Angie Debo Elementary -

✨If you haven't heard already, EPS has a new team in town - The A.D. Sparkle!✨ After the incredible success of our second annual Belonging Week, Angie Debo decided to follow the example of our vertical leaders at Santa Fe by putting together a unified cheer team to compete in this year's Special Olympics! 📣 Today the A.D. Sparkle is off to compete in the FIRST EVER unified cheer event at the Special Olympics, so let's wish them well as they pave the way for inclusion and belonging on a state-wide stage! We are so proud of our athletes and our unified partners who took this opportunity to do something truly incredible, but we can't forget the dedicated work of Mrs. Susan Kidwell and Mrs. Tonya Alexander who have kept us all moving forward in our inclusion and belonging efforts! Good luck, and do well, Sparkle! We're rooting for you! ✨📣💜🐬

🌹Roses are red. Violets are blue. Happy Valentine's Day, From these Dolphins to you! 🌹 ❤️Happy Valentine's Day from Angie Debo! ❤️

🗳️These Dolphins have voted! Have you? Polling places close at 7:00 PM; make sure to drop those polling place pics in the comments! 🗳️

🗳️Hey, Dolphin families, do you have your voting plan ready for tomorrow?🗳️ As a reminder, all residents that live within EPS boundaries are able (and highly encouraged) to vote on the 2024 Bond Issue! While there are a lot of things on this upcoming bond, a few major things directly impact our students! If passed, this bond issue will provide: 🐬new playground equipment here at A.D.! 🐬new flooring here at A.D.! 🐬a new and responsive app for our bus riding students! 🦅roofing and HVAC improvements at Summit Middle School (It's right around the corner for our kiddos!)! 🐺a new Freshman Academy at Santa Fe High School (Our little dolphins will be there before you know it!)! Help EPS move forward by voting "Yes," and drop those "I Voted" sticker pics in the comments!

❤️🐬The poet John Holmes once said, "There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up," and how appropriate that sentiment is as we celebrate our Compassion Awards today! These future leaders have made such a huge impact on our school community, and we know that their actions will only continue to extend to other areas of their lives helping to build a better future and world for everyone! Way to go, Dolphins! Your efforts are a reminder to us all to do better and be better every day! 🐬❤️

Last night, at the Board of Education meeting, EPS recognized Support Employees of the Year across the district! Let's congratulate and thank our very own Ms. Jessica Duncan one more time because to know her, to work with her, and to be around her is to absolutely love her! Ms. Duncan, you are the best, and we love you! 🐬💜

The Wordsmith Workshop writing club begins today!

Remember how incredible Belonging Week was? These Dolphins do! 📣Following the example of the Santa Fe Unified Partners Club, Angie Debo now has a Unified Cheer Team that will compete at the Special Olympics! (Uh, how cool AND INCLUSIVE is that?) 📣 If you would like to support our dolphins at the Special Olympics, we have tshirts 👕and Val-O-Grams 💌 for sale, and we would love to take another huge step forward for inclusion and belonging by setting some record sales this year! Check out the infographics below for more details. And as always, way to go, Dolphins! Your efforts are paving the way for a better, more inclusive world! 🐬💜🌎

Because of icy and dangerous road conditions, Edmond Public Schools will move to remote learning for all schools for Monday, January 22nd. Students should refer to information sent by their school site for assignments that will need to be completed for attendance to be counted.

Due to inclement weather, all Edmond Public Schools will move to remote learning for Tuesday, January 16th.

🐬Our word of the month for December was generosity - perfect for the holiday season! Coming back from the winter break, we were happy to recognize our most generous students! Way to go, Dolphins! Keep changing the world! 🐬

Who doesn't love a sing-along and talent show? 🎤This morning our dolphin family got together one last time before the Winter Break, and teachers performed routines for the school with sing-along songs in between!🎤 As you might have guessed, our faculty is a wee bit competitive, and with the coveted Candy Cane trophy on the line, we had to call in some guest judges to deliberate on acts - Mr. Duncan, Ms. Bell, Mrs. Thompson, Dr. Grunewald, and Mr. Sloan. 🏆After thoughtful consideration, our winning team, First Grade and Friends, is pictured below! 🏆 If you want to check out all the performances, use the link below: https://www.canva.com/design/DAF3iQxVisI/scSqcVYLZQ1Axls59-4QOw/view?utm_content=DAF3iQxVisI&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link&utm_source=editor

👀Looking for some supplementary instruction and enrichment for your student(s)? Next semester Mrs. Beke and Miss Bell are piloting an after school writing club called the Wordsmith Workshop! ✍️ The program will be free of charge, and students will get a snack and opportunities to develop their skills as writers! Scheduling is contingent upon participants, so if you're interested in the program, please fill out the Google Form below: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfz_b7NUoDh3jBS1qcBeuoO0dvo81fFflcK1x8_G5aFFvkLOA/viewform?usp=sharing

To quote the revolutionary Nelson Mandela, "It always seems impossible until it's done"! These Dolphins were recognized for their perseverance last Friday, and what a great reminder as we enter the final stretch of our first semester! Keep doing your thing, Dolphins! You're changing the world every day! 🐬

These little elves want to know if we'll be seeing you tonight at our Holiday Bash! PTO is providing a festive AND FREE evening of pizza, cookies, and ornaments! We've also heard that Santa will be making a special appearance! 🎅 Doors open at 5:00; we hope to see you!

