To Do:

• Take a look at your staffing plan that you have recently received in your district Google Drive account (@gapps.bend.k12.or.us). Also, this staffing page includes information on how the “equity” allocation was calculated. Let me know if you have any questions!

This and That:

• As many of you are aware, last spring we had a number of our teachers go through a culminating presentation activity (that also included work throughout the previous months) as part of our PASS system.  Another group of certified staff will go through this process in August and you (and your teachers) are needed to make this happen!  Please show this PASS video to your staff some time in April, as there is a short application (now available on the HR site) that has an April 28 deadline. (You can also find this video on our TRIBE blog within the “BLS Docs” tab.) The video is 11:00 minutes long and is very self-explanatory.
• Tuesday, April 4, is the last all-day counselor training for this year – and you are invited to have one admin from your building attend! As a reminder, our counselors have been working on creating a Comprehensive Guidance and Counseling Program for their school and this is the last training date with a national (ASCA) trainer.  The training will be from 8:00 – 3:00 in the Board Room and you are welcome to come and participate/support your counselor’s work for as much of that day as you are available.
• There will be a PE/Health teacher training on April 13, from 8:00 – 11:00.  This training is in response to a SB 79 mandate for CPR/AED instruction to be a part of the PE or health curriculum in grades 7-12. Your teachers attending should mark “CPR AED Training” on their leave request and the sub will be charged to TLC.

Reminders:

• Not that you need a reminder, but next week is spring break so I hope you are taking some time (days) to relax, rejuvenate and spend time with family and friends. Seriously, take a break from your work and enjoy the coming days!
• Per the email you received from Stephen, science adoption finalists will be available for all your science teacher to preview and comment on during SIW (from 1-4) on April 12 at the Ed Center.  Please encourage your science teachers to participate in this opportunity.

To Do:

• Consider attending an information event at PCMS on Monday evening from 6:00 – 7:00pm. It is being called The Learning Brain and the presenter will be none other than Dr. Lara Boyd, Chris’ sister! Come learn more about “The science that keeps the brain healthy, reduces anxiety and helps learning” (excerpt taken from the brochure). I’ve watched Dr. Boyd speak on a Ted Talk video and can guarantee that those in attendance Monday will leave with new learning/understanding of how our brain works.

This and That:

• An article that was recently passed along to me (thank you Brian U!) definitely made me pause and think. This is an article about poverty.  One of the four district priorities (along with math, ELL and graduation rates).  Much has been said and written about poverty and how educators can help compensate/support students who come from a low SES background. Rutger Bregman, author of: Utopian thinking: the easy way to eradicate poverty, presents a case – a self-described “easy way” – for ending poverty that I have not heard of before. And notice that the idea is to end poverty, not to support kids within their life of poverty.  “Easy” huh… read and see what you think! [The questions I would ask you to consider, as school leaders, is a slightly different iteration of the author’s plan: How can you accomplish this “easy fix” within your school walls?  Is it possible?  What might be a first step? Could this step help not only students in poverty, but other underserved/under-achieving students at your school as well?]
• I will be in Portland all day next Thursday.  I will have my cell phone so feel free to call or text me if you need anything.  I will also have my computer for email access, but checking of email may be more sporadic.

Reminders:

• We have a Horizontal meeting scheduled for Monday at 3:15.  We’ll be meeting at CMS.  Two things to note about this meeting: Sean will be presenting on K-12 Behavior Support and we’ll be done by 4:15 (instead of 4:45) due to another meeting a few of us need to attend.
• There is some confusion, no doubt, around MS leadership teams that are supposed to schedule meetings together.  There are two such groups – which lead to the confusion.  I’ll try and clearly outline these two and functions of each:
  • SDP Groups: Principals and APs are not together. One more round of school visits should be scheduled this year. [The next “reminder” bullet will outline/review what this visit should center around.] There is no April Leadership meeting in order to help off-set the need to meet with your SDP group. The groups are: Roger, Steve, Wendy… Robi, Brian U., Steph… Chris, Stephen, Teri, Hayley… Lisa, Brian C., Scott
  • MS PD Groups: Principals and APs are together. These groups were formed to meet and discuss issues or PD ideas. Most groups started with brainstorming/discussing “progress monitoring” ideas. These groups are: Robi, Roger, Brian C., Wendy, Colleen… Chris, Lisa, Steve, Teri… Scott, Brian U., Steph, Stephen, Hayley
• The focus of our Feb. 6 Leadership meeting was School Design and priorities for the second round of school visits.  Some of you may have already scheduled and/or conducted your second round visits, but if not, the following is a reminder of what the discussion and visit at each site should center around. In summary, here is what we’ve asked you all to do:
  1. During each of your school visits we’re asking that you discuss a “design ascent” (a success – or two) and “design hurdle” (what is keeping the work from moving forward – and what steps/actions might take place for a step to be taken?).
  2. For the “design evidence,” you are to send Alandra a photo, with a one or two sentence description, that captures one of your design successes this year. (This can be done during your host visit – with input from your team – or can be done at any other time.) This is due to Alandra by May 26.
  3. Finally, the Site Visit #2 handout also includes some process questions at the bottom of the page.

