July 27, 2023

“Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you, spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life.” Amy Poehler

Are you looking for something fun to do next Tuesday, August 1st? Why not grab your family and come to a Bend Elks Baseball game, courtesy of us! We will be standing at the gate at Vince Genna Stadium starting at 6:00, where we will be purchasing admission for you and your family to come see the Bend Elks take on the Springfield Drifters. We hope you can come join in on the fun as an elementary team, watching another team work together to achieve great things! If you can make it, we’ll see you Tuesday –Go ELKS!

FYIs and Reminders

School Supplies: Bend-La Pine Schools is happy that we can provide every student with the supplies they need for the upcoming school year. As a reminder (or new for you) your office managers need to be putting in the mass orders for the supplies that you have identified that students need at each grade level in your building. Some schools might have been doing this last spring in an effort to get ready for this year and to spend down your last year’s money. If not, this should be one of the first things your OMs do when they return, as turn around time can be slow with some companies. We know there are a lot of new OMs, so please let us know if yours needs help and we will find your OM a buddy. As a rule of thumb, there is about $10/student in the general fund to purchase the supplies. Some schools spend less and some spend more; it all depends on your priorities and needs.

Staffing Plans: One of the first things we need you to do when you return is to update your staffing plans with the names of any new staff you have hired on the certified and classified tabs. On the first tab, you will also update the “actual” numbers you have enrolled according to Synergy and the class size averages (you will see a red date from the last time Stephanie updated actual numbers on July 14–please change the date you update, so we know it is current.) And lastly, please update any openings you have on the front tab, so if you put someone as leaving and you have hired a replacement, it does not need to stay there. We resent your plans so that you all have them, since several of you are new since they were initially sent.

Exec. Director Connection: You may be wondering if Lisa or Tammy will be supporting your site in particular next year. Lisa (541-977-8183) will be supporting Bear Creek, Elk Meadow, Ensworth, La Pine, Pine Ridge, Ponderosa, Silver Rail, W.E. Miller, and Westside Village. Tammy (541-408-1382) will be supporting Amity, Buckingham, High Lakes, Highland, Juniper, Lava Ridge, North Star, R.E. Jewell, Rosland, and Three Rivers. Although we have specific sites that we will be connected with, this year, you can plan to see much more of us both at all of the sites. We plan to visit together sometimes and other times just individually so we will be ready to support any school as needs arise. We will talk more about this at our launch.

Inservice Week : Here is a reminder of the the guidelines for inservice week, as you and your leadership teams plan and prepare for your launch to the school year.

Important Dates!

Details for each date were in last week’s BLOG. Look there for additional information

  • August 1, Optional! 6:00 Bend Elks Game at Vince Genna Stadium–see details above.
  • August 2, 8:00-3:30 in the Board Room: New Administrators Orientation.
  • August 7, 8:00-4:00 at the Riverhouse Convention Center (address: 100, 2955, US-97, Bend). A Culture of Safety and Belonging: K-12 Leaders
  • August 7, BLAST (Bend-La Pine Administrator and Supervisor Team) K-12 and District Admin Dinner at the home of Dana and Dan Pedersen, 5:00. You and your spouse/partner, are invited to an amazing dining experience catered by our own nutritional services department. Come and enjoy a relaxing time to eat, drink, and be merry, with your colleagues at the Pedersen’s beautiful country setting. Dana’s address is: 62880 Dickey Road (east out Hwy 20).
  • August 8, 8:00-4:00 at the Riverhouse Convention Center. A Culture of Leading and Learning: K-12 Leaders
  • August 9, 8:00-4:00: Elementary Team Launch–Vince Genna Stadium–8:00 am, with a transition to Hollingshead Barn at 10:15, where we will finish the day.
  • August 14, 9:00-12:00: Title 1 Meeting in the Boardroom (Title schools only). You will want to bring school admins, office managers, and you are welcome to invite your title teachers (we can pay them) but will leave it up to you to invite depending on what they do.
  • August 28, 7:30-9:00: New Teacher Orientation Day
  • August 29, (time TBD, but plan for about 1.5 hours around 8:00) District Virtual Welcome Back Event
  • August 30, all day: Districtwide Wayfinder and Really Great Reading Training for all

Ask Us Your Burning Questions!

