Stallion Stampede

Dear Stallion Families,

I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to all of our parents and families for your incredible generosity during the APEX fundraiser. I am thrilled to share that we raised over $45,000 for our school! Your support will make a lasting impact, allowing us to continue providing enriching opportunities and resources for our students. October was a busy month full of new learning and growth, as our students embraced new challenges and experiences in the classroom. We truly appreciate your commitment to making Stetson Hills a great place to learn and grow. Thank you for being such an important part of our Stallion family!

With Stallion Pride,

Brittany Dyer-Hurdon
Principal

Stetson Hills received their A rating from the Arizona Department of Education last week! Huge shout out to these amazing educators!

Congratulations to our softball team! They are the DVUSD 3A Division Runner-Ups! They fought hard in the championship and played a great game. We are proud of you ladies!

Please join us to celebrate our Veterans at our annual Veteran's Day Assembly on Friday, November 8th at 9:15 AM.

Are you or someone in your family a Veteran? We would like to invite you to join our celebration. Please fill out this FORM and let us know if you are able to attend! Refreshments will be provided to Veterans and their immediate family following the assembly.

• Deadline to Vote Early In-Person - November 1, 2024

• Election day - November 5, 2024

Regional Election Meetings

Regional election meetings have been scheduled to provide information about the upcoming M&O Override and Bond elections this November 5, 2024. Community members are invited to attend the meeting at 6:00 PM. These will be the same meetings repeated, so you can attend any of the meetings below).

• BCHS: Monday, September 9, 2024 Performing Arts Center

• DVHS: Tuesday, September 17, 2024 Performing Arts Center

• SDOHS: Monday, September 23, 2024 Performing Arts Center

• MRHS: Wednesday, September 25, 2024 Performing Arts Center

• BGHS: Thursday, September 26, 2024 Performing Arts Center

The following dates are 2:00 release:

November 1

November 8

November 22

No School November 11

Thanksgiving Break November 25-29 (No School)

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. Teachers will work in both grade level teams and with content area teams across 5 other schools to analyze intervention data, adjusting small groups for re-teaching and remediation of skills, and collaborating on effective instructional strategies.

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!

November 6 - Future Freshman Night at OC

November 8 - Veterans Day Assembly 9:15 AM

November 11 - Veterans Day Observed - No School

November 12 - PTSA General Meeting in Stetson Library @ 3:45

November 21 - 5th/6th Band Concert 5:30 PM

November 25-29 - Thanksgiving Break - No School

Wow, can you believe how fast October has flown by? The holiday season is just around the corner! We had such a wonderful time at Grandparents Night on October 25th. It was heartwarming to see our Stallions having a blast with their grandparents! Exciting news: our APEX Leadership Fundraiser was a huge success, raising over $45,000! The PTSA has decided to use some of that money for a fantastic new math and ELA program called IXL. We're also looking to spruce up some of the tables and benches around the school.

We’re gearing up for our next PTSA meeting on November 12th, where we’ll chat about even more ways to use these funds. We’d love to hear your ideas, so come join us! Your input is always appreciated!

Click below to read the full PTSA Newsletter for November!

The Stetson Hills PTA knows that a strong partnership among our families, school leaders and community members is important to the success of our students and school. That’s why we are participating in the National PTA School of Excellence program, which grows partnerships between PTAs and schools to enrich the educational experience and overall well-being of all students. The first step of this process is getting parent feedback. If you could take 5 minutes and fill out the survey it would be greatly appreciated!

Survey Link: https://forms.gle/VE5Toxk9VHsSeNJw5

Thank you so much for your help in keeping our parking lot running smoothly both before and after school!

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.

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)

Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to see upcoming events, pictures, and things going on at school!

Facebook picture below.

Instagram @ StetsonHillsSchool