On Mar. 14, the Loudoun County School Board met to discuss student mental health, a new grading system, amendments to student dress code, and bathroom renovations. 

Students’ Mental Health

The public comment emphasized the importance of student mental health. According to Jenn Evans, the Director of Student Mental Health Services for Loudoun County Public Schools, and LCPS Coordinator of Psychological Services Megan Green, the goals of what a “great” student mental health should be aligns with the previously mentioned LCPS 2027 “Plan for Excellence,” which schools across the county are progressively implementing into their daily activities. 

Students have access to mental health resources including Sources of Strength, a program whose mission is to “prevent adverse outcomes by increasing wellbeing, help-seeking, resiliency, healthy coping, and belonging” and is active in over 31 secondary schools in the United States. Another resource students have access to is PEER, which is a part of all high schools in the county.

The school board is focusing on revising these programs, while using the addition of the “Plan for Excellence” to help students maintain a healthy mental state that sets them up for success. 

New Grading System

With the reintroduction of the “Plan of Excellence,” school board members began their discussion about a potential new way to grade students. Instead of the conventional grading system, with assigning letter grades “A” through “F,” the idea of implementing a new grading system “growth mindset” would benefit students and educators alike, especially with kids who receive a grade below 50%, as they often feel they have no chance of recovery and give up on achieving success in a course.

According to the school board, an assessment and grading system must be designed to motivate students and promote a growth mindset. Instead of using regular number and letter grades, students would be given marks based on “mastery.” For example, the levels of grading would be something along the lines of “No Attempt,” “Below Mastery,” “Progressing Mastery,” and “Mastered.”  Although early in development, some on the school board feel that  the new grading system will only help motivate students to perform better, while others think that the current system is more effective. 

Bathroom Renovation 

Another key issue discussed was increasing the safety and privacy of school restrooms as well as receiving initial feedback on changes made. Key risks include conflict between students and staff, conflicts between students, and inappropriate activities stemming from vaping/smoking, vandalism, and group gatherings. 

In addition, they discussed the modernization of school bathrooms in accordance with Policy 8040 Rights of Transgender and Gender-Expansive Students, which was adopted by the school board on Aug. 11, 2021. Renovation projects to renovate and modernize school restrooms and locker rooms with the goal of bettering student and staff privacy  are hoped to be completed within five years.

In the fall of 2021, the school board allocated $427K to implement all gender restrooms at 12 schools in LCPS. LCPS is currently in the design phase of the proposed construction pilot program; renovations are said to be completed by Aug. 2026.

The next school board meeting will be held on March 28.