Message from Principal Hedlund

Dr. Phyllis HedlundPrincipal Newsletters

Principal's Newsletter

Dear Families,

I hope everyone enjoyed checking in with teachers today and learning about their child’s progress. This past week, after meeting with the LSAT, I submitted our SY 2021-22 budget for approval. As a reminder, we are budgeted to open business as usual in the fall.

Over the next several weeks, the LSAT will meet as the Recovery Community Corps. Shepherd will receive funding to run a summer program for students who are below grade level. The staff has already launched a tutoring program for those students. We currently are working with first grade and will start tutoring students in Kindergarten and second grade next week. By the end of March, all K-5 students below grade level in reading will receive tutoring from Shepherd staff.

Students who are below grade level will receive an invitation to attend a summer program at Shepherd Elementary in early April. Staffing will be comprised of teachers, instructional aides and a summer school principal. DCPS supplied us with several models and time frames to evaluate for Shepherd. These efforts will continue through tutoring next school year. We will be publishing dates for the Recovery Community Corps if you would like to attend. Please stay tuned for more information.

I am excited to report that Ms. Johnson and Ms. Scott for PK3 will return to Shepherd in person for Term 4. We are still coordinating logistics, but they are excited to come back to the building. Several other staff members may return in Term 4, and I will communicate that news as soon as we confirm plans.

Thank you,

Phyllis

Toiletry Drive

Please contribute to our toiletry drive. There is a bin in between the doors for the main entrance. Thank you!

Fifth grade families

The Alice Deal Anti-Bias Anti-Racism Initiative (ABAR) is offering an opportunity for Shepherd families of rising 6th graders to participate in this program being offered to Deal families and prospective Deal families.  

Deal Middle School is hosting virtual dialogue groups for Deal parents and caregivers.  Partnering with Soliya, a non-profit that facilitates meaningful conversations, we aim to strengthen the bonds of our community.
These dialogue groups will create safe space for discussions on race and identity.  You can expect facilitated conversations and activities on stereotypes, cultural misunderstandings and identity formation.  We want each dialogue group to be diverse along many identities, so please share more about yourself in this form application. Please complete the form before March 9th.

Time commitment: Four 90 minute meetings (one per week).  Please direct any questions to Ms. Kathryn Breisch, an 8th grade teacher at Deal, at [email protected].