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Sunday - February 8, 2015


Principal's Letter


MESSAGE FROM MAMADOU


Announcements


FLU SEASON
BSU BLACK HISTORY MONTH SHOW
TEACHER APPRECIATION VALENTINE'S DAY COOKIE BAKE
INCLEMENT WEATHER COMMUNICATIONS


Events


MEET BRYAN GARMAN: THURSDAY, FEB. 12
MARK HYMAN ON YOUTH SPORTS
ARTS COMMITTEE OPEN MEETING FOR ALL PARENTS
QUALITY OF COMMUNITY LIFE COMMITTEE


Other


QUAKER QUOTES


News Around the School


US NEWS


Principal's Letter


MESSAGE FROM MAMADOU
Friends,
On the evening of February 18 at 7:00 p.m., we will hold our yearly Curriculum Overview program for all parents of the Upper School. As in past years, each of the department chairs will present an overview of the course offerings for 2015/16. Department chairs will offer a similar presentation earlier in the day for all Upper School students, and in the weeks leading up to March 11, when 2015/16 course selections are due, students will have had several opportunities to discuss course offerings with department chairs and their advisors. I mention these dates and this process now so you can mark your calendars. The February 18 evening program for parents is an important opportunity for you to learn about the course options available so you can have informed discussions with your children as they begin to plan for next year. Please know that Interim Academic Dean Min Kim and the department chairs are available to you as resources should you have any questions about the courses and the course selection process.
The 2015/16 Curriculum Guide, which offers detailed information about each of the courses, will be available on the School website after February 13.
And finally, congratulations to the Dance Ensemble for a spectacular Winter Performance!
With warm regards,
Mamadou Guèye
Principal
Important Dates:
February 13, 7:00 p.m.: Black Student Union (BSU) Show
February 14, 8:30-10:30 p.m.: Valentine’s Dance
February 18, 7:00 p.m.: US Parent Curriculum Night, RLS Meeting Room
February 20: Last day to request Pass/Fail for second semester class or drop class with WP/WF
February 22: 10th Grade Casserole Bake, Dining Room
February 25: 2015/16 course selections open
March 2: Spring PE classes begin
March 3, 7:45-8:45 a.m.: 9th Grade Parent Conversation with Administration, Choral Room
March 5: End of third quarter
March 5, 7:45-8:45 a.m.: 10th Grade Parent Conversation with Administration, Choral Room
March 6: No Upper School classes--teacher report writing day
March 9: Fourth quarter begins
March 10, 7:45-8:45 a.m.: 11th Grade Parent Conversation with Administration, Choral Room
March 11: 2015/16 course selections and four-year plan due
March 12, 7:45-8:45 a.m.: 12th Grade Parent Conversation with Administration, Choral Room
March 13, 14, 15: Upper School Musical
March 20: Third Quarter report cards posted online
March 20-27: Spring Break


Announcements


FLU SEASON
With flu season upon us, we ask that you please remember our sick policy and keep your child at home if they present with a fever above 100.5F and other symptoms that indicate the flu. Students cannot return to school until they have been fever-free for at least 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication. Please report all absences to the office and leave specific information regarding their symptoms. This information assists the School in making appropriate decisions regarding the health of the school and its attendees.
The flu is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms of flu include:

--fever (usually high)

--headache

--extreme tiredness

--dry cough

--sore throat

--runny or stuffy nose

--muscle aches

--stomach symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, also can occur but are more common in children than adults

Flu viruses are thought to spread mainly from person to person through coughing or sneezing of people with influenza. Sometimes people may become infected by touching something with flu viruses on it and then touching their mouth or nose. Most healthy adults may be able to infect others beginning one day before symptoms develop and up to five days after becoming sick. That means that you may be able to pass on the flu to someone else before you know you are sick, as well as while you are sick.
Flu is a serious disease, and it's important to take action to protect yourself:

--Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.


--Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective.

--Try to avoid close contact with sick people.

--If you get the flu, CDC recommends that you stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.

--Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread this way.


Most healthy people recover from the flu without complications. If you get the flu:


--Stay home from work or school.


--Get lots of rest, drink plenty of liquids.

