DPM Newsletter - 3.10.23
Friday, March 10, 2023
Dear DPM Families,
This week's District 67 Multicultural Night was the perfect celebration of the wonderful diversity we have across our Lake Forest community amidst a fun filled World Language week! Presenters proudly displayed their heritage’s foods, music, and other traditions that make their cultures unique. It was great to see the faces of our families light up as they shared their stories with one another. We want to give a huge shout out to our World Language team at DPM for all of the hard work that went into a successful World Language week!
Have a great weekend!
Megan Eigenrauch, 5/6 Principal
Sam Paulsen, 7/8 Principal
Upcoming Events
Monday, 3/13
Early Release
Students will take the Comprehensive School Climate Inventory (CSCI) during Wellness class.
Tuesday, 3/14
DPM is the D67 Board of Education Spotlight @ 7:00 pm
Wednesday, 3/15
DPM Battle of the Books @ 4:00 – 6:30 pm
Thursday, 3/16
DPM 7th Grade Field Trip @ 8:45 am – 2:15 pm
Friday, 3/17
Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
Please check out our DPM Calendar on the website for more details.
DPM and District 67 News
IAR/ISA Testing Schedule for Deer Path
The IAR (Illinois Assessment of Readiness) is the state assessment and accountability measure for Illinois students enrolled in a public school district. IAR assesses the New Illinois Learning Standards Incorporating the Common Core and will be administered in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics.
IAR participation rates are used by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) when calculating ELA, math, and science proficiency scores. We must have 95 percent participation in all areas to receive the maximum points possible. Schools that have less than 95 percent participation are ineligible to receive an Exemplary designation.
Our DPM students will be testing for Illinois Assessment of Readiness and Illinois Science Assessment as follows:
ISA for 5th Grade: March 21, 22, and 23rd
IAR for 5th through 8th Grade: April 11-13, 18-19
ISA for 8th Grade: April 11-13
Make Ups as needed: April 14th, 17th, 20th, and 21st
Please remind your child to charge their iPad and to bring headphones to school each day. Encourage your child to eat a hearty breakfast and get plenty of sleep to do their best on testing! Thank you for your partnership!
Draft DPM Schedule Clarifications
As part of our process to revise the DPM schedule, we sent out a draft schedule last Friday to elicit parent feedback and a few questions emerged. We’ve already made changes based on that input (thank you!) but want to provide some clarifications related to a few key concepts:
Students would have either Science or Social Studies each day. They will alternate between the two subjects, having one a day, for an approximation of 190 minutes per week for each subject. This is a decrease from 257 minutes per week. Example: Monday - Science, Tuesday - Social Studies, Wednesday - Science, and so on.
The total number of Math and English Language Arts minutes each day will increase from 257 minutes per week to 384 minutes per week.
Students are not expected to sit for 80 minutes at a time. Each extended block would include a series of activities, including breaks when needed. This will allow students to remain engaged and have a robust experience throughout the added instructional time.
We are still making adjustments to the schedule draft to create an optimal structure that is beneficial for all students.
Spring Break 2023 Calendar Reminder - March 27-31
This is a reminder that Spring Break 2023 was moved to March 27-31.
Attendance matters. Even when an absence is excused, it is still legally considered an absence by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). To move our ISBE summative designation from Commendable to Exemplary, we must continue to focus on academics - and make sure absenteeism stays low. Attendance directly before and after Spring Break is strongly encouraged.
If your student must be absent for additional dates before or after the scheduled break, we are asking that you notify the attendance office before your travels. Once you have notified the attendance office you will not need to call in the absences on a daily basis. Families can contact the 5/6 Attendance Office via email at dpmattendance56@lfschools.net or via phone at 847-234-6013, and our 7/8 Attendance Office at dpmattendance78@lfschools.net or via phone at 847-234-6014.
Mandatory Springfield Information Meeting - for Students & Parents
If your student is registered for the Springfield trip please attend this mandatory informational meeting with your student. We will go over the itinerary, packing list and all trip details.
When: Wednesday, April 5th - 6:30pm
Where: DPM Auditorium
If you as a parent/guardian are unable to attend, please email Kristin Tiveron and Karen Pedersen at dpmtravel@lfschools.net. If your student is unable to attend, they will need to attend an informational meeting on Friday, April 7th during their homeroom time to learn about the information.
TikTok App - Update for users under 18
In the coming weeks, every TikTok account belonging to a user below age 18 will automatically be set to a 60-minute daily screen time limit. If the 60-minute limit is reached, teens will be prompted to enter a passcode in order to continue watching, requiring them to make an active decision to extend that time. For people in our under 13 experience, the daily screen time limit will also be set to 60 minutes, and a parent or guardian will need to set or enter an existing passcode to enable 30 minutes of additional watch time. Other features help parents set time custom time limits (including with different limits for different days of the week), mute notifications and create a dashboard showing screen time.