Click on this link, to ask a burning question or 5 that you would love to know the answer to. We will answer them one on one, in the blog, or at a meeting. Remember, the only stupid question is the one never asked! Our phone numbers are also listed below.

Tammy: (541) 408-1382 Lisa: (541) 977-8183

and finally…

July 20, 2023

Welcome to the 2023-2024 season!

We have been getting more and more excited these past two weeks, about growing together with such an awesome team of caring, passionate, and dedicated elementary leaders. We can’t wait to see you all real soon!

This blog will be your weekly communication from us and you can expect to continue to receive it on Thursday afternoons/evenings each week. It will be filled with FYIs, To-Dos, Laughs, and more. It is expected that you read it and act on the things that are noted each week. (We’ll spend time on what this means when we see you in person.)

For now, we just wanted to reach out about some important dates we want you all to have, so they don’t catch you by surprise.

Important Dates!

August 2, 8:00-3:30 in the Board Room: New Administrators Orientation. If you are new to your role at your school (Principal, Assistant Principal, Dean of Students) or new to Bend-La Pine altogether, this day is for you. If you are unsure whether or not this means you, reach out to us and we’ll get it clarified for you.

August 7, 8:00-4:00 at the Riverhouse Convention Center (Riverhouse Convention Center, 100, 2955, US-97). A Culture of Safety and Belonging: K-12 Leaders: This is day 1 of our K-12 leaders professional learning conference. This day will focus on what we/you are doing to build a culture of safety and belonging for everyone in our schools. After morning greetings, our keynote for the morning will be John Krownapple, co-author of “Belonging Through a Culture of Dignity: The Keys to Successful Equity Implementation.” Lunch is provided.

August 8, 8:00-4:00 at the Riverhouse Convention Center. A Culture of Leading and Learning: K-12 Leaders: This is day 2 of our K-12 leaders professional learning conference. This day will focus on what we/you are doing to build a culture of leading and learning for everyone in our schools. After morning greetings, our keynote for the morning will be a guest from the Franklin Covey Institute, focusing on Trust and Inspire Leadership. The afternoon will have elementary only breakout sessions focusing on Tier 1 systems of support; think PBIS 2.0, and high leverage instructional strategies. Lunch is provided.

August 9, 8:00-4:00: Elementary Team Launch. Mark your calendars for a fun day! You will be receiving a special invitation inviting you to this special event. Our goal is you leave this day feeling connected, prepared, inspired, supported, and hopeful!

August 14, 9:00-12:00: Title 1 Meeting in the Boardroom (Title schools only): We will be spending some time going over Title 1 expectations for the year, introduce a new model of support with Meryll Paris, and get your input on ways in which we can better support you. Please make sure in addition to the admin from your school attending this meeting, your office manager is present as well.

August 28, 7:30-9:00: New Teacher Orientation Day: This is new teacher orientation day, but building admin must also attend for the start of the day, as you will be introducing new teachers to your school. When that part of the morning is over, you are free to go back to your building.

August 29, (time TBD, but plan for about 1.5 hours around 8:00): District Virtual Welcome Back Event: This morning, we will have a virtual kick-off for all district staff, welcoming them back, celebrating, and setting the stage for a great year. All schools are asked to watch this together as a school community, with schools gathering in the library, gym, or other common meeting space. There will be a theme and team spirit award to the staff who comes together showcasing the theme and connection.

August 30, all day: Districtwide Wayfinder and Really Great Reading Training for all. You will be receiving information about where your teachers are to report for the training this day, as your primary and intermediate groups will be split up and you will be training at different locations. You will also be expected to attend the trainings and assigned a site as well.

Ask Us Your Burning Questions!

Click on this link, to ask a burning question or 5 that you would love to know the answer to. We will answer them one on one, in the blog, or at a meeting. Remember, the only stupid question is the one never asked! Our phone numbers are also listed below.

and finally…

Tammy: (541) 408-1382 Lisa: (541) 977-8183