Dorothy C. York Innovation Academy

• August 28: School Picture Day in uniform; Spirit Night at Salty Shamrock, 4-9pm
• August 29: Germany & Switzerland trip information meeting, virtual @ 6pm * for MYP families only
• August 30: College Colors/Apparel Day *If not in collegiate clothing, students must be in uniform/Friday spirit wear as it is not a "free dress" day.
• September 2: Labor Day - No School
• September 11: Patriot Day- Students may wear patriotic clothing *If not in patriotic clothing, students must be in uniform as it is not a "free dress" day.
• September 12: Bucs Flag Football Camp for Grades 3-5 (run through York's PE department)
• September 16: "Start with Hello" Week (more info to come from York's counselors)

🎉Hispanic Heritage Month: September 15-October 15 🎉

Do you follow us on Twitter (X) for updates?

Check us out @HCPS_YorkMagnet

We had a great turnout for our first General Meeting of the year! Thank you to those who attended in person and virtually online.

We were able to approve our initial 2024-2025 budget and announce our board members and committee chairs!

• Vice President MYP - Jessica Damiani
• Fun Run Chair - Nicole Taggart
• Spirit Nights Chair - Nicole Taggart
• Spring Carnival Chair - Rhianna Germany
• Membership Chair - Rebecca Morea
• Advocacy Chairs - Sharae Grubbs & Sarah Jacobs
• Community Partners Chair - Jared McYeo
• Social Media & Website Chairs - Rebecca Morea & Shannon Bunting

Thank you to all who expressed interest! The chairs will be reaching out soon to coordinate events for the year, but there’s still time to sign up for a committee:

https://forms.gle/m3jqCSRsiF6ZGDyo7

🚨Membership Update! 🚨

We are currently at 271 members! Our goal is 400! Don’t forget to sign up your MYP student(s)!

Thank you to each and every one of you who has already signed up!

https://flpta-dyia.givebacks.com/store

🎉🍪🏆 WINNERS FOR GRADE LEVEL MEMBERSHIP CONTEST!

We will be in contact with teachers from Access and Kindergarten to schedule their cookie parties!

If you would like to become a Community Partner or join the PTSA please take a look at the opportunities we have:

https://flpta-dyia.givebacks.com/store?limit=21&live=true

Parents, Guardians, and Families,

As you have probably heard, Hillsborough County Public Schools has updated to a new Student Information System (SIS) called Synergy. We understand that new parent accounts, logins, and new student sign-in/out procedures are a lot of changes, and we are here to support you.

Click the links below for information on the electronic platforms/apps that HCPS uses. Activation letters were sent home this week.

Parent Apps - Questions and Answers

https://sway.cloud.microsoft/Y0ouV3V6zXC5pKKN?ref=Link

Arrivals:

PYP (Primary Years Program) students arriving between 7:40-7:55am should report to the cafeteria to allow for teacher contracted planning time. The Student Services Team will be supervising students as they eat and assisting them as they move into classrooms. Arrivals after 7:55am can go to the cafeteria for breakfast OR go directly to class. MYP students can get breakfast from the carts located in the courtyard and will remain there until the 8:00am bell rings to enter the building.

Students are only to be dropped off in the lane closest to York's office sidewalk. For our students' safety, PLEASE DO NOT ALLOW STUDENTS TO EXIT CAR FROM THE 2nd LANE or from parking spots in front of the school as those locations require them to cross moving traffic in lane 1.

Dismissal:

It is important for cars to stay in their designated lane and not switch as it disrupts the dismissal process. Students are called to designated cones based on the order of names taken. Please be sure to enter our line by 3:15pm while our staff is still out taking names for a quicker dismissal process. If you arrive after the car line has ended, please park and proceed to the office with your driver's license.

Cell phones must be stored in bookbags at all times during class. Students should be not using phones during hallway transitions or in the restrooms. Students in the MYP (Middle Years Program) may use phones during the last 15 minutes of lunch as a privilege. If you need to contact your student during the school day, please call the front office and we will connect you with your child.

The following York policies can be found on York's website linked below:

Dorothy C. York Innovation Academy / Homepage (hillsboroughschools.org)

• Academic Integrity Policy
• Assessment Policy
• Inclusion Policy
• Language Policy
• Admissions Policy

*Please note: Jackets are not to be worn indoors during class. Sweaters and sweatshirts may be worn in class but must be solid color (school colors: red, navy, gray, or black.) Logos should be no longer than a pinky finger length.

Microsoft Forms (office.com)

Scan the QR code for more details about Mr. Lopez's FCA club. Open to PYP and MYP students.

Some MYP student schedules may still be changing as York balances classes based upon enrollment and academic needs. Thank you for your flexibility.

At York, the Middle School IB "Service as Action" expectation is that students:

• Strive to become caring members of the community
• Demonstrate a personal commitment to service
• Act to make a positive difference in the lives of others
• Make connections between classroom learning and the local or global community

6th grade: 5 hours

7th grade: 7 hours

8th grade: 10 hours

*To find more information on the required hours, types of service, and the reporting form, please visit York's website and click on the "Learn More About IB at York" button, then view "Service as Action" documents.

