DCIS Connect Newsletter (Dec. 18-25, 2019)

Weekly Newsletter for Parents, Staff and Students December 19–25, 2019 (Leer en Español usar el traductor de Google aquí.) ENJOY THE WINTER BREAK! GET YOUR STUDENT-MADE GIFT BASKETS FOR HOLIDAY GIVING The DCIS Interact Club is selling student-made gift baskets as a fundraiser to build a house for a family experiencing extreme poverty in Mexico, and we need your help!   We are selling themed gift baskets, just in time for the holidays! For a donation of $60 or more to the nonprofit NewStory, you can choose from our coffee, movie night, or cozy winter baskets. Baskets include gift cards, homemade treats, fuzzy socks, snacks, and more. All basket items are made or donated by students!   Reserve your basket by emailing teacher sponsor Sam Wilson-Moses. Baskets can be picked up at school or delivered.   We need to raise $6,000 by the end of the school year (we've already raised more than $2,000!) to build a house, so please consider making a donation. Check out the DCIS NewStory campaign and make a donation. HAPPENING THIS WEEK ... Dine Out for DCIS: Thursday, Dec. 19, 10 am-10 pm, California Pizza Kitchen inside the Cherry Creek Mall CSC Meeting: Thursday, Dec. 19, 4:30-6:30 pm, DCIS Community Room NO SCHOOL: Dec. 20–Jan. 6 MARK YOUR CALENDAR ... CSC Meeting: Tuesday, Jan. 14, 4:30-6:30 pm, DCIS Community Room NO SCHOOL: Monday, Jan. 20 Celebration of 7th Grade Students: Wednesday, Jan. 22, 1:30–2:30 pm Dine Out for DCIS: Wednesday, Jan. 22, 4-8 pm, Hapa Sushi in Cherry Creek  PTSA Board Meeting: Wednesday, Jan. 22, 6 pm, at Hapa Sushi Drama Club One-Acts: Friday, Jan. 31, 6 pm Drama Club One-Acts: Saturday, Feb. 1, 6 pm CSC Meeting: Tuesday, Feb. 11, 4:30-6:30 pm, DCIS Community Room NO SCHOOL: Friday, Feb. 14 and Monday, Feb. 17   Dine Out for DCIS TONIGHT, Thursday, Dec. 19, at California Pizza Kitchen inside Cherry Creek Mall  from 10 am to 10 pm. 20% of sales get donated to DCIS PTSA! FROM THE PRINCIPAL ... Greetings DCIS Community: As many of you know, we are in the middle of the principal search process. There were interviews last Thursday — many thanks to all those folks who participated. From those interviews, three candidates were moved forward. Unfortunately for me, I was not one of them. While this is indeed a bummer for me as I want to continue as the leader and I see soooo much potential, I remain optimistic that the school will be getting a strong new leader that will continue to make DCIS an amazing place to be.    Pending interviews with the superintendent tomorrow, Friday, we should be finding out soon who the new principal will be. As the interim, I'm excited to continue the work this year, and I'm committed to help the new principal get set up to be incredibly successful.   Finally, please be sure to enjoy the gift that is winter break. Enjoy the company of family and friends. Enjoy your children. Bake something together. Take time to go to a movie with your teenager who probably wants to be going to a movie with someone else. Laugh! Eat a food together you have never tried. Make the best ice cream sundae or milkshake ever! Enjoy ... I know I will. Cheers, Dr. Gamba JOIN THE CSC!   The DCIS Collaborative School Committee (CSC) is looking for one more parent/guardian member to join our committee. The purpose and scope of the CSC is to enhance student achievement and school climate and to provide strategic direction supporting the school's mission and vision, as articulated in the Unified Improvement Plan (UIP). Find more information and the nomination form here (English) and here (Espanol). Self-nomination is highly encouraged. Please return your nomination(s) to the office or to dcis.connect@gmail.com no later than Friday, Jan. 3. Ballots will go out on Monday, Jan. 6. TRAVEL CENTER NEWS ...  DCIS Foundation will be holding a second round to apply for travel scholarships. Winter applications will be open Jan. 17-31. All forms will be open and available at that time on our website. New policy: No group applications are accepted for grades 9-12. Group applications must come in as one group at one time for one trip. BIG THANK-YOUS to all those who attended the Festa Italiana and the Pizzeria Locale fundraiser. You are helping make travel accessible to ALL students at DCIS.  