WARRIOR WEEKLY May 31-June 4
Dear TMA Families,
 
Like you, I am filled with hope about our graduation in two weeks, our prom next, and the fantastic community we have maintained this year. We see COVID-19 infection rates fall in the District and across the region, vaccination rates rise, and the city and country plan for continued re-openings. Recently, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Mayor Muriel Bowser also released updated health and safety guidelines. And our commitment to health and safety continues to guide our decisions. 
 
As we get closer to the end of this unique school year, we want to provide clear updates on our plans for the 2021-2022 School Year:
  • Thurgood Marshall Academy will fully reopen to in-person learning next school year. We will provide an in-person, five-day-a-week schedule for all students in the fall. Students are expected to attend school in person full time.

  • We strongly encourage everyone who is able in our community to protect yourself and your loved ones by getting the COVID-19 vaccine. Vaccines save lives and will help us continue on the path forward out of the pandemic. For the past few weeks, all District residents 12 years and older can receive the vaccine by visiting a walk-up vaccination site or by making an appointment. For more information, click here.  
 
Vaccination hesitancy is strong in our community; as a Black father and leader, I ask you to speak with your health care provider and consider the greater good and power of having all of our students, families, and team safer now. Earlier this week, we learned that 8 of 10 folks contracting the virus are Black. More concerning is that only 20% of Black residents are vaccinated. In Wards 7 & 8, where I live and serve, the numbers are even scarier.
 
If we truly want to get back to normal, we all must move quickly to protect this disease from running through our neighborhoods. Vaccination is the key to that goal.




Quote of the Week: 
What’s Ahead:

  • Monday, May 31st: Memorial Day - No School
  • Tuesday, June 1st-3rd: Senior Check Out
  • Friday, June 4th: Prom
  • Monday, June 7th-June 9th: Graduation Practice
  • Friday, June 11th: Last Day of School
  • Friday, June 11th: Graduation
  • Wednesday, June 16th: All Warrior Closeout
  • Friday, June 18th: Last Day Teachers
  • Saturday, June 19th: Mentor Day (tentative)
  • Monday, June 28th: Summer Prep & School Begins
Brief Senior Year Activities Update
Families, senior year is winding down. With that said, we would like to share some things with you. 

Senior Prom: 
Date: June 4, 2021
Time: 7pm-11pm
Location: Observatory at America's Square at 300 New Jersey Ave, NW
 
Graduation:
Graduation is rapidly approaching. Below is the information in reference to graduation. 

Graduation Rehearsal: 
Monday, June 7th 
Tuesday, June 8th
Wednesday, June 9th
No rehearsal on June 10th

  • Graduation will be held on Friday, June 11, 2021 at 3:00 pm. 
  • This is an in-person outdoor event.

Location:  
IDEA Public Charter High School
1027 45th Street, NE, Washington, DC 20019

*3 Guests per Student
 
As always if you have any questions please email sstewart@tmapchs.org
Schoolwide End of the Year Pathways Meeting
Parents and students, in case you missed our meeting discussing end of the year academic pathways for students, you can access the PowerPoint Presentation Here & you can view the Zoom Meeting Here. 


End of the Year College Enrichment Activities
  • Starting on Tuesday, the 1st of June, we will transition to either Mastery, Recovery or Enrichment for students in grades 9-11. The Enrichment activities are focused on giving students a deeper understanding and learning around the college application process. 

  • The activities will be led by admission and counseling professionals from across the country and will run from the 1-9 June, 2021.

  • In order to participate in these activities, students must have passed all classes and be assigned to either the Mastery or Enrichment route. Students in Recovery are not eligible to participate.

  • Please use this form to indicate your interests in this Enrichment route. Once the survey is closed, a schedule will be emailed to all participants. If you have any questions or concerns, please email Mr. Mitchell at samitchell@tmapchs.org.
  • It is recommended that you complete this survey with your TMA email address. 



