High School Rock Stars!

To Do:

Considerations for the coming week in our nation: I do not need to tell you that people in our community (staff in our school community as well as families in our broader community) are feeling maxed, anxious, and worn out. While at the same time I believe there is also an element of feeling empowered. Some of this empowerment, I believe, is positive and healthy, while other displays of empowerment are not. Last week’s unlawful event at the US Capital may be a prelude to other unlawful and/or disruptive events that may occur in the coming days. I am asking that each of you share the following information with your staff as it relates to talking about controversial issues (specifically those connected with the current political climate – but any topic that may potentially be controversial). First, talking about tough topics is absolutely something that must be a part of a student’s educational experience. These should not be avoided – if done right. Here is a very helpful checklist for a teacher to consider. (All steps are not required, but are rather meant to be a support when planning, conducting, and reflecting on teaching/dialogue related to equity and anti-racism.) To set the stage for controversial conversations to be productive and not reactionary or isolated, the classroom climate must be developed intentionally over time–our LEAD Cohort’s website has tools for steadily building a climate of equity dialogue. We also have district Administrative Regulation (GBG-AR) regarding Staff Participation in Political Activities. I’d like to highlight the third and fourth paragraphs. In essence, I interpret these as saying that teachers can talk about politics in their classroom, but the keys are to make sure both sides of the issue/topic are presented/represented, and that the teacher’s own viewpoints need to be represented as personal and not that of an official district stance. Finally, it may be helpful to remind staff of this BLS Election Guidance that was sent out earlier this fall. All of these documents should be seen as support for teachers in how to prepare for and facilitate difficult conversations within the classroom learning environment.

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Learning Options Survey: You will be able to see your school’s results from the school option survey closing on Wednesday, Jan. 20. Be sure to add your contact person for your school into this document!

So far, 2128 responses for high school; 1883 say Hybrid, 109 BLPO, 136 CDL. Total enrollment: 39% has responded out of total HS enrollment have responded.

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Check out this St Charles Hospital LINK for an update on vaccination scheduling in our country.

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Here are two updates that you will likely want to share with your staff: First, a student who starts semester 2 in either BLPO or District CDL will be allowed to take classes within these programs and also take elective classes (e.g. Spanish, band, etc.) at their neighborhood school as long as there is room (think social distancing requirements) in the class they want to take. Transportation is the responsibility of the parent – it will not be provided by the district. Also, if the student wants to take more than one class at your building and these classes are not back-to-back in the schedule, you do not need to find a place for this student to wait on campus based on the restraints placed on us due to this pandemic.

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Secondly, in the Leadership meeting today Paul wrote in the chat that we need to pause all in-person choir and band classes for a week. Because these classes are not meeting at the MS level, this pause should not affect any of your teachers/students. I want to provide you a quick snapshot of the conversation that will take place regarding this: A music representative (one who is passionate about being able to work with kids in the classroom) will be meeting with Paul and other health professionals next Friday to explain why allowing band and choir – having choir in this discussion was new to me – should be allowed to occur at school, inside. From there this health advisory board will make a recommendation regarding this. The district will consider this recommendation before making a final decision on what to allow as we start Hybrid in a month.

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We opened up the SEL EA positions to high school today. Folks who apply can indicate which high school they are interested in. We don’t have a lot of applicants for the posted SEL EA positions. If you do have an applicant that you’d like to hire – and that person currently works in another building in our district – you may offer this individual a job (after going through the hiring process), but they will not come work at your site until the building they are being taken from can replace them. We are not going to pilfer one school to fill a position at another school. Also, if it is helpful, you may convert these 7 hours of classified into certified hours. If you are thinking of doing this please let me know.

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The week of Jan. 25, as you know, is scheduled to be an asynchronous instruction week and time for you to meet and train your staff on the new safety systems and other processes that you’ll be implementing in Hybrid. How much time you’ll have daily for meetings/trainings is still to be determined. Attendance will not be taken this week. All students will have a VP attendance code.

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If anyone asks: “When will ‘deep cleaning’ occur?” please tell them that this will happen nightly. Your custodians will be busy not only cleaning but also spraying down classrooms and offices so that each morning all surfaces have been disinfected. And, this reminds me, you may want to let your staff know that if they leave papers out, the next morning they will show signs of curling.

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Gloves are not required to be worn when teachers clean desks during classroom transitions. However, if a teacher would like to wear gloves, please request these via PPE request process that your Office Manager is likely aware of.

FAN Updates:  FAN Advocates should be working from the building as we all transition to in-person learning.  I have asked them to connect with you as they revise their work schedule.  FAN Advocates need to be visible and available to students, staff and families on a weekly basis.  They are aware that bell schedules have changed, and they will need to change their schedules also.  The MAC survey is coming up in the next two weeks.  More to come.  Mara Stephens will be leaving our district in February.  I will introduce our new Homeless Liaison as soon as we have someone on board.  As always, please call/email Dana Pedersen if you have any questions regarding FAN or homeless education.  

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Please remind your staff (and model yourself) of the importance with checking in and out of the building every day (for those who are coming into the building). This is the established way of knowing who interacts with whom if/when a positive case is found.

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Calendar:

We have a district admin equity PD with BRYT this next Wednesday from 3:00 – 4:30. We will be meeting in-person at SVMS (same rooms as before). Please be sure to include your equity goals in the doc and make the comments on the goals from your team.

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HS Principal CDL Webex; Tuesday, January 19 @ 12:00

HS Admin WebEx: Thursday, January 21@ 1:00

To Do:

As we get ready to welcome students back in Hybrid, here is an article from the Washington Post about welcoming students and staff safely back to in-person learning.

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Please make note of this needed communication with transportation regarding LIPI… As you know, the last day for LIPI transportation is Jan. 29. As you also know, we are planning to start asynchronous teaching on Jan. 25. If you are going to continue LIPI during the week of Jan. 25, you do not need to communicate anything to transportation (as they are planning on picking up kids through that week). If you are planning on NOT having LIPI during the week of Jan. 25, then please notify both your LIPI families AND transportation of your new end date for LIPI.

