an Exceptionally Informative Letter

Hi All,
Here is an unofficial recap of the Senior Parent Information Session heldFriday night. Please
remember that I am merely a parent volunteer trying to help keep you in the know and only
passing information that I know to be true. I can try and answer any questions based on past
experiences or refer you to where you might find the answer.
I would suggest that you have a cup of coffee or tea with a muffin while you read…there’s a lot
of information and attachments to peruse!
What is ANGC?
It is an All Night Graduation Celebration, alcohol and drug free, held at
Spring Hill Rec Center the evening of Graduation (June 17) from 1030pm-430am that includes
games, prizes, a casino, DJ, and more. Most Fairfax area high schools host an event like
this. In the past, Marshall has had over ¾ of their senior population participate. Every Senior
must be registered ($60). Every student will walk out at 430am with something. Prizes
include a Microsoft Surface, Xbox One, and an Apple MacBook Air.
Seniors must arrive between 1030 and 11pm and will not be permitted to leave
until 430am. They must transport themselves there and back. Concerns about their
driving in the early AM have been raised. If you have concerns about their safety
driving to or from the event, we ask that you consider volunteering to work for the first
shift and driving them there, volunteering to work the second shift and then being able
to transport them home yourself, or arranging for a carpool.
ANGC encourages registration now (form attached) to ensure that they order the size
tee shirt the Senior desires. Wearing this Tee shirt that night is their admission into
the event (last minute registration gets whatever size is in the limited amount of extras
ordered.) Registration monies also directly support the event, the games and the
prizes. Confirmation of whether you already registered your child for ANGC or not can
be found out by contacting parent Dilkash Ahmed at dilkash1961@yahoo.com.
Consider volunteering to help that night. It takes over 100 people to ensure that this
event is run safely and securely AND it is a lot of fun. There will be an automated
signup that goes out in May dividing the jobs into two shifts (10pm-130am and 1am430am). Volunteer jobs will range from security watches (sitting in a chair by a door
and/or a fire pull), to black jack dealers, food service, bag check, pool games,
etc. Any visiting family member can volunteer, too, as long as they are over the age
of 18 and able bodied including grandparents. We encourage underclass parents to get
involved as well, so they can see what will happen next year.
It is a busy evening and a lot of fun. If your senior tries to tell you that they don’t
want you there, trust me, they won’t even have to see you, they should be beyond that
attitude at this stage in their lives anyway (my personal opinion), and the event will
not happen without parent support. Please start thinking about this now because the
event is in the middle of the week (workdays).
The Online Auction is 10pm March 13th – 10pm March 22nd and is
the biggest fundraiser for ANGC (Flyer Attached).
We will host a 2015 Senior Parent Preview (adults only) at the home
of Shane Stahl on March 13th 6-9pm. An invitation will be coming to you
separately and asking for RSVPs. Questions about the Preview? Email Shane
atmstahl2@verizon.net
This will be an opportunity for parents/guardians of seniors and invited guests to get a
close up look at some of the items in the auction, purchase in advance a limited
selection of items at the “Buy it Now” price as well as socialize with fellow parents of
impending graduates. We will have raffle items (student parking space, free plant sale
coupon, 2015 decals and more, as well as a 50/50 raffle). There will be hors
d’oeuvres, adult beverages and a wine tasting. You won’t have to be present to win,
so come when you can and leave when you want.
The biggest items in the auction besides an all inclusive
resort stay in Mexico is the reserved box seating at the
DAR Constitution Hall where graduation is held. These are
boxes that include 5 reserved seats each (5 tickets are included and are in addition to
the 6 every senior receives) and have a great view of the proceedings. There is no bad
view in the DAR, however, all seating with the exception of these boxes, is first come
first serve arena style (steep steps), so these boxes are a wonderful commodity. You
can get an idea of what the DAR looks like inside by watching the short, 3 minute You
Tube video we created: GCM ANGC 2015
C’mon! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0DKebw4Yec.
Other prizes for the online auction are dining certificates, additional student parking
spaces (don’t have to wait in line at the end of the summer and you have upcoming
GCM students), GCM logo corn hole boards, catered dinners, summer basketball camps,
original letters off the school building (over 50 years old!) and more. Take a look
at the flyer attached!
Questions about the Auction? Email Alice Fergusonaliceferguson@earthlink.net
ANGC Senior Hall decorating:
To celebrate Graduation, we are decorating a
portion of Senior Hall as has been tradition in past years. This is a hallway decorated with the
pictures of all our seniors. In order to do this, we need each parent to send in pictures. We
are requesting the following:
1. 3-5 color pictures of your senior from any years (baby to now). Sizes should be 5x7
or 8x10, printed on plain paper, not photo paper (it falls off the wall). These will not
be returned.
2. Please label the back of each picture with your senior's first and last name.
3. Photos can be of just your student, student with friends, student in sports,
activities, etc.
