TO DO:

Principals, please read these few short paragraphs prior to Monday afternoon. For you overachievers, you can learn more here. We’ll touch on these things when we meet.

THIS and THAT:

The might be an event you would like to share with your staff… The Adult Programming team at the Deschutes Public Library is hosting a free program that will cover the inclusion of tribal history in Oregon schools.  The event will be held at the East Bend Library on Saturday, March 14th at 3:00 p.m.   Here is the link for the event.

TO DO:

Here is the TED Talk Chris (at our Horizontal meeting earlier this week) recommended we watch – The Danger of a Single Story. I know Chris said to at least listen to the first 8 minutes or so [not having to watch the entire video]. Good luck with that. Listening to this speaker’s story certainly made me reflect on my own perceptions/biases/lens from which I view people. _______________________________________________________

Last week I mentioned the upcoming Resilience Survey. The window for completing this survey is Feb. 24 – April 3 (this is a change… it has added an additional week to the survey window). It is expected that next week you’ll receive an email regarding additional details. A few key pieces of information you’ll receive in this email is a sign-up for your school to administer this survey, as well as a parent letter to communicate prior to your administration. This week’s “to do” is more of a heads-up, with more to do after you receive the email next week.

THIS and THAT:

Here is the final draft of our MS 8th Grade Celebration agreement. Please keep track of when/how you share this information with both students and families. (I don’t need this information, but if you are challenged by your decision, being able to share how you’ve communicated this is important.) ________________________________________________________

February is Black History Month – and a great opportunity for you/your staff to shine a light on a group of people who are often not discussed (outside of slavery) in terms of what they have contributed to US history. Here are some resources for you and your staff to generate ideas (or simply take and use) over the course of the next four weeks (and beyond). ________________________________________________________

From Debbie Watkins: I have received a few calls this week regarding breaks and lunches for classified staff, which made me realize it is a great time to send a reminder on our contract language regarding breaks for staff.  (Article 16.5)

• If an employee is scheduled for four (4) hours but less than six (6) hours, the employee must be scheduled for one fifteen (15) minute paid break.

• Employees scheduled for six (6) hours get a fifteen (15) minute paid break and a minimum of a thirty (30) minute unpaid meal period.

• Employees scheduled for more than six (6) hours shall receive two (2) fifteen (15) minute paid breaks and a minimum of one (1) thirty (30) minute unpaid meal period.

Also, please know you cannot regularly schedule lunches or breaks at the start or end of the employee’s work hours, or combine break and lunch periods to provide for early release or longer lunch breaks.  This would be considered a violation of our contract and Oregon law.  You do, however, have flexibility to modify an employee’s daily schedule for an extenuating circumstance.  If you have any questions about employee work schedules and ensuring you are providing the appropriate paid and unpaid breaks, please call our office.  __________________________________________________________

In the coming weeks, Austin James will be reaching out (phone or email) to building principals with a question around what data needs you might currently have (or see yourself having in the future). If you have none, it will likely be a short communication exchange. If you can think of a data need, then I encourage you to invite Austin to come see you and talk further. One idea might be to take a look at your school’s data over the past few years as it relates to underserved populations (e.g. is the gap growing, shrinking or about the same between this group and your other students?). _________________________________________________________

Jackie Wilson asked me to pass along this Sustainability Tip handout from the month of January (that I’m sure is still good for February!).

REMINDERS:

Leadership meeting starts at 3:15 on Monday. Don’t want to miss this one…

The next District SIW is on Feb. 12 – which is quickly approaching. For MS, I know this involves meetings for science and social studies teachers, as well as an encouraged gathering for all counselors. Am I missing another other content areas that are meeting? Please remind these folks – if you think they need it – of their meetings.

TO DO:

NOTE: We will be meeting at the Brinson Campus (Skyline HS conference room) on Monday for Horizontal, not Realms MS (due to room availability).

If you can spare a little more than two and a half minutes, this audio conversation between a kindergartner and a NASA engineer is pretty awesome. (I loved a few of the quotes that had to do with the power/influence adults can have on the learning/motivation for the learning of young people.)