To Do:

• Please read the following from Alandra and send her potential names of your students that fit this description:

  This year we are hoping to feature students in our schools who are changing the world or to have goals in the future to change the world. Do you know a student who fits this description? The students will be featured in a districtwide video as well as our annual district calendar.  Please send back the name of the student you have in mind and a sentence about how you think this student is planning to change the world.  Several schools have already submitted students, but we need a few more.

• If you have a field trip this spring in which a student needs direct care nursing services in order to participate then your school nurse needs at least two weeks notice to make necessary nurse staffing adjustments.

This and That:

• You may have heard it announced already, but I wanted to mention we have hired a new Business Manager for the district – as Zhai Logan will be heading off to retirement.  His name is Roy Burling and he comes to us with a long and successful history of doing similar work with schools.  To show our gratitude of his arrival we’ve given Roy an office at the Ed Center.  Unfortunately, we had to clear out some stored items under the stairs leading down to the basement so he could set up his new space.  Hopefully this will only be temporary!  Please welcome Roy when you cross paths with him.  Currently Roy is working with our insurance carrier and many others to assess and process claims around “snowmageddon” and will be taking on Zhai’s role after May 15 when she officially retires.
• This article, entitled: “5 Big Ideas in Education That Don’t Work” was shared with me a number of weeks ago so you may have already come across it.  It is a short article from NPR that focuses in on some of John Hattie’s work around his extensive research around what makes schools effective.  I enjoy reading what Hattie has to say because his voice is grounded in research, he isn’t afraid of stepping on the toes of tradition, and I usually find myself reflecting on ways his points could be practically implemented.  I hope you feel the same about this article.

To Do:

• Please make sure that all ACR-related student enrollment moves (releasing and receiving students at your school) are completed no later than March 17.  This will allow us time to formalize and send you all next year’s staffing plans by March 24.  Let me know if you have any questions about this.
• Consider sending someone on your staff to a free Dr. Kevin Feldman training on improving adolescent (MS) literacy on March 14 in Eugene.  Travel and any meals costs would be the responsibility of your building.
• Younity, a local group whose vision is to bring bully-prevention programs and workshops to Central Oregon schools.  Their co-founder, Arlene Gibson, recently reached out to us to see what can be done to support this work in Bend-La Pine Schools.  Some of you are aware of this work and have partnered with Younity already, while others of you likely have not. They provide resources for activities such as Challenge Day, teacher and/or student trainings, workshops and assemblies.  If interested in learning more check out their website or pass along to your counselor.

This and That:

• Last Thursday evening we held what was likely our first district-wide evening event for our Latino parents and families. It was a pretty good turnout of parents and Steve and his staff at PBMS did a wonderful job of hosting.  What I want to spend a few minutes communicating this week are two strong messages that I received from the events of that evening.  I was able to join one of three groups of parents as they rotated through three different stations that evening and I want to highlight parent response in two of these. One session spoke of our school choice options, explaining both what these schools offered and the process for application.  As each was discussed – and in turn interpreted in Spanish – parents were attentive.  When one principal who was in attendance, and spoke for himself in fluent Spanish, presented the program at his school the engagement and energy in the room immediately changed.  Parents were taking notes, asking questions and were obviously interested in what was being communicated first-hand in their first language.  This was a great reminder that although we have a desire to include n0n-native English speakers in all programs and activities in our district, we truly do not connect with this minority population until they feel connected.  My thinking of “we are doing OK” reaching out to our Latino community dissolved into “we are nowhere near” where we need to be in providing and servicing our Latino community. The second message, this one pinging my heart more than the first, I received in a session where parents were able to ask any question or share any concern they had about our district.  The topic could be anything – and yet it the theme was the same parent after parent who spoke.  Bullying.  Our kids are different than the majority and other kids at his/her school are harassing them about it.  Of the 25 or so parents in one group I listened to, I can’t recall one who did not mention that their child either had experienced or was experiencing bullying at school.  (I believe the vast majority of parents currently have children in the elementary or middle school level.) In some cases they felt like staff have ignored or not responded appropriately when they were aware of it happening (e.g. “Hey you guys, knock it off”).  Some said they come and spoke with a school administrator, but the bullying persisted and they did not come and communicate it again as they did not feel this attempt toward a solution worked.  Others simply said they did not feel welcome/invited to come to school. It hurt to hear this perception of parents who have kids in our great schools.  I know this would have pained you to hear these stories as well – because I know you desire for all students to feel welcome, safe and accepted at your schools.  This reminded me of the graphic below that not only makes me think – but also is a call to action.  So I ask you each to consider – and discuss with each other when you meet together! – what action you can take in your building in the days/months/years ahead that will remove any unintended systemic barriers for all students to fully access his/her education. (e.g. Hiring a Spanish speaker the next time you have an opening in the office, hosting a celebration or informational evening specifically for minority populations of any kind, providing or supporting cultural awareness trainings for your staff, etc.)  I am proud of the educational experience our students receive at each of our schools and very thankful for your leadership.  I am blessed to work with and for you!

Reminders:

• We have a Leadership meeting Monday afternoon beginning at 3:15 in the Board Room.  A main agenda item for that afternoon will be a discussion about the upcoming budget.
• If you were not aware, Classified Employee Appreciation Week is March 6 – 10.

This and That:

• News from Austin James: Beginning the fall of 2017, we plan to enable a new Synergy feature that will automatically calculate the FTE for each student.

  Why are we making this change?

  Reporting accurate FTE values is essential because our funding is dependent on student FTE.   Calculating student FTE is difficult.  Since the 2013-14 school year, we have asked office staff to manage FTE changes manually.  Enabling this new feature will relieve this burden.  Additionally, allowing Synergy to calculate student FTE values allows calculations to be more consistent, which will reduce errors and allow for easier identification of possible issues.

  How does this new feature work?

  Synergy will take the school calendar, meeting days, bell schedules, and the student schedule into account when making this calculation.  For more information, please contact Austin James.

  How will this change affect staff at my school?

  Since Synergy will be calculating student FTE, registrars, counselors, and counseling support staff will no longer need to manage FTE changes.  These staff will need to continue to record student enrollments and class schedule changes accurately in Synergy.  Schedulers will need to be accurate when entering data while setting up the master schedule for the next year.  Additionally, keeping school calendars and bell schedules up to date will be vital.  The Information Technology department will continue to provide assistance in accurately inputting school schedules, bell schedules, and emergency closure days.

  When will training be available for my staff?

  Middle and high school schedules can be complex.  We would like the opportunity to sit down with MS and HS office staff to help them become comfortable with these upcoming changes.  We would also like to listen to their concerns so that we can work together to build a workable implementation plan for each school.  Rachel Mavis will reach out in the near future to begin these conversations.  

  If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask Austin.

• As you likely have heard by now, educational expert Rick DuFour passed away on Feb. 8 after a long battle with lung cancer.  In a recent Marshall Memo (673) some of Rick’s thoughts on a variety of topics were highlighted by Kim – who has featured no less than 31 articles over the years on Rick’s thoughts on education.  Here are a few of Rick’s quotes related to teaching, as noted in previous Marshall Memos:
  • “If those within the school believe that the causes of student learning lie outside their spheres of influence – in the genes or social background of their students – school improvement efforts will be viewed as futile, if not ridiculous.”  (with Timothy Berkey, in Memo 146)
  • “Regardless of how ‘good’ a faculty may consider its school, for the parent whose child does not learn, the school has failed the child – 100 percent.”  (Memo 318)
  • “[T]here’s no such thing as a universally effective teaching strategy; the effectiveness of any given strategy can only be determined by evidence of its effect on student learning.”  (with Mike Mattos, in Memo 480)
  • “Teaching is the profession that creates all other professions.”  (Memo 636)

Reminders:

• No MS Horizontal meeting on Monday, Feb. 27.