4. Please place in a Manila envelope (do not fold or bend pictures) and label the
outside "Senior Hall Pictures". Please have your student turn it into the main office at
Marshall.
The deadline to turn in the photos is Friday, March 27, 2015. We will be in need of
parent volunteers to help put the photos up. If you have any questions or can donate
your time to help post the pictures the week after Spring Break, please contact Desha
Nixon at mynixonboys@gmail.com
The ANGC Senior Cook Out is May 1st and held during the three
lunches for all Seniors. We will be soliciting donations for food/drink and volunteers
to cook and serve. Information and a volunteer sign up for this will be forthcoming. POC for
this event is Karin Edison karinee@verizon.net
The ANGC Spring Plant Sale is March 1st-26th.
A great way to support
ANGC and make your area full of spring, order beautiful flowering spring plants, hanging
baskets and herbs and get your spring fever game on! A flyer and an order form with types of
plants, prices and the nursery used is attached. Questions? Contact Polly
Colwellpollysuecanada@gmail.com
Graduation Yard Signs are available for purchase.
These signs are a
fundraiser for ANGC as well. Signs are $20 and 2/$30. If you would like to purchase a sign, or
you purchased one sign before the “two for” deal, please contact Grace
Boinay graceboinay@gmail.com and she will grandfather you in! The signs also will be available
for purchase during the Winter Sports Banquet on March 9th, and Touching Bases on March
16th. These will not be available for sale forever and are in limited supply. Get yours
today!
Baccalaureate is held the evening prior to Graduation and is
June 16th. Time TBD.
-It is a reflective interdenominational service with music and memories shared by
students. There will be a main guest speaker.
-ALL graduating Seniors and their families and friends are invited to attend. There are
no tickets.
-It has no affiliation to the International Baccalaureate program at GCM other than they
share a common word!
-Seniors attending are asked to wear their cap and gown and will process in.
-There is a reception hosted by the PTSA afterwards. This year, it will be located at
Our Lady of Good Counsel Church in Vienna.
-Traditionally, the Seniors may throw their caps into the air at the end of the
ceremony, and sometimes they don’t pick them back up and come out of the DAR
without their cap. If you want photos with them in their cap and gown, the
Baccalaureate also serves as a great opportunity, in a more relaxed setting, to have
those photo moments in full regalia with family and friends.
Email Editor’s personal note: I would encourage every Senior family to consider attendance to
this no matter what your faith beliefs or religious affiliations are, or if you have none. It is a
lovely event, student driven and filled with memories, reflections and music provided by our
high school musicians, as well as an opportunity to empty your tear ducts before the big
day. Once you attend, you will wonder why you ever thought about not attending.
Senior Trip:
Seniors will go on an optional class trip on June 15th. The past two years, it
has been to Busch Gardens. They vote to decide where and it is not decided yet.
Awards Ceremony:
June 12th Awards Ceremony will be all Seniors and guests in the
gym with all underclassmen and faculty watching it from some place in the building (gym,
auditorium, etc). If your senior is being especially recognized or has won an award, you will
get a letter in the mail inviting you to the Awards Ceremony. There are some underclassmen
recognized at this ceremony as well (Statesmen Star winners, etc.) The ceremony is followed
by a reception sponsored by the PTSA. Last year, they recognized full IB Candidates,
ROTC/Service Academy, PTSA teacher/staff/student awards, Outstanding Athletes,
Outstanding Academic Achievement in each of the disciplines, etc.
Graduation:
Attached are two pages (scanned back and front) of a GCM informational
handout regarding graduation (rather than wait for an electronic copy next week from the
school, I scanned this so you would get the information quicker…that’s why it is in two
PDFs.) Closer to graduation, you will receive this same information with any updates. In
addition to this information, here are some additional notes addressed at Friday’s session:
-All Student debt including payment of Senior Dues ($125 and flyer attached explaining
what these are used for) must be resolved before a Senior can participate in
Graduation activities. If your student has debt, you already have received or should
receive soon a notice of this. Verification of whether Senior Dues have been paid or
not can be found out by contacting Diane Murphy at dcmurphy326@aol.com.
-Each Senior receives 6 tickets to the graduation held at the DAR Constitution Hall in
Washington DC. We are one of four schools in the area that hold our ceremony in this venue.
-They receive these tickets when they receive their cap and gown at the first
rehearsal, June 11th. The rehearsals are held in the school cafeteria. (Schedule is in handout
attached).
-You may request extra tickets in addition to the 6 your senior will receive (at no
charge) any time up through Friday, June 5th, by contacting Kathy Smith in the GCM
main office at 703-714-5491.
Extra tickets, if ordered, will also be handed out with the caps and gowns. Tickets are
not printed until late May.
-Gowns will need to be taken out of the plastic wrapping and hung to get rid of
wrinkles. They are pretty thin so ironing them is not a good idea. Also, remember that
they are thin and with the right light, can be seen through.
