The Unity Scoop – January 31

Dear Families of Unity,

Congratulations to our middle school students and educators on the successful completion of last week’s math mock exams!  Additionally, we celebrate our high school students and staff for reaching the milestone of completing the first semester of the school year.  As always, thank you, families, for your ongoing support and encouragement at home – it truly makes a difference!

In this edition of The Unity Scoop, we bring you our full February calendar as well as congratulate our Class of 2025 on their recent achievement!  Additionally, we share some valuable information about knowing your rights when dealing with nonlocal law enforcement.   Finally, we revisit some exciting accomplishments and opportunities from our last edition, including:

• Unity’s newest College Board award
• Our latest College Now participants at Unity High
• Information on the city’s Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP)
• Details on Unity’s new Instagram account
• Highlights from last week’s Family Ambassadors meeting

As you review the calendar, you’ll see that our community is honoring Black History Month with a variety of meaningful events and celebrations.  At Unity, we take pride in recognizing, celebrating, and learning about Black history every day.  February serves as a special opportunity to deepen our appreciation and pay tribute through engaging activities within our school and beyond.

Important Reminder: Unity students will not have school on Wednesday, February 5th, as our staff will be engaged in training and planning following recent exams.  Any homework assigned for that day will be communicated by teachers.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend and a great week ahead!

In unity,

Josh

Joshua Beauregard

Executive Director / Co-founder

Updates as of January 31, 2025:

1. New – Congratulations to Unity’s Class of 2025 on their Recent Milestone: 100% of the Class Has Applied to College!: Congratulations to the Class of 2025 and our College & Career Readiness Team on this impressive milestone!  And thank you to all of our teachers and staff who wrote recommendations for students and supported them throughout the application process.  We are excited to celebrate our students’ admissions to college alongside their families over the coming months!

2. New – February 2025 School-wide Calendar: For your family’s convenience, here is a school-wide calendar of events for the month of February – print it out and throw it on the refrigerator door!  It is possible that events could change and new events could be added.  An up-to-date events calendar can always be accessed on our website.

3. New – Unity Wear Red in Support of Heart Health Awareness!: On Friday, February 7th, Unity staff and students are invited to wear red to show their support for heart health awareness and the fight against heart disease.  We encourage all to take part!  Learn more about this annual event as well as heart disease and how to reduce risks here.

4. New – Know Your Rights: Resources for Interacting with ICE: At Unity, we are committed to supporting and informing our community. We want to ensure that all families have access to important resources regarding interactions with non-local law enforcement, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Below, you’ll find helpful guides on understanding your rights, how to respond in various situations, and where to seek legal assistance if needed. We encourage all families to review these materials and share them with those who may benefit.

• Community organizations that help multilingual learners and immigrant students: This map shows organizations that serve our students and families. Learn about the organizations in your community. Contact them to find out what services they provide.
• A Guide for Multilingual and Immigrant Families in New York City Public Schools: A guide highlighting how to navigate the NYC public school system for multilingual and immigrant families.
• Immigrant Family Empowerment: Your Advocacy Guide A resource guide for Immigrant and Multilingual Families in NYC Public Schools.
  • Empoderamiento de las familias inmigrantes
  • تمكين الأسرة المهاجرة
  • Otonòm Fanmi Imigran yo

5. Updated – Unity’s Athletic Teams Continue to Reach New Heights!: Our athletic teams represented our community to the fullest this week.  Congratulations to our winter athletic teams hard-fought games and big wins this week!  Finally, see the save-the-date below to see our Student vs. Faculty games at the Barclays Center on February 8th!

Unity High’s Girls Basketball Team defeated Uncommon Collegiate last week by a score of 34-30!  Jayda Wellington ‘27 led the way with an impressive 20 rebounds!

Unity High’s Javon Wallace ‘26 makes a game-winning reverse lay-up with eight seconds remaining in the game to beat Thomas Jefferson High School on Tuesday afternoon!

Unity Middle’s Cheerleading Team

Saturday Hoops!  Unity students join Coach Beckford and Coach Berkeley for their weekly open practice on Saturday mornings.

6. Recap – Unity High Earns College Board’s AP^® Computer Science Female Diversity Award for Expanding Young Women’s Access to AP Computer Science Principles!: Unity High is one of 847 schools nationwide to receive College Board’s Female Diversity Award in 2024 for achieving high female representation in AP Computer Science Principles.  Female students who take AP Computer Science Principles course are more than 5 times as likely to major in computer science in college.

7. Recap – Join our New Unit Prep Instagram (IG) Account Today!: We recently launched our new grades 6-12 IG account to bring our entire community together – @unityprepcharterschool.  Don’t miss out – follow us now!

8. Recap – Congratulations to Unity High’s Newest College Now Students!: We are proud of our newest College Now students, who were accepted into the competitive program this past month.  Through their participation in College Now, the students listed below are taking college-level courses at City Tech. This incredible opportunity allows them to experience college life on a college campus while earning credits toward their future academic goals—all while still in high school. We commend these students for challenging themselves and stepping outside their comfort zones. We look forward to celebrating even more Unity students as they join the College Now program in the future!

9. Recap – Unity Educator Spotlight of the Month – Ms. Saint-Louis, 8th Grade Mathematics Teacher & Co-Department Chair: We are excited to bring a new segment to the Scoop to you – our Monthly Unity Educator Spotlight.  In this inaugural segment, we spotlight Ms. Saint-Louis, our 8th grade mathematics teacher and Co-Department Chair.  Thank you, Ms. Saint-Louis for all that you bring to our learning community.  We look forward to spotlighting other Unity educators in coming editions!

• Name and Title: Ms. Saint-Louis, 8th Grade Mathematics Teacher & Co-Department Chairperson
• Hometown: Ellenton, Florida
• College:
  • BA in Mathematics, College of Holy Cross
  • MA in Education, Boston University
• Years at Unity: 5 years
• Recent Achievements & Contributions:
  • Math for America Fellow
  • 100% of Ms. Saint-Louis’s 8th grade students passed the Algebra I Regents exam in 2024.
  • Ms. Saint-Louis was promoted to Co-Chair of the Middle School Mathematics Department in 2024.
• What do you appreciate most about being an educator at Unity?
  • The math team, my co-advisor, and my co-teachers are just amazing people. They make coming to work a blessing. I am grateful that I get to work with a group of people that are so like minded when it comes to education.
• What is one highlight that you and your students have recently experienced in class?
  • After some healthy struggle for a week in learning how to write a linear equation from a table when the y-intercept is not given, 75% of my students showed mastery on their Exit Ticket.
• What is one thing that you are now learning to do for the first time?
  • I’m learning how to make sushi!

10. Recap – 2025 Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) Lottery: SYEP provides young people aged 14-24 with paid summer jobs in a variety of fields, from retail to government agencies to nonprofits. Teenages living in NYC  aged 14-24 can make a difference in their communities through paid project-based activities. Any young person who resides in the 5 boroughs is eligible to apply. Apply by February 28th online or by calling DYCD Community Connect at (800) 246-4646.

11. Recap – Thank you, Families, for Taking Part in Last Thursday’s Family Ambassadors Meeting!: We are grateful to our families who participated in our Family Ambassadors meeting.  As always, the meeting was productive, energizing, and, of course, fun!  The agenda from the meeting is below.  Here are the slides from the meeting.  And see the meeting below.  We look forward to seeing you at our next meeting on February 13th!

12. Recap – 2024-25 School Calendar of Key Events and Vacations for Families: Calendars for the 2024-25 school year can be accessed using the links below.  Note that we have two versions this year – one version for our middle school (grades 6-8) and another version for our high school (grades 9-12).

• Grades 6-8 School Calendar of Key Events and Vacations for Families
• Grades 9-12 School Calendar of Key Events and Vacations for Families