DeKeyser News!

🎃👻 A HUGE THANK YOU, DEKEYSER DOLPHINS! 👻🎃

What a SPOOKTACULAR night! A heartfelt thank you to our amazing PTCG for organizing such a wonderful Spooktacular event on Friday, October 23rd! The night was a huge success, and it was so much fun seeing our DeKeyser community come together for an evening filled with laughter, smiles, and Halloween fun.

A special shout-out to DJ Super Dave for bringing so much extra excitement and energy to this year’s event! 🎶🕺

Thank you to all of the families who volunteered their time, painted those AMAZING pumpkins, donated candy, and came out to celebrate with us. Events like these remind us how special our DeKeyser community truly is. We are so grateful for the time, generosity, and school spirit that make these memories possible!

📸 Be sure to check out our Facebook page for all of the wonderful photos from the night!

Thank you for making Spooktacular such a memorable evening. We are so lucky to have such an incredible community!

💜🐬 Once a Dolphin, Always a Dolphin! 🐬💜

Adventures never end!

Ways To Stay Connected

DeKeyser Website

DeKeyser Facebook

PTCG Facebook

Breakfast & Lunch Menus

UCS School Calendar

Parent & Student Handbook

Halloween Spirit Week

What's Happening at DeKeyser

Week of October 26th - 30th

October 2026

VIP Parking: Lisa Dicker

Monday, October 26

Spirit Day: Wear Orange & Black
PBIS Assembly

6:00 – 8:00 - Double Dolphins Robotics

Tuesday, October 27

Spirit Day: Crazy Sock Day
6:30 – 8:30 – First Lego League Robotics

Wednesday. October 28

Spirit Day - Wacky Hair Day
Bubbles Boutique – School Store
5:00 – Multilingual Learner Parent Meeting - Virtual

Thursday, October 29

Spirit Day: Fall Flannel Day
EDAC Meeting

Friday, October 30

Spirit Day - Happy Halloween! - Wear your school appropriate costume
Half Day – 12:09pm Dismissal

11:30 - Halloween Parade

6:00 – 8:00 - Double Dolphins Robotics

Saturday, October 31

Happy Halloween 🎃

Halloween Updates

Classroom party volunteer lists should be given to Heather by Wednesday, Oct. 21st so she can prepare all labels prior to Oct. 30th. Please make sure you include the time that the parents are permitted to come down to your classroom.
Parties should be with snacks with labels only, fresh fruits, and vegetables could work as well.
Treats can be sent to school to take home. Please be cognizant of the allergies in your classroom / grade level / learning community. I have attached a safe snack list if you would like to send it home. Safe Snack Guide - SnackSafely.com
Please remind students - No Violent costumes!
The parade will be at 11:30 a.m. All classes will sit outside of their classroom on the outside wall. The parade will start at Mrs. Conklin's classroom. Weather permitting, we will parade around the building picking up classrooms as we pass. Once we make it around the building once, you will sit outside of your room to watch the remainder of the parade.
Rain plan will be shared closer to the date.

Halloween Costume Guidelines

Halloween is a time of year where some of our students get super excited about picking out their Halloween costumes, and as parents/guardians we know that sometimes those "popular" costumes are hard to find the longer we wait to go shopping. With that being said we thought it may be helpful for you to have an idea of what those "school appropriate" costumes are here at DeKeyser. Keep in mind, or as we like to put things in perspective with our older students.... we have students as young as 4-5 years old and while some costumes are "age appropriate for them", they may not be appropriate for the all-school parade. After reading the guidelines below if you have any questions regarding the suitability, please contact the office or your child's teacher.

Students should refrain from violent characterization and may not use any fake weapons, fake blood, or any references to victims or perpetrators of violence for their costume choice at school. Violent characterization is unacceptable for school parades and where younger students might be frightened. If deemed inappropriate by school personnel, students will be asked to remove the costume and/or wash their makeup.

Book, cartoon, folk heroes, historical figures, and period costumes are all good ideas to consider when thinking of the perfect costume.

Since Halloween is a half day of school, students will be allowed to wear costumes to school. Check to be sure that your child can walk freely, and that the costume will be comfortable enough for the classroom setting. Masks may be worn (frightening masks not permitted) but those that impede vision should be left at home. Plan to have your child bring any costume props (wigs and other add-ons) to school in a bag or backpack.

Attendance Matters Communication

1st Monday of Every Month

Dear Parent or Guardian,

I am writing to inform you about an exciting new program we are implementing starting in November. To enhance communication regarding student attendance, we will be utilizing Attendance Intervention, a PowerSchool product designed to streamline updates and alerts for families.

