The Knight Times

Thomas Dale Faculty and Staff,

It feels like just yesterday, I was preparing the newsletter for last week...where did this week go!? Well, we closed out our first grading period, welcomed a new superintendent (who visited us on Thursday and was VERY impressed with our school), and continued on with our closing events for fall season activities.

On Monday and Tuesday, we get a bit of a breather; although I never like our school without our kids, it is nice to be able to catch up, take a breath, and prepare for the next stretch. I am extremely humbled to call myself your colleague, and I am inspired every single day by the work you do for kids. I've learned that the Thomas Dale staff is ready and willing to do Whatever It Takes!

For this month, I wanted to share a part of my story with you:

On October 30 of 2015, my mother passed away, ending a 16-year battle with cancer. This past week has caused me to reflect on a few things. My parents divorced when I was 10, and I lived with my mother. She took to a life of partying, alcohol, and drugs. She found another mate, and he was abusive to both her and me. We were on food stamps, yet food was never in the fridge or pantry. I remember quite vividly in 8th grade having two pairs of pants and three shirts to rotate through for my school clothes. I was the new kid in school that year, so I was able to hide in obscurity, even though my clothes wreaked of cigarette smoke on most days. We were evicted from two apartment complexes and blocked from a third when the credit report caught up with us, and she had to move back in with my grandparents. At that time, I went to live with my dad. This was the summer before my 9th grade year. I grew very distant from my mom.

I was disengaged in high school. I did not go for academics; I did not go for social reasons. The friends I did have were the only connection I felt to anything. I needed attention, someone to love me, and care about me. I got into trouble but was never caught, mostly because I was slick enough to get away with it. In 11th grade, I found music. That year, I also had a math teacher who refused to take my shenanigans and who refused to give up on me. Somewhere down deep, she may be the reason I became a teacher. Upon graduation, I had no direction, no purpose, and I was far from having any sense of identity. I was quite lost. After 3 semesters as an electrical engineering major at ODU, I dropped out and stumbled upon the military, and the rest is history.

On a superficial level, my mom and I reconnected because of the military; but there was a piece of me that blamed her for the tough and troubled years we went through. When my mother finally gave up her fight with cancer and passed away 3 years ago, I felt so terrible about holding onto the past; I was too immature to forgive and move on. I never took the opportunity to talk with her about it, and when I finally got up the courage, it was too late. I never reconciled the past. Now, I can only hope she knows I love her, and that I do not blame her. She would definitely be proud if she knew her little boy was a principal!

I did not have an "ideal" childhood...whatever that means. If I were your student in school, would you know my story? If so, would you engage me? How would you make a connection? How would you guide me to find purpose, to find an identity? My time growing up doesn't even compare to what our students are going through. Today. In our school. Do you know your kids?

Earlier this year, we asked that all students fill out the Student Learner Profile. There are 1,389 entries, which is just about 1,000 less than our enrollment. The first thing I encourage you to do is to think about that one student you are struggling to reach, look them up in the student learner profile spreadsheet, and find a way to connect...a way to reach, or even a way to stretch and challenge! Next, I encourage you to ensure that ALL of our students take the student learner profile survey.

Please click HERE to access the Student Learner Profile.

Up-Front Summary (by day):

Monday

• Pancake Breakfast served in Room 409 (join your colleagues in the commons)
• Teacher Workday; please work on grading and finalizing grades
• Feel free to dress comfortably!

Tuesday

• Parent-Teacher Conference Day (10am-6pm)
• Please complete grades by 10am (Posting Directions and Help Guide)

Wednesday

• Homeroom Teachers: Please continue to fill out the Genius Hour survey to help build the catalog

Thursday

• Homeroom Teachers: Please continue to fill out the Genius Hour survey to help build the catalog

Friday

• College Gear and Jeans Day!

