CRESTHILL MIDDLE SCHOOL
COUGAR COURIER
August 13th: First Day of School (7th Grade Only)
August 14th: First Day of School (ALL Students)
August 15th: Chromebook Dispersal - Device Agreement Form
August 19th: Student Picture Day
August 21st: Back to School Night 5:30-7:30
August 26th & 27th: iReady Math
Find answers to your back to school questions:
Lunch Menus
Parent Portal FAQ's
Pay Fees
Safety and Security
Transportation Updates
Dear DCSD Families Eligible for School Bus Transportation,
We are excited to begin the new school year and look forward to serving our students and families.
Thank you so much for your cooperation and understanding as we implemented a rolling bus cancellation schedule over the past several years.
Over the past year, we have worked diligently to increase staffing to eliminate route rotation cancellations. While we’ve made significant progress, some routes will need to remain on the rolling cancellation schedule for at least the first part of the school year.
While we are pleased to have been able to restore a number of routes, we know our work will not be finished until all of our bus routes are off of the rolling cancellation schedule. Enhanced recruiting, training, and retention initiatives continue to be pursued.
We will communicate continued progress on our cancelled routes along with an updated schedule in early October so families can plan accordingly.
Please click here to view the current rotation schedule and to check if your route will be affected as we begin the new school year.
As a reminder, this rolling bus cancellation schedule is for general education bus routes only. Special education routes will continue as normal and will not be impacted.
Thank you for your continued patience and support as we work to provide safe and reliable transportation for all students and please spread the word, “WE’RE HIRING!”
Sincerely,
Jackie Millet, Chief Operations Officer
Donna Grattino, Director of Transportation
Douglas County School District
P.S. If you know of anyone who might want to join the DCSD family as a bus driver or assistant, please encourage them to apply at www.dcsdk12.org/careers.
If you need ANY Transportation help or have questions, please reach out to our Transportation Department HERE.
MEET OUR NEWEST DEPUTY
Deputy Guster was sworn in on Thursday 5/15/25 and will be here to start the 25-26 school year. Guster is now a full time employee and companion of our SRO, Deputy Corbin.
WE HAVE A NEW WEBSITE
Our website has been updated and re-designed. Take a look to familiarize yourself with it.
NEW VISITOR CHECK-IN SYSTEM
We have 2 new Raptor Visitor Self Check-In kiosks in the front of the school for adults that will be in the building for a period of time. Please follow the steps below when visiting Cresthill:
1. Have your ID out and ready
2. Complete the instructions on the kiosk
3. A name badge will be printed and given to you by security or our attendance secretary.
Note: Frequent visitors can download the "Raptor Safe" application from the Apple Store or Google Play for a seamless visitor check in experience.
ATTENDANCE
If your student will be absent for any reason please call our Attendance Line at 303-387-2802. Please speak slowly and leave a clear message with your child's first name, last name, and the reason for the absence.
If your student needs to leave early for an appointment or any other reason, we kindly ask that you notify us in advance whenever possible. You can call the attendance line or the main office 303-387-2800. Please provide your child's name, the reason for dismissal, and whether they will be returning to school. We'll issue a pass to you student so that they are ready to leave at the specified time. A photo ID is required when picking up your child from the building.
FROM THE HEALTH OFFICE
As we begin another school year, we want to remind everyone of our illness policy:
👉If your student has a cough, runny nose and isn't feeling well enough to participate in school activities, consider keeping them home to rest.
👉If your child has a fever, vomiting and/or diarrhea, sore throat, rash, or other conditions requiring antibiotics, your child must stay home.
👉A student may return to school after 24 hours of antibiotics for any diagnosed illness.
Exception: If being treated for Pertussis, students must be on antibiotics for 5 days before returning to school.
👉 Students must be free of the following conditions for at least 24 hours:
- Fever (without the aid of fever reducing medication)
- Vomiting and/or diarrhea when accompanied by other illness symptoms or due to a virus such as Norovirus)
Thank you for helping to keep all of our students safe and healthy!
HONOR ROLL REQUIREMENTS
In order for students to make the honor roll each quarter the MUST have:
- 5 A's in Work Habits
- A 3.5 GPA or higher
- Have a B or higher in Advisement
If you have any questions about grades, please reach out to your students teacher via email.
GRADING AND REPORTING
Dear Cresthill Families and Students,
If you are unsure of the grading and reporting practices of Cresthill -- and, for example, why it looks like your student has a 3 out of 100 for a grade in a class! -- check out the video and presentation below. You will get clarification on what you and your child will see in their Infinite Campus gradebook and understand a lot better why and how we grade as a Standards-Based Grading school.
Check this out:
If you have any questions, please let us know or reach out directly to our Professional Learning Specialist, Mr. Wakefield, at mdwakefield@dcsdk12.org
EDUCATION AND AI
Dear CMS Community,
If you are asking a lot of questions about AI and education -- or, don't know where to even start -- take a few minutes to listen to a presentation by Matt Miller on the topic, "10 Things for Parents to Know about AI & Education". We here at Cresthill, like Matt Miller, are very much in the process of wrestling with the implications of AI in our educational world and are constantly seeking out ways to not only make sense and good use of AI tools but also to help educate and train our students in the best uses of these resources and tools.
