at 8AM.
December 9 - Band & Strings Winter Concert, 6PM
December 10 - Family Dinner Out, Shake Shack, (rescheduled), 11AM-9:30PM, Pike 7
December 10 - Early Release Wednesday, 1:05
December 22 - January 4 - Winter Break

This week, we are focusing on Gratitude. You are aware of and thankful for good things that happen.

“The real gift of gratitude is that the more grateful you are, the more present you become.”

~Robert Holden

Questions you might enjoy talking about:

What are the easiest things to be grateful for? What are the most difficult?
What are some benefits of gratitude?
How does it make you feel to think that others are grateful for you?

Fall Photos

Victor O'Neill Studios school photos for Freedom Hill students are now online! Families should have received an E-proof via email. Please remember to check your spam. For any questions about your student's school pictures please contact: underclass@vosphoto.com

Complete Your Federal Impact Aid Survey

FCPS is asking all families to fill out a Federal Impact Aid Survey. The form is available in SIS ParentVUE under Online Packets, which is in the upper right corner of the screen after logging in. Please complete it as soon as possible. We will provide paper forms to families who have not completed the survey in ParentVUE starting Wednesday, November 12^th.

Completing this form for each school-aged child in every household is important. This year, FCPS expects to receive approximately $4 million in Impact Aid funding. These funds are used to support all Fairfax County public schools and centers.

For more information, visit the Federal Impact Aid Survey page.

Volunteer Registration Update

Due to the overwhelming response from our community, FCPS is temporarily pausing fingerprint requirements for most Level 3 volunteers.

If you are scheduled for an upcoming fingerprinting appointment, please cancel your appointment unless you are a mentor, host parent, or non-parent volunteer having frequent, direct, and unsupervised contact with students, which will still require fingerprinting. FCPS will be charged if individuals miss a fingerprinting appointment without canceling in advance.

Those who have already been fingerprinted will be processed to be eligible for all Level 3 opportunities.

Field trip chaperone opportunities will now be classified as Level 2 (not requiring a background check).

To ensure continuous safety, all new volunteers are required to sign a Volunteer Certification Statement. This statement is a legal attestation confirming you have no history of violent felonies, physical/sexual crimes against children, or crimes of moral turpitude.

Want to volunteer? Visit Volunteer FCPS to find and sign up for volunteer opportunities. Contact Volunteers@fcps.edu with any questions.