Survey: Parents Want School Info on Internet, Not Paper
July 31, 2009 by (see byline) · Leave a Comment
By FCCPS Communications
More than 600 parents responded to a recent Falls Church City Public Schools survey on communication. The response rate exceeds that of any other survey conducted by the school system, including the January 2006 survey on school starting times, which generated 554 responses. Overall, this year’s survey results were positive, and parents offered some constructive suggestions for improving specific areas of school communication.
“In a school division of approximately 1200 households, this response rate is outstanding,” Superintendent Lois Berlin said. “The suggestions were very thoughtful and constructive, and we have been able to identify some consistent trends and some common themes that will help drive decisions on how we communicate with our families in the future.”
More than 97 percent of those who responded indicated they have access to the Internet at home, at work or via a portable communications device, and most prefer to receive their general school news and information electronically. The remaining three percent indicated by telephone that they do not have access to the Internet, and some rely on their children or the FCCPS parent liaison to deliver or translate important school information.
“It is important that all parents have the opportunity to be partners in their children’s education, and we need to continue to identify ways to ensure important messages are reaching all parents,” Berlin said.
More than 70 percent of the respondents indicated the frequency with which they receive school information both electronically and in hard copy is ‘about right,’ although more than 20 percent indicated that the frequency is not often enough. Other potential areas of improvement stem from common themes that emerged through open-ended comments, such as inconsistent Web-based practices from school-to-school, and occasional issues with accuracy and timeliness.
Division administrators, school administrators and teacher leaders will review and disaggregate the results in August to identify opportunities to enhance communications both at the division level and at the school level. FCCPS faculty and staff will be given an opportunity to provide input in the fall.
The survey results are available at the FCCPS web site.
SUNDAY: ArtSpace Hosts ArtSlam!, Music Jam
July 31, 2009 by Gina Caceci · Leave a Comment
FOOD: Jaded by Asian-American Restaurants? Try Myanmar
July 31, 2009 by Jimmy Scarano · 4 Comments
As the only Burmese restaurant in the Falls Church area, Myanmar could go the simple route and serve a bunch of easy-to-like Americanized dishes with little thought or soul behind them. Most of us wouldn’t know the difference.
But this strip mall café is sticking to its roots with honest cooking and a no-frills atmosphere. Some dishes will wow you. Others are unremarkable. Part of the fun is navigating the menu and unlocking its mysteries.
Before I get to the menu, though, how many Americans even know what Burmese food is? Few people in the country have access to this underappreciated food from the small Southeast Asian nation. It’s hard to categorize, really. Some dishes — heavy on lemongrass, chilies, garlic, or coconut milk — make you think Thai. Others are perfumed with cumin and onion, almost Indian in nature. And there are even Chinese-influenced stir fries. Ultimately, though, Burmese food is Burmese food. It’s got a flavor and spice that are its own. You’ve just got to try it.
Of course, if you go to Myanmar and are handed a menu, even if you have some idea of what the flavors are like, chances are you won’t know what to do next. Unless you’re Burmese, it’s hard to find dishes you’ve even heard of, let alone ever tasted. The menu is also long — biblically long. There are more than a dozen salads, too many fried appetizers to count, and pages of entrees featuring the ubiquitous headers of beef, pork, poultry, seafood, and vegetarian. There are also soups, house specialties, noodle and rice dishes, sides, and desserts.
So let me narrow it down for you real quick: Start in the salad section and go from there. In my two visits the best dishes by far were salads.
The ginger salad is an intriguing mix-up of pickled ginger, tomato, cabbage, peanuts and lime juice that is taken to another level with the crunchy addition of fried garlic cloves (where have THEY been all my life?) and toasted yellow peas. It takes a few bites to understand the textures and interwoven flavors in the dish, but in the end the plate is clean and you are left wanting more.
Always get the mango salad!
The mango salad is even better. Shreds of unripe mango, cabbage, and onion are redolent with the same wonderful fried garlic and have some added zing thanks to chili peppers and a generous sprinkling of cilantro. It’s like some sort of spicy, savory Burmese coleslaw concoction. Every one of my future trips to Myanmar will include this dish.
Nothing else I’ve ordered is something that I would get again. That doesn’t mean it was bad — just not terribly exciting. A pumpkin curry came out with beautifully steamed kabocha squash, but the sauce was oily and lacked punch. Spicy chicken in a cumin curry was faintly reminiscent of an Indian-style curry, yet it lacked the complexity. The Oh-no Kaukswe, a chicken noodle soup rich with coconut cream, was disappointingly bland even after I doused it with chilies and lime juice.
Nevertheless, I remain hopeful that Myanmar has many treasures hidden in its epic menu.
And next time I will be armed with a secret weapon.
During my last visit a man who described himself as a family member of the owner approached me to make sure I had everything I needed. I said yes and casually asked what he recommended for my next trip, not expecting much of a response. He rushed to the front counter and came back with a take-out menu and a red pen. Over the next 10 minutes we talked about fermented tea leaves, hot and cold salads, sour mustard greens, and yellow chickpea tofu, and he circled and underlined more than a dozen of his favorite dishes.
