Elementary Admin Colleagues –
Wow, what a week. At times I feel like I am drinking from several fire hoses. There is so much going on and so many moving pieces. I appreciate all of you just doing what you do. It makes my job easier when I don’t have to worry about you. And I am sorry if I haven’t been too available. I probably have a zillion voice mail messages. If you left me a message and I didn’t get back to you I apologize. Please don’t hesitate to text me or call me on my cell. The good news is that Juan Cuadros was hired as our new director of TLC so I’ll soon be distancing myself from those responsibilities. Juan’s start date is August 17th so until we get him up to speed, I’ll probably still be wearing a couple of hats.
Now for some updates…
Aug 11th Horizontal Meeting
If you remember this was going to be our leadership meeting. That has been switched to the 19th. Our horizontal meeting on the 11th will be virtual. Just like Gary did, I will be hosting 3 different times. If you can’t make your time please let me know and we will just plug you into a different slot.
August 11th My WebEx room: https://bls.webex.com/meet/skip.offenhauser
| 8:30 – 9:30 Amity North Star Buckingham Ensworth High Lakes Highland | 12:30 – 1:30 Juniper Lava Ridge Poderosa Jewell Miller Pine Ridge Bear Creek | 1:45-2:45 Elk Meadow Rosland Silver Rail Three Rivers Westside La Pine |
I’ve been making a running list of things to cover. If there is something you want to make sure I bring up just email me that topic.
Leadership Aug 19th
The safety training originally scheduled for August 19th has been postponed. We are working on providing virtual training as much as possible for safety protocols and practices. Instead the leadership academy will take place on the 19th. The goal right now is to meet in person, adhering to all requirements: social distancing, masks, “learning teams” of no more than 10 in an intact group all day, etc. More details to follow.
Elementary PD – Systems to Support All Learners
The PD course for Elementary teachers will be released on Monday. I will be sending an email out to all teachers and administrators notifying them of when it is available. In order to access the course you will need a Canvas log in. Teachers have their logins automatically created. However, admins will need to request an account be created. Please go to: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfWl16wzrdMgviSumkOq5e5lUkC-H2-i_bkI4WWaSK0KsfAhw/viewform to request a log in. If you are wondering which course to take, k-2 or 3-5, you really can’t go wrong. Just pick one. Attached are directions for finding the courses on PD place.
Standards of Practice for Comprehensive Distance Learning
We have teams of teachers working with Julie Walker, Dean Richards , and a group of administrators to define standards of practice for distance learning. The goal is to have this work done by Aug 14th so it can be introduced to all admins on the 19th. I had a many of you express an interest in helping with this work so sorry if I didn’t include you this time.
Work Calendars
Here is a link to your 2020-21 work calendar. Principals, please complete this sometime in August. Let me know if you have any questions.
Questions, Questions, Questions – a few answers
Did you know that there is a district Return to School FAQ page? Its constantly being added to and updated. This is a resource page that you should become familiar with and also communicate with to your staff and families.
Additionally, Jesse Rasmussen sent me a link to an FAQ he started with his staff. I took the liberty to copy it and add a few more questions to it. I’m in the process of trying to fill in the answers (if I have them). This one is just for us. You can get content from it but please don’t share it with staff or families. Add to you it as you see fit. Thanks Jesse!
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ljG4A2fFtWDtNLXFMF7LRxcz0AWUXEsZNrCiDJqz1zg/edit
Classified hiring
At cabinet we discussed classified hiring and it was decided that if the position relies on kids being in the building then you should hold off on the hiring. However, if you have a plan for this person just send me a few sentences describing that plan and I will approve moving forward. We just don’t want to get into a situation where we are trying to find work for people.
Technology Updates…
I’ve gotten a few people ask about what work flow and communication platforms are being used at the different grade levels. Here’s the official word:
- K-2: SeeSaw (and yes, we are purchasing the premium version for everyone). John Craft will be creating a website with support videos and documentation for teachers and parents.
- 3-5: Google Classroom. This platform is pretty straight forward and starts preparing kids for a more robust learning management system.
- 6-12: Canvas. This is a powerful professional learning management system that has the potential to change how teaching and learning takes place in our secondary schools. We will also be using Canvas for district professional development.
Now, for the big news. Many of you know that we ordered a few hundred iPads to help beef up k-2 carts and to have iPads available for families who may have needed a device in case we went to distance learning. After reading the CDL Guidelines from the state it became apparent that this was not enough. So, yesterday I placed an iPad order so that all k-2 students can be provided with a device. This is huge and makes me lose sleep but it needed to be done. Before you send me any questions about this please let me and the instructional technology team come up with some ideas for how we will deploy and train students and families. We just made this decision so the details have yet to be discussed.
Finally, We have had quite a few families inquire about Bend-La Pine Online. We’re going to start registering next week so expect a shift in your numbers. As of this morning we had over 850 inquiries to the program!
Have a great weekend!