Dorothy C. York Innovation Academy / Homepage (hillsboroughschools.org)

• 9/3/24 at Shields
• 9/10/24 at Eisenhower
• 9/17/24 at Rogers
• 9/24/25 HOME against Collins
• 10/1/24 HOME against Barrington

Girls play at 6:00pm followed by the Boys at 7:00pm.

Entrance fee of $5

Purchase tickets online: Athletics / Overview (hillsboroughschools.org)

Upcoming: Volleyball tryouts will be October 3rd-5th from 3pm-4:30pm.

Join us for a virtual meeting on August 29 at 6pm to learn more about the summer 2025 Germany & Switzerland MYP trip! Scan QR code for details.

Connect with Mrs. Littlejohn using the link below:

https://forms.office.com/r/ExCMAG5W0F

York is currently an International Baccalaureate Candidate School* working towards authorization to become an IB World School. To gain insight about the IB framework and expectations of students at York, please check out the linked Padlet. It can also be found by visiting our school website and clicking "Learn more about IB at York."

International Baccalaureate Candidate School (padlet.com)

Dorothy C. York Innovation Academy is a Candidate School* for the Primary Years Programme and Middle Years Programme. This school is pursuing authorization as an IB World School. These are schools that share a common philosophy—a commitment to high quality, challenging, international education that Dorothy C. York Innovation Academy believes is important for our students. Only schools authorized by the IB Organization can offer any of its four academic programmes: the Primary Years Programme (PYP), the Middle Years Programme (MYP), the Diploma Programme, or the Career-related Programme (CP). Candidate status gives no guarantee that authorization will be granted. For further information about the IB and its programmes, visit www.ibo.org

As members of York's IB community, we honor the following values to be: Balanced, Reflective, Inquirers, Communicators, Knowledgeable, Caring, Principled, Open-Minded, Risk-Takers, & Thinkers

We had a great week 2 in the PYP PE world here at York. While Coach B started the Monique Burr Health Safety Matters curriculum, the rest of the PYP crew had their classes working on locomotor skills. If you’d like to, ask your students to show you how to do the 8 locomotor skills (run, walk, skip, gallop, slide, leap, hop, and jump) and then get out there and do the skills with them.

Next week, some of our students will be starting to learn and work on jump rope skills. Throwing and catching skills will also be on the agenda for others. Always try to encourage your students to get more physical activity and, if you can, something as simple as going for a walk with them would be great for your health, their health, and it will give you more time to spend with them.

Click here to see the PE sway

A special "CONGRATULATIONS!!" to Mrs. Hilliker (3rd grade teacher) for being selected as the Newspapers in Education Teacher of the Year Runner-up. She is an amazing educator and we are happy to see her being recognized in the community! Way to go, Mrs. Hilliker! 🌟

Mrs. Varnadoe's 2nd grade students were inquirers as they learned all about scientists and discovered the tools that they use.

Mrs. Lee and Mrs. Mann's 5th grade classes worked on developing positive interpersonal relationships through a "connections" activity with string.

Mrs. Gangis and Mrs. Hilliker's students activated their critical and creative thinking with STEM bins and a black light party math rotation!

Mrs. Lankford’s Pre-K Class had a great, first week exchanging friendship bracelets, exploring social centers, and enjoying the playground! Our youngest Admirals expressed their CARING nature with Miss Fanny Frog! Hugging shows how we can be kind and compassionate towards our friends.

Ms. Cawood’s Pre-K class has been practicing being scientists and mathematicians by exploring with magnifying glasses and math tools this week!

Mrs. Gangis and Mrs. Hillikers class used their critical thinking skills as they participated in an "Energy Audit" and learned about energy conservation! ♻️

Kindergarteners in Mrs. Jinks’ class read about how we can fill our own invisible bucket and how we can fill others buckets by being kind and caring!

Mrs. Kudia’s 4th grade students reflected on learning and their role as an IB student this week as they wrote their Friday class newsletter for parents. Her class also demonstrated being “knowledgeable” as they practiced the science processing skills “communicating” and “inferring” about our Lego Robotics.

PYP Art News: This week our PYP artists have started learning about and creating self portraits. These will be displayed as a collaborative collage featuring all PYP students and are a great connection to our "Who We Are" IB units! ❤️🎨

Many guardians of Admirals have reached out to see how they can support the campus. Below are some ideas:

• Volunteer in our Media Center. Fill out the required HCPS form here: Volunteer Services / Overview (hillsboroughschools.org) and email valerie.service@hcps.net to let her know you'd like to help out!
• Donate any new or used Lego or Duplo blocks
• Donate any new or gently used uniform clothing
• Visit DonorsChoose.org and search "Dorothy C. York" and support a classroom of your choice
• Apply to be a substitute at Hillsborough County Public Schools (kellyeducationalstaffing.us)
• Visit our PTSA page at Dorothy C. York Innovation Academy PTSA - Home | Facebook

A Hillsborough County Magnet School

Website: hillsboroughschools.org/york
Location: 5995 Covington Garden Drive, Apollo Beach, FL, USA
Phone: 813-533-2400
Twitter: @HCPS_YorkMagnet