Dayspring Beacon

Updated July 13, 2026

Upcoming Events

Below is a list of upcoming events. Scroll down for further details. Additional details will be added as we get closer to the date of the event.

Upcoming Events:
8/11/2026 – 6th Grade Student and Parent Orientation: 6:30-7:30 p.m.
8/11/2026 – New Family Orientation for summer enrollees: 6:30-8:00 p.m.
8/13/2026 – Fall Sports Parents Meeting: 6:30 p.m.
8/19/2026 – Preschool Welcome to School Drop-In (10:00-11 a.m.)
8/19/2026 – Lower School Back to School Night (Pre-K–5th Grade)
8/20/2026 – New International Student Orientation 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
8/20/2026 – Upper School Back to School Night (6th-12th Grades)
8/20/2026 – Senior Parent Meeting
8/24/2026 – First Day of School
8/25/2026 – First Day of School for Preschool
8/26/2026 – Sacred Convocation (All School) 8:10-8:50 a.m.
8/27/2026 – Parent Meeting for Juniors – (6:30 pm – 7:30 pm)

Summer Office Hours

The following are the office hours for this Summer. If you are looking to meet with someone specific, it is recommended that you call or email beforehand to be sure they are on campus.

Monday-Thursday: 8:30 am to 3 pm
Friday: Closed

Host Parents Needed

There is an urgent need for two volunteer (unpaid) host families to welcome two Brazilian girls (11th and 12th grade) who will attend Dayspring for the Fall 2026 semester. AHLI, our Christian homestay partner, will provide oversight and support to the families and the students. Open your home to share faith, friendship, and family! For more information, contact Christine Valverde at cvalverde@dayspringchristian.com.

Final Report Cards/Iowa Test Results

Final report cards will be released on FACTS this Friday, June 5, by 3 p.m. Please note that a family’s account will be disabled if a student has not turned in all required items (textbooks, chargers, Chromebooks, keycards, lanyards and badge holders, athletic uniforms, tuition, After-School fees, etc.). Teachers are notifying parents of these missing items, so please be sure to check your email. Questions regarding these items should be emailed to the teacher directly.

Iowa Test results have arrived. If you wish to receive a copy of your student’s Iowa test results, email the school office at office@dayspringchristian.com.

If you desire to print your student’s 3rd quarter report card, please do so before Wednesday, June 3.

Fond Farewell

As we close out this school year, we would like to wish a fond farewell to the following staff members who will not be returning for the 2026-27 school year:
Cheryl Eberly
Olivia Gemma
Karol Hasting
Lindsey Hilton
Erica Rohrer
Christine Valverde
Amy Yon

We want to say a special thank-you and a fond farewell to Mrs. Cheryl Eberly and Mrs. Karol Hasting, both of whom will not be returning to Dayspring for the 26-27 school year.

Mrs. Eberly has served faithfully for 15 years as our Business Office Assistant/Bookkeeper. She has handled many responsibilities in this support role that have helped the school immensely. We wish her well in her retirement.

Mrs. Karol Hasting served as our Admissions Director for 16 years, which means each family here was brought in under Karol’s tenure. We are so grateful for the stellar work she has done and how she has served the school faithfully for all these years. She will still be with us through the end of June, so please feel free to send her emails and/or cards in the meantime.

2026-27 Transportation Emails Sent Today

Thank you to everyone who has filled out the online transportation forms. Those whose transportation forms are still needed received an email from Jo-Ann Rey earlier this afternoon. If you received that email, please visit the “Transportation To And/Or From Dayspring” page and fill out the transportation registration form.

This information MUST be collected from each family for 2 reasons:
1. We have to let public school districts know that students in their districts are accounted for and receiving an education.
2. We have to let district transportation directors know of our transportation needs. They spend all summer figuring out routes, pickup times, drop off times, etc. They MUST have this information before office personnel leave for the summer.

When you fill out the form, please email Ms. Rey directly at jrey@dayspringchristian.com if you have special circumstances that don’t work with our form.