To Do:

• If you haven’t already, add the Job Fair on April 10, 2017 to your calendar.  We’ll be meeting in Redmond at the fairgrounds from about 12:00 – 6:00pm again this year.
• As you likely remember, we are not meeting as a Horizontal group this month.  (Our meeting on the afternoon of Feb. 24 has been cancelled.)  What I ask you to consider doing instead is meet with your MS leader peers to talk about your role as a “lead learner.”  Things like, how are you modeling (your personal) learning at your school?  How are you learning alongside your teachers? How have you set up systems so groups of teachers can analyze, evaluate, problem-solve and be creative around the topic of student learning? What are some things you have done to create a culture of learning? We have much to learn from each other. But we often do not take the time to share ideas around the school leader(s) being a leader of learning – some of the most important work you do.  These aren’t discussions that we have often, but we should.  I challenge you to use the afternoon of Feb. 24 – or any other time in the next month that might work better – and talk with your colleagues about what it does/could look like to be a lead learner.  I recommend you stay in the same Horizontal group (Robi, Roger, Brian, Wendy – Scott, Brian U, Steph, Stephen D, Hayley – Chris, Lisa – Steve S, Teri) you have met with once previously and that have building admin teams meeting together.  If you need more guidance/direction around this topic please let me know as I’d love to help!

This and That:

• There is a first-time (to my knowledge) event happening next week that I am excited about and you are invited to attend.  I hear that our very own Mr. Stancliff will be kicking off the evening and that is something nobody should miss!  Here are the details:

  Latino Family Night, Feb. 23 from 5 to 7 p.m. at Pilot Butte Middle School cafeteria

   The goal of this event is to connect with our Latino families, send the message that all families and students are welcome in our schools and to help Spanish-speaking families connect with resources.

• As you are fully aware, we are in the midst of a stretch in the school year that historically is one of the tougher times to maintain a positive attitude.  There is quite a bit of support for this belief when considering student behavior data (which I believe reflects not only on the student, but also the adults working with these students).  And although I know you are all very resilient people who put your best face on every morning, I am not naive enough to think that this does not take its toll on you as well.  With that in mind, I’ve included an article that contains some suggestions for social-emotional health of a school leader.  Although I can’t say I agree with every point the author suggests, I do believe it holds a number of assertions I would support and encourage you to reflect on.
• I aspire to be more like E.F. Hutton than not.  Remember those commercials?  “When E.F. Hutton talks, people listen.”  I don’t want to be the person that listeners have to filter what I say in order to search for something valuable.  Rather, I hope I listen more than I speak, and when I do talk it has some merit for those around me.  With that said, I would encourage you to take a few minutes to read this webpage that highlights a math professional development opportunity for your teachers.  I am no math curriculum expert, but from what I have read and learned about Jo Boaler and her mathematical teaching approaches, I believe any of our students (whether they believe they are “good at math” or not) would benefit from her approach to math instruction.  This PD costs $99, is offered over the summer of 2017, and is said to take approximately 30 hours to complete.  I’d encourage you to share this page/information with your staff and work with any that are interested in pursuing this opportunity.

Reminders:

• There is no school on Monday – enjoy Presidents’ Day and your three-day weekend!

To Do:

• Please pass this link (https://goo.gl/forms/iZdmfy4xZGRWykPP2) on to your math teachers. This is an anonymous survey to collect their candid feedback regarding their experience with Eureka Math this year.  Please stress that we are aiming for 100% participation as their voice has a heavy weight in this adoption process.  The deadline for completing this survey is Friday, Feb. 24.  Thank you!
• Consider whether you (and one of your science teachers) would be interested in hosting a science student teacher candidate for the month of May (1st – 31st). This candidate would like to extend her license to include ML Science and needs time in a MS classroom to be eligible for this.  If you are interested/willing to consider – or have any specific questions about this opportunity – please let me know!
• If you are a building principal, unless your last name is Crook, please pull up your goals in Talent Ed and review/insert your mid-year data around these.  You can either send me this through Talent Ed, or we can touch base on this when I am in your building the next time.

