DPA FAMILIES,

“Every sunset is an opportunity to reset. Everett sunrise begins with new eyes.”

This week we must reset our mindsets, actions, and effort for ourselves and our scholars.  I hope the snow provided some time to rest, reflect, and recharge. The focus this week must be growth- We always ask how we can improve and use data to inform our actions. ANET Testing gives us the date we need to plan for your scholars academic success! It is crucial that your scholar is present by 8:35am and ready to test everyday this week! Note: We do not have school on Friday for staff professional development. See below for important updates!

New Updates

1. Calendar Notifications

2. ANET 2 Testing

3. Parent Teacher Conferences- February 7, 2024.

4. High School Scholar Recognition

5. Weekly High School ShowCase **NEW**

6. Photos of the Week **NEW**

7. Athletic Schedule

8. Mental Health Parent Cafe Dinner

9. Mental Health Resources

10. Summer Opportunity: Camp Canopy Enrollment Open! **NEW**

Action Items

• SY24-25 Re-Enrollment Survey

Recurring Updates  

1. Welcome Packets

2. Middle School Python Time

3. School Hours

4. Uniforms

5. Key Contacts

6. 504 Plans

7. High School Athletics

8. Middle School Athletics

9. School Lunch Menu

10. CAASS One Card & Access411

11. Mental Health Resources

12. Open Seat Counseling

13. Best Kids

Calendar Notifications

Week of January 22th 2023

Monday – 1/22 – Full Day

Tuesday – 1/23 – Full Day – ELA  ANET 2

Wednesday – 1/24 – Half Day (1pm Dismissal) MATH ANET 2

Thursday – 1/25 – Full Day – ANET Make Up Testing

Friday – 1/26 – NO SCHOOL – Teacher Development

Week of January 29th 2023

Monday – 1/29 – Full Day

Tuesday – 1/30 – Full Day

Wednesday – 1/31 – Half Day (1pm Dismissal)

Thursday – 2/1 – Full Day

Friday – 2/2 – Full Day

Key Dates

January 1/26 – Teacher Development – No School

February 7, 2023 – Parent Teacher Conferences

Quarter 2

Q2: November 6 – January 25

Q3: January 29 – April 4

Q4: April 8 – June 12

Spring Break

April 15-19

Last Day

June 14th- Last Day of School & 8th Grade Promotion

ANET 2 Testing January 23rd & 24th

Scholars must be in attendance for the next two weeks. We must have 95% completion of ANET on January 23rd and January 24th.

The ANET assessment is a computer-based test that we will take 3-4 times this year. ANet Interim assessments (IA) give teachers information about what your student has learned so far this year. The 90 min assessments are carefully crafted to meet grade-level demands and to provide teachers with timely, actionable information to inform instruction. The IAs are aligned to common core standards, and therefore are the best predictor of progress toward proficiency on PARCC.

DPA has an ambitious goal of 95% of scholars scoring above 60% on ANet Interim Assessments. The ANet IAs provide critical data for teachers about your scholar’s understanding of grade-level content – so it is vital that your scholar is present to school every day this week and arrives on time!

Our second round of ANET testing will be conducted for ALL DPA Scholars (Middle & High School) this Tuesday and Wednesday, January 23rd & 24th

 It is critical that scholars get plenty of rest, eat a healthy breakfast, and arrive on time in uniform everyday. Every day counts.

We will host parent teacher conferences February 7th. Please see next weeks bulletin for more information.

Our goal is for every scholar to consistently demonstrate strong academic and character habits.

Ultimately we want our scholars to set their own goals and internalize strong academic and behavior habits because they will lead to scholars achieving the 4C’s- College, Career, Computer Science, and Community.

Based on feedback from scholars, teachers, and parents, We want to recognize scholars who consistently live our DPA values and model professional habits.  Every scholar is eligible to earn merits. We will also begin to recognize scholars of the week. Not all scholars will be recognized every week. Each teacher will nominate one scholar a week. Scholars will be eligible to earn merits and Scholar of the Week recognition be achieving the following:

1. GPA = 3.0 or higher for the week

2. Work Completion = No missing or 50% work

3. Engagement = Completes all assignments daily and participates in class activities

4. Attendance =

   1. 100% attendance (no unexcused absence)

   2. On time arrival to school by 8:50am

   3. On time arrival to every class

5. Attire = Full DPA uniform (Grey pants, Grey Polo, Proper Shoes)

6. Empathy = Display KLR consistently to peers and adults

7. Behavior = No RRC’s for non-negotiables

8. Respecting the pass (hallway, bathroom, nurse)

9. Strong effort and growth on a daily basis.

Weekly High School Showcase

Photos of the Week

Athletics Schedule

High School Athletics Week of January 22nd

Mental Health Parent Cafe Dinner

DPA’s Mental Health Team is excited to present our 4th Parent Café! This is a space to connect with other DPA families, receive helpful resources, and meet with community partners such as Best Kids and The T.R.I.G.G.E.R Project. The topics for this month are “Resilience and Healthy Communication”

Who: All Middle and High School DPA Families, Staff Members, and Community Partners

What: An opportunity to network, fellowship, and receive SEL (social-emotional learning) resources

When: Tuesday, January 30th from 5-6:30 PM

Where: High School Campus- 709 12th St SE

Why: In order to strengthen our DPA community & continue building KLR

*Since we will be providing dinner at this event, we ask that you please RSVP here in order for us to have an accurate count.

