Dear Hayfield Secondary Families:

A big thank you goes out to all those students, parents, and staff who made last week’s Homecoming festivities some of the best in recent memory. The week-long celebratory activities, enjoyed by faculty, students, and staff, culminated in Friday’s terrific pep rally, a parade through the Hayfield community, a hard-fought football game, and a well-attended Homecoming dance. Many alumni took advantage of the gathering to re-acquaint with former classmates and teachers, and Doris Torrice, Hayfield’s second principal for whom the field house is named, attended the game with some long-since retired teachers.

While most of us cringe at the sight of our dwindling savings in these tough financial times, there is one long-term investment, Hayfield Secondary, which continues to show improving returns. Consider the following rate increases:

• Our recent graduates scored significant increases on their SAT results for each of the critical reading, math reasoning, and writing sections of the SAT exam.
• All of our English and math NCLB subgroups- African American, Hispanic, economically disadvantaged, limited English proficient, and special education- made their respective AYP passing goals; This is quite an accomplishment and is the first time that has happened in more than five years.
• Collectively, we have had a seven percent SOL pass increase in Algebra 2 students compared to the spring of 2007; this achievement is particularly noteworthy since it marks the highest passing percentage since the creation of that SOL exam.
• Eight percent more of our Chemistry students passed than the year before signifying a four-year passing rate high.
• A nine percent increase in Geometry students passing the SOL compared to the previous year before achieving the highest passing rate in this subject in at least seven years.
• Thirteen percent more of our Algebra 1 students passed that SOL as compared to the year before achieving the highest passing rate since that SOL was first given.
• While middle-school Algebra students maintained a 100% passing rate on the high-school Algebra SOL exam, our eighth-grade passing math scores increased by seven percent.
• The passing rate on the eighth-grade English and Science SOL tests both increased by four percent.
• The spring 2008 high school SOL test scores in Biology, English Writing, World History 1 and 2, VA History, and the middle school SOL test scores in History 7, Reading 7 and Reading 8 passing rates were the highest they have been since those exams have been given.
• Our cosmetology program had a 100% licensing pass rate.
• And, our signature program, Advanced Placement, maintained a fifty-six percent college course exemption rate of 3+ even though we proctored an additional 118 exams last spring.

Certainly our students and staff have much to be proud of and your investment in Hayfield Secondary will continue to pay future dividends.

It’s mid-fall again, so please mark your calendars if you have not already for the upcoming Touching Base five-minute mini-conferences scheduled for the morning of Tuesday, November 11. We will follow the same format as last year providing opportunities for parents to touch base with teachers. Mini-conferences will start at 7:30 in the field house and middle-school lecture hall. Students will have a shortened day with bus pick-up times scheduled exactly four hours later coinciding with the start of school scheduled at 11:20 a.m.

All the best to you and your families, Go Hawks!

William L. Oehrlein, Ph.D.
Principal
william.oehrlein@fcps.edu