Month: November 2024

From Tammy and Karen

As you head into this well-deserved Fall Break, we want to take a moment to express our deepest gratitude for your hard work and dedication. Each one of you shows up for your community every day for every member of your community. We especially appreciate the many ways you support one another—your teamwork and mutual encouragement make all the difference, and it’s truly inspiring to see. You’ve all earned this time to relax, recharge, and spend quality moments with your loved ones. Enjoy every minute, and thank you again for all that you do!

TAG ICCLs: If your building does not currently have a TAG ICCL teacher, please identify one and them to this list (go to TAG tab on the worksheet). As a reminder, all schools need to have a staff member join this team. If you have questions about the team, ask Jessica Scott or Stephen Duval for more information.

Please submit your Calendar of non-contract days to both Karen and Tammy by December 6th. You will also start completing time cards for your leave. There is information about the timesheet on the Staff Portal in the Payroll page.

Slides from Horizontal Meeting

Interested in doing something fun together? Since we do not have a horizontal in December, do you want to get together to enjoy each other’s company and have some fun and connection? If so, click on this link, to recommend a date/time and activity (happy hour, bowling, painting, etc.–your ideas are endless!) You can vote for an idea on this link as well. The idea/day/time with the most votes will be announced in the Blog on December 5.

Important Links

• November 20th Elementary TLC Update
• Topics of Interest/Problem of Practice–This week there are questions about PLCs and MTSS – share your great ideas and ask your questions!
• TAG Folder of helpful things

Notes from our Team:

Life and Career Readiness from Jenny White

Principals, here is an activity from Wayfinder called Interest Swap that you can use during a staff meeting or SIW. You can also share the Wayfinder Activity Highlights below in your weekly connection with teachers.

• Kindergarten: Words of Encouragement – Students contribute words of encouragement to a resource in the classroom.
• First: Celebrate Me Dance Party – Students dance to celebrate their uniquely awesome selves.
• Second: Words of Encouragement – Students contribute words of encouragement to a resource in the classroom.
• Third: Celebrations – Students celebrate something they’re proud of.
• Fourth: Future Me – Students imagine their future selves offering advice for today.
• Fifth: Letters of Gratitude – Students write a letter of gratitude to someone in their lives.

First Aid Reports from Stephanie Bent. Please check this document to see if you need staff trained in First Aid. Schools listed in red are required to train more staff.

Policy, Advocacy, and Office of DEI from Kinsey

Immigration/Undocumented community members: If you receive inquiries about our practices related to immigration enforcement or undocumented individuals, here is the English version of our FAQ document (Spanish and Chinese versions available as well).  This is intended to be an FYI/talking points for you.  You are welcome to share this document with staff for the same purpose, and/or make copies available for students or families who ask.  

I have received questions about what a school should do if someone (ex: an immigration official) approaches the office asking for student, staff, or family information related to immigration status.  First of all, this is extremely unlikely to occur.  If this happens, please contact me immediately before providing or confirming any information.  You can say, “I need to confirm district policy and procedure for this request before I am approved to share any information.”  

Thank you for sharing this with your office team, so they feel informed on the response required in this very unlikely scenario.  

Operations Update from Paul Dean

School Building/Site Modification Proposals Form Administrators are to follow the steps on this form if someone on your staff is considering a project that impacts your school facilities by altering/modifying an existing building or by adding a new structure to your site.  Reach out to your Level Leader and COO if you have any questions.

Inclement Weather Department Information. The following departments want to remind administrators about snow day tasks:

• Transportation:  Snow Routes can be accessed at this link
• Custodial: Snow maps exist at each site with the custodian/principal. Those snow maps contains the three priorities:
  • Front entrance
  • Bus loop
  • Back entrance
  • Ice melt is applied on asphalt ONLY
  • Basalt (good traction and does not damage the concrete) is applied and kept on the sidewalk throughout the winter season to retain traction and is intentionally not cleared off 
  • Custodians report to work regardless of school closure decision
• Safety/IT – Please refer to the Bend-La Pine Schools Inclement Weather Guidelines 2024-2025 for essential information 

Action Items

• Include Karen in texts and emails
• Share ideas of a get together here.
• Complete time sheets for any leave for this pay period.
• Complete the calendar of non-contract days for this year and send to Karen and Tammy.
• Identify teacher to attend TAG ICCL (if not already done)
• Check first Aid compliance document
• Share immigration information with office team

Important Dates

• November 25-29 Fall Holiday Break, (if you take time off, use non-contract for all days except Thanksgiving itself)
• December 10: Admin and ICCL Training—make sure your ICCL team knows! 3-5–location TBD
• December 11: All Admin Meeting at Perseverance Hall, 3:00-4:30
• December 19-20: Tammy is out–connect with Karen if you need anything
• December 23-January 3. Winter Break!

