Category Archives: Uncategorized

From Tammy and Karen

It’s been a while since we posted a monthly calendar from the Action for Happiness Series! With the wonderful weather on the way, its a great month to focus on getting more active! I am dusting off my hiking shoes and hitting the trail this weekend! What are your favorite activities? Speaking of activities, see the information below about after school clubs!

Extra-Curricular Clubs 

We’re happy to share that we’ve found a path forward for our elementary after-school clubs! We want to ensure that those of you eager to start programs like Lego Robotics, Chess, or Choir can do so while fairly compensating our hardworking staff.

Moving forward, you may utilize your school’s discretionary funds to pay club leaders at their hourly (per diem) rate. While PTA/PTO funds cannot be used for direct compensation, you can coordinate with them to purchase  supplies or materials for the school.

As you decide which clubs best serve your students, please run your plans by your Level Leader for a second pair of eyes. We look forward to seeing these programs come to life!

Important Links

• March 18th Elementary TLC Update
• Please read this week’s Special EDge    April 2nd
• BLS School Libraries Newsletters!
• 1-Page Student Management guide
• Dates to recognize groups
• CPI Trained Staff List (let Sara Young know if you see staff who are not at your school)

Notes from our Team: 

From Kayla Martin, Safety

All schools are required to complete two earthquake drills per school year. We apologize if there has been any miscommunication that they were optional. These are required by the state in ORS 336.071

From Jennifer Hauth, Director of Student Well-Being

🌟 You’re Invited! Mark Your Calendars!

Join us for end-of-year presentations led by our dedicated Bend-La Pine Schools counselors. During these brief school updates, each team will share progress on their annual goals, highlight key programming initiatives, and reflect on the data gathered throughout the year. These presentations offer an opportunity to see how counseling programs are supporting students academically, socially-emotionally, and in their college and career readiness. Teams will share successes, lessons learned, and how this year’s work will inform future planning within our coordinated system of student support.

Your presence matters as we celebrate growth, learn from one another, and look ahead to the next year of impact.

Tuesday, June 2, 2026
Elementary School | 7:30–10:30 a.m.
Location: Education Center Boardroom & Room 312

Waypoints Summative Assessment for grades K-12: 

The final summative assessment opens April 28th and closes May 30th for secondary and May 22nd for Elementary: 

•  Overview of resources. One pager for new Admin.
• 3-5 Implementation Guide. K-2 Infromation coming soon.
• 6-12 Implementation Guide and 6-12 Teacher Directions
• Admin Tutorial Video

The assessment takes 15 to 20 minutes and can be completed on a student’s Ipad, using Clever and then selecting Wayfinder. Here are instructions for how it will appear in Student View. 

• For students in grades 3–5: When they log in to the Wayfinder platform, the Waypoints assessment will be clearly visible at the top of their dashboard. It will appear as a box containing the assessment’s name with a “Start” button next to it.
• For students in grades 6–12: When students log in, the Waypoints assessment will be displayed in their “To-Do List,” which is typically located on the right side of the page. On a smaller screen like an iPad, the To-Do List may appear at the top of the screen. Students will see the name of the assessment and a “Start” button. 

Students can leave and return to the assessment at any time, as their progress is automatically saved. 

Please make sure that all teachers understand the “Why” behind the assessment and how it ties into any of your schoolwide goals or initiatives. Teachers need to read the instructions to the students so that we get quality data. 

Finally, we don’t need to get parent permission for Waypoints. However, there is a letter that you can adapt language for your newsletter if you would like.

From Andrea Wilson, Human Resources

Seeking Spring Conferences Feedback – Elementary & Middle School Administrators

Please share your experiences with elementary and middle school conferences held the week prior to spring break. Your input will help inform future planning decisions. Thank you for your time and perspective.
https://forms.gle/Hc4Qu7X53XNTqqtMA

From Kinsey, Policy and Advocacy

Day of Silence  – Action needed –

Please share this message with your staff: 

2026’s Day of Silence is Friday, April 10.  You will likely have students observing this day.  Students have the right to express themselves (including through silence, in this case) as long as it is done in an orderly and non-disruptive manner—see related policy.  Thank you for accommodating your participating students by:

1. Planning nonverbal or written options for class participation that day

2. Letting substitutes know to be prepared to accommodate students as well

3. Learning about the day and its significance to your students

4. Promptly interrupting and reporting any harassment or bias incidents

Community Engagment Bingo  – Action requested –

Sign up by this Friday for a quick drop-in to the Latino Community Association office, to get a quick tour and overview of their services.  It is easy to be upset by what we see in the news regarding the treatment of immigrants—this is one way to actually do something about it, by supporting the local folks who are helping our students, their families, and some of your own staff.  Sign up by this Friday—thanks for your care for this important topic.  

