Hello parents and welcome to May.

We are in our last month of school and it has gone way too fast! The weather is getting nicer and I hope you are all making fun summer plans. This year has been great and very busy with all of our community outings. We officially wrapped up our tour of every Jefferson County Public Library. We were all able to see some free and fun places that we can hang out at. Last month we visited Edgewater and Golden libraries, shopping trips to the Dollar Store, Walmart, CO Mills Mall, Target, SW Plaza mall, King Soopers and even Home Depot. We went to the Butterfly Pavilion, Denver Botanic Gardens, Round One Bowling and a special tour of Colorado School of Mines and many fun places for lunch throughout the month. 

Cooking up this month we are visiting some local Recreation Centers, our usual shopping trips and some local parks. We are very busy this month with some end of the year celebrations, please take note of dates and times of some very important events. 

Fletcher Miller Prom: Friday May 12th 10:30-12:30 @ Westminster Skate City

Mother’s Day: Sunday May 14th

Graduation: Tuesday May 16th 10:30AM @ Fletcher Miller Gym

JTS end of year class party Thursday May 18th @ the JTS classroom around 11:00 (please confirm with Dallas for specifics) Email to follow for more details. 

We are in our final month of school and as always we appreciate any and all donations. Options for donations are below and on the class website under donations. Donations

*Below are resources for you parents, please take advantage of them. 

Website for adult planning services

Link for resources

Also check the JTS @ Work and play website for updated pictures, I am in the process of updating them. 

Make checks payable to: Fletcher Miller or Dallas Strankman 

Paypal: paypal.me/DallasJTS

Venmo: @Dallas-Strankman

Website for adult planning services

Link for resources

JTS @ Work and play

Teachers Corner

For your students Back-n-forth books, search your child's school Google Drive or your Google Drive for: BNF (student name) 22-23

Make checks payable to: Fletcher Miller or Dallas Strankman 

Paypal: paypal.me/DallasJTS

Venmo: @Dallas-Strankman 

Hello parents of JTS @ Miller and Happy Spring 2023. 

Welcome to April. This year has flown by and I cannot believe that it is almost over. We have been very busy this year and seeing lots of great things. Last month we celebrated with a Greek Mythology week and a Mayan history week accompanied with a fun trip to the Denver Art Museum. We have been doing tours of all of the Jefferson County Public Libraries and we are almost complete as we will visit the Golden Library tomorrow. We will then be touring/visiting all of the Jeffco recreation centers. Our focus this semester is to get better acquainted with our community and all of its valuable resources. We have been doing lots of cooking activities and some hands-on crafts. The students love our weekly shopping trips and having lunch out in the community almost everyday. 

This coming month we have plenty of busy plans.  This month we are still visiting some libraries as well as some rec centers that are nearby. The theme for the month is Earth Day/Engineering. We will be visiting The Colorado School of Mines, Denver Botanic Gardens and the Butterfly Pavilion. The focus of the month is to learn about engineering and our planet Earth. 

Below is an invitation to the Miller Prom for 2023.It is on Friday, so you will have to arrange your own transportation and supervision. Please let me know if you need any help.

With that being said we ask for a donation to cover the cost of the shopping, crafts and cooking that we do during the week. Options for donations are below and on the class website under donations. Donations

Below are resources for you parents, please take advantage of them. 

Also check the JTS @ Work and play website for updated pictures, I have them updated as of right now.

Make checks payable to: Fletcher Miller or Dallas Strankman 

Paypal: paypal.me/DallasJTS

Venmo: @Dallas-Strankman

Website for adult planning services

Link for resources

JTS @ Work and play

Teachers Corner

For your students Back-n-forth books, search your child's school Google Drive or your Google Drive for: BNF (student name) 22-23

Make checks payable to: Fletcher Miller or Dallas Strankman 

Paypal: paypal.me/DallasJTS

Venmo: @Dallas-Strankman 

Greetings Miller Families!