THIS and THAT:

Some of you have heard about or participated in an Improvement Science training in the past year or so. The HDESD is bringing two additional PD opportunities to Central Oregon in the next month. There will be a basic training (Feb. 10), as well as an advanced training (Jan. 31) opportunity. Both are free and will be held at the HDESD. Click on a link to find out more or to register.

Sean and his SPED leadership team (with input from others) have recently written a “position paper” (my words, not Sean’s necessarily) on Special Program’s beliefs around how we’ll provide services to qualified students moving forward. This document will be shared with SPED staff via their weekly blog, and I wanted to share it with you here. If you have any specific questions regarding this, please reach out to Sean directly.

As you may recall, we asked our students to complete a short Resilience Survey a number of months ago (connected to a grant our region received). Sean had spoken about this more in-depth earlier this fall at a Leadership meeting. The window for the second round of this short student survey will be from Feb. 24 – March 20, 2020. You’ll hear more about this in the next month.

From Jackie Wilson, the district Sustainability Coordinator: Here is some information about energy use in the district and where all schools are in the ENERGY STAR ranking across the district. Also included in the update is a link to a survey about energy management. I am hoping to get a few hundred to take the survey and get a better pool of information to work from. Here is the link to the survey.

REMINDERS:

Horizontal meeting on Monday in the conference room at Skyline HS (Brinson campus), starting at 3:00pm. Here is the agenda for our meeting. In addition to reading chapter 3 (my notes), don’t forget that we’ll also be taking a more in-depth look at our district’s Excellence and Equity Report findings. In preparation for this, please have the following completed prior to our meeting: 1) Read the final Excellence and Equity Report. 2) Identify two or three passages that “stand out” in some way (e.g. you strongly agree or disagree with the content, or have questions, or want to expand on what you’ve read.) 3) Bring a copy (electronic or paper) of this Report to our Horizontal. 4) Have a way to capture some of your thoughts (paper or electronic) from our discussion. Here is an overview of the process that Chris Boyd will lead us through, as well as our Common Agreements, and the protocol we’ll use.

TO DO:

Mark your calendars: 5th Grade Move-Up Day is going to be Tuesday, May 19 from 9:30-11:30. Please work with your feeder schools on related details. ______________________________________________________

Yesterday you received an email from Alandra regarding our district’s Choice Option High Schools. Here is the link she provided in that email, that contains a Keynote presentation and brochures in both Spanish and English. Please find a way to share these Keynote slides with your 8th-grade students (e.g. during lunch, in a certain core class, etc.) in the next few weeks. __________________________________________________________

Here is a link to next year’s calendar… Bend area and South County schools. (Did you notice that LPMS & LPHS are now on the same calendar – and semester terms – as Bend area schools?!) The MS conference schedule will be a little different next year, which I’ll explain the next time I come see you at your school. Lastly, if you’d like to brighten someone’s day, reach out to Andrea Wilson and thank her for her work on calendars each year. Definitely a thankless job that garners a ton of feedback. ___________________________________________________________

If you haven’t turned in your Probationary 3 letters to HR yet, please do so by Jan. 21. Thanks! ___________________________________________________________

In your pursuit of making connections with all students, some of you (at least) have inquired about the possibility of allowing – with supervision – students to skateboard on your school’s campus. In an effort to have open communication and work through whether this should be allowed or not, I’d like to set a time to meet (all together) with a representative from each school that is interested in this topic. I’d like to share current policy, practices that are allowed, share concerns, and hear from you on what you’d like to see possible in the future. Honestly, this is one that my heart and head are speaking differently about – and I’d love to process it with those who are interested in doing so. Please send me a name from your site (if you want to be involved) by Tuesday, Jan. 21 and I’ll set up a meeting. ___________________________________________________________

As you are aware, BLS completed a large number (more than 30) listening sessions in our district/community that resulted in an Excellence and Equity Report. At our next Horizontal, you’ll be participating in an exercise (facilitated by Chris Boyd) that digs into this report’s findings. Following are some things I’d like for you to have completed prior to our meeting: 1) Read the final Excellence and Equity Report. 2) Identify two or three passages that “stand out” in some way (e.g. you strongly agree or disagree with the content, or have questions, or want to expand on what you’ve read.) 3) Bring a copy (electronic or paper) of this Report to our Horizontal. 4) Have a way to capture some of your thoughts (paper or electronic) from our discussion. Here is an overview of the process that Chris will lead us through, as well as our Common Agreements, and the protocol we’ll use.

