Upcoming Dates For Your Calendar
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Thursday, March 3: No school for ECE students only, staff training day
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Friday, March 4: No school for ECE students only, Parent Teacher Conferences
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Monday, March 28 - Friday, April 1: No School Spring Break
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Dear Hallett Families,
Today is the last day of Denver's mask mandate. Starting Monday, masks will no longer be required in school. We will continue to strongly encourage all students and staff to wear them. We will remind students of the importance of hand washing and other healthy habits that promote safety and wellness.
We appreciate your support as we continue to navigate the changing health guidelines, together.
Have a wonderful weekend.
With love,
Dominique Jefferson
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Updates to Our Mask Requirements and Other Guidelines
Dear DPS Community,
As we continue to work closely with our trusted health partners and navigate the changing health landscape, we wanted to share some reminders and updates about our COVID guidelines.
To start, while today is the last day DPS requires mask-wearing in DPS buildings, masks are still highly encouraged for students, staff and others in our buildings. As a reminder, those using DPS transportation will still be required to wear a mask, per federal guidelines.
Additionally, as we look ahead to the next phase of the pandemic, DPS will move to a disease-control model for COVID-19. These guidelines more closely align our COVID-19 efforts with the public health response strategiesused for other infectious diseases in schools, such as the flu. They will go into effect Monday, Feb. 28 (unless otherwise noted).
Guidance for School Events, Visitors and Operations
- Visitors, volunteers, and families are permitted at schools and in school buildings.
- Athletic events, student performances, competitions and school events (such as graduation and school dances) can operate at full capacity, as permitted by the size of the venue, and without further health-related restrictions.
- Student meal times can resume normal operations.
- All in-person meetings can return to full capacity, and virtual platforms can continue to be used for meetings as appropriate.
Transportation
In alignment with federal law, masks are required while aboard public transportation, which includes school buses and other district-provided transportation to and from school or events. Transportation retains a supply of disposable masks so that no student will be turned away.
COVID Positive Cases and Reporting
- If a student or staff member tests positive for COVID, they are required to report their case by letting their school or supervisor know.
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The positive individual is required to stay home and isolate for 5 days past the first day of symptoms (or 5 days past the testing date if they are asymptomatic). They may return on day 6 as long as they are fever-free and feeling mostly better. We ask this individual to continue wearing a mask while indoors during days 6-10 after the first day of symptoms or testing date.
- If a household member tests positive, individuals who are not vaccinated or up-to-date on the vaccine should quarantine for 5 days following the last day of exposure.
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All reported cases will appear as active on the DPS COVID Dashboard for 5 days, per CDC guidance.
COVID Contact Tracing and Quarantines
- Contact tracing and school-dictated quarantines for COVID will no longer be required by DPS. DPS will follow CDPHE’s guidance and defer to the local health department if quarantines are needed.
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Per CDPHE, if a school experiences an outbreak of COVID, the public health department may implement strategies such as universal masking indoors, physical distancing, testing, contact tracing, and quarantine for close contacts.
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Those returning to a DPS school or building after being COVID positive are asked to follow CDC and CDPHE guidelines to properly wear a mask for the 6-10 days after an infection.
COVID Vaccinations and Boosters
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Beginning March 5, the city’s public health order will have ended, COVID vaccines will not be mandated in DPS for visitors and students, and they will no longer be mandated for staff. At that time, new hires will not be required to show proof of vaccination, and boosters will not be required.
- We strongly encourage all staff, students and families to access COVID vaccines and boosters, including through our Denver Health School-Based Health Centers in schools across the district. Call 303-602-8958 to make an appointment.
Strategies to Stay Healthy
To support these new guidelines while continuing to prioritize each other’s health and safety, we’ve updated our DPS 5. This revised guidance includes:
- Self-monitor for symptoms of illness, and stay home if you are sick.
- Masks are still strongly encouraged.
- Maintain physical distance when possible.
- Be thoughtful when planning meetings and events.
- Practice good hygiene.
We understand these steps toward “normal” may come with emotions and questions for many of our families. Please review this FAQ for more answers to questions you may have.
As throughout the pandemic, we will continue to monitor the health landscape and work closely with our health partners to make adjustments as needed. As a DPS community, we will work toward a “new normal” together.