We invite your student to attend this year's Fletcher Miller Prom Dance  We will be hosting this event on:

Date: Friday, May 12th

Where:  Skate City- Westminster

      200 W 121st Ave

      Westminster, CO 80234

When: 10:30 am - 1:00 pm

Although the venue is a skate rink, we will be using the rink as a dance floor and not for skating.   Transportation is the responsibility of the family.  We encourage family members to attend.  Please let your case manager know if your student will be attending and if they will be accompanied by any family members.  Don't hesitate to reach out if you have additional questions.

We look forward to hearing from you, 

Happy February, I hope everyone is staying warm with this cold snap that we have. 

To start we are having an Awesome Mad Hatter Tea Party tomorrow Thursday. So please dress your child up in fun, fancy and creative clothes for the tea party. Weird hats are encouraged! We will be having an immersive tea experience with hands-on activities and tea and sandwiches during the party. 

We are still doing our usual day to day things which include working at our non-profit, making gift bags and packing up groceries for those in need. 

Reminder that Austin’s service is scheduled for this Saturday, February 4th at 11:00.

https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/wheat-ridge-co/austin-carr-11114187 

We have many big plans for the month of February which include a Thailand themed week in which we will make Thai crafts and food. We are going on a trip to the Denver Art Museum, followed by a trip to the Air and Space Museum for science inspired week of force, motion and friction. We are celebrating Mardi Grras the week after that and then finishing the month with Greek Mythology focused week. 

With that being said we ask for a donation to cover the cost of the shopping, crafts and cooking that we do during the week. Options for donations are below and on the class website under donations. Donations

Below are resources for you parents, please take advantage of them. 

Also check the JTS @ Work and play website for updated pictures, I have them updated as of right now. 

Website for adult planning services

Link for resources

JTS @ Work and play

Teachers Corner

For your students Back-n-forth books, search your child's school Google Drive or your Google Drive for: BNF (student name) 22-23

Make checks payable to: Fletcher Miller or Dallas Strankman 

Paypal: paypal.me/DallasJTS

Venmo: @Dallas-Strankman

Hello parents and Happy New Year 2023!!!

We are so excited to get back into routines and develop some new ones. I hope everyone had an awesome break and traveled safe. 

We have some really fun plans for this month: We will be learning and participating in everything that involves Tea and Tea Parties. Please contribute if you have a passion for Tea. Things like Tea or Tea cups. We will be going to the Stock Show the following week, feel free to join us, admission will be your responsibility. They will have a matinee show on January 18th in the arena. It can be very cold outside and in the arena so please dress your student accordingly. We will be celebrating the Chinese New Year after that and then celebrating Thailand culture to finish up the month. 

If you can do it we need some materials if you can share: We always need Lysol wipes and spray, paper towels, and hand sanitizer. Remember that we operate with donated funds, so if you choose to do so, we love donations. The recommended amount is $20, but donate what you feel is right. Some parents use Venmo which is super easy or send in cash/check with your child. With that said you can also send in money for your student to buy lunch, but please label it with donation or lunch money. Some of you have already established that your student uses a wallet/purse.

Links below for adult planning services and that “The ARC” offers support and answers for FREE. 

That is it from me for now, please reach out if you have any questions or concerns. You all know how to get a hold of me, call, text or email.

Website for adult planning services

Link for resources

JTS @ Work and play

Teachers Corner

For your students Back-n-forth books, search your child's school Google Drive or your Google Drive for: BNF (student name) 22-23

Make checks payable to: Fletcher Miller or Dallas Strankman 

Paypal: paypal.me/DallasJTS

Venmo: @Dallas-Strankman

Hello parents and Happy Holidays. December is a super short month this year for school. Students' last day is next week Thursday December 15th. With students returning to school January 5th. 

We have been very busy this month and will wrap up this week by finishing our ongoing lessons on why snowflakes are white by making some yummy snowflakes out of tortillas and the students will cut them into various shapes and decorate them with cinnamon and sugar. Next week we will be shopping for our secret Santa’s and making the building staff a warm pancake breakfast. We will finish the week with our annual horse drawn carriage rides on Thursday and say goodbye to 2 students who will graduate this winter. 

The class website has been updated with still tons of pictures to go. Please check it out and see all of the wonderful things we have been doing. 