THIS and THAT:

Kimberly Strong is coordinating an upcoming training, on Feb. 7, by Jessica Sprick, related to student attendance; and specifically on building out your attendance MTSS by focusing on tier 2 and tier 3 interventions. Here is a workshop flyer, and the registration information. If you’ve heard Jessica speak before you’ll know that she is a well-received presenter! The training is free – but any sub costs will be paid from the building. __________________________________________________________

We have still not received a dollar amount from the state yet on how much SIA (Student Investment Account) we’ll be receiving here at BLS. We hope to have this prior to our Feb. 3 Leadership meeting. According to ODE, here are the four areas (umbrellas) all new investments need to fit under:

Reducing Class Size

• Use evidence-based criteria to ensure appropriate student-teacher ratios or staff caseloads;
• Increasing the use of instructional assistants.

Instructional Time

• More hours and/or days.
• Summer programs; before or after school programs.
• Technological investments that minimize class time used for assessments administered to students.

Health & Safety

• Social and emotional learning, trauma-informed practices; student mental and behavioral health.

Well-Rounded Education

• Developmentally appropriate and culturally responsive early literacy practices and programs in pre-K through third grade.
• Culturally responsive programs and practices in grades 6-8, including learning, counseling and student support that is connected to colleges and careers.
• Broadened curricular options at all grade levels including: Art, Music, PE, STEM, CTE, engaging electives, accelerated college credit programs, including dual credit, IB, AP, Life Skills, TAG, dropout and prevention programs, and transition supports.
• Access to licensed educators with a library media endorsement.

________________________________________________________

An update from Lora…

At our December leadership meeting, I asked each school to take just a few minutes to make a plug for United Way contributions. One possible strategy is to make this push alongside your FAN advocate, because we can all target our donations. 

Currently, we have fewer than 40 staff members who have committed to payroll deductions, down from 65 last year at this time. I am hoping each of you will try to make a pitch to staff if you haven’t done so already. This year’s campaign ends at the end of January. ________________________________________________________

The 2020 cycle of the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) is in full swing. Nominations can be submitted on our website, www.paemst.org. The nomination deadline is March 1, 2020. If you have one or more outstanding math or science teacher(s), please consider nominating them! ___________________________________________________________

If you or a staff member is working on implementing a Collaborative Problem Solving approach within the classroom (or building), these monthly (free) troubleshooting sessions might be of interest to you.

REMINDERS:

Our next Horizontal will be on Jan. 27, starting at 3:00pm, at Realms MS. Please have chapter 3 and the Excellence and Equity Report read.

TO DO:

As you know, our next Horizontal is on Jan. 27 at Realms MS. (Thanks for hosting us Dirk!) Due to a couple of items that we need time for, please plan on meeting from 3:00 – 4:45 on this day. This is 15 minutes longer than we will normally meet, but appreciate you being able to attend the entire time if possible. (I put this under “to do” so you can adjust your calendar if needed.) ________________________________________________________

I know that our schools – your school – has been doing a great job with using a consistent and appropriate process for signing visitors/guests in via our visitor management system. Thank you. I happened to be at a school this week when a visitor came to see a student and did not believe they needed to sign in by showing personal ID. It got a bit ugly, but eventually, they did comply and were allowed in. In the coming days/week, would you please first thank your staff for the smile they put on their face for every visitor (it can be hard to do some times!), and also encourage them to stay consistent on asking for all non-BLS employees to check-in with personal ID (not work badges from other employers) and receive and wear a visitor’s badge? Thank you! _______________________________________________________

Hot off of the presses… This spring we’ll be aiming to have the School Board approve the budget at the March 10 board meeting, and staffing plans to you by Friday, March 13. The next targeted goal is to have you complete your staffing plan so I can approve them right after spring break. When this occurs, you’ll have just under two weeks to get job postings completed and sent to HR prior to the annual Job Fair (Monday, April 13). This will be an important hiring season, as you know, with a large increase in job postings across our state so we want to get out in front as best that we can in order to hire the best candidates. Let me know if you have any questions regarding this. __________________________________________________________

Here is something that you might have seen from ODE to share with your staff, if you’d like: The Oregon Department of Education (ODE) is seeking educators interested in participating as item writers for the Oregon Summative Assessments in ELA and Mathematics. This commitment would include time for both onsite training and item review, as well as time for the independent development of items. Please complete the following application and submit by no later than Thursday, February 6, 2020. ODE will notify successful applicants for both ELA and math by Monday, February 10, 2020, of their inclusion in the project, along with information on the next steps.

