Parent Resources |
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Who do I call at DPS?
- Main Switchboard 919-560-2000
- Athletics 919-560-3742
- Before & After School Programs 919-560-3816
- Career & Technical Education 919-560-3753
- Child Nutrition Services 919-560-2370
- Curriculum & Instruction 919-560-9181
- ESL Registration Center 919-560-2510
- Exceptional Children’s Programs 919-560-3774
- Human Resources 919-560-3643
- Public Affairs 919-560-3652
- Student Assignment 919-560-2059
- Student Records 919-560-3708
- Student Services 919-560-2032
- Transportation 919-560-3821
- Volunteers 919-560-2156
Before Care Program
- Offered at DSA, Mon – Fri in Carr Building C125
- Visit the DPS site for downloadable brochures and forms or for online registration
- For further information, please contact Jarome Gripper in Community Education at 560-3816
Preparing for College
- Don't wait until Junior/Senior year to begin preparing for your student's college future
- There are many steps to take to get you ahead of the game
- Review this valuable resource provided by DSA Student Services
- Visit the What's new...? page for scheduled college visits, among other events.
- In addition, the most recent list of upcoming visits can also be found in the DSA Daily Announcements. To stay in the know, subscribe to the DSA daily announcements. Sign up here: https://forms.gle/Tpp4MmWcFRLy59DH7
Early Sign-Out
DSA sign out procedure:
Students who need to leave school before the end of the school day
(for medical appointments or family reasons) must bring a completed
Early Dismissal/Sign Out Permission Form to the Main Office upon arrival at school.
Con el fin de minimizar las interrupciones en la clase, la oficina principal necesita eliminar la práctica de llamar a las aulas a los estudiantes que van a salir temprano. Por lo tanto, los estudiantes que necesitan salir de la escuela antes del final de la jornada escolar (para las citas médicas o razones familiares) están obligados a entregar un formulario de autorización para salir temprano de la escuela. Los estudiantes deben traer la forma completa a la oficina principal al llegar a la escuela, notificándole a la oficina de la necesidad de salir temprano.
Permiso de Salida Temprana
Students who need to leave school before the end of the school day
(for medical appointments or family reasons) must bring a completed
Early Dismissal/Sign Out Permission Form to the Main Office upon arrival at school.
Con el fin de minimizar las interrupciones en la clase, la oficina principal necesita eliminar la práctica de llamar a las aulas a los estudiantes que van a salir temprano. Por lo tanto, los estudiantes que necesitan salir de la escuela antes del final de la jornada escolar (para las citas médicas o razones familiares) están obligados a entregar un formulario de autorización para salir temprano de la escuela. Los estudiantes deben traer la forma completa a la oficina principal al llegar a la escuela, notificándole a la oficina de la necesidad de salir temprano.
Permiso de Salida Temprana
10-Point Grading System
Read more about the new 10 point grading system
- The North Carolina State Board of Education has published a policy manual outlining standards to be incorporated into the electronically generated high school transcript.
- DPS has put together a document to help parents and students understand the new grading scale.
Here Comes the Bus
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I've seen the following app in action, and it's pretty neat. If your student rides the bus, I recommend you take a look for yourself.
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Here Comes the Bus® is a tool for parents that lets them track the location of their child’s school bus in real time using a smartphone, tablet device, or computer. Parents can see the location of their child’s bus on the Here Comes the Bus website on any device for no charge. Parents can now send their children to the bus stop at just the right time, avoiding missed buses or long waits in less-than-ideal conditions.
You can use the following link to install the new Here Comes the Bus app on your smart phone, tablet device, or computer: http://www.synoviasolutions.com/here-comes-the-bus/#HereComesTheBus
You'll need the Durham School of the Arts school code: 97034.
You can use the following link to install the new Here Comes the Bus app on your smart phone, tablet device, or computer: http://www.synoviasolutions.com/here-comes-the-bus/#HereComesTheBus
You'll need the Durham School of the Arts school code: 97034.
Article about changes to SAT: Test Preppers, Take Note: Free SAT Study Tools Could Signal Sea Change
Free online SAT and ACT prep and (more!) at www.march2success.com. You have to register for an account (and full disclosure, it's sponsored by the U.S. Army), but the site offers learning aids for more than just standardized tests. They offer study aids for STEM classes and social science classes (también en español). I encourage you to look at it with your student. Once you've registered and have logged in, you access the learning aids through the "My Account" tab at the top of the page.
Resources for middle school students from CFNC.org
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Parents of Middle Schoolers: Even though your child is still in middle school, it's already time to start planning for high school. Visit the CFNC.org website's pages on planning for high school for helpful information. Also, remind your children that their performance in middle school, particularly their grades and test scores in 8th grade, will determine which classes they'll be able to take in high school. DSA's system of prerequisites for math and science classes is quite rigid and comes as a surprise to many parents and students. If you would like more information, we suggest you contact your students guidance counselor (faculty contact information).
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What will it really cost to send your student to college? The College Board has created this Net Price Calculator to help you get a better estimate.
Remember to visit the DSA Student Services website for additional resources.
