"I love to take advantage of the giant bulletin board in the hallway to celebrate events throughout the year, encourage students, and make them smile." -- Tina Emery, Carson Elementary
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Self-Care and Mental Health Coverage |
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These past weeks have been difficult for some of our communities and members of Team DPS. With our busy schedules and responsibilities, it can be challenging to find the time to take care of yourself. Self-care is a really important step in processing and coping with stressful situations. At DPS, we have a variety of tools available to support your self-care journey. We encourage you to lean into your teams by talking with your manager or team members if you are needing support.
Self-Care Optimization Strategies: The Culture, Equity, and Leadership team (CELT) has developed a variety of self-care virtual supports for our team members. From being still, leaning into your values or managing your thoughts, this toolkit is designed to support you from wherever you are, whenever you need it. You can find this toolkit and more on The Commons.
Employee Assistance Program (EAP): Our EAP is a confidential, no-cost service that is available 24/7 to all DPS employees and their immediate families. Plan for life events, find resources for personal issues, or get help for managing daily life. Learn more by visiting the EAP page on The Commons. Our EAP also provides a free-to-use COVID-related toolkit.
Mental and Emotional Health Services: Access these services through your medical insurance carrier. Aetna (coverage ending June 30), UHC, MotivHealth and Kaiser Permanente all offer supportive services within their networks. Learn more about what your carrier offers and gain access to your benefits through the Medical Insurance page on The Commons.
Considering your mental and emotional health options is important when choosing your insurance package! With Open Enrollment coming up April 17-May 5, we want you to feel prepared to make the best decisions for your needs. Review all your options for Open Enrollment by visiting the Open Enrollment page on The Commons. Remember, every benefits-eligible employee must enroll or waive benefits, regardless of what they elected last year.
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CollaboRATE Raffle Winners |
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CollaboRATE closes Monday, March 6, which means team members still have a few days to make their voices heard! Your feedback is essential to improving the Adult Experience for Team DPS members, so please take 15 minutes to complete the survey now.
Teams and schools with the highest completion rate will have their choice of breakfast or lunch delivered to their entire staff.
Congratulations to our raffle winners who completed the survey on the first day it launched! We will be in touch soon to coordinate delivery of your prize!
- Scott Aston -- North Engagement Center
- Sara Kuper -- North High School
- Monica Sanchez -- Barnum Elementary
- Gregory Majersky -- DoTS
- Shantell Greer -- Facilities
- Mallory Armstrong -- Mental Health/EGC
- Diane Aretz -- McGlone Academy
- Pamela Fitzsimmons -- Pascual LeDoux Academy
- Zohra Almagri -- Montbello Middle School
- Sally Buchanan -- Eagleton Elementary
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Top 5: How did you Celebrate Black History Month? |
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Throughout the month of February, we celebrated Black history and highlighted the successes of our Black students and DPS team members. Thank you for sharing how you celebrated Black History Month! See how Team DPS celebrated Black History Month below. |
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5. “For Black History Month, students learned about Wangari Maathi from Kenya, East Africa. She was a social, environmental and political activist, and the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize. She inspired the planting of 30 million trees over 30 years.” -- Deanna Lowman, Inspire Elementary
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4. “We had several events for Black History Month including a performance of "At the Table with Dr. King" and a potluck dinner. But the most exciting presentation was by one of our teachers, Tatia Mobley, who shared a video presentation about her grandmother, Dr. Sybil C. Mobley. It was great to have that personal touch.” -- Rhonda Robbins, McGlone Academy
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3. “I would love to shout out Ms. Brown, Mr. Martinez and our Journalism class for creating broadcasts to share with our student body regarding topics related to Black History Month, Black Excellence, and sharing why it's important that Black history continues to be taught throughout the year! Here is their broadcast!” -- Mindi Onwuegbu, DMLK
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2. “My middle school students created digital mosaics of important and influential Black individuals for Black History Month. They had so much fun and their projects turned out so great!” -- Jocelyn Brookstein, McGlone Academy
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“In honor of Black History Month, one of our student groups, ‘Ladies First,’ in collaboration with staff members, Ms. Ariel, Ms. Brown, Ms. Lisa, and Ms. Ambria, offered a scholarship workshop for students of color every Thursday during the month of February. Students that attended spent time completing scholarship applications and met with several organizations that give scholarships to students of color -- some of which are Black Greek Lettered Organizations.” -- Patrice Brown, East High School
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Top 5 Callout: Women's History Month |
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March is Women’s History Month. According to the official website, Women's History Month celebrates the contributions women have made to the United States and recognizes the specific achievements women have made over the course of American history in a variety of fields. For this week’s Top 5 Callout, we would like to know how you are celebrating National Women’s History Month. Share how you’re celebrating National Women’s History Month here.
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March Edition of Employee Wellness Newsletter Now Available |
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- Colon Cancer Awareness Month.
- The Spring Into Motion step challenge.
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An awesome opportunity that one of our Wellness Champs is providing for the staff at Kaiser Elementary in partnership with KimFit -- Kim is a teacher at Gust Elementary.
- Our new Nutritional Awareness Webinars -- this month’s topic focuses on how to curb sugar cravings.
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Last Chance: Register for March 7 Spring Into Motion Step Challenge |
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This is your last chance to register for the Spring into Motion districtwide step challenge, starting March 7. Rally your DPS coworkers and get ready to enjoy this four-week challenge designed to keep you energized physically and mentally this spring.
Whether you’re into biking, rock climbing, gardening or yoga, you can log several physical activities that convert to steps on the challenge portal. This program also syncs with more than 60 mobile apps and devices, making it easy to track your progress. Through Spring into Motion, you’ll also have access to daily tips, healthy recipes, a motivating team competition and an engaging message board.
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Educators Take Flight Application Opens March 6 |
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The Educators Take Flight application window opens Monday, March 6! DPS Foundation’s Educators Take Flight program seeks to remove the flight cost as a barrier to accessing top quality professional development opportunities. You could be awarded a United Airlines flight voucher to cover the cost of a round trip flight within the continental United States.
To be eligible, you must be a current DPS educator, have an approved professional development opportunity that aligns with an educational priority, and your school and department must be able to cover your accommodations and any additional travel needs. If you have questions, contact Erin Shelby.
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Review DPS Check Cashing Policy |
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Please review the following information regarding the DPS Check Cashing Policy. This policy ensures that paper checks are received, routed correctly, and deposited as quickly as possible to mitigate fraud, loss, or further delays -- and to make funds available for the intended use. Contact Leilani Feier if you have any questions.
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Samanda Davis
Social Worker, Thomas Jefferson High School
Students First
"Samanda leads many projects in our school such as, 'Christmas Adopt-A-Family,' 'Challenge Day,' and the food bank to name a few. However, my favorite is 'Kohl's Shopping Day,' where 24 students who normally would not have the means to go on a $100 shopping spree for themselves, get to go with the collaboration of our Rotary Club. There's a lot of planning and many moving pieces to make this happen but the excitement and fun the students experience (even for just an hour) is priceless, which is why Samanda continues to do it every year."
-- Rossanda Jackson, Thomas Jefferson High School
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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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