Welcome Back
August 8, 2022
Greetings Imhotep Family! We are excited to welcome our new and returning families to the 2022-2023 school year. As we get closer to the start of the new school year, I wanted to take this opportunity to share with you some of the new and exciting things we are working on. First, however, I want to acknowledge some of the communal victories that we shared during the 2021-2022 school year.
In the spirit of ujima, we…
● Adopted an African-centered Pedagogy (ACP) Framework to strengthen the level of rigor of our instructional program
● Ensured that onboarding of 100% of our new family members throughout the year included an overview of ACP
● Administered NWEA Benchmarks with fidelity to ascertain ELA & math data for our scholars
● Hosted our Annual College & Career Fair with over 40 representatives in attendance
● Resurrected the Performing Arts Program with a STEAM Show and offerings during the defined school day and afterschool
● Added a full STEM Week that incorporated a televised STEM Career Day and Science Fair
● Promoted student advocacy through an active COYAL group and participation
in the city wide Enough is Enough campaign to address the senseless gun violence plaguing our communities
● Expanded our number of partnerships with businesses and universities
● Partnered with Einstein/Jefferson Healthcare System for their Juneteenth Exhibit and hands-on operating room simulations
● Launched our Imhotepian Point Store as a compliment to our Schoolwide Positive Behavior Support Program
● Offered free summer programming to our incoming scholars to acclimate them to our school community
● Acquired Naviance to support with College and Career Readiness Planning
● Posthumously awarded high school diplomas to two of our beloved scholars who were members of the class of 6262
● Graduated 127 seniors during our June and July graduation ceremonies.
So what are we going to do this year? We are going to be intentional about the ways in which we leverage our resources so we can deepen our efforts towards our strategic initiatives. To this end, we have expanded our administrative team to include a Chief Academic Officer (Mama Dr. Jill Clark), Associate Principal (Baba Ira Bond), Director of Stem (Sister Shirley Posey), and a Director of Community Engagement (Brother Terrell Williams). We also added our very own CEO, Baba Andre Noble, to oversee our operations, manage our finances and achieve our academic goals! Serving as our newly appointed Director of Admissions is Sister Noel Toney. Twenty-five years ago, our founder, Mama Dr. Christine Wiggins had the vision, faith, and fortitude to give birth to our beloved institution. As we proudly celebrate our 25th year, this is truly a moment for us to pull together our collective talents, love for our
youth, mutual accountability and resources to strategically embody our mission and achieve the ideals of our four student outcomes--scholarship, critical consciousness, servant leadership and African centeredness. Surely, we cannot do this without YOU! Hence, our theme for the year is Harambee which means pull together.
We realize that many of our scholars have experienced gaps in instruction due to the pandemic and that for some scholars remote learning presented another set of challenges. To ensure that we are able to identify each student’s strengths and opportunities for growth, we will be administering Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) Testing in both math and English. MAP is a computer based adaptive test that will support teachers, administrators, scholars, and parents with identifying what scholars are ready to learn. This will allow teachers to make informed decisions that will promote scholars’ academic growth. You can expect to receive reports after each administration of the MAP assessment and we invite you to reach out with any questions regarding the level of progress your scholar is making. Literacy scores from MAP Testing will be uploaded to Achieve3000 to tailor the complexity of texts allowing for differentiation and empowering all scholars to fully participate in whole-class instruction and discussions. It also has instructional materials to enhance college and career readiness skills and will be used in conjunction with Naviance to ensure that scholars are exposed to the College and Career Readiness Standards. Naviance is a computer based platform that helps scholars identify their interests, strengths, goals and needs to tailor support to meet their goals.
As it relates to scholars’ schedules, scholars in 9th grade will experience a double period of literacy which is broken down into two distinct courses: English I and Writing Composition. Their rosters will also include traditional core courses of Algebra 1, Africa & Ancient Civilization, Biology as well as STEM 101 and an elective course. Scholars in 10th grade will have a double period of math whereas their schedule will include Algebra II and Algebra Concepts--a course designed to prepare them for success on the Algebra I Keystone Exam. Their rosters will also include traditional core courses of English II, American History and Biology II and an elective course. We are also introducing Swahili to satisfy the world language requirement. Furthermore, we have added ELA and math interventionists who will work with scholars in small groups in conjunction with our Multi-tiered System of Support (MTSS) process.
Administrative instructional support and oversight for scholars in grade 9 will be provided by our newly appointed Associate Principal, Baba Ira Bond while administrative instructional support and oversight for scholars in grade 10 will be provided by Associate Principal, Mama Carla Pitt.