--There are over-the-counter (OTC) medications to relieve the symptoms of the flu (but never give aspirin to children or teenagers who have flu-like symptoms, particularly fever).
--Remember that serious illness from the flu is more likely in certain groups of people including people 65 and older, pregnant women, people with certain chronic medical conditions and young children.
--Consult your doctor early on for the best treatment, but also be aware of emergency warning signs that require urgent medical attention.


BSU BLACK HISTORY MONTH SHOW
The Black Student Union presents its Annual Black History Month Show in the Arts Center Theater on Friday, February 13, at 7:00 p.m.
A tradition that began in the 1980s, the program incorporates original student content with songs, poems, and other material from established authors. The cast is composed of students from the Lower, Middle, and Upper School. The entire Sidwell Friends School community is invited. Parents with younger children should be advised that some of the content in this powerful performance is written to reflect current events and the program, in its entirety, may not be appropriate for younger students

TEACHER APPRECIATION VALENTINE'S DAY COOKIE BAKE
The US Parents Association is sponsoring a Valentine's Day Appreciation Cookie Bake for our wonderful faculty and staff on Friday, February 13. We are looking for five volunteers from each grade to bake three dozen cookies (for 60 dozen cookies). Contributions should be dropped off at the Upper School Dining Room no later than 7:45 a.m. on the morning of the 13th.
In addition to volunteers who offer to bake cookies, we are asking 10 9th grade parents to meet in the Upper School Dining Room that day at 7:45 a.m. to help put together 120 festive cellophane bags of homemade cookies for our teachers and staff. Last year it took about an hour to assemble the treats.
Please sign up here: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4ba9ad2da02-valentines

INCLEMENT WEATHER COMMUNICATIONS
As a reminder to the community, the School communicates delays and closings due to inclement weather in the following ways:
Parents will receive an e-mail and a text message to the cell phone numbers on file with the School, while alternate contacts will receive a notice via e-mail only.
In addition, you can check the website homepage (sidwell.edu) for the current status.
A recorded message can also be accessed through the main phone number: 202-537-8100.
Please note that the Athletic Hotline is no longer in use.


Events


MEET BRYAN GARMAN: THURSDAY, FEB. 12
As promised, Upper School parents have another opportunity to meet Head of School Bryan Garman on Thursday, February 12, at 7:00 p.m. in the Robert L. Smith Meeting Room. RSVP to events@sidwell.edu or 202-537-8110. Bryan is eager to meet you and hear your perspectives. If you couldn’t make the morning meeting in January or simply have more questions, please come. Bryan learned who he wanted to be in room 212 of the Harrison Upper School Building. Please visit Room 212 Tour to learn more about this, and other, opportunities to meet Bryan.

MARK HYMAN ON YOUTH SPORTS
Mark Hyman, author of Until It Hurts, is coming to speak with parents on Monday February 9, at 7:30 p.m. in the Robert L. Smith Meeting Room. This is an opportunity to take part in a conversation about the many questions facing families with children in sports: When is the right time to start my child in an organized league? How do I keep sports fun for my child when many leagues have become hyper-competitive? Why are overuse injuries on the rise? What is driving the "global warming" of youth sports?
Refreshments will be available at 7:00 p.m., and child care for school-age children will be available. Please contact Kathi Webb, webbk@sidwell.edu, if you plan to use the child care.

ARTS COMMITTEE OPEN MEETING FOR ALL PARENTS
The PA Arts Committee invites you to a meeting on Thursday, February 19, from 6:30 p.m to 8:30 p.m. to celebrate another successful Artrageous, gather structured feedback, and brainstorm for next year. A light supper and adult refreshments will be served. If you helped with Artrageous, have ideas about other initiatives, or just want to connect with friendly parent volunteers who enjoy supporting the arts at Sidwell Friends, please come. If you're already involved, bring someone new to SFS! Please RSVP to Jane Legg (janelegg@yahoo.com) if you would like to attend so that she can organize refreshments. If you need child care or have an older student who needs a place to study, please contact Kathi Webb (webbk@sidwell.edu).