I know the holidays can be busy and stressful so take care of yourself. 

That is it from me for now, please reach out if you have any questions or concerns. You all know how to get a hold of me, call, text or email. 

Website for adult planning services

Link for resources

JTS @ Work and play

Teachers Corner

For your students Back-n-forth books, search your child's school Google Drive or your Google Drive for: BNF (student name) 22-23

Make checks payable to: Fletcher Miller or Dallas Strankman 

Paypal: paypal.me/DallasJTS

Venmo: @Dallas-Strankman

Hello parents and welcome back again to the 2022-2023 school year. We have hit the ground running and the students act like summer never happened. I hope you enjoyed your Labor Day weekend?

September is Community Exploration Month and we will be getting out and about as much as possible. So far we have visited our non-profit, CO Mills Mall, SouthWest Plaza mall, Evergreen Lake, Dollar store, Walmart, Culvers and a couple others. Reminde:r that there is NO free school lunch this year. If you want your student to have a school lunch that is possible but a little difficult. Because by the time we get the lunch we have already left the building, so we have to use the previous day's lunch for your student while out in the community. Some lunch suggestions are that you send in a cold lunch or something that can be microwaved money or to buy lunch while we are out in the community. The daily lunch options vary from day to day. 

Our program is community based and we also do weekly cooking and/or crafts. Those only happen with money that comes from you, we ask for $20 a month but will take any donation. You can send in cash, check or use Venmo or Paypal below. Your donations are greatly appreciated and really help us maintain some of the wonderful routines that we love to do every week. 

Some of you have asked about donating some class supplies, we need things like paper plates, cups, plastic utensils, Lysol and Febreeze. Typically anything for cooking or crafting is also greatly appreciated. 

Calendar of upcoming events. 

IMPORTANT: Picture day was just changed to Wednesday only, NOT Thursday. That is tomorrow. 

September 8th we will be at O'Kane Park having lunch with some other classmates from other programs.

September 7th is picture day.

September 8th Miller Design Advisory Group at 4:00.

September 19th-23rd Dallas will be out for a literacy training. 

September 27th will be a Keep Nature Wild cleaning event at Crown Hill Park. 

We need paper plates, cups, plastic utensils, Lysol and Febreeze. 

Click on the links below to visit our class website and see pictures of your child out in the community making a difference and just having fun. 

Thanks everyone and happy September!

JTS @ Work and play

Teachers Corner

For your students Back-n-forth books, search your child's school Google Drive or your Google Drive for: BNF (student name) 22-23

Make checks payable to: Fletcher Miller or Dallas Strankman 

Paypal: paypal.me/DallasJTS

Venmo: @Dallas-Strankman

Hello parents and families of students in the JTS program.

Happy Holidays everyone. November flew by too fast and now we are cruising into December with some crazy warm weather. We are moving and shaking as we move into December. The class decided to make the theme for this month CHEER! So we will be celebrating as much as possible. We have a lot of activities planned throughout the building, out in the community, and within the classroom. Too many to announce today but pay attention to your emails as we will be sending out all of the activities that are coming up. We are currently hosting a decoration table for the whole school to use to write letters to Santa and make Christmas ornaments. We will also be having horse drawn carriages, scavenger hunts, carolers and Santa! We will finish the year with a classroom Holiday Feast on December 21st. 

Only a couple more weeks until Winter Break. Our last day of school for the semester is Tuesday December 21st. The students are doing great and have been having fun. We are taking advantage of the holidays and trying some new activities here and there. We will be having a classroom gift exchange for the students, we will do our best to take lots of pictures and update the website asap. 

Take care everyone and Happy Holidays

JTS @ Work and play

Teachers Corner

Hello parents of students in the JTS @Miller program.

This year is flying by, I cannot believe it is already November. Currently all students are heading out in the community everyday for most of the day. Our routines are getting some exercise while others are participating in internships and everyone participates in planning for cooking or crafts, then making a shopping list, shopping at the store to get the items and then cooking or crafting. This happens every week. The students are having a blast, but are also working really hard which I am sure you can see after school or on the weekends by how tired they might be. 

