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Deer Canyon Echoes
May 17, 2024
To Do
- Read the minutes from the May 15 DCPSO meeting.
- New Student Enrollment is open.
- Order DCES Spirit Wear.
Save the Date
May
- 5/20 to 5/22 - CAASPP ELA testing for 3rd-5th graders
- 5/23 - Volunteer Tea @1:45 pm
- 5/23 - Moana Mini-Musical @ 6 pm
- 5/23 - PUSD Safety Summit: Student Wellness & Mental Health, District Office, @6:30 pm
- 5/27 - Memorial Day (no school)
- 5/28 - Choir Concert @ 6 pm
- 5/29 - Band Concert @ 6:30 pm
- 5/31 - FUNky Friday @ 9 am
- 5/31 - Family Fun Night
June
- 6/4 - Graduating Senior Walk @ 2:50pm
- 6/4 - DC Dining @ Urban Thai and Baskin Robbins
- 6/5 - 5th Grade Promotion @ 9 am
- 6/6 - Kickball Game (last student day of school year)
Principal's Message 📚
Good evening, Deer Canyon Families!
Starting off our week of math CAASPP testing for 3rd-5th grade students brought a wonderful treat: Love on a Leash visitors! Offering all students the opportunity for a calming, therapeutic pup pet turned out to be an exciting, jump-for-joy afternoon. I’ve since had three separate impromptu student meetings, fielding requests for more Love on a Leash visits. 🦮
Our CAASPP testers remained hardworking and motivated through their assessments, and we wrapped up our week with a "Finding Nemo" performance, 4th/5th grade walking field trip to Westview, and an all-school Movie Night! I simply revel in the joyous opportunities to bring my family to campus and enjoy time together as a community. Thank you to the PSO and our generous parent volunteers for hosting another great community event!
Next week, we wrap up CAASPP testing for 3rd-5th graders with our English Language Arts assessments Monday through Wednesday.
As you may be aware, May is National Mental Health Awareness Month. The final PUSD Safety Summit for the 2023-24 school year will be hosted this Thursday, May 23, from 6:30 to 8 pm in the District Office Community Room and will focus on the topic of Student Wellness & Mental Health. If you are interested, please join me and members of our Safety Committee at this event. The program will also be live streamed on the PUSD Board of Education YouTube channel. Panelists will include mental wellness experts from SDCOE, Heather Nemour and Tami Johnson, the WVHS Mental Wellness & Connections Committee Chair, a Mending Matters Clinical Supervisor and student representatives. It is never too early to learn about ways to talk about and support your child’s mental health.
I look forward to my time with our two separate Principal of the Day students! If you haven’t yet taken a peek at the DCPSO Priceless Items Auction, there's still time to bid (until 8:30 pm tonight!). Check out your chance to donate toward a special and unique experience for your student (or yourself!): Principal for the Day, Custodian for the Day, Librarian for the Day, Promotion seats, and more!
Volunteer Appreciation
You celebrated staff last week, now it’s our turn to celebrate YOU! This Thursday at 1:45pm, staff looks forward to celebrating all of the Deer Canyon parent and guardian volunteers who have dedicated their time, treasure, or talent for the benefit of our school this year. Please see the information below to RSVP — all volunteers are welcome and encouraged to attend so we can recognize all that you do!
Counseling Office Update
As you may know, Mrs. MacDougall is now out on maternity leave. We are fortunate to have Aislinn Seibel, school counseling substitute, with us on campus to support students through the remainder of the school year. If you or your student are in need of support, Ms. Seibel can be reached at aseibel@powayusd.com.
Families of students served through Special Education
Community is important to us here at Deer Canyon and our parent ambassadors want to connect with you on whatever level you need: general camaraderie, answering questions, or sharing their own experiences. Please do not hesitate to reach out to the PUSD parent ambassadors with students at Deer Canyon, Michael Matsuda and Stacy Zhang, using THIS FORM.
Have a wonderful weekend, Deer Canyon!
Katie Bendix
Principal
Updates from the PSO
Deer Dash Thank You!
Ms. Bendix sent out a quick thank you last week, but the DCPSO couldn’t help but thank all the volunteers again for all of their efforts in making the Deer Dash a success this year! We appreciate you so much!
Special thanks to: Westview Ambassadors, ASB, Cheerleaders and Football Players for making this event extra spirited and unforgettable for our students. You really do make these events unique and special. Huge shout out to Ms. Bendix, Malia S., Michelle B., Maha E., Kristen T., Trey U., Amit D., and Eve L. for the huge team effort in planning the day and making it come to life in such a fun and memorable way!
