View from the Valley
3/12/2026
DVCS Students (Grades 9-12) Compete in Science Olympiad
The DVCS high school Science Olympiad team competed in the 2026 Delaware Science Olympiad against 44 teams from across the state, earning top-ten medals in 18 events and finishing in 3rd place overall!
Our high school team included the following students: Abby Li, Zarina Mistry, Becky Nicholson, Ian Rippon, Sophia Brown, Sophia Dorno, Avery Shimkus, Dominic Urti, Caleb VanBerkom, Tyler Warshaw, William Anest, Jonathan Garber, John Patrick Hamant, Luke Humpton, and Stephen Praveen.
Please join me in congratulating our students on their outstanding achievements:
- Astronomy – 4th place – Becky Nicholson and Caleb VanBerkom
- Boomilever – 1st place – Ian Rippon and Caleb VanBerkom
- Bungee Drop – 8th place – Zarina Mistry and Sophia Dorno
- Circuit Lab – 9th place – Avery Shimkus and Luke Humpton
- Codebusters – 6th place – Sophia Brown, Becky Nicholson, and Dominic Urti
- Dynamic Planet – 4th place – Tyler Warshaw and Ian Rippon
- Electric Vehicle – 6th place – Dominic Urti and Jonathan Garber
- Engineering CAD – 9th place – JP Hamant and Avery Shimkus
- Entomology – 4th place – Abby Li and Tyler Warshaw
- Experimental Design – 4th place – Sophia Brown, Luke Humpton, and Stephen Praveen
- Forensics – 4th place – Zarina Mistry and Abby Li
- Helicopter – 1st place – JP Hamant and Sophia Dorno
- Hovercraft – 3rd place – Avery Shimkus and Sophia Brown
- Machines – 6th place – Stephen Praveen and Jonathan Garber
- Material Science – 4th place – Caleb VanBerkom and Sophia Dorno
- Remote Sensing – 4th place – Ian Rippon and Jonathan Garber
- Robot Tour – 5th place – Avery Shimkus and William Anest
- Rocks and Minerals – 4th place – William Anest and Dominic Urti
DVCS Annual Gala
Friday, March 27
Our Gala’s verse has remained Deuteronomy 7:9 since our first Gala in 2023: “Know therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love Him and keep His commandments, to the thousand generations.”
To accomplish our school’s mission, and to expand the capabilities of the school, funding beyond tuition and fees are needed, and thus our one major event for fundraising is our Annual Gala.
Our Fourth annual Gala will be held on Friday, March 27 at Deerfield Golf Club in Newark. The evening commences with social time and a silent auction at 5:30 p.m. Seating for dinner will be shortly before 7:00 p.m. Our keynote speaker, Virgil Walker, will undoubtedly inspire, challenge, and entertain you. We will also hear from two speakers within DVCS that will share their personal experiences about the school
If you have any questions regarding sponsorship, tickets, or need further details, please contact Jenny Johnson (jjohnson@dvclassical.org).
We hope that you will prayerfully consider how you can assist in the raising of funds for the future (thousand generations!) of DVCS.
Gala Tickets and Sponsorships – Purchase here
For further information about sponsorships, click here.
Patriot’s Pen
Pastor Appreciation Day
Wednesday, April 15
Pastor Appreciation at DVCS is Wednesday, April 15. This special event allows us to show our appreciation to the pastors and other ministry workers who play a vital role in the lives of all our families!
This event begins at 9:30 a.m. Our pastors will have a time of food, fellowship, and encouragement, and will then have an opportunity to visit their “church kids” in their classrooms.
Invitations will be sent home Friday, March 13 with the youngest child in each family (in the Friday folders of grammar students). If you would like to send an invitation to your pastors via email, an electronic copy is here. Please rsvp to rsvp@dvclassical.org no later than April 13.
We look forward to hosting our pastors and ministry workers!
Congratulations to Nathan Liang!
Congratulations to 5th grader Nathan Liang for finishing in 2nd place in the state’s spelling bee competition!
