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I hope that you and your family have enjoyed the three-day weekend. It has been a busy few weeks at D’Evelyn for students, families, faculty, and staff. Students and teachers are working hard each day in the classroom, D’Evelyn fall athletes are competing in their league schedules and state postseason competitions, and D’Evelyn performing artists have been entertaining and competing regularly. It is an exciting time at D’Evelyn - I am proud of the many achievements already met this year by our wonderful students, faculty, and staff. It is a privilege to serve as principal of this great school.
It is also the approximate midpoint of the first semester, and I know that D’Evelyn students have been busy, and at times even stressed and overwhelmed. I am confident that our students have struggled with academics and persevered through challenges in the first eight weeks of the school year. I am also confident that the struggles and perseverance that students encounter in their junior and senior high school years will ultimately prepare them for the challenges of life. The D’Evelyn program is ultimately liberating and empowering for students, but there are certainly challenges faced by students during their D’Evelyn journey. The faculty, staff, and administration want to recognize the great achievements of our students, while also working to support students as they face challenges, academically, personally, or socially during their time at D’Evelyn. As the adults in the building, we share an important partnership with parents and families of D’Evelyn students. It is our shared responsibility to support and look out for the children in our care. I am sure that the remaining eight weeks of the first semester will be equally challenging, busy, and exhaustive as the first eight weeks were. As we proceed through the middle of the semester, I ask parents and families to continue to provide support and encouragement for their students. There will be difficult days, and even weeks, during the semester. However, if we all work towards supporting and encouraging our students, I know that our shared sense of the empowering, uplifting nature of the D’Evelyn liberal arts program will guide us through those struggles. I hope that the three-day weekend has been restful, relaxing, and restorative for you and your family. I offer my very best wishes to a successful second half of the semester for all D’Evelyn students - in classes, athletics, performances, and other extracurricular endeavors.
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D’Evelyn juniors will take the PSAT on Wednesday, October 10th. There are many benefits for students taking the PSAT, but in this instance, the national PSAT 11 testing day serves as the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. D’Evelyn is one of a handful of schools in the county that offers this examination for all students. We wish the Class of 2020 the very best for this test!
Based on last year’s exam, 17 current members of the D’Evelyn Class of 2019 were recognized as Commended Scholars (top 3% in the nation) or National Merit Semifinalists. Please join me in congratulating our Commended Scholars - Sebastian Coco, Andrew Cohen, Jonathan Kowalski, Cecilia Leoni, Claire Madonna, Alexander Miceli, Benjamin Reynolds, Emma Ryckman, Emily Smith, Brady Sullivan, and Alexandra Watson - and our semifinalists - Samantha Bakes, Rory Devin, Emma Dukesherer, Cadence Fisher, Alan Li, and Ian Widmann. We are proud of the effort and accomplishments of all D’Evelyn students in their academic endeavors and believe the high-quality performance on these exams is a clear reflection of the hard work of students, teachers, and families during their time at D’Evelyn. The October PSAT/NMSQT administration is the one opportunity annually that D’Evelyn juniors must qualify for the National Merit Scholarship Program. The administration of the PSAT 11 is aligned well with the new Colorado framework for standardized testing. In the spring, Colorado 9th, 10th, and 11th graders will all take either the PSAT or SAT for their annual state assessment. These tests will be administered at D’Evelyn in April 2019. We believe that the PSAT/NMSQT, along with the PSAT 9 and 10, offer one more quality opportunity for students to prepare for the upcoming SAT exam for college admissions. In the D’Evelyn program, we do not modify curriculum or instruction to align with standardized testing expectations. However, our students have a strong history of great achievement on both the ACT and SAT, two important tests in the college admission process. While our first priority will always be the success of students in the D’Evelyn liberal arts program, we do hope that by students completing PSAT 9, PSAT 10, PSAT 11, and SAT 11 in succession over roughly two years, students and families will have more information about and exposure to the SAT testing format and expectations. I also encourage families and students to consider creating a College Board account, where many more additional resources are available to understand the tests and how your student performs. Khan Academy offers free SAT prep coursework for students that aligns with data that, with permission, their program gathers from College Board. Please join me in encouraging your junior student to give their best effort this Wednesday on the PSAT. I look forward to seeing their great results and performance. After the completion of the PSAT on Wednesday, juniors are dismissed for the rest of the school day. The remainder of D’Evelyn students will have classes as regularly scheduled, 7:35 AM - 2:30 PM. Our annual fall Parent/Student/Teacher Conferences will be held on Wednesday, October 3rd and Thursday, October 4th in the D’Evelyn gymnasium. The D’Evelyn Parent/Student/Teacher Conferences are held in an arena format, so families may meet with teachers on a first come, first served basis. We do encourage students to attend conferences to engage in the thoughtful conversations with teachers.
The schedule is as follows: Wednesday, October 4th 5:00 - 7:30 pm Thursday, October 5th 3:00 - 5:30 pm The purpose of the Parent-Student-Teacher Conferences is to allow parents and students the opportunity to connect individually with their teachers. There are a variety of opportunities for conversation points presented by the conferences, including but not limited to:
We hope that you and your student(s) will capitalize on this valuable opportunity to meet with teachers. There are no appointments or set schedules for meetings; rather, parents and students will have an opportunity to meet with teachers on a first-come, first-served basis throughout the evening. Please bring a copy of your child’s schedule for use during the conferences. We will not be distributing copies of schedules during conferences. Additionally, your student’s progress report for the first six weeks of the semester will be available in Parent Portal by Wednesday, October 3rd; please bring a copy of that those grades if you wish to use it in the conferences. We will send an update via School Messenger email to let families know when the 6-week grades are all posted in Parent Portal. To allow all families an opportunity to meet with teachers, we ask that conferences are kept to a maximum of five minutes per teacher. If you need more than five minutes of meeting time with the teacher, please set up an appointment for a future date and time. During conferences, counselors and administrators will also be available to meet with parents and students. Prior to conferences, students 6-week grades will be submitted and posted in Infinite Campus. Thank you for your continued support of your child in their educational experience at D’Evelyn. We appreciate and rely upon your support to maintain high academic and behavioral expectations for our students. Parents and families play an important role in the success of D’Evelyn students - I am grateful for your commitment to supporting your student’s success in our liberal arts program. I hope that Parent/Student/Teacher Conferences are an effective way by which you can support your student’s success. Parents can support our Teacher Dinners for Parent-Teacher Conferences: If you are interested in contributing to the potluck meals for teachers on Wednesday 10/3, Thursday 10/4, or both, please sign up here! The D’Evelyn Fall Play - Our Town - October 4, 5, and 6 - 7 PM, D’Evelyn Auditorium We hope to see many students and families in attendance at this year’s D’Evelyn High School Fall Play - Our Town. The student actors and crew have been working diligently alongside their directors to put together an outstanding performance. Shows will be on October 4th, 5th, and 6th in the D’Evelyn Auditorium, starting at 7 pm. Tickets are on sale at school during both lunch periods, can be purchased in the Financial Office, and will be available at the door. All proceeds from the Friday, October 5th show will be donated to the Jamin Fund, a fund established in honor of Jamin Buchanan Wilson, D’Evelyn Class of 1999. The Jamin Fund supports an array of philanthropic endeavors, including the D’Evelyn Excellence in Education Awards granted annually to D’Evelyn faculty members. To learn more about the Jamin Fund, please visit the website.  As you may have noticed in the D’Evelyn student planner calendar and our D’Evelyn official online calendar, the D’Evelyn Calendar Committee, in collaboration with the school administration and faculty, shifted the final exam schedule for the 2018-2019 school year as follows:
Because of this adjustment, D’Evelyn students will have school through Friday, December 21st to conclude the first semester. This is a slight change from previous years, and we appreciate your understanding and support during this transition year. The Calendar Committee agreed to this transition for several reasons, primary among them, a desire to support students by spreading out their final exams over three days. With the new schedule, students will benefit because:
The final exams will be spread over three days in the spring semester as well; however, that will not add an additional required contact day for students. We appreciate your support in this adjustment. It is the sincere hope of the D’Evelyn faculty, staff, and administration that this schedule adjustment will make the Final Exam schedule more supportive of student needs and allow them to find great success on their final exams this year. As a liberal art option school in the Jeffco Public Schools district, D’Evelyn Junior/Senior High School admits students through its lottery process for grades 7, 8, and 9 each year. For students to be admitted to the school through the lottery process, parents must attend one of the Prospective Student Information Nights. The Prospective Student Information Nights for this school year are on the following days and times:
The purpose of the presentation on these evenings is to update and educate interested families in the following areas: -- the D’Evelyn liberal arts philosophy -- expectations of students and parents -- an overview of the D’Evelyn curriculum and graduation requirements -- operational traits of the school -- an overview of the lottery / application process As the audience for the Jaguar Tracks publication is largely the families of currently enrolled students, I ask that you share this information with interested family and friends outside of the current school community. D’Evelyn Junior/Senior High School offers an excellent liberal arts program for students in grades 7 - 12. While there are many options for families to consider for their student’s education, the D’Evelyn liberal arts model is empowering for students, and has a proven track record of preparing its graduates for full, happy, and successful lives. I appreciate the support of our current families in sharing information about D’Evelyn and our lottery process with interested family and friends. The Jeffco Public Schools process for choice enrollment application and selection is going to change for this year’s enrollment cycle. The new system will roll out in January 2019. Because we do not know the specific details of how this program will work, we are asking interested families to stand by, and await instruction on how to complete the online choice enrollment application process. Nonetheless, we encourage interested families to attend one information nights at their earliest convenience. For parents with students currently enrolled at D’Evelyn that wish to enroll a younger sibling at D’Evelyn for 7th, 8th, or 9th grade in the 2019-2020 school year, you are not required to attend another Prospective Student Information Night, though you are welcome to attend. Nonetheless, you will need to complete the choice enrollment application process on or before January 31, 2019, with Sue Brown in the D’Evelyn Counseling Office. We hope to provide a clear understanding for all parents and students interested in the D’Evelyn program, with the intention of entering the lottery for the 2018-2019 school year. In addition to attending one of the information nights, I encourage all parents of interested students to read and review the D’Evelyn Founding Document, available on the D’Evelyn Junior/Senior High School website (link here), in an effort to deepen your understanding of the program. Parents may also find additional pertinent information about the D’Evelyn Program on our official school webpage, or by following the official school Facebook (/develynjrsr), Twitter (@develynjrsr), and Instagram (@develynjuniorsenior). We hope that all parents and students make informed decisions during the school choice process, to encourage maximum success for students within the Jeffco school system. Thank you for your continued support and for your interest in D’Evelyn Junior/Senior High School. I look forward to seeing many new families engage in our community through the upcoming Prospective Student Information Nights.  D’Evelyn Junior/Senior High School is a program designed to challenge students academically within the liberal arts curriculum. The content students encounter during their respective D’Evelyn tenures should be both rich and challenging. The purpose of the challenging curriculum is to prepare students for a rich and full life, regardless of their chosen future pursuits.
One challenge in this program, where teacher-directed, whole-group instruction is the primary pedagogical method, is that different students will struggle at different times for different reasons. In our shared effort to prepare students for life, I hope we can all agree that challenges are an important component of adolescence. Nonetheless, all community members - students, parents, teachers, staff, and administration - need to be ready to work together to respond supportively when students face those challenges in their D’Evelyn years. Specifically, in the academic realm, we acknowledge that individual students will have unique challenges. There are a variety of ways for students to seek support to achieve their academic goals at D’Evelyn. First and foremost, I encourage students to work directly with teachers when they are struggling with a topic or course. Our 7th hour is well-designed for students to seek individual support, guidance, and assistance with academic material. Additionally, our faculty are happy to work with students at various other times during the day, particularly before and after school. Students should make those arrangements directly with their teachers. When students who struggle with the self-advocacy need to seek additional assistance from teachers, I encourage parents to work with their students to encourage the development of this important skill. Ideally, students should directly address teachers when they are struggling - ask questions, seek clarification, request help and support. When students need extra encouragement to work with teachers, we ask parents and families to use direct communication with teachers. In addition to seeking individual support from teachers, D’Evelyn also offers a Peer Tutoring Program, where students may receive individual support and tutoring from another D’Evelyn student. The tutoring program is reflective of the D’Evelyn Founding Document, as the Founders expected that different students may struggle in different academic areas in the whole-group, teacher-directed instructional model. The Peer Tutoring program is designed to support students across content areas and encourage academic growth for those that seek the support of the program. We plan to begin the Peer Tutoring program for this school year in the upcoming days. Students may sign up to either give or receive tutoring. The Peer Tutoring webpage can be found from the D’Evelyn Junior/Senior High School homepage. For more information on Peer Tutoring, to request a tutor, or to seek a tutoring position, navigate to the Peer Tutoring request form through “Academics” drop-down menu, and select “Peer Tutoring”. The link to the page is: http://develyn.jeffcopublicschools.org/academics/peer_tutoring. Students can request Peer Tutoring on their own. However, parents, teachers, and counselors are also able to recommend students for Peer Tutoring services and are encouraged to do so if they feel a student would benefit from the program. If you have further questions or wish to discuss the D’Evelyn Peer Tutoring program further, please contact D’Evelyn Assistant Principal Tim Schmeckpeper at Tim.Schmeckpeper@jeffco.k12.co.us. D’Evelyn Junior/Senior High School recently received notification that six members of the Class of 2019 have been recognized as National Merit Scholarship semifinalists. Congratulations to D’Evelyn seniors Samantha Bakes, Cadence Fisher, Emma Dukesherer, Alan Li, Rory Devin, and Ian Widmann for earning the recognition as National Merit Scholarship semifinalists.
These six D’Evelyn students were among 24 National Merit Scholarship semifinalists attending Jeffco Public Schools, and the 221 students recognized across the state of Colorado for the 2018-2019 school year. In the D’Evelyn Class of 2018, seven students were recognized as National Merit Scholarship winners. Each year, the National Merit Scholarship Program recognized approximately 16,000 students from a pool of 1.6 million students as National Merit Scholarship semifinalists. This group of students is chosen from approximately 50,000 Commended Students, roughly 3% of all eligible students. The semifinalists are invited to submit an application to earn finalist status. Finalists are eligible to receive a variety of academic awards/scholarships. We are very proud of the accomplishments of these six outstanding students. This achievement is a great reflection of their intellect, work ethic, and commitment to excellence. Congratulations to these outstanding students, and good luck with the application process! If you would like to learn more about the National Merit Scholarship Program, please visit this webpage. |
AuthorJosh Griffin, Principal Archives
September 2018
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