Happy October’s eve and payday! As a reminder, we will be linking the monthly Administrator Helpful Hints to the blog at the beginning of each month, so that something doesn’t sneak up on you and catch you off guard. Here is the link where you can find things you can check off your list for the month of October. But remember, this is a list to guide your work.
Updates, Reminders, Info and Rants…
Fall Conferences We know that elementary schools like nothing better than to plan ahead. That said, we are unable at this time to declare that conferences will or will not be in-person or virtual. At this time, we would recommend moving forward, contacting families when you are ready and scheduling conferences, with the understanding that they could all be virtual or they could be in-person with virtual options for families who want them. That way you can have interpreters scheduled, families can plan around the time, and teachers can decide how best to plan for the conference. We want to see what the community spread is during the week of October 15. If we have moved from High or Substantial into Moderate or Low, we would then most likely offer in-person conferences to families open to it.
Educator Network Days – look for a separate communication that will explain and give details on the days formally known as District SIW days.
Vaccination verification – you should have received something from Paul Dean re: staff who still need to complete the verification process. Please read this email carefully and follow up accordingly. Remember, 100% participation. Thanks!
Department News…
What can the Culture of Care Team do for you? Here is a link from the HDESD Culture of Care Team, letting you know of all the amazing topics that they can present to your staff. Reach out to them with any questions.
For your teachers – Culture of Care is also hosting two book studies over the 2021-22 school year for individuals working in education. You may sign up for one or both read alongs. Click here for more information.
From Deon in HR – Last year HR facilitated a Bias Awareness training. I am sharing a copy of that slide deck here for your review. Thank you all again for the amazing work that you are doing!
Youth Truth Survey – This year’s Youth Truth survey will occur in January. Dave will be sending out more information later. It might be a good idea to review last year’s results with your leadership or other building teams (if you haven’t already). You can even share some of the information with staff and families in your newsletters as well. Need some ideas about ways to share the information with your teams and families? Tammy would be happy to share a variety of ways they dug into the information at Silver Rail last year and Stephanie can tell you all about how she is working it into this year’s plans.
Restorative Practices Training for Elementary Admins: Thank you to Amber McGill of the HDESD Culture of Care Team and Eric Powell, for working hard to make this happen for elementary administrators. It is the goal of the district that all administrators eventually have training in restorative practices and what better way than to learn alongside each other on this journey. Here is the official link to sign up for the training. Introduction to Restorative Practices for Educators. The Restorative Practices Circles book will accompany the training and we will make sure we get those in the hands of people who sign up. Space is limited, so don’t hesitate to sign up, as the spots may go fast! If you have any questions, Lisa Birk and Stephanie Jensen have had the official training and I’m sure would be happy to let you know what it was like.
Here are the training dates and times:
- Wednesday, October 27, from 8:00-1:00
- Tuesday, November 2, from 3:30-5:30
- Thursday, November 4, from 3:30-5:30.
From Tina in Transportation It is time for bus evacuation drills at your school. To keep things as simple as possible, we will use the same format as last year. Please have teachers play the video below for their students. Students who ride the bus will receive extra training from their driver; you may see a small delay in the morning as they exit the bus.
Here is the link to the video: https://www.bend.k12.or.us/bus/transportation-videos
After all students at your school have viewed the video, please complete and return this form by October 15th.
Calendar
- SIW schedule
- Horizontal Meeting Schedule
- Tammy and Skip visitation schedule
- Monthly checklist
- October 11 – Horizontal Business meeting – Location TBD – we’re looking for a volunteer!
- October 25, Horizontal PD Day–bring your draft of your Design Plan to share with a group, receive feedback on your plan, and give feedback to others about their plans–Location TBD
- October 27-29 Work Day and Conference time
- October 27, from 8:00-1:00 Restorative Practices Training
- October 29 – Civil Rights training due
- November 2 and 4 part II of Restorative Practices, 3:30-5:30
And Finally…
As you look at everything you’re trying to do in your building this year keep this quote in mind…
“One of the most underrated secrets to success is to start before you’re ready”
-Marie Forleo