Phillies Game Tickets
Vox Vallis Performs “The National Anthem”
Vox Vallis, our 7th-12th grade vocal ensemble, has been invited to sing “The National Anthem” at the Phillies game on Tuesday, June 30! This is also a fireworks night!
We are gauging interest and will purchase tickets for those wanting to attend. The lowest priced tickets are $40.
Our hope is to buy tickets soon so we can have that price (yes, they are 400 level tickets!) and be assured we’ll see our kids sing live on the field.
Please fill out the following form by Monday, March 16 if you are interested in buying tickets. Want to see Vox Vallis sing at the Phillies game? Request tickets here. Requesting tickets is a commitment because the school will need to pay for the tickets before you are charged.
We look forward to a fun night at the game!
Day of Service Shirts
Order now!
Our annual Day of Service is Friday, April 24! All students in K-12th grade will volunteer at various organizations in the community. More specific information regarding venues, times, lunch, drivers needed, activities, and other miscellaneous items will be sent out in a few weeks.
But MOST IMPORTANTLY, all new students and staff for the 2025-2026 school year will receive a free shirt (including all kindergarten students). Please fill out the form below so we can order the correct sizes.
Day of Service T-shirt Order – Order by March 31
For “not new” staff, students, and parents: If the shirt is lost, has shrunk, or you want to volunteer as a parent/driver this year, you may want to order a shirt. Though it is not required to have a Day of Service shirt, we do look good when we match (and it’s an awesome shirt!).
Hot lunch Order Forms
There are changes to the lunch menu! You may now order through your FACTS Family Portal.
Billing will be through FACTS at the end of each month.
**Please note: If your child is absent on a day he or she has lunch, you must send an email to absent@dvclassical.org. If we are aware of the absence, we will make all attempts to sell the item(s) purchased. If you do not make the office aware of the absence, you will be charged for the item(s) ordered if we are unable to sell the food.
You may also request that the food be sent home or given to a sibling. Thank you!
Moms in Prayer
“I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”
Philippians 1:3-6 ESV
DVCS Moms and Grandmoms,
Join us for Moms in Prayer!
We meet in the DVCS Library on ER Wednesdays from 8:05 to 8:30 a.m.
Come connect with other moms as we thank God for His blessings, bring our concerns to Him, encourage one another, and pray for our school.
We’d love to have you join us!
Art Supplies Needed
The art department is looking for the following donations for upcoming projects: t-shirts and yarn.
If you have any items to donate, please drop them off at the school office. Thanks for your help!
Bible Memory Program
Want to learn with us?
Our students memorize Bible verses throughout the school year. We are taught in Scripture to hide God’s Word in our hearts (Ps. 119:11). God also promises that His Word will not return empty but will accomplish what He purposes and will succeed in the thing for which He sent it (Isaiah 55:11). Memorizing Scripture is one of the most important parts of our students’ education!
Verse for March 17
John 14:6
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
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Calendar Reminders/Updates
A link to the updated school calendar is always available on Parent Quicklinks (password protected).
For the DVCS sports schedule, visit www.dvcssports.com for updated information.
The Reading Nook
We are pleased to provide the Reading Nook: a space for articles and other readings that are pertinent and helpful as we embark upon classical Christian education together in this community.
We often forget that a robust education in the classical languages and the literary classics—including the literature of Greece and Rome—was an educational staple in America’s past. Reading the Founding Fathers, it’s striking how frequently references to Greco-Roman classics roll off their pens. But we don’t live in the 1700s….
Christian Parents Need the Classics Too
If you have an article you would like to recommend, send the link to readingnook@dvclassical.org.
RaiseRight
RaiseRight ~ one of the easiest ways to raise money for the school!
To join RaiseRight and help earn money for DVCS, contact Jenny Johnson at jjohnson@dvclassical.org for the enrollment code.
RaiseRight is a company through which you can purchase gift cards and a rebate is then returned to our school. The rebates can range between 1% – 15% and be even more when they are running specials. There is no extra charge for the gift card – you pay the face value. Please consider purchasing cards for gifts as well as for everyday use. Scroll down to DVCS Fundraising Opportunities, and click on RaiseRight to learn more.