Thank you to the teachers who made the Funky Friday teaser so awesome and hilarious! Mrs. Friedman, Miss Taylor, Mrs. Quinn, Mrs. Welty, Mrs. Katsiapis, you rock! And a final shout out to all the parents who helped out around the track and field in so many ways: Heather F., Heather H., Sena G. Charlton T., Maria P., Jerome W., Julie I., Shino M., Melissa D., Llewelyn S., Madina S., Phoebe C., Melody Y., Jade L., Cathy P., Cara W., Darleen R., Cassandra T., Gigi B., Lauren S., Tiele H., Stacy Z., Ashley D., Erin S., Thao P., Alice L., Roxana W., Vickie M., Maha E., Minal T., and Chunyuan F.
We didn’t have photographers onsite this year, but some of us did the best we could with photos. Please check out some of the fun and feel free to upload photos of your own for others to enjoy! Until next year!
- Melissa Davis, DCPSO, VP, Fundraising
Upcoming Events
Movie Night (Tonight!) and Priceless Items Auction
There's still time to bid on items for the DCES Priceless Auction!
Bidding items include:
- Principal/Counselor/Librarian/ESS Supervisor for the Day
- VIP Parking Spot (family and staff)
- Front row seats (5th grade promotion, Talent Show, Choir Concert)
and more!
DCES Volunteer Appreciation Tea: May 23
Have you volunteered in any capacity at Deer Canyon this school year? Please join us for an afternoon of treats and gratitude, in celebration of our incredible DC volunteers!
Thursday, May 23, at 1:45 pm
Deer Canyon Library
So we can best prepare to celebrate you, please RSVP here: Volunteer Appreciation 2024 RSVP
*Childcare is available for Deer Canyon students
Family Fun Night: May 31
Mark your calendars: Family Fun Night is coming soon! Our highly anticipated, annual school event will be Friday, May 31, from 5 to 8 pm.
Admission is $5 and tickets can be purchased at the gate the day of the event. Admission will include carnival games and inflatables. Food trucks will be at the event and available for purchases.
Look out for more details coming soon!
Important Updates
Interested in Science Olympiad?
Attention incoming 4th and 5th grade parents (2024-25):
We're working to start Science Olympiad at Deer Canyon and would like to assess interest. Please take a minute to answer this survey, which will help us in planning.
Science Olympiad is designed to increase a student’s interest in STEM fields and provide recognition for outstanding achievement in team events. Science topics include earth science, biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering.
ESS Information: Summer Program and 2024-25 School Year
ESS Summer Program​​​
DC ESS Summer sign ups are closed. Families that successfully registered in ProCare will receive summer information by June. This is our last summer update for this school year. Further information will be sent to summer families directly.
Families Interested in ESS for the 2024-25 School Year
New families will not be able to fill out the interest list until the registration packet has been accepted by the school and parents receive their parent account login information from IT. CLICK HERE TO FILL OUT INTEREST FORM
Please take note of important updates to the lottery draw timeline for the 2024-25 School Year.
We anticipate that interest in the ESS program will greatly exceed enrollment capacity, resulting in many families being placed on a waitlist.
Families that need alternate options for childcare can visit the San Diego County Centralized Eligibility List.
24-25 ESS Enrollment Timeline:
- Now - May 31: ESS Interest Application open (link above)
- June 1 - 14: ESS Interest Application closed for maintenance
- June 7: Lottery draw for ALL grades
- June 10 - 14: Families will be notified whether their child(ren) have been accepted to register for the program or if placed on a waitlist.
- June 17: ESS Interest Application will re-open
- June 24 - July 8: Families will need to complete registration in ProCare. Once notified of acceptance into the program for the 2024-25 school year, official ESS enrollment links will be emailed to families.
- Families MUST complete the online registration by Monday, July 8.
- Failure to complete the online registration by the date will forfeit your spot.
- August 5: Second Chance Draw, if space permits (by site)
Show Your School Spirit with DCES Spirit Wear
Make Friday mornings a little easier by ordering Spirit Wear!
Our Spirit Wear shop is open and taking orders. Choose from a variety of options: tie-dye T-shirts (perfect for FUNky Fridays), cartoon T-shirts (perfect for kids — and adults!), school logo T-shirts, hoodies (perfect for the cold weather), zip-up jackets and more.
Orders are placed online and can be delivered to DCES for free.
Questions: Please contact Razan Lin rbattikha@gmail.com