February 27, 2026

Message from the Nurse

We have had many students that are out of school for various illnesses and I wanted to remind parents about our illness policy which states that children should stay home until they are fever free for 24 hours without the use of any fever reducing medication such as Tylenol or Motrin. I also want to remind parents that it is important for you to contact the school to notify us that your child is ill. The school is required by the public health law to report illness numbers to the local health department each week and the information we report is gathered from what parents report to the school. It is very helpful for our report if you can provide us with a basic idea of what type of illness your child is experiencing. Also if your child is seen at a physician office please bring in a written excuse from their office to document their illness.

Just a reminder, any medication that must be administered at school must have a completed medication authorization form completed by a physician. Medication must be brought to school by a parent/guardian with the authorization form completed. This form can be obtained in the office along with the Dowagiac Union School Medication Policy.

Also reminding you as we are still in the cold months, your children will be wearing coats and hats so with those we find the number of students with head lice to be increasing. Please remember to check your child’s hair frequently during these times. If you notice any signs of head lice please begin the treatment process immediately. This process is very time consuming, but in order to keep the head lice from returning the entire process must be completed. If you would like information about the treatment of head lice please feel free to contact me at 269-782-4420 ext. 1218 or sdorman@dowagiacschools.org with any questions or concerns.

Suzanne Dorman RN, MSN

School Nurse

Dowagiac Union Schools

Title 1 Survey

Dowagiac Union Schools would love to hear your thoughts about our Title 1 programs. We would appreciate your feedback!

Attendance Policy:

Good attendance is vital to student success. Studies show that students who are frequently absent have lower grades, lower self-esteem, and increased behavior problems. We want to help all of our students to be successful and have set up guidelines for attendance. Students are expected to be in school every day possible, but we realize that there are some reasons for absences. It is the responsibility of the parent or guardian to call by 9:30 am on the day of an absence when a student is absent letting us know the reason for the absence, or you will receive a call. If no call was received, the student must bring a written note from his parent or guardian stating the reason for the absence. Automatic calls will begin at 10:30. If you receive a call in error, please call the school in order for us to figure out the situation.

Please remember to keep us updated with all phone number changes.

PTO:

We encourage all of our parents to be involved with our PTO. Our meetings are held once a month at 4:00pm in our media center. Mrs. Charles has agreed to be the president this year.

Volunteers:

We welcome any and all suggestions and volunteers. You will need to have a volunteer form on file.

Link to volunteer form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScEiiL7yRZKrmB0POGTLdqnSQJ2biGsk75HHrMNbsbUSDdyKA/viewform

Schedule of Events

March 4 - Future Chef Competition

March 6: Science Olympiad (Select 3-5 grade students)

March 11 - Evening Parent Teacher Conferences, 5-8PM

March 12 - Half Day of School

March 12 - Afternoon Parent Teacher Conferences, 1-4:30PM

Dowagiac Youth Girls Basketball Prints Are Ready for Pickup!

Please call or email Blue Print Photography at your convenience to arrange a time to collect your order. We will be happy to coordinate a pick-up time that works best for you.
Thank you again for your order and support.
574-323-6613
Rebecca@blueprintphoto.com

Spring Musical

GET YOUR TICKETS NOW | FROZEN, JR THE MUSICAL

Help support our amazing students by purchasing tickets to the spring musical.

A big thanks to the Beckwith Theatre Co. for partnering to bring our tickets online.

Scan the QR Code or visit the website: https://bit.ly/FrozenJrMarch2026

Counselors Corner

Building Highlights

Check out Mrs. Slusher's class learning calligraphy!

Reminders

Reminder: Start time is 8:51 AM and end time is 3:47 PM. When dropping your child off late they must use the front office doors for safety reasons.

Dismissal car riders: To facilitate our line moving along we would like you to load your car on the passenger side next to the sidewalk. Please remember to use the pick up line and not the parking lot, and buckle up for safety.

Students should bring their own refillable water bottle for the school day. Please label all of your students belongings.