AprilJoy Freudenburg spent spring break in Nebraska -- just in time for calving season.
Read more Team DPS spring break adventures here and in the Top 5.
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Open Enrollment Begins Next Week: This Year's Focus on Equity |
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Open Enrollment is right around the corner and the DPS Benefits and Wellness team have been working hard on ensuring Equity during our annual enrollment period. This year we focused on:
- Adding gender options to our systems.
- Increasing Spanish translated resources -- including events, one-on-one support, the Benefits Guide and more!
Content Jam Sessions: Join a 20- to 30-minute live webinar that connects you to a trained Benefits Specialist to discuss benefits -- including family planning, transition planning, picking your plan and more. Participants will be entered to win a number of prizes! Visit the Virtual Resources page on The Commons to see all the topics and register for a session.
Benefit Vendor Event: All members of Team DPS are invited to join us April 20 from 2-7 p.m. for our one-day virtual Benefit Vendor Event. Come watch live presentations, ask questions, get advice, and learn about all of your Open Enrollment options. Vendors include Aetna, Kaiser Permanente, AIG, PERA, MetLife, VSP, Delta Dental and Health Equity. Learn more and register here.
Open Enrollment -- happening April 19-May 7 this year -- is the one time each year where you can make changes to your insurance without a Qualifying Life Event. We partnered with carriers across Colorado to bring you robust virtual resources for making your benefit selections this year. Visit thecommons.dpsk12.org/openenrollment for webinars, live informational sessions, and more resources to help you make selections that best fit your needs.
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Families of DPS Staff Have the Opportunity to Receive COVID-19 Vaccines |
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We are excited to share that the family members of all DPS staff have an opportunity to sign up to receive a COVID-19 vaccine through our partners at Children's Hospital Colorado. Children’s Hospital Colorado is one of the country’s premier health care providers and has been a key partner in providing the COVID-19 vaccine to DPS educators. As a Pfizer-only vaccine clinic, they are able to provide vaccine appointments to both eligible DPS students (those 16 and older) and their family members, as well as the families of DPS staff.
Click here to view the steps of how family members can sign up.
Full instructions for navigating the Children’s Colorado process can be found here. Patients and families with questions about receiving the vaccine at Children’s Colorado can review these FAQs for patient families. Questions regarding scheduling a COVID vaccine appointment can call the Children’s Colorado COVID vaccine hotline at 720-777-8889.
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Top 5: Spring Break Stories |
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Thank you to the team members who shared how they spent their spring break! From staycations to scorpion hunting, Team DPS got creative this year during their week off. Check out more stories and photos of team members' spring break adventures here. |
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5. “Good food, a good book and a good soak at Iron Mountain Hot Springs made for a good getaway!” -- Kimberley McKenna, DCIS Montbello
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4. “I went to Mexico to spend time with my mom and sisters. It was so nice to recharge my heart and soul with their company, jokes and laughs surrounded by nature.” -- Rosa Vargas, Swansea
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3. “I spent spring break in Scottsdale, AZ hiking in the Sonoran Desert, Rockies spring training and scorpion hunting (used a black light to find them as they glow)!” -- Joni Rix, Planning, Design and Construction
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2. “I published my first book to Amazon! I was diagnosed one year ago with breast cancer at the age of 31. Determined to make it count for something meaningful, I wrote a devotional for other breast cancer warriors and helped 15 other women from across the United States and South Africa also share their stories in it as well!” -- Kaci Sintek, Denver Online
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1. “I got to go home to Nebraska for the first time since Christmas of 2019! It happens to be spring calving season, so I got to help out on the farm and even got to bottle feed an orphan!” -- AprilJoy Freudenburg, SE&O
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Top 5 Callout: Family Engagement Practices |
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It's that time of year again when teachers begin engaging with their students' families during Parent Teacher Home Visits (April 26-May 9). Because the pandemic has changed how we interact, how have you been connecting with families this year? Share your family engagement best practices through this form, and we'll share it in next week's edition!
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Update on Employee Accommodations |
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We are grateful that all of our staff members and their family members now have access to the COVID vaccine. As we see the declining spread of COVID-19 and the increased availability of vaccinations, we are excited to safely bring back more students in person into our buildings.