Also, please note that some of the districts require you to complete their own paperwork. If your district does require forms and/or registration, please be sure to submit those directly to your district and not to Dayspring. Any questions related to your home transportation should be directed to the district directly. You will want to pay close attention to their deadline dates as turning forms in past that date may delay your child being assigned to a bus.

PTG (Parent-Teacher Guild) Meeting

All parents interested in participating in the PTG for the 2026-27 school year are invited to a meeting at 9 a.m. on Thursday, June 4, at DCA. During the meeting, organizers will announce the PTG’s areas of focus for the upcoming school year and begin planning for 2026-27 events.

School Supplies

The school supply lists for the 2026-27 school year have been updated on the form library.

Lower School Supply List

Upper School Supply List

Endowment Scholarship Award

Congratulations to the following students, who were awarded the first Dr. Michael R. Myers Endowment Scholarship:

12th Grade: Jaylani Jimenez
11th Grade: Providence Painter, Ariel Momcilovich
10th Grade: Colson Lapp, Colson Vanderplate
9th Grade: Anita Ye, Isaac Humbert

Has Your Child Outgrown Their Uniforms?

If your young scholar has outgrown his or her clothes, we can help. Check out the Used Uniform Boutique (temporarily located in the auditorium) — all items are free! Drop off your child’s outgrown things outside Karol Hasting’s office, then shop ’til you drop in the Boutique.

Immunization and School Physical Requirements

Immunization Requirements – A complete list of required vaccinations can be found in the Form Library section of Dayspring’s website or by clicking here. All students must provide proof of vaccination or complete and return an exemption form. An exemption form can be found on Dayspring’s website by clicking here. Although Dayspring does not mandate whether you immunize or request an exemption, all families are required to have either an immunization record or statement of exemption form on file for each child.

School Physicals – If your student is entering Kindergarten, Grade 6, Grade 11, or if they are entering school for the first time, they will need to have a physical examination before beginning school in the fall. This form is available on Dayspring’s website by following this link.

Annual Medical Forms – At the beginning of the 2026-27 school year, the school nurse will collect various health forms. These forms have been updated in the form library on the DCA website in the event that any parent would like to have their doctor fill them out over the summer. All families are required to fill out the Health Profile and Consent to Standing Orders Form, but the Prescription Medication Form and Authorization for Self-Carry Medication Form are required only if applicable to your student(s). There will be reminders about required forms posted in the August edition of the Beacon and at Back-to-School Night. An explanation of medication forms can be found here.

Athletics News

We are seeking business advertisers to sponsor the cost of covering streaming our athletic events next year. Please email dvinson@dayspringchristian.com if interested or with any questions. Individuals may also contribute directly if interested.

If your Middle School (Coed Cross Country, Girls Volleyball, Boys Soccer) or Upper School (Coed Cross Country, Coed Golf, Girls Tennis, Girls Volleyball, Boys Soccer) child is participating in a fall sport, please email dvinson@dayspringchristian.com if you have not already done so. Please also register for the appropriate SportsYou team to see summer schedules and to receive communications:
Varsity Coed Golf – K24C FWG6
Varsity/MS Cord Cross Country – D5JV MPLZ
Varsity Girls Tennis – UHPT JE9Z
Varsity/JV Girls Volleyball – 4S2M Y3N8
Varsity Boys Soccer – 6WQ5 D65Q
MS Girls Volleyball – B7A2 TVSC
MS Boys Soccer – HVC9 5UC7

Summer Bible Reading Challenge

Mr. Stone issued a Bible reading challenge for students for this summer. If a student reads the Bible for a minimum of 5 minutes per day for 76 of the 84 days of summer vacation (90%), he/she will earn a week’s worth of special dress days at the beginning of the upcoming school year (dates to be determined).

Attached is a reading log that also has suggested books of the Bible. Have a great, Bible-filled summer!

2026 Summer Bible Reading Log

2026-27 School Calendar

Here is the 2026-27 Preliminary Calendar. Please note that dates are subject to change. The 9th grade Boston trip and the Patriots Celebration dates have changed.

2026-2027 Calendar Parent Version

High School Community Service Hours: Why Wait to Start?

