Good morning Shepherd families and friends,
It’s April 1st and that means 29 days until the BIG EVENT!
So get your Gala and Auction tickets here now and help us raise $50,000 for the PTO to fund field trips, purchase additional in-classroom materials, support extracurricular activities and events, and promote family and community engagement!
In this week’s PTO Bulletin…
- DCPS Panorama Survey deadline – TODAY!
- Ward 3 Ed Net call – Mon, April 4th at 7 pm
- Shepherd PTO Restaurant Night at Blue 44 – Tues, April 5th from 5-9 pm
- Deal Feeder School Chat for Shepherd 5th grade families – Tues, April 5th at 6:30 pm
- Spring Break – April 11th-15th
- Easter Monday/Records Day (no school) – Monday, April 18th
- 3rd grade Staff Breakfast and “Coffee and Convo” with Dr. Hedlund – Tuesday, April 19th
- April PTO and LSAT meetings – Wednesday, April 20th
- Shepherd Gala and Auction – Sat, April 30th – buy your tickets NOW and help us with auction donations!
- Calendar of Events
BUY TICKETS AND GET READY TO BID!
Are you getting excited to bid in the auction? We’ve got something for everyone – tickets to concerts, theatre productions, summer camps, restaurants, museums, games, yoga classes, paddle boarding and more…plus donations for home design services, legal services, a distillery tour and tasting, a weekend at Bethany Beach, a party to “knit and nosh” and a crawfish boil!
Get your Gala and Auction tickets now! Click here to purchase.
Even if you can’t attend, consider buying an Angel ticket for a Shepherd teacher or staff member. And remember you can always just register to bid online even if you can’t attend the event!
We’re also looking for parent sponsors – click here for more info!
THANK YOU to the BRONZE-level family sponsors: Mueller, Varda, Yang, Bierdon, Bingham, Skapik, Bradley, Boykin, Francis/Liberto, Zettle, Ma, Taylor, and Johnson families.
Complete the DCPS Panorama Survey
FINAL DAY is Friday, April 1st!
Dr. Hedlund and the Shepherd team greatly value the input and analyze the data carefully to respond to our community. It only takes 10 minutes!
You can find the survey here.
Interested in Coaching Flag Football?
We’re interested in fielding a Shepherd flag football team, but are in need of coaches. If you’re interested in coaching 4th and 5th graders, please sign up here.
PTO Restaurant Night – Blue 44 on Tues, April 5th
Join us for dinner and to support the Shepherd PTO! Blue 44 off Connecticut Ave will be hosting Shepherd families on Tuesday, April 5th from 5-9 pm and donating 20% of all orders back to the Shepherd PTO.
Show this flyer to make sure we get credit for Shepherd!
We also encourage you to make advance reservations by calling 202-362-BLUE or emailing [email protected].
Ward 3 EdNet Mtg – Mon, April 4th at 7 pm
The next meeting of the Ward 3 Education Network (W3EdNet) is on Monday, April 4 at 7pm via Zoom (link below).
The group will be hosting the Deputy Mayor for Education Paul Kihn, who will update us on the Mayor’s agenda for education in the city and take our questions.
Register in advance for this meeting here. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Upcoming meetings:
Tuesday, May 10 at 7pm, Ward 3 Council Candidate Forum (Zoom link)
Tuesday, June 7 at 7pm, Topic/Guest TBD (Zoom link)
Shepherd Elementary Camping Trip – Sat, May 21-Sun, May 22, 2022
UPDATE: There are still a few camp sites near our area on Elderberry Loop or Deer Spring Loop! Reserve your site here ASAP before they’re all booked up!
The PTO is hosting our second annual Shepherd Camping Trip at Cunningham Falls State Park in Thurmont, MD on May 21-22. The purpose of the trip is to allow Shepherd parents and children to get out of the city, enjoy nature, and get to know one another better.
The trip will begin on Saturday, May 21 at noon when we meet at the campsite. After folks set up their tents, we will organize a hike to a 78 foot cascading waterfall a few miles away. That evening we will cook our dinners, then convene for a campfire after dark. On Sunday morning after breakfast, we will organize one more activity (games or another hike) before heading home.
All children must be accompanied by an adult responsible for them.
Here is what you need to do to go on the trip:
- Reserve a campsite. Sites are $28.00 per night ($22.50 plus a processing fee and taxes). Each one accommodates up to six people and two cars, so families can share a site if they choose. The sites come with a picnic table, a fire pit and space for you to pitch a tent. No pets are allowed, but toys like bikes, scooters, and footballs are encouraged.
