We are so thankful to share spaces with you and your students. We are thankful that we have had three consecutive years of graduation rate increases! We are thankful that 59% of our students showed gains in Reading from the Fall to Winter MAP Assessments given this month! We are thankful for our faculty and staff who work tirelessly to provide your students the best experiences possible at our school. As we continuously look to improve, please know we are thankful for your support and look forward to continuing to partner with you to make our school the best in DeKalb County!

Many of your students will be taking Georgia Milestones End of Course Assessments the first two weeks in December. If you have a 9th or 10th Grade student, they just took their second MAP assessment of the year. Some of your students completed an End of Pathway Assessment last week. Do you know what these tests measure? Would you like more information on how your student did on these recent assessments? Please join us on December 4 at 6:00 PM for an information night on these assessments. Your student's MAP assessment scores will be emailed to you prior to the event if you RSVP so we can review the data during the meeting. We will discuss all assessments we provide as a school and teach you how to understand the data. Please RSVP below.

DeKalb County School District (DCSD) is excited to embark on a comprehensive and aligned Student Assignment Project (SAP) to reimagine DCSD as it relates to programs, boundaries, and buildings using more complete data analysis, with a cadence to review every five years to align with ESPLOST. This comprehensive planning process will help position ALL our students to Enroll, Employ, Engage in Entrepreneurship, and Enlist in the military upon graduation.

DCSD has fulfilled many necessary conditions to prepare for this new approach. This includes recent enrollment projections completed and certified each October, building capacities, program inventory, a comprehensive master plan, and several concentrated efforts to support families in specific clusters and neighborhoods.

To build on these efforts and data, it’s time to examine student assignments holistically relating to programs, boundaries, and buildings. We know this is a critical and necessary process in the longstanding effort to balance enrollment, provide equitable access to high-quality education and programs, and ensure proper building use.

DCSD is committed to making well-informed, considerate decisions based on the data and input from the community.

We encourage you to explore our SAP Resource Hub to learn more!

Please complete the survey below by January 17, 2025 to have a say in what you think should be the DCSD priorities for the 2026 budget. Make your voice heard!

Thanks for your interest in becoming a Volunteer for the DeKalb County School District.

• Complete the Volunteer Application And Release Form:

  https://bit.ly/DCSDVolunterApplicationAndReleaseForm

• Complete the DCSD Volunteer Code of Conduct:

  https://bit.ly/voluntercodeofconduct

Please view and complete the Mandated Reporter Video/Quiz before attending the training session:

Steps for Mandated Reporter Video/Quiz:

• Create an account (no cost)
• Choose State: GA
• Click Child Abuse and Neglect Course: Mandated Reporter
• Click Start Course
• Complete Quiz

• Save or print your certificate. Send a Copy of your certificate to DCSDvolunteer@dekalbschoolsga.org

https://www.prosolutionstraining.com/store/product/index.cfm?tDisplayAdd=1&tProductVersion_id

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The Department of Family and Community Empowerment is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting of your choice.

Topic: DCSD Volunteer Training

Time:

September 18, 2024, 12:00 PM

September 25, 2024, 12:00 PM and 6:00 PM

October 2, 2024, 12:00 PM

October 9, 2024, 12:00 PM and 6:00 PM

October 30, 2024, 12:00 PM

November 6, 12:00 PM and 6:00 PM

November 13, 2024, 12:00 PM

November 20, 2024, 12:00 PM

December 4, 2024, 12:00 PM

December 11, 2024, 12:00 PM and 6:00 PM

December 18, 2024, 12:00 PM

DCSD Volunteer is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: DCSD Volunteer Training Zoom Meeting

Join Zoom Meeting

https://dekalbschoolsga-org.zoom.us/j/85757845773

Meeting ID: 857 5784 5773

Passcode: 598219

Studies show that students who use cellphones during class are less successful academically and socially in school. DCSD is promoting the Disconnect to Reconnect policy as a means to support student academic achievement and to build positive classroom and school cultures. Please review the discipline policy in the DCSD Code of Student Conduct and provide your thoughts on the Disconnect to Reconnect initiative by clicking the link below.

Please be reminded that we are a clear bookbag school. Students will not be allowed to bring in bags that are not clear. We communicated this during Rising Ninth Grade Meetings last year and have done so throughout the summer. Students cannot enter DCSD athletic events without a clear bag as well. This is a safe schools initiative as it assists us in deterring vape pens and weapons. If you join the PTSA below and show your membership proof, we will provide your student with a clear bookbag!

It is important we have accurate address and contact information. This assists all parents by allowing us to provide you important information concerning your scholars. Additionally, for students with attendance problems, the lack of a current annual verification is a red flag that the student may not live in our attendance zone. We will ask for proof of residence in these cases and failure to provide that proof of residence will result in the student being withdrawn. Thank you to those families who have verified their contact information. We need all parents to update your address and contact information in Infinite Campus. If you currently have the Parent Portal, you can do that by clicking Annual Verification. If you do not have Parent Portal, you can contact Shenita Seidu at 678 676 6326. Please see instructions in English and Spanish below.

As you are aware, we have had struggles with having enough bus drivers in our district. I wanted to make you aware, if you are not, that we have an app that assists with bus times and route information. Please see the QR code below or enter the download information. There are also step-by-step instructions on how to set the app up attached below.

Our current average daily attendance rate is 86.86%. While that may seem good, it still means we are averaging 131 absences each day! Almost 40% of our students are moderate to extreme chronically absent. Your students cannot be successful if they do not come to school.

• Any student arriving after 8:30 MUST be signed in by a parent/guardian. If a student arrives late with no parent/guardian, we will attempt to call the parent. We will do this only two times. After the second time the student arrives late after 8:30, we will ask the parent for proof of residence. The parent will have one week to submit the proof of residence. Failure to submit the proof of residence will result in withdrawal.
• We will do a tardy table for every period. Once students accumulate 7 tardies, they will be assigned In School Suspension or Saturday School (parent's choice).
• All students who have 6 or more absences will receive a 6-Day Notification letter and a referral to the school social worker.
• No student will be allowed to leave campus with anyone not on the contact list within Infinite Campus. This is why annual verification is important to complete. Please update your emergency contacts with Infinite Campus by completing Annual Verification.
• Please send excuse notes to school if your student is absent.

Volume 4: Issue 8

Email: michael_costa@dekalbschoolsga.org
Website: http://www.stonemountainhs.dekalb.k12.ga.us/
Location: 4555 Central Drive, Stone Mountain, GA, USA
Phone: 678.676.6303
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100070311425418
Twitter: @principal_costa