THIS and THAT:

District policy (JG-AP) dealing with Student Conduct and Discipline has been updated and posted on our district site. Please take a moment to read letter “c” under the section “when a student is suspended” (page 3). Removed from the language here were statements regarding “conditions for reinstatement” and “appeal procedures.” ___________________________________________________________

Our 4th Annual Latino Family Night is coming up in a few weeks – Jan. 28, 5:30pm @ MVHS – and you are all invited! Here is a flyer in Spanish and English that you can post or otherwise share with families and staff. ___________________________________________________________

The next Discipline Literacy training will be on Tuesday, Jan. 14 in the afternoon. (As a reminder, this training is for most of your new teachers.) Next week I will likely be sharing resources with you that could be used during mini observations with these folks (if you’d like to use them). __________________________________________________________

It sure hasn’t been needed yet, but I wanted to share with you (again) our district’s Inclement Weather Delay guidelines for this school year. This is one of those documents that would be good to review prior to needing to implement it. _________________________________________________________

As you likely are aware, Mid Oregon Credit Union and KTVZ sponsors the One Class at a Time program, awarding $500 with a KTVZ News story to share with the community and highlight great things happening in schools. They are currently looking for innovative and relevant classroom programs that we can feature (things happening now, this spring, or even next fall). __________________________________________________________

The 2020-21 ACR forms (English & Spanish) are now posted to our district website and portal. March 2, 2020 is the deadline to submit an ACR. __________________________________________________________

The deadline for application to our district’s Choice Option high schools has been advertised as Feb. 17. However, because this is a holiday, non-school day, the deadline will be extended to Tuesday, Feb. 18.

REMINDERS:

Earlier this week Andrea sent information regarding opportunities to provide input in our superintendent search… and here are a few highlights of opportunities for you: Wednesday, January 15, from 3:00-4:30 p.m., has been set aside for district leaders to drop in and chat with search consultants, Valerie Pitts and David Cash from HYA & Associates. Our consultants will be in rooms 307 and 312 at the Education Center and no appointment is necessary; please stop by whenever it works best for your schedule.

Additionally, you are invited to join us at one of our public forums:

January 14 / 5:00-6:30 p.m. / Sky View Middle School Library

January 15 / 5:00-6:30 p.m. / Cascade Middle School Library

January 16 / 4:30-6:30 p.m. / La Pine High School Library

More information about our Superintendent Search Process is available on our district website. __________________________________________________________

I think I’ve shared this with you already, but want to highlight it here again (as there is only one person signed up as of earlier this week). There will be a Literacy Strategies Conference open to all/any classified employees on Jan. 31 (hosted at 3RVRS) , taught by our district instructional coaches. Because this is a non-work day for most classified staff, those that attend will be paid. Here is a flyer with additional information. Please spread the word to any and all in your building that may be interested. _________________________________________________________

I have previously mentioned to you about Youth Mental Health First Aid training that have been offered to our staff. The next one will be on Feb. 21. Here is additional info and registration details.

TO DO:

There is an action to take here, only if you are interested in promoting your students become involved in a regional spelling bee. (I hope that some of our MS students do get involved!) Here is some information about this and a contact to learn even more: Jodi Lawrence Turner, editor with The Bulletin, is hoping we might partner with them as they would like to organize a spelling bee for students in Bend / Central Oregon. They are looking to start with grades 6-8 and would like to have the first round of competition in February 2020. From there, the competition would move to the county and state levels. If you or one of your staff would like to speak with Jodi to learn more – her office # 541-383-0308 and cell # 509-953-2957. _______________________________________________________

The Lions Sight and Hearing Foundation will be providing free vision screenings for middle school students. Currently, Lions screens all of our elementary students.  Volunteers of the Lions organization come to the schools and do the screenings. The process is free, quick, efficient and pretty accurate (optometrists are impressed). If you are interested, please let Tami Pike know very soon so she can help coordinate!

