PTA Newsletter
January 27, 2026
Dear Ross Community,
A snow storm? Delightful! Always good to get one fun powder session per year to flex the sleds and snow suits. Or...would you accept a sleety ice festival instead, cause that's what the universe had on tap? Look, I know a lot of you have been getting out there and really seizing the day, and I applaud you, truly. But I will be gracing the outdoors momentarily, and crawling low to the ground like a hunting cat each time, so as to not meet my fate on this ice sheet that is DC. When will we see each other again? Well, if DC + snow were a relationship, its status would be "it's complicated" so your guess is as good as mine. đ¤ˇđťââď¸
In the meantime, we have updates and events for your weekly read. If you haven't already marked your calendar for Bingo Night (Thu Feb 19), do so today! We have the next Coffee and Content session coming up next week (Fri Feb 6) and the topic will be 3rd-5th grade English Language Arts (ELA). Students continue to interview members of Ross's community and history with the Story of Our Schools project. Read on for all you need to know about school this week, and we hope to see you in person sooner than later. ââ
-Aimee
Start counting the days until the Ross Bingo Night, to be held on Thursday, February 19, from 5:30-7:00 pm at the Foundry UMC (1500 16th St NW). All families and children are invited to this fun night, which will include bingo, pizza, and prizes! This year's VIP Caller will be Ms. Juriga, and we are seeking volunteers for help with set-up and clean-up--please sign up here to pitch in!
This spring, join the school's content leadersâMr. Levin (Math) and Mr. Miller (ELA)âfor a new Coffee & Content series designed to help families better understand grade-level expectations and learn practical strategies to support learning at home. Each session includes coffee, a short presentation from the coaches, and time for questions and conversation.
The second session of the series will be next Friday, February 6, 8:15â9:00 AM in the former music room on the 3rd floor and the topic will be Literacy in Action: Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Language in Grades 3â5: Partnering with Families to Support Growth at Home and School.
This session will dive into the Science of Reading in upper elementary (grades 3-5) and beyond. After reviewing recent research and debunking common myths around literacy, we will discuss the instructional implications at school. We will also discuss the important role that families play outside of school. Please fill out this survey before the session to submit questions you'd like to see answered.
Mark your calendars for upcoming sessions, same time and location:
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March 6: Grades Kâ2 Math
April 3: Grades Kâ2 ELA
We hope you can join these helpful and engaging morning sessions!
Students Interview Maria Chamorro
Ms. Chamorro worked at Ross Elementary School for 11 years. Shortly after her 20th birthday, she began with the after school program and then became a teacherâs assistant. She is currently the lead preschool teacher at JCC on 16th Street.
Finn: Do you have a past tense with Ross?
Ms. Chamorro: I used to work here. I was a teacher's assistant, and I started out with Kindergarten. I got to work with Ms. Juriga in first grade. I was here for a long time. So, yes, I have a bit of a past tense with Ross.
I loved working at Ross. It was my firstâmaybe secondâprofessional job. It was exciting but also nerve wracking because I never worked with kids before I started at Ross. The experience gave me a lot of confidence. It gave me a lot of knowledge and training. It was fun!
The education has improved because of how much effort was being put into the school to make education really rich and fun for the kids. There was a lot of creativity going on. There were partnerships from outside the school so kids could experience different ways to learn.
Students Interview Natalia and Juan Ulloa
Ross 4th graders interviewed a father/daughter duo last week! It was wonderful to listen to their stories about Nataliaâs time spent at Ross [2009 - 2017]. Juan was part of the PTA and helped promote the school, advocate for building renovations, and create an inclusive school community. Natalia is now a second year film major at Pace University in New York.
Natalia: I think whatâs special about Ross is itâs a small elementary school compared to the others. But that means you get to be a lot closer to a lot of people. When I was here, I was friends with at least a few people in every grade which was awesome.
Natalia: The Ross T-shirt was green and in the shape of the DC flag.
Juan: Those were designed while she was here. And it was a big dealâit built some camaraderie among the families. Before you knew it, everyone was wearing the Ross shirts. Back in those days, we were always talking about Ross and promoting Ross. When I enrolled her here, a lot of adults were telling me, âAre you sure you want to put your child in this school?â because they didnât look too highly on DC public schools. To give you a little perspective, when we started here, the waitlist to get in was 40 kids. When she graduated in 5th grade, that waitlist was closer to 700 kids. Thatâs a testament of how hard the parents worked, how hard the kids worked, and how hard Holly and the team worked to make this one of the top schools in the city.
Natalia: I remember the holiday events for sure. When they sold the trees at Christmas, that was really cool. The Halloween party! I would meet all my friends on the playground when it was late at nightâit was so different than during the day. I was a girl scout when I was here, and sometimes we would sell cookies at the school. I also really liked Field Day a lot. And Girls on the Run! That was pretty fun.
Friends of Stead Park is excited to host the first ever youth chess tournament at Stead Park. The 2-day event will take place March 28th & 29th and is open to kids from all across the District. This will be a âSwiss styleâ tournament; elementary age kids will play on Saturday and middle & high school age kids play on Sunday. Scholarship money will be awarded to the winners. The event is free but registration is required. Scan the QR code in the image or click here to register.
About the Ross PTA
The mission of the Ross PTA is to support the education of all Ross students, to support Ross faculty and staff, to foster relationships among parents, staff and community members, and to assist faculty and staff to provide a safe and nurturing environment where all students, families and faculty can thrive and grow.
Email: PTApresident@rosselementary.org
Website: http://rosselementary.org/pta
Location: 1730 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20009
Phone: 202.673.7200
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Do you have updates or announcements that you think would be of interest to our school community? If so, please email me here.