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Please communicate with your staff (certified and classified) that they all need to report back to your building no later than Monday, Jan. 25th. This is the first day of asynchronous teaching and two weeks before Hybrid starts. (MS staff will be asked to report back on this same day, while elementary will return starting next week.).

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Youthtruth survey is due January 22. Monday, Dave Van Loo will resend you the link to share with your families, staff and students.

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Don’t forget to comment on your peer’s equity goals within this spreadsheet in the coming days – prior to our next Excellence and Equity PD on Jan. 20.

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Third-year probationary letters are due to HR by Jan. 22. Please reach out to Jon with any questions related to these.

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TalentEd Perform is now set up for you to enter your SLGGs and Self Assessment. Principals, please plan on completing these two documents in TalentEd no later than Monday, Feb. 1. Assistant Principals, please work with your principal to determine when yours are due.

Information:

Lora’s Corner:

Student teachers: We have checked with TSPC and our partners at George Fox and OSU-Cascades, and student teachers can be hired with restricted licenses for the remainder of this school year. I have shared with the programs that the student teachers need to follow the regular application process if they are interested. NOTE: the OSU-Cascades student teachers would need substitutes for 8 Fridays between now and the end of the year. IF a principal believes that the OSU-Cascades student-teacher is still the best candidate, the district will cover the sub costs as professional development.

Many of our board members, as well as myself, want to be visible in the schools as we re-open (even with small groups) or now with small group instruction-WITHOUT BEING IN THE WAY. PLEASE send us emails to help out with recess, kindergarten orientation, or the first weeks at school, lunch supervision, etc. Anything that could be a genuine help to you and your staff! Please include me as well in this!

All administrators and supervisors are INVITED (not required) to attend a virtual leadership team meeting in Lora’s WebEx room on Friday, 1/15, at 1:00 for updates on returning to school.

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Paul’s Corner:

COVID Updates: An administrator cheat sheet has been created to assist building leaders in planning for in-person learning.  I’m still waiting for a link to the cleaning protocol and will let you know when that is ready.  I hope this helps consolidate your thinking with a task-orientated checklist.  

HR Update: A letter is going out to all classified staff to determine their return to work intent now that the K-12 phased-in plan has been communicated.  OSEA is reviewing the draft letter and we’ll copy you on the email to classified staff either this afternoon or early Monday when it is sent out.  As a reminder, please be actively reaching out to both your certified and classified staff as we transition in-person education so that you can respond to any workforce issues of people taking Leaves of Absence.  We will not be holding people to 60 days of prior notice due to these unique times.  We encourage administrators/supervisors to post anticipated open positions ASAP for HR approval.  

Return To School Email: I’ll be crafting a Return To School email next week to address some of the most popular topics around meals in school, ventilation, masking and cleaning protocols.  Expect that the all-staff email to be sent mid-week.  There will also be a Leadership Team meeting next Friday, January 15th, at 1 pm to discuss other return to school topics.

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An important document to have up to date is this Covid Checklist. As you update it/make changes, please make sure you send Amy Stafford a copy of your updates so she can then update your plan on our district’s webpage. This will be reviewed at your site visit with Paul (and I).

Calendar:

HS Admin WebEx: Thursday, January 14 @ 1:00

For reflection…

This article from Education Week, Should Schools be Giving So Many Failing Grades This Year could have been written about our district and is a trend we are seeing nationally. I am excited for us to continue our discussions on equitable grading practices with the goal of moving to a grading system that clearly reflects learning!

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Also from Education Week, I was struck by this quote from the article: How To Close Opportunity Gaps during our National Racial Reckoning: “Opportunity gaps increase when teachers consider themselves the only—or the main—arbiters of knowledge and knowing, ignoring the enormous range of expertise, insights, and brilliance in local and broader contexts.”

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From Dean Richards and Michele Clements: This week’s post contains a session cut from Mountain View.  Joel Clements, long-time English teacher and BEA rep at MVHS has used a no-zero grading policy for many years.  He hosted two sessions to help educate and field staff questions and support making the change. We have the best ten minutes of that session on the blog.  Also, an annotated chart showing the different grade outcomes in a variety of scenarios.  And finally, a couple of supplemental resources for those wanting more. Can We Live Without Zeros?

The survey feedback is positive in regards to continuing with these weekly secondary PD blog posts and sending it straight to staff via an email.  If you didn’t get a chance to provide your feedback, here is the link: Distribution and Frequency Survey.

To Do:

This chart was designed as a tool for navigating who decides (or who needs to be asked) Covid-related questions. If you haven’t already, please share this with your staff so they know who to contact if they have a question.

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Please check your classrooms and other doorways to make sure all areas of your buildings comply with the fire code, including that no obstruction (like a student desk) is within a 3 ft x 3 ft area in front of each classroom door (interior or exterior facing).

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Here is the Inclement Weather practice during CDL document from HR. Please read over this one-pager and communicate it with your staff.

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Here is another document to share with your certified staff. The SLGGs, observations, and evaluation process this year has been modified for our certified staff to accommodate distance learning. These changes were made in collaboration with BEA and building-district level staff. The evaluation process for administrators remains the same as years past. According to Stephanie Bent, there was a glitch in setting up admin SLGGS and self-reflections in TalentEd Perform and she has to reassign them. Stephanie is hoping to complete that process today. Please have those two docs completed and sent to me by Monday, January 18.

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If you haven’t already, please add your three (Admin PD) equity goals to the spreadsheet, under the tab that corresponds to the facilitator of our last training. Again, two of these goals should be attainable in the short term with the third goal being a “stretch” goal. Having this completed by today is ideal (so you don’t have to complete it over the break). By January 15, please add your reflections on your colleagues’ goals in the same spreadsheet.

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Just a reminder that the YouthTruth survey window is from Jan. 4 – Jan. 22. Be sure to review the email that was sent directly to you. It has guidelines helpful for scheduling and communicating about this opportunity to collect feedback about our progress. Also, the YouthTruth virtual training for secondary administrators is officially scheduled for February 11 from 1:00-2:30. Here is the Zoom link everyone will need to attend: https://zoom.us/my/youthtruthjimmy. Reach out to Dave or me if you have any questions or concerns about this.

