first day of school: Wednesday, August 13, 2025

Access to Your Child’s Schedule & Bus Info Depends on You Registering Before School Starts! VISIT Www.dps61.Org/Skyward to Register

REGISTRATION PORTAL OPENS JULY 1 and CLOSES JULY 31     By registering your child during the month of July, school administrators can assign classes, make schedules, map bus routes, and more. It starts with the parent/guardian completing registration so we can be fully prepared for your child(ren) on the first day of school.

Parents/Guardians who do not register their students BEFORE the first day of school, will be listed in Skyward as "inactive" and will not be able to attend school until registration is complete. For more information about registration visit www.dps61.org/registration or contact your child's school office.

A PARTNER IN FREE MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR STUDENTS
Mental wellness is important to the success of each student, parent, and teacher. DPS#61 is excited to announce a collaboration with Cartwheel, a mental health wellness partner for school districts. Cartwheel has a dedicated team to deliver rapid access to mental health services via telehealth. Cartwheel's licensed therapists and child psychiatrists have decades of experience serving students and works exclusively with schools across the nation. 

What kinds of mental health needs can Cartwheel help with? Cartwheel will support students and families with a range of mental health including, anxiety, depression, academic stress, anger management, bullying, concentration, family issues, grief, motivation, relationships, sadness, trauma, unhealthy technology use, self-esteem issues, self-harm, sleep problems, and more. CLICK HERE to view a flyer and learn more about Cartwheel.

DEADLINE: OCTOBER 15

Visit www.dps61.org/HealthRequirements to view the STATE REQUIRED vaccinations and immunizations needed for students to attend school. An updated copy of your student's health record needs to be given to your child's school. If your student's health records is not received by the deadline, your child will be medically denied to attend school after October 15. Contact your child's school nurse or the Health Services Department at 217-362-3318 for more information. 

CHANGES to POLICY 7:190 - STUDENT BEHAVIOR (CELL PHONES)

On July 16, 2024, DPS#61 Board of Education approved changes to the personal electronic device policy. All changes can be found in the Student Code of Conduct & Parent Handbook as well as in Policy 7:190 Student Behavior. Click here to read the full Policy 7:190. 

The district strongly encourages families to keep their student’s cell phone, earbuds, smart watches, and other electronic devices at home as district/staff will NOT be held responsible for items left, lost, stolen, or damaged. All personal electronic devices not provided by school staff, must be kept powered-off and placed in the student’s locker or a secure, designated location in the teacher’s classroom during the school day.

Students that refuse to obey this policy and/or guidelines set for cell phone usage and/or other technology violations may receive the following school discipline:

1st offense: Warning. Parent/Guardian contacted and student must put device away in the designated area. Student may pick up device at the end of the day.

2nd offense: Parent/Guardian contacted. Written Warning/Classroom referral. Student must put device away in the designated area. Student may pick up the device at the end of the day.

3rd offense: Parent/Guardian contacted. Discipline referral to the office. Student must put device away in the designated area. Parent may pick the device up at the end of the day.

4th offense and beyond: Student will be disciplined according to the Student Code of Conduct.