Also, CONGRATULATIONS to Marie Meyer for putting together an incredible Travel Fair. A huge effort on her part. We had so many amazing vendors with a sea of information for student travelers.  CIEE — Feb. 14, second deadline — DCIS offers two rounds for applying to their programs and scholarships. DCIS is the ONLY school in the Mountain West to have earned the designation of Global Navigator School. This means our students who complete quality applications are given priority for scholarships amounting to $25,000, giving them a unique opportunity to receive funds, particularly for language and culture programs. Please apply for these intensive, high-quality programs! Discover CIEE programs here.  Sister City trip for high school students to Japan — Application deadline: Wednesday, Dec. 18; cost $3,500; Dates: June 3-18. Sister City trips focus on connection with the people in the towns visited, including home stays. See their website or the Travel Center Facebook page for more information. Walking Tree Guatemala trip — We need just one more student to qualify for two of our DCIS teachers to travel with students. If you have been on the fence, the time to sign up is now! Contact Kristen Miller.  RAISE YOUR HAND...  COLLABORATIVE SCHOOL COMMITTEE Our next meeting will be Thursday, Dec. 19, at 4:30 pm in the Community Room. As always, we welcome public comment at our meetings. If you are unable to attend a meeting, please reach out to one of your constituency members. PTSA Looking for a volunteer opportunity where you can make an impact in the DCIS community? Consider joining the PTSA Board of Directors for a two-year term, beginning next fall with the 2020-21 school year. We are recruiting individuals who are interested in running for the following officer positions: President, Vice President and Secretary. If you are interested or would like more information, please contact Lucy Rosas or call 602-315-6257. Elections will be held in March 2020. TEACHER WISH LISTS If you've been thinking about making a donation by purchasing something from the wish list of a favorite teacher, now's the time! Check out the wish list here. Please don't forget to go to smile.amazon.com before checkout and select our organization (search for DCIS PTSA) as your AmazonSmile under My Account. There is no cost to you, and Amazon will donate a percentage of your purchase to the DCIS PTSA. SENIOR SERVICE PROJECT NEEDS YOUR HELP   Fundraising for the senior service project to install the DCIS logo on the school fence has almost reached the halfway point. Please help these three seniors reach their goal by the end of the calendar year — just 13 more days! Check out the project here and the donation page here. CONNECT ... DCIS Website DCIS Facebook Page DCIS Parents Group (closed, non-school-sanctioned) on Facebook DCIS Drama Club Facebook  DCIS Travel Center Facebook DCIS Foundation Facebook   DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL. Please send questions or comments to dcis.connect@gmail.com.  Every Thursday while school is in session, you'll receive this DCIS Connect newsletter in your email inbox to keep you up to date on all the events and happenings at our school. It's also available on the DCIS Connect app, which you can download at the Apple Store or Google Play. If you don't wish to receive the newsletter, click the Unsubscribe link below. If you're receiving multiple copies of the newsletter, please email dcis.connect@gmail.com to report the problem; be sure to indicate your first and last name and preferred email address so we can update our records. Newsletter submissions are due by noon on the Tuesday preceding the issue date. Email submissions to dcis.connect@gmail.com.  Copyright © 2019 DCIS Connect Newsletter, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email newsletter because you are a member of the DCIS community. If you do not wish to receive the newsletter, please click the Unsubscribe link at the bottom of the email. Our mailing address is: DCIS Connect Newsletter 574 W. 6th Ave. Denver, CO 80204 Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list