-Students rehearse in the cafeteria the same way they will be in the DAR so they will
be able to tell you where they are sitting. All seating is general admission with the
exception of reserved boxes around the venue. These boxes are reserved for those
who have served the school in significant ways such as the PTSA President. There are
12 boxes available for purchase through the ANGC Online auction
that takes place March 13th – 22nd. Each box can accommodate 5
people. Four boxes are auctioned off as doubles next to each other
(two sets of two boxes).
-Seniors get off the bus and line up on the sidewalk outside the DAR, then walk into the
outer hallways of the DAR awaiting their processing in. Photo opportunities at this
time with them will be limited.
-The doors will open promptly at 930 for guests to go in. At 1030, they will be closed
for the opening Pledge of Allegiance and National Anthem and no one will be
admitted. After these events, the doors will be reopened. There is plenty of seating
in the DAR so don’t panic if for some reason, you are late.
-There are two guest speakers that the Class Officers and 2015 Class decide upon. One
is from outside of the school and the other is a selected GCM teacher. These are not
yet determined.
NO CELL PHONES:
Students will not be permitted to carry their cell phones so
have a meeting plan for after the ceremony.
-Handicap Seating is available as well as handicap accessible bus transportation
to/from the DAR. Please call Dan Daus, Assistant Principal, 703-714-5400 IN
ADVANCE and give him the information of your needs. There are certain doors of the
venue that are handicap accessible and he will provide all of this information to
you. Be advised that there is very little, if any, handicap parking on the street around
the DAR.
-There is usually another school’s ceremony scheduled after ours, so dawdling inside
the DAR is difficult.
-Your Senior will be required to ride the bus to the DAR, but returning to the school can
be any way that you would like. So…if you would like to go to lunch someplace in DC
or all go home on the metro and have lunch, or take them in the Limo that you
rented…it is all possible.
-Bus transportation to and from the DAR for family and guests is available for
$12.50/seat, and information is in the Graduation news attached. Additional
transportation ideas are Metro (nearest stop is 4-6 blocks away), POV and parking, or
Limo rental.)
Whew! Think that is all. If I missed something or you have a question, shoot me an email and
as I said, I will try to answer or refer you elsewhere.
And, lastly, if you or your student is on the fence about ANGC, remember this:
Not every Senior goes to the Prom or the Homecoming dance, not every Senior plays in the
band, or sings in the school musical, and not every Senior plays a sport, or participates in a
club…but every Senior will graduate…and ANGC affords them one last big occasion where
everybody can be to celebrate their accomplishments and their friendships, and say goodbye to
high school.
We put together a three minute You Tube video that if you haven’t watched, I would
encourage you to take a peek while you are taking those last sips of coffee or tea, or that
muffin you started to eat at the beginning of this email. GCM ANGC 2015
C’mon! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0DKebw4Yec
Calendar:
Monday, 3/9 5-10pm Ledo’s Dine out in conjunction with Winter Sports Banquet
Friday, 3/13 ANGC Auction Preview Parent Event
Sunday, 3/15-Sunday - 3/22 ANGC Online Auction
Monday, 3/16 No School Teacher Workday
Monday, 3/16 Touching Bases 8am-1030am (tentative)
Tuesday, 3/17 ANGC Meeting 7pm GCM Library
Saturday, 3/21 Sadie’s Dance (rescheduled)
Tuesday, 3/24 4-9pm Social Burger Dine Out
Monday, 3/30 – Monday, 4/6 Spring Break No School
Thursday, 4/16 2 HR Early Release
Friday, 4/17 No School Teacher Workday
Tuesday, 4/21 ANGC Meeting 7pm GCM Library
Monday, 5/4 5-9pm Chipotle Dine Out
Tuesday, 5/19 ANGC Meeting 7pm GCM Library
Monday, 5/25 Memorial Day No School
Saturday, 5/30 Junior/Senior Prom Renaissance Arlington Capital View Hotel Crystal City
Friday, 6/12 GCM Awards Ceremony
Monday, 6/15 Senior Class Trip
Tuesday, 6/16 Baccalaureate
Wednesday, 6/17 Graduation
Wednesday/Thursday, 6/17 - 6/18 ANGC
All the ways to find us, donate, help out, watch the video, get the forms, find out the dates and more!
GCM School Senior page http://gcmptsa.org/category/seniors/
GCM PTSA Senior page http://www.fcps.edu/MarshallHS/activities/seniors.html
Internet: www.gcmptsa.org
Twitter: become our follower @GCMPTSA
Facebook: George C. Marshall PTSA (you don't even have to friend us!)
Grace Boinay graceboinay@gmail.com and Mary Hagopian rodiemade@gmail.com
2015 Parent Liaisons
As always, you are receiving this email from the Class of 2015 Parent Volunteer Reps because you have a student at
George C. Marshall High School in the Class of 2015. If you would prefer not to receive periodic information
regarding the Class of 2015, please contact Mary Hagopian at rodiemade@gmail.com and she will take you off of
this 2015 email distribution list. Please note “2015” in your email as she maintains several different email
distribution lists.