Action Items

• Make sure you complete 2 earthquake drills this school year.
• Plan to attend the End of Year presentations for counseling programs on June 2nd.
• Get ready for the Waypoints assessment window opening on April 28th.
• Give your feedback to Human Resources on conferences and spring break.
• Sign up for a visit to the LCA and share Day of Silence information

Important Dates

• March 23-27: Spring Break!
• March 31: All staff virtual update–see information above
• April 8: All Admin PD 3:00 – 4:30
• April 14: Elementary Horizontal 3:00 – 4:30 location North Star Elementary
• April 15: Educator Network Day for SIW
• April 21: #1 PLC and Phly Like Canadians meet from 3:00-4:30
• April 28: The PLC3PO and We Are the Winners meet from 3:00-4:30

And finally… Congratulations to our Next Duck Drawing winner Beth Martin!

Congratulations to this week’s winner, Beth Martin, who is in her second year as Principal at North Star Elementary.  While originally from the Lone Star state, Beth has spent a good part of her career in the Corvallis School District, where she has been both a teacher and principal.  However, the year prior coming to Bend, she packed up her family and took them on an adventure to Costa Rica! It was there that Beth dabbled in K-12 leadership, taking on a much broader role than she thought she was going to do, while experiencing a new culture and place with her family. Beth is an innovative and humble leader, who puts student needs at the center of everything that the Navigators do. Her exceptionally kind and caring personality helps make everyone feel welcomed and cared for! Please let us know your drink of choice Beth, and we’ll deliver! 

From Tammy and Karen

#1. We hope you all enjoyed our PLC and mClass time as much as we did yesterday! Thinking about all the different topics that the 4 PLCs will be digging into these next few months is exciting. Thank you for all your engagement in the activities. Here are the slides from the PLC time. If you did not take the PD survey, please remember to do that.

#2 We also received the following email today from Amplify in regards to the survey they gave. We know you care about being team players and supporting our partners. Please take a moment and respond to their ask:

“Charmaine mentioned that each session had about 15–20 participants, and we’ve only received a handful of responses to our survey. The feedback is really important for understanding how the session went for our team.

Could you send out a quick reminder to the participants with the survey link? Getting more feedback will help us. You can copy paste the line below:

The Amplify PD team values and is looking for your feedback. If you haven’t done so already, please take a moment to complete the survey at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/AmplifyPDsurvey with Customer Code (for the 1st session at 8am): 1087315 and Customer Code (for the 2nd session at 9:45am): 1087316.”

#3. Last minute reminder that staffing plans are due before you take off tomorrow for spring break! Karen and I are work tomorrow and part of next week and need your plans for the tasks we have to accomplish. Thank you!

#4 Lastly, we hope you have an amazing week off, taking time to rest, enjoying the special people in your life, filling your lungs with fresh air, and doing all your favorite things! Be safe and we will see you all on the flip side of break!

Important Links

• March 18th Elementary TLC Update
• Please read this week’s Special EDge    (March 12)
• BLS School Libraries Newsletters!
• 1-Page Student Management guide
• Dates to recognize groups
• CPI Trained Staff List (let Sara Young know if you see staff who are not at your school)

Notes from our Team: 

From Rodger Moore, Director of Facility Operations

I am writing to inform you of an upcoming adjustment to our landscape irrigation practices in response to current budget constraints.

To ensure responsible resource management, the district will be implementing a strategic reduction in landscape irrigation across our campuses. As a result, overall landscape aesthetics may fall below our typical district standards in certain areas. You can expect to see dry or brown grass in locations where reduced irrigation will not impact student use or safety.

Please note that maintaining safe and functional environments remains our top priority. Athletic fields and high-use play areas will continue to receive focused irrigation to ensure they remain green, safe, and suitable for student activities.

We appreciate your understanding as we take these necessary steps to balance fiscal responsibility with the needs of our students and facilities. If you have any questions or would like additional details, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

From Michelle Rhoads in Transportation

Please orient yourself and pass on to your PE teachers, this attached information page about an upcoming professional development opportunity related to bicycle safety. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me to answer questions. A separate day for the La Pine Schools will be held on April 15.

