Hearst Weekly Update
November 4, 2018
Principal's Message
Good afternoon, Owls! As I write this, the sun is starting its descent and it feels like fall is officially here. I hope that you were able to get out and enjoy the beautiful fall weather this weekend and soak up the sun. I took a long walk all through Rock Creek Park on Saturday and it was gorgeous! If your commute doesn't take you through the park regularly, I hope that you might take a few extra minutes to drive through it this week as the leaves are glorious! Speaking of glorious leaves, the field was covered with them on Friday and parent Julie Hantman snapped the photos below of the kids enjoying the leaves. It looks like a great time was had by all!
As part of our continuing conversations as a staff about making our school a welcoming one for all members of our community, last week, staff attended a training from the DCPS Office of Wellness on LGBTQ policies and practices. You may have noticed that some staff are now wearing OUT for Safe School Badges alongside their IDs. A few years ago, DCPS joined nine other school districts nationwide to launch the OUT for Safe Schools badge initiative. The OUT badges aim to create visible adult allies to enhance the support of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth. The badges also feature local and national resources available to all. As students have begun to notice and ask about the badges, please know that we are using grade-level appropriate language to describe what the badges represent. As an example, staff are saying that the badges indicate those staff members are safe people to talk with if they are worried or concerned about something and that they are 'out here' to support. Should you have any questions about the badges or the training, please don't hesitate to reach out.
What I'm reading this week: Shaping School Culture by Terrence Deal and Kent Peterson.
About Us
Email: attendance@hearstes.org
Website: www.hearstes.org
Location: 3950 37th Street Northwest, Washington, DC, United States
Phone: (202) 282-0106
Facebook: facebook.com/hearstes
Twitter: @hearstes
News and Announcements from Hearst
Quick Updates
- Please mark your calendars as there is no school for kids on the following days in November: Tuesday, November 6; Monday, November 12; Wednesday, November 21; and Friday, November 23 (school will be closed on 11/23)
- We've noticed an uptick in people pulling into the parking lot and driveway at arrival and dismissal. Please note that the parking lot is reserved for staff only from 7:00am to 3:30pm. If you're concerned about your children making it to the gym for before care, consider dropping them off at the front entrance. They will be buzzed in and can walk through the building to the gym. Please also refrain from pulling into the end of the driveway at drop off as we've had several near misses as cars back out into a busy 37th Street. Thanks for looking out for the safety of all of our Owls!
Thanks to Julie Hantman for sharing these photos from Friday morning's arrival!
News and Announcements from DCPS
Lead in Water Results Communications
Throughout the course of the year, DC Public Schools (DCPS) and the DC Department of General Services (DGS) partner to coordinate lead testing of drinking water sources within all schools.
Per District of Columbia law, all drinking water sources must test below 5 ppb (parts per billion), which is the standard to which the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates bottled water. DCPS is pleased to share that all of the drinking water sources sampled this year within your child’s school tested below 5 ppb.
You may access your school’s official water sampling results at http://dgs.dc.gov/page/water-sampling- results-dc-public-schools.
Lead has a long history of use in the United States. The fight to limit, and eventually end, exposure to it is ongoing. DCPS is committed to ensuring that every drinking water source is below the 5 ppb standard. Please visit https://dcps.dc.gov/page/water-testing-lead to learn more about lead, read through the testing protocol, and review water filtration efforts.
If you have any additional questions, the Office of the Chief Operating Officer is a resource to families and can be reached via email at schooloperations.dcps@dc.gov or by phone at (202) 442-5192.
PTA Corner
Happy November everyone! Please remember there is no school on Tuesday.
EVENTS:
Community Dining Night: Our first Potomac Pizza night will be Thursday, November 8. Please join us from 4-9pm at 19 Wisconsin Circle, Chevy Chase, Md. Dine in or carry out but please make sure to mention you’re with Hearst and our school will receive a percentage of our proceeds.
PTA Meeting: The PTA will hold its next regular meeting on Wednesday, November 14, at 6pm in the library. Pizza and childcare will be available for all potty-trained kids. Please provide a water bottle for your child(ren). To sign up, please click here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Dbm0kkXBjLWlAVZDZF6zfmcMF9B_aZbWkUX_vGsdoew/edit
Community Dining Night: Join your fellow Hearsties for dinner at Nando's Peri-Peri on Wednesday, December 5, from 4pm to 9pm. It's fun, tasty and 40 percent of the proceeds will go back to Hearst! Nando's Tenleytown is located at 4231 Wisconsin Ave. NW.
Proper Topper Hearst Shopper: Private sip and shopping on Sunday, Dec. 9 from 6-8pm. 10 percent of the proceeds will benefit Hearst. We will see you Proper Topper at Cathedral Commons (3322 Wisconsin Ave. NW).
Politics and Prose: If you like books, this is the community event for you. And if you don’t, please buy some books anyway and donate them to the school! Coming on January 27, we will have a fundraiser at Politics and Prose, with a portion of the proceeds coming back to the Hearst PTA. Thank you in advance to Jami Schell for organizing this again!
News and Announcements from Other Organizations
Student and Family Resources & Upcoming Special Education Workshop (Nov. 13) from The DC Office of the Student Advocate
We are now fully back into the swing of the school year, and our office is hard at work to support students and families! I wanted to reach out and share with you some of our newly updated resources and the flyer for our upcoming special education workshop.
Prior to the beginning of the school year we worked to refresh our webpage in order to make it easier to navigate and more family friendly. We hope that as you are working to support your constituents that you will refer them to our online and printed resources as a tool for assistance – studentadvocate.dc.gov.
In addition to the updates made on our webpage, we have also worked to update our Parent & Family Go-To-Guide (an online/printed resource guide for families) and our Safe Passage Toolkit (online only – but it is mobile phone friendly). Please let us know if you have any additional questions about these resources or if you would like any copies to the Go-To-Guide to share in your communities. We would be more than happy to answer any questions or share resources.
Upcoming Event:
On Tuesday, November 13th we will host our Special Education Workshop Series in Ward 5. This event will be exactly like the SPED workshops we hosted last school year. It will be from 6:30-8:30pm at KIPP DC College Preparatory (1401 Brentwood Pkwy NE). We are partnering with Mark Jones, OSSE’s State Advisory Panel on SPED, and the Ward Five Council on Education. For more information or to RSVP, please visit our webpage training and events section at https://sboe.dc.gov/page/training-events.
Just as a reminder:
- Our Request for Assistance line, a “311” system for public education, operates LIVE 9am – 5pm, Monday – Friday. Reach us at202-741-4692 for resources, referrals, and one-on-one coaching on all DC public education issues.
- We have a wealth of online resources on our webpage, studentadvocate.dc.gov, under the Information & Advocacy Resources & Tools section.
- Our Online Education & Community Resource Guide is a continuously evolving resource that has more than 400 resource listings organized into 20 category areas. The first publicly available citywide initiative of its kind, the guide provides students, parents, families, and communities across all 8 wards with a roadmap to getting started in navigating the public education landscape in DC.
Pumpkin Rescue
Wondering what to do with your pumpkin now that Halloween is over? This weekend, the Food Waste Drop-Off Program is teaming up with local food charities and organizations to recover leftover pumpkins for food and composting. On Saturday, November 3 and Sunday, November 4, residents can bring their leftover pumpkins and jack-o’-lanterns to farmers markets throughout the District. Together, we can reduce food waste and help create a greener future for our city!
Find a participating farmers market HERE.