Calendar:

Happy 2021! HS Administrator WebEx: 1:00, January 7, 2021

Enjoy your winter break!

To Do:

Quick step-by-step doc for making grading changes: Becky and Laura have created a beautiful “cheat sheet” of how to make the changes in both Synergy and Canvas to update our systems (P/NG and “eliminating the 59 point F”). Here is that document. Laura has posted this document in Canvas and has been sharing it with teachers. According to her, many teachers have already made changes. Lora will attach this to her letter at the first of the week, as well, I want you to have to share, as well.

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On Wednesday, December 16^th, we are all invited to a virtual forum with our two superintendent finalists: the first candidate will participate from 9:30-10:30, and then the second candidate from 10:30-11:30. Afterward, you should allow yourself some time to fill out the debrief form. The finalists will make a short presentation, and then the rest of each session will be a Q & A, moderated by Jim Boen. We are collecting ideas for questions in advance so that Jim can organize them and ask the same questions to each candidate. I have attached a document created by the board of directors regarding the core competencies they’re seeking in the district’s next superintendent, in case you’d like to reference it. Here’s the link to submit questions: https://forms.gle/CVt3jfeJw7skEeXS9

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Information:

Notes from Amy Tarnow: Grade Guardian for Teachers:  Teachers will have access to their own dashboards in Grade Guardian by Monday, December 14th.  Aspire EDU will be hosting their first training for our teachers from 2-3 on Wednesday, December 16th.  We will post a global announcement in Canvas on Tuesday letting staff know about this synchronous training opportunity.    For those who are unable to attend, additional training will be offered after the holiday break. A recording of the December 16 training will be posted in the Canvas Grade Guardian 101 – Instructor Module. Teachers may self-register for this course through this link:  https://bls.instructure.com/enroll/B4P3CF

WebEx Update:  We still don’t have a definitive answer to what has been causing the increase in WebEx issues we have seen since Thanksgiving.  However, through work with the company it has been determined that rolling back to a previous version of the app is helpful.  As of this morning, this version will install automatically before you host your next WebEx meeting (you must start your meeting from the https://bls.webex.com/ website).  It is our hope is that teachers and students will see some stability return to their WebEx meetings with the implementation of this change.  If you continue to hear about problems with WebEx meetings after today, we would appreciate it if you would take a moment to describe them on this form. 

How to check your WebEx Version:

1. Start a Webex Meeting
2. Go to “WebEx Meeting” in top menu bar by the apple
3. Go to “About Webex Meeting”
4. You should be on version 40.11.5.11

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Tier 1 Training: Our Instructional Tech team will be hosting a Tier 1 support meeting geared towards helping your Tier 1 staff support our middle and high school students with CDL. It will be a good chance for these staff to connect with our team, get a basic overview of Canvas and WebEx functions, and ask other questions. Roy Fuller has already sent the following information to these people on your staff.  If you have others who are helping in this capacity and might not be on his list, please feel free to pass it on: 

Tier One Support Session: Supporting Your CDL Role

When: Wednesday, December 16, 8:00 – 9:00 AM

Where: Christie McCormick’s room: https://bls.webex.com/meet/christie.mccormick

What: 

• Overview of Canvas basics (the student experience)
• How to use WebEx to help students
• Q&A (what is working, what is not working, etc.)

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Jim shared this article and video with me, mostly because he wants to promote where he went to high school but also because it’s a cool article about how to teach band in CDL: Gladstone band instruction evolves during distance learning. Your music teachers will appreciate seeing this- as well as many of your other teachers.

Calendar:

SCOIR training: Tuesday, Dec 15 at 1:00 – every school sends one administrator. Here is the link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89448486730?pwd=Rm9ZQmwrM1pLeG9LVkl0bUM5K1krQT09

Sup Finalist Admin Q and A:  Wednesday, Dec 16 @9:30-10:30 and 10:30-11:30

Sup Finalist Forum:  Wednesday, Dec 16 @5:00pm and 6:15pm

HS Admin WebEx: Thursday, Dec 17@ 1:00

To Do:

As I reminded folks this week (via email), we have our rescheduled Equity and Excellence training (with Courney from BRYT) for this next Wednesday from 3:00 – 4:30. Here is the Zoom link to access the training. And, don’t forget to have your homework completed!

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Please remind your staff to not come to work if they are feeling ill (even if it is just a case of the sniffles). If they do come to work and end up having to test for COVID – and test positive – then contract tracing kicks in and likely will place additional staff into a quarantine situation.

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Becky Rehwalt and Laura Clark are preparing step-by-step instructions for your teachers (for both Canvas and Synergy) to follow regarding both the P/NG and “no zero” grading changes. You should see that information by Wednesday morning. Many of your teachers will have already completed much or most (even all?) of these steps by then – which is great – but want to make sure you have (prior to SIW next week) all of the steps necessary for teachers to take that will maintain smooth and accurate grade reporting.

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Informational:

The evaluation committee finalized the plan for the 2020-21 school year last night. It is very similar to what I shared with you at our meeting this week. By state law, all probationary teachers are required to have two formal observations (pre meeting, observe, post meeting). You will need to still do this. Additionally, plan on one mini for probationary teachers. For contract teachers, plan on doing three minis for teachers on evaluation cycle and two minis for teachers not on cycle. Additionally, the domains/standards that you’ll be asked to report on in the summative evaluation will be greatly reduced for this year. This will be true not only for teachers, but for other certified specialists as well (counselors, psychs, etc.). Lastly, we are preparing a menu of SLGG goals you can choose from for staff in the three additional SEL areas added this year. You should have the final document explaining these changes prior to winter break, but feel free to get going on this soon.

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As you are likely aware, Deschutes county is now categorized as being in “extreme risk” level by the state due to our increase and large positive Covid cases. Here is a chart that outlines what this means to our county. Although K-12 schools are exempt from these restrictions, we are using these guidelines to inform our district decisions around safety protocols.