This and That:

• Under the “something I’ve learned from a school” heading, I wanted to pass along how Tim Broadbent at Three Rivers utilized a few of his SIW times this academic year for teacher PD.  Connecting their Design work – with Student B – with CCSS, he provided his teachers with two SIW times to create four new lessons.  Teachers taught those lessons over the course of the past number of weeks, then shared out the details of how it went, its value, and learnings that they took from it.  I’ll use Tim’s own words to let you know how this went:

  “Each presentation was great. The best part was hearing from teachers how they chose which CCSS to address and the empowerment they felt from feeling trusted to design their own curriculum. While a few teaching partners prepared a formal presentation, all of them shared student samples. It was a great afternoon and a powerful reminder that if we empower our teachers to do the work they are trained to do, that great things can and do happen.”

• As you will remember, Jay has facilitated a group that was considering school start times.  This committee was made up of parents, transportation, HS athletics, union representation, teachers, community partners, building and district administrators. Steph Bennett, a parent from REALMS,  and I were middle school representatives for these meetings.  We have come to a point where this group will be making a recommendation based on the recommendation to date to Shay in the coming weeks.  There is no plan at this point to make any start time adjustments for the 2017-18 school year, but rather to use the coming months to collect additional information from our community before a final decision is made and put into place.  Lastly, one other option that was not seriously considered (yet) is an universal start time for all K-12.  There will be some work done through transportation this summer to determine if this last option can even be in the mix with our currently available bus fleet and drivers.

Reminders:

• If your building has done any tweaking on your School Design Plan this year please make sure these updates are reflected within the version saved in Google Drive (“gapps” account) as well.
• A quick reminder regarding your monthly Leave Sheet.  You only need to indicate days that you took “sick leave” (or FMLA or Worker’s Comp) during the previous leave period.  If your days do not match your Admin Calendar you completed in the fall (you’ve either worked or didn’t work a day not matching your fall calendar) for a reason other than “sick leave” then please keep track of these changes yourself and make sure you work the correct number of days assigned to your position.  Let me know if you have any questions regarding this.
• If you haven’t completed your mid-year reviews with your certified staff please be working on those.  Remember, this can count as one of your min-observations.

This and That:

• An article recently shared with me, “Mindset Can Impact Perceptions of Student Behavior,” contrasts how a “fixed” or “growth” mindset can have a direct affect on how we view and process student behavior incidents.  I believe it is not a stretch to also make these same comparisons to student learning.  Here is one of the great quotes taken from this article to wet your appetite to read more: “Teachers in a fixed mindset are more likely to interpret the defiance as an indication of ‘who’ that child is as a person. In contrast a growth minded teacher may dig deeper, able to separate the behavior from the person. This can allow the teacher to understand that the child is trying to communicate something in an unskilled manner rather than it being an expression of his character.”
• Next week (Feb. 6 – 10) is National School Counselor Week.  I’m sure I don’t have to tell you what a vital role school counselors play in the social and emotional well-being of your students; supporting and working with youth so they are able to fully access her/his education.  I’m also sure that counselors across our district were recognized along with teachers during Teacher Appreciation Week.  However, I encourage you to take the opportunity next week to personally thank your school counselor for the work they do day in and day out on behalf of our students.
• Here is some information regarding a statewide tip line that you may have seen come across your inbox this week – and our district’s approach to how we are processing it: On January 31^st, 2017, the state of Oregon in conjunction with the Oregon State Task Force on School Safety and the Oregon State Police sent out a press release for the SafeOregon tip line. The tip line has been mandated through the Oregon State Legislation for use in all public schools in Oregon, pre-school through 12^th grade, though the official start date has not been established by the state.Bend-La Pine Schools was attempting to work with the project managers for the tip line as early adopters, but due to the events of the past few weeks, we were unable to get established in time for the early adopter program by the roll out date of January 31^st. The project managers for the tip line would like to see all schools set up and ready to use the tip line no later than the start of next school year. We are working with the project managers to decide the best way to train our staff and roll out the tip line to all our schools within the district.Here is an information sheet overviewing the tip line. We plan on presenting more information on the tip line during the next leadership meeting. In the meantime, if you have any further questions or concerns regarding the tip line, please contact Scott Bojanowski @ 541-355-1011.

