LCPS: School Spirit

In this week's LCPS Podcast, the School Spirit podcast team visits Sterling Elementary School, where students share how classes, clubs and school activities help create a welcoming environment where everyone feels they belong. Principal Jennifer Short and music teacher Sarah Scarboro discuss the strong sense of community at Sterling, and the intentional efforts staff makes to ensure every student feels valued and connected. The episode highlights how a culture of kindness starts with the school’s commitment to belonging and is embraced by students, who carry that message forward in their daily interactions with one another.

In this month's School Spirit, students at Heritage High School talk with Renée Dawson, host of the School Spirit podcast and director of Family and Community Engagement, about the power of connection through sports, clubs, activities and the classroom. As one of two LCPS schools offering the rigorous IB curriculum, Heritage students share how welcomed and supported they felt when transferring to the school for the program, and how that same sense of belonging greets them each day when they arrive at school and as they participate in activities. Their stories highlight how Heritage helps students grow not only as learners, but also as engaged community members. 

For the final LCPS Podcast of the year, LCPS Public Information Officer Dan Adams and Renee Dawson, Director of Family and Community Engagement Year, take a look at their favorite podcasts of the year and share what they are looking forward to next year. See the LCPS Podcast webpage to access this week's podcast or to take a look back at other podcasts released this year. We hope you will tune in again next year for more great stories and in-depth discussions with school leaders, educators, students and community members.

In a moment when public education faces intense scrutiny and rapid change, what kind of leadership matters most? In the latest episode of the LCPS Podcast, Superintendent Aaron Spence sits down with Shelley Berman, co-author of The Call to Courage, to explore the courage, integrity and relationship-centered leadership required to serve students and communities today. Tune in to this week's LCPS Podcast for an insightful conversation on leading with purpose in challenging times.

El pódcast de LCPS de esta semana presenta un episodio especial, Empodérate y Participa (Engage and Empower), disponible tanto en inglés como en español y creado por la Oficina de la Alianza Educativa, Familiar y Comunitaria para Estudiantes de Inglés (EL FACE). Los oyentes conocerán sobre los programas de verano, la Conferencia para Familias de Estudiantes de Inglés EMPOWERED en noviembre y las funciones ejecutivas para brindar apoyo desde el hogar. Acompañen y sintonícense con la supervisora de EL FACE, Sarah Ocampo, y las instructoras de EL FACE, Karla Blasquez y Mona ELKholy.

This week’s LCPS Podcast features a special episode, Engage and Empower, available in both English and Spanish and created by the English Learners Family and Community Engagement Office (EL FACE). Listeners will learn from EL FACE Supervisor, Sarah Ocampo and EL FACE Instructors Karla Blasquez and Mona ELKholy about Summer Programs, the EMPOWERED EL Family Conference in November, and executive functions to support from home.

The Better Together Podcast hosts/producers Anthony Beckett, Camille Jones, and Everette Callaway recap key points and favorite moments from past episodes and discuss their vision for the 26-27 school year

For the May School Spirit podcast, Renée Dawson, director of Family and Community Engagement, sits down with students from Farmwell Station Middle School who participate in Sources of Strength, a student‑driven mental wellness initiative focused on building resilience, shifting unhealthy peer norms, and strengthening connections with trusted adults to promote well‑being, hope, and healthy coping. Tune in to hear the creative ways these students bring the program’s mission to life and the meaningful support they receive from the school’s counseling team. 

LCPS Public Information Officer Dan Adams speaks to the 2026 Principal of the Year, Katie Johnson from Belmont Ridge Middle School, and the Teacher of the Year, Eric Kursman, an English teacher at Blue Ridge Middle School. 

LCPS Superintendent Dr. Aaron Spence speaks to authors Dr. Floyd Cobb and John Krownapple about their book, Belonging Through a Culture of Dignity. The book dives into the importance of dignity and belonging, while it might appear to be self-evident at first glance, it’s not until these concepts are truly unpacked, that educators realize the dire need for belonging through dignity. Once these fundamental human needs are understood, educators can gain clarity of the barriers to meaningful student relationships, especially across dimensions of difference. Even the most relational and responsive educators need this clarity due to the normalization of what the authors refer to as dignity distortions.