From Tammy and Karen

At this point we are joined at the hip with all our site visits, conversations, and more! As we continue to onboard Karen, please make sure when you are emailing and texting us, that you include both of us. At this time, we have not yet officially divided up the schools, as we will be continuing partnering this next month. After all these site visits and prior to winter break, we will send a list of who the primary contact is for each school starting the first of the year.

Horizontal Meeting-–This next week our horizontal meeting will include our EL moments, and an hour with HR that will cover performance management including evaluation, feedback and corrective action. We will also have time for one round of problems of practice, so come prepared with something that you want some input from colleagues about. We will not be diving into the book this time, so no need to bring it unless it supports something you want to talk about in your problem of practice. Our meeting will be at Bear Creek starting at 3:00 on Tuesday and will be hosted by Bear Creek and Miller. See you all there!

Important Links

• November 6th Elementary TLC Update
• Topics of Interest/Problem of Practice–Have you helped out your colleague yet? Several more need some advice!
• TAG Folder of helpful things

Notes from our Team:

From Triz in HR

Certified Evaluation Information as of 10-31-24. We have edited all the certified profiles so that they don’t refer to specific dates in any of the instructions or notifications. The intent of this is to streamline editing from year to year and make successive launches more timely.

Within the sub profiles, goals, observations, self-reflections and the like, dates can be chosen to auto launch and populate the review. We have set the profiles to do the following:

Anchor Date: the date that the system will use for assigning evaluation profiles and sub profiles.

First Review: this date will assign a specified profile the first time.

Auto Assign: toggles whether to initiate the profile automatically. Uses the Anchor and First Review dates to determine what launches.

These allow us to set up an ongoing eval start date, but also have this year start on a later date, since it is a new build.

We have set the profiles to do the following:

Main Profile, this is just messaging that the evaluations are available and scheduled to Administrators; Anchor 8-20-2024; First 11-5-24 – Auto Assign.

Goals (Mini#1); Anchor; 9-7-24; First 11-5-24 – Auto Assign.

Formal 1; Anchor 11-1-24; First 11-5-24 – Auto Assign.

Formal 2; Anchor 1-15-25; First Same – Auto Assign

Mini #2; Anchor 7-1-24; First 2-15-25 – NON Auto Assign

Mini #3; Anchor 7-1-24; First 3-15-25 – NON Auto Assign

Mini#4; Anchor 7-1-24; First 4-15-25 – NON Auto Assign

Self Reflection; Anchor 4-1-25; First same – NON Auto Assign

Summative Eval; Anchor 5-1-25; First same – NON Auto Assign

Year End Goal; Anchor 5-1-25; First same – Auto Assign

Contract teachers don’t have formals or mini 4 in their profile, so only the first goal and year end goals will auto assign.

From Dave in TLC

OSAS Testing Annual Notices and Opt-Out Forms. The Bend-La Pine website has been updated with the 2024-25 fillable PDF annual notice and opt-out forms that we are required to share with families. There are separate notices and opt-out forms for ELA/Math testing (grades 3-8 & 11) and the SEED survey (grades 3-11). Please share these resources through your commonly used channels (e.g., School newsletters, parent emails) and have copies available for parents to pick up in the office by the applicable dates listed below.  Opt Out link here

ODE English Language Arts and Math State Testing. Consistent with the requirements of ORS 329.479, ODE has developed an annual notice (available through ODE’s Test Administration webpage) that describes these assessments, identifies the timeframe when the assessment will most likely be administered, and identifies an adult student’s or parent’s right to excuse the student from testing. Districts and public charter schools must provide parents with the ODE-developed annual notice at the beginning of each school year. In addition, districts and public charter schools must provide parents with separate notice at least 30 days prior to administering the statewide summative assessments in Math and ELA using the ODE-provided 30-day notice and opt-out form (also available through ODE’s Test Administration webpage), or a district-created form that exactly reproduces the language of the ODE-provided form. School districts and public charter schools must use the language of the 30-day notice and opt-out form provided by ODE to communicate with all parents about state testing requirements and their right to opt out for high school students by January 5, 2025, and for students in Grades 3-8 by March 2, 2025. 