Summer Enrichment Opportunities for Students
Final reminder: Bard Dual enrollment for summer and fall (Bard Sequence Electives)
  • Students and parents, if you are interested in taking college courses over the summer, the Bard Dual Enrollment Summer program is for you. 
  • To complete the application, CLICK HERE: 
  • Also, if you students applied through the OSSE Dual Enrollment Consortium for fall courses through Bard, we still encourage them to complete this application if you are interested in summer courses and in case you do not get selected through the OSSE process. 


Zoomers, RISE UP!: 4-Week On-Site Summer Enrichment Program in Partnership at TMA!!! Click HERE to complete the Application. 
  • The goal of Zoomers, RISE UP! is to prepare the students to be as well-equipped as possible going into the upcoming school year.
  • Zoomer, RISE UP! is for rising students within grades 10 through 12 and will reach about 40 students. 
  • This program will last for 4 weeks, from July 5, 2021 to July 31, 2021, with varying lessons taught each day throughout the week. 
  • Zoomers will  incorporate an innovative approach to ELA and Math, in accordance with D.C. Common Core Standards. The curriculum is entirely project-based.
  • Engaging: Zoomers, RISE UP! will have daily leadership and activity periods to continually ensure that students feel engaged throughout summer break. 
  • Reducing Learning Loss: Zoomers, RISE UP! has the main goal of reducing the learning loss caused by COVID-19 while preparing students to be change-makers regardless of the environments around them. 
  • View Flyer Here. 
 

Words Beats & Life
  • Click HERE to APPLY to  one of the 2 Week Summer Programs: 
  • July 6th-16th: Fine Art, MC'ing & Poetry
  • July 19th-30th: - Street Art, DJ'ing & Dance
  • WBL unapologetically advocates for the transformative power of Hip-Hop culture in all its forms, empowering artists to relentlessly create and refine systems that demonstrate positive change through our individual and collective brilliance. 
  • They embrace the sacred nature of our work and our roles as keepers and innovators of our culture. 
  • They create arts based educational experiences that equip youth, arts managers, teaching artists and scholars to move from theory to practice. We harness the power of the imagination to reshape the lives and communities we serve. 
  • View Website HERE:  www.wblinc.org.

SY 21-22 Enrollment: Registration is a two-step annual process for all TMA students.
 
Online Registration is now open for SY 2021-22. All families were sent notification through SchoolMint. Our registration process will be completed online. For more detailed information on the registration process,  CLICK HERE. 

Please note that registration must be completed by Monday, May 17th to ensure an enrollment seat for SY 2021-22. 

We look forward to working with you over the coming weeks to register your Warrior for the 2021-22 school year.
 
Questions? Reach out to the following:
 
Attendance

Students must log in to their scheduled Zoom/Canvas sessions for synchronous classes to be considered present for the class period. Please email your student’s teachers, advisor, and rshort@tmapchs.org, when your student will miss any synchronous classes.
Community Service Opportunities

All Warriors should be working to earn 100 hours of community service by the end of their senior year to meet graduation requirements. Volunteer hours must be completed at either a 501c3 non-profit organization or government agency. Students may not receive any pay for volunteer hours.  
 
Reach out to Ms. Ames at zames@tmapchs.org for more information.
Programs Updates

If you are interested in enrolling your student in Homework Help, email Ms. Schwarz at cschwarz@tmapchs.org. If you want to sign your student up for the Mentor Program, email Ms. Jean at pjean@tmapchs.org.
21 st CCLC evaluation of TMA Programs:


21st CCLC evaluation of TMA Programs:

illuminatED llc, an independent evaluation firm, is working with TMA to evaluate Programs activities that are funded by a 21st Century Learning Community Centers (21st CCLC) grant from the District of Columbia (DC) Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE). illuminatED has served as TMA’s evaluator on its previous 2st CCLC grants for more than 16 years.