LFHS D115 2023 Summer School Catalog
Attention 8th grade families! If your graduating student is attending Lake Forest High School next year, please see their newly released 2023 Summer School Catalog for the upcoming school year. Registration will begin on Friday, March 17th on the district website and closes on Friday, May 26th. Be aware, summer school classes will only run if there is sufficient enrollment.
District 67 Board of Education Meeting
The next regular meeting of the District 67 Board of Education will be held on March 14, 2023 in the Board Room at Lake Forest High School West Campus, 300 S. Waukegan Rd. (2nd floor) beginning at 7:00pm. Additional information and the meeting agenda is posted on the D67 Board webpage prior to each meeting.
Spotlight on Early Childhood at District 67
Community of Learners is Lake Forest School District 67's early childhood preschool program for students ages 3-5 year-olds residing within the District 67 school boundaries.
The program utilizes a blended model in alignment with District 67’s philosophy of inclusion. Special education and related services are provided within the general education classroom setting as much as possible. The Community of Learners uses the Creative Curriculum for Preschool and thematic units are carried over in our different interest areas around the classroom. Students develop through play-based learning as well as teacher-led activities. Typically, developing peers benefit from being taught by experts, enjoy leadership opportunities, and learn within a small student-to-teacher ratio.
Want to Learn More?
The video below contains testimonials from our own parents who share their thoughts, and the experiences of their children who are part of the program.
In Case You Missed It!
- Don't Delay - Register for District 67 Kindergarten. Parent/guardian of incoming kindergarten students for the 2023-2024 school year are invited to visit the Registration page of the District website to enroll your student by completing the online pre-registration process. Families new to the District or who have never used Powerschool Registration will need to first create an online account. Completing the pre-registration process now will help us to plan for upcoming school year.
4th Grade District Art Show and Reception: The Annual 4th Grade Student Art Show, featuring works from every 4th Grade Student in District 67, will be held March 14 - April 6, 2023 at our very own Gallery 300. Opening Reception on Thursday, March 16, from 6:00 PM-7:00 PM at Gallery 300
D115 Referendum Information
Ask the Chief Operating Officer!
We checked in with Dr. Jennifer Hermes, District 67 and 115 Chief Operating Officer to answer another question from you about the D115 Referendum.
This week, Dr. Hermes answers "Why are taxpayers being asked for such a large sum of money to maintain the high school rather than making these capital improvements on a more gradual basis?"
Dr. Hermes has a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Administration. She is the Vice Chair of the Illinois School District Liquid Asset Fund and the Vice Chair of the Collective Liability Insurance Cooperative (CLIC), in addition to sitting on the Executive Committee of the Northern Health Insurance Cooperative. She has previously served as the President of the Illinois Association of School Business Officials. She is also an adjunct faculty member at Concordia University Chicago. Dr. Hermes’s role at the District includes several key functions including budgeting and finance, Board relations, employee and labor relations, and the oversight of District 67 and 115 facilities, transportation, food services, technology, and early childhood programs.
Your Referendum Questions Answered
Why do the proposed improvements cost so much?
The proposed improvements within the 88-year-old high school include the renovation of 130,000 square feet of the school, including approximately 54 learning spaces throughout the building (approximately 50% of the total amount of learning spaces). The scope of the proposed improvements includes:
Strengthening safety and security, including adding a rapid-lockdown system, exterior door sensors, and partition systems to prevent full access to the high school after hours.
Replacing major mechanical systems that are more than 30 years old, including HVAC, plumbing, and electrical.
More than 90 pieces of HVAC equipment need to be replaced, including unit ventilators, rooftop air handling units, boilers, cooling towers, sump pumps, exhaust fans, and chillers
Approximately 50 electrical panels have reached the end of their useful life
Fire suppression sprinklers through the high school need to be extended
Aging windows and doors would be replaced
Updating almost every restroom in the high school
Addressing ADA upgrades throughout the historic building
Reconfiguring student support service spaces
Improving acoustics and replacing outdated lighting, technology, and furniture in more than half of the instructional spaces, including all labs as well as classrooms not addressed by the previous referendum
The cost to update the high school is significantly less expensive than replacing all or parts of the building.
Why not build a brand new building instead of renovate the existing one?
It is far more cost-effective to maintain the existing building. Lake Forest High School’s East Campus is about 500,00 square feet in size. In order to build just the school building alone, without any furnishing or amenities, it would cost roughly $250M to build a brand new building.
Why not use existing tax revenues to address the proposed improvements?
