Happy Holidays from DPSA!
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President’s Message
Hello WA DPSA families –
Happy Holidays and best wishes to you all as we wrap up 2024 and look ahead to 2025. As an advocacy group we have made great progress in building our membership, increasing our board leadership team, and developing our advocacy skills – all with the mindset of improving conditions for our digital public-school learners. Thank you for contributing to this thriving community.
The new year will usher in many changes. This year was also an election year, locally and nationally. Stay tuned as we schedule events to support you in learning how to connect with your legislators, whether they are new or returning, including our upcoming event: 2025 Digital Learning Day at the Capitol in Olympia.
Our December newsletter features a tasty winter recipe, helpful information to support mental health, a legislative session preview, a Capitol Day save-the-date, and end-of-semester tips for academic success. Enjoy!
Sincerely,
Felicia Kern
President
Washington Legislative Update
The 2025 Washington Legislative session starts on January 13. The DPSA looks forward to working with legislators to support online education legislation, including a bill to enable Washington online school students to take state tests at home with a remote proctor instead of traveling to a testing site. Our January newsletter will include more information on ways to advocate for remote proctoring of state testing.
Don’t forget to mark your calendars for Digital Learning Day at the Capitol on Friday, March 7. This is a great opportunity to meet other digital school families and tell legislators why a digital public school is a good fit for your family.
Upcoming DPSA Event on the 20th
Spotlight on Excellence: Meet our Family of the Month!
Who: Serenity (8th grade) and Jana (6th grade)
Why is digital public school a good fit for your family?
"We chose virtual school for a few reasons. One is because it gives us the flexibility to do more, like travel, and various day-to-day activities. Another reason is that it gives us more control over the curriculum, outside influences and distractions from learning. The last reason is that it allows us to have more time together as a family, instead of being separated for most of the day."
Lacey Lee, parent
"It works well for us because we can be with our parents more. It also allows us to go places, for example shopping, or to go hiking. I also like how we can finish school on our own time. We don’t have to wake up at a specific time (except our parents make us, lol) and we don’t have to be done with school at a certain time."
Serenity, student
Photo Captions:
Top left: Serenity (right) and Jana (left) at a campground (near Portland, OR) playing guitars.
Top right: Jana (left), Serenity (middle), Dad (right), and one of our dogs, Roo-Roo, at Coos Bay.
Bottom left: Mom (left), Dad (middle left), Serenity (middle right), and Jana (right), on a hike near Roseburg OR.
Bottom right: Jana (right), Serenity (left), Dad (far middle), at the beach in Seaside, OR.
Mental Health during the Holidays!
December Tip of the Month
Recipe of the Month: Snowman Milkshakes
Does your family crave an easy-to-make festive treat? These snowman milkshakes are the perfect solution! If you have a recipe submission, we’d love to share it! Email: mrsfeliciakern@gmail.com
December's Recipe: Snowman Milkshakes
The Washington Digital Public Schools Alliance is a coalition of Washington families who have joined together to advocate for digital public schools in our state. DPSA parents have worked hard to educate and inform Washington State policymakers about the importance of digital public schools. Your participation makes a real difference to our leaders in Olympia.