With that in mind, DPS is ending all partial and full-time remote accommodations that were requested based upon living with or caring for an individual at risk of severe illness from COVID-19 or by those facing child care needs while schools remained closed, starting April 26. If you think you fall into this leave category and did not receive a recent communication, please email LeaveofAbsence@dpsk12.org. Please note that remote accommodations due to employees’ individual health risk under the Governor’s order remain in effect.
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Participate in Day of Silence Events |
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Each year, we celebrate the National Day of Silence to protest bullying, harassment, and discrimination against LGBTQ and allied young people in our schools. This year, DPS is excited to collaborate with OneColorado, Out Boulder County and YouthSeen for a series of events including a performance by slam poet Andrea Gibson. Join us on April 22 from noon-1 p.m. and stay tuned for a self-care event planned by DPS GSA's from 1-2 p.m.
All students and staff are invited to attend. Learn more and register here by April 20. Note: The show will be appropriate for all ages, but may be intense for students 12 and under.
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Equity Experience Speaker Series: Kalyn Heffernan |
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Join us from 10:30 a.m.-noon on April 27 to hear from Kalyn Heffernan -- a performer, producer, lyricist, community advocate, educator and founding member of the experimental hip-hop group Wheelchair Sports Camp. Raised by the DIY spirit of experimental independent music, the art-rap group has since shifted to rely on multi-disciplinary collaboration and community interdependence to expand into politics, prison tours, permanent installations, theatre, performance art, public television and more. Click here to register.
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Tune in to the 37th Annual DPS Shakespeare Festival |
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The 37th Annual DPS Shakespeare Festival will kick off with a live streaming party on April 30 at 10:30 a.m. via Vimeo (streaming will open at 10 a.m.) The opening ceremony will feature performances in the theme of “The Comedy of Errors.”
Team DPS is encouraged to celebrate by watching the performances and supporting student actors by wearing Shakespeare shirts (get yours here.)
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Upcoming 2021 Financial Services Year-end Deadlines |
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As we approach the end of the fiscal year, team members are asked to please keep in mind these upcoming financial deadlines:
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April 14: Last day for school and department Summer Program technology Requisitions to be approved.
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May 21: Last day for all Independent Contractor Agreements to be approved by budget owners.
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May 28: Last day for departments and Summer Program Requisitions to be approved for other commodities not related to technology.
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June 1: May PCard transactions must be fully reconciled with transaction documentation in JP Morgan Chase PaymentNet by 5 p.m.
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June 7: Last day to submit FY 2020-21 travel reimbursements/employee reimbursements to Accounts Payable.
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Sign Up for the Power of Pregnancy Wellness Workshop |
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Power of Pregnancy is an easy-to-follow prenatal wellness program for women who desire to feel their best during pregnancy. During this free small group workshop, you can expect to learn techniques and exercises to boost vitality, increase stamina, manage stress and more. Gina Fontaine, founder and instructor of the Power of Pregnancy, has been a fitness professional for over 25 years and specializes in pre- and post-natal fitness. See this video for a sneak peek of the workshop.
Register here for the workshop on May 1 from 10:30 a.m.-2 p.m. at Level 3 Fitness (6795 E. Tennessee Ave. Denver, CO 80224). Fifteen spots will be filled on a first-come, first-serve basis. Masks and social distancing will be required during the workshop.
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Morgan Babbel
Teacher, Northfield
Students First
"Mrs. Babbel is constantly connecting with families, offering additional support to her students outside of class, creating engaging and differentiated lessons and forming positive relationships. What prompted me to nominate Mrs. Babbel is her constant communication. She follows through with students and families in an outstanding way. Every student I look up in the conference tab has a note from her reaching out to families, which is so incredibly important in this time." -- Melea Mayen, Northfield
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Denver Public Schools sends all district newsletters and critical employee communications through Constant Contact. Please do not unsubscribe your dpsk12.org email address from any message; if you unsubscribe from one newsletter or one communication, you will be removed from all other district-managed email lists in Constant Contact. If you have any questions, please email newsletters@dpsk12.org.
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