Thanksgiving break is November 19th and goes through November 28th. So only a couple more weeks of school are left. I will be out of town this Thursday November 4th and will be out of cell service throughout the weekend. I will be checking emails when I return Monday November 8th. 

A big shoutout to everyone for sharing some of your finances for the program, as you can see we are always doing something so having some more to keep it going is very important and we are so very grateful. We are doing our best to keep the website updated with pictures so keep checking the website. Please let me know if you have any questions about anything. 

Take care and thank you for sharing your children with us, this year has been amazing!

JTS @ Work and play

Teachers Corner

Hello parents of the JTS program at Fletcher Miller. 

It is October and time has been flying by this semester and for good reason. Let me fill you in on what we have been doing. We are a community based program and have been spending everyday in the community. We engage in things like bowling, shopping, roller skating, internships, mall walking and days in the park and so on. 

We have heard that most of our students are pretty tired by the time they get home from school, do not worry, they are not coming down with anything it is just that we are soooo busy this year. We have 2 buses everyday that take us out in the community. Every single student loves getting out and about.

Our focus for our program and our community adventures are for social, vocational and fun. Also you can see what we are up to on the class website JTS @ work & play, link below. You can also find out what your child is doing everyday with the digital version of the Back-n-forth books, the Google slide was shared with you recently(if you do not know what I am talking about just email me please.) We do our best to fill them out everyday. 

Lastly we benefit from any and all donations for things like field trips and shopping for cooking groups. We ask that you if you are able to donate $20 a month for your child to the program so that we can use that money for community outings and cooking groups. It is not mandatory to donate any money, it is just an ask. It goes directly back to your child’s trips or shopping for cooking. Any and all money is greatly appreciated. Cash, checks, Venmo, Paypal are all available. 

Make checks payable to: Fletcher Miller or Dallas Strankman 

Paypal: paypal.me/DallasJTS

Venmo: @Dallas-Strankman

Hello parents of fellow JTS young adults

Here is where I post monthly updates to our program and upload any new pictures and videos of our students in action under the JTS @work and play section of the website. 

Happy October and Halloween, it went by too fast. To the left is a picture of our pumpkin contest scene. 

We are in strange and ever changing times with COVID and the election happening right now. One important staple of our program is that we engage in community outings. We typically were out and about everyday, but now are going with the flow with all of the changes with COVID and Jeffco. I know the numbers with COVID are going up and we are practicing only the best efforts to eliminate any threat of COVID exposure that we can. With that said, please do not send your child in to school with any symptoms of COVID. We are all grateful to keep Fletcher Miller operating in-person as long as possible. 

I want to thank all of the families for your $20 contribution over the first couple of months, this has allowed us to have weekly cooking groups with every student and meet the needs of every students diet needs. Please send your November  contributions now so that we can keep cooking during the week. If $20 is too much, please share less, any and all is greatly appreciated. 

AWe can do Paypal, Venmo, checks and cash. 

Paypal to E.L.K. merch (our non-profit) This has multiple options for donating with credit/debit cards or your Paypal account?

https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=2WZM3PRU8DEZ6

Venmo: @Dallas-Strankman

Also we have our own vynil cutting machine and heat press equipment. We just received everything last February/March so we were unable to use it at that time. We now are trying to get back in business, so stay tuned. Also look below at the March update, it explains our non-profit business. 

Upcoming events in November:

November 3rd - Election day

November 9th-10th - Community experiences starting for all students

November 11th - Veterans Day

November 13th - No school for Elementary, JTS has no school on Friday

November 20th-29th - NO school for Thanksgiving Break

Hello parents of fellow JTS young adults

March is upon us and Spring is soon. Please read through this letter as we have some important dates coming up this month and semester. Students have been busy as usual and are now transitioning into some school based/non-profit vocations. The school based business will be making merchandise, stickers and custom projects using a vinyl cutter and various heat press equipment. I know some of you have visited our Community page on the class website for a prom at Pamona HS and other community activities. I will continue to post flyers for things that we might be interested in, you also can share any event with me and I can put it on the website. 

