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The Douglas County School District (DCSD) follows the Standard Response Protocol (SRP) at all facilities. SRP is not based on individual scenarios, but on the response to any given scenario. There are five SRP commands:

1. Hold - followed by the Directive: “In Your Room or Area” and is the protocol used when hallways need to kept clear of occupants.
2. Secure - followed by the Directive: “Get Inside. Lock Outside Doors” and is the protocol used to safeguard people within the building.
3. Lockdown - followed by “Locks, Lights, Out of Sight” and is the protocol used to secure individual rooms and keep occupants quiet and in place.
4. Evacuate - may be followed by a location, and is used to move people from one location to a different location in or out of the building.
5. Shelter - State the Hazard and Safety Strategy for group and self protection.

Any time the SRP is activated at one of our schools, the DCSD Communications team will quickly send parents at the impacted school an alert via phone, text and email. Learn more about signing up for Emergency Communication alerts on our website.

The Douglas County School District Gifted Education Advisory Council (DCGEAC) is seeking new members! The mission of the Council is to gather, communicate, and disseminate information to stakeholders, as well as advocate, influence, support, and ensure accountability for quality programming for gifted learners in Douglas County School District. Would you like to be a representative on DCGEAC? If so, please fill out the self nomination form.

Current Vacancies by Feeder:

• Castle View - Elementary
• Chaparral - Elementary, Secondary & Discovery
• Douglas County - Elementary & Secondary
• Highlands Ranch - Elementary & Secondary
• Ponderosa - Elementary
• Rock Canyon - Elementary
• ThunderRidge - Elementary & Secondary
• Charter Schools - Parker area
• High School Student Representatives - All Feeders and Charter

Are you interested in joining us for a meeting to find out more or would you just like more information? Contact Heather Groff through our department email at gifted.education@dcsdk12.org.

The DCSD Elementary Discovery Program is a center based gifted program designed to meet the needs of highly advanced gifted elementary school students (grades 2 - 6) who require intensity of instruction and acceleration beyond what can reasonably be expected from gifted programming and services provided through their school. Student’s placed in this program receive their typical school day instruction in a self-contained classroom with other highly gifted students. Want to know more about the program and/or explore if it might be right for your student(s)? You can find further information and resources on the DCSD Gifted Education Website. When the Discovery application process opens in September, the links to apply will be located on that page. We will hold Discovery Information nights at each of our locations–exact dates to be announced soon.

Douglas County School District is committed to bringing unique learning opportunities to our students and we are pleased to offer a free reading service providing digital books, magazines, and graphic novels through Sora, the student reading app.

The collection of titles in Sora is an extension of DCSD’s physical library, only it’s in an app with 24/7 access to eBooks and audiobooks. It’s convenient for students to check out titles at home, on the weekends or during school breaks with no worry about misplacing a book – these digital titles automatically return at the end of the lending period!

Sora can help students of all ages read more and improve comprehension. Struggling or reluctant readers, learning-challenged, second language learners, and gifted readers can all benefit from this service. Please ask your school librarian for more details.

Castle View High School student Ashton Showers sits down with his Choir, Theater, and Dance teacher Rochelle Walter to learn more about her love for teaching. Ms. Walter also provides Ashton with some advice for his future.

Youth Congress

A Project of the Douglas County Youth Initiative

October 3 | 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Colorado State Capitol

Students, grades 9 – 12 are invited to attend Youth Congress. During this event, youth from around Douglas County get to weigh in on issues that affect youth and are of interest to youth. One of the missions of the Youth Congress is to communicate your thoughts, ideas, and solutions to elected and community leaders. Register today!

The fifth annual Building the Dream Gala on September 29th, will celebrate the 2023 Apple Award Winners and showcase some of Douglas County's finest student talent. This special evening will bring out the Douglas County community to honor the amazing students, cherished teachers, exceptional schools, and extraordinary programs of the Douglas County School District!

The power of a gracious community is invaluable to our students! Learn more. >>

• Douglas County students scored higher on the CMAS tests last year than most others in the state
• DCSD Bridge Students Run the Legacy Campus Cafe
• Nine DCSD players on the list of Colorado's top high school football talents
  
• RCHS Grad Shines as a Civil Engineer and IRONMAN Enthusiast

Next BOE Regular Meeting
Tuesday, September 12 at 5:00 p.m.

Watch live on YouTube or on Comcast Channel 54