November 2023

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November 3, 2023 Winter Weather Reminders Finals Schedule Finals Care Packages DEF Annual Appeal 8th Grade Parent Meeting Teacher Appreciation Corner Jags School Store Social Emotional Wellness Dazzling Jags Awards Upcoming Activities and Events Our Sponsors Social Media Jaguar Tracks is a monthly publication of the D'Evelyn Education Foundation!  Please keep an eye out for our newsletter on the first Friday of each month.   Winter Weather Reminders By: Greg Kottcamp, Assistant Principal Given the recent weather in the Denver metro area, it is important that D’Evelyn students, teachers, staff, and families understand our protocols in response to adverse weather conditions. There are three basic modifications that D’Evelyn may follow in the event of inclement weather: 15-minute delayed schedule (rarely used) 2-hour delayed schedule (along with Jeffco Schools) School cancellation (along with Jeffco Schools)      D’Evelyn follows Jeffco Public Schools decision-making regarding 2-hour delays and school cancellations in weather-related incidents. Jeffco Schools communicates decisions on these cancellations via their School Messenger system to families/staff, their website, and their official social media platforms.  Additionally, local media stations like CBS4, Denver 7, and 9News (among others) work to broadcast this information to the community.        In the past few days, we have received questions from our community members regarding where D’Evelyn fits in the district decision-making. D’Evelyn does and will continue to follow all district decisions on school delays and cancellations.  In addition to the district decisions on 2-hour delay and school cancellation, D’Evelyn maintains its own 15-minute delay protocol. This is decided by the D’Evelyn administration, generally around 8:00 am, on days with inclement weather when the district is on a regular start.  The purpose of the 15-minute delay is to help provide relief in the case that a large number of students are running late due to weather conditions. We do not announce this delay publicly, but do share the information with students and teachers in the building.   In the event of inclement weather, our school district personnel have a thorough and thoughtful process for making a determination about whether school should be delayed or cancelled, or whether we should follow a regular start.  These important decisions are made in consideration of over 80,000 students and their families across the broad geographic area of Jefferson County.   As Coloradoans, we are familiar with quickly changing weather conditions and significant snow storms throughout the fall, winter, and spring. It is important that you make sure your children have the proper clothing for winter weather - coats, gloves, hats. Planning ahead to make sure everyone has time to clean off their car, and extra time to drive carefully to school, will help us to keep everyone safe. Final Exam Schedule By: Greg Kottcamp, Assistant Principal The Final Exam Days for the first semester will be December 18th and 19th. The bell schedule for these two days are as follows: Monday, December 18th       Tuesday, December 19th       8:15 - 9:40          1st Period        8:15 - 9:40          4th Period    9:50 - 11:15 2nd Period              9:50 - 11:15 5th Period 11:25 - 12:50 3rd Period      11:25 - 12:50 6th Period There will be no lunch period during the Final Exam days, so students are encouraged to have snacks available during passing periods and as appropriate once testing is complete in a class period. Breakfast will be available in the cafeteria from 7:30 - 8:10 am on both days of Final Exams.  We do not offer early Finals Exams. In the event that a student leaves early for vacation or is sick and misses Final Exams, make-up exams may be scheduled with the teacher(s) and will be taken after Winter Break.     Winter Break for students begins at the conclusion of the final exams on Tuesday, December 19th at 12:50 p.m. The Spring semester will begin for students on Thursday, January 4, 2024.  Finals Care Packages By: Megan Kim Volunteers Needed! Finals Care Package time is here again!  We need volunteers to help stuff the bags on December 15th from 1:15 to 3:15. Please use this link to sign up and invite your friends too! Still need to buy a finals care package? You can still buy care packages on the Jeffco fees website (OPT-24 Finals Pkg Allergy Kind) or call the D'Evelyn financial secretary to purchase over the phone: 303-982-5129. The cost is $25 and covers both semesters.  All treats are nut, dairy, and gluten free! Please have your order in by November 17th. DEF Annual Appeal By: Kara Pharris & Cindy Perlman, D’Evelyn Education Foundation Managers   Let’s keep it going! In case you haven’t heard, D’Evelyn is the #1 high school in Colorado as ranked by U.S. News! We have won the John Irwin Schools of Excellence Award, we are a Platinum Honoree of the College Board AP Honor Roll and our students have the highest average SAT scores in the state, 1284—a distinction held for 22 consecutive years!  And let’s not forget the numerous titles our talented athletes and performers are racking up already this year! Let’s go Jags! Our students, teachers, coaches and our school owe much of this success to your support. Thank you!  We are asking for your support again this year with this appeal for donations. A donation of any amount is welcome, whether it’s $5 or much more! Donate Here: Square Donation Link To see what’s included in the sweepstakes prize, visit Fundraising Events. The D'Evelyn Education Foundation (DEF) is a 501c3 non-profit organization whose goal is to provide the financial support necessary to fill the gaps left by district dollars and maintain D'Evelyn's academic, athletic, performing arts, social and scholarship programs. We raise funds primarily through the DASH fun run, the dinner auction and this annual appeal. 