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Parent Portal How-To Guide Online
Here you’ll find the online guide “Parent Portal Guide: How-to for Parents” which addresses questions including:
• How to get started in the Parent Portal and where to find student grades and assignments,
• Setting up parent notifications including notification types, and
• Answers to accessibility issues.
Access the guide directly here:
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/homebase/resources/handouts/parent-portal-guide.pdf
Here you’ll find the online guide “Parent Portal Guide: How-to for Parents” which addresses questions including:
• How to get started in the Parent Portal and where to find student grades and assignments,
• Setting up parent notifications including notification types, and
• Answers to accessibility issues.
Access the guide directly here:
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/homebase/resources/handouts/parent-portal-guide.pdf
A parent who reads college entrance applications shares some resume-building ideas for the summer.
Volunteering - especially for a gig related to the student's field of interest; but any significant volunteering is good. The Mayor's Award is given for 100 hours of volunteering during the summer (or 50 hours during the school year). Go to Volunteer Center of Durham's website for more info. There are many different ways to volunteer. Ideas include: public library, dance/exercise instructor at a senior center, make sandwiches for meals-on-wheels, clean up Durham parks, scrap exchange store helper, soup kitchen helper, animal shelter helper, adopt-a grandparent at a senior center, etc. Visit The Volunteer Center's long list of local volunteer opportunities to find a good match for your likes and skill set.
Work - A real job--bagging groceries, working in a fast food place, child care, working at the mall--especially for more than 20 hours a week in the summer or 10 hours a week during the school year-- shows the student has had experience dealing with all kinds of issues with people, management, scheduling, etc. Summer jobs like being a life guard or camp counselor are other options for students looking to gain work experience. Don't know where to look for a summer job, try Indeed.com and search for "High School Summer" in "Durham, NC".
Any enrichment summer program- from programs you pay for like TIP's summer camps, Duke's Young Writer's Camp, Shodor Camps, etc.; to free opportunities such as Governor's School and Summer Ventures in Math and Science (must be nominated or apply in the fall of the previous year); to internships with professionals--whether they be in industry or at one of the universities or government like EPA or NIEHS. Sometimes the application windows are earlier than you would expect, and some of the programs while fantastic, are very costly. Financial aid may be available, but you've got to get the ball rolling as soon as possible. We're putting together a longer list of summer enrichment programs for the summer of 2016. Check back in the early winter for that information.
Entrepreneurism - You don't need to have lots of money to start your own project. Whether you want to volunteer or hope to get paid, big or small, be creative. Pick something you're passionate about and make it work. If at first you don't succeed, analyze why it didn't work and do it better the next year. The lessons you learn will continue to help you long after you've decided on a college.
Online courses - There are lots of resources for online learning that don't cost anything. Kahn Academy is familiar to most, but there are others for students of all ages. If there's a particular class you'd like to add to your official transcript, talk to your school counselor. You might be able to benefit from the North Carolina Virtual Public School courses. Florida Virtual School also offers accredited online classes, but they're not inexpensive. You should always talk it over with your school counselor to determine whether any credits earned can be added to your high school transcript. Even if you can't get official "credit" for your online learning, and you just take a class for enrichment, it still shows initiative and intellectual curiosity.
Read - For students who like to read, summer could be a great time to tackle something significant--like a survey of Russian literature (yikes!) or Southern authors, or a particular series, or a particular non-fiction subject, or a particular poet's work and bio. If that sounds like a chore, then just read! Read what you enjoy, and then consider challenging yourself. Try something new. The beauty of reading for pleasure is the ability to quit whenever you choose, so what have you got to lose? Pick up something by Dostoyevsky and see what all the fuss is about. Some very selective colleges require the submission of a reading list with the application. Most don't, but if the student is a big reader, then a supplemental reading list helps round the applicant out for the admissions officer.
Or just, learn a new skill or continue honing a current talent - a musical instrument, photography, painting, writing, dancing, pottery, cooking, baking, sign language, etc.
Volunteering - especially for a gig related to the student's field of interest; but any significant volunteering is good. The Mayor's Award is given for 100 hours of volunteering during the summer (or 50 hours during the school year). Go to Volunteer Center of Durham's website for more info. There are many different ways to volunteer. Ideas include: public library, dance/exercise instructor at a senior center, make sandwiches for meals-on-wheels, clean up Durham parks, scrap exchange store helper, soup kitchen helper, animal shelter helper, adopt-a grandparent at a senior center, etc. Visit The Volunteer Center's long list of local volunteer opportunities to find a good match for your likes and skill set.
Work - A real job--bagging groceries, working in a fast food place, child care, working at the mall--especially for more than 20 hours a week in the summer or 10 hours a week during the school year-- shows the student has had experience dealing with all kinds of issues with people, management, scheduling, etc. Summer jobs like being a life guard or camp counselor are other options for students looking to gain work experience. Don't know where to look for a summer job, try Indeed.com and search for "High School Summer" in "Durham, NC".