QUALITY OF COMMUNITY LIFE COMMITTEE


The Quality of Community Life Committee, along with your grade representatives, warmly invite you to a parent peer group meeting on Wednesday, February 25, at 7:00 p.m. Refreshments will be served, followed by parent breakout sessions organized by grade level for 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th. We'll have two trained facilitators present for each grade. Please join us in a supportive atmosphere for a discussion on a range of topics that affects us and our students.


Other


QUAKER QUOTES
From a Sidwell Friends alum from the Class of 1989, in the April 2014 Friends Journal:
"As I think about the challenges that face us as Friends, I remember the mentors and teachers who have shaped my life, and the generations of giants on whose shoulders we all stand: the George Foxes and Margaret Fells; the John Woolmans and the Lucretia Motts; the Bayard Rustins; the Steeres, the Brintons, the Bouldings...Sometimes I worry for our future, wondering where the next leaders will come from. Then I remember the words of Diane Nash, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee organizer from Fisk University and youthful architect of the freedom struggle, which involved generations and thousands of unheralded heroes. Nash is quoted at the close of David Garrow's Bearing the Cross, a biography of Martin Luther King Jr.: 'If people think that it was Martin Luther King's movement, then today they - young people - are more likely to say, 'Gosh, I wish we had a Martin Luther King here today to lead us.'...If people knew how that movement started, then the question they would ask themselves is, 'What can I do?'"
--Alexander Levering Kern '89
Quaker quotes are intended to deepen the understanding of Quakerism in the Sidwell Friends School community. Questions and suggestions may be addressed to Cynthia Richie Terrell: ctcabin@gmail.com.


US NewsQuaker Meeting House, Arts Center achieves Platinum LEED certification
The building’s design, materials, energy use, and more earned it the award from the U.S. Green Building Council.
Read More"Learning in order to love": GLSBT Club sponsors Love Week
Students enlist faculty, a guest, and each other to present an informative look at the many faces of the gay community.
Read MoreAlex Myers, author of "Revolutionary," presents during GLSBT Club's Love Week
The writer, teacher, and distant relative of his book’s inspiring subject was welcomed to campus on Trans Day, the second day in a week’s worth of lunchtime programming geared toward increasing understanding among students of all sexual and gender orientations.
Read More


Upper School Weekly E-Newsletter Submissions

How to Submit an Article to the E-Newsletter. Fill out the form at www.sidwell.edu/submit by 12:00 p.m. Thursday.

Note Concerning the School Calendar: The calendar entries that appear in the right column of each Newsletter are automatically generated by the official school calendar and are not subject to editing by the Newsletter Editors. All changes or additions to the school calendar must be made through the school scheduling office, reachable at: scheduling@sidwell.edu.

The Upper School Weekly E-Newsletter is a forum for communication among parents and is designed to provide announcements concerning school events or information. E-newsletter submissions should be filled out at www.sidwell.edu/submit.


Calendar


Sun, Feb 8th

BSU Show Rehearsal

AC Theater
12:00pm - 6:00pm


Mon, Feb 9th

BSU Show Rehearsal

AC Theater
6:00pm - 9:00pm


Until it Hurts - Mark Hyman Gathering with Parents

Robert L. Smith Meeting Room, K-19
7:30pm - 9:00pm


Tue, Feb 10th

BSU Show Rehearsal

AC Theater
6:00pm - 9:00pm


Thu, Feb 12th

Meet the Head of School - US Parents

Robert L. Smith Meeting Room
7:00pm - 8:30pm


Fri, Feb 13th

BSU Show

AC Theater
7:00pm - 9:00pm


Sat, Feb 14th

US Valentine's Dance

US Dining Rm
8:30pm - 10:30pm


Mon, Feb 16th

Presidents' Day - Potential school make-up day


Wed, Feb 18th

US PA Steering Comm. Mtg

Choral Music Room
8:00am - 9:30am


Sun, Feb 22nd

10th Gr. Casserole Bake

US Dining Rm
12:00pm - 2:00pm


Wed, Feb 25th

US Parent Peer Group Meetings, Grades 9-12

RLS Meeting Room, Choral Music room, US Room 102, US Room 104/106
7:00pm - 9:00pm