The evaluation responds to the following questions:

  • To what extent has TMA met its stated OSSE 21st CCLC objectives, as described in TMA’s 2019-20 application/2020-21 continuation application to OSSE?

  • What are TMA’s key programmatic successes? What barriers are encountered in program implementation and how are they addressed?

illuminatED is working with TMA to observe (virtually) various Programs activities (including Homework Help, Mentor Day, clubs, Law Firm Tutoring, and family events), talk to key stakeholders, and share insights and information that will help TMA to make Programs the best it can be. Students and teachers will complete surveys about Programs, too. 

Please contact Ms. Wilson Amanda Wilson, Director of Programs at TMA, at awilson@tmpachs.org if you have any questions about the evaluation.
Technology & Online Resources

Canvas Tutorials for Parents: Below are some helpful tutorials for our parents and guardians who are helping their TMA student navigate Canvas. 
 
  • How do I create a parent account in Canvas? (video here) 
  • How does my child submit assignments in Canvas? (video here) 

If you have questions about Canvas, please contact any of the following TMA team members. 

  1. Erica Culbreath (technology teacher), eculbreath@tmapchs.org
  2. Malika Mays (Associate Head of School), mmays@tmapchs.org
  3. You can also contact your student’s advisory teacher. 
Resources and Support Information

Training to Prevent Child Abuse
Thurgood Marshall Academy seeks to provide parents/guardians with training and information regarding preventing child abuse, sexual misconduct, and student sexual abuse.  Parents/guardians interested in a 1.5 hour online training, or those who have immediate questions or concerns, should contact Executive Director Raymond Weeden at rweeden@tmapchs.org.


PEPCO Resource for Families/ Energy Assistance
Parents, if needed, please use this energy resource for your family. There is limited time to use this. This is for Maryland and DC families PEPCO Resource Flyer


General Resources
If your family needs any resources (like food, clothing, school supplies, etc.) or support during this time of distance learning, please reach out to Ms. Moore at nmoore@tmapchs.org.


Parking Change
Our neighbor, Bethlehem Baptist Church, let TMA know recently that they have begun real estate development of the field next to their church. It is therefore no longer available to parents or visitors for parking while visiting the school. This school year there will likely be space for visitors in the paved lot next to TMA’s building, and we are working with the Church on alternate arrangements for the future.


COVID-19 Testing Site
Curative, Inc., has set up a kiosk on TMA’s property to offer COVID-19 testing to the general public (including TMA families). Beginning March 15, 2021, the company will expand the kiosk hours to 8 am - 4 pm. One can make appointments at curative.com. (Curative and Thurgood Marshall Academy are independent organizations--we simply provide them with space as a public service.)


Kids Ride Free Cards
Kids Ride Free cards are now available for pick up at the school. Please email Ms. Moore at nmoore@tmapchs.org for additional information and pick-up hours.
Internet Resources

If you received an email regarding free Internet services from the District of Columbia. You should receive a text message, phone call, and/or email from the DC Government soon asking if you want to opt-in to free Internet from DC—please respond “yes” (even if you have enrolled in Comcast via Thurgood Marshall Academy). The attached flyer provides additional details regarding the Internet Services Program: DC Government Free Internet.

In general, if you have technology needs reach out to Mr. Schlossman, dschlossman@tmapchs.org
Special Education, Student Wellness & Interventions

Supporting Families through Transitional Living Circumstances:
Know your rights! Please see link below to learn more about the Educational Rights of Parents and Students Experiencing Homelessness: Click here.

If you have any questions, concerns or need support connecting with community resources please don't hesitate to reach out to Yolanda Hayden, School Counselor at yhayden@tmapchs.org.
Faculty & Staff Directory

Are you Looking for One of Our Team Members?
If you need to contact a TMA Faculty or Staff member, you can find their email address listed HERE: Faculty & Staff Directory  
Other Items

Concussion Awareness Program: Parents & Guardians, please review the Concussion Awareness Program that applies to all athletic activities.