Links shared in this issue:

• KUDOS
• Tech Integrator - Janice Skipwith
  
• PathWays Centre Google Site
• ESOL Corner
• Thomas Dale Swag Order Form
• College and Career Month Calendar of Events
• Coats for Kids
• Winter Exam Schedule
• Knight's Cafe Order Form
  

#EveryKnightEveryDay

The I Make A Difference award is a weekly recognition for a staff member going above and beyond the requirements of the job. Each week, the previous I Make A Difference award winner will select one member of the faculty/staff who displays excellence, goes the extra mile, and makes a difference and "pass" it on.

From Elle Kotowski:

The 13th I Make A Difference Award goes to Gonjoe Winn.

I've been so privileged to work with Gonjoe at 2 different schools for 6 of my 7 years with CCPS. He's such a unique and creative individual who gives his all at work everyday. He's more often than not the "third parent" to a student and there's never a problem too big or too small for him to help a student with. You'll often see him walking a lap around the halls with a student to help them calm down - or even around the building to remind kids to just breathe. Gonjoe jumps in whenever and wherever he's needed...from home visits, to school events, to quickly getting to a classroom to help a student.

His corny jokes keep us all laughing and he always reminds me to see the bright side of things. It's a true gift to be able to work alongside such a caring and inspiring guy. He gives of himself in so many ways everyday and his students grow through their interactions with him every year. Thank you, Gonjoe for being you and always knowing how to put a smile on anyone's face!

The purpose of our weekly KUDOS is to give public affirmation to a faculty/staff member for a job well done. Anytime you witness something that you think deserves KUDOS, you are invited to fill out THIS FORM with the staff member's name and a little about why he/she deserves KUDOS. You will notice a difference in the form. We have added a layer that will send each individual recipient an email with attachment shortly after the KUDOS has been submitted! The list of teacher names and valiant acts will be published in The Knight Times. At each faculty meeting, those nominated for KUDOS will be entered into a drawing for a special prize! Be alert to the wonderful actions of your colleagues and give a shout out when you see something awesome!

Please enjoy this week's KUDOS by clicking HERE!

Each month, we will celebrate and recognize one teacher as the Teacher of the Month and one staff member as the Staff Member of the Month. We were so excited to celebrate our Teacher and Staff Member of the Month recipients so far!

• September: Jamie Barrack and Michelle Kimenhour
• October: Rachel Langston and Steve Davies

Submit your nomination for November's Teacher and Staff Member of the Month by clicking HERE.

Each month, we will celebrate and recognize one student from each grade level as the Student of the Month. This student will be publicly recognized in front of classmates and on social media. Additionally, we will place a yard sign at each student's place of residency indicating that they are a Student of the Month for the appropriate grade level. Each student will be able to keep the yard sign. Each student who is nominated but not selected will also be recognized publicly.

Please think of a student you feel is deserving of November's Student of the Month and submit that student's name HERE.

• Impact Federal Aid Sheets (Action). Each year, we are required to have the Impact sheets filled out by parents to support funding from the federal level. In the next few days you will receive 30 copies of the Impact Aid Survey and parent letter (2 sided) in your mailboxes. Please distribute to your students. The deadline is Nov. 30th but please encourage them to return as soon as possible. Please return any extra forms to the office. Please collect and turn in completed forms to office. A Spanish version is available in the office if needed.
• Tech Integrator (Information). Janice Skipwith is a wonderful resource for high-quality instruction. Please see her weekly newsletter HERE.
• From the Libraries (Information). Wednesday and Thursday Enrichment - Please only send students to the library that have obtained passes from the library. We do not take passes from homeroom teachers during enrichment because of limited space. Remember to use your librarians! We can help you and your students with projects, resources, and research!
  
