Commander Communicator – 12/7/20

• Final Exams: Please click here for a simplified version of our finals schedule. 
• Winter Wonder Cram: Winter Wonder Cram is next week (12/7-12/11) and is a weeklong event for students to meet with their teachers, ask for help, and make-up assignments from Q1 and Q2. We encourage students who failed any classes last quarter or are currently failing to take advantage of this amazing opportunity! Students will utilize their asynchronous time to catch up and make up assignments.
• Report Cards: We will be mailing out report cards from this semester along with a packet of important information and resources. Be on the lookout for these once grades have been Finalized.
• Quarter 3 Supply Pick up: We will be hosting a Quarter 3 supply pick up before we leave for winter break. Details coming soon!
• JFK Virtual Town Hall: We are hosting another virtual Town Hall next week on Wednesday December 9th at 5pm. Our principal is going to present some updates regarding the return to in person next semester and then we will have a presentation about various resources we offer! The link to join is here.
• Message for 9th Graders: We know this was not how you envisioned your first year of high school. We want you to get a sense of what it's like being a Commander in our school building so please watch our virtual school tour here. Hang in there Class of 2024, we are so proud of all your hard work in remote learning this year.
• Winter Break: This semester is almost over! Remember, there will be no school from 12/21 to 01/04!
• Free COVID Testing Available for All Community Members: Now through the end of December, free COVID-19 testing is available to all community members. Through a partnership with Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment, COVIDCheck Colorado -- which has been providing free testing to all DPS employees -- is offering free tests for all employees, their families and members of the Denver community to help slow the spread of COVID.
  
  Community members can use this link to schedule a free test at one of several locations throughout the Denver-metro area. (DPS team members should continue registering for testing using this link to support our internal case tracking efforts.) Please register for a test in advance to help manage testing flow and reduce wait times.

Commander Shoutout:

• Shoutout to our students in the MI Classroom for all the amazing work they're doing. 
• Alan Cardona, Michael Kazimour, and Jorge Castellanos - These three seniors worked on putting together the JFK virtual tour video. Watch it here. 
• Carlos Sanchez - Carlos Sanchez has been researching the realities and impacts of animal abuse, as well as animal rights, and one of his artworks features a puppy at a puppy farm. It's a tough subject to tackle, but he's doing a good job expressing the importance of it through art. Here is his drawing:
   

• PRIDE Celebration: Click here to watch this month's PRIDE Celebration.

• PRIDE Podcast: Check out the latest episode of our PRIDE Podcast here.  

• Here is a link to a list of various food assistance resources around Denver!
• Here is a link to information on Free Covid Tests.
• C4HCO - Open Enrollment Begins Sunday, November 1! With spikes in COVID-19 cases and the cold and flu seasons at our doorsteps, it more important than ever to make sure all Coloradans have access to affordable health insurance. To do so, Connect for Health Colorado has spent the last couple of months making necessary changes for a successful, mainly virtual, eighth Open Enrollment Period. This year’s Open Enrollment period begins November 1, 2020 and ends on January 15, 2021. Here are some helpful reminders and virtual tools for you:
  • Web and print versions of resources are available to you free of charge through our Open Enrollment Online Toolkit and our Online Store.
  • Free, virtual, and in-person help is available from our certified Connect for Health Colorado enrollment experts located throughout the state. Click here to find assistance in your area.
• Here is information on an organization that helps families get access to food. 
• Here is information on where to get Free Meals from DPS.
• Here is the link to access DPS Coronavirus Resources. 
• Here is the Southwest Denver Free Activities Calendar
• Free COVID Tests are now available at our Denver Health Clinic!
  • You must be a DPS STUDENT
  • You must be consented for the Denver Health Clinic and also for the Flu Vaccine
    • English E-Sign
    • Spanish E-Sign
  • To make an appointment: E-mail SBHC@dhha.org or call 303-602-8958 or the JFK Clinic direct number: 720-423-4355
    For more information on resources click here.

Updating Your Learning Option for Next Semester 

As we begin planning for the rest of the year, we wanted to share information for families who would like to change their learning option (either in-person or virtual) for next semester. 

Families with students in grades 6-12 can request a change to their current learning option between Monday, Dec. 7 and Sunday, Dec. 13. Families that don’t take action will remain enrolled in their current learning option through the end of the school year. 

Much like this semester, we are hoping to be able to offer in-person learning for all secondary students next semester, along with a 100% virtual option, but it will depend on current health conditions at the time. Therefore, families enrolled in the in-person option are choosing that they want their student to attend school in-person as much as possible as soon as the health conditions allow through the end of the school year. Families that don’t feel comfortable having their student participate in in-person learning for the spring (through May 2021) should be enrolled in the 100% virtual option. 

How families can request a change to their learning option for Spring 2021:

• By completing an editable PDF or a regular PDF. All documents are available to download and distribute to families on the Office Professional Portal here.
• By completing a digital “Learning Option Change Form” for each student, now available on the Parent Portal’s homepage, in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Arabic. Note: The digital form can only be used once per student. Subsequent requests for the same student(s) within the change window must be made directly to the school. 
• By calling the front office at the student’s school and speaking with a staff member.

We will make every effort to accommodate change requests for families who need it. Families who put in a request for a change to their student’s learning option can expect to receive confirmation from us after Dec. 13.

Same as last week:

• Chromebooks: If you are in need of a Chromebook you can pick them up at the school any weekday between 7 AM and 3 PM.
• Hotspots: If you are in need of a hotspot please email laurentz_gilmore@dpsk12.org. We do not have many available but we are working on adding more to our inventory so for now, you will be put on a waitlist until we have more.
• DoTS has been working with CenturyLink in regards to the issue of slow internet speeds on Chromebooks and have narrowed it down to newer modems that have built-in security features.  
  CenturyLink has created an email address specifically to provide customer service for families who may be experiencing slow network speeds on their DPS-issued Chromebooks.  
  For any families continuing to experience these issues, please have them email chromebook@centurylink.com for continued troubleshooting on their end.

• Troubleshooting: Please contact laurentz_gilmore@dpsk12.org if you are having issues attending your courses in Schoology.

• 12/7 - 12/11 — Winter Wonder Cram
• 12/8 — Educating Immigrants: College for Non-U.S Citizens
• 12/9 — JFK Virtual Town Hall
• 12/21 - 01/04 — No School
• 01/05 — Return to In Person (tentative)

For more information on any of these events check jfk.dpsk12.org

• Here is a helpful guide for students containing schedule resources, student information, and more!
• Click here to access Student Schoology Supports
• Here is a Schoology Parent Guide
• Download our Free Online Tutoring App
• Here is a resource outlining Mask Guidance
• Here is the link to the Virtual Town Hall Q&A Document.
• Here is the "How To Get to Class in a Remote World" guide in English and Spanish.
• Here is the link to our 20-21 Attendance Policy.
• Here is the link to our step by step online Registration process. All families are required to register their children each school year.
• Schoology Parent One-Pager English | Spanish 
• Parent Portal Login Presentation
• Parent Portal Login Video
• Schoology App Login Guide - English | Spanish
• Schoology Parent/Guardian FAQ - English | Spanish
• Here is the link to our COVID Relief Go Fund Me page, donate if you can, and reach out to me at tiffany_almon@dpsk12.org if you need support from this fund

JOHN F. KENNEDY HIGH SCHOOL

2855 S. LAMAR ST. DENVER, CO 80227