DPM Newsletter - September 16
Friday, September 16, 2022
Dear DPM Families,
It was such a pleasure seeing everyone who attended Open House on Thursday evening! The event was a wonderful opportunity to share the enriching experiences that your children have at school in a setting that allowed for genuine connections between teachers and families as well. We could not be more proud of the work our students and teachers are doing at Deer Path, and we hope you left feeling that same pride that your child is a Brave!
Sincerely,
Megan Eigenrauch, 5/6 Principal
Sam Paulsen, 7/8 Principal
Comfort Dog Opt-In Permission
The APT is partnering with Paws for Patrick to offer monthly visits of comfort dogs to provide students with unique opportunity to connect with these special animals. Paws for Patrick is a local non-profit and their main mission is to connect young people with Emotional Support Animals (ESAs).
If you would like to give your child permission to participate in this program, please complete the attached waiver/permission form no later than Sunday, September 18th at 9:00 AM. Families wishing to opt OUT should not fill out the waiver/permission slip.
Please stay tuned for more details about visits to DPM. For more information, please visit the Paws for Patrick website (https://www.pawsforpatrick.org) or reach out to Ann Kiesling, the Paws for Patrick APT Liaison (thekieslings@gmail.com).
District News
District-Sponsored Landline/SMS-Text/Mobile Phone Survey
In an effort to stay in sync with the perspectives of our community members, the district has commissioned a confidential telephone and text survey of residents regarding various education matters in our community. The survey, a sanctioned polling effort being conducted by Fallon Research, is currently underway and will end Monday, September 19. If you are contacted by Fallon Research, I hope you will consider participating in this important effort. Results will be tabulated, shared with the Boards of Education, and our community later this fall.
Strategic Planning
District 67 is kicking off our strategic planning process! The process will kick off in October when representatives of our District will begin meeting to create the D67 five-year strategic plan, intended to build academic excellence and the six core competencies of our Portrait of a Learner - Adaptability, Empathy, Citizenship, Communication, Confidence, and Critical Thinking. Our process will consist of three meetings over the course of the fall and early winter, during which the D67 Planning Team will convene in person on the following dates:
Thursday, October 6 1:00-3:00pm
Wednesday, October 26 8:30-10:30am
Tuesday, January 10 1:00-3:00pm
If you are interested in serving on the Planning Team, please complete this form by 12pm on Thursday, September 22.
District Social Media Update
Recently, we have received a few community questions regarding our use of social media in District 67. As many of you know, District 67 uses social media as one way of telling the stories of our schools and how our exemplary faculty and staff develop compassionate, confident, and accomplished students.
Some of our District administrators and teachers have school Twitter and Instagram profiles and share family-friendly, positive content on these profiles pages and via the hashtag #LFmoments. We take our responsibility for safe social media usage seriously and continue to educate our staff on how to appropriately use these platforms in a safe and secure manner. Staff members have also been instructed to not share student personal information (including first or last name), to post about events in the past tense, to not tag locations on any posts, and to not extend “friend requests” or “follows” to parent private accounts.
While many of these accounts are public, we prioritize every family’s right to opt their children out of photography and videography used for communication purposes, including social media. During the annual registration process, families are asked whether they would like to opt out of the use of their student’s images. We would like to give families an additional opportunity to consider this topic. To opt out, please click here. The link will stay open through 5pm on Friday, September 23.
Sex Education Standards
Some of our families have asked for an update on the District’s sex education offering.
With support from the District 67 Board of Education, our District did not adopt the National Sex Education Standards. Given that sex education has historically not been part of our K-4 programming, it was determined that District 67 would not add sex education standards to our elementary (K-4) curriculum.
At the middle school level, and in alignment with recent Illinois State Board of Education guidance, our District will continue to use our current middle school sex education curriculum with no change. Our middle school sex education curriculum meets the Illinois Physical Development and Health Standards.
As always, parents and guardians have the right to opt out of this curriculum for their students.
APT News and Events
Thank you to the Staff Appreciation Committee for providing some after school, pre-Open House appetizers for our staff!
Tuesday, September 20th - Our first DPM APT meeting! Come by for coffee at 9am, meeting begins at 9:30am, in the Haskins on the 7/8 side of DPM. Meet the DPM Admin team and hear what’s going on at school!
Friday, September 23rd from 9:30-11:00 at Gorton: There are Way Worse Moms Than You in conversation with local mom and author T-Ann Pierce and Michelle Hirschfield. This will be a very laid back, FUN but relevant discussion. You won't want to miss this!
Follow us on social media! On Facebook we are “DPM APT” and on Instagram we are @deer_path_apt
Food Service News
For other events and information, please visit the Food Services page of the website.
Spirit News and Events
JUST LOOK UP author and inspirational speaker, Joe Beckman will be coming to DPM on 9/22! A presentation that can be life-changing for some, the DPM community is in for a treat when he delivers his “5 Life Saving Message Every Human Needs to Hear!” This long awaited Spirit of 67 Grant will be enhanced by a special presentation for all district 67 parents too! Plan to join us at Croya on Thursday, September 22 at 12:30pm! We hope to see you there!
Have you purchased your Home Tour Ticket yet? Visit Hometour2022.givesmart.com to secure your chance to visit 4 of Lake Forest’s finest homes and gardens. Amble through elegant outdoor AND indoor spaces while enjoying “tastes of the town” small bites and beverages. Bring a friend, neighbor or family member and be our guest! The day will be yours to enjoy! Discounted tickets are available for volunteers!
Also remember to purchase raffle tickets to win any of the FOUR designer tablescapes that will be on display at the home tour OR a luxury Executive vacation! What is an Executive Vacation? Well imagine a home away from home where every wish is fulfilled just by asking–like having your own personal concierge service!
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.
TrueNorth Family Bi-weekly Update
The TrueNorth Association of Parents and Staff sends out weekly a newsletter sharing upcoming community learning and social opportunities for families and professionals. To view the latest edition and subscribe, please use this link!
Save The Dates
1. Project FULL on Sunday, October 16th: District 67 will join other Lake Forest and Lake Bluff schools to provide a fall food market at Beacon Place for needy families in neighboring Waukegan. There will be volunteer opportunities for families, including: event set up, game stations for children, and food distribution. More details and sign up to come.
2. H.U.G.S Thanksgiving Food Drive — first week of November (begins Monday, Oct. 31st through Friday, Nov. 4th): All students can participate in our annual food drive by bringing food items to help Lake Country food pantries. Our goal is to provide 500 complete meal bags for neighbors in need. Volunteer hours for students are available on Friday, Nov 4th to help sort the collected food at CROYA from 3:30pm to 5:30pm. Many hands make light work and our schools always come together in a big way to help those in need