• PathWays Centre (Information). There are great things happening for our students, and we are only the infancy of a vision to create a personalized learning school, where students explore pathways to find their identity and purpose. Please check out the Pathways Centre Google Site. It's only the beginning!
• ESOL Corner (Information). Please check out this slide show. We couldn't do our cool infographic this week with all of the needed links and added photos. But it will be back in two weeks.
• Thomas Dale Swag (Information). Do you need new Thomas Dale spirit wear? The Life Skills program has the 2018-2019 school year spirit wear you need. This year we have short sleeve shirts, long sleeve shirts, hoodies, sling bags and sweatpants. Please complete the link below to pre-order what you want. I will stop taking orders on November 9th. I will send an e-mail to let you know when the orders are in. Money will be collected once the orders are filled. Thanks for your support. Click HERE to access the order form.

Remember that grades should be posted by 10:00 Tuesday morning. DIRECTIONS for posting grades are HERE. If you have questions about editing or deleting assignments, copying assignments, term weighting, creating reports for conferences, etc. HERE is a help guide. Of course, you are always welcome to contact me if you have questions about anything. I'd love to help you. Feel free to call 804-980-1323. The absolute drop dead last moment for grade posting is Wednesday morning at 8:00. When you are ready to begin entering Term 2 grades, please feel free to open MP2 and enter away! HAPPY POSTING!!

Each year, we engage our students and parents in an evening that includes information about our instructional program and course registration, aligned with graduation requirements. This year, we will host this evening earlier in the year, and we will restructure how it is done to reflect more of a "fair" / "expo" / "Open House" feel.

Our largest participation comes from our Rising 9th Grade students and their families. This is our first opportunity to meet our newest Knights and their families, and the first chance we get to build the foundation for our relationships with them.

On the Meeting Dates Document, this date was communicated as an event I needed everyone to attend to ensure maximum impact on our purpose. Please make plans to be here that evening; we will communicate the layout for the evening as the date approaches.

To better increase communication when students will miss class time due to a field trip or an athletic event, please ensure you send Darby Dickerson the roster with dates and times of the field trip or athletic event. Darby will include the roster in the daily attendance email.

This additional layer of communication will allow everyone in the building to first know what is going on, and second know where their students are in the event of an absence or a need to depart class early. It is the responsibility of all staff members to pay attention to the daily attendance email for information about an upcoming field trip.

Thank you for doing your part to ensure our communication structures are solid.

During November, we will celebrate College and Career Month by engaging in various activities throughout the month. Please click HERE to access the calendar of events.

Each week, we will highlight the upcoming event so we can all participate. On Friday, November 9, we will all sport our College Gear. Feel free to wear jeans with your College Gear on November 9.

Good day, Colleagues. The month of November has been designated as the Puritan Cleaners' annual Coats for Kids Month. With that being said, this drive lends itself as a great opportunity for Thomas Dale High School students to serve our community. In speaking with the CFK representative for Puritan, she expressed her excitement in having us support this cause! Not only will this be a great opportunity for our students to gain community service experience, but also allow Thomas Dale to make a difference within our local as well as the extended community.

So how will this work? We would like for you to assist by donating as well encouraging your classes/teams to donate as many "gently used" coats as possible to Puritan cleaners! Please establish a location in your classroom for coat collection which will then be transferred to the main receptacle for each campus. Rachel Langston has agreed to have some of her students pick up coats from West and Main campus during 4th Block on Thursday November 8, 2018 and Thursday November 15, 2018.

On one of the days, TBA, Channel 6 news will do a feature on our school's efforts to collect coats for kids and support this cause. Please join in this effort by selecting students from your class/team to assist during these times as well. Coach Byerson has agreed to house a main coat receptacle in his classroom on the main campus, while the PathWays Centre (W211) will house the west campus main receptacle. Click here and here for flyers that can be posted on various points of social media and areas of your choice to get the word out! I have every confidence that the Knights of Thomas Dale will stand strong to support this great cause. Thank you in advance for your efforts in supporting Every Knight , Every Day!

Just wanted to share a new report that Attendance will be running starting 10/29/18 in order to help us ensure attendance is being taken in order to better identify skippers. This report will be ran after the first 15 minutes of every class period and will automatically send an email notification via Synergy to each teacher if they have not entered their period attendance during that sweep. Attendance will do our best to keep it from sending emails when a teacher is out, but if you receive one while you are absent, you can disregard. Taking this step will allow Attendance to have the most accurate accounting of a students attendance each day and will allow "skippers" to be more easily identifiable by all faculty. If you have any questions, Attendance is happy to answer them.