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The second Disciplinary Literacy training for new hires will be January 13^th from 2-4.  Please prioritize the attendance for your staff.  This training will focus on metacognition on the Habits of Mind and Habits of Interactions within specific academic disciplines.  If you have questions please reach out to Dean Richards.

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This may likely not be occurring, but wanted you to have this guidance just in case… If any (2 or more) staff members need to travel together in the same vehicle for work-related purposes, then all staff should wear a mask during the entire travel time (and then follow mask protocols after that as well). Let me know if you have any questions on this.

Calendar:

HS Principal WebEx with Alandra to talk ACR process/Caldera/8th grade orientation discussion: Wednesday, December 9@ 10:00

HS Administrator WebEx: Thursday, December 10@ 1:00

Kathy Nagel Hood, Dave Hood’s wife and a counselor in the community shared this statement about how adults can help our children navigate during the pandemic. She gave me permission to share it with others. I find wisdom in her words.

To Do:

Grading Practices and revised CDL schedule: I appreciate the quality conversations you are having with teachers about equitable grading practices and how best to revise the CDL schedule to address the needs of our students who are currently and have been historically unsuccessful in school. HERE is the equitable grading document we will be sending out to staff. I will be working with Lora on how best to communicate with parents about these changes. This document outlines the two equitable grading changes we are implementing at the high schools and emphasizes the importance of continuing conversations at the building level to select one or two other practices to adopt at your schools. These conversations focus on both short term and long term improvements in grading practices that are long overdue. Thank you for your courageous leadership in this important work!

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Here is the link to the Return to School page on our website. Check it out, as it allows easy access for staff to important COVID information, including the metrics.

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Please remind your staff to stay home if they are not feeling well – even if they have the sniffles. Tami and her nursing team are facing some challenging situations related to folks NOT doing this, then testing positive after symptoms develop. I know staying if you are bit under the weather seems extreme, but in our current scenario it is necessary to protect others around you!
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LIPI during the Governor’s “two-week pause” we are not adding additional students to LIPI. We are, however, continuing to offer LIPI to those students who have been participating. You can continue to work on lists and processes for adding additional students so you are ready to go when LIPI expansion is once again given the green light.

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Sub availability: This is a not today or tomorrow “to do” item, but one that I wanted to get on your radar. Our elementary schools have gone through a process of contacting subs they have used in the past in order to gauge their availability during Hybrid (and even in-person) instruction. As you know, we are using very few subs during CDL, but our need will drastically change beginning with Hybrid. You may want to begin having your Office Manager (or other) reach out to subs you have used (or possibly expanding that list) in the past to inquire about their availability. Our elementary schools found their sub interest/availability is dramatically reduced – even from the fall of last year. Reach out to me if you’d like to process this further.

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A reminder about YouthTruth: I included this information in last week’s blog, but wanted to remind you about the readiness work to do in preparation for the YouthTruth student surveys prior to the survey window of Jan. 4 – 22, 2021.  At least one building administrator at every HS needs to become familiar with all things YouthTruth. Today I’m sharing two of the things that this administrator needs to do. First, here is a 20-minute kick-off Webinar to watch. This Webinar contains important information regarding these student, staff, and family surveys. This needs to be viewed no later than THIS WEEK. Second, here is a survey timeline that has been developed between YouthTruth and BLS. Please read over and become familiar with this. Third, on Nov. 23 you will receive an email from Whitney Ivie, from YouthTruth, regarding how to access the Student Implementation Guide, so you’ll have time to prepare for this survey before the window opens.

Information:

Here is some information from Amy Tarnow that is both timely and informative…

WebEx Security Updates
Just a reminder that our WebEx instance will be upgraded to be more secure on Monday, November 30th.  At that time, students who are logged in will be able to go directly to their teacher’s WebEx room, whereas those who are not logged in will be in the waiting room until they are let in by their teacher.  We are recommending that teachers have all students login to WebEx before that date.

Hot Spots
Leaders, we have passed out more than 1000 hot spots for internet access and have once again run out of inventory.  Of the 1000 devices that have been distributed, about 200 have never been used or are not currently active.  Could you please help us get those back so they can be distributed to families who need them?  A note in your parent communication would be great.  Something to the effect of “If your family has a wireless hot spot that is not being used, please return it to our school office so we can redistribute it to families in need.  It has become increasingly hard to get these devices and our inventory is limited so your help with this is appreciated!”
One more reminder about hot spots:  Please know that these are NOT intended for staff, as staff can work on site.  If they have been distributed to staff members we appreciate your getting them back so they can go to students and families in need.

Grade Guardian 
We are excited to start our implementation of Grade Guardian in early December. The vendor will be offering two options for live, synchronous training for “Advisors and Allies” which include administrators, counselors, grad coaches and student success instructors on December 3rd and 4th.  Both sessions are at 1 PM.  The “Advisors and Allies” live sessions and Canvas course are for staff who are not tied to any individual course sections in Synergy.Please register by using this form: https://forms.gle/ZDwv2sTsoGkPfB569
For those that would like to start their learning ahead of these vendor-led sessions, you can enroll in a Canvas “Grade Guardian 101 – Advisors” course by clicking this link:  https://bls.instructure.com/enroll/LCL76A

You will need a Canvas account to access both the Grade Guardian 101 course, and Grade Guardian itself.  If you don’t yet have an account, please request one by filling out this form:  https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfWl16wzrdMgviSumkOq5e5lUkC-H2-i_bkI4WWaSK0KsfAhw/viewform

Please note that training for teachers, ELL staff, SPED staff (and others as needed) will happen after these initial sessions.

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After School Specials
And finally, here is some information regarding a few available technology training for staff, or “After School Specials.”

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Professional Development focused on remote teaching: Stanford is offering a free course for MS/HS teachers around “How to Teach Online” that will be offered on November 21 & 22.