DVCS Merch for Sale
New product! 20 oz tumbler – $14.00
Upcoming Events
Upcoming Events
Reading Nook – Past Links
- The CAFF College Guide
- Art for Art’s Sake
- How Do You Teach Beauty?
- “Flipping the Script: Unexpected Lessons in Letting Your Light Shine”
- Hymnology – Behold, Our God
- “The Joy of Light”
- “Ten Tips for Reading More This Summer”
- “The Bloody Swords Clashed – Getting Boys to Love Writing”
- “A Classical, Practical Education”
- “The Mathematical and Philosophic Art of Music”
- “Little Things”
- “Discipline Without Destruction: Correcting Eye-Rolling Without Crushing the Child”
- “Raising Kids Who Raise the Bar”
- “Classical Creates Culture”
- “Handwriting: The Case for Recovery”
- What Songs Will Our Children Be Singing All Their Lives?
- “When AI Sends Us Back to the Middle Ages (and Why Classical Christian Schools Are Already There)”
- “Classical Education Will Not Save Your Child”
- “Restoring Raw Experience: Building the soil of raw experience necessary for learning to take root”
- “Reading in Community: Does It Matter?”
- “Classical & Calvinist: The Federalist Papers as a Model for Classical Christian Education in America”
To recommend an article, send the link to readingnook@dvclassical.org.
DVCS Fundraising Opportunities
Consider participating in our RaiseRight (formerly Shop with Scrip) school fundraiser! RaiseRight is a company through which you can purchase gift cards and a rebate is then returned to our school. The rebates can range between 1% – 15% and be even more when they are running specials. There is no extra charge for the gift card – you pay the face value. Please consider purchasing cards for gifts as well as for everyday use.
Example for those who like examples: I buy a $100 Texas Roadhouse gift card. RaiseRight gives a rebate of 8% on each card. I earn $8.00 for the school (and I paid $100).
There are two ways to participate:
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- Do it yourself! This is the only way to do eGiftcards, but you can order physical cards as well using a credit card (2.6% fee on order) or bank account ($.15 fee on order). This option also includes processing and shipping fees. (You can pay by check to the coordinator; however, if you want to use this option, it is best to use the order form (link below) to avoid the shipping fees.)
- Go to RaiseRight – Order eGift cards here.
- Create an account.
- Click on the card(s) that you want to buy then choose “ecard.” Follow the additional steps to check out.
- Ecards should be available almost immediately upon checking out.
- Bonuses are offered almost on a daily basis.
- Order through us! (Physical cards only; Cash/check only, but NO ADDITIONAL fees!)
- Go to RaiseRight – Order gift cards here. (If you already have an account, go to https://www.raiseright.com/shop/)
- Create an account.
- Click on the card(s) that you want to buy then choose “physical card.”
- Choose “Ship them to my coordinator.” (No shipping charges to you!)
- If you’d rather not order online, print the following form: RaiseRight Order Form
- Return the form with cash or a check made out to DVCS.
- Payments can be turned in at the office.
- Do it yourself! This is the only way to do eGiftcards, but you can order physical cards as well using a credit card (2.6% fee on order) or bank account ($.15 fee on order). This option also includes processing and shipping fees. (You can pay by check to the coordinator; however, if you want to use this option, it is best to use the order form (link below) to avoid the shipping fees.)
If you have any questions, please let us know.
To earn money for DVCS, sign up for Box Tops for Education online. You need to download the app and scan your receipt (receipt expires after two weeks)…
To learn how the app and scanning work, click here.
Even though Box Tops has moved primarily to a digital format, there are still a few Box Tops floating around that can be clipped from the box.
If you have any clipped Box tops (not expired), please send them to school.
If you have a Microsoft account and you use Bing as your search engine, there is a way to earn points (which translates to rewards) for the school…
Go to this link for more information: Give with Bing and choose DVCS. Search with Bing to earn points which convert to rewards.