All parents and guardians are welcome, and we encourage you to bring the entire family! Please reach out to our MS Social Worker, Ms. Mills, at kaitlin.mills@digitalpioneersacademy.org with any questions.

Mental Health Resources

As part of our commitment to provide our scholars and their families with increased mental health support resources, we have created & attached a mental health bulletin full of mental health resources at DPA and in the community- be sure to check it out!

Currently, we are offering groups led by our mental health team at both campuses for scholars. Current group offerings include:

• Mindfulness Group (High School)

• Grief Support Group (Middle School)

• Calm Minds (Middle School) – group for scholars who struggle with anxiety

• Guys Games Group (Middle School) – a group for male scholars to practice communication and teamwork

• Manifesting Me (Middle School) – an after school girls group focused on self-esteem and healthy relationships

To sign up your scholar for a group, reach out to Ms. Mills (Middle School) at kaitlin.mills@digitalpioneersacademy.org or Ms. Baron (High School) at jbaron@digitalpioneersacademy.org.

Additional resources can be found on THIS PAGE where families can find a network of mental health resources that are available to them and their scholars.

Summer Opportunity: Camp Canopy Enrollment Open Now!

We’re excited to announce that enrollment is now open for Camp Canopy—where adventure and fun meet for the summer!

Camp Canopy is a two-week sleepaway summer camp that is designed exclusively for students who are rising to grades 6-8. Camp Canopy provides students with an enjoyable, exciting summer experience that motivates them to approach the future with confidence, curiosity, independence, and responsibility.

At Camp Canopy, students have the opportunity to build long-lasting friendships in a safe setting that allows for exploration, learning, and joy! There is one option to attend in summer 2024:

Session 1: June 25–July 7, 2024

Learn more about this transformative summer experience:

• Click here to RSVP for an upcoming Family Information Session

• Click here to enroll today!

ACTION ITEMS

DPA SY24-25 Re-Enrollment Survey

We are already looking ahead to next year (2024-25) and are hoping you plan to re-enroll your scholar at DPA!  We know this is the time of year where families consider their school options for next year so we are hoping to understand what you are planning for your scholar and if we can be helpful at all.

While we hope to have 100% of our current students return to DPA for next year, in the first two weeks of the Lottery Opening, we already have 200 NEW families that have applied for their scholars to attend DPA next school year. We expect this to continually grow over the next few weeks.

We need to know if you plan to re-enroll your scholar(s) so that we can plan for how many new families are able to join our school community.  Please find the survey link below!!

SURVEY

$150 VISA Gift Card Raffle Winners!

High School Campus – Jacqueline Truman

Middle School Campus –  Carolyn Newman

Thank you to the 300+ Families that have already completed the survey!

All families that complete the survey by Friday: January 26th 2023 at 5:00 pm (Final Day to complete the survey)  will be entered in a raffle to win a $100 VISA gift card. Families who already completed the survey will automatically be re-entered into the next raffle! If you have already completed the survey no further action is required.

Recurring Updates

Welcome Packets

In order to provide families with all of the information you need for the upcoming school year,  we have created the below Welcome Packets! These packets include information on our attendance policy, school hours, athletic, transportation, uniforms, and much much more!

• Middle School Welcome Packet

• High School Welcome Packet

Middle School Python Time

We are thrilled to share with you the latest news about our scholars’ progress and development this school year. We are pleased to inform you that starting October 10th, 2023, DPA will be offering an After-School Program for DPA scholars, called Python Time.

Our After-school program is designed to provide a secure, productive, and free environment for scholars to participate in a range of enriching activities that promote academic and social-emotional growth. The program will run from 4:15 p.m. until 5:15 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.

Please note that scholars must have a signed permission slip and *dedicated transportation from the Middle School campus (908 Wahler Place SE) to participate. It’s also essential to remember that scholars must be picked up no later than 5:45 p.m.

* Due to limited capacity, we will fill slots on a first come basis*

If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to reach out to our Python Time Program Coordinator – Rodney Brownell, rodney.brownell@digitalpioneersacademy.org

* In order to ensure all scholars have safe passage home, scholars will be required to be picked up from the campus grounds in order to be eligible for afterschool programming.

School Hours