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As you may recall, our district, due to what we believe are privacy issues, do not place a copy of STAS documents in a student’s permanent record. However, we do upload and keep a record of these documents hidden (accessible by admin and whoever enters discipline incidents at the building) within Synergy. This video is of Amy Stafford describing (and showing) how an admin can access STAS documents within Synergy. If you have an incident at your school that requires a STAS process, please continue to inter-district mail (or BLSend) these documents to Amy who will keep an original copy, as well as upload it into Synergy. Also, STAS documents have been updated on the Portal – so please use this version rather than any you might have saved on your computer or in a file drawer.

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I’ve been a part of a few conversations around students not having cameras on during Webex instruction. As you know, this is not a mandate (that all students have cameras on) – and also can be very frustrating to the teacher. Here is an article that I just found in the Marshall Memo that had what I thought was both good philosophy and ideas regarding better student engagement in this area. It is a one-page read, so I hope you all take a few minutes to check it out!

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Here is a flyer that outlines some best practices for schools that have social media accounts.

Calendar:

HS Administrator WebEx: Thursday, December 3 @ 1:00

I appreciate this video produced by Sparrow Clubs. It is a wonderful message and will bring a smile to your face: Compassion is Greater.

To Do:

We have contracted with YouthTruth to conduct student surveys with the district in January. There is some “pre-work” that needs to begin occurring – prior to the survey window of Jan. 4 – 22, 2021. At least one building administrator at every HS needs to become familiar with all things YouthTruth. Today I’m sharing two of the things that this administrator needs to do. First, here is a 20-minute kick-off Webinar to watch. This Webinar contains important information regarding these student, staff, and family surveys. This needs to be viewed no later than Nov. 20th. Second, here is a survey timeline that has been developed between YouthTruth and BLS. Please read over and become familiar with this. On Nov. 23 you will receive an email from Whitney Ivie, from YouthTruth, regarding how to access the Student Implementation Guide, so you’ll have time to prepare for this survey before the window opens. Reach out to Dave Van Loo with questions.

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Smarter Balance is still happening this spring…we think… Every year we need to communicate with parents regarding statewide assessments. It is that time of year. We are assuming that there will be statewide assessments this next spring, so we need to communicate with parents about the opportunity to opt-out of these tests. The information that needs to be communicated with your families has been added to your school webpage; all that we need you to do is let them know that it’s there in your next communication with families. This information should be found within the “Our School” tab on your website, then the bottom right side of the page has information regarding opting out. Remember, we are trying to INCREASE the percentage of students taking this test. We will do our due diligence to notify parents in the manner described above and please do NOT promote this option with students and families.

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Grow Your Own Program: If you have an awesome classified staff member who brings diverse talents, background, and/or expertise to our district and might be interested in becoming a certified educator in a hard-to-fill role, please reach out to them to recommend they consider attending the Info Session coming up next week.  See this flyer for details (this has been shared with all classified, but personal invitations go a long way).

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Hoping that you will not need them any time soon, but wanted you to know that STAS documents have been updated (some new forms, and new fillable forms!) and are now available for you to use in the staff portal. New this year is the ‘Level 1 Threat Response Dismissal’ Form. Please use this form if there is a perceived threat but your team determines that it is not necessary to complete the Level 1 Assessment.  Additionally,  please notice that the last document on the Staff Portal is the ‘Level 1 Threat Assessment Packet.’ This packet includes the Level 1 Threat Assessment, Student Interview, Parent Interview, Student-Witness Interview, and Teacher Questionnaire, so there is no need to download each individual document.  

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And speaking of STAS, here is some training information from Misty Groom:

Here you will find the STAS Training Sign up Sheet. To date, 14 schools have participated in the Refresh Training and most schools have signed up for an upcoming training.  I have added new dates for the week of November 16-20.  Additionally, if none of these times work for schools, alternate dates can be made available.  Please let the admin know that they can email me to set up a time that works for their Level 1 team (admin, school counselor, school psych, and SRO). The Refresh Trainings are a part of Best Practices and Fidelity of the Student Threat Assessment System. 

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Information:

Today Governor Brown hosted a press conference to announce a two-week freeze across our state. Here is one news outlet’s summary of that announcement. Reading this summary will likely bring a number of questions to mind in terms of how these restrictions will relate to us here locally – and specifically at BLS. I do not anticipate this impacting our ability to offer LIPI or continue after school athletics, activities, and support after school, but will keep you posted as I learn more. What is more concerning is the upswing in COVID numbers for our county. If we hit the RED zone – which we are close to doing next week – we will have to CONSIDER pulling back on those in person activities. Again, I will keep you posted as I learn more.

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We have discussed, and no doubt you have wondered about, the timeline of students/staff returning to school. Last week this was shared with elementary administrators (as their schools will be affected first by this transition), but also want to communicate this with you. As you will see, secondary schools will move to hybrid after “demonstrated evidence of safe elementary transition.” This is not defined how how long it will take to demonstrate this safety, but we do know MS/HS will come shortly after elementary makes this transition. I can also say with great confidence that we will not meet needed metric benchmarks on Monday, Nov. 16, so the soonest possible will be Nov. 23rd.

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The snow this week has brought up some questions regarding how we are viewing “snow days” this year. The answer may be complicated – based on whether we are talking about CDL or Hybrid. We are working on updating our snow day/school closure language. Today I will provide you with an abbreviated CDL (only) plan. Checking of roads and communicating of closures will occur as they have in the past. What is different, obviously, is that instruction will continue in CDL, whether facilities are closed or not. (Teachers will teach in CDL, students will engage and learn in CDL regardless of whether schools are closed.) If a weather-related closure is called for, then transportation will not run and schools will be closed to students and families (e.g. no LIPI or grab and go lunches served). Please feel free to share this with your staff.

Calendar:

Next Wednesday is our next Excellence and Equity training with BRYT/Courtney. MS groups will be meeting at SVMS again, in the same rooms you were in last time with the same facilitators! Don’t forget to complete your homework prior to our session together. And NOTE A TIME CHANGE: We will now begin at 3:00 (instead of 3:30) and end at 4:30 (instead of 5:00).