As far as E.L.K. goes, everything we have so far was donated and we own everything. We will be using the materials and equipment that we have to make items that we can sell. Those profits will then be turned into more materials/merchandise so that we can continue making more products. We are very excited about this equipment and all of the things that we can do with it. There will be more to come about specific things we can make and if anyone wants to place an order on a custom made item by us for a very affordable price. 

With all of that said, we are still asking for some contributions toward your students community activities and food projects. We are asking for $20 if you can. Right now the E.L.K. business has what it needs, but it is available for donations because it is a 501.c3 Non-profit. Which means you can donate and write it off of your taxes as a charitable donation. 

Graduates: Please send in 10 pictures for a graduation slideshow. You can send in actual pics or share pics from your digital photo book such as Iphoto or Google Photos. 

Important Dates coming up:

March 17th: St. Patrick's Day

March 18th: Spring pictures including Graduation photos

March 19th: NO school (Educators Day of Action)

March 23rd-27th: Spring Break

May 12th @ 10AM: Miller will be hosting JTS graduation @ Miller 

Have a great rest of your March and take care from the staff at JTS Miller. 

Hello Parents of the Unbridled Crew, Febraury is almost over. We hope that you all had a fun Valentine’s Day and enjoyed the long weekend. So far this month has been really fun for us. We were able to have a day at Skate City and the students loved it. Do not worry, we did not put roller skates on any of the students. We used a couple wheelchairs to push the students around and everyone had a blast. We are going to head back soon and they approved us to use some of our bikes that we have at Miller. We will reach out when we head back. 

Moving forward we will not have any days off from school until Spring Break which is March 23rd-27th. 

A reminder about good practices while we are in Flu season. Wash hands and everything that hands touch will help the spread of the flu and other illnesses’. If your child is sick, please keep them home and let me know so that I can communicate to the team to do our best to prevent the spread of anything. It is recommended that your child stay home for 24 hours after being healthy and having a regular temperature. 

Big NEWS! The team here at JTS Miller has started and is a Non-Profit 501.C3. Our name is ELK and we have a business e-mail Elkmerch@gmail.com. Website and store coming soon. We will be using a vinyl cutter and machines in order to make things like: t-shirts, stickers, hats, mugs, tumblers, etc. 

Have a great rest of your February and take care from the staff at JTS Miller. 

Hello everyone and Happy New Year!!!

I hope your break was a good one. We had some big changes happen over break with 3 students aging out of the JTS classroom. Lights, Camera, Action, JTS will be making various movies that will feature our students in the community, shopping and cooking. Please check out the classroom website for updated videos and pictures. We try and update the website a couple times a month. Check under the Community tab for a special extra Prom event hosted by Pamona High School in April. January is over and here comes February and a Leap Year. Important days coming up are NO SCHOOL Friday February 14th, but it is a Professional Development Day. NO SCHOOL Monday February 17th for Presidents Day. Just an FYI, that this semester we will be out in the community almost everyday with almost every student, so please dress accordingly. We have a trip planned to visit a skating rink February 11th at Skate City from 10-11. Then we will head out to eat lunch somewhere nearby. 

Also, if you want your student to purchase lunch out in the community, please send money and let us know what days you would like to do that. Not everyone can eat out everyday. You can also be specific about how much you want them to eat, such as: a whole meal every Monday or just fries on Tuesday on top of their lunch that is already made. 

The students are working on making a time capsule for this year. They have chosen to put items in a shoebox and hide it on campus versus burying it. Almost every student has selected to bury an object from home, so please send in 1 small object that they would like to bury until May.

Please remember that our community outings, special events and cooking groups happen because we have some money to do so. We are currently positive with money, so if you did not send in January’s fee you can skip it and send in February’s fee. We are very grateful for any and all of the fees that are sent in and we do our best to budget everything we do, which is one of the points of this program. If you send in money please let us know if it is for the class or for your student to eat lunches with or for a specific trip out in the community. 

The team here at Miller is thankful to have your students and love what we get to do everyday with your kids. 

Take care from the staff at JTS Miller. 