100% of the money raised goes directly to the school to help ensure that D'Evelyn can continue to provide an education unequaled by other public institutions. Please consider making a donation no matter the amount for your student, and if possible, another student in our community. To see how your donation dollars are used and to learn more about how the foundation works, visit How DEF Works   8th Grade Parent Meeting By: Greg Kottcamp, Assistant Principal  We will be having the 8th Grade Parent Meeting in the auditorium on Wednesday, November 15 from 7-8 pm. This presentation is for all current D’Evelyn 8th grade families: those that were planning on continuing their child at D’Evelyn, those that are on the fence, and those that are planning on sending their child to another school.   At this meeting we will be presenting information that will help parents get a better idea as to what D’Evelyn has to offer students in high school, and why we think our program leads to better long-term success. Jefferson County Public Schools will be opening their enrollment window for the 24-25 school year in December, and we want to make sure that our parents are fully informed before making such a critical decision.  Every year, in the first couple months of school, we have parents of ninth graders that have left D’Evelyn call us to ask if they could transfer their child back to D’Evelyn. They tell us that the school they transferred to isn’t meeting their and their child’s expectations. Regretfully, we have to explain that we are unable to accept transfers. Additionally, we inform those families that since we don’t accept students in 10th grade, we have no way of re-enrolling them in the D’Evelyn program in the future. We earnestly request that you attend our one hour meeting, so that you can better prepare yourself for the life changing decision of where to send your child for high school next year. Sincerely, The D’Evelyn Administration         Teacher Appreciation Corner By Sarah McBride Adopt A Teachers’ Treats Day DEF is doing something special for the teachers each month and we have asked families to help with this venture.  This month the Goman family helped show the teachers and staff how much we appreciate them with a special Halloween treat.                      We have had an amazing response and every month is adopted!  If you are interested in helping in some way but were not able to adopt a month there is a place on the sign up and provide your name so I can reach out to you. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C084FABAB2CA1FEC52-adopt Holiday Season is coming and WE NEED YOUR HELP! DEF is starting to prepare for the holiday season by collecting gifts and treats for the teachers and staff. Please help us by going to the wishlist below or by donating $10-$20 gift cards for the staff (you can do this by dropping the gift cards off to the office in an envelope with Teacher Appreciation written on it).  When checking out on Amazon please select to send the item to Sarah McBride so she can collect all the items to package for the Teachers. https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1UGNA3B4544MN?ref_=wl_share If you have a talent for making unique wreaths and would like to help with a special project for the holidays please reach out to [email protected].  Thank you again D'Evelyn Community for all your help so far showing our teachers and staff how much we appreciate all they do for our students!    New at the School Store—Stickers! Come see new stickers and car decals at the school store. $3!  The school store is open during lunch hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Social Emotional Wellness By: Cindi Samorajczyk-Lyon, SEL Counselor Change (verb) – make or become different; give up (something) in exchange for something else. Change can be scary. There can be a multitude of factors that hold us back from giving ourselves the permission to prioritize ourselves and the things we want for our lives. Are you willing to make a change? To give yourself the chance to let go of who you are to become – who you wish to be? If so, one step in that direction is to establish some new habits. Click here for Building Better Habits Worksheet You become more resilient as you encounter and master any situation. Whenever you have doubts, and you will, remember that you have everything you need to take care of your emotional well-being. “Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.” - Lao Tzu D'Evelyn Marching Band Wins 3A State Title!  Congratulations to the 2023 Marching Band for bringing home the State Championship in class 3A last night down in Pueblo. Six of the seven judges ranked D’Evelyn in first place as the students ran away with the competition. Please join us in celebrating the students’ dedication to excellence, perseverance, and teamwork. Up next for the Instrumental Music Department...performing in the New Years Day Parade & Festival in London!     First Ever Jags Single Tennis State Champion! Congratulations to Boys Tennis #1 SIngles Aswaanth Karuppasamy for winning the Individual State Championship!  He won all of his matches throughout the 3 day tournament, and dominated the final round, winning 6-1, 6-1 to take home the State Championship.  This is our first Boys Singles Championship in school history!  Visit the CHSSA website for the full story!  (Photo by: Dylan Weaver/CSU-Pueblo)    If you would like to share about your Dazzling Jags' athletics, activities or accolades either at D'Evelyn or outside of school, please send a description and photo to: [email protected]. Athlete of the Month By:  Eric McCaslin-Hahn, Assistant Principal, Athletics and Activities Director Congratulations to the Athlete of the Month winners for the month of October. The winners were chosen by their coaches based on their leadership qualities, work ethic, and other traits that represent what D’Evelyn wants to see in all of their Student-Athletes. They were chosen out of all the Student-Athletes at D’Evelyn. Sabrea Schulte - 11th Grade “DHS XC has been blessed with an extremely talented individual who makes a huge difference in the success of the team.  Sabrea Schulte has motivation to excel in both academics and athletics which is the epitome of an ideal student-athlete. She is a great student, extremely talented runner and consistently our top varsity athlete.  In an incredible race, where she pushed herself beyond what she thought possible, she ended up 2nd  in our Regional Championship meet which earned her an individual spot at the State Championship meet!  Congratulations Sabrea!” -Lisa Bell, Head Girls Cross Country Coach Aswaanth Karuppasamy - 12th Grade “Aswaanth has been an amazing leader for our team the entire season. At the #1 Singles position, he has set the tone for our team during practices and matches. The team went how Aswaanth went, and because of his leadership we had a lot of success this year. We made the Quarterfinals of Team State and had every line qualify for Individual State. With Aswaanth winning the #1 Singles State Championship, it was a great conclusion to a fantastic career. Thank you Aswaanth for all that you have done for the program and congratulations on this well deserved award!”         -Woody Oliver, Head Boys Tennis Coach Scholars of the Month  By:  Eric McCaslin-Hahn, Assistant Principal, Athletics and Activities Director Congratulations to the Scholar of the Month winners for the month of October. They were chosen by the Teachers in the Electives Department. Will Higgins- 6th Grade   Will is an excellent example to his peers.  He has been participating in Inktober, which is an extra voluntary art opportunity and has been sharing these with his class.  He is a very diligent artist with attention to detail and refines his finished product.  He has also collaborated with his peers to assist with making their own artwork reach a higher level of precision and presentation.   - Mr. Anneberg, Art Teacher Sadie Knoedler, 7th grade  Sadie plays cello in period 4 and is a delight to work with! She is a great leader, performs really well, and brings a great energy to class every day. Congratulations Sadie on a well deserved award!        - Mr. Morrissette, Instructional Music Teacher Gia Doll, 10th grade Gia is excelling in Beginning Drawing!  She takes every assignment beyond the requirements and reaches a higher level of expression than the merely the baseline.  Her attention to detail and craftsmanship is highly advanced.  She has been participating in extra drawing exercises and is able to share these with her class through our Google Classroom. - Mr. Anneberg, Art Teacher Michael Otegui, 10th grade Michael is rocking Intermediate Painting this semester and has been a consistent source of joy in the class. He works incredibly hard on every project, comes in during 7th hour to put extra time into his paintings, and is always engaged and excited for our projects. He asks questions and practices new skills to improve his paintings. Michael challenges himself by pushing the idea behind his projects and is extremely creative with his topics. Thank you Michael!      -Mrs. Lawrence, Art Teacher Important Dates:   Nov 6 - Steering Committee Meeting, 4:30pm Nov 10 - Veteran's Day Presentation, 2:30pm Nov 14  - Accountability Meeting, 5:30pm              -  Steering Committee Candidate Training, 6:45pm Nov 15  - 8th Grade Parent Meeting Nov 20 - 24 - Thanksgiving Break, No School Nov 27 - Students/Staff Return to School Nov 28  -  DEF Board Meeting, 6pm Nov 30 - Prospective Student Open House and Informational Meeting, 5pm & 7pm   D'Evelyn Dash Finish Line Sponsor Spotlight By: Natalie Hart To help make your ambition a reality.https://www.cibc.com/en/personal-banking.html DEF is on Social Media! We're excited to announce that the DEF is back on Instagram and Facebook!  Please click on the links below to stay up date on all things D'Evelyn and DEF related!      If you haven't joined the private D'Evelyn Community Group on Facebook, you still can!  This group is for staff, students and families of D'Evelyn Jr/Sr High School.  Alumni and upcoming students/staff are welcome too!  This group is not affiliated or supported in any way from the Jefferson County District or D’Evelyn Jr/Sr High School. This is the place for you to post your questions, comments, events, thoughts, whatever to our community.  We are here to support the amazing D’Evelyn Jr/Sr High School, students, teachers and community. Let's keep this a supportive and safe place!  Please make sure to answer the membership questions or you will not be admitted into the group (Enter code **** when asked for the Jag Tracks code). This is to keep the group a safe and private space for our community.  Click on the image below to visit the group:  Daily Announcements: If you would like to keep up to date with the daily announcements made during school, click on the link and hit the Subscribe to Daily Emails button to have them delivered to your email inbox.  Mailing address 10359 W Nassau Ave, Denver, CO 80235 Phone: 303-982-2600  |  Fax:  303-982-2601 Review daily announcements made during school. The Jaguar Tracks is funded by the D’Evelyn Education Foundation and is prepared and distributed through volunteer efforts. Copyright © 2023 D'Evelyn Junior-Senior High all rights reserved. View this email in your browser