If you are interested in the high school community service requirements, you can find them below. Please contact Donna Hurley, Director of Curriculum and Instruction, if you have any questions.

DCA Community Service Hours Record

Guidance Office

For more information on the following topics, please click the “Read More” button.
– SAT Registration
– LCCTC Summer Camps for 9th-, 10th, and 11th-graders
– Messiah College Camps
– Christian Connector Christian Colleges Scholarship Drawing
– Counseling Opportunities
– Grow PA Scholarship Grant Program
– Transcript Requests
– General Questions

SAT Registration – Any junior who wants to sign up to take the SAT next year, be aware that registration is now open for the August through December 2026 SAT Weekend administrations. This year, there will be testing dates available EVERY MONTH through the end of the year, beginning in August. Spring 2027 SAT dates will be available later this fall. You know what to do – just use your College Board Account and sign up for the date and location of your choice. See Mrs. Gainer if you have any questions!

LCCTC Summer Camps – NEW! Lancaster County Career and Technology Center has announced some summer camp opportunities for incoming 9th-, 10th-, and 11th-graders. Both camps are designed to provide students with early exposure to career pathways, help them build new skills, and engage in interactive, project-based learning experiences. Both camps run from June 8th -11th.

Manufacturing Camp – Mount Joy Campus: Students will explore hands-on activities in modern manufacturing, including exposure to tools, equipment, and processes used in today’s advanced manufacturing careers.

Visual Communications Camp – Brownstown Campus: Students will have the opportunity to develop their creativity through various visual art mediums while learning from experienced instructors in a studio-based environment.

If interested, please use the following link to register: Camp Registration Link

Messiah College Camps – Want to learn more about Psychology? Filmmaking? Writing or Cyber Security? Messiah University is offering both day and overnight camps this summer. See Mrs. Gainer for more information.

Christian Connector – Click on this link to connect with hundreds of Christian colleges and complete the form to receive information from them and enter the $5,000 Christian college scholarship drawing. The Christian Connector, as well as those schools that you request information from, will receive your information so they can respond and meet your information request. Students must be at least 13 years old to complete our forms.

Counseling Opportunities – As stated during our Back to School Night parent meeting, Dayspring is pleased to be able to help with an arrangement for professional Christian counselors here at school. Mrs. Dannel Wissler of Willow Oaks Counseling and Mrs. Abby Foster with Lancaster Therapy Center have agreed to be a resource for DCA students. Our goal is to provide a space during the school day for upper school students to receive counseling. Parents will work directly with Mrs. Wissler and Mrs. Foster, and DCA will make every effort to facilitate the location and time. Mrs.Wissler will provide times of availability at Dayspring on Fridays. Mrs. Foster does online sessions only, but DCA will try to work with your child’s schedule to find a private room during the school day for sessions. For more information or to make arrangements, please contact Mrs. Gainer (Guidance Director) or Mr. Lewis (Spiritual Life Director).

Another counseling opportunity available is with Sit With Me Mental Health Coaching Services with Emily Hilton. At Sit With Me Mental Health Coaching Services, our mission is to walk alongside individuals in every stage of life by offering authentic support, active listening, and purposeful guidance-helping each person thrive in alignment with who God has created them to be. One-on-one mental health coaching focused on emotional support and spiritual guidance; personalized goal setting; deep, judgment-free listening; accountability and encouragement; and growth rooted in faith and personal values are offered in a non-clinical, coaching-based model focused on growth, not diagnosis, for males ages 4-14 and females ages 4 and up. To learn more, email sitwithmecoaching@gmail.com.

Grow PA Scholarship Grant Program – This program created by Senate Republicans as part of this year’s state budget – offers grants of up to $5,000 per year for in-state students who pursue a degree or certification for an in-demand occupation. The application period for grants is open now, with funding awarded on a first come, first served basis.

To qualify for the grant, applicants must agree to live and work in Pennsylvania in that occupation after graduation. Grant recipients will be required to live and work in Pennsylvania for 12 months for each year they receive the grant. Failure to meet this requirement will result in the grant converting to a loan requiring repayment.

Courses of study that qualify for the grant include agriculture, computer science, business, education, special education, STEM education, engineering, nursing, allied health, criminal justice and other programs as approved by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA). Learn more or apply here.

Transcript Requests: If you need a transcript for any reason, please fill out a transcript request form online under the Guidance Tab. Requests will be sent out within 3 business days.

General Guidance Questions: If any student or parent has a question concerning AP (Advanced Placement) or DE (Dual Enrollment) classes, please direct those questions to Mrs. Hurley, Director of Curriculum, at dhurley@dayspringchristian.com. Any questions concerning transcripts, PSAT, SAT, or ACT, the college admission process, or other guidance related issues should come to Mrs. Gainer, Guidance Director, at kgainer@dayspringchristian.com.

DCA Recurrent References

Some of the recurrent Beacon items will now be located under this section. Click on the “Read More” button to see details about the following:
– Inclement Weather Procedures
-DCA Home Technology Guide
-Parent Technology Resource: ScreenStrong
-2025-26 School Calendar (Date changes made for senior thesis defense, finals; dates added for 10th grade field study to D.C.)
-DCA Referral Program
-DCA Amazon Wish List
-DCA Family Business Directory

Inclement Weather Procedures: When a weather situation occurs, the school administration will make a dismissal decision as quickly and efficiently as possible based on weather conditions/forecasts and the public school transportation situation. When a decision has been made it will be placed on the Dayspring website on the home page as well as on the local television and Christian radio stations (WGAL, WDAC, and WJTL). You will also receive a message through our parent alert system (see instructions above).

Lunches on a Two-Hour Delay: When we have a two-hour delay, no hot lunches are served. Students must bring a packed lunch.

Information for public school bus riders: If your child rides a bus from another district and that district has a delay that is different than that of Dayspring, simply follow the delay of your transportation provider. If your child rides a bus from a district that closes school when Dayspring remains open, or has a delay when Dayspring opens at the normal time, you should try to have your children here if it is safe to do so. If you do not have transportation, the absence will be excused, however, we do ask that you call or email the office to inform them of that decision so that the attendance can be marked appropriately.

In the case of an unexpected early dismissal (such as weather), all students who normally ride a bus home will be put on the bus unless we hear from the parent with a change in transportation. If after school activities (such as sports, musical practice, etc.) are cancelled, those bus students will also be put on the bus. This will apply even if your district is dismissing early and Dayspring remains in session. Please make sure that you have signed up to receive notifications from your home district so that you are notified should they be having an early dismissal.

After School Programs During Weather Conditions: After School Program: Please note that if Dayspring has an early dismissal, the After School program will be canceled. Also, should it be snowing at a normal dismissal time, it may also require us to cancel the After School program, depending on conditions. If we find that necessary, we would send an alert out several hours in advance.

DCA Technology Guide: Attached is a technology guide which will answer many of your questions on how to set up your accounts for Google Classroom, FACTS Family Portal, and the SchoolPass App. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Adam Gregory at agregory@dayspringchristian.com.
DCA Home Technology Guide

Parent Technology Resource: ScreenStrong empowers families to prevent and reverse childhood screen addiction with parent-proven solutions grounded in child development science and medical research. If you are looking for resources to navigate through our digitally saturated environment, visit the ScreenStrong website at https://screenstrong.org/.

2025-26 School Calendar: Please note that we will announce any date changes to the calendar here: 2025-2026 Parent Version.docx

DCA Referral Program: As we seek to continue to grow our enrollment and increase the number of students who receive a Principle Approach education, we are asking you as parents for help. Word of mouth is still the best way for people to learn about Dayspring, and you can be our biggest advocates. To that end, Dayspring brought back its Referral Program.

If you refer a family to Dayspring for first through twelfth grade, you will receive $1,000 off your family’s tuition when they successfully enroll at least one full-time student. For successful kindergarten enrollment referrals, you will receive $500 off your family’s tuition. Let’s spread the word about how special our school is and get as many students into our seats as possible.

