From Tammy and Karen
As we begin our two-week winter break, I want to take a moment to reflect on the Winter Solstice, a day that holds deep significance for me (I even have a child named Solstice). This ancient observation transcends time and culture to remind us of our humanity and our deep connection to the cycles of nature. The Solstice marks the turning point—when the darkness begins to recede and light slowly returns. It’s a powerful symbol of hope and the promise of brighter days ahead.
The Solstice also invites us to pause and to reflect on the past, the present, and the future. In moments of stillness, we gain clarity and strength. For me, this is my favorite day of the year—a time to honor both the challenges I have faced and the light that is yet to come.
As you enjoy your break, I encourage you to embrace this time of renewal. Whether in reflection or celebration, I hope you find peace and inspiration for the year ahead. Thank you for all you have done to give your community a great start this year. I look forward to all that we will accomplish together in the future.
Schedule Notes
Tammy will be out on the 19th and 20th through the break. Karen will be your main point of contact from the 19th until January 3rd.
Horizontal Meeting at Elk Meadow Elementary on January 7th from 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. Opening by Elk Meadow and closing by Westside Village.
Important Links
- December 11th Elementary TLC Update
- Topics of Interest/Problem of Practice–Keep connecting and supporting each other!
Notes from our Team:
From Sarah Barclay, BEA and Sean Reinhart, Student Support
We are re-sharing to make sure you have access to this iinformation and can easily share it with your entire staff, including classified employees. Certified employees previously received this, but classified emplyees avenot.
Many of you have reached out with questions about special education programming and expectations within Bend-La Pine Schools. First and foremost, we want to acknowledge the wide-spread concerns and confusion within our District regarding this topic. Over the last five years the Bend-La Pine Schools Student Services Department, previously known as Special Education, has made changes within their department that were well intentioned, but not communicated to the larger system of employees and this has led to uncertainty and misunderstanding. The purpose of today’s communication is to provide all staff with a shared base of information that we can use to build our future decisions upon as we move toward a shared goal of better supporting all students, including those who require specially designed instruction and services.
During the 2018-2019 school year a project known as Excellence in Education gathered feedback from staff, students, and families about their experiences in our schools. After receiving and processing that feedback, the Student Services Department set out on a journey to improve the inclusion of students experiencing disability into the general education setting. The BLS vision for special education is, “Bend-La Pine Schools strive to create an inclusive culture and environment for all learners, particularly for those that experience disability. We believe, to the greatest extent possible, that all students should maximize time spent in the general education classroom regardless of their special education services or related services. To this end, it is imperative that the educational planning process begins with services in the general education setting and ends with the need for specialized services in more segregated settings.” For more detailed information about this process click here.
We are reaching out today to share answers to frequently asked questions about our model for delivering special education services in Bend-La Pine Schools and to provide clarity on how we provide Special Education services in our schools. The Special Education Inclusion Questions and Answers (click link) will be updated as more questions arise.
Are we there yet? Inclusive practices and the improvement of those practices are a process. This work will not be achieved overnight, it will take time and training, it will take collaboration and conversation. All of which are precious in the public education system. As we continue this journey the Student Services Department is committed to listening to all employees, answering questions as they arise, and working with BEA to increase learning opportunities and continued clarity on this topic. The work we do with students is complex and working together to ensure all students have access to the support they need will lead to thriving community members in the future.
In partnership,
Sarah Barclay, President, Bend Education Association and Sean Reinhart, Executive Director of Student Services, Bend-La Pine Schools
From Human Resources: Winter Break Coverage
The HR office will have sporadic coverage over winter break, from December 21 through January 5. To ensure a smooth workflow, please complete and submit any hiring requests by Friday, December 20. New hiring requests should be held until the office resumes regular operations on Monday, January 6. If you are in the process of making an offer that will take place between December 21 and January 5, please contact Ryan Kelling as soon as possible to develop a plan for completing the process during this period.Thank you for helping us maintain a seamless hiring process.
From Student Well-Being – Jennifer Hauth
Elementary Counselors will be teaching new curriculum beginning in January. As part of our Source of Strength implementation at secondary, we are adding their Connecting to Help curriculum for grades 3-5 at elementary, this is just a few lessons at each grade level. This is an opportunity to build skills and language around mental health literacy and provide resources ahead of significant transitions. These lessons uplift protective factors available to students to help mitigate risk and allow them to practice strategies for lifelong health. Protective factors addressed in these lessons include:
- A sense of belonging and connection, both at school and in the broader community
- Positive relationships with peers and adults at school
- The ability to identify emotions, utilize coping skills, and solve social problems
- Being able to talk to Trusted Adults about social and emotional challenges
- Positive sense of identity
We met as a PLC a few weeks ago and reviewed the Connecting to Help curriculum for grades 3, 4 and 5. We have a family letter that they will share with family and here are the slides from our time together: Elementary School Counselors – Connecting to Help Curriculum and review of Wayfinder MTSS Dashboard as well as the Informed Consent Process.
From Curriculum and Instruction – Julie Richards
We have had many schools reaching out asking for support leading the progress report SIW. We would like to offer some extra support on January 8th from 2:00-3:00 via Teams. We would ask that you have your staff in one location with your ICCL team supporting. We will send a Teams invitation on that day in order to put it to the top of your inbox. You will project the Teams meeting on the screen and your staff will be able to watch and ask questions. This is optional. If your ICCL team has already led this session and your staff if feeling pretty good about progress reports you, they do not need to attend. If questions arise, please reach out.
STEMHub Training: Please share this flyer with teachers after the break. This event is in January and subs are covered.
Life and Career Readiness – Jenny White
Principals, here is an activity from Wayfinder called Finding Commonalities that you can use during a staff meeting or SIW. Link to the Activity in Wayfinder.
From Deputy Superintendent- Lisa Birk
In our efforts to continue to improve, please take a moment to give feedback on our December Admin PD time. In case you need a memory jog, we spent our time together with the goals of learning, reflecting, and connecting. We reflected on our leadership journeys, team needs, personal strengths and strengths of your colleagues, and the variety or roles you play as a leader. We also gave some awards to very deserving folks! Thank you in advance for giving your perspective.
Secondly, another survey I would like you to share with your team is from one of our partners, COREN. This will give an opportunity for all staff to describe professional development interests. COREN supports many learning opportunities within BLP, and this information benefits both their organization and ours in the sense that it gives us access to supports for our current needs. Right now, participation has been limited so any encouragement you can do to give feedback is helpful. This survey ends on January 10th.
Policy, Advocacy, and Equity – Kinsey Martin
Upcoming events/dates:
Spanish-language FAFSA Night: Mon, Jan 13th. Here is the flyer. Thanks for distributing to your families and promoting through your channels! The primary audience is high school, but staff or families from any grade level are welcome if they just want to get a sense of the process.
Asian Family Night: Friday, January 31st. Food, cultural performances and crafts, and a drawing contest. More details to come—for now, save the date! (Yes, I know this is grading day 🙂 )
Black History Month Door-Decorating Contest: Submissions due Wed, Feb 19, and winners will be announced Fri, Feb 21. Prizes and recognition for the winners will be a little special this year. Complete information will be shared with your staff via your DEI-ICCL rep in early January—for now, add these key dates to your calendar!
Presidential inauguration: This year’s presidential inauguration falls on the same day as Martin Luther King, Jr., Day. It is a No-School day, but some priority-population advisory groups have indicated worry for the student experience and respectful interactions on Tuesday, Jan 21st.
Our community has been relatively respectful post-election (which is great!), and we certainly don’t want to assume negative intent. That said, continued preventive efforts can’t hurt. In early Jan, make sure your teachers review norms and expectations regarding the dignity and belonging of everyone in your learning community, and the expected reporting procedures if these norms are violated (i.e. bias incident form submissions). As you welcome students back from break, a family communication/reminder regarding these school-wide expectations is helpful too.
Please ask your counselors to make themselves as available as possible for drop-ins if students need extra support on/around Tues, Jan 21. If your team knows a particular student or colleague struggled after the election in November, make a note on your calendar to have a trusted adult or friend intentionally check in with them that day.
Complaints: Your teams are doing really great with the complaint system—thank you for your visible and thoughtful efforts to respond, investigate, support, document, and communicate for each one you receive in your Dashboard. Those take substantial time and energy, but they are investments in the trust and safety of your school culture, and your students, families, and staff notice and appreciate that.
Action Items
- Enjoy a wonderful break! Unplug and restore!
- Sign Up for January Site Visits (For your newly assigned school lead: Karen or Tammy, not both!)
- Ensure all complaints are addressed before winter break.
- Share the COREN survey with staff and Complete the COREN SURVEY by January 10
- Complete the Admin PD Survey
- Protect January 22 SIW for a FULL 90 minutes of EL planning for your staff
Important Dates
- December 19-20: Tammy is out–connect with Karen if you need anything.
- December 23-January 3. Winter Break!
- January 6: First Day back from break!
- January 7: Horizontal Meeting at Elk Meadow from 3:00-5:00, hosted by Elk Meadow and Westside Village
- January 15 and 22: SIWs that are Educator Network day followed by an SIW that is EL planning time
- January 29: All Admin PD at Perseverance Hall, 3:00-4:30
AND Finally- Go for Blackout or add your own squares so that we all get a BINGO over the break!
