To Do
From Eric:
For ALL Administrators: Please take a moment to review the “Incident Approval Queue” in Synergy for your school (you can access this via a Quick Launch search).
We currently have 485 incidents waiting to be approved via this queue (district-wide) with some occurring all the way back in September – And our Administrators are the ones who need to approve/deny these incidents.
If you are unfamiliar with the Incident Approval Queue, please call Eric Powell (4810) and he can help you out.
From Katie and Stephen:
Open House and staff attendance:
Just a reminder to schedule your Open House date for the fall AND send a notice in writing of your expectations regarding staff attendance 60 days prior to the event!
Requiring certified staff member attendance at evening events:
Attending/participating in three evening events each school year is required for certified staff members. In accordance with the BEA contract, administrators must give 60 days’ written notice if you are requiring certified staff to attend/participate in an evening event. This would apply to any evening event in which you are requiring cert staff to attend and will not be compensating them for their time(ie: dance or event supervision in which you are NOT compensating; graduation; Academic Nights; Life and Career Events).
Participation at parent conferences:
Attendance at parent conferences is already part of the professional responsibilities for certified staff members. Coaches on staff who are late or do not attend parent conferences should work with administration to make up the time. Reach out to Katie, Stephen or HR Leadership with questions.
From Jennifer Hauth:
Please remind your teams about implementing the Waypoints Core Skills assessment for the end of the year summative😊 K-5 closes May 22nd and Secondary closes May 28th!
From Departments
From Katie and Stephen:
Thank you for updating your staffing plans as changes occur.
Secondary schools will be presenting their School Design Plans Monday, June 15th from 9-11 @ CHS. Each school will present for 10 minutes, and cabinet members will sign up to attend. Please use this template for your presentation.
From Robi Cole:
Here is info about a COREN leadership opportunity this summer. Check it out.
From the Ed Tech team:
OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, introduced a new version of their product, designed specifically for educators, and it is now available to all BLS staff by request. It includes expanded capabilities, higher usage limits, and protections for professional use in education, going beyond what is available in a standard free ChatGPT account. You can find details about access, best practices for use, and how it fits alongside MagicSchool in our EdTech blog post: ChatGPT for Teachers. Please feel free to share.
From Gabe:
Here is the Weekly: April 27th-May 1st, 2026
From Sara in Student Services:
Please read this week’s packed Special EDge for information about:
- Check out the Reminders from Records
- Complete High Cost
- Elementary Case Managers: ECSE Bridges Information from Krista
- Order Deadline
- ESY Case Managers – Reach out to Sara Young with new students who qualify and continue to reach out to families you haven’t heard from
- Check out the Learning Labs
- Check out the incredible work of teams in Campus Kudos!
- Utilize the Student Services Launchpad
- Save the Date for upcoming events
From Tami Pike:
TOSA Corner
From Monica Freeman – SS TOSA:
Here is a link to updates for both MS and HS Social Studies.
From Torie Withers, Language Arts TOSA:
Spring in secondary Language Arts means collaboration and planning. Teachers are engaging in CDA collaborations while also working through key decisions around standards and score conversions in AP courses.
CDA collaborations include scoring calibration of student essays, engagement with our newly revised priority standards and holistic rubrics, discussion of next year’s on-demand writing prompt and assessed standards, and dedicated professional learning focused on current literacy research and instructional strategies.
Upcoming grade-level CDA collaboration dates:
- Friday, May 1: 8th Grade
- Tuesday, May 12: 11th & 12th Grades
- Thursday, May 14: 9th Grade
- Friday, May 15: 6th Grade
- Friday, May 22: 10th Grade
Additionally, our spring Text Review meeting will take place on Thursday, May 21. During this time, pending book club titles will be reviewed and considered for approval.
Please contact me with any questions: [email protected]
MS Only:
You may have seen a note about the Karen Mapp training on May 21 in the HS admin piece last week. Middle Schools also need to prioritize sending the administrator in your school who oversees attendance.
Here is the info again: On Thursday, May 21 from 8:00–12:00 (and continuing into next school year), national expert Dr. Karen Mapp will join us in person to help us reflect on our current work, identify school-specific and districtwide coordinated efforts, and plan concrete, evidence-based strategies to reduce chronic absenteeism. This is a valuable opportunity to reflect on this year and begin planning for next year.
HS Only:
Karen Mapp Training:
Send Katie the name of the administrator who will attend the Karen Mapp training on May 21 8-12. This should be the administrator who oversees attendance. Principals are also welcome, and we encourage graduation coaches to attend. Thank you, BSHS! We will send them an invite to the training.
Principals, please share this message with your Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and College Dual Credit Teachers:
We continue to encourage you to engage in collaboration with other AP, IB and CDC teachers in backwards designing your courses for SBGI implementation beginning in the fall.
Our TOSAs will be reaching out to coordinate time for AP, IB, and CDC teachers teaching the same courses to work together. The offer still stands to pay for substitutes to collaborate during the school day, or we can timesheet you up to 8 hours for work outside of the workday.
If you are a College Dual Credit Teacher, please share the contact information for your mentor with Dean, Katie and your content area TOSA. We are happy to connect with college mentors to provide context for the work and answer questions.
Please reach out to Katie or Dean regarding questions about collaboration, to Dean for questions about time sheeting and to your TOSA for scheduling and content planning specifics.
Open Period notification for families and students:
Beginning with 26-27, we will add the following language to our curriculum guides to notify families about open periods:
Curriculum Guide verbiage:
Students in grades 9-11 are required to enroll in a full courseload. Students in grade 12 have the flexibility to enroll in up to 7 classes depending on their credits towards graduation. Students interested in having less than 7 classes must consult with their counselor to ensure that they meet graduation requirements and on track for their post-high school plan.
This language will be added to student schedules beginning with 26-27:
On student schedules:
If a student is granted an open period, it will be listed on their schedule as “Open Period.” Open periods are typically scheduled during the first or last period of the day; however, exceptions may occur. Reach out to your student’s counselor or your school’s administration if you have questions.
Calendar
May 4: IB/AP LA CDA Meeting
May 13: Excellence in Ed Awards @ MVHS
May 14th: MS Only – TAG Admin/ICCL Meeting @ Ed Center 3:30 – 5:00
May 19: Secondary Administrator work session @ CHS 9-11 – focus on SBGI
May 21: Karen Mapp session on Chronic Absenteeism 8-12 – Admin lead for attendance attends
Where in the World?
Congrats to to Dan Curfew for being the ONLY person to correctly guess the image from last week! 🙌
The image is of Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque in Muscat (مسقط, Maskat) Sultanate of Oman. The Grand Mosque is located in Oman outside of the capital of Muscat. Oman is on the Arabian Peninsula and hugs the Gulf of Oman, with Iran and Pakistan across the Hormuz Straight and the Arabian sea along the east coast.
Here is the image for this week. Send us your guess for this location by Monday, win the drawing, and Stephen or Katie will bring you your school appropriate beverage of choice:
