Dear DCI School Community,

Thank you so much for making this year’s La Gran Fiesta a huge success! We love bringing our community together to celebrate cultural events, and this gathering had it all – food shared from families and local businesses, activities, music, live performances, sports, and much more! A huge thank you to all of our staff, student and community volunteers that supported the event. 

Our Hispanic Heritage Month celebration is not over yet! Each week we are highlighting the stories of our Hispanic/Latino/a/x/e staff and students. They are sharing their pride and excitement for this month by providing a snapshot into their cultures. 

This is our last week and we’re spotlighting HS Math Teacher, Julia Astudillo, and Instructional Aide, Edwin Rodriguez Pinzon.

Julia Astudillo

It gives me such immense joy to represent one of the few Latina women that study math. In high school, I excelled in subjects like History and English, but I also really liked math because it was challenging yet fun. It is my mission to be just as good at it!

My experience in college was interesting. In much of my academic life - and especially in the math field - I am often one of the only Latina voices. I might look a bit 'gringa' perhaps because of my Uruguayan roots, so I experienced more sexism than racism. I often had to navigate people doubting my abilities because I was a woman. Once people knew I spoke Spanish, I served as a TA to help English learners in lower-level math classes. Although it was great to help students, I also felt pigeon-holed in these courses when I really wanted to support higher level classes and where there were even fewer Latinos.

Despite the complexities of my identity, I am proud of what I have accomplished and what I represent. I hope to inspire others so that more women and Latinas enter this career field. I love being able to immerse myself in the culture, to go out and enjoy the rhythm and pulse that runs through the veins of every Latino you come across!

Edwin Rodriguez Pinzon

Como panameño, la calidez de nuestra gente me llena de orgullo. En Panamá, celebramos la vida con cada encuentro familiar, una risa compartida y la simplicidad de un buen plato. Esa alegría es lo que realmente importa.

Al llegar a Estados Unidos, he enfrentado discriminación por ser hispano, algo que no me detiene. La sociedad a menudo juzga por la apariencia o la posición económica, pero eso no define quiénes somos. Estoy aquí para demostrar que, sin importar de dónde vengas, lo que cuenta es la actitud que pones ante la vida.

Mi identidad panameña me recuerda que la verdadera riqueza está en la calidez de nuestras relaciones y en la alegría de vivir el momento. ¡Esa esencia vibrante es lo que me guía cada día!

Important Information and Reminders 

Upcoming Toddle Family Information Sessions

DCI welcomes families to attend upcoming in-person Toddle family information sessions in advance of the end of the quarter on October 25. 

There will be three sessions and families can attend any of the sessions. The one held in Spanish will be a Café y Charla session on October 18 (see below). All sessions will take place in the inner and outer libraries on the first floor:

• Tuesday, October 15 (5:00 to 6:00 p.m.) – Inner and Outer Library
• Tuesday, October 22 (10:00 to 11:00 a.m.) – Inner and Outer Library 

RSVP here for the sessions on October 15 and October 22. Please indicate in your RSVP whether you will need interpretation support. Learn more about the sessions here.

Save the Date: Café y Charla

We invite our Spanish-speaking families to join our first Café y Charla of the 2024-2025 school year on Friday, October 18 (9:00 to 10:00 a.m.) in the Inner and Outer Libraries. 

What is Café y Charla? It’s a space for conversations centered around school-related topics, such as grading, DragonFly, ACE, and more for our Spanish-speaking community.

This month, we’ll focus on Toddle. We’ll review how to navigate the website and app to access student assignments, grades, classroom announcements, and chat with teachers—all in one place. 

Please RSVP here by Thursday, October 17 if you are interested in attending. We’ll provide the coffee and pan dulce!

Coming Soon: Individual DC CAPE Results 

Students in Grades 7-11 will be receiving individual 2023-2024 DC CAPE results in the mail soon! This year, there are two ways to access scores: through the mailed report sent to the mailing address on file and through the DC CAPE Parent Portal. Each student has a unique code to access their results. This code will be sent to individual email addresses very soon.