Hello Staff, Families, and Community,

It’s hard to believe we’re so close to the end of the 2022-23 school year! We’ve done so much together so far this year, including welcoming back 21,000 students, implementing Multitiered Systems of Support (MTSS) at all elementary schools, engaging in extended learning opportunities at two sessions of Saturday Scholar Community, exploring at the 6th annual STEM Exploration Night, and starting construction on the new Memorial Field. And in roughly two months, we’ll be celebrating graduation with the Class of 2023 and sending scholars off to summer break. It’s amazing how much we can accomplish together in just one school year.

While it feels like June is right around the corner, we’re not there yet, and there’s still so much to do before the school year ends. Throughout the month of May, scholars in grades 3-8 and 10th graders across the district will be participating in Smarter Balanced Assessment (SBA) testing. This test is one way for scholars to show us what they’ve learned so far and help identify areas where they may need more support. For 10th graders, passing the test is also a graduation requirement, so it is important that students come to school ready to fully participate and showcase their knowledge.

Families, here are a few ways you can help your children feel ready to show what they know on testing day:

• Help them develop good study habits, thinking skills, and a positive attitude toward learning
• Ensure your child has good attendance at school
• Communicate with your child’s school to address any questions about their learning and to make sure you know which day your child will be taking the SBA.
• Make sure your child gets a good night’s sleep the night before and arrives to school on time on test day.

This spring, we’ll also be hosting our annual Community Connect on April 26! All are invited to come, engage with me, the FWPS school board, and other FWPS leaders. Together, we’ll talk about what’s going well across the district and where we could grow. Learn more and register at www.fwps.org/CommunityConnect.

Community Connect is just one way we collect feedback from families, scholars, and other stakeholders throughout the year, and I want to thank each one of you that have completed surveys, participated on an advisory committee, or shared your input in other ways this school year. Your voice makes all the difference and helps inform our actions as a district.

We can do so much more for each scholar in Federal Way Public Schools when we work together, and I truly appreciate each one of you who has engaged in support of scholar success.

In Partnership,

Dr. Dani Pfeiffer

Superintendent