THIS and THAT:

An important reminder/heads-up from Jon in HR: Principals/Supervisors, It is only December but it is time to start thinking about the renewal/non-renewal process. If you have an employee that you don’t want to renew, then we have some work to do in this area before the public board meeting February 11, 2019.  

By Jan. 10th: Please have a conversation with me about any certified employee that you have some concerns about.  If you have a concern about an employee, we need to start making a plan for how to move forward with that person.  We may decide to start with informal supports or go to our formal process.    

We have several options when we are talking about probationary employees of concern.  One option is to non-renew a probationary contract.  This is formally done at the Board Meeting in February and March.  If we decide to move toward non-renewal, we will need to have some discussions with the teacher, with the BEA, and with the board during Executive Sessions.  If you are having concerns with a probationary teacher, please make sure we talk about it.  Once a teacher becomes contract it can be a much harder process. 

I also need to know about contract teachers that you have a concern about.  You may only be supporting the person informally, which is great, but I still need to know about them.  If you have started the formal support system, which includes Focus Performance Review, Support Strategies, and/or a Plan of Assistance, you must contact me so that we can work through it together.  

Due by Jan. 2oth:  Please send the probationary three letters of support to Carrie Hulbert and Candy Gelatt .  We need to be hiring and putting the best teachers in front of students.  It is an important decision when moving an employee from probationary status to contract status.  (Please check this list for your staff in this situation.) After participating in the board process the last several years, I have a better feeling for what the board is looking for in these letters.  The board takes moving a probationary employee to contract status very seriously.  They really want to know that each of you have specific reasons why each one of these employees should move to contract status.  I have attached a spreadsheet of probationary three employees and the famous probationary three letter example (linked above) from Mr. Matt Montgomery.

If you have any questions, please feel free to give me (Jon) a call. ________________________________________________________

The high schools have selected the dates/times of their orientation night for current 8th-grade students/families. Here is a document that outlines when these will be taking place, and also includes important dates around the HS ACR process. ________________________________________________________

I had shared some information with you in a previous blog post regarding upcoming parent Connect Workshops (how parents might talk with their teen(s) regarding drug/alcohol use). I previously share an English version of the flyer and promised a Spanish version when it was available. Here is the Spanish version. ____________________________________________________________

As you likely are already aware, your teachers have access to Newsela, but they may not know that they do, may not know what it is, or how they might use it in the classroom. If you’d like a training with your staff, please reach out to Scott McDonald or John Craft – who just did a training at SVMS last week – for more info! Additionally, don’t forget that your math teachers have access to Dreambox and Skip can help you/your staff with support in getting this set up with students if you’d like. ______________________________________________________

From Misty Groom: There will be a Level 1 (only) Threat Assessment Training held on Friday, January 24, 2020, from 12:00-4:00 at the High Desert ESD (2804 SW Sixth Street, Redmond). This training is for School Administrators, School Counselors, School Psychologists, and School Resource Officers who have NOT previously attended this training and for any NEW staff who will be part of a Level 1 team at their school site.

Individuals must RSVP via email to [email protected] – for any questions, please contact Misty at 541-355-1012.

Please bring your laptop in order to access various documents.  _______________________________________________________

Your school should have received copies of the High School Choice Options brochure in English. Please display these in your counseling office or another relevant location at your school. The Spanish version is on its way from the print shop and should arrive shortly. If you run out of brochures or did not receive any, please contact Alandra Johnson – [email protected]  Learn more about the choice option application process and key upcoming dates at our website – http://bit.ly/BLSchoice _________________________________________________________

From Jackie Wilson, our district’s Sustainability Coordinator: With Christmas break coming, this is a great time to remind staff about waste and energy reduction. All classrooms should do their part to reduce the trash as much as possible over the holidays. When Friday rolls around and we are in a rush to start our vacations and spend time with families, please remember the classified staff clean the schools. Garbage cans should not be left overflowing. Make sure you put recycling in bins and try to reduce trash. If your school wants a 30 person party kit with washable plates, bowls, cups and spoons for classrooms or staff parties. please reach out to the Sustainability Coordinator, Jackie Wilson.
As for energy conservation, schools’ heat will be lowered to 58 degrees for our unoccupied mode during the break. If you have any Mods on campus, please have the staff manually lower the temperatures to 58. These are not on the district controls. Make sure to shut down computers and turn off electronics at the power switches. ________________________________________________________

REMINDERS:

Leadership meeting on January 13, starting at 3:15.

MS Horizontal at Realms MS on January 27, starting at 3:00. Please have chapter 3 read and be ready to share your thinking on it.

TO DO:

Please check your calendars – and with anyone else whom you might need to – and let me know (yes or no) whether May 19, 2020, will work for this year’s 5th grade Move Up day. Please let me know by the end of next week! __________________________________________________________

Please communicate the following reminders (from Skip) to your staff:

Over recent weeks a few incidents have occurred at different schools and classrooms that make me think that we need to review some basic but important iPad guidelines and practices.  Please take some time at an upcoming staff meeting to initiate a discussion with your teachers about safe internet use and proper iPad use with their students . If everyone can work to insure that the practices below are consistently applied and communicated, our parents and community will have a positive view of how we utilize our digital devices and resources.  If at any time the instructional technology department can provide advice, assistance, or coaching please don’t hesitate to reach out for help.

• Google searches – The internet is a great place but just allowing students to surf unsupervised or without an academic purpose can sometimes lead to unexpected results and consequences.  Instead, have them utilize tools such as Discovery Education or World Book.

• Image searches – Searching for images should be monitored and managed closely.  Just telling students to google an image should not occur.  The same applies to using other search engines such as Bing.  Instead, direct students to the image search page that was created by our department.

• Free Time and Rainy Day Recess – At no time should students be given “iPad Free Time”  Whether it be during rainy day recess, snack time, waiting for the bus, before school, or when they finish their work, students should not have free time on the iPad.  There should always be a reason for using devices so that screen time is purposeful.

• Apple Classroom – This tool allows teachers to monitor and manage student use.  All teachers should know how to use this tool.  If they don’t, schedule a coach to come over and conduct a staff or small group training or refresher.

• AUP and Digital Citizenship Lessons – After returning from break it would be a great time to review the AUP and the digital citizenship lessons. A mid-year refresher never hurts.

• Parent Tools – there are settings and tools that parents can use at home to manage devices.  Here are two blog posts from our coaches that outline steps parents can take.
  • http://blogs.bend.k12.or.us/instructionaltechnology/2019/10/09/set-students-up-for-success-with-screentime-settings/
  • http://blogs.bend.k12.or.us/instructionaltechnology/2019/11/06/jamf-parent-app-available-now/

__________________________________________________________

This might be a good time to remind your staff about the dangers of extension cords. (This is also something the Fire Marshall will be looking for when random, unannounced visits occur in your building… and I hear have happened at some of ours this week.) Please remind folks to unplug extension cords in the evening/weekends whenever possible.

THIS and THAT:

Most of you have already participated in our district’s administrator Learning Lab that focuses on observation/evaluation and feedback conversations (centered around Lipton’s book Learning-Focused Supervision.) This year’s group of new administrators is relatively small, so in addition to their involvement in this PD opportunity, we are opening this up to any building administrator who is desiring a refresher. If you are interested (and not a new admin.), then we ask that you commit to attend each training and let Lora N. know you plan on participating by Dec. 20 so she can make next step arrangements and have an accurate book order count. __________________________________________________________

The following information is from Misty Groom, who is introducing a new “non-Level 1” form which you may be hearing more from her about soon: As we continue to update and integrate more Best Practices into STAS, I wanted to pass along this form which is for cases that Do Not meet criteria for a Level 1 Assessment.  It is important that every threat is investigated but not every threat needs to have a threat assessment.  This form allows the School Site Team to determine why is was not necessary to move forward with a Level 1 Assessment but documents that there was a discussion and what the outcome of the conversation was.  ___________________________________________________________

Here are a few reminders regarding restraint and seclusion procedures:

1) Please print off the most recent version of the paperwork in the portal.  We have received some copies dated back to 2017. 

2) Please remember to complete the form in its entirety (even the small details please) The information we have on it is what’s required by ODE

3) Please observe that the required debriefing be held within 48 hours (to the best of your ability) after each restraint or seclusion.  Remember, everyone involved in the incident must participate, in addition to a building administrator (even if they were not involved)

4) Please remember, if a student is in a restraint or seclusion for 30 minutes or more, the building admin must complete and sign the Admin. Approval form which is attached to the paperwork.  