So now I’ve got a long list to try. The green papaya and watercress salads are at the top, followed closely by the pork with jackfruit, chicken with lemongrass, and mutton curry.
There are bound to be hits and misses, but if I encounter even one more dish that is the equal of the mango salad then a return trip will be considered a success.
Service? Waiters have to eat, too.
Aside from the intriguing array of food, there isn’t much to Myanmar. Don’t expect great service. This isn’t some well-oiled machine with trained waiters and an assembly line of cooks. My first time I was at the restaurant — during a busy Saturday lunch rush — the appetizers took 30 minutes to get to the table. On my last trip my waiter took my order and then sat down a few tables across from me and ate his lunch. When my food was ready the cook brought it out herself, as my “server’ was still slurping down his bowl of soup.
But these types of things don’t bother me. In fact, I find them refreshing. They are the quirky charms of a place that feels more like someone’s home than a restaurant.
My recommendation: Go to Myanmar, pig out on some salads, and try a few other dishes that peak your interest. Even if they don’t all float your boat, and you miss out on a water refill, you’ll still be glad you spent money at a place that is so full of hole-in-the-wall charm — and so clearly the lifeblood of a hard-working Burmese family.
Myanmar Restaurant: 7810-C Lee Hwy., 703-289-0013 (Click here for map.)
(Photos by Jimmy Scarano)
Crowd Turns Out for Penultimate Concert in the Park
July 30, 2009 by George Southern · 2 Comments
Crime Report: ‘Quick Change’ Artist Hits Multiple Cars
July 30, 2009 by Falls Church Times Staff · Leave a Comment
Larceny from Vehicle, 100 blk. S Oak St., July 21, 4:37 a.m., unknown person(s) entered an unsecure vehicle and stole a GPS.
Larceny from Vehicle, 200 blk. S Lee St., between July 20, 8:00 p.m. and July 21, 6:44 a.m., unknown person(s) stole a CD player from an unsecured vehicle.
Larceny from Vehicle, 300 blk. S Oak St., July 21, between 12:00 a.m. and 7:24 a.m., unknown person(s) stole $5.00 in change from an unsecured vehicle.
Larceny from Vehicle, 200 blk. S Lee St., July 21, 8:59 a.m., unknown person(s) stole $2.00 in change from an unsecured vehicle.
Larceny from Vehicle, 200 blk. S Lee St, July 21, 9:15 a.m., unknown person(s) stole $2.00 in change from an unsecured vehicle.
Tampering with Auto,200 blk. S Oak St., July 21, between 12:00 a.m. and 7:10 a.m., unknown person(s) rummage through an unsecured vehicle.
Larceny from Vehicle, 200 blk. S Oak St., July 21, between 12:00 a.m. and 6:34 p.m., unknown person(s) entered (2) unsecured vehicles and stole $10.00 in change from both vehicles.
Drunkenness, 300 blk. N Spring St., July 22, 11:49 p.m., police arrested
a 26 year old Falls Church woman for DIP.
Drunkenness, 900 blk. Railroad Ave., July 23, 8:34 p.m., police arrested a 26 year old Falls Church woman for DIP.
Destruction of Property, Taco Bell, 935 W Broad St., July 24, between 3:00 a.m. and 6:57 a.m., unknown person(s) struck the structure of the establishment with a vehicle.
Destruction of Property, 400 blk. Park Ave., July 24, between 6:30 p.m. and 9:00 p.m., unknown person(s) damage (3) vehicles belonging to the victim. Vehicle#1 was damaged with a black marker; Vehicle#2 was damaged from motor oil, egg shells, and black marker; and Vehicle#3 was damaged with a black marker.
Drunkenness, 800 blk. W Broad St., July 25, 2:02 a.m., police arrested a 20 year old Falls Church man for DIP.
Drunkenness, 900 blk. W Broad St., July 26, 2:08 a.m., police arrested a 30 year old Arlington man for DIP.
Larceny, Shoplifting, CVS, 1150 W Broad St., July 26, 3:44 p.m., unknown person(s) entered the establishment and stole $40.44 worth of merchandise.
Destruction of Property, Hai Lua Restaurant, 6795 Wilson Blvd., #21, July 27, 2:00 a.m., unknown person(s) threw a rock through the window of the establishment.
OPINION: Fear the LACK of FAAB
July 30, 2009 by Stan Fendley, Falls Church City · 4 Comments
THURSDAY: Art in the Park AND on Park Avenue
July 29, 2009 by Gina Caceci · Leave a Comment
Denise Philipbar is an artist who moved to Falls Church a little over a year ago so one could say she is a resident artist, but she is also an artist-in-residence at Art and Frame of Falls Church, located at 111 Park Avenue, where she has a studio.
"Tamarinds"
Denise is a painter and also works in clay and sometimes wood. Recently, she has been experimenting with hand-pulled prints and monotypes.
"Street in Pezenas"
OPINION: Don’t Fear FAAB (Fiscal Affairs Advisory Board)
July 29, 2009 by George Bromley · 1 Comment