Use this form to submit a referral.

DCA Amazon Wish List: Are you looking for a way to bless your child’s teacher and classroom this Thanksgiving season? Visit Dayspring’s Amazon Wish List to see items our teachers have requested to enhance their classrooms—you may find the perfect way to share a special blessing! Dayspring Christian Academy’s Wish List

If you have any questions, please contact Sarah Dillon at sdillon@dayspringchristian.com or 717-285-2000 ext. 211. Thank you in advance for your generous support of our teachers and their classrooms!

DCA Family Business Directory: We are pleased to provide a directory of businesses that are owned by Dayspring families and employees. If you are in need of goods and services, we sincerely hope that you will consult the directory as needed: https://www.dayspringchristian.com/family-business-directory/

Summer Trip Opportunity--SOLD OUT

Dayspring Christian Academy teacher Angela Adams is offering a trip to the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C., on Friday, July 31.

An Executive Coach bus will depart from the Mountville Brethren in Christ Church parking lot at 7:30 a.m. and will return by 9 p.m. Guests are asked to park in the Dayspring Christian Academy upper lot. Meals will be on your own. A list of nearby restaurants will be available. There is also a cafe and a restaurant located in the museum.

This trip is now sold out.

Summer Camp Opportunities at Dayspring

Got Uke? Summer Ukulele Camp
Mrs. Sally Armstrong will hold the ever popular Ukulele camp June 22-26, from 9 a.m. to 12 noon. This camp is for beginner and intermediate ukulele players entering grades 1-8. Campers will build and decorate their own ukuleles to keep and will learn the basics of playing. A camp shirt, snacks, games, and a culminating concert with “Phredd” from WJTL are all part of this exciting camp! Repeat campers are welcome! The cost for this camp is $250 per student with a sibling discount available. To register and for more information, please click here.

Piano Express Camp
Sopranojam Music Studio will offer Piano Express Camp June 29- July 3, 2026. Students will learn 20 songs or more in 1 week and finish a beginner level in only 5 days, making serious progress in a short amount of time! Piano Express Camp is the perfect “test drive” for new students and a great summer intensive for students who already play! Learn more at sopranojamstudio.com.

CPYU Parent Resource

The Center for Parent/Youth Understanding (CPYU) has been working for over three decades to increase the ability of parents and churches to nurture children and teens by providing relevant and timely information, analysis, and theologically sound resources on today’s rapidly changing youth culture. To view the July parent resource, click here.

George Whitefield Quotes: A Daily Devotional

Dr. Randy Hilton has published “George Whitefield Quotes: A Daily Devotional”, a yearlong devotional journey through the powerful words and timeless wisdom of the great evangelist George Whitefield. Drawing from 365 of Whitefield’s most compelling quotes, this book carefully expands upon each statement with biblical insight, spiritual reflection, and practical application for everyday Christian living.

Each daily devotional explores the deeper meaning behind Whitefield’s words, offering thoughtful analysis that connects historic truth with modern faith challenges. Readers are encouraged to grow in their relationship with God through teachings on repentance, grace, prayer, holiness, faith, perseverance, humility, and wholehearted devotion to Christ.

Community/Church Events

Yard Sale & Chicken BBQ: New Danville Bible Methodist Church, located on 4 Kay Drive, Lancaster, is having a yard sale and BBQ fundraiser for missions on Friday, June 12, and Saturday, June 13. Tickets for the BBQ are $15 and include a pulled pork BBQ sandwich with bread, chips, drink, and dessert. You can stop by on Saturday and walk in, or you can get a ticket from either Dr. Hilton. The BBQ is only available on Saturday. The yard sale will go from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m. Hope to see you there.

New Danville Bible Methodist Church Vacation Bible School: There will be a VBS held at New Danville Bible Methodist Church, 2 Kay Drive, Lancaster, PA, from Monday, June 15, through Friday, June 19, from 6-8pm each evening. The theme will be, David: A Man After God’s Own Heart”. For information you can contact Emily Hilton at ehilton61@gmail.com or 717-847-3223.

Bold. Distinctive. Biblical.