5) Finally, please remember to send the parent notification letter home if a staff participates in the administering of a restraint or seclusion and they are not CPI trained

Please feel free to contact Krista Baker or your building behavior coach if you have questions or need assistance with completing the forms. ___________________________________________________________

REMINDERS:

We’ll have our next Leadership meeting on Jan. 13.

Our next Horizontal will be Jan. 27 at Realms MS.

TO DO:

Watch this video shared by Decatur Public Schools. But let me advise you to not watch it the first time in a room full of people, any maybe have a Kleenex handy. “I Chose You” was the prompt teachers were given when considering one of her/his students who inspire them to come to work every day. This video captures the moments when some of these teachers shared with students why they are inspired by her/him. Amazing. A great reminder of why we do what we do. How might you remind your staff and your students (some need it more than others) that they are meaningful?

THIS and THAT:

BLS and Deschutes County are teaming up to provide four free parent workshops (the same workshop, offered four times) starting in January. The Connect Workshop is a 2-hour training aimed at providing parents with skills to navigate conversations with their child(ren) around the topics of marijuana, alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs. Please share this flyer freely both inside your building and within your broader school community. You will notice that childcare is provided for two of these workshops, and one will be facilitated in Spanish. Additionally, I’ll share a Spanish version of this flyer as soon as I receive it (being translated now). _________________________________________________________

There has been a new update to the Office Discipline Referral Form. You can find this newest update in the Staff Portal. Here is a link to the new update, which I’ve highlighted and can be found on page two. In essence, Jon would like to be able to track minor incidents of a sexual nature, but needs an email or phone call from you ONLY when they are Major incidents. __________________________________________________________

Another training that will be offered this year (and some of you have had staff attend previously) is Youth Mental Health First Aid. This training will be held on Friday, February 21^st, 2020 from 7:30-4:30. This training is appropriate for front office staff, teachers, coaches, extra-curricular advisors, FAN advocates, building admin, and essentially anyone that works at the schools that does not have a background in mental health. If you are thinking of sending someone from your staff, and sub costs are a barrier to doing so, please let me know.

Here is a registration page for the training, which includes a description: https://22120blpsymhfa.eventbrite.com. __________________________________________________________

I think most of you are aware that there is a district safety team that meets regularly (about once a month) and discussed questions, concerns, ideas, and strategies connected to student and staff safety. Our MS rep this year is Nole Kennedy, Dean of Students at HDMS. If you have any big-picture questions/ideas or simply are curious about why we do something the way we do related to safety, please let Nole know and he can bring that to this group.

REMINDERS:

We meet as a Horizontal group on Monday, starting at 3:00, at CMS. Please be sure and have pages 23 – 50 read (my notes) and consider what caught your attention in this section. Here is the agenda.

TO DO:

If you have any certified staff of concern and have not communicated this to Jon yet, please do so immediately. Depending on where this employee is on Contract or Probationary status will depend on next steps – some of which take time to accomplish, but need to be completed by February, 2020.

I believe I have touched bases with all of you regarding my request to have you ask four questions of every one of your teachers (minimum, all staff if you’d like) prior to spring break (so obviously this is not a “to do” right away!). Here are the questions: 1. What is working well? 2. What ideas do you have for improvement? 3. Do you have the resources you need to do your job? 4. Is there anyone who has been especially helpful to you lately? As a reminder, I’ll ask that you each share themes from your building (in this Google doc) prior to spring break.

THIS and THAT:

In a (relatively) recent blog post, Jim Knight (author of High-Impact Instruction) states that “sometimes key insights for educators can be found in books and articles about fields outside of education. Robert I. Sutton’s book, Good Boss, Bad Boss is written from a business perspective, but it contains many concepts that can be applied to the classroom as well.” I was intrigued, so I read Jim’s post from Instructional Coaching Group and thought it is worth passing along. As you read the five ideas that Mr. Knight highlights, consider where you are on a continuum of believing/doing these things – and how often they are visible in your classrooms. And finally, what might you be able to do to highlight and encourage more of these “bright spots?”

