Dear students, dear parents, dear Junior School colleagues,

With the support of Ms. Adam, our Junior School Administrative Assistant, we tried to find a novel way to express a very important message to all of you.  After countless hours of navigating our recollections for quotes from multiple origins, philosophical concepts, books and more, we arrived at the conclusion that the best way to say thank you to all of you for an amazing year of learning, sharing, and overcoming challenges was to say.....

We wish all the best to our students, families, and those colleagues who are leaving us to travel in other directions. For those of you who will be back with us next year...enjoy a wonderful summer and we look forward to joyfully welcoming you back in the fall!

Pascal Vallet, Junior School Principal

​Alessandra Camilo, Junior School Assistant Principal

​... and Danae Adam, Junior School Admin Assistant

• Friday, June 17 | 2nd Semester Report Cards Available 5:00pm (details in this newsletter)

• Tuesday, June 21 | Deadline to request Report Card corrections (details in this newsletter)

and summer vacation!

• Friday, September 2 | Orientation for New to UNIS J1 - J4 Students 

• Tuesday, September 6 | 1st Day of School 2022-2023

• Wednesday, September 28 | Back to School Night for Parents

Semester 2 Report Cards for Junior School students will be published at 5:00pm on Friday, June 17 on the Veracross Parent Portal. 

We encourage you to save and review this report card with your child over this weekend to celebrate his/her achievements during this past semester, and year, and engage in conversation about their growth.

The deadline for requesting a correction for a typographical error will be Tuesday, June 21. Please contact jsoffice@unis.org by email no later than June 21 to request a correction.

If you do not have access to the Veracross portal and need instructions on how to do so, please contact veracross@unis.org to get information.

Your child’s academic achievement for each individual subject is reported separately from his/her learning skills. The descriptors for academic achievement levels have been reviewed starting last year to ensure a greater JA-T4 alignment and to provide clarity in the transition between the word-based scale used in JA to M2 and the numeric scale used from M3 to T4. The previous Learning to Learn Skills have been replaced by the IB Approaches to Learning Skills. The skills selected for a K-12 progression (Social Skills, Communication Skills, Self-Management Skills, Thinking Skills) are developmentally defined and will be assessed from a frequency of observable behavior.

What is the purpose of the report cards?

The purpose of the report card is to communicate your student’s achievement and learning goals. It is designed to provide you with clear and specific information about your child’s academic progress and the development of behaviors that support lifelong learning. This information includes identifying your child’s level of progress; areas of strength; areas needing additional time, effort, and/or support; and opportunities for growth, based on assessments that demonstrate evidence of learning and teachers’ evaluation.

What grade descriptors are used (JA-M2 Descriptors)

• MASTERING: The student is mastering the required grade level concepts, knowledge and skills by applying and extending these in a wide range of complex situations independently.

• PROFICIENT: The student is proficient in demonstrating understanding of the required grade level concepts, knowledge and skills with minimal or no teacher support needed to transfer learning to new situations.

• PROGRESSING: The student is progressing in demonstrating, with some gaps, understanding of the required grade level concepts, knowledge and skills by applying them in familiar situations with occasional teacher support.

• EMERGING: The student demonstrates emerging understanding of the required grade level concepts. The student is beginning to apply related knowledge and skills but needs a high level of teacher support.

How do I access my child’s report cards?

The Report Cards are published on the Parent Portal of Veracross. To view them, access the Parent Portal of Veracross (link found on the Parent Portal from the UNIS Website). After logging in to Veracross, simply click on "Classes & Reports", and then on "Report Card" (see screenshot). 

If you do not yet have access to the Veracross portal and need instructions on how to do so, please contact veracross@unis.org to get information. 

1. From UNIS website, select “Parent Portal”

2. Click on "Veracross Parent Portal"

3. Select “Classes & Reports”

4. Under PROGRESS REPORT, select the required report card

Again, if you do not have access to the Veracross portal and need instructions or support, please contact veracross@unis.org to get information.

Student Chromebooks & iPads Must be Returned 

If you have not yet returned your child's iPad and / or Chromebook and its charger to UNIS, you can ship or drop ithe device off at the school front gate. 

Please email tech.support@unis.org if you need this option and our IT department will follow up with specific mailing or drop off instructions. 

Chromebooks that are not returned to UNIS will be locked for use following the last day of school.

Please take the time to review your family profile and contact information to ensure that your cell phone numbers, email addresses and home address are correct and are entered in the correct fields. You may update your information at any point throughout the year, but if you have not reviewed your information recently, we encourage you to do it now so that you can stay informed over the summer and as the new school year begins.

All departments at UNIS rely on the information that you provide in the Veracross Parent Portal to contact you. The only way you can be reached in an emergency, or when there are school wide announcements, is through the information that you, the family, has entered in the Portal. 

After logging into the Portal at myunis.vc , you may review and update all of your family contact information by:

• Going to Veracross

• Clicking on Household Information

• Updating Household Profile -> Contacts

If you need support in order to make your updates, please email veracross@unis.org

To help you get organized for the 2022-2023 school year, you will find valuable information and a supply list for your child's next grade. We encourage you to spend time reviewing this information now.  

We hope that this digital padlet will be fun and engaging. It was created for UNIS students to remember what they’ve learned and to help them prepare for the next school year! 

Our Athletics and PE Department is proud to share the accomplishments of the UNIS students this year:

Athletics & Physical Education Spring Newsletter

Dear parents,

School is out and Funding Bright Futures summer camp is starting next week !! Through June 21-June 23, FBF is offering an in-person summer camp from 9:30am-12pm every day, hosted at Robert Moses Playground. Each day at FBF camp will consist of a variety of fun, outdoor activities including sports, arts and crafts, obstacle courses, and more! This camp is open to children from the ages 7-12. Your children will be in the best of hands at FBF summer camp with our experienced high school coaches and now camp counselors. If you are interested in registering your children for this engaging summer experience, please fill out the registration form here. All proceeds earned by the camp will go directly to supporting FBF’s non-profit mission of funding the education of underprivileged children around the world! For more information on FBF summer camp and Funding Bright Futures, please visit our website fundingbrightfutures.org or email us at info@fundingbrightfutures.org.

Sincerely,

Matias Corona and Nicolas Corona (FBF Co-Chairs)

Safe Spaces and Affirming Faces: Supporting LGBTQ Youth in Schools Webinar

On Wednesday June 15th we were kindly joined by UNIS Parents Dr. Reena Karani (Junior School) and Yvonne Brown (Alumnus & Tutorial House), Former Students Dylan Moore (Class of ‘21) and Beau Serrano (Class of ‘20), and Faculty Member Jaya Ramchandani (Tutorial House). They discussed Pride at UNIS, hopes of the future and tactics for how to support LGBTQIA+ youth. We thank them for their time and their wisdom and wish you all a happy Pride Month. 

The Link to the recording is available so you can watch the webinar. 

Sarah Dowd & Brian Gregory (Tutorial House)