- Let us know you are coming so that we can coordinate. After you’ve reserved a site, please let us know you are coming by adding your name and site # to this Google spreadsheet so that we can coordinate. Please also note in the Google spreadsheet if you have camping equipment to share, and or space in your car for a ride share.
- Gather your gear. Campers must bring their own food and gear. If you need to rent gear, REI has great deals here. You can also reach out to other Shepherd families for loaners via the above mentioned Google spreadsheet.
Calendar Update
The last day of school for DCPS students is now June 24, 2022.
Just a friendly reminder…
to respect everyone’s choices as we begin another phase of the pandemic.
Masks are optional. Respect is mandatory.
Starting March 16, wearing a mask at school is an individual decision. Please be kind and respect everyone’s mask choice.
DPR Summer Camp registration – opens April 4th
Check this link to find DPR summer camp options for all ages!
After School Clubs are BACK OPEN!
Some clubs have restarted and some are new! But we have a few with spots open, so join now!
Performance Club for grades 3-5 (Mondays at 3:30pm)
Gardening Club for grades 2nd-5th (Thursdays at 3:30 pm)
Chorus (Tuesdays at 3:30)
Pokemon Club for grades 3rd-5th (Fridays at 3:30 pm)
Lego Club for grades 3rd-5th (Wednesdays at 3:30 pm)
TAP a TEACHER – NOMINATE HERE!
CONGRATS to Ms. Holt, Ms. Murali and Madame Gadie – this month’s Teacher Appreciation Program honorees!
PTO wants your help in recognizing our amazing TEACHERS!
Once a month, a special teacher will receive a wishlist fund bonus, and letters will be shared with the selected teacher and school community at our monthly PTO meeting.
To recognize a teacher, submit a nomination here.
Support the Shepherd 180 Fund
Help the Shepherd PTO fund lots of great events, initiatives, and extra circular efforts at Shepherd this year by donating to the 180 Fund.
It’s called the 180 Fund because there are 180 instructional days in the school year and your donation of a dollar a day per student helps the PTO support sending students on offsite field trips, funding teacher educational wish lists, putting on school plays and concerts, updating outdoor playground equipment, funding additional academic supports, and hosting school-wide events! This budget really helps us give our students even more unique, meaningful and enriching opportunities each year.
Any contribution is always much appreciated. And as a reminder, your contribution is 100% tax deductible. Thanks for your support – we’re looking forward to getting back to BETTER THAN NORMAL!
THANKS to our 180 Fund DONORS
MANY, MANY THANKS to the following families:
Snyder-Johnson Family
Arellano Family
Kunce Family
Bradley Family
Bennett Family
Beridon Family
Tivol Family
Lyles Family
Faulman-Coffey Family
Johnston-Gruetzmacher Family
Archer Family
Lipton-Marnon Family
Richards Family
Frias Family
Raglani Family
Jabaily-Messing Family
Ju Family
Walton-Prather Family
Marchand Family
Zettle Kreisberg Family
Weerasingha-Cote Family
Yonkwa-Rijmen Family
Boykin-Chase Family
Romine Family
Roberts Family
Marks-Fagen Family
Holdridge-Ma Family
Varda Glover Family
Yang Family
Steele Family
Escalante Family
Gallagher Family
Rodell Family
Prabhu-McDonald Family
DeAngelo Family
Dorsett-Holliday Family
Musgrove Family
Singh Family
Mitchell Family
Francis Family
Carlyle Family
Joiner Family
Martin Family
Mokodean Family
Britton Family
Smith Family
Head Family
Gulczynski-Gupta Family
Goodman Family
Marrkand Family
Youssef Family
Hayes Family
Follow Shepherd PTO on FB and Insta
Keep up with the latest updates, events and fun things going on at Shepherd by following our FB page (@ShepherdElemPTA) and Instagram (shepherd_elem_dc)
Upcoming School Calendar of Events
Ward 3 Ed Net Call – Mon, April 4th at 7 pm
Deal Feeder School Chat for Shepherd 5th grade families – Tues, April 5th at 6:30 pm
Spring Break – April 11th-15th
Records/Professional Development Day/NO SCHOOL – Mon, April 18th
3rd Grade Coffee and Convo – Tues, April 19th
Annual Shepherd Auction and Gala – Sat, April 30th
PTO Health and Wellness Fair – Thurs, May 12th
PTO Mama Lucia Restaurant Night – Thurs, May 12th
Shepherd Camping Trip – May 21-22