Scoop 1.27.20

Good day, families of Unity!

We are back to a full week of school this week.  Major events for the week include mock mathematics exams at our middle school and the official close of Semester I at our high school.  We look forward to our middle school students showing off all that they have learned as young mathematicians. And we are excited for our high school students to finish out a strong semester.  Grades close on Friday.

With this edition of The Scoop, I bring to you 11 announcements and reminders.

This Week’s Top 11:

1. Middle School State Mock Exam to be Administered in Mathematics this Week –  January 28th and 29th – Congrats to all middle school students and families for completing last week’s English Language Arts mock exam.  The mathematics mock exam will be administered this Tuesday and Wednesday during class. By administering this exam, Unity educators will be able to gauge how to best support student learning over the coming months.  To support your child at home, Ms. Roy Gaines asks caregivers to ensure that your child gets a good night’s sleep, eats a healthy breakfast, and arrives on time – as they would any other morning.  Moreover, please provide encouragement to your child to do their best and ask them about the exams in the afternoon, including how they feel they did.  

2. Semester II at Unity High Ends this Thursday; How to Best Support your Child at Home – This is the final week of Semester I.  Caregivers are encouraged to speak with their children about grades. Here are some question prompts suggested by Ms. Fuller for discussing grades with your child: 

• “Log in to Jupiter and let’s review your grades at this point.” 

• “Are there assignments that you can still make up for partial credit?”

• “Are you going to office hours this Monday and Wednesday to close out the semester strong?” 

3. Congrats to our Middle School Students with Perfect Attendance for the Month of December! – A big shout-out to our students with perfect attendance (and punctuality).  We applaud your consistency and dedication to your education. Continue to make us proud!

4. Shouts Out to Seniors!  98% of the Class of 2020 have Applied to Post-Secondary Education and Training Options! These amazing seniors have either declared they will attend college or enter challenging career-training programs.  Additional students are preparing to apply to more programs this spring. We are SO proud of them all, and we are SO thankful to you, their caregivers and parents, for supporting them!

5. Attention Senior and Families of Seniors – IMPORTANT Information re: College Acceptances from Mr. Gonalez – Some seniors have already received decisions from colleges to which they have applied. Please know this is AMAZINGLY EARLY; typically, colleges send out decisions beginning in late-February or early-March. Please do not be worried if you have not yet received a decision from a college. It is still very early in the process.  To ensure you receive your decision as soon as possible, please do the following:

• Start an account for each school to which you applied. Students should have received instructions to do this shortly after the school received your application.
• Students should check their email daily!  Schools are in contact with applicants via email only.  That is how they will tell you if you are missing something, or if a decision has been made regarding your candidacy.
• Meet with academic counselors (Ms. Roth or Mr. Gonzalez) to discuss any notifications, messages, mailings, or decisions you receive from a school.
• DO NOT ACCEPT ANY OFFER SENT FROM ANY SCHOOL!  It is critical that you wait until you have all of your acceptances and financial aid offers before making a decision about which school to attend. There are typically links in a college’s email or in your applicant portal regarding the opportunity to accept the offer they have provided.  DO NOT CLICK ON THESE BUTTONS!  Please immediately make an appointment to speak with your counselor to discuss any offer you receive.
• Make sure that your FAFSA and TAP applications are complete!  Some schools will hold off on making decisions until they have every piece of your application and that includes financial aid.  If you have not completed either of these, please let Mr. Gonzalez know as soon as possible!

6. Unity 8th Graders to Visit Unity High this Friday, January 31st – The high school community is excited to host our 8th grade students for a presentation and tour this Friday morning.  Please note that we will depart from the building at 9:30am and are scheduled to return to the middle school at 12:00pm.  Please contact Mr. Doscher with questions (cdoscher@unityprep.org).

7. A Shout-out to Families who Attended Last Week’s Coffee with our Co-Principals – Mr. Burns and Ms. Roy Gaines extend their thanks to all families who participated in last week’s coffee talk.  We look forward to continuing in our discussions during next month’s meeting on March 12th.

8. Support our First Graduating Class by Purchasing Custom-Designed, One-of-a-Kind Sweatshirt or T-shirt! – The senior class is selling custom gear to fundraise for their graduation ceremony and end-of-year senior events.  Sweatshirts are $30.00 and T-shirts are $20.00. Purchases can be made by emailing Ms. Bonaminio at abonaminio@unityprep.org.

9. A College & Career Message from Mr. Gonzalez to our Middle and High School Families! – Mr. Gonzalez has four opportunities to share with families this week for middle school and high school students:

• A Great Opportunity for High Achieving Juniors Interested in Journalism! Princeton Summer Journalism Program (PSJP) is a free residential journalism and college preparatory program for high-achieving current juniors from low-income backgrounds who are interested in journalism. All program expenses, including meals, housing, and airfare or train tickets to and from campus, are covered by the program. To learn more and apply by the Feb. 17th deadline, please visit the PSJP website.
• The Harlem YMCA is Now Accepting Applications for the 2020 Annual HBCU College Tour! Every year, the Harlem YMCA takes 40 college bound high school students on a weeklong trip to visit several Historical Black Colleges & Universities, including Spelman College, Morehouse College and Howard University. Below is the link to access the application. The deadline for application submission is February 18, 2020. The cost for the tour is $500 per student (individual payment plan options are available) and there is an interview process. Interview dates are scheduled between February 20th-22nd. Teens can select a specific day on the application. To learn more and apply by the Feb. 18th deadline, please visit the HBCU College Tour website.
• DuBois Summer Institute! This five-week summer program will be held on Princeton University’s Campus. Students engage in academic classes in either Management and Business, Leadership, Engineering, Pre-Med/Neuroscience, or the Talented Tenth Academy. The courses emphasize time management, collaborative learning, critical thinking and problem solving. The important elements of effective leadership and community service are emphasized across the curriculum. Please visit this site and see Mrs. Eason for more information. 
• Bridging the Gap (BTG) Program! BTG is a state-funded program at New York City College of Technology serving middle and high school students. In Spring 2020, BTG is offering courses in the following: 
  • Cyber Security – Grades 7-12
  • Programming – Grades 7-12
  • Robotics – Grades 7-12
  • Living Environment Prep – Grades 8-12

See Mrs. Eason or Ms. Simon for an application. The deadline for applying is February 5th.

10. Reminder! PRIDE Updates from Unity High!  One Announcement from Ms. Tucker and Mr. Crosby – First Friday Coffee Shop at Unity High will be February 1st during lunch periods.  See the flyer below! 

11. Headlines and Updates Concerning High School Athletics from HS Athletic Director, Mr. McFall – We have four teams currently in season or with seasons just underway.  Records and upcoming games/competitions are listed below:

Boys Varsity Basketball

• 2/1/20 Away vs. Quest ) at 10:30am

JV Boys Basketball

• 2/4/20 Away vs. Lyons at 4:30pm

Girls Varsity Basketball

• 2/1/20 Away vs Brooklyn Ascend (at Achievement First) at 10:30am

Unity Queens Step Team

• 2/1/20 at Brooklyn Tech at 2:00pm
• 2/8/20 – Powerhouse Step Competition
• 2/15/20 World of Step Competition at PS198

Resources for Families:

• 2019-20 Middle School and High School Calendars
• Jupiter (for your child’s grades) – you can also log in by visiting our website and clicking on the Jupiter Ed icon on the top right corner of our homepage.

Best regards,

Josh Beauregard

Head of School / Co-founder