Check out his presentation here or scan the QR code below.
POSITIVE BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS (PBIS)
Cresthill is excited to announce our PBIS store. This is a place where good behavior is rewarded and positivity thrives. Our PBIS store will be a place where students can redeem points earned for demonstrating:
- Positive behaviors
- Perfect attendance
- Fostering a supportive and respectful school environment
Join Cresthill Athletics!!!
Dear Cresthill families,
Our 8th grade Girls Volleyball and Coed 7/8th grade Cross Country seasons will be starting This week!!! First day of practice is 8/14!!!! Sign-up before registration closes! NO PRIOR EXPERIENCE NEEDED- Our AMAZING coaches will provide all the guidance and support!! Follow the below steps so you’re ready for practice!
Meet our Coaches:
Learn more about our AMAZING Cresthill coaches and explore our fall sports programs by clicking HERE
Important Fundraising Information:
This school year, our student-athletes participating in our 8th Grade Girls Volleyball and 7/8th Grade Coed Cross Country teams will be participating in a special fundraising effort to support our athletics programs. Please access this LINK for more information regarding our sports fundraiser.
Registration Details:
To ensure your student-athlete is properly registered to participate in either cross country or volleyball, please follow the steps/links below for the sport in which you wish to register your student-athlete in.
1. Please visit CMS Athletics Website to view important information and sport specific schedules.
2. To register for 8th grade Girls Volleyball use this LINK
3. To register for 7th/8th grade Coed Cross Country use this LINK
Please note:
All CMS student-athletes must have a current sport's physical in order to practice/play. Please use this physical waiver form to register LINK
All paperwork & fees must be completed and paid in order to practice/play.
If there are any questions or concerns, please contact Stephanie Young at stephanie.young@dcsdk12.org or 303-387-2816 or our Athletic Director, Joe Wahl, at jwahl1@dcsdk12.org
Show your CRESTHILL PRIDE!
Purchase your Volleyball & Cross Country team shirts!!!
DEFEND THE DEN Sponsor Spotlight!
Cresthill Community!
We are SO excited to highlight Cirilo Ibarra, Owner of David & Goliath Contracting, LLC, as one of our fantastic Defend the Den sponsors! His generous support directly benefits our athletics programs here at Cresthill, helping create memorable experiences for ALL of our student athletes. Thank you, Cirilo, for standing with us and investing in our student-athletes future and supporting Cresthill athletics!!!
See more about Cirilo’s business by reading below and visiting his website.
If you’re interested in becoming a Defend the Den sponsor, please click this LINK to learn more.
#DefendTheDen #CommunityStrong
From our Sponsor!!
"Hello, my name is Cirilo Ibarra, founder of David and Goliath Contracting and a proud sponsor of Cresthill’s Defend the Den! We are a local, family-owned construction company based in Highlands Ranch, offering residential and commercial services. Our licensed and insured team handles everything from full renovations to repairs and specialty work, including HVAC, plumbing, electrical, concrete work, and landscaping. Whether it is through a project or a quick conversation, I look forward to connecting whenever our paths cross!"
Cirilo Ibarra
David & Goliath Contracting, LLC
720.940.1755
Parents/Guardians: The CMS Library & Learning Commons is full of amazing resources, information, and opportunities for your students! Each week I will be sharing one tip so that you can learn more about what is available to your student.
Tip #1: Students have access to 7,000+ physical items for checkout inside our library and over 13,000 digital books, audiobooks, comics, manga and magazines via Sora, our district wide digital library. Our library motto for the year is to discover the “wild within”ourselves through the power of reading, stories and information types of both the physical and digital world. If you or your student have questions, I am ready to help! Welcome back to the information jungle!
HRHS Boys Basketball is hosting Gold Crown tryouts for our feeder program on Tuesday August 26th and Thursday August 28th at Cresthill Middle School. 5th and 6th grade tryouts will be at 6pm to 7:30pm each day. 7th and 8th grade tryouts will be from 7:30pm to 9pm each day. Tryouts are $10 paid at the door by either cash or check. There will be an all grade-level parent meeting at 7pm on Tuesday the 26th. Use the google form below to register for tryouts. If you have any questions, please reach out to abucholtz@dcsdk12.org
Office Hours: 7:00 AM - 3:30 PM
Before school/bell schedule:
7:25 AM First bell
7:30 AM Period One begins
After-school dismissal and expectations:
2:45 PM Dismissal
2:57 PM Buses Depart
3:00 PM All Students MUST be off campus
Main Office: 303-387-2800
Attendance: 303-387-2802
Registration: 303-387-2810
Bookkeeper: 303-387-2816
ADMINISTRATION
Francesca Pappalardo - Principal
303-387-2805
Gina Chambers - 8th-grade Assistant Principal/Activities Director
303-387-2807
Joe Wahl - 7th-grade Assistant Principal/Athletic Director
303-387-2806
Mark Wakefield - Professional Learning Specialist
Mascot: Cougar
School Colors: Black, Red, Gray, and White