With Attendance Intervention, you will receive text messages and email alerts directly from teachers and school leaders, keeping you informed about your child's attendance in real time.

What makes Attendance Intervention unique?

· No Login Required: Messages will automatically be sent to the phone number and email address the school has on file for you.

· Direct Communication: Each message will come from a unique phone number associated with the sender. This direct line allows you to easily save the sender’s number in your phone and reply directly to them, if desired.

· Absence Alerts: Families will be notified if a student is absent from school in a timely fashion.

· Say Goodbye to Language Barriers: Attendance Intervention translates text and email messages into more than 90 languages, based on the preferred language on file.

We are confident that this program will enhance communication and ensure we are all working together to support our students’ successes. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the school office.

Thank you for your continued partnership in your child’s education.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Hathcock

Sample Attendance Post Card

What's Happening at DeKeyser

Week of November 2nd - 6th

November 2026

VIP Parking: Emily Manolis

Sunday, November 1

Happy Birthday Candace Washburn! 🥳

Monday, November 2

5:10 - Attendance messages and postcards sent
6:00 – 8:00 - Double Dolphins Robotics

Tuesday, November 3

Happy Birthday Emma Distelrath! 🥳

No School - Election Day

Wednesday, November 4

Bubbles Boutique – School Store

6:00 – 7:00 - Cub Scout Pack 252-Cafateria

6:30 – 8:00 – Parent Leadership Connection

Thursday, November 5

8:00 – Student Council Meeting (Washburn’s Classroom)

Friday, November 6

Report Cards available in PowerSchool

Frozen Friday - $1 Popsicle Sale

6:00 – 8:00 - Double Dolphins Robotics

Saturday, November 7

10:00 – 2:00 - Macomb Reads Carnival - MISD

Sunday, November 8

Happy Birthday Jamie Sheridan! 🥳

Diwali

E-bikes and E-Scooters Restrictions

PTCG Information

Thank You, DeKeyser Families!

PTCG Meeting: Thank you to all the parents and caregivers who joined us for our October PTCG meeting! We appreciate your continued involvement and support. We look forward to seeing everyone at our next meeting on Tuesday, November 10th, at 6:00 PM!

Spooktacular Success! What a SPOOK-tacular evening! We had an amazing turnout, handed out over 1,000 pounds of candy, and saw so many smiling Dolphins enjoying the festivities! A HUGE thank-you to our wonderful volunteers, participating families, and NHS students who helped make the event such a success. We couldn't have done it without you!

Pumpkin Painting Fun! Congratulations to all the lucky students who took home one of our incredibly creative painted pumpkins! A special thank-you to the families who shared their artistic talents and helped make our pumpkin raffle such a fun part of Spooktacular!

Thank you for continuing to make our DeKeyser community so FIN-tastic! 💙🐬

UCS News

Do you want to see a snowman? Henry Ford II High School Theatre presents Frozen The Broadway Musical, December 3 (6:30), December 4 (6:30), December 5 (3:00), and December 6 (3:00) at the Henry Ford II High School Performing Arts High School. Tickets are $15 at hf2theatre.ludus.com and via the QR code. A magical night out for the whole family!

School Age Child Care

Utica Community Schools is pleased to provide an opportunity for School Age Child Care (SACC)!

DeKeyser Options are as follows:

Morning SACC: Monday - Friday 6: 45 am - 9:05 am

Afternoon SACC: Tuesday - Thursday 3:55 pm – 6:00 pm at Oakbrook Elementary

Students will be bussed to this location after school.

Please click on the link below for more information and the opportunity to register your child for SACC.

Click Here For More Information Related to SACC

Download the Raptor Safe App For Quick Signing In

Click Here to Download the Raptor Safe App

We Love Our Volunteers and Visitors!

We are asking for your support to help keep our students safe. If you plan to volunteer in our classrooms, work directly with a student and/or chaperone a field trip, etc. you will need to have a volunteer background check on file. The new volunteer application form is located at this link: www.uticak12.org/volunteer. The background check involves multiple state and federal law enforcement databases. We greatly appreciate the involvement of our families and the difference you make at DeKeyser Elementary. Thank you for your partnership with this extra step that will improve safety in our school.

Volunteer applications need to be renewed annually. If you submitted a volunteer application in November, you do not need to submit a new application at this time. Raptor will automatically send a renewal application when their current volunteer approval is approaching its expiration date.

A few reminders: