Posted November 7, 2024
Update: Afternoon Asbury Eagle Families,
When bad weather or other unexpected events make it unsafe for students and staff to come to our school buildings, DPS will cancel school for the day. The superintendent makes that decision based on information provided by the DPS Transportation team, local transportation agencies, and the weather bureau. Based on that, DPS has called a Snow Day for tomorrow, Friday, November 8, 2024. This means that Asbury will be closed tomorrow.
The decision to keep schools open or to close them during winter weather is made with one overriding factor in mind: the well-being of DPS students and employees. Schools are not only vital places of learning for students, but they also provide nutrition, health care, counseling and essential support services, so this decision is not taken lightly. Whenever possible, DPS strives to keep schools open. If schools are closed, all school-related activities that day – athletics, performances, before and after school care – are also canceled unless otherwise noted.
Stay safe, bundle up and keep warm!
Don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions!
Jeanna Doung
Principal
Asbury Elementary
Principal Message:
Dear Asbury Families,
As we continue to celebrate and give gratitude to our amazing Asbury members, this coming week is National School Psychologist week and with that, I want to take a moment to celebrate and express gratitude towards Lauren Gourgues, our amazing School Psychologist at Asbury! I wanted to take a moment to express my thanks to the incredible support that Lauren provides to our students at Asbury. Her dedication to all of our students has made an impact here.
Lauren plays a vital role in addressing the diverse needs of our students. She identifies obstacles that may hinder their academic, social, and emotional development, and develops tailored interventions to help them thrive. By collaborating with teachers, parents, and mental health professionals, she ensures that each student receives the comprehensive support they need.
Moreover, her preventative work is crucial in building resilience among our students, allowing them to overcome challenges before they arise. Lauren also significantly contributes to the success of our Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and 504 plans, working diligently with our multidisciplinary team to meet our students’ goals. Additionally, her expertise in analyzing data from psychological tests and observations aids us in making informed decisions that positively impact our students’ lives.
We are truly thankful for all that Lauren does to enhance our school community and support both students and staff.
In Partnership,
Jeanna Doung
Mark Your Calendars: 2025-26 SchoolChoice Round 1 Dates
SchoolChoice Round 1 for the 2025-26 school year will open on Jan. 15, 2025 and close on Feb. 18, 2025. These dates will be publicly announced in Our DPS Weekly on Friday, Nov. 1
Families can apply here. Families with existing Parent Portal accounts can log in using their username and password. Families who don’t have Parent Portal accounts will set up a new account.
ATTENDANCE
Parents and Guardians, any time that your child will be absent the protocol is to call our attendance line at 720-424-9797 and leave a message with your child’s first and last name, grade and reason for absence. If they are out for any appointments like doctor, dentist etc. please ask them for a school excuse and bring it to me in the office so that time will be excused. The same applies if you pick your student up early or during the day for an appointment please get a school excuse. If you have left a message on the attendance line and you do get a communication that your student was marked without an excuse please disregard it and know that it will be marked in IC accordingly it just may have been a busy morning and I have not had the opportunity to do so. You can email the teachers if you would like but calling the attendance line is the protocol, we appreciate you all and know that when a student is out we want to streamline things for you as well and that is the best practice to call the attendance line.
HR Updates
Please come to the Multilingual Education (MLE) District Advisory Committee (DAC) on Wednesday, Nov. 13 from 5-7 p.m. at Rocky Mountain Prep Westwood. This month, we are hosting a Health and Wellness Night for multilingual families with information on physical and mental health, nutrition services and community supports. Dinner, interpretation and childcare provided. Here is the event flyers for more information. Attendees are encouraged to pre-register here. For more information, visit the MLE website or contact Olga Olivas at 720-423-3058.
Art Newsletter from Ms. Werner and Artie the Art Dog
Art Fusion Workshop with Ms. Werner Information
Hold the Date: In Person Community Circle on November 15
Our next Community Circle Meeting will be in person in the gym on November 15 from 7:50-8:20. Specials schedule will start a little later on this day. Community Circle is a time that we, as an Asbury community come together and celebrate one another and grow together to do our BEST!
Thanksgiving Lunch at Asbury
We want to cordially invite you to Asbury’s Thanksgiving lunch on November 21. Please see below for the lunch times for each grade. If you want to eat as a family and you have multiple students in multiple grade levels, our recommendation is to first try to have one adult eat with one student and the other eat with the other student. If this does not work, then please pull younger students to eat with the older students. We will have seating inside the cafeteria and outside on the blacktop. Also, if you want to come and enjoy and not eat, that is ok! Students can still bring their own lunch from home, they do you need to eat lunch at school. You are welcome to come eat lunch with students. Recess time can get busy, so it may be easier to just come for lunch. 🙂
| Grade Level | Lunch Time |
| Kinder | 10:30-10:55 |
| 1st | 10:50-11:15 |
| 2nd | 11:10-11:35 |
| 3rd | 11:30-11:55 |
| 4th | 11:50-12:15 |
| 5th | 12:10-12:35 |
National School Psychology Week is November 11th-15th. This year’s theme, “Spark Discovery,” recognizes the work that school psychologists do to help their communities seek out new ideas, effect change, and expand horizons for children and youth.
The National Association of School Psychology (NASP) states that school psychologists are members of the school team that support students’ ability to learn and teachers’ ability to teach. We apply expertise in mental health, learning, and behavior to help children and youth succeed academically, socially, and emotionally. As school psychologists, we provide direct support and interventions to students, such as learning assessments, academic and behavioral interventions, counseling, and social skills training. We also consult with families, teachers, and other educators to improve school-wide practices and policies.
Join us by taking this week to embark on a journey of discovery and explore how each person can join us in our mission of helping children thrive in school, at home, and in life. There are many ways caregivers can help children take on new challenges, learn new skills, and feel safe and valued.
Report Cards
Report cards will be available to families by November 22. You can access them through Infinite Campus or IC.
Grandfriends Day
We are so excited to host our 3rd annual Grandfriends Day. This year, this special day will be hosted on 2/13. For more information, please check out this Flier!
HOPE Event
We are excited to have families in need invited to the HOPE. event. This is an event at Colorado Academy called HOPE (Helping Other People Eat). This is an event that they put on every year around the holidays where we invite families from around the Denver area to come to our campus and get free clothes, toys, a warm meal, optional flu vaccines, school supplies, personal care items, health resources and more! In addition, we have face painting, bouncy houses, and other fun activities to make this a fun and exciting day for families. Transportation to the event is available upon request. This is the 31st year they have done this event and this year the event will take place on December 14th from 9am – 2pm at Colorado Academy! This event is also translated in multiple languages. They wanted to send a warm invitation to any Asbury Elementary School family who may benefit from this event to attend and wanted to spread the word as best as possible. They have created a save the date flier which is below. Please pass this information along to families. Link: HOPE Event Information
Prospective Parent Tours
If you know anyone that has an upcoming student, please let them know that we will be hosting prospective parent tours. During these tours, current parents and student ambassadors give a tour of Asbury, we have teachers share out and then Ms. D shares out and answers questions for parents. These are hosted on Fridays from 9:30-10:30am weekly from October through January. If you know anyone that is interested in checking Asbury out, please share this school tours website!
Volunteering At Asbury
We love our volunteers at Asbury. Work with your teachers and PTSO for ways to get involved at Asbury. Every year, volunteers will have to get background checks to support inside the school building. For more information, please check out this website that provides all the information and next steps to volunteer.
Please visit the Asbury Website for more information and details about enrichments offered during this session: Asbury Enrichments Schedule (update in progress)
Enrichment Flyers
Community Flyers
Upcoming Dates