
Stallion Stampede

Dear Stallion Families,
We kicked off second semester with enthusiasm as students returned to campus ready to learn, grow, and shine! Just in case you missed it, we are proud to announce that Stetson Hills was awarded a grant from the Arizona Department of Education, which allows us to staff School Safety Officers on campus. This funding reflects our commitment to ensuring the safety and well-being of every student, and we’re excited about the positive impact this will have on our school community.
Looking ahead, we invite you to join our teachers the week of February 10th for parent-teacher conferences. This is a valuable opportunity to connect with your child’s teacher and celebrate their progress while setting goals for the rest of the year. Your partnership is vital to their success, and we can’t wait to collaborate with you!
Thank you for your continued support and for being such an integral part of the Stetson Hills community. Let’s keep glowing together!
With Stallion Pride,
Brittany Dyer-Hurdon
Principal
Officer Steve Jewell (Mondays)
Officer Steve Reed (Tues-Thurs)
Sgt Kelly Chavez (Fridays)
Early Release Dates for February
February 7
February 21
February 28
Half Day Releases for Conferences - February 13 and February 14
No School February 17 - President's Day
What are teachers doing during early release times??
This month during early release Fridays, staff members will participate in collaborative team work through the PLC process, as well as professional development. Teachers will work in both grade level teams and with content area teams across 5 other schools to discuss upcoming benchmark assessment data and determine instructional strategies for intervention groups. During professional development, teachers will be focusing on Tier 2 behavior processes on campus, refining campus wide processes for student support with behavior.
State Testing is Coming Soon
State testing is coming soon! Below you will find the dates of testing for each grade level, 3rd through 8th grade. Please try not to schedule appointments or planned absences during this time. If appointments are necessary, afternoon times are preferrable, as most testing occurs in the morning each day. On testing days, please make sure your child gets a good night's sleep, eats a healthy breakfast, and is to school on time. If a student is too late to school, they may be held in the office if the testing session has already begun in their classroom. We appreciate your help in this matter in order to ensure all of our students are tested in a timely manner.
Please note our campus will be closed to all visitors and volunteers for the duration of testing, as well as for make-up testing sessions. Closed campus will begin upon our return from Spring Break.
March 26, 27, 28 - 3rd Grade Oral Reading Fluency
April 1 - Grades 3-8 Writing
April 2, 3, 4 - Grades 5 and 8 Science
April 7 - Grades 3-8 ELA Part 1
April 8 - Grades 3-8 ELA Part 2
April 9 - Grades 3-8 Math Part 1
April 10 - Grades 3-8 Math Part 2
Save the Date! (Formerly Evening of the Arts)
Parent Teacher Conferences
Parent Teacher Conferences are coming the week of February 10th! Please see classroom teacher communication about signing up for a conference. We hope to see you there!
Tax Credit Information
Your school tax credit donations can provide DVUSD students with opportunities to participate in after-school and summer programs, field trips, music, and athletic programs or any other extracurricular activity! The Arizona tax credit program (A.R.S. 43-1089.01) allows a tax credit of up to $200 for individuals and $400 for married couples, filing jointly, in support of extracurricular activities. The tax credit reduces your tax burden to the state of Arizona, dollar for dollar.
For more information on how to make a tax credit donation, click HERE.
January PACE Winners
Keeping the PACE: the Stallion Way!
Check out the PACE Newsletter: https://secure.smore.com/n/xkba2
PACE is our school-wide Behavior System at Stetson Hills. To create a culture that inspire minds, cultivates success, and fosters excellence, Stetson’s mission, we expect all staff and students to be responsible, respectful and safe. When students exhibit these characteristics they are given a PACE ticket and are then placed into a weekly drawing to win a visit to the Friday PACE Cart for a prize and recognition in the PACE Smore link on the website. Additionally we have PACE prizes given quarterly, names drawn from the tickets the teacher accumulate as the year progresses. Click this link to see the matrix with our behavior expectations in more detail.
Keep the Pace, the Stallion Way - Be responsible, Be respectful, Be safe!
Mark Your Calendar - Upcoming Events
February 4 & 5 - Stetson A+ School of Excellence Site Visit
February 11 - PTSA General Meeting - 3:45 in Stetson Library
February 11 - Governing Board Meeting 7PM
February 12 - Spring Picture Day
February 13/14 - 12:05 Release for Conferences
February 17 - No School - President's Day
February 25 - Governing Board Meeting 7PM
February Lunch Menu
PTSA Updates
January has flown by, and soon we’ll celebrate another Chiefs Super Bowl win and Valentine’s Day! Our recent Mom & Bowl event at Bowlero was a tremendous success, with over 175 people enjoying a delightful afternoon of strikes and laughter together. As life races by, it’s crucial to cherish these moments of connection and joy. We look forward to seeing everyone at the Stallion Showcase in March aka Evening of the Arts, where Stetson Hills PTSA will offer food trucks, raffles, and a silent auction, along with a variety of engaging activities presented by Stetson's amazing bands, choirs and students. Let’s continue to inspire one another and create lasting memories!
Click below to read the full PTSA Newsletter for February!
Parking Lot
A few key reminders:
- For pick up and drop off, you may choose to utilize the blue lane OR you may park in a designated parking space and walk your child across the cross walk. Please do NOT park on the blue line, as this is a moving lane only.
- Reminder that you may not drop off your children in the street in the school zone. The buses are not legally allowed to pass you and it blocks up traffic on the road if you are dropping off within the school zone. Please pick a side street or the front parking lot to drop your children off at instead.
- Once you pick up your child(ren), please either pull all the way forward to merge or pull completely into the other lane to merge. If you cannot fit the entire length of your car into the other lane, please do not block traffic by sitting in both lanes. Please pull all the way up and then merge so that traffic can continue to flow behind you.
- Pull ALL the way forward on the blue line. We will help your students find their car if you are at the top of the line. Your student will walk down to your car. Please do not stop at the ramada for drop off or pick up.
- Please put away your cell phones when entering our parking lot.
- Grades 1-8 parents, please do not enter the parking lot until 3:25. This helps our community to be able to access their homes by not blocking Stetson Hills Loop prior to dismissal.
- School zones are NO passing zones and you may not park in the bike lane within the school zone.
Bullying or Peer Conflict?
WHAT IS NOT BULLYING? Adults must realize that not every unkind thing a child does constitutes bullying. For example:
Being left out is not always bullying. It’s natural for kids to have a select group of friends. Although they should be kind towards everyone, it’s unrealistic to expect them to be close friends with every child they know, and be invited to every function or event.
Experiencing conflict is not bullying. Learning to deal with conflict is a normal part of growing up. The key is for children to learn how to solve their problems peacefully and respectfully.
Not playing fair is not bullying. Wanting a game to be played a certain way is not bullying. Children understand the concept of sharing, and should take turns being in charge of the game.
When observing the unkind behaviors your child experiences, be sure to label them correctly. This will help you know how to handle the situation appropriately so that your child can learn and grow from it.
(Ref. Policy JICK, JICK-R, JICK-EA, JICK-EB)
Bullying may occur when a student or group of students engages in any form of behavior that includes such acts as intimidation and/or harassment that:
has the effect of physically harming a student, damaging a student’s property, or placing a student in reasonable fear of harm or damage to property,
is sufficiently severe, persistent or pervasive that the action, behavior, or threat creates an intimidating, threatening, or abusive environment,
occurs when there is a real or perceived imbalance of power or strength, or
may constitute a violation of law
SRR handbook 2023-2024 (pages 2-4)
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Forgotten Items
Water
Water Filling Stations & Drinking Fountains Available