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The Family Support Line can be a lifeline when family concerns arise. Whatever your child's age or your issue, you will be treated with compassionate listening, practical answers and information on all aspects of family life and child development, as well as referrals to community resources. The Family Support Line is a program of Families First, a private, non-profit, non-sectarian agency devoted to strengthening families and protecting children. Other support services include parenting classes, seminars and Circle of Parents groups. In Metro Denver, call 303.695.7996 or call toll-free in Colorado, 1.877.695.7996. For Spanish-speaking families, Consejos Para Familias, 1.866.LAS-FAMILIAS (866.527.3264). Operators are available from 10 a.m. until
10 p.m. seven days a week. You can also visit Families First online at www.FamiliesFirstColorado.org.
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The federal No Child Left Behind law allows parents to obtain certain information about the professional qualifications of their child's teacher(s). Specifically, as a parent or guardian, you have the right to request the following information:
• whether the Colorado Department of Education has licensed or endorsed your child's teacher for the grades and subjects taught;
• whether the Colorado Department of Education has decided that your student's teacher can teach in a classroom without being licensed or qualified under state regulations because of special circumstances;
• the teacher's college major; whether the teacher has any advanced degrees and, if so, the subjects of the degrees; and,
• whether a teachers' aide or similar para educator provides services to your child and, if they do, their qualifications.
If you would like to receive any of this information, contact the Human Resources Department at 303.387.0052. You will receive a request form to complete and return to the district. You should receive the information within 30 days. 
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The State of Colorado passed a law in 2004 requiring public schools to provide parents and guardians with information on how to access information regarding registered sex offenders in their communities. In Douglas County, parents and guardians can request the sex offender registry by contacting their local law enforcement agency or online at www.dcsheriff.net. The Douglas County Sheriff's Office website provides a link to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) web site—www.sor.state.co.us—for a statewide list of certain high-risk registered sex offenders.
In addition, the Colorado Sex Offender Management Board publishes the School Resource Guide to Sex Offender Registration, including information about the list itself and facts about sex offenders. For a copy of the resource guide, go to www.cde.state.co.us/cdesped/download/pdf/ChildAbuse-SchResGU.pdf. For information about how the district deals with issues involving sex offenders in Douglas County, contact the office of School Safety & Security at 303.387.9999.
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With the heightened response and security precautions taken by DCSD in dangerous or emergency situations, there is the possibility of a lockdown procedure at your child's school. It is important for the secondary student to be prepared for these lockdown situations, particularly for the student with diabetes or asthma. In a lockdown situation, the students are confined to the classroom they are in when the crisis occurs and may not be able to travel to their lockers or the health room. In order to be prepared for these lockdown situations, we are recommending that students with diabetes carry a small amount of emergency treatment supplies (e.g. juice, soda, glucose tablets, snacks, cake gel) or the student with asthma to carry their rescue inhalers. Students should carry these in their backpack or have these essential supplies with them at all times. It is highly recommended that students with diabetes have cake gel, glucose tablets, and/or candy for treatment of low blood sugar in each classroom.
For questions or concerns, please contact your school nurse consultant.
Leah Wyckoff, RN
DCSD School Nurse Consultant
Tel# 303.519.3915
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Changes to student immunizations
In mid-January, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s Board of Health approved additional vaccine requirements for students beginning in the 2007-2008 school year. The additional vaccine requirement that affects high school students is for students entering 10th grade in the 2007-2008 school year. The Health Department is requiring all students entering 10th grade to receive a dose of Tetanus/Diphtheria/Pertussis (Tdap). In subsequent years, the Tdap vaccine schedule will phase in and incorporate other grade levels.
For more information, please contact
Leah Wyckoff, RN
DCSD School Nurse Consultant
Tel#
303.519.3915
The Health Services Department of Douglas County Schools has declared February as Traumatic Brain Injury Awareness Month.
Myth #1 (The Biggest Myth of All) "Mild" head injury means mild outcome.
Fact: Mild head injury could cause a learning or emotional disability that is not detected until YEARS later. Always err on the side of caution and take care of your child's head because we don't know if that bump to the head will have long lasting consequences.
Myth #2 All brain injuries are the same.
Fact : Each brain injury is not the same, especially in rapidly developing children. Depending on the developmental stage, a child's mild injury could have a significant impact.
Myth #3 Physical recovery is a sign the brain is healed. "He looks fine and is running around and talking, so he must be okay."
Fact: There is a big difference between cognitive fatigue and physical recovery. Many times a person can "look" fine, but suffer deficits in cognitive processes such as memory, attention and regulation. Many people who suffer from a mild head injury report that they feel fine most of the time, but have lapses in the day in which they feel they are in a "fog." This is a sign the brain is tired and trying to heal.
Myth #4 Younger children usually recover better than older people because their brains can "rewire" themselves.
Fact: Many years ago, people believed in the "Kennard Principle," which stated that children have more effective recovery rates than adults. However, we know now that children are actually much more at risk to sustain permanent problems than adults, even for mild brain injuries. There are limits to brain plascity due to what researchers called "crowding effects."
Myth #5 Early or quick discharge from a hospital means my child is okay and will not have any problems due to a head injury.
Fact: Many hospitals discharge children too soon or do not fully understand the neuropsychological research. Most doctors do not follow their patients years post injury and therefore, do not connect the current injury with future problems. The brain needs time to heal, even after minor injuries.
Myth #6 Recovery from a moderate head injury is usually 6 months.
Fact: Every brain is different with its own set of resilient and fragile features. While many cognitive functions do recovery from an injury after 6 months, the recovery slope is not perfectly horizontal and brain healing could continue for over a year post injury.
Myth #7 . A normal IQ score after a head injury means my child is just fine...because they have normal intelligence.
Fact: Many IQ tests measure learned skills, which do make some recovery after a head injury. However, future learning and other sensitive brain processes (such as quick information processing) might be damaged. Some well known IQ tests do not measure future learning, memory, attention or executive processes (behavioral-emotional regulation).
Myth #8. My child wears a helmet so even if he does hit his head, he is protected.
Fact: Helmets are certainly crucial to head protection; however, there is a limit to the protection they offer. Shock from a trauma travels through any headgear. If the shock is hard enough, no helmet will totally protect a developing brain. For example, a child wearing a helmet falling off a motor scooter doing 30 mph could suffer a moderate head injury (a concussion) and a broken neck (helmets do not protect the neck or brain stem well.)
EVERY YEAR, more than one million people sustain brain injuries and most are classified as concussion. If a child returns to active play or sports too soon after a concussion and suffers a second injury to the head, the results can be very serious. This is known as SECOND IMPACT SYNDROME. After any head injury, the child may exhibit symptoms.
The PHYSICAL SYMPTOMS may include:
Headaches
Nausea/Vomiting
Dizziness or balance problems
Low energy or feeling run down
Sensitivity to light and noise
Sleep disturbance
The COGNITIVE and EMOTIONAL SYMPTOMS may include:
Short term memory loss, confusion
Difficulty concentrating, change in school performance
Irritable
Personality changes
Sadness
Words to live by: We have a moral obligation to protect our children's brains. Why risk a child's future by taking undue risks for the sake of sport or recreation. We do not have to walk around on eggshells, or wear helmets everywhere we go. However, children's brains should be treated as fragile organs and we should only take reasonable risks. My favorite motto is: If you would not do something to your laptop computer, then you should not do it to your child's brain.
Traumatic Brain Injuries are a silent epidemic. Please notify your child's school of head injury history, past and present.
The Department of Health Services would like to acknowledge the guidance and information provided by Peter Thompson, Douglas County School District Psychologist.