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CMAS
Dear Hallett Academy families:
We will begin the Colorado Measures of Academic Success (CMAS) assessments on March 21st-April 29th. These assessments focus on the knowledge and skills our kids need for success in our global economy, including skills such as analytical thinking and the ability to solve complex problems. The CMAS assessments focus on four different content areas depending upon the grade your child is in:
- English Language Arts (ELA) and Math - 3rd, 4th, 5th grade
- Science - 5th grade
We want to help parents and families with information to support student success during this time. These assessments will give our teachers critical information to help our students be on track for college and career readiness and help us understand whether our students have the necessary skills to succeed after high school.
Calendar: The calendar below was created to communicate to you when the CMAS assessments are occurring. We ask parents and families to ensure their children get plenty of sleep and a healthy breakfast every day, but especially on assessment days. In addition, if there are doctor’s appointments or other appointments that need to be made, we hope this calendar will help you to make those appointments on non-assessment days.
Volunteers: Please also note the days in which we cannot allow volunteers in certain floors of our building. This is to adhere to the ethics and other policies set forth by DPS and the State of Colorado to maintain a secure testing environment.
Attendance: We also want to communicate that all students should be in school on-time, all day and every day, regardless of whether assessments are occurring or not. Important teaching and learning happens in between testing, so it is imperative that students are here. Our expectations remain around vacations and we expect parents to continue to plan vacations around the DPS calendar.
Make-Ups: Students do best when they are in their classroom environment for testing. In the event that your child has to miss a test session, they will have to make up the test another time and will be pulled during their instructional time to do so. In addition, due to our teachers needing to teach during all non-testing days, our paraprofessionals are used to give make-ups, which pulls them from supporting the classroom. To prevent disruption to your child’s and other student’s day, please make sure that your child is at school every day and limit their absences to only when they are sick.
We appreciate your support during this time. Assessments, including CMAS as well as those taken throughout the year, are vital tools for teachers to support student success. There are online resources to help parents and families support their student during CMAS testing, located at https://coassessments.com/practice-resources/. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me. Thank you, and go Hawks!
Julia Scott
Assistant Principal and School Assessment Leader
Hallett Academy
Denver Public Schools
CMAS Schedule
Testing Times:
- Math 65min
- ELA 90min
- 25-30min built in for distribution and reading directions
Thursday, March 10
- 9:30am: 3rd-5th Grade ELA Infrastructure Trial
Friday, March 11
- 9:30am: 3rd-5th Grade ELA Infrastructure Trial
Tuesday, March 22
- 3rd Math 9:30-11:00 (65min)
- 4th Math 9:30-11:00 (65min)
- 5th ELA 9:30-11:30 (90min)
Wednesday, March 23
- 3rd Math 9:30-11:00 (65min)
- 4th Math 9:30-11:00 (65min)
- 5th ELA 9:30-11:30 (90min)
Thursday, March 24
- 3rd Math 9:30-11:00 (65min)
- 4th Math 9:30-11:00 (65min)
- 5th ELA 9:30-11:30 (90min)
Friday, March 25
Monday, March 28 - Friday, April 1: SPRING BREAK
Monday, April 4: TEAL DAY NO SCHOOL
Tuesday, April 5
- 4th ELA 9:30-11:30 (90min)
Wednesday, April 6
- 4th ELA 9:30-11:30 (90min)
Thursday, April 7
- 4th ELA 9:30-11:30 (90min)
Friday, April 8
Tuesday, April 12
- 3rd ELA 9:30-11:30 (90min)
- 5th SCI 9:30-11:30 (80min)
Wednesday, April 13
- 3rd ELA 9:30-11:30 (90min)
- 5th SCI 9:30-11:30 (80min)
Thursday, April 14
- 3rd ELA 9:30-11:30 (90min)
- 5th SCI 9:30-11:30 (80min)
Friday, April 15
Monday, April 18
Tuesday, April 19
- 5th Math 9:30-11:00 (65min)
Wednesday, April 20
- 5th Math 9:30-11:00 (65min)
Thursday, April 21
- 5th Math 9:30-11:00 (65min)
Friday, April 22
Monday, April 25
Tuesday, April 26
Wednesday, April 27
Thursday, April 28
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Hallett Garden Project
It is almost time to start making our garden area beautiful and start growing plants. We will be having a meeting for community that are interested in helping the Hallett garden grow!
The meeting would be held on Monday April 4th (Monday after spring break) at 10:00 a.m.