HS Administrator WebEx: Monday, November 16 @ 1:00

I appreciated the message in this article about Unfiltered Leadership in Times of Crisis.

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Our next Leadership Excellence and Equity training for administrators and supervisors is scheduled for Wednesday, November 18. Please complete this homework assignment from BRYT/Courtney prior to that date and be ready to share your insights with your small team on that day. 

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Please be sure that your buildings are open during regular hours so the public can access your office staff. I would define “regular office hours” as 8-3. One of your staff members (Office Manager?) should be there to assist folks in person as they come in.

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Following is a message from Alandra ( involvement is voluntary, but I encourage you to consider participating!): We know the world, and even our community, can feel awfully stressful and hostile right now. We are hoping to make the discourse in our community more positive and are launching a kindness campaign with regional partners to elevate stories of kindness – with a special focus on World Kindness Day, Nov. 13. If you are interested in learning more and supporting this effort: Here is a list of ideas of how to join both in and out of school. We are hoping these resources will make it easy to join: Writing prompts, for instance; topics for advisory or freshmen foundations; a contest at the high school level; books to read at the elementary level. Additionally, we know many schools are ALREADY doing a lot around kindness. Please consider sharing with Alandra the great work you are already doing. Thank you. And if you haven’t yet watched the kindness launch video featuring our 8^th graders, be sure to do so.

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LIPI and Transportation: Before submitting your request for transportation for LIPI, be sure you have contacted and CONFIRMED with the parent/student that they are set to attend and should expect a phone call from transportation. Kim shared there have been several times they have contacted a parent/student and they know nothing about being selected for LIPI.

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Our ROCKIN Nursing staff is at it again! They will be regularly preparing important information for you to share with your families! HERE is the first communication they would like you to send out by next Friday, Nov 13. Please work with your nurse about HOW and WHERE they can send out information to your families on a regular basis. Facebook? Webpage? Emails via synergy? In conjunction with a weekly message you distribute?

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Monday, November 9th is our fall MAC survey day. Remember anything we do on MAC day, with connecting our students to medical, mental health, dental, vision, or OHP health insurance can be claimable and result in reimbursement that directly funds our FAN advocates. Please coordinate with your FAN advocate for any support or communication regarding MAC day. 

Information:

Here is a link to a DRAFT website that the LEAD Cohort (and Kinsey putting it all together) has created. Please DO NOT share or send out to anyone on your staff at this time. This resource may be communicated broadly as soon as next week, but I wanted you to be able to preview it if you’d like

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Notes from Paul: Off-Grid: I will be out of the office and off-grid Monday-Wednesday of next week.

From Transportation: Our routers will not be working over Thanksgiving break. So- if a school wants to start a student on 11/11/30 for LIPI, we need to have the LIPI request form no later than 11/14.

Classified Staff: Our classified union has expressed high interest in helping their members avoid having to use their sick leave if they are required to self-isolate due to a COVID-19 exposure.  One way to make that happen was if classified staff had work that they could do from home. Here is a list of jobs (some of which can be done remotely) that OSEA wanted to be passed along to building administrators.  

Should a classified member in your building have to self-isolate and you have the ability to assign remote work for them to do in lieu of taking sick leave, they would greatly appreciate it.

Site Visits For Middle & High Schools: I’ve visited all of the elementary schools plus Mountain View, BTA@Marshall and Bend High to walk through their safety checklist plans.  Here is a signup form so that I can assist middle and high school planning efforts as you solidify your plans for students returning for hybrid.  Look forward to connecting with you (and/or members of your safety team) during a site visit.

Return To School Phase-In Scenarios: Unfortunately, we know that we won’t meet the metrics when they are released on November 9th.  For subsequent weeks, here is a document that explains how our phased-in transition will work.  Lora will share this information with teachers next week.

Safety Checklist Due Date Reminder: Please upload your new school’s COVID-19 Safety Checklist here before the end of the day on Thursday,  November 12th.

Family Connections: How are your family connections teams going?  One of our behavioral coaches, Amanda Schook, has been visiting some school’s family connections team meetings and shared some observations in a google doc that may help your school-based teams.  Please reach out to Paul and Amanda if your school’s FC team can use any support from our district FC team.

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VISITORS/VOLUNTEERS: Visitors and volunteers will be restricted to common entry and exit areas while maintaining physical distancing. Only BLS staff and essential visitors are allowed to enter buildings beyond the lobby. Examples of essential visitors are DHS, child protective services, law enforcement, student teachers and their supervisors, CASA advocates, Friends of Children mentors, cadet teachers, and ESD service providers. When in doubt whether a visitor is ‘essential’, consult with your direct supervisor. Non-district personnel should schedule work/deliveries outside student contact hours if moving beyond the school entry.

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Notes from Amy: iPad Insurance: Across our district, the purchase of iPad insurance is down more than 60% from previous years.  We anticipated this would happen, and also realize it is causing concern.  In preparation, extra funds were budgeted to cover damaged devices.  Our advice to principals is to use your best judgement when assessing fines.  If damage looks like blatant misuse or abuse you should fine the student for damage.  If damage appears to be accidental and in the course of normal use you do not need to assess a fine.  Going forward, we will be revisiting the topic of insurance for future years and hope to come up with a different solution for dealing with damaged devices.

WebEx Security Updates: On Monday, November 30th our WebEx instance will receive another security upgrade.  As of that date, students who are logged in to the WebEx platform will go directly into their teacher’s meeting room, whereas those who are not logged in will need to be let in from the “waiting room”.  More about this change can be found in our blog entry.  Our Instructional Technology team recommends that all students log in to WebEx independent of their scheduled meetings to facilitate the process; logins can happen any time so long as they are done before November 30th.  

