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DCSD Week In Review for April 12-16

DCSD Week In Review for April 12-16
Posted on 04/16/2021

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April 16, 2021

Dear Douglas County Families and Staff,

I hope you’re staying warm on this snowy Colorado Friday! It’s been a busy week here in the Douglas County School District but things are moving in the right direction to enable us to end the school year on a positive note!

School Celebrations
In our last few editions of the Week in Review, we have celebrated some fantastic accomplishments at our middle and high schools. Today we focus on our elementary level.

  • Congratulations to the three Clear Sky Elementary students who won the annual Fire Safety Poster Contest through the Castle Rock Fire Department. The winning entries will be made into decals and placed on the sides of fire trucks. Way to go Annalie, Sienna, and Makayla! Click here to see their winning artwork!

  • Timber Trail Elementary held a food drive with the goal of collecting 1,300 items. However, after final counting, they had over 4,200 donated items for the Help & Hope Center in Castle Rock. Way to go TTE!

  • IVY + BEAN Author Annie Barrows and Illustrator Sophie Blackall visited with students (virtually) at Pioneer Elementary School. What an amazing opportunity!

  • Mountain View Elementary School has been awarded Level 1 certification in Marzano High Reliability Schools. Level 1 certification means Mountain View Elementary School has created a “Safe, Supportive, and Collaborative Culture,” which is the foundation for every level that follows. Click here to read more about this honor! We look forward to officially recognizing Mountain View Elementary at the DCSD Board Meeting on April 20.

Share Your School’s Good News!
We will continue to send these celebratory emails out each week. If we missed a celebration above, or if you have good news to share, please submit it here.

Administrative Professionals Week
Wednesday, April 21, is National Administrative Professionals' Day! Please join me in thanking our schools’ administrative assistants, front office staff, and other administrative professionals for their hard work and dedication to our students! Consider showing your appreciation for these school staff members by providing them with a thank you card, a piece of artwork from your child, or even a kind email or video message from you or your child.

Graduations
It’s amazing to see the Class of 2021 yard signs popping up across our communities. Our high schools are hard at work planning for graduation ceremonies. We are in conversations with local and state health officials to determine some logistics so that we can provide our graduates with the commencement ceremonies they deserve with the minimal number of restrictions, while still keeping our students and their families safe and healthy. We will provide more specific information in the coming days and weeks. See graduation dates, times, and locations here.

Public Health Orders
We have received many questions this week about Public Health Orders related to COVID-19. Please take a moment to read this letter from the Tri-County Health Department (TCHD) which clarifies what DCSD must do in order to be in compliance with public health orders and state requirements. On Tuesday, April 13, the Douglas County Commissioners voted to opt out of a TCHD Public Health Order. This will enable local businesses to determine what capacities are best for them, their patrons, and their employees. The Commissioners’ resolution, however, does not have any effect on state-issued mandates such as face mask requirements. In addition, school districts and TCHD must follow public health orders from the state of Colorado. Therefore, requirements for schools to quarantine students who are exposed to COVID-19, and to follow other health and safety protocols, remain in effect for DCSD and other school districts across the state. We are working with our staff and with Tri-County on the end-of-year adjustments to the health orders with regards to quarantines, events, and graduation.

Vaccinations
Health care providers are beginning to notify us of COVID vaccine availability for students ages 16 and up. We will continue to make that information available so that our families who wish to access the vaccine can do so. Please be sure to check this page of our website often for updates. Currently, there are some Pfizer appointments available at the former Safeway building in Castle Pines.

Thank you for being a part of the Douglas County School District Family!

Sincerely,

Corey Wise
Interim Superintendent
Douglas County School District

620 Wilcox Street, Castle Rock, CO 80104
303-387-0100
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In compliance with Titles VI & VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008, and Colorado law, the Douglas County School District RE-1 does not unlawfully discriminate against otherwise qualified students, employees, applicants for employment, or members of the public on the basis of disability, race, creed, color, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, religion, ancestry, or need for special education services. Discrimination against employees and applicants for employment based on age, genetic information, and conditions related to pregnancy or childbirth is also prohibited in accordance with state and/or federal law. Complaint procedures have been established for students, parents, employees, and members of the public. The School District's Compliance Officer and Title IX Coordinator to address complaints alleging sexual harassment under Title IX is Aaron Henderson, 620 Wilcox Street, Castle Rock, Colorado, [email protected], 303-387-0127.

Outside Agencies

Complaints regarding violations of Title VI, (race, national origin), Title IX (sex, gender), Section 504/ADA (handicap or disability), may be filed directly with the Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education, 1244 North Speer Blvd., Suite 310, Denver, CO 80204. Complaints regarding violations of Title VII (employment) and the ADEA (prohibiting age discrimination in employment) may be filed directly with the Federal Office of Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 303 E. 17th Ave., Suite 510, Denver, CO 80202, or the Colorado Civil Rights Commission, 1560 Broadway, Suite 1050, Denver, CO 80202.

NOTICE OF DESTRUCTION OF SPECIAL EDUCATION RECORDS

Special Education records which have been collected by Douglas County School District related to the identification, evaluation, educational placement, or the provision of special education in the district, must be maintained under state and federal laws for the period of five (5) years after special education services have ended for the student. Special education services end when the student is no longer eligible for services, graduates, or completes his/her educational program at age 21, or moves from the district. This notification is to inform parents/guardians and former students of Douglas County School District's intent to destroy the special education records of students who exited special education services as of June 30, 2016. These records will be destroyed in accordance with state law unless the parent/guardian or eligible (adult) student notifies the school district otherwise. After five years, the records are no longer useful to the district, but may be useful to the parent/guardian or former student in applying for social security benefits, rehabilitation services, college entrance, etc. The parent/guardian or eligible (adult) student may request a copy of the records by requesting the records at this link ( Douglas County School District Transcripts and Records Requests ).