Communicate with our School via Rooms
Denver Public Schools has transitioned to a communications platform called Thrillshare for all its communications, which works with the NEW, free DPS app! This means teachers, staff and coaches are now able to message (SMS or email) families directly, or through the DPS app! To facilitate the smoothest communication possible with our school and your student's teachers, be sure to follow these easy steps:
Download the FREE Denver Public Schools (DPS) app (available from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store).
Click "Rooms" at the center bottom of your screen.
Enter your email or phone number that you provided when you registered your student for school in Parent Portal, and choose to sign in with a one-time access code.
You will receive a one-time access code to the email or phone number you just entered.
You should now be connected with all Rooms to which your student has been added!
2025-2026 Student Absences Policy and Procedures
New for the 2025-2026 school year, all student absences will be reported using the online attendance tool in your Parent Portal. Instructions for how to enter a student absence notification through Parent Portal can be found here in ENGLISH, SPANISH and ARABIC. Please review the entire GWHS Attendance Policy HERE. The GWHS Attendance Policy contains important information regarding attendance requirements, interventions for chronic absenteeism, and more. Please note, any request for an early student dismissal after 3:00pm but before the end of the school day cannot be processed.
Tardiness and its Impacts
A student is officially recorded as tardy if they arrive after the scheduled start time but within the first 50 percent of the class period. If a student is absent for more than 50% of any scheduled attendance period during the school day, they are considered absent for that entire period.
Chronic Absenteeism is defined as missing at least 10% of the time enrolled in a school year for any reason, including late arrivals, early pickups, excused and unexcused absences. Frequent late arrivals contribute significantly to lost instruction time:
• An elementary student who is late by 5 minutes every day for a school year loses approximately 2.5 school days and misses roughly 15 lessons.
• A secondary student who is late by 5 minutes every day for a school year loses roughly 2.3 days of school and misses about 15 classes.
Please work with your student to ensure they are on time to every class, every day.
Activities Fee
To help support our Student Council in planning and hosting important school events such as Homecoming, Prom, and other class activities, we will be assessing a $15 class fee for each student starting in January. This contribution helps ensure we can continue providing memorable and well-organized events for all students. Thank you for your support and partnership in making these experiences possible and please let us know if you have any questions or concerns.
Fall 2025 Final Exams Schedule
Please find the Fall 2025 Final Exams Schedule HERE. Please note we not allow requests to modify final exam dates, except in extreme cases (student hospitalization, etc.). As a reminder, every day and every class is critical to every student learning. We ask that you plan your holiday travel so as not to interfere with instructional days around Thanksgiving or Winter Break.
ACCESS Testing - Monday, January 12
On Monday, January 12, all MLL students will take ACCESS, a state-required test that progress monitors students' English language acquisition. Students will receive an email to their @dpsk12.net accounts the week of January 5 with their testing room assignment. Students should arrive at GWHS no later than 8:30am with their fully-charged DPS-issued Chromebook and their charger. We'll order pizza for all testing students! There will be no school for students who do not take ACCESS. Questions? Ask your ELD teacher.
Course Catalog Available
Students, as this semester winds down we wanted to let you know that Choice of Studies for next year’s classes is right around the corner. You will choose your classes for the 2026-27 school year in January.
The updated course catalog, which provides information about all of the courses that we are offering as well as course descriptions, is now available on the GWHS website. We encourage you to take a look at this over winter break so that you can be prepared to make informed decisions about which classes you would like to take next year. To access the course catalog, go to the GWHS website, click on “Academics” and then go to the Choice of Studies Hub, where you will find the link to the catalog and other resources to help you navigate choice of studies this year.
Parents, please have conversations with your students about what courses are available for your students and help them choose courses they will enjoy and that will benefit them and their goals for the future.