The District has worked hard to maintain Lake Forest High School within its current operating budget. However, there are major capital facility investments and building updates that fall outside the scope of standard yearly maintenance projects, such as replacing outdated plumbing, electrical, and HVAC systems.
Why not simply use existing savings?
District 115 carries very little in cash reserves relative to its peers. This is intentional as it was/is the Board’s desire not stockpile taxpayer money. They instead judiciously ask taxpayers to fund capital projects when needed. We have a BOE policy on fund balance that outlines a floor AND ceiling to our fund balance. Even if we were to deplete all of our current reserves, it wouldn't even be a drop in the bucket compared to what is needed.
Draining District savings to address capital facility needs would be a mistake. These funds play an important role in the strength of our Aaa bond rating and in our ability to borrow at the lowest possible cost.
For answers to additional questions, visit the Referendum FAQ webpage.
Categories of Improvement: Specialty Spaces
The Lake Forest Community High School District 115 Board of Education is pursuing a $105.7M referendum on the April 4, 2023 Lake County election ballot.
One of the main categories of improvements is traditional classrooms including science labs. Suggested improvements include the improvement of outdated labs and bringing the last remaining classrooms to the same capabilities as those updated in 2006, including acoustics, lighting, instructional technology, furniture, and related upgrades.
Many Ways to Vote
Vote by Mail
You Can Now Request Your Vote by Mail Ballot. Mail in Your April 4 Election Ballot Ballot Before Spring Break!
Vote by mail application requests are now available HERE. The Lake County Clerk will start sending out vote by mail ballots on March 17 to the address you provide.
Vote by Mail applications can be requested until 5pm on March 30. Get your request in now to vote by mail and ensure your vote counts in the April 4 election
Early Voting
Early voting in Lake County begins Monday, March 20 and runs through Monday, April 3, 2023. Early voting at Lake Forest City Hall begins Monday, March 20 and runs through Saturday, April 1, 2023. For more information on early voting, visit the Office of the County Clerk, Lake County.
APT News and Events
At our Annual APT Meeting on Thursday of this week, the President of the DPM APT for the 2023 - 2025 school years was voted in. Congratulations to Elizabeth Martin, parent of a current DPM 5th grader and 7th grader, and thank you for taking on this role!
Our 8th graders have done some great community service projects this year from making cards for Vets with Midwest Veterans Closet, making blankets for cancer patients at Lake Forest Hospital, collecting and sorting books for Bernie’s Book Bank, and spreading the love at Valentine’s Day. This month we focused on an international cause with Children’s Place International. To go along with the activity the kids did on Tuesday, we’re also raising funds for this great organization that helps kids thrive!
Check out this link to make a donation directly to Children’s Place International and find out how your donation can make a difference! https://www.classy.org/campaign/deer-path-middle-school-families-for-families-fundraiser/c423108
$50 can get a child with cancer in Tanzania a central pick line to receive treatment
$100 provides a scholarship for a child in Haiti to purchase books, a uniform, and cover school fees
$250 provides food for a family of four in Haiti for a month
$500 covers an entire course of cancer treatment for a child in Tanzania
$1000 pays for a year of college for a year for a student in the Dominican Republic
Spirit News
Rock the Spirit Sponsorships and VIP Tickets are Now Available!
Visit https://e.givesmart.com/events/vqi/ for details and secure your VIP tickets! General Admission Ticket Sales will begin on March 20.
CONGRATULATIONS SHERIDAN SCHOOL!
Sheridan has officially joined Everett and Cherokee by meeting its Crosstown Competition Goal of 80% of its school families donating to the Spirit of 67 Foundation this year! Sheridan will receive $1,000 in prize grant award money for meeting the goal. Thank you Donors!
Deer Path Middle School still has time! With a deadline of April 29, If 70% of Deer Path families make a donation to the Spirit of 67 before the deadline, DPM will also be awarded $1,000 in prize grant award money for 5th and 6th grades AND $1,000 in prize grant award money for the 7th and 8th grades! DPM only needs 38 more families to donate! Donate here https://spiritof67foundation.org/donate/.
As a reminder, the Crosstown Competition ends on Grant Day, April 20, and the school with the highest participation will get their school’s name engraved on the prestigious Crosstown Trophy and a school-wide popsicle party!
Community Programs and Events
Visit the Green Backpack or the front page of your school website to view the latest programs offered in our community.
Lake Forest Civic Orchestra March Concert
March 12, 2023 - Symphonic Drama
Ruth Kim, Soloist
4pm Concert
Gorton Community Center
400 E. Illinois Road
Lake Forest, IL 60045
The Lake Forest Civic Orchestra offered solo performance opportunities to 3 high school students this season, including the upcoming concert on March 12 featuring Ruth Kim, a senior from Stevenson.