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 943 5226 8801
Passcode: tdW0UR
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Free Youth Concert
Vocal Coalition Youth Choirs presents
OVERCOME: BLACK MUSIC MATTERS
Saturday, February 26th, 7:00pm
Park Church
3025 W 37th Ave, Denver
Concert admission is free thanks to the generous support of
Arts In Society. Livestream option will be available.
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SUMMER CONNECTIONS
Summer Connections is a FREE full day, 6 week program available in all DPS regions for ALL rising 1st-5th grade students that combines literacy, math, and science. Students will engage in hands-on enrichment experiences in STEM, Art and Spark Career Exploration. Students may receive individual or small group tutoring.
How to Register
Registration is open from Jan. 24 through
Mar. 25, 2022.
1. Log into your Parent Portal account
2. Select “Summer Connections” in the top navigation bar
3. Fill out the application
4. Submit the application
Click here for Parent Portal technical support.
Schedule & Locations
Summer Connections operates June 14 - July 22, 2022. The start and end time at some schools will be 8 am-3:30 pm and it will be 9 am-4:30 pm at other schools. Breakfast, lunch and snacks will be served at all Summer Connections locations. All locations have central air conditioning. Students will be assigned to the school that is closest to their residence address. Bus transportation is available but is not guaranteed.
Castro Elementary School Joe Shoemaker School Schmitt Elementary School Eagleton Elementary School Marrama Elementary School Smith Elementary School Farrell B Howell ECE-8 School Munroe Elementary School Southmoor Elementary School Green Valley Elementary School Newlon Elementary School TBD (replacement needed for Swansea due to construction) International Academy of Denver at Harrington
Place Bridge Academy TBD (replacement needed for Trevista due to construction)
**Registration is first come, first served. Once the capacity is reached at each school, students will be placed on a wait list.** For more information, visit our website at
For questions or assistance, please contact the Expanded Academic Learning team at eal@dpsk12.net or 720-423-3629.
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Need an activity for the next snow day? DPS Online Library has a large selection of free books, audiobooks, and read-a-longs! Click Here to Explore!
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COVID-19 Vaccines for Children
INFORMATION FOR FAMILIES
The most effective way to keep our schools healthy and safe -- and our students learning in person -- is by getting your family vaccinated against COVID-19. Vaccines are now available for everyone age 5 and older.
Benefits of getting vaccinated:
Getting vaccinated against COVID-19 has many benefits for you, your child, your family and your community, including:
- More in-person learning days! The vaccine helps us reduce the unpredictability of the pandemic.
- If you are exposed to COVID you will not need to quarantine, unless you develop symptoms.
- Safer and easier to participate in extracurricular sports and clubs.
- Helps us get closer to returning to more of our pre-COVID freedoms, like not wearing masks.
- Protects your family members, particularly those at higher risk -- and means there can be more hugs!
Where to get a vaccine:
COVID vaccinations for all eligible individuals -- now including children ages 5 and up -- are available for free through our Denver Health School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs).
With 18 locations across the district, our SBHCs offer a quick and convenient way to get vaccinated. To learn more or to schedule an appointment, please contact Denver Health at 303-602-8958.
Other vaccine providers:
COVID vaccinations are widely available across the City and County of Denver. Talk with your child’s primary-care provider to find out if they are providing COVID vaccinations. You can also locate a vaccine provider through the national website Vaccine.gov.
To learn more about DPS’ response to COVID-19 and how to keep your student safe and healthy, please visit www.dpsk12.org.
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Free Mental Health Services
In October, the Colorado Department of Human Services, Office of Behavioral Health launched I Matter, a program that provides three or more free counseling sessions for any Colorado youth. Youth and their parents can visit the I Matter platform to take a confidential online survey about their mental health and schedule sessions with a licensed behavioral health clinician, primarily via telehealth. All Colorado youth ages 18 or younger—or 21 and younger if receiving special education services—are eligible to receive free services.
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Free Meals for All Students 18 Years and Younger Will Extend Through the 2021-22 School Year!
All students enrolled in Denver Public Schools will have access to breakfast and lunch meals at no cost, regardless of free and reduced meal eligibility. Breakfast, lunch, and snacks are eaten in the classroom daily.
Families who would like to get meals for children at home may go to their nearest school cafeteria and request meals for children 18 years and younger.
Families are encouraged to complete a Free and Reduced-Price Meal Application to be eligible for additional family benefits and school funding, including items such as fee waivers, EBT benefits, and to ensure proper funding for schools.
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“We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
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