In this week's PTO Bulletin...

- A Chance to Support Shepherd Cheer

- Website Administration 

- Upcoming Events

• DCPS Boundary Study Townhalls
• Winter Concert
• Language Concert
• December LSAT and PTO Meeting
• Holidays Around the World Spirit week

- Dr. Brown Corner

- Giving Back Opportunities

• Online Gear Storefront
• Teacher Appreciation Program (TAP)
• 180 Fund

- Community Offerings

- Other Upcoming Important Dates

• December 22nd - January 2nd - Winter Break

The Shepherd Cheer team is looking to raise funds to support their District of Columbia Interscholastic Athletics Association (DCIAA) competitions in January and February. Please consider supporting Shepherd Cheer in the following ways:

• Thursday, December 14th - the team will sell concessions (pizza, snacks, beverages) during the winter concert.  
• Wednesday December 20th from 3:30-4:30 pm the team will hold a hot chocolate and bake goods sale.

Thank you for supporting Shepherd Cheer!

Are you, or do you know, a good website administrator? If so, Shepherd PTO is looking for someone to manage our school's website administration. This effort would include arrangement of website hosting services, domain registration, managing Wordpress Engine, Cornerstone, and Google Workspace licensing, as well as minor web administrator support (~3-5 hours/year) including plug-in and security updates and other routine maintenance. If you are willing to volunteer, or have a connection to a website administrator/provider who may be able to assist, please reach out to PTOTreasurer@shepherd-elementary.org. Thank you.

Join the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Education for the final round of town hall meetings to learn more about the Boundary & Student Assignment Study. Content at all meetings will be the same.

• Date: December 13, 2023 | Time: 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Location: Virtual | Register here to attend. 
• Date: December 14, 2023 | Time: 12 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. Location: Virtual | Register here to attend. 

On December 14th, please join the PreK thru 2nd grade Shepherd Mustangs who are ready to fill Shepherd with the Winter spirit and make sure we are all ready for Winter.

The students have been working hard for weeks and are ready to bring their singing voices to the stage to make Shepherd a "Winter Wonderland." Please join them in the Multi-purpose Room at 6 pm. 

On Friday December 15th at 2:30 pm Shepherd will hold its annual Language concert. Students in grades 3-5 will perform songs in French and Spanish. Families are invited to come out and enjoy the program directed by Dr. Gadie and Mr. Samayoa. (Only students in grades 3-5 will be performing for the language concert)

Please mark your calendars. The December LSAT meeting is canceled but the December PTO meeting will be held virtually December 20th at 5:30 pm. You can access the meeting here. The agenda will include Upcoming Events, a presentation by Dr. Brown on Mental Health for Parents, TAP Awards, a budget update and more. 

Our Shepherd Elementary gear storefront is now available for orders under "Giving Back to Shepherd" on the Shepherd website. After you've completed your purchase, gear will be delivered directly to your child's classroom within 7 business days. The PTO will still host in-person events throughout the year, but the gear store will provide a convenient alternative to those sales. 

Please note, if you select gear and it cannot be added to the bag, it is likely sold out. 

Cap City Little League baseball and softball registration is open for the Spring season. Registration will be open through mid-February. Games and practices will start at the end of March. Learn more and register at our website: https://www.capcityll.org

No experience is necessary—this is an outstanding league for all players from 4-14, from novices to travel team-level players. The league has pitching and skills clinics and a wonderful group of volunteer parent coaches. All Shepherd ES students are in-bounds for Cap City regardless of where they live.

If you are new to baseball or softball and have any questions, feel free to email Shepherd 3rd grade parent Dominic Ju (playeragent@capcityll.org). If you have any questions about registration, email registration@capcityll.org.

Shepherd Elementary PTO

7800 14th Street NW

Washington, DC 20012

www.shepherd-elementary.org