We closed our second annual belonging week with our FIRST EVER Balloons Over Angie celebration this morning! 🎈Based on the children’s book, Balloons Over Broadway by Melissa Sweet, grade levels teamed up inclusively and intentionally to create crafts, balloons, and floats to parade around the school!🎈 None of this would have been possible without the tireless efforts of Mrs. Susan Kidwell who has spent her career fighting the good fight to make sure that all students that come through our school are loved, valued, and included. Thank you, Mrs. Kidwell, for always moving us forward. We are better because of you! 💜 While Belonging Week has come to a close, it’s important to note that advocacy, inclusion, and belonging are choices that we must make every single day. We have, as a whole Angie Debo community, taken a big step forward, but we must choose to continue taking steps forward each and every day to build a better world and future for everyone. We hope something from this week has inspired you and your family, and we hope that those inspirations lead to impactful change here in our building and also in our larger Edmond community! Way to go dolphins; you are being the change! 🐬

Day four of Belonging Week was all about getting creative and using that creativity to be more inclusive! We started our day with another pair of great speakers! Today we got to meet former dolphins, Kacie Lowe and Brian Bogumil, and they shared about their time at A.D., their hobbies and interests, and what they do for work! 💎Kacie works at Hair Candy by Han located on 33rd and Broadway. She is Hair Candy's first "self advocate" sparkle stylist, and she came decked out in all their merch today! We also found out that Kacie is TikTok famous as part of her job title includes collaborating on social media content - a great reminder to our students that social media platforms are a great way to engage in advocacy and work on building a more responsive and inclusive world! 💎 🍎Since graduating, Brian has established himself as an integral member of the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton School community where he works in the cafeteria making sure kids have clean spaces to eat! He loves his work, and his presence affords SEAS students the opportunity to see how everyone has something unique and special to contribute to our world! 🍎 Thank you so much, Kacie and Brian! We love seeing former dolphins out in our Edmond community doing amazing things, and we appreciate you being extensions of our dolphin values and beliefs for the world to see!🐬

Day three of Belonging Week has been all about acknowledging the best parts of ourselves and others! We started this morning with two very special guests - former A.D. dolphin, Danielle Robinson, and her sister, Ashleigh! ☕Danielle was the first employee for local coffee spot, Not Your Average Joe. The nonprofit was founded in 2019, and their mission is to "inspire our community by including students and adults with intellectual, developmental, and physical disabilities in the creation of exceptional coffee in an encouraging atmosphere". ☕ 👑A dynamic duo, Danielle made sure to bring her sister, Ashleigh, with her, who shared about her experience as Miss Oklahoma, her post-graduate work, and her advocacy. 👑 When asked about the best parts of themselves, Danielle said it's her ability to be herself and advocate for what's important. Ashleigh said the best part of who she is is Danielle but also her ability to love and support other people. The two took turns gushing over each other's accomplishments and were a reminder that our achievements are better when earned and celebrated collectively! If you want to catch Danielle in action (and support a local business with an incredible mission), she works the Not Your Average Joe Midtown location on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings and the Homeland on May location on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. And if coffee isn't your thing, she is adamant that they have the best homemade ice-cream in town! Thank you, Danielle and Ashleigh, for sharing your love, passion, and enthusiasm with us this morning and for reminding us that we are all truly better together! 🐬

Day two of Belonging Week is off to a rockin' start! 🤘🎸 Mr. Brad Taylor came to share his experiences with our dolphin family today! Mr. Taylor was paralyzed at 26, but he hasn't let that stop him from finding time and activities to indulge in - one of which is skiing! When asked about what one thing he thinks would be good for kids to know regarding inclusivity and accessibility, Mr. Taylor wanted to encourage kids to think about all the different ways they can be a friend. Not all activities are accessible or enjoyable to everyone, so sometimes friendship and inclusivity might require us to go out of our comfort zones. It might require us to try something new. It might mean reimagining and expanding what friendship looks like to us and what friends can do and enjoy together. Thanks for being a rockstar and role model for our dolphin family, Mr. Taylor! 🎸🤘

Today kicks off our second annual Belonging Week here at A.D.! 🐺🐬Edmond Santa Fe's Unified Partners Club came to talk to our dolphins about their club and what belonging and inclusion looks like for them! Students with and without disabilities are able to build community and make memories through unified sports, volunteer opportunities, and special events! This extension of belonging and inclusivity was great to see within our own vertical, and we were ecstatic to see some dolphin alumni (and a dolphin sibling) representing our Angie Debo values and paving the way for our current students! Club members put up the first pieces of our Belonging Week mural as a reminder that we're all connected and we all belong! Thank you, Santa Fe Unified Partners Club, for being an example to us all! 🐬🐺