ODE SEED Survey. Oregon law (House Bill 2656) requires each school district to make the SEED Survey available to students in grades 3-11. Parents or guardians may decline, either verbally or in writing, to have their student participate in the SEED Survey. Schools will provide parents with notice of administration and the process for declining participation at least 5 days prior to administering the SEED Survey. Students may also decline, at any time, either verbally or in writing to participate. Students may also decline to answer individual questions on the SEED survey. Please contact Dave with any questions.

YouthTruth Survey. This year we will be giving the YouthTruth survey to staff, families, and secondary students. The survey window is January 6 – January 31. Please find a few minutes to watch this short kick off webinar (you can watch it on 1.25 or 1.5 speed). Elissa, our YouthTruth representative will be emailing school on Monday, November 18 with instruction for accessing the Survey Implementation Guide. I will follow up with additional information and resources as we get closer to the survey window. Thank you. Watch the kick off webinar here.

From Kinsey – Policy, Advocacy, & Office of DEI:

Bias Incidents and Hate Speech: When does a student’s comment to a peer or text on a t-shirt invoke our policies around sexual harassment, bias, bullying or intimidation, and when is it something permissible or protected?  What if a student is using a hand gesture that is known to be a communication of hate or oppression?  How do you balance intent vs impact, political speech, and a culture of dignity and belonging focused on learning?  If you have a tricky situation, need some policy guidance, or just want a thought partner, please reach out!  If you’d be interested in a collaborative conversation with other building administrators on how to navigate these incidents right now, please email me so I can gauge interest and need.  

As a reminder, please respond promptly to any complaints or bias incidents reported, including circling back with the reporter at the conclusion of your response.  This is a powerful way to show your commitment to the wellbeing and dignity of each member of your school community.

Latino Family Night: Please drop by our 7^th annual district-wide Latino Family Night if you are able (invitation here–feel free to share).  The Woodburn High School mariachi band will perform (pictured here), and there will be dinner, partners, games, and fun!  

From McScott in IT: (Please share with your teaching staff right now please)

Synergy Mail Issue and Resolution. The latest update to our student information system included a change in Synergy Mail, which removed the ability for recipients (families) to reply directly to the sender (teacher). This change was intentional by the vendor but was not communicated to any IT teams or any of their 6,500 school customers nationwide. As a result, we were delayed in communicating the issue and providing a solution.

As of today, November 14th, our BLS IT team has implemented an in-house fix that restores the direct reply functionality for recipients of messages sent via Synergy Mail. We understand that this issue may have disrupted important communication between teachers and families. Please let me know if there is anything my team or I can do to support you in reestablishing communication.

Two things for family newsletters:

Science Night at Lonza: Here is a link you can include in your family newsletter about an awesome family science opportunity at Lonza. Check it out!

Boys and Girls Club has the following spots available for after school care. Please reach out to them if you are interested here at this link!

• 1 full time spot available for a kinder, 2/3rd grader, 3/4 grader, and 5th grader–downtown location
• 7 full time spots for 1/2 graders–downtown location
• 10 spots open at the east side location for 1st-5th grade

Action Items

• Include Karen in texts and emails
• Come with a Problem of Practice for Horizontal on Tuesday at Bear Creek
• Note: What do you need to Assign in UKG and what is assigned for you and the date it was done.
• Share the OSAS information with Families as required, but remember we do not encourage people to opt out of the assessment (lots to digest from Dave, so please read carefully)
• Watch Youth Truth webinar by Jan 6
• Share Scott’s information with teaching staff asap
• Consider supporting our Latino families and attend the 7th annual Latino night on 11/21
• Share the two items in your family newsletter–if you didn’t already do it last week

Important Dates

• November 19: Horizontal meeting, @ Bear Creek, hosted by BCE and Miller, 3:00-5:00
• November 25-29 Fall Holiday Break, (if you take time off, use non-contract for all days except Thanksgiving itself)
• December 10: Admin and ICCL Training—make sure your ICCL team knows! 3-5–location TBD
• December 11: All Admin Meeting at Perseverance Hall, 3:00-4:30
• December 19-20: Tammy is out–connect with Karen if you need anything
• December 23-January 3. Winter Break!

And finally…we can’t over look the power of connection, with families, each other, nature, pets, etc.

Did you know you can join the “Action for Happiness” movement? It’s a fun way to focus on the little things that bring you and others joy. Who doesn’t need a little happiness in their lives now and then? Check it out here!

From Tammy and Karen

We have had a great time swinging by all your schools this last week, either at a site visit, breakfast, or a pop in! For Karen’s first time seeing your schools, she was excited with how much great learning students were doing, the collaboration among adults, and respect between and about colleagues that she saw and heard. If there was a $1 for every time she said,” I have to pinch myself that this is real!” we could fully support our ever decreasing budget! Thanks for all your support!

Site Visits: For the next round of site visits (which will be between now and winter break) Julie, Karen, and I will be doing them together. These visits are going to help support your work, as we would like to plan on visiting 2 classrooms during EL time in which you need to do a mini observation. (please arrange these with staff ahead of time—this is required) After spending about 10 min in each room, our focus is going to be on having you talk about the specific feedback and conversation that you will be guiding with the teacher when you debrief. Think of it as a rehearsal time and a way to get 2 minis done! Make sure you sign up for times that EL is happening. You will receive the link to choose visits tomorrow, first come first serve!

Karen’s Contact: Please put Karen’s contact into your phone. It is: Karen Rush, (oops–if you haven’t done this yet, we needed to remove the number, please text Tammy for the number, as we want to protect Karen’s privacy on the greater internet.) Please send her a text with your first and last name and then she will add you in her phone. (As a side note, she loves unicorn emojis!!!)

Important Links

• November 6th Elementary TLC Update
• Topics of Interest/Problem of Practice–New Question–Please help a colleague!
• TAG Folder of helpful things

Notes from our Team:

From Sean in Student Services: Re: EA SUBS!

We have been engaged with the HDESD regarding the difficulty with filling substitute EA needs.  The HDESD has been very helpful, and we developed several strategies that you should know.

1. The HDESD has increase the hourly wage for classified/EA subs based on the vacancy and job type.  Formerly, all classified/EA subs were paid $17 per hour.  This will be accompanied by a new Enhanced Recruitment Efforts which will involve Social Media Campaigns, Inter-District Parent Communication, and Community Outreach.

EA I – $18/hour	EA II – $20/hour	EA III – $20/hour
Alternative Ed	Behavior Support	Inclusion
Regular Instruction	Student Success
ELL	Office Staff

2.  Cross-Role Flexibility: We have granted the HDESD the authority to automatically place licensed substitutes (paid at the higher licensed rate) in the EA 2 and EA 3 category (see above)  if a sub request is still unfilled the day before the vacancy.   This will remainder in place until the end of the year.  If the request id for a long-term sub, then a licensed sub can fill an EA 2 or EA 3 position for 1 week at a time, while a non-licensed sub is recruited.

3.  Incentive pay structure for high-demand days: We are currently working on an incentive pay structure for the 30 most high demand days of the year.  Non-licensed subs that accept sub positions on these days will receive a $25 bonus for the day.  Further, we are under current discussion to extend and modify this as needed.

The HDESD will send up monthly reports so we can monitor if these measures are increasing our sub fill rates.  Thanks for your patience and understanding.

From Jennifer in Social, Emotional, and Mental Well-being: I hope the 2024-2025 school year has started smoothly and successfully for your team and students. Patrick Cook-Deegan, Founder + CEO of Wayfinder who lives in Bend would be honored to spend some time at your school. His goal is to deepen his understanding of how the Wayfinder product and implementation is impacting your school community. 

He is eager to learn firsthand about what’s working well and where there may be areas for improvement. Patrick would welcome conversations with anyone on your team—whether a principal, counselor, teacher, or even a student—who can provide authentic insights on both the strengths and challenges of the Wayfinder experience.

Attached is a sign-up sheet for Patrick’s visit. Please select a date and time that works best with your school schedule. Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions. 

Optional Admin PD trainings:

It’s not too late to sign up for some of the optional PD trainings that are scheduled from now to winter break.

11/14	8-10SIGN UP HERE!	TOPIC: Instructional Frameworks We will unpack three different instructional frameworks and discuss how these can be utilized for learning in our buildings. As we discuss, we will begin to consider what a BLP instructional framework might include in the coming years.	2-4SIGN UP HERE!	Home Visits (1 of 3): In this three-part training, administrators will collaborate to understand the different purposes and structures of home visits, what the administrator’s role should be in comparison to other staff roles, and how best to use home visits in service of school priorities, student needs, and family engagement efforts.  The group will collaboratively develop a home visit protocol for the district, addressing values, safety considerations, communication, and other recommendations.
11/21	8-10SIGN UP HERE!	TOPIC: Special Education and SPED LawIn this session, we will cover a variety of special education law topics, including some hot topics and lessons learned, procedural reminders, and application of new laws that came out of the 2023 legislative session.  There will also be time to answer your specific questions.	2-4SIGN UP HERE!	UKG Informational UpdateThe business office will provide an informative session on UKG and training on the paper time and leave process. This is an opportunity to deepen your understanding of our payroll system, learn how to prevent time fraud, and clarify any questions you may have about this transition.
12/5	8-10SIGN UP HERE!	Evaluations and FeedbackGet your UKG questions answered and spend some time long-term planning for your observations and evaluations. We will have a couple of examples for you to consider, tools to help frame your feedback, and people to help get everything related to evals lined up.	2-4SIGN UP HERE!	Financial ManagementIn this training, we’ll explore budgeting principles and basic financial reporting. This session aims to equip you with valuable skills to enhance your school’s financial oversight, and we’ll also have a Q&A segment to address any specific questions you may have. I look forward to seeing you there and sharing ideas on how we can make a positive impact in our schools! -Dan
12/12	8-10SIGN UP HERE!	TOPIC: Instructional Frameworks(same as 11/14)We will unpack three different instructional frameworks and discuss how these can be utilized for learning in our buildings. As we discuss, we will begin to consider what a BLP instructional framework might include in the coming years.	2-4	Home Visits (2 of 3)See above
12/19	8-10SIGN UP HERE!	Positive Behavior Support Planning 101Our students need our support and planning for this can be really challenging. Come and spend time with our PBSP work group to get your questions answered and dive into planning for students who need us most!	2-4SIGN UP HERE!	Equity: Resource ToolboxCome and check out what the LEAD coaches have been up to! Spend time exploring our not-yet-published resource toolbox and give feedback to make sure it meets your ongoing needs.

From Life and Career Readiness–Jenny White Principals, here is an activity from Wayfinder called Spark, Stretch, Struggle that you can use during a staff meeting or SIW.

Two things for family newsletters:

Science Night at Lonza: Here is a link you can include in your family newsletter about an awesome family science opportunity at Lonza. Check it out!

Boys and Girls Club has the following spots available for after school care. Please reach out to them if you are interested here at this link!

• 1 full time spot available for a kinder, 2/3rd grader, 3/4 grader, and 5th grader–downtown location
• 7 full time spots for 1/2 graders–downtown location
• 10 spots open at the east side location for 1st-5th grade

Action Items

• Fill out time and leave sheets in UKG one last time
• Sign up for a site visit when you get the link!
• Text Karen your first and last name for her contacts (flood her with unicorns) (get # from Tammy)
• High-Five Sean when you see him for his hard work on the EA sub situations
• Choose a date/time to talk with Patrick from Wayfinder
• Optional Admin PD sign up
• Share the two items in your family newsletter

Important Dates

• November 8: Safety Cadre Meets at the Ed Center Boardroom, 1:30-3:30
• November 10: Time and Leave sheet are due in UKG—last time before we go paper
• November 11: Veteran’s Day–No School
• November 13: All Admin Meeting at Perseverance Hall, 3:00-4:30
• November 19: Horizontal meeting, @ Bear Creek, hosted by BCE and Miller, 3:00-5:00
• November 25-29 Fall Holiday Break, (if you take time off, use non-contract for all days except Thanksgiving itself)
• December 10: Admin and ICCL Training—make sure your ICCL team knows! 3-5–location TBD
• December 11: All Admin Meeting at Perseverance Hall, 3:00-4:30
• December 19-20: Tammy is out–connect with Karen if you need anything
• December 23-January 3. Winter Break!

And finally…we all need a little Ted Lasso pep-talk in our lives!