It's February, and that means it's time to register! If you are currently enrolled at Dakota Ridge, registration will take place in seminar during the first week of February. AP/IB/Honors meetings have been held, and hopefully students have been able to gather all the information they need to make their choices for next year.

If you are currently an 8th grader that will be joining us in the fall, first of all, WELCOME!! We are so excited to have you joining us in the DRHS Pre-IB/IB Community! We can wait to meet all of you in the fall!

• If you are an 8th grader at Summit Ridge, you should have submitted your registration to your advisement teacher on January 31.
• If you are choice enrolling from a school other than Summit Ridge, you should have received an email from Dakota Ridge that provided you the information needed for registration. If you did not receive this email, reach out to Jen Kelley: Jennifer.kelley@jeffco.k12.co.us.

If you need any help with registration, be sure to consult the resources below, or reach out to Mrs. Davis with any questions you might have.

Registration Resources

• Dakota Ridge High School IB Recommended Pathways
• Dakota Ridge High School IB Planning Guide
• Dakota Ridge High School Course Planning Guide

February may be a shorter month, but it contains a lot of important events!

2024 is the Year of the Dragon, and it begins on February 10. The dragon has a high reputation in Chinese culture and represents auspiciousness and imperial power. The dragon is a symbol of dignity, health, honor, success, luck, and strength. Some cool facts about the Chinese New Year (USA Today):

• Chinese New Year is also known as the Lunar New Year.
• Approximately 2 billion people celebrate the Lunar New Year.
• In 2024, the Lunar New Year begins on February 10 and ends on February 24; the number of days of celebration varies depending on each country.
• People born in the year of the dragon are seen as charismatic, intelligent, confident, powerful, naturally lucky, and gifted.

February is also Black History Month, which is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a recognition of the role they have played in U.S. history. Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. For an in-depth look into the origins of Black History Month, check out The History Channel's website.

For the last several weeks, students in Ms. Spence's 11th grade IB Lang and Lit English class have been reading James Baldwin's, The Fire Next Time. As they read, students were asked to identify beautiful language, and then they created beautiful pieces of art and writing that were displayed during a gallery walk. Students discussed what they learned, how the language and messages spoke to them, and how they each connected individually with the text. I loved getting to observe this class and see the amazing things our students are doing! The depth of their thinking and learning was incredibly impressive. Awesome job, Ms. Spence and the IB junior English class!

The May 2024 IB/AP Exam Calendar is linked here. Please review it carefully if your son/daughter is testing this May for either IB and/or AP. If you didn't get your exam fees paid by Friday, January 26, please be sure to get those paid ASAP. More information will follow in the upcoming weeks regarding exams.

Please mark your calendars for the IB CAS Presentations and ToK Exhibition Night on Wednesday, April 10 @ 6:00pm in the DRHS library. All IB junior and senior diploma candidates must participate in this event. Juniors will present their ToK exhibitions; seniors will present their CAS projects. This event will be a potluck and families of IB juniors and seniors are invited (and encouraged!) to attend! More information will follow as we get closer to the event.

Class of 2024 IB Diploma Candidates and Families,

Please mark your calendars and plan to join us for a night of celebrating our Class of 2024 IB Diploma graduates! The celebration will be held on Tuesday, April 16 @ 6:00pm at Red Rocks Country Club. More information will follow, but for now, mark those calendars!

If you haven't signed your son or daughter up yet for Italy 2025, what's stopping you?? Join us as we explore Venice, Florence, and Rome over Spring Break! Any Dakota Ridge student in grades 9-12 is welcome to join us (and yes, that includes our incoming 9th graders!). Here's the link to learn more about the trip. Spots are still available; don't hesitate to reach out to Mrs. Davis with any questions!

If you have not paid your IB yearly dues yet, please be sure to do that ASAP! The yearly dues cover a variety of things for our IB students, including, the IB finals lunches and dinners, the IB sweatshirts given to students during the IB Pinning Ceremony, the IB graduation medallions, the cost for seniors to attend the IB Senior Celebration dinner, and SO many other things! Dues are $50 this year and can be paid through check (made out to DRHS IB) and given to Holly Davis or through Zelle (use the DRHS IB Parent Group email address): dribpg@gmail.com. Questions regarding dues, contact the DRHS IB Parent Group or Holly Davis.

The IB Parent Group is looking for volunteers! We are looking for parents who would be interested in learning more about the group and then stepping into roles for next year's IB Parent Group. Plan to attend the next meeting on Wednesday, March 27 @ 6:30pm in the DRHS library to learn more. The time commitment is minimal, but the support for our IB community is invaluable! Please join us in March to learn more about how to get involved with this amazing group!