1. Starting Monday at Main Campus, please place completed time/attendance forms in the box outside of Michelle's office in the appropriate folder. There will not longer be a "payroll box" in the mail room at Main Campus.

2. In an attempt to streamline the PO process, the following change has been made--

You will still send your PO through the same electronic procedure but NOW when you received your PO back from Nancy, the only "wet" signature that will be needed is yours. In case you're interested in the new routing system of the actual paper PO it is as follows:

Chris prints/signs PO>Departmental Admin. signs>Nancy>requester's mailbox.

Please click HERE to access the Winter Exam Schedule. Below is the overview by day.

Thursday, December 13 - Regular school day for students

Friday, December 14 - Regular school day with 2E exam embedded in the day (we will modify the schedule to facilitate an extended 2E block)

Monday, December 17 - Period 1 and 2O Exams (12:35pm dismissal)

Tuesday, December 18 - Period 3E and 4E Exams (12:35pm dismissal)

Wednesday, December 19 - Period 3O and 4O Exams (12:35pm dismissal)

Thursday, December 20 - No School, begin Winter Break

This week the Knight's Cafe is offering Cinnamon Streusel Muffins, Banana Nut Muffins and Grandma's Carrot Cake (contains walnuts- no raisins) with cream cheese icing. HERE is this week's order form.

As part of our intentionality to strengthen trust, communication, and relationships, we will include agendas and minutes from our meetings in this section of the newsletter.

• Admin Team: October 16
  
• ILT: October 5
  
• Instructional Admin: October 30
  
• Community Partners Meeting: October 9
• Principal's Advisory Council: October 17
• Student Advisory Council: October 19
• ACTS Notes (from Cindy Waters): October 8
• English: October 23
• Math: Minutes Folder

Michelle Kimenhour - November 5

Stefanie Lapp - November 6

Andrew Boydoh - November 10

Enjoy your day!!!

Stay connected to OUR CALENDAR and mark yours!

Click HERE for our 2018-2019 meeting dates.

November 3 - Marching Band State Assessment (Hermitage HS)

November 3 - Dance Competition (Manchester HS)

November 3 - Football versus Prince George (Senior Knight)

November 3 - Competition Cheer STATES (VCU Siegel)

November 5 - Pancake Breakfast (Sponsored by SCA)

November 5 - Teacher Workday (Grades)

November 5 - Boys VB, Regional Final vs James River (Home)

November 6 - Parent-Teacher Conference Day (10-6)

November 7 - Specialty Center Open House (Main Campus)

November 9 - Football Regionals (TBD)

November 10 - School Clean-Up Day (9-11am starting at Main)

Click below to access previous issues of The Knight Times, our weekly staff newsletter:

• Week of August 13
• Week of August 20
• Week of August 27
• Week of September 3
• Week of September 10
• Week of September 17
• Week of September 24
• Week of October 1
• Week October 8
• Week of October 15
• Week of October 22
• Week of October 29

Click below to access previous issues of From the Castle, our monthly parent and community newsletter:

• August 2018
• September 2018
• October 2018
• November 2018

If you have information you need to share, input you seek, or dates you need to communicate, please send it to me. As we improve our communication structure, The Knight Times will become an increasingly collaborative document.

Please email me what you'd like to share - just ensure you have The Knight Times as part of your subject line. I will just need a title, body of text to include, and a picture attachment (if you have one to add to your piece).

Email: christopherm_jones@ccpsnet.net
Website: https://sites.google.com/a/ccpsnet.net/tdhs/
Location: 3626 W. Hundred Rd. Chester, VA 23831
Phone: (804) 768-6245
Facebook: facebook.com/ThomasDale
Twitter: @GoTDKnights