Well, here we are already... Fall! (Although the temperature feels like summer!).

I wanted to thank all of our families for their enormous amount of patience and understanding at dismissal. We are dismissing 700 students through three exit doors, and safety is always our first priority. We have shifted the dismissal process from last year, as we received our school yard back! Grades K, 1 and 2.. thank you for waiting those few extra minutes to ensure your teachers hand to hand dismiss to you, or whoever you have stated on the emergency card. These first few weeks, our teachers are still learning who all the guardians are. As you have seen, it gets faster, as we are all familiar with each other.

For grades 3, 4, and 5 in the front of the building, thank you! We are dismissing over 300 students through the front gate, alongside bus pickup, YMCA transitioning their group out, and staff exiting. You have been rockstars!!

This week, the second wave of GRYC begins. This does thin out the number of students at dismissal.

This week has some important information, one of the most important is the Before School and Afterschool Applications for the PS 88Q programs. It is its own newsletter! Make sure you get your applications in. Once rosters are created, the permission slips will go home. Programs start in October.

Have a great week, and I will see you Tuesday night at our school for the District 24 CEC Meeting (6pm) and Thursday evening for our PTA meeting (6pm). Bring the kiddos Thursday, as we have a great activity planned for them!

The CEC24 meeting will be held in-person at PS 88Q and zoom.

You are invited to a Zoom meeting.

When: Sep 24, 2024 06:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Register in advance for this meeting:

https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUvce2rqz4tGd0JEhB7P9a67dvCED94T_oa

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

We are proud to have such a strong partnership with our families, and our Parent Teacher Association is a major part of that relationship. During the year, our PTA will hold meetings as well as opportunities for families to become involved.

It is hard to believe that we are already talking about this, but our Grade 5 students will begin applying for their next chapter, next month. Key dates:

2024-2025 Middle School Admissions Dates:

• October 9: Middle School application opens!
• November 8:Deadline to register to test for Mark Twain I.S. 239 and District 21 Talent Tests.
• December 13: Middle School application closes.

We will be hosting both an in person and virtual meeting regarding applications and the process the second week in October.

NYC Public Schools is Boldly Reimagining Multilingualism in NYC Public Schools by developing a community-informed strategy for:

• Welcoming and Inclusive Schools
• Pathways to Multilingualism
• Preparing Global Leaders

Apply to be on the Council!

Please complete this form(Open external link) by September 20 to apply to be on the council. You can also complete it to recommend an organization or person for the council. We will review applications and recommendations over the next several weeks.

We are excited to launch a new resource for our families, PS 88Q PARENT UNIVERSITY. This site is a live, and ever updating site with so many resources as well as information for our families. One of our Chancellors Priorities, Priority 5 is "All districts and schools are more inclusive and responsive for parents and families, including having more families choose NYC Public Schools". As a parent myself, I know how important it is to not only know and understand what is going on, but would like to know how I could get involved. This begins with open communication, and information. Check out the new site, PS 88Q Parent University. It aligns to all our communication (newsletters, emails) so it is a great place to find anything that is shared.

Each school year, all of our families complete the Family Income Survey. You may wonder why it is so important. When all of our families complete the form, this helps us qualify for Title I funding. Title I funding is a huge asset to our school. For example, this school year, Title I funding is approximately $450,000. This funding helps all students, through staffing, extra-curricular programs, and supplies. Please complete the form online to ensure that our funding remains.

Each week the newsletter is shared many ways:

• Direct email
• Through the NYCPS Messenger App
• On the website
• On Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/ps88_q/)
• On Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/P.S.88QPTA)
• From teacher Dojo

If you would like to receive it via email, and are not currently receiving at your email, please click below

The State of Our Schools

Dear Families and Staff,

Earlier this week I delivered our annual State of Our Schools address, which was an opportunity to share progress, priorities, and goals for New York City Public Schools (NYCPS). I focused on the theme of transformation, as well as the ways in which a transformative education can empower our children to lead and succeed in a complex world.

I encourage you to watch the full speech here, along with the fantastic opening performance by students at the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts High School. For a quick recap, here are just a few highlights from the event:

• NYC Reads and NYC Solves: We’ve expanded NYC Reads to every elementary and early childhood classroom citywide and launched NYC Solves in over 400 high schools and approximately 100 middle schools. All in all, over half a million students will be impacted by NYC Reads and NYC Solves this year.
• College and Career Pathways: This year we've expanded our FutureReadyNYC initiative to include two new industry focus areas, social work and decarbonization. We are also thrilled that Mount Sinai Health System will be our newest FutureReadyNYC anchor partner!
• Virtual Learning: Thanks to updated labor agreements, our middle and high schools now have flexibility to offer virtual coursework outside of typical school hours. At the over 100 high schools that have opted-in this year, students can take parts of their courseload virtually, including after school and even on the weekends.
• HBCU Early College Prep: Next fall, in Southeast Queens, we will open HBCU Early College Prep, a groundbreaking new high school in partnership with Delaware State University, where students will have the opportunity to earn an associate's degree, for free, while also being immersed in the history and culture of HBCUs across the country.
• Artificial Intelligence: We are determined to be at the cutting edge of this technology, and to that end, I will be convening some of the brightest minds across the technology landscape to join my Chancellor’s AI Advisory Council next month. I’m eager for all of us at NYCPS to learn from their expertise.

For details on these announcements and other exciting news, please feel free to read the full speech. I’m looking forward to seeing all this work unfold over the coming months as we provide a transformative educational experience for our children.

Soaring high,

David C. Banks

Chancellor