From Lisa–Acting Superintendent in Dr. Cook’s Absence

Join us virtually March 31 for staff updates

Acting Superintendent Lisa Birk will host an update for all District staff on Tuesday, March 31, with two 30-minute virtual sessions:

• Session 1 – 3:05 – 3:35 p.m. (LINK to join Session 1)
• Session 2 – 3:50 – 4:20 p.m. (LINK to join Session 2)

Action Items

• Complete Amplify and BLS PD surveys from yesterday
• Complete your initial thinking for staffing plan by end of day today
• Pass on the PE professional learning to your PE teachers

Important Dates

• March 23-27: Spring Break!
• March 31: All staff virtual update–see information above
• April 8: All Admin PD 3:00 – 4:30
• April 14: Elementary Horizontal 3:00 – 4:30 location TBD
• April 15: Educator Network Day for SIW
• April 21: PLC3-PO and Phly Like Canadians meet from 3:00-4:30
• April 28: The #1 PLC and We Are the Winners meet from 3:00-4:30

And finally… Congratulations to our Next Duck Drawing winner Gary DeFrang!

This week’s Duck winner is Gary DeFrang, Principal at Lava Ridge. Gary has been an administrator in our district longer than most of us (22 years!) splitting his time of service between High Desert Middle School and Lava Ridge Elementary. He is the proud dad of two amazing boys, who have and are attending Bend-La Pine Schools. Fun fact, did you know that Gary was a collegiate swimmer at the University of Washington, where he was a standout on the team? He often lead the Huskies with his powerful backstroke! You can still find Gary to this day, swimming regularly to keep up with all those lions on the playground.

Countdown to Spring Break! What fun plans do you have?

From Tammy and Karen

As we move into the staffing plan process, we want to provide school leaders with a clear and thoughtful approach to navigating this important work. Over the next few days, we will be scheduling times to visit schools to review staffing plans together. These conversations are intended to support you in reflecting on your plan, verifying key data points, asking questions, and ensuring that the documentation is complete. In some cases, Jennifer Hauth and members of the Student Services leadership team may also join these conversations if they are available. It has been wonderful to collaborate across departments on these important plans. Above you will see a cool infographic that Tammy put together using Notebook LM (p.s. if you haven’t tried out this tool, we recommend you look at it.) We hope this guide can help make this process smooth, thoughtful, and supportive for your school community.

END: Thank you all for your support last week in attending the Educator Network Days! This is just an FYI: Here is the attendance information of the Educator Network Day from last week. We don’t believe that elementary has a problem with people not attending the sessions, but it has been brought to our attention that missing END as a district has been problematic, so take a quick peek to confirm that your list is accurate. 

Important Links

• March 4th Elementary TLC Update
• Please read this week’s Special EDge    (March 12)
• BLS School Libraries Newsletters!
• 1-Page Student Management guide
• Dates to recognize groups
• CPI Trained Staff List (let Sara Young know if you see staff who are not at your school)

Notes from our Team: 

From Jennifer in Student Wellbeing

Please see below for an opportunity here in Bend for district administrators that are helping to lead this work😊 Learn how to strengthen our Wayfinder implementation to help meet our strategic initiatives. I will be there and I think it would be great to have some of you join, especially those of you that have not attended any Wayfinder trainings in the past. 

From Patrick Cook-Deegan – CEO and Founder of Wayfinder:

I’d like to personally invite you to join us for the Oregon Community Workshop on Friday, April 17 at Tetherow Resort in Bend.

This will be a focused, working session with district leaders from across Oregon on how schools are implementing Wayfinder to:

• Meet Oregon’s mandated TSEL standards
• Align with SB3 requirements
• Strengthen instruction for the Oregon Health Education Standards

More than 115 Oregon districts are already bringing this work to life with us. During the workshop, we’ll share concrete implementation strategies, lessons learned, and practical tools you can take back to your district or school site immediately.

Event Details

8:30 AM – 2:30 PM (breakfast and lunch provided)
Tetherow Resort
61240 Skyline Ranch Rd
Bend, OR 97702

This will be interactive and collaborative—not a sit-and-get session. You’ll experience Wayfinder activities firsthand and connect with peers navigating similar priorities.

RSVP here.

From Shelby Paulson from Library Services

Thursday, May 7th is the 2nd annual School Library Symposium. This is a library-specific PD event for classified and certified school library staff in our region. This event is free of charge to remove barriers and encourage attendance.

From Marta in Superintendent’s Office

A NEW and updated Frequently Called Numbers document is available on the Portal! https://bendlapine.sharepoint.com/SitePages/Frequently-Called-Numbers-List.aspx#all-fcn-numbers

Action Items

• Fill out Excellence in Ed Nomination by 3/20
• Document Erin’s Law being taught
• Complete your initial thinking for staffing plan by end of day on March 19th
• Bookmark the new Frequently Numbers List

Important Dates

• March 18: Teacher work day (8 hours) Conferences (4 hours)
• March 18: Elementary Admin PD 8:00-11:15 a.m. Lunch provided after
• March 19: Conferences (12 hours)
• March 20: No School
• March 23-27: Spring Break!
• April 8: All Admin PD 3:00 – 4:30
• April 14: Elementary Horizontal 3:00 – 4:30 location TBD

And finally… Congratulations to our Next Duck Drawing winner Scott Edmondson!

This week’s Duck winner is Scott Edmondson, currently the Principal at Highland Magnet at Kenwood.  Prior to Highland, Scott was Principal at RE Jewell, and Sky View Middle School.  Scott is a beloved principal and known to be able to be the leader that struggling school communities need to bring a caring and kind culture to a school.  Fun fact, if you are to google Scott, you just might get the following…and it’s all true!  “Scott Edmondson, a longtime educator in Bend, Oregon, gained recognition as the ‘Worlds Strongest Principal’ around 2010. While leading Sky View Middle School, he won a world championship in powerlifting, bench-pressing over 585 pounds. He later served as principal at R.E. Jewell Elementary and was named principal at Highland Magnet at Kenwood School in 2023.”  In addition, Scott can spend hours educating you on all things Sasquatch, so if you are so inclined, hit him up for some good stories. That is, when he is not spending time with his family, as he is a proud dad and grandpa as well. Congratulations Scott!  Let us know your drink of choice, and we’ll send it your way. 

From Tammy and Karen

We just wanted to take a moment to extend appreciation for you and they way in which we will all be working together to navigate this next season of staffing with grace and understanding. To reiterate what Lisa said, it is important that we are all the face of optimism and positivity as we eventually roll out information to staff and support the work moving forward. Confidentiality is of the utmost importance, so when in doubt of whether or not you can say something, please reach out to us for clarification before saying anything.

Karen and I will be reaching out to get some time with each of you as we get your staffing plans. We will be delivering them to you at that meeting.

Updated Conference Guidance for Teachers: Below is a link to updated guidance for teachers on how they can conference with staff. This was discussed with BEA and you all, so the hope is it provides clarity to the concerns. Not a lot is different, just said differently to hopefully add clarity. Please share with staff and reach out with any questions.

Conference Information for Teachers

Repeat–Mark Your Calendar! We are looking forward to time together with you all on March 18th at the Education Center. We will start at 8 and work together until 11:15 a.m. Afterwards, we invite you to stay for lunch with us in the Board Room. You will be working with your PLC groups and spending 90 minutes getting training on Amplify and 90 minutes starting your next cycle for our PLC work. We have learned a lot over our meetings together this fall and winter and are looking forward to applying some of these changes to our work together moving forward. We will share more information at our Horizontal Meeting next week.

Important Links

• March 4th Elementary TLC Update
• Please read this week’s Special EDge    (March 5)
• BLS School Libraries Newsletters!
• 1-Page Student Management guide
• Dates to recognize groups
• CPI Trained Staff List (let Sara Young know if you see staff who are not at your school)

Notes from our Team: 

From Kayla in Safety

Reminder that Wednesday, March 11 is our Safety Cadre Training #3

• Secondary- 8:00AM-9:30AM in the HDMS Library
• Elementary- 1:30PM-3:00PM in the NSE Library

We will be having an informational presentation from our Deputy District Attorney on the juvenile justice process followed by a tabletop exercise. Please coordinate with your level-leader to have one member of your admin team present.

From Ryan in HR

Last week, I shared the forms to submit names of the Certified and Support Staff you’d like to recognize as part of our Excellence in Education program. Resharing the links here with a reminder that nominations are due by Friday March 20th. Timely submission allows the next portion of the process to move forward so that everything can be ready in advance of the recognition evening, May 13th.

• The Certified Staff Nomination form is here: https://forms.gle/uN8bDYzrRFFo65nH9
• The Support Staff Nomination form is here: https://forms.gle/ofLPgm3NoN5AmM4f7              

If you need the names of previous honorees from your site, please email me and I will share those with you.

From Julie in Curriculum and Instruction

Here is the form to fill out to confirm Erin’s Law has been taught in your building.  Please send to April J when complete.  

Here is the spreadsheet for SB 1003 (Dyslexia Legislation).  This spreadsheet tells you which Kindergarten students will need a letter at Spring conferences.  Click on your school and look for a green highlighted section that says, “April notifications”.  Print and fill out letters and have teachers go over with families at conferences.  If you have a student that it doesn’t make sense to send a letter for just let me know and I will remove their name (i.e. newcomer).  

Thank you and let me know if you have any questions. 

From Kinsey in Policy and Advocacy

Community Engagement Visits:   -Action requested-

Don’t forget about the chance to win a gift card ($25-$49.99) to places like El Sancho, Spork, downtown shops, and more!  A little motivation and token of appreciation for getting outside your building/office and into the community we serve.  (Bingo card here.)    

Thanks to all who visited The Giving Plate and Bethlehem Inn!  (If you missed those, