Diagonal Community School

The Diagonal School culinary arts students are in cookie mode. The class is making cookie dough to sell; $2.50 per dozen or 3 dozen for $6.00. Types of cookies this year include chocolate chip, red velvet with white chips, lemon, peanut butter, and monster cookies. Orders are due by Thursday, February 29th. If you do not want to use the link, please call Shelly Bentley at 641-202-1790 and she will take your order. Link to the order form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeFM5NK1pCm7FpdWnypKQEmNnCPr1X6vApD5vrgtIUh7sjXPw/viewform?usp=sf_link

See the attached flyer about a Valentine's Day Breakfast

We had our first reading celebration of 2024!! And our mystery reader was our new bus driver, Curtis Greene!! He is a prime example of the love of reading at work. He told the kids about his favorite authors, his favorite place to read, and how stories can take you anywhere. Thank you Mr. Greene for sharing the love of reading with us!!

Winter Sports Parents Night for Girls Basketball, Archery & Robotics in grades 9-12 is tonight Thursday January 25. Introductions will be done after the Girls Basketball Game at approximately 7:10. Please be there by 6:40 in case the game goes faster than normal. Please meet in the hallway in the SE corner of the gym. Thank you!

A big shout out to Matt Stephens! Not only has he spent countless hours clearing snow and ice on days when the students and staff were at home, today he helped serve lunch to all of our students!! Thank you Matt for all you do for our students and staff!!!!!

Check out the links for pictures and new from the weekend! https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02dzwhxzZNSTkpUQ67LjFbYTVgfKE6QiWyybrdLtLc6UxqtJXztb9AAvHWrM3YJLSml&id=100069288270565&sfnsn=mo&mibextid=RUbZ1f https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02CNvQi4EvGyfrA3N4pB2M9uXByfUBU6Gm6YfxNeitSUzC1huEojJeYfV8aquCg4igl&id=100069288270565&sfnsn=mo&mibextid=RUbZ1f https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid0233TYCTuRG1U7tCiVPrS7nWmDYVsLVXbn19CyMPFVPUMfjKgt4Hwq1VwAzzoGNuCMl&id=100069288270565&sfnsn=mo&mibextid=RUbZ1f https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid0WPjdUCgwREveBffinuLu54a4bcs4jm2h6r1LB1843w7BCYMLbg5r7cm2wqgs6N8El&id=100069288270565&sfnsn=mo&mibextid=RUbZ1f https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02jFrjKc92c74JafmPxfUAK5KtAT8p3bcXsKBJmFbRrBCwhYdkgm7w89KUrz8hKg7Bl&id=100069288270565&sfnsn=mo&mibextid=RUbZ1f

Change in the lunch menu for today. We will have: BBQ Rib sandwich Coleslaw Baked beans Applesauce Have a great day!

HS Girls Basketball vs Melcher-Dallas has been rescheduled for Tuesday February 6 at home at 6:00.

Fridays games at Mormon Trail have been rescheduled to the following dates: January 19 Jr. High Girls & Boys Basketball at Humeston (Old Gym) 4:00 Girls, 5:00 Boys. January 30 HS Girls Basketball at Humeston 6:00

D Club Jr. High Girls Basketball tournament is postponed for tomorrow. It is rescheduled for Saturday January 20. There will be a revised schedule. We will post it later tonight or tomorrow. Stay safe!

There will be no school for Diagonal Community School on Tuesday January 9, 2024. Daycare will be open. Please contact Sierra England. Varsity Girls Basketball at home vs Moulton-Udell is postponed to Monday January 15 at 6:00. Parents Night will be held on this night. Jr. High Girls and Boys Basketball at home vs East Union is postponed to a date to be announced. All school activities canceled.

Due to the impending Winter Storm, Diagonal Community Schools will be closed on Monday January 8, 2024. Daycare will be open at 6:30 am. Please contact Sierra England. Jr. High Boys Basketball and Varsity Girls Basketball vs Essex is postponed. No school activities.

Congratulations to our nurse Lacy Doolittle!

Hello all, The second part of this message is focused towards 6-12, but all should read the first part. Dear Diagonal Learning Community, It is with a heavy heart that I begin this letter with the sad news of what happened in Perry earlier this morning. If you were unaware, there was an active shooter in the Perry High School with multiple victims. Please take time to have those affected in your thoughts and prayers. This is a reminder that just because we live in this great state we are not immune from things like this happening. Please, rest assured that we will be meeting to discuss what further things can be done to protect our students and staff. The initial purpose of this letter was to talk about the steps we are taking to bring up our school performance score (we are designated as in need of improvement through ESSA) and how we will continue to be the best we can be moving forward. As many of you are aware, we have been on the downward trend on our performance on the ISASP (Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress). This is due to many factors, but does not give a pass for the scores. We are going to focus on bringing those scores up to reflect the learning that is going on within the building. I know the scores are not an accurate representation of what our students know. In talking with staff and students, we have come up with a few ideas that we are going to implement to help with student growth. We will begin to read every Friday for 10-15 minutes in each class. This reading will be of the students choice (appropriate of course) and should help with fluency and comprehension. We are hopeful that it will also build a love of reading that follows students throughout their lives. As we look to have our students become leaders, this quote comes to mind for me from Harry S. Truman, “Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.” We will make sure that all students know how important the tests are. We will make sure students are full, hydrated, and able to focus on test days. We are looking into how to incentivize students to do well. There will be more to come on this as it is developed and funds are found. We are looking at school wide programs to make learning more relevant and “real life.” These are just a few of the things we are looking at. We could also use your help in making sure students know the value of the test and the impacts it has on our district. Together we can and will be the best district in the state! If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me. Sincerely, Gary Clark 6-12 Principal Technology Coordinator

Here is the schedule for Robotics this Saturday, January 6th.

Senior Parents and Alumni, sign up today at tinyurl.com/DGfafsa to reserve your appointment with TRIO on January 8th to complete your FAFSA. Visit tinyurl.com/FAFSAneeds for a complete list of items needed for the appointment

Diagonal Hotspots Santa and Friends Poster

Christmas Sweater Basketball Game Flyer, please read.

Here are the pictures of our fantastic basketball teams!

Homecoming Pep Rally today at 2:30 and coronation after the basketball games tonight!