July 14 – Family Summer Newsletter

Respect + Responsibility + Community + Growth + Welcoming

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Seaton Families, 

We hope you’re enjoying a joyful and restful summer! We are already preparing to welcome students and families to the start of School Year 2025–2026! To our returning families, we’re excited to welcome you back for another great year of learning and growth. To our new families, we can’t wait to meet you and welcome you into the most amazing school community in DCPS. 

We’re sharing the July 14 Summer Family Newsletter to help you get ready for the upcoming school year. It includes key information, important dates, and helpful updates as we prepare for SY 2025–2026. 

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Academic + Social Emotional Data Celebrations!

Seaton Stingers made so much growth during school year 24.25! Our students and staff really lived out our school value of Growth. We are sharing some highlights from the academic end of year data across our school:

• Math Growth: Increased the percentage of students meeting stretch goals (more than 1 year of growth) schoolwide by 12 points from 59% to 71%! 
• Math Proficiency: Increased the percentage of students in grades 3–5 performing on grade level by 20 points from 44% to 64%! 
• ELA Growth: Increased the percentage of students meeting stretch goals schoolwide by 8 points from 59% to 67%!  
• K-2 DIBELS Proficiency: Maintained the percentage of students performing on or above benchmark at 86%.  
• Attendance: Decreased the percentage of chronically absent PK3 students from 45% to 27%! 

Students in Grades 3, 4, and 5 complete the panorama students survey about their Social Emotional Learning focus. Some data highlights below for the Spring 2025 Survey:  

• 97% student satisfaction (10% higher compared to all DCPS Schools)  
• 93% of students reported feeling Challenged (+13% higher compared to all DCPS schools) 
• 78% of students reported feeling Prepared (+11% higher compared to all DCPS schools)  
• 71% of students reported feeling Loved (+13% higher compared to all DCPS schools)  
• 89% of students report having teachers that hold them to rigorous expectations.  

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Getting Ready for SY 25.26!

Back to School Resource List  

The first day of school will be here in no time and we are really excited to welcome students back at the end of August. As the new school year approaches, we have created a list of community events providing free school supplies, health screenings, haircuts, and uniforms. Some of these events will require you to register. We will be updating the list of resources weekly so make sure you check back often. Please see the list of community events here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1F6EEtY9T_SN6LsGKnSL4eh8Ib9F5S2XKQplD1CrJMVE/edit?gid=1973558455#gid=1973558455  

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School Supplies Lists by Grade  

Getting ready for the new school year? We’ve got you covered! Attached, you’ll find detailed school supply lists organized by grade levels. See the document attached and posted to the Seaton Website. 

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Seaton School Uniforms Information 

We are proud to have a flexible school uniform that supports a sense of discipline and self-respect, enables students to concentrate on learning, and reduces peer pressure.  

All Seaton students are expected to come to school daily wearing a uniform. PK3 to 5th grade students should come dressed in white tops or navy bottoms.  

• Tops: white polo shirts, white shirts, or any Seaton logo t-shirt. 
• Bottoms: dark blue bottoms, shorts, skirts, or jumpers (below the knee). 
• Footwear: any closed-toe shoes for safety reasons.  

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Student Teacher Assignments  

Families will receive teacher classroom assignments during the first week of August 2025. Families will receive homeroom teacher information and grade level teacher information. 

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K-5 After School Program Waitlist  

We understand that many families have applied to the DCPS K–5 After School Program and received their waitlist status. We will share updates in early August as seats become available, either through declined offers or as ECE students are enrolled in the YMCA After School Program. Families currently on the K–5 waitlist can expect to receive communication at that time. You can also reach out to our After School coordinator, Ms. Kirkpatrick, with any questions you may have at lisa.kirkpatrick@k12.dc.gov   

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Events + Save the Dates! 

ECE Play Dates 

Seaton will host ECE Play Dates in the Seaton Garden. All ECE Families are invited to join us. Saturday August 2 and August 9 from 10am to 11am.  Entrance through the “P Street Gate” at the corner of P Street and Shiloh Way NW.

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Family Teacher Meet and Greet  

Seaton will host a Teacher Meet and Greet for K-5 families on Thursday August 21 from 4:00 – 5:00 PM in the Seaton Playground. The goal of the Meet and Greet is to welcome families to the new school year. Classroom and support teachers will welcome families to the new school year, come meet us!

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First Day of School  

First Day of School for K – 5 grade students is Monday August 25 

First day of School for PK3 and PK4 students is Thursday August 28          

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ECE Classroom Visits 

Seaton will host visits to ECE classrooms before the first day of school for ECE families.  

PK3 Classroom Visits – Tuesday August 26 

PK4 Classroom Visits – Wednesday August 27  

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SY 25.26 DCPS School Calendar  

Review the DCPS school year calendar here SY 25.26 School Calendar 

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Summer Communication  

Families will receive Summer Newsletters on the following dates:

• August 4 Family Summer Newsletter 
• August 18 Family Summer Newsletter   

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School Policies + Opportunities 

Field Trip Volunteers  

For SY 25.26, family members interested in participating in school field trips need to complete the DCPS Volunteer Clearance Process before attending any field trip. We encourage all parents and family members to complete the DCPS Volunteer Clearance process!  Families can begin their process here: Volunteer in Our Schools | dcps  

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Family Special Education Empowerment Series  

Families are invited to attend a special education series hosted by the DC Special Education Team. There are two upcoming sessions.  

Session 1: July 21 10 at 7:00 pm. The Who, What, and How of Special Education 

Session 2: August 16 at 7:00 pm. Introduction to the Special Education Eligibility Process 

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Student Health Hub Events   

Still need to get your DCPS student ready for the new school year? Plan a visit to one of the upcoming Health Hubs for eye exams, dental check-ups, immunizations, family resources, and more. Register today: bit.ly/dcpshealthhubs2025 

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Summer Youth Meals Program  

All youth in DC are welcome at DC summer meal sites. No application or ID Required. DC Summer Youth Meals programs are from June 23 through August 24. You can see all sites here: https://osse.dc.gov/page/ward-2-2025-summer-meal-sites  

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Vision To Learn Program  

Vision to Learn is offering free eye exams and prescription glasses (if needed) for kids ages 3–18 at various DC Public Library locations. Families must pre-register at https://vtldc.intakeq.com/booking. 

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Getting Ready the Start of School  

Want to prepare your PK3 and PK4 students for the start of school? You can watch the DCPS Early Childhood Videos Series here!  

• Getting Ready for Pre-K: Preparing for a Smooth Transition into School 
• Nurturing Emotional Growth in Your Child  
• Let’s Talk About Toilet Learning  
• Early Literacy: Sing, Talk, and Read with Your Child     

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Families Attending YMCA Summer School  

Thank you, families, for being part of the YMCA Summer School team. The last day of summer school is Friday August 1, 2025.   

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Seaton Enrollment

Enrollment Questions?  

Families can email the Seaton Enroll email or our registrar Ms. Daisy any questions about enrollment. This includes any questions about the MyschoolDC Lottery or DCPS Enrollment process.   

• Seaton Enroll email: seatonesenroll@k12.dc.gov  
• Ms. Daisy, school registrar: gloria.torrento@k12.dc.gov 

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PTO News and Updates

We hope you are having a great summer! The PTO is hard at work preparing for the new school year. With our new executive board in place, we’ve started planning for upcoming ECE playdates, reaching out to afterschool vendors for exciting new clubs, and setting our events calendar for the year. To stay informed about all of the latest news, please sign up for the PTO email list by signing up here or emailing president.seatonpto@gmail.com!

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Call for T-shirt Design Submissions!

The PTO sells adult t-shirts for parents, teachers, caregivers, and community members to help raise funds for our work. This year, we are designing a new shirt, and we need your help! If you have ideas for a new design for an adult shirt, please submit it to president.seatonpto@gmail.com by July 25. Bonus points for using the DC flag, neighborhood or local markers, or anything else to help us represent our school when we’re out in the world. We’ll pick the best one and put it on a shirt that will be available for sale at the beginning of the school year. The winner also gets a free shirt (in addition to the glory of the victory)! Note that uniform t-shirts will remain the same, and we will have those on sale as early as our ECE playdates in August.

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Remote Volunteering Opportunities: Quickbooks, Grant-Writing, Fundraising Support, Room Parents

We know that in-person volunteering and attendance can be hard for many parents. In addition to community events and in-person volunteer opportunities, there is plenty of work to be done from the comfort of your computer. As we prepare for the new year, we are looking for parent help with various tasks.

• The PTO has had a few successful fundraising years and is transitioning to Quickbooks to assist in our accounting. If you have the ability to assist us with this transition, please reach out to president.seatonpto@gmail.com and seatontreasurerpto@gmail.com. We would also welcome anybody with nonprofit accounting experience who can advise us as we continue to grow.
• We are working towards applying more broadly for grant funding to supplement our direct fundraising efforts. If you have experience with grant writing, a subscription to grant databases, and the ability to take the lead on seeking out and applying to relevant grants, please contact president.seatonpto@gmail.com.
• Our fundraising team is tiny – it consists of two people! We would love additional volunteers to help. This is a role that can be done almost entirely on your own time, via email, and is easier than it looks. We are specifically in need of volunteers who can help identify potential local business sponsors and auction donors, deal with logistics for fundraising events (like restaurant nights out and wine tasting fundraisers), and follow up with thank you to donors. If interested, email president.seatonpto@gmail.com and cstongemay@gmail.com.
• Our goal this year is to have a room parent for every classroom. If you are interested in serving as a room parent for the school year, please email president.seatonpto@gmail.com to be connected to our grade-level reps. Room parents can help make sure all families are included in class WhatsApp groups, coordinate communications to each classroom, organize class gifts, and advocate for class-specific needs.

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End of Year Survey Results

Thank you to everyone who filled out our end-of-year survey. We had 61 responses, and we received a lot of valuable feedback. If you would still like to provide feedback, you can do so here. Some key takeaways, for those who are interested:

• Our most popular events are Spring Carnival and Fall Movie Night – two of our longest-running events. We were thrilled to see that the new Family Math Night (conceptualized and run by Ms. Hawthorne!) was a close third place, which is not surprising since over 110 students attended it last year. 77% of respondents believed that there were the right amount of events over the course of the year. We also hear your requests for less at the very end of the year, more in the winter, and more opportunities for parents to engage with each other, which we will take into account in the new year! 
• We are grateful for the positive feedback on afterschool clubs – over 92% of respondents were very or somewhat satisfied. These were a big endeavor for the PTO, and we were so happy to see that so many families enjoyed these opportunities. The overwhelming consensus is that parents want even more options! The most requested additional options were music and sports. The afterschool clubs committee is working on expanding opportunities, including hiring an afterschool coordinator with the long-term goal of allowing students not enrolled in afterschool to also participate.
• We got helpful feedback on how to make PTO meetings more useful, including requests for advance notice of the agenda, hearing more from teachers, and opportunities to raise issues not on the agenda. 
• Finally, we are really grateful for all the positive encouragement we received! It means a lot to hear from you all. 

As always, thank you all for your support and engagement. We love our community and are excited for another great year!