Any enrichment summer program- from programs you pay for like TIP's summer camps, Duke's Young Writer's Camp, Shodor Camps, etc.; to free opportunities such as Governor's School and Summer Ventures in Math and Science (must be nominated or apply in the fall of the previous year); to internships with professionals--whether they be in industry or at one of the universities or government like EPA or NIEHS. Sometimes the application windows are earlier than you would expect, and some of the programs while fantastic, are very costly. Financial aid may be available, but you've got to get the ball rolling as soon as possible. We're putting together a longer list of summer enrichment programs for the summer of 2016. Check back in the early winter for that information.
Entrepreneurism - You don't need to have lots of money to start your own project. Whether you want to volunteer or hope to get paid, big or small, be creative. Pick something you're passionate about and make it work. If at first you don't succeed, analyze why it didn't work and do it better the next year. The lessons you learn will continue to help you long after you've decided on a college.
Online courses - There are lots of resources for online learning that don't cost anything. Kahn Academy is familiar to most, but there are others for students of all ages. If there's a particular class you'd like to add to your official transcript, talk to your school counselor. You might be able to benefit from the North Carolina Virtual Public School courses. Florida Virtual School also offers accredited online classes, but they're not inexpensive. You should always talk it over with your school counselor to determine whether any credits earned can be added to your high school transcript. Even if you can't get official "credit" for your online learning, and you just take a class for enrichment, it still shows initiative and intellectual curiosity.
Read - For students who like to read, summer could be a great time to tackle something significant--like a survey of Russian literature (yikes!) or Southern authors, or a particular series, or a particular non-fiction subject, or a particular poet's work and bio. If that sounds like a chore, then just read! Read what you enjoy, and then consider challenging yourself. Try something new. The beauty of reading for pleasure is the ability to quit whenever you choose, so what have you got to lose? Pick up something by Dostoyevsky and see what all the fuss is about. Some very selective colleges require the submission of a reading list with the application. Most don't, but if the student is a big reader, then a supplemental reading list helps round the applicant out for the admissions officer.
Or just, learn a new skill or continue honing a current talent - a musical instrument, photography, painting, writing, dancing, pottery, cooking, baking, sign language, etc.
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Read the April/May edition of
Our Children, the National PTA Magazine For back issues visit the National PTA website. |
Check back later this year to find out if Summer Ventures in Science and Mathematics is accepting applications.
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New on the Web: Parent Portal How-To Guide Now Online
With school fully underway, more and more parents are looking to log into or more fully access the Parent Portal and its features. You’ll find a great resource in the new online guide “Parent Portal Guide: How-to for Parents” that offers a practical Q&A addressing questions including:
• How to get started in the Parent Portal and where to find student grades and assignments,
• Setting up parent notifications including notification types, and
• Answers to accessibility issues.
With school fully underway, more and more parents are looking to log into or more fully access the Parent Portal and its features. You’ll find a great resource in the new online guide “Parent Portal Guide: How-to for Parents” that offers a practical Q&A addressing questions including:
• How to get started in the Parent Portal and where to find student grades and assignments,
• Setting up parent notifications including notification types, and
• Answers to accessibility issues.
Access the guide directly here:
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/homebase/resources/handouts/parent-portal-guide.pdf
Find all the handouts here.
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/homebase/resources/handouts/
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/homebase/resources/handouts/parent-portal-guide.pdf
Find all the handouts here.
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/homebase/resources/handouts/
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DSA 2015-2016 Course Descriptions and Graduation Requirements.
Talk to your student's guidance counselor if you have questions. It's easiest to reach them via email and you can find their contact information on the student services website. Student Services has also put together a four year plan of study in flowchart format. Be aware that not all prerequisites are listed. Progressing from one level to the next may depend on the grades earned. DSA Science Sequence Planner - If you think your student may be interested in taking more than the minimum science requirements, please take a look at this flowchart.
The state Board of Education has voted to adopt a ten point grading scale. See this article in the Charlotte Observer.
The change will take effect for the incoming freshmen class of 2015/2016 which has led to much criticism as the Charlotte Observer has outlined in this article. |
Family Academy
The DPS Family Academy partners with community agencies to offer parent education and family support in Durham. The goal is to serve as the comprehensive hub of family and community engagement by providing families with the training, information, and support needed to become full partners in education. Courses, classes, workshops, and seminars will be offered at various locations throughout the community. Click here to look at the Course Guide. In addition to these classes and workshops, Durham Public Schools (DPS) has partnered with Connect With Kids Education Network to provide th DPS community with 24/7 access to the most comprehensive, evidence-based video resources. These resources focus on improving the health, behavior and well-being of students and empowering families. Click here to see more Family Academy Parent Resources.
For more Information: E-mail: [email protected] Phone#:(919) 287-4194, ext. 30319 Office Location: 2107 Hillandale Road, Durham, NC 27705 The DPS Parent/Student Handbook offers day-to-day school information that students and parents need including contacts, promotion standards, testing information, dress code and district policies. 2014/2015 Parent Student Handbook 2014/2015 Manual de Padres y Estudiantes DPS Services: Durham Public Schools has many Services and Programs available to students and their families. DPS offers an after school program for middle schoolers at DSA. You can find more information on their new website.
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'Green means Go Donate'
Support your student by supporting your teachers.
Donations to the PTSA are tax deductible and help fund classroom learning, field trips and more. |
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