Fri, Feb 27th

US Arts Guild

Robert L. Smith Mtg Rm
7:00pm - 9:30pm


More


Athletics


Mon, Feb 9th

Wrestling - 7/8 at Potomac School


2:45pm


Basketball - Boys 7/8 B vs. Potomac School


2:45pm


Basketball - Boys 7/8 A vs. Potomac School


2:45pm


Basketball - Girls 7/8 A at St. Stephen's & St. Agnes


2:45pm


Tue, Feb 10th

Indoor Track - P.E. Class (Coed) vs. Georgetown Preparatory Run & Gun


Squash - P.E. Class (Co-Ed) at Madeira


4:00pm


Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity vs. Potomac School


4:15pm


Basketball - Girls Junior Varsity at Madeira


4:15pm


Basketball - Boys Freshman vs. Flint Hill


4:30pm


Basketball - Girls Varsity at Madeira


5:45pm


Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. Potomac School


6:00pm


Swimming & Diving - Boys Varsity vs. Meet vs. GDS & Potomac


7:30pm


Swimming & Diving - Girls Varsity vs. Meet vs. GDS & Potomac


7:30pm


Wed, Feb 11th

Basketball - Boys 7/8 A vs. St. Albans


2:30pm


Basketball - Boys 7/8 B at St. Albans


2:30pm


Basketball - Boys 7/8 C at St. Albans


2:30pm


Basketball - Girls 7/8 B at Sheridan School


3:15pm


Swimming & Diving - Girls Varsity vs. National Cathedral School


4:00pm


Swimming & Diving - Boys Varsity vs. St. Albans


4:00pm


Thu, Feb 12th

Basketball - Girls 7/8 B vs. Georgetown Day


2:30pm


Basketball - Girls 7/8 C vs. Georgetown Day


2:30pm


Basketball - Girls Junior Varsity at Flint Hill


4:30pm


Basketball - Girls Varsity at Flint Hill


4:30pm


Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity vs. JP Great


5:00pm


Basketball - Boys Freshman vs. JP Great


5:00pm


Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. JP Great


6:45pm


Fri, Feb 13th

Wrestling - Varsity - St. Alban's Tournament


2/14/2015


Basketball - Boys Freshman at Episcopal High School


4:30pm


Sat, Feb 14th

Basketball - Boys Varsity at St. Andrew's School


2:00pm


Tue, Feb 17th

Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity vs. St. James School


5:00pm


Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. St. James School


5:00pm


Basketball - Girls Varsity at St. Andrew's School


5:45pm


Wed, Feb 18th

Basketball - Girls 7/8 A at National Cathedral School


2:45pm


Basketball - Girls 7/8 B vs. National Cathedral School


2:45pm


Basketball - Boys 7/8 A at St. Stephen's & St. Agnes


2:45pm


Basketball - Boys 7/8 B vs. St. Stephen's & St. Agnes


2:45pm


Basketball - Boys 7/8 C at St. Stephen's & St. Agnes


2:45pm


Basketball - Boys Freshman at Landon


4:30pm


Thu, Feb 19th

Wrestling - 7/8 vs. St. Andrew's School


2:45pm


Basketball - Girls 7/8 A at Holy Child


2:45pm


Basketball - Boys 7/8 A vs. St. Andrew's School


2:45pm


Basketball - Boys 7/8 B vs. St. Andrew's School


2:45pm


Basketball - Girls 7/8 C at St. Stephen's & St. Agnes


2:45pm


Fri, Feb 20th

Basketball - Girls Varsity - ISL Tournament 2/20 - 2/22


2/22/2015


Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. MAC Tournament: 2/20 - 2/22


2/22/2015


Sat, Feb 21st

Wrestling - Varsity - DC Classic


Indoor Track - P.E. Class (Coed) - Hoxton Meet


Fri, Feb 27th

Wrestling - Varsity - National Preps


2/28/2015


Sat, Feb 28th

Lacrosse - Girls Varsity - Bullis Play Day


More


3825 Wisconsin Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20016 Tel: 202-537-8100 Fax: 202-537-8499