Hello parents of the infamous Unbridled Futures Crew, UFC. 

December came in quick after a busy and long November. 

These last couple of weeks in December we will be very busy with Winter activities in addition to our vocation/community training routines. Please take a look at our At work and play for updated Thanksgiving pictures and winter activities. The students have been working hard all semester and it shows with an increased level of using their various communication styles and increased job skills. 

A big update is that we will have 3 students who will graduate this winter. We are all sad and will miss those who are graduating, but we are excited about their future endeavors. We are planning on having a graduation party for them on the last Thursday of school, December 19th @ 12:00. We will also be having a White Elephant party at that time for all of the students, we will help the students with getting their gifts. We will be making some treats for these celebration and you all are invited to attend the party. Please let me know if you are planning on attending. Dstrankm@jeffcoschools.us

Also we will be visiting Camp Christmas on Thursday December 12th. This will be an all day event and paid for by the school. Please send in your typical feeding and hygiene materials, we are always prepared for activities such as this. 

https://www.denvercenter.org/tickets-events/camp-christmas/

I want to send a big thank you for making my first semester with JTS @ Miller a fun and successful time and I am very excited about the future. We have a very strong, experienced and passionate staff and we all love working with your students.

The JTS staff wants to send our blessings for a fun and safe winter holiday season and a happy 2020 New Year. 

From Dallas and the JTS team.

Hello everyone and Happy November. The month is half over and not stopping. Reminder that we only have one more week of school and then the entire week of for Thanksgiving Break November 22nd - 30th. Please have a safe and enjoyable break.

We have been busy this last month, we still remain busy with various job training sites and community experiences. This last Thursday November 14th we had the opportunity to tour the Lakewood Cultural Center and see the Classical Ballet Academy setting up for there upcoming 6 performances of The Nutcracker. Of which I (Dallas) will be performing in. I was able to show the students some footage of previous Nutcrackers and some real dance shoes, character shoes and pointe shoes as well as a real Ukrainian made tutu. 

Important upcoming events: JTS will be having a Thanksgiving Feast the Thursday before the break. The students will be in charge of selecting, shopping and creating the feast. We will be decorating and making this meal a really nice event. I will do my best to take as many photos as possible and publishing them right on this website. Please take a look at the photos page and see some updates. 

Thanks and take care, 

From Dallas and the JTS team.

Reminder that JTS and Fletcher Miller will NOT have school this Monday October 28th for staff Professional Development day. 

Thanks, 

from the JTS team.

Hello parents of students in JTS. Here is an update of what has been happening and what is to come.

Our students have settled down into some routines and into some phenomenal jobs and leisure activities around town. Currently we have a small crew working with another JTS program at the Jeffco Action Center. We have also gained a new partner to JTS and are completing job tasks at 2nd & Charles in Littleton, which the student's seem to really enjoy. As well as participating in various leisure activities throughout the community. We will be meeting with the corporate liaison for volunteers at Habitat for Humanity and working with them as to what are some vocational task that we could help with as well meeting new people to work with and socialize with. We are very excited about the new opportunity.

Here in the building, students have been participating in daily vocational task within the school and are now more excited about our daily jobs at Fletcher Miller. When the students are not working, they are involved in some amazing social groups during the work supported by all of their service providers. Some of those task are making treats for the service dog "Gregory", small group social stories in the Library, creating building birthday calendars, various cleaning skills, Mindfulness stress relieving practice and everyone's favorite: the cooking group on Thursdays.

Please stay tuned for updates to the website and pictures of your students working hard at school and the community.

Thanks, 

from the JTS team.

This is a picture of my family over the summer. To the left is our daughter Madelyn and our 2 boys Jonah(upper) and River (lower) and my wife Jessica. 

A little about me, this is my 7th year teaching with most of it working with students who have significant needs. My wife is also a Special Education Teacher. I have always enjoyed helping students work on what happens after school is over. So I feel right at home with JTS @ Miller. If you can imagine, my family keeps me busy, between, dance, sports and Taekwondo. In my free time I enjoy getting outdoors with family hikes or mountain bike trips.