The Unity Scoop – November 4

Dear Families of Unity,

Congrats to us all in supporting our students / your children to the fullest in their educational endeavors as we conclude the second month of our school year together!

As we move into the month of November, I anticipate it feeling like a short but busy month.  The coming week includes three full days of school in person and one day of asynchronous instruction.

In this edition of the Scoop, we feature our new National Honor Society members at Unity High, share photos of our students on recent college campus visits, highlight recent events among our student-athletes, pay tribute to recent school festivities, and offer a host of other exciting updates.

Enjoy the extra hour of beautiful fall weather this weekend!  And on a final and important note, please take the time to vote on Tuesday – all of our votes matter to both our students and the way in which our society supports their efforts.

In unity,

Josh Beauregard

Head of School / Co-founder

Updates as of November 4, 2022:

1. Updated – November 2022 School-wide Calendar: For your family’s convenience, here is a schoolwide calendar of events for the month of November – print it out and throw it on the refrigerator door!  It is possible that events could change and new events could be added.  An up-to-date events calendar can always be accessed on our website.

• Special Note: Tuesday, November 7th is an asynchronous day of learning for students.  All students will receive their asynchronous assignments on Monday to then complete at home on Tuesday.  Students will submit their assignments to their teachers on Wednesday. 

2. New – Congrats to Unity High’s Chapter of the National Honor Society (NHS)!: Unity’s high school chapter of the NHS is back. A group of 14 students worked especially hard to earn their spot in the school’s chapter.  We will be celebrating them in an induction ceremony next week.

Congratulations to the following students who will be inducted:

1. Jaheem Auguste
2. Arayah Brannon
3. Roland Duroseau
4. Antonio Espinal
5. Ashley Estevez
6. Jayden Fajardo
7. Alina Franklin
8. Destin Mattey
9. Nataliya Miller
10. Melani Paucar Siguencia
11. Michelle Paulino Siri
12. Jade Springfield
13. Sakura White
14. Jonathan Vega

3. New – Unity High Students Visit College Campuses!: All students of our high school had an opportunity to visit a college campus this week and learn more about their postsecondary options after graduating from Unity.  Enjoy the photos below of our 11th graders on the Queensborough Community College campus and our 12th graders on Montclair State College’s campus.  Look out for additional college trip updates next week!

4. New – Athletic Spotlight: Unity Panthers in Full Action!: Enjoy the photos of Unity’s student-athletes in action this week, including our: middle school Step team, our high school Volleyball team, and our middle school Cross-country team at a recent meet Also pictured are two of our middle school student-athletes, Jacob Rivera and Jencarlos Hernandez, who were recently named All-Stars in their respective sports this season.  A shout-out to all of our fall teams that made the playoffs in their respective leagues and conferences this season.  Go Panthers!

5. New – Kudos to our Core Value Champions for the Full Month of October!: Our P.R.I.D.E. Core Values of Progress, Respect for All, Integrity, Discovery, and Empathy represent qualities that we covet as a school community.  They also represent qualities that we believe empower our students to lead fulfilling lives and, therefore, qualities that we have a responsibility to actively teach and positively reinforce.

The students listed below were leaders as of the end of October in being recognized by their teachers for demonstrating our Core Values.  On behalf of our school community, we are proud of these students and look forward to continuing to shout out all of our students when they demonstrate P.R.I.D.E. in our community.

6. New – Unity Middle Dresses Up in Honor of their Favorite Characters!: Staff and students of Unity’s middle school community celebrated Character Day last week by dressing up as a favorite character from a book that they have read.  Enjoy the photos below and congratulations to our Character Day awardees!

7. New – Take Part in Unity’s Second “Family Ambassadors of Unity” Meeting, Thursday, November 10th, at 6pm!: Join our Family Engagement Coordinators, Mr. Beckford and Ms. Young, as Unity family members convene for our first Ambassadors Meeting of the year (via Zoom).  All Unity family members are welcome to take part.  Help play an active leadership role in helping provide the best possible educational experience to our students!  Ambassadors meet monthly to plan new events and initiatives and play a significant role in accentuating school community experiences.  Please RSVP here.  The Zoom meeting details will be shared on Thursday morning.  Finally, contact Mr. Beckford (grades 6-8) or Ms. Young (grades 9-12) with questions.  See you Thursday on Zoom!

8. New – Stellar Attendance in October – 95% Above!: The attached list of students demonstrated a strong and consistent dedication to their education by showing stellar attendance to school in the month of October.  Kudos to these students – we love seeing you each and every day!  And, of course, we look forward to celebrating additional students at the end of this month!

9. Recap – A Recap of Unity’s Virtual High School Info Session: On behalf of Unity, Mr. Beckford would like to thank all of the caregivers who were able to join us for last Thursday’s information session.  It was great to see so many caregivers engaging in their 8th grader’s high school admissions process.  In case you missed the event or wish to review the information shared, here is the session on video.  In addition, Mr. Beckford is offering weekly High School Admissions Office Hours for all 8th grade families on Wednesdays from 1-4pm.  Office hours will be offered through December 1st.  Family consultation sessions may also be scheduled at other times during the week by appointment.  Appointments can be made here.

10. Recap – Unity’s Queen Steppers and New Formed Rising Royal Steppers Join Forces!: This year, we are excited to introduce the middle school step team, the Rising Royal Steppers, alongside our nationally ranked high school team, the Unity Queen Steppers. Both teams have begun preparations for their upcoming competition season, which opens in January.  Members of both teams have dedicated themselves to team practices 2-3 days weekly, prioritizing their studies and maintaining high grades, and participating in service projects throughout the year that benefit our local community.  ​​​​​​​

Please support both teams by purchasing a T-shirt for $20 by contacting Coach Alley (Unity Queen Steppers – aolivier@unityprep.org ) and/or Coach H. (Rising Royal Steppers – kherrand@unityprep.org) via email.  All proceeds will go towards paying for registration fees, uniforms and costumes, and transportation.