Reminders:

• We are having a building admin/leadership meeting on Monday beginning at 3:15 in the Board Room.  Jay sent out an email last Friday (1/27) with the questions prompts that we’ll be discussing at this meeting.  I hope you’ve taken the opportunity to complete the short survey that was also linked in the email you received.  We will be reviewing the results of this survey today as we make final plans for our Monday Leadership meeting.

This and That:

• One of the great things I get to do in my job is visit and learn from all of you at least once a month.  When I’d be having a tough day as a building administrator I always found pleasure and perspective in visiting classrooms – which would help provide that nudge to stay focused and not let all of the distracting “noise” through me off course of being the best leader I could be.  I’m grateful that now I can scratch this itch by coming to your building(s), seeing the work you are doing and learning more about the great leadership you are providing day in and day out.  I hope to not keep my learning from you private however.  At my last visit to PCMS I was able to hear and learn a bit about the structured, engaging and focused work Chris and Lisa are doing with their teachers around lesson design.  It is called GRASPS and I’ve linked some information here – or you can find this same document under the Instruction/PD tab at the top if the TRIBE page at any time. I found this lesson design model to be a very thorough approach to connecting learning of content with students as learners (and teens!). I encourage you to pick Chris and Lisa’s brain on their journey with the GRASPS framework – including what it has looked like, how they have engaged teachers/PLCs, what has worked and what they would do differently.
• Please take a look at this Discretionary and School Improvement budget update (as of 1/25/17).  As we are nearing the midpoint in the school year it seemed like a good time to let you know where you currently stand.  Remember, you can carry over as much as 10% of these budgets, but not more.
• I’m not sure if this fits under “be aware,” “freedom of speech,” or “what where they thinking” but here is a recent news story that my sister brought to my attention and asked for my opinion on.  Ultimately this news highlights the reality for me that every move you make is watched and critiqued – even if you don’t know it.

Reminders:

• Area Change Request (ACR) forms must be submitted to a current student’s home school by March 1.  Please make sure your office staff hand out or direct those requesting an ACR to the newest update of this form.  In addition to this link I’ve provided, this latest update can also be found by searching the Staff Portal.
• The weather is warming up and the snow is melting – which is definitely a good thing.  With this also comes the potential for ice on your walkways and parking lots – which has led to some falls (some serious) of students and staff this past week.  Please remind your school community to “walk like a penguin” and be alert even though the sun is shining and the temperature is rising.

This and That:

• As most of you are aware already, Josh Marks has created a flowchart for navigating the expulsion process for a student on an IEP.  Thanks to the many of you who have had input into this process.  Along with this direct link for IEP Expulsion Process, you can find this document any time within the BLS Docs tab in TRIBE.  Feel free to share this document with your building SPED case managers if/when it is needed.
• Not long ago I read an article entitled Productive Struggle in Middle-School Classrooms. What struck me, besides the obvious that I was one of those students whose goal was “expedient” or “avoidant” help-seeking, was the author’s assertion that struggle is part of the learning process [not just the memorization of content – my words].  Although it is a short read, I hope something will resonate, make you pause to think, or be able to be applied in your building.
• Here is some welcome news that just came through my inbox.  You may or may not have heard, but wanted to pass along just the same:

  State Board of Education to Consider Temporary Rules for Instructional Time

  Members of the Oregon State Board of Education will consider temporary rules regarding flexibility for instructional time to accommodate the high number of inclement weather delays and cancellations this school year during the Board’s next meeting on January 26, 2017.

Reminders:

• Last Friday you received an email from Dave VanLoo regarding SBAC Opt Out form.  I’ve linked the English and Spanish versions here, as well as the administrator/teacher FAQ for you to reference.  You can find all of these under BLS Docs for future reference as well.  Please remember to communicate this opt out option to parents sometime in January (as you would normally distribute your monthly newsletter).
• We have a MS Horizontal meeting on Monday, beginning at 3:15, at HDMS media center. Here is the agenda.