As it relates to our upper grades, scholars in grade 11 will have a half-year of Junior Seminar during the 1st semester followed by a half-year of Global Interdependence during the 2nd semester. Their rosters will also include traditional core courses of Geometry, English III, Chemistry, Physical Education & Health, and an elective. Like our 10th grade course selection, we are also introducing our 11th grade scholars to Swahili to satisfy the world language requirement. Fully funded dual enrollment at any of our partner schools--Esperanza College, Community College of Philadelphia, Manor College, and Arcadia University--will continue to be available to scholars who meet the criteria for participation. Notices of eligibility from or Director of Post-Secondary Transition, Mama Michelle Wilson will be sent outlining
the process to take advantage of the program. Finally, scholars in grade 12 will have a half-year of Civics during the 1st semester followed by a half-year of Senior Seminar during the 2nd semester. Their rosters will also include traditional core courses of English IV, Environmental Science (or Physics), Statistics (or Pre-Calculus), Spanish II, Physical Education & Health. Scholars who are on-track for graduation will not have an eighth period course on their roster. This will cause them to be dismissed at 2:39 pm on our full day bell schedule and 12:01 pm on our half-day bell schedule. Administrative instructional support and oversight for scholars in grade 11 will be provided by Associate Principal, Mama Carla Pitt while administrative instructional support and oversight for scholars in grade 12 will be provided by our newly appointed Associate Principal, Baba Ira Bond
Our school climate is something that we have always been proud of here at Imhotep. To ensure that scholars and families have a personalized experience, we will continue to rely on our grade specific Climate Leaders who will work with scholars and families to uphold our core values and Student Code of Character. I invite you to read over our Student & Parent Handbook to learn more about the aforementioned. To ensure a classroom environment that is conducive to learning, we will continue to use Yondr pouches for cell phones and or Smartwatches which will allow scholars to maintain possession of their devices while the magnetic lock will prohibit them from using them while school is in session.
The magnet on each pouch will be released at dismissal and scholars will take their pouch home each day. Please review the enclosed letter from our Director of Operations, Baba Charles Thomas for additional details.
These final weeks of August will be very busy as we conduct our summer institute training for our new and returning staff. We will miss staff members who are no longer working directly with our scholars but remain members of our Imhotep family. Please take a moment to welcome our new family members who are joining us this school year:
● Simon Gachai, Student Support
● Crystal Jones, English Department
● Ashley Kearsley, Student Support
● Dr. Lugene Kennebew, English Department
● Tracey McPhearson, Interventionist
● Dr. Joshua Kivuva, Foreign Language Department
● Emmanuel Nyundo, Foreign Language Department
● Thomas Starling, Ourstory Department
● Corey Stewart, English Department
During the 2022-2023 school year we will continue to provide regularly scheduled professional development for our staff. Hence, we will operate on one of two bell schedules. On Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, scholars will report to school at 8:30 am and will be dismissed at 3:30 pm. On Wednesdays, scholars will report to school at 8:30 am and will be dismissed at 12:30 pm. These dates are clearly identified on the enclosed School Calendar. It is imperative that scholars report to school on time and daily as school attendance greatly impacts academic performance. Furthermore, our attendance policy precludes scholars who miss more than 10% of the school days during a marking period from earning a grade higher than 76% when these absences are unlawful.
Parental involvement is a vital component in the education process. We hope that you will take an active role in your scholar’s education by joining our Wazuri Parent Association and attending monthly Wazuri
meetings which are held on the fourth Tuesday of the month. (See the calendar for specific dates.) Be sure to log into PowerSchool to view your scholar’s grades which has an app that you can download on your mobile device. Below, you will find helpful information for the start of this new year as we continue the journey towards academic excellence!
First Week of School: School begins on Monday, August 29, 2022 for scholars in grades 9 through 12. To ensure a smooth transition into the building we are implementing both synchronous (in-person) and asynchronous (virtual) orientation sessions. It is imperative that scholars adhere to their designated orientation sessions as this time will be used to review health and safety protocols, issue student identification cards and lockers, meet the team of educators who will be working with scholars in each grade, orient scholars to Imhotep’s culture and value systems, prepare scholars for baseline assessments which will be administered the week of September 5th and more. A breakdown of orientation sessions for scholars in each respective grade is shown below. The asynchronous assignment will be shared via email prior to the start of school.
Monday 8/29/22 Tuesday 8/30/22 Wednesday 8/31/22 Thursday 9/1/22
9th Grade 8:30am - 1:30 pm
In person Asynchronous Assignment
10th Grade 10:30am - 3:30 pm
In person Asynchronous Assignment
11th Grade Asynchronous Assignment 8:30am - 1:30 pm
In person
12th Grade Asynchronous Assignment 10:30am - 3:30 pm
In person
School will be closed on Friday, September 5, 2022 and Monday, September 7, 2022 in observance of Labor Day. All scholars will report from 8:30 am – 3:30 pm on Tuesday, September 6, 2022.
Note: Scholars MUST wear their full school uniforms as described below and captured in our Handbook.
Uniforms
● Scholars are required to wear loose fitting black bottoms (pants, sweats, jeans, skirts), and a dashiki.
● Dashikis can be purchased at the school and cost $15.00 each. The Main Office will be open for dashiki purchases beginning August 8, 2022 from 9:00 am until 3:00 pm.
School Supplies
Instruction begins in all classes on Tuesday, September 6, 2022. Scholars should come prepared with the following items in order to facilitate learning in every class. If additional materials and supplies are needed your scholar will be notified during orientation.
● 6 - single subject spiral notebooks ● 6 – folders with pockets
● 1 – 1” inch binder with college ruled notebook paper
● 3x5 cards
● Pencils and a sharpener
● Ink pens
● Highlighters
Enjoy the remaining time you have in these last days of summer and ensure your scholar completes his/her asynchronous assignments and joins us for in-person orientation based on the schedule provided. We are excited to begin this new school year and in the spirit of umoja (unity) and ujima (collective work and responsibility) let’s harambee!
With Excitement,
Mama Jury Segers Principal
P.S. Please mark your calendar for the following informative Parent Meetings:
● Parent Partnership Meeting on Wednesday, August 24, 2022 at 5:30pm
● Songhai VI Senior Parent Meeting on Saturday, August 27, 2022 from 12pm until 2pm
● Back-to School Night on Tuesday, September 20, 2022 at 6pm