11. Recap – Important Information Regarding Vaccinations Requested: As we continue monitoring current health safety protocols, one significant factor in our planning is the extent to which our students are vaccinated.  If you are a new Unity family, or have not yet provided your child’s vaccination status, please complete the COVID Vaccination Form at your earliest convenience.  Note that we strongly encourage all of our families to take steps in getting their children vaccinated to best ensure that we are providing the highest level of safety for our community.

12. Recap – Attention Middle School Families Who Are Interested in After-school Programming!: The partnership with our middle school and St. Nick’s Alliance continues this year.  St. Nick’s offers a rich array of afterschool programming in academic enrichment, leadership development, and extracurricular activities for our middle school students.  Programming kicks off on Monday, September 19th.  Contact Luis Rodriguez with questions by email at lrodriguez@stnickallliance.org or by phone at 646-676-1309.

13. Recap – Unity’s Health Policies and Protocols in 2022-23: Unity will follow guidance provided by the New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) as of the start of the 2022-23 school year.  The NYCDOE’s guidance aligns with the CDC’s current guidance, which we have consistently followed over the past 2.5 years.  By adhering to the NYCDOE’s guidance, we believe that we are taking the proper approach to best ensure the health and safety of our community.  Details on our policies are provided on the NYCDOE website.

Per the recommendation of the NYCDOE and CDC, we strongly encourage all of our families to get their children vaccinated against COVID-19.  Vaccinations are now available at select school sites across the city.  Visit www.schools.nyc.gov for information on sites and available dates.

14. Recap – 2022-23 School Calendar of Key Events and Vacations: The table below reflects our key events and vacations calendar for the 2022-23 school year, including key events we ask for your collaboration with caregiver involvement.  In addition, here is the updated PDF version of the table for your convenience. We look forward to meeting our newest families and reconnecting with our returning families at Family Kick-off-the-Year Festival & Family Orientation on August 31st!

Relevant Information from Past Editions of The Scoop:

Our Community Pledge as a school outlines the actions our staff, families, and students are committed to taking.  By following through on our commitments, we will undoubtedly have an enormously successful school year!

Information and Guidance on Unity’s Dress Codes for the 2022-23 School Year: Unity’s dress codes by grade level are provided below.

• Grades 6-8: Here is a link to all things dress code for all middle school students.
• Grades 9-12: Unity High’s dress code is outlined below:
  1. Tops:
     1. It is strongly encouraged that an official Unity top is worn in the spirit of school pride and in being united in our collective focus on learning. “Official” is defined as a top (T-Shirt or Polos) purchased from an approved vendor.
     2. In cases where students do not take our recommendation, students can wear tops of their choice so long as the top covers their entire torso and shoulders.
     3. Tops must not bear any offensive and/or inappropriate language and/or images and may not be crop tops, tube tops, halter tops or tank tops.
  2. Bottoms:
     1. Student bottoms must be long enough that the hem hits the top of the knee, shin, or ankle.
     2. Bottoms must properly fit and be worn at the waist.  A belt must be worn if bottoms are unable to fit at the waist without sagging.
     3. Bottoms may have rips or tears.
     4. Bottoms may not be leggings, tights, catsuits/bodysuits, basketball shorts or display undergarments.
  3. Shoes:
     1. All shoes must have backs, be closed-toed, and low heeled.
     2. Sandals, flip-flops, and athletic slides ARE NOT permitted (worn with or without socks).
     3. Crocs ARE permitted so long as the backstrap is raised behind the ankle at all times.
     4. For reasons related to safety, the policy for shoes will apply for all dress down days and spirit days.

School Supply Guidance: Having all of our students equipped with the supplies they need is essential to getting off to a strong start to the school year.  We offer guidance below on school supplies by grade level:

• Grades 6-8
• Grades 9-12

COVID-19 Vaccines: Currently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorized three COVID-19 vaccines: the Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson/Janssen vaccines. The vaccine can prevent COVID-19 symptoms and severe COVID-19 illness. People 5 and older are eligible for the vaccine. Those who are fully vaccinated can more safely gather with friends and enjoy other benefits of vaccination. Many vaccination sites in the city no longer require appointments.

• See a list of sites where you can get a walk-up vaccination today. To find a vaccination site near you, including those that take appointments, use the City’s Vaccine Finder.
• Note, people who are 12 to 17 years old can only receive the Pfizer vaccine.

Mental Health Counseling and Social Work Services at Unity: If you would like to speak to a social worker about your child’s mental health or if you would like your child to receive support from a social worker in school, please reach out to Ms. Del Purgatorio via phone or text (347-688-9107) or email (tdelpurgatorio@unityprep.org).

Unity social workers can also be of assistance in providing information regarding social services (for example: housing, immigration, access to community mental health services & referrals to mental health providers, food security / access to food, public assistance, crisis intervention, etc.).

If your child or family member is experiencing a mental health crisis, NYC Well is available 24 hours a day and can be accessed by phone (1-888-NYC-WELL) or text (text WELL to 65173) or by internet chat via their website: https://nycwell.cityofnewyork.us/en/.

Discounts on Home Internet Services Available: If your household is struggling to afford internet service during the COVID-19 pandemic, you may be eligible for a monthly service discount through the Emergency Broadband Benefit. Please visit this information page or call 833-511-0311 for more information.