Apple iOS 14.1: On Wednesday, November 11th, the newest iPad operating system will be available for students to download.  Students will not have to upgrade immediately, but will be prompted at some point that the update is available.  When new updates come out, it is possible that we will start to see some challenges with the behavior of other apps.  At this point we have determined that all of our curriculum apps and frequently used tools are ready for this update, so glitches might be the result of students NOT having updated their devices.  Running the iOS update from “Settings” is a great problem-solving step if new app glitches show up.

iCloud Logins: We are also recommending that all students login to their school Apple ID to utilize upgraded iCloud storage.  This message has already been pushed out to many staff members and students, more information on how to do it can be found in this blog entry.

Calendar:

HS Principal WebEx to review Hybrid Schedule: Monday, Nov 9@ 8:00am

HS Admin and Teacher discussion about CDL Schedule: Tuesday, Nov 10@4:00pm

No HS Admin Meeting this week

TO DO:

PLEASE SHARE THIS WITH YOUR TEACHERS: Earlier today, Michele Clements and Dean Richards shared a powerpoint and the link below in this week’s blog post for secondary teachers focused on best practices in digital instruction. It’s all about the chat bar, which we believe is the most under-utilized tool with the greatest power to transform virtual classroom environments.  

Embedded in the blog post is the narrated PowerPoint video, presenting a variety of strategies for using the chat bar to increase student engagement.  If you prefer to deliver this content yourself, the stand-alone PowerPoint is here; however, the post is written so that it can also be sent straight to teachers.

Regardless of how it gets to them, we hope your teachers find this information useful:  Let’s Chat: The Simplest Tool to Maximize Engagement and Innovate Assessment.

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Next Wednesday’s Horizontal meeting will be focused on instructional PD (for you). Don’t forget, if you haven’t already, to watch this 9-min. video and reflect on (and likely ready to talk about): Why do we use the phrase Excellence & Equity when talking about and engaging in the work of improvement? Next, go to this jamboard and write down your (brief) thoughts prior to Tuesday afternoon.

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If you are part of the Restorative Justice trainings (Tues. & Wed.) next week, please note that there is homework to complete prior to that. It is outlined at this webpage. Participants should receive the meeting Zoom link this week.

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Remember that a transportation request needs to be completed for any student needing a bus ride to and/or from LIPI in your building. Here is the link to request LIPI transportation.

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As new state metrics are being discussed, so is the growing possibility of returning to school in at least a hybrid format. As families are considering this very real possibility, they are also experiencing a range of emotions (some are very excited, while others are very anxious or concerned – and no doubt some a roller coaster of all of these). Due to this, the district has received a number of parent communications requesting that teachers or other staff do not talk with students about when a return to school is going to occur. Following is a sample message that I’d ask you to share with your staff regarding this:

We know many staff members are excited to see students back in class. But as state metrics and conditions are changing and evolving, please avoid sharing these details with students and parents. We don’t want to create unnecessary disappointment for our students. 

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Information:

Many of our Bend employees have internet service with BendBroadband. Some of these teachers (in particular) have experienced an overage of data usage due to CDL this fall (both teaching themselves and any children they have learning through this model). Following is some good news on how these teachers can not be charged for this overage usage during this crazy time. Please share the following message with your staff:

Any teacher that’s been impacted by data overage charges with BendBroadband should send an email to [email protected], from their school email address with their name and account number, requesting credit for their “data usage allowance overage charge,” and they’ll be credited.

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As you are aware, there are all kinds of updates coming out of Salem today regarding reopening our schools to students. Paul sent you an email today regarding some items he wanted to make sure you were aware of. Also, here are some highlights around changes in LIPI that have been reflected in our district LIPI Plan… What is different:

*Cohort now defined as 20 students (not 10)

*Added “capacity” limitation based on new LIPI guidance

*250 student per week limit is removed

*Updated the links to the ODE limited in-person instruction guidance which provides further guidance on 1:1 instruction in LIPI.

*Removed the phased transition table and added the link to the ODE’s new metrics document which we will follow when determining the application of LIPI.

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And speaking of great news… here is another: USDA has extended the waivers for summer meals until June 30, 2021. The waivers will allow us to serve breakfast and lunch at no cost to kids 18 and under for the rest of the 20-21 school year. 

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One more from Nutrition Services regarding holiday meals being served: We will be offering meals over the holiday breaks. They will include breakfast, lunch and supper grab ‘n’ go from 12pm-1pm on the following days:

*Monday 11/23 – we will serve meals for 11/23, 11/24, 11/25, 11/26 

*Monday 12/21 – we will serve meals for 12/21, 12/22, 12/23, 12/24

*Monday 12/28 – we will serve meals for 12/28, 12/29, 12/30, 12/31

We will be serving only at the sites below (No mobile routes).  Meals are available to all kids 18 years of age or younger.

*Bend High

*Elk Meadow

*La Pine High

*Lava Ridge

*Pilot Butte 

*Three Rivers

*Westside Village

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Lora just sent out this election note to all staff. If you haven’t had time yet, please make sure you read it. (I think it is a unifying message of empathy and understanding.) Also, here is a preview of a website displaying work of our district’s LEAD Cohort. This is great work by Kinsey and her team that we hope will provide both guidance and support to the courageous conversations that have been and will continue to occur in our schools. (I suggest you create a solid foundation for this work by pointing your staff towards the “Preparation Checklist” found here.)

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There is a new Webex functionality that allows the presenter (teacher) to control the “mute” feature in ways that were not possible, well, prior to this update. Here is more on that option.

Calendar:

HS Administrator Training via WebEx: Wednesday, November 4, 3:00-4:30.

Supports for instruction developed by Dean Richards (AD of Secondary Curriculum/Instruction/Systems) and Michele Clements (ELA coordinator): Thank you for your survey feedback – we learned there was a strong desire to receive the content first and then push it out in according to site preference.  We are also hearing an emphatic that we begin using and engaging with the Standards of Practice if we are going to ask them to be used.

In response to your feedback, we have built a stand-alone blog to house the teacher support videos and links.  The first post (and the posts for the next few weeks) will be written so you can use it in the way that serves you best:  

1. forward the blog link straight on to teachers,
2. or forward the blog link on to ICCL point people 
3. or send the narrated video PowerPoint on to teachers as a stand-alone item (embedded in the post)
4. or use the narrated video PowerPoint at a staff meeting
5. or use the PowerPoint slide show (also embedded) and provide your own interpretation/discussion. A script is provided in the post.

We’ll send blog post links straight to you for the next several weeks and then we’ll check back to see whether you’d like us to adjust how we’re pushing out this content. We all know teacher need is high – we hope this helps: https://blogs.bend.k12.or.us/dean.richards/

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A few of you have not yet completed your HSS budget for this year. Please take a look at the High School Success funds allocated to your school and complete your plan by Oct. 30. Here is the link to access your plan. Wendy Reeves can help you with any questions.

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Important info from HR: Please share this information from HR about sick leave.

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Several of you were involved in the demo today on Grade Guardian in Canvas. Please take a quick moment to provide some feedback on the system. Here’s a form…https://forms.gle/ba2VSCeuJfb4xFSz9 Your input will help inform our next steps.

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An important note from Becky regarding the helpline: The student support line, 541-355-8700 has been successful in helping students with their iPads, thanks to your staff, site technicians, and IT helpdesk folks.

The calls coming to the 8700 line have reduced to 15 or less per day.  Beginning November 2, 2020, we will return to the typical model where these calls will go directly to the schools for support.  The helpdesk will no longer receive the calls or voice mails.  If needed, your tier 1 support staff member can continue to reach out to your site technician or the helpdesk for support.

Here is a simple Tech Help Flow Chart that shows how a student can get help with their iPad.

Families should continue to work with their internet provider to help with equipment, network, or internet issues.

Calls related to high schools are currently going to your tier 1 support staff member’s phone line.  We will continue to use this phone line. Please be sure to share with your staff that this support continues to be available to them.

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If you haven’t already done so, please send out this parent communication regarding the change in our fall conferences. This was shared in district communication to families on Oct. 8:

Update to calendar: Oct. 28-30. 

Originally, fall conferences were slated to take place Oct. 28-30. Those days will now be regular school days and teachers will be connecting with families as part of Comprehensive Distance Learning. Families are also invited to connect with teachers anytime with questions or concerns. 

Actialización del calendario: Oct. 28-30. 

En un principio las conferencias del otoño estaban programadas para el 28-30 de octubre. Ahora esos días serán días de clase y los maestros se comunicarán con las familias como parte del aprendizaje a distancia. También se invita a las familias a comunicarse con sus maestros en cualquier momento cuando tengan preguntas y/preocupaciones. 

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HERE is information about the Oregon Health Plan. Please share this info with your families!

Information:

Here is a note from Walt Norris about supplies for isolation rooms: We sent out buckets with respirators, booties, gloves etc. This is for the isolation rooms and only in case of a COVID incident. Tami Pike has ordered hospital gowns and we will be sending them out to put in the kits. Thanks

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School Picture Days: We are excited to be working with a new photography company for school picture days this year, Dorian Studio. Founded in 1914, Dorian Studio is family owned and operated and headquartered in the northwest. We will be reaching out to families with picture day and student ID information in the weeks to come.

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A couple of updates from Paul:

LIPI cohorts and staff interactions

Q – Under LIPI, if a counselor meets with an individual student, does this count toward the staff members limit of 3 cohorts a day?  If so, then the counselor can only meet with 3 individuals in a day or a total of five one-on-one sessions with students in a week? 

ODE answer: Ready Schools, Safe Learners defines a stable cohort as “a group of students that are consistently in contact with each other or in multiple cohort groups” (section 1a). One student working with a teacher, by definition, does not constitute a cohort. Teachers can be in three cohorts of no more than 10, OR a total of 30 interactions, each day. If teachers are involved in individual 1 to 1 interactions and not cohorts of multiple students, they can still only interact with no more  than 30 total students a day.

It’s important to distinguish differences in the roles staff play within schools. Typically a specialist or counselor as you mentioned work with individual students, and not always cohorts. Given that, these interactions can be thought of more as total contacts.

LIPI and After School Planning Guide

Please prepare a document for your school that tracks on-campus student groups for LIPI and after school activities. The document should look like THIS. Please send it to me by Friday, Oct 30.

LIPI and Transportation (From Kim)

Reminder: Here are the links to the LIPI forms, along with time offerings. Staff must use their BLPS google account for these links.

Elementary Form  https://forms.gle/gHMoq4V16tyqdnXv6   

MS/HS Form  https://forms.gle/4kXkXqmMQft4QpQF6 

Q:    What time does the bus drop the student off at school?

A:     The bus will arrive approximately 15 minutes prior to the start of class time- assuming we have not been held up by an accident, train, traffic, construction (ex. class time is 7:30-9:30, bus will arrive about 7:15). The driver will then take roll for contract tracing and be ready to send them into the school. We need staff available to take students at this time. Buses then need to be sanitized and drivers head to their next stop/school. This also gives students time to transition to class and be ready for school. 

Q:    What time does the bus pick up after school?

A:    The bus will be there at the end of the school day. We give students 8 minutes to load prior to leaving. 

Q:    I know the bus stops at the corner of 3rd & Wilson, can I add students to that stop that live nearby?

A:     No, you must complete a LIPI form and follow the time guidelines to add a student. Each student is assigned a specific seat on each bus. We are receiving forms daily and process them by the time stamp. Forms received by Friday, will be processed the following week and the student can start riding the week after that. Ex.  You submit the form 10/21, we work on the routing the week of 10/26, the student can start riding the week of 11/2.

Q:    How do families find out their bus stop times?

A:    The driver will call each family on their route. Some students have different times each day (depending on who is riding that day). Families can expect a phone call the evening before their start date.

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This message is from Marsha Baro: The SafeSchools Safety Data Management Program is now available to all staff on our staff portal.  It is my hope that this information might be shared at each site’s Safety Team meeting so that all staff are aware of this tool. A QR code sheet can be printed and posted if schools see fit.

Calendar:

HS Administrator WebEx Meeting: Wednesday, Oct 28@ 9:00am.

HS Administrator WebEx Training: Wednesday, Nov 4@ 3:00-4:00pm