🌪️ DETROIT COMMUNITY SCHOOLS
October Parent Newsletter
FAMILY & COMMUNITY UPDATE
ONE DCS • ONE COMMUNITY • HURRICANE PRIDE!
Dear DCS Students, Families, and Community Partners,
Thank you for your continued support of Detroit Community Schools! We are excited about the great things happening throughout our schools and want to keep families informed and connected.
📣 COUNT DAY IS THIS WEEK!
WE NEED OUR STUDENTS AT SCHOOL!
Wednesday, October 7, is Count Day, and we need every DCS student to be at school, on time, and ready to learn!
Count Day is an important day for our school district. Every student matters, and every student counts. We are asking all DCS families to make attendance a priority this week and especially on Count Day.
Parents, please help us by:
- Making sure your child comes to school every day this week.
- Making sure your child arrives on time.
- Avoiding unnecessary absences and appointments on Count Day.
- Contacting your child’s school if an absence is unavoidable.
- Encouraging your child to come to school ready to learn and participate.
🌪️ ONE DCS — EVERY STUDENT COUNTS!
Thank you for helping us make Count Day a success and for continuing to support the students and families of Detroit Community Schools.
📚 WHAT FAMILIES NEED TO KNOW
Enrollment Is Still Open!
DCS continues to welcome new students and families. If you know a family looking for a school community that offers strong academics, extracurricular activities, athletics, and opportunities for students to grow, we would love to welcome them to DCS.
📞 Enrollment Information: 313-537-3570
Professional Learning Fridays
Our teachers use Fridays to collaborate, plan, strengthen instruction, and continue professional learning. DCS has made a significant investment in new English Language Arts, Math, and Science curriculum, and our teachers are continuing to strengthen implementation of the HMH curriculum.
🕑 Early Release Fridays — 2:30 PM
Students will be dismissed at 2:30 PM on:
- October 2
- October 9
- October 16
- October 23
- October 30
📅 No School for Students
Friday, October 17 — Teacher Professional Development
Please plan ahead for these dates and make arrangements for your child after the 2:30 PM early dismissal.
📊 PROGRESS REPORTS & PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES
Progress Reports are available for families to review and are an important way to stay informed about your child’s academic progress.
Parent-Teacher Conferences
📅 Thursday, November 5
⏰ 4:30–6:30 PM
We encourage every family to participate. This is an excellent opportunity to talk with your child’s teachers about academic progress, attendance, goals, and ways to support learning at home.
🏫 ATTENDANCE MATTERS!
Every school day counts!
Regular attendance helps students stay connected to classroom instruction, teachers, friends, activities, and important learning opportunities.
Please help your child be successful by:
- Arriving at school on time every day.
- Making school attendance a priority.
- Communicating with the school when your child must be absent.
- Connecting with your child’s teacher when additional support is needed.
Thank you for helping DCS build a culture of strong attendance!
🏠 LEARNING CONTINUES AT HOME
Families are our most important partners in student success. Here are a few simple ways to support your child’s learning:
📖 Ask: “What did you learn today?”
✏️ Set aside time for reading, homework, and studying.
📱 Check ClassDojo and other school communications regularly.
🏫 Encourage daily attendance and being on time.
⭐ Celebrate effort, growth, and improvement.
Small things done consistently at home can make a big difference at school!
🌪️ HURRICANE ATHLETICS IS OFF AND RUNNING!
We are extremely proud of our student-athletes, coaches, and staff who continue to represent Detroit Community Schools with Hurricane Pride!
🏈 VARSITY FOOTBALL — 5-1 OVERALL | 3-0 CONFERENCE
Congratulations to Coach Humphrey and our Hurricanes on an outstanding season!
Last week’s highlights:
🏈 Darius Martin: 115 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns
🏈 Kerill Roland-Brown: 80 rushing yards
🏈 Kerill Roland-Brown to Marcel Smith: 35-yard touchdown pass
🏈 Kaden Mahan & Jalen Gainer: 22 combined tackles
NEXT GAME
📅 Friday, October 9
⏰ 7:00 PM
📍 ATAP
888 Enterprise Dr., Pontiac, MI 48341
LET’S PACK THE STANDS AND SUPPORT OUR HURRICANES!
🏐 VOLLEYBALL — 2-0 START!
Congratulations to Coach Wilson and our DCHS Volleyball Team!
The Hurricanes opened the week with victories over Melvindale ABT and Southfield Bradford.
NEXT MATCH
📅 Tuesday, October 6
⏰ 5:30 PM
📍 Detroit Leadership Academy
5845 Auburn St., Detroit, MI 48228
Come out and show our Volleyball Team some Hurricane Pride!
🏃🏾♂️ CROSS COUNTRY
A special shout-out to our DCS Cross Country Team!
Last week, transportation challenges nearly prevented our team from participating in its meet at Nankin Mills. Thanks to the teamwork and determination of LFG and ET, our students were able to compete.
And what a great result!
🏆 Christopher Jones once again finished in the Top 10!
Even more exciting, Christopher received an offer from Indiana Tech University!
Congratulations, Christopher!
We are extremely proud of you and excited about your future!
NEXT MEET
📅 Wednesday, October 7
⏰ 4:00 PM
📍 Nankin Mills — Hines Park
33259 Edward Hines Dr., Westland, MI
#TEAMWORKMAKESTHEDREAMWORK
🏈 LADY CANES MIDDLE SCHOOL FLAG FOOTBALL
CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR LADY CANES!
Our Girls Middle School Flag Football Team showed tremendous effort on Saturday, battling hard and completing first down after first down in a closely matched game that ended in a 6-6 tie!
⭐ PLAYERS OF THE GAME
Congratulations to:
- Brooklyn Johnson
- Asiah Thomas
- Kai Woods
- Sekera Allison
- Areille Miller
And a special SHOUT-OUT TO COACH LEONARD!
NEXT GAME
📅 Saturday, October 10
⏰ 2:00 PM
📍 Say Play Detroit
19320 Van Dyke Ave., Detroit, MI 48234
🏈 Lady Canes vs. Detroit Dawgs
📣 THIS WEEK AT A GLANCE
| DATE |
EVENT |
TIME |
| Tuesday, Oct. 6 |
Volleyball @ Detroit Leadership Academy |
5:30 PM |
| Wednesday, Oct. 7 |
COUNT DAY + Cross Country @ Nankin Mills |
4:00 PM |
| Friday, Oct. 9 |
Varsity Football @ ATAP |
7:00 PM |
| Saturday, Oct. 10 |
Girls Flag Football vs. Detroit Dawgs |
2:00 PM |
🌪️ EVERY STUDENT COUNTS. EVERY DAY MATTERS.
Parents and families, we need your partnership this week. Please make sure your student is at school every day, especially on Wednesday, October 7, for Count Day.
When our students are in school, they learn, grow, build relationships, and represent ONE DCS!
Thank you for being an important part of the Detroit Community Schools family. Together, we are creating opportunities for our students to learn, grow, compete, and succeed.
ONE DCS • ONE COMMUNITY • HURRICANE PRIDE! 🌪️
Warm regards,
Seth Petty, Sr., M.Ed.
Superintendent
Detroit Community Schools