I’d like to highlight a few of our schools that have had some big news this week. First, PBMS had their first (ever!) IB/MYP accreditation visit. Obviously, this type of multi-day look behind the curtain is stressful, but because of the years of work on the part of the staff there, the visit went well and I would guess a little anti-climatic due to their meticulous preparation. Way to go Steve, Mary, Karen Corson, and the PBMS staff! Second, Realms MS was in the news this week for tangible learning performed a few years ago (the students are now sophomores) – they created informational kiosks along the Deschutes River (starting at 1st St. Rapids park and others as far north as Archie Briggs).

This is from Dana Pedersen: FAN Services during the holidays:  FAN Advocates are willing and able to assist families with basic needs during the holidays.  Please help support staff and Advocates to refrain from providing direct support that is connected to the holidays.  We will continue to connect families with cooperating partners that provide presents and the like during the holiday season;  FAN keeps our focus on the basics.  If schools, or school affiliated organizations want to help, they can coordinate efforts with FAN by collecting items that can be donated to a food bank, or by asking for clothing items that Advocates can pass out during the winter months.  These are but two ways to engage your larger school community if the desire is there.  I would also ask your help in supporting Advocates in not handing out gift cards to stores that sell tobacco or alcohol products.  Board Policy JFCG-AP specifically speaks to district staff not being involved in the sale of such substances.  By handing out gift cards to grocery stores, we are giving clients access to these substances.  There are many food banks, churches and outside agencies that can support families with food needs over the holidays.  If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out.  Thank you-

REMINDERS:

We have Leadership on Monday, Dec. 2 starting at 3:15. Jay sent out the agenda earlier this week.

We have Horizontal on Monday, Dec. 9, starting at 3:00 and convening at CMS. Don’t forget to have pages 23 – 50 read in High-Impact Instruction.

THIS and THAT:

Here is a video that Lisa Birk shared with the staff at PCMS regarding the powerful effect that positive expectations of teachers for students have on learning. (Lisa wanted me to let you know that although the videography is a bit outdated, the study has been replicated a number of times in education to validate its findings.) ___________________________________________________________

The district’s Office Discipline Referral Form has a small update that I want to let you know about. On the second (back) page, near the bottom right, (just above “follow up comments”) we’ve added: Transportation Contacted. Obviously, you do not need to contact transportation for every type of behavior incident, but there are some that we hope you consistently will. For example, safety violations (require STAS, OSS, separation from other students), trespassed student, or more volatile than normal. In terms of whom do you contact in transportation, please reach out to Tina Bandy. __________________________________________________________

You likely have heard this news already, but if not, I thought I’d send it along to you. At this week’s school board meeting the question was posed as to what each board member thought the next step should be for filling our coming superintendent opening. Each stated (as reported here in the Bulletin) that they wanted to do a national search – and hire a search firm (although a few commented on not wanting to pay the price for this service) – to find our next district leader. The process to hire a search firm and start the process of posting and recruiting should begin soon. __________________________________________________________

Here is some information from Jackie Wilson, our district’s sustainability coordinator:

Thanksgiving week shut down of the schools During the Thanksgiving Break, school HVAC systems will be lowered to the unoccupied setpoints of 58. If you are coming in over the break, please plan on bringing a sweater, not a personal heater as they are a fire hazard.
As the schools will be unoccupied, this is a great opportunity for energy conservation. Please remind staff to turn off at the power switch all electronics. All personal fridges and sharded mini-fridges need to be unplugged as well. 
School Garden Information and Grant Opportunity If you’re interested in installing a permanent outdoor school garden in the Bend La Pine School District, please download and complete the School Garden Development Application (PDF) (Here is a fillable Word document version: School Garden Development Application Fall 17). We are available to assist with this process, just call 541-385-6908 x14 or email denise.

If your school has a garden or outdoor learning space, I want to learn more and help with lessons and funding. Please email Sustainability Coordinator _________________________________________________________

REMINDERS:

Starting this afternoon and through the weekend I’ll be at the OSBA conference in Portland. Monday I’ll be in a Cognia (formerly AdvancED) state board meeting all day – also PDX-area. If you need me, please send me a text and I’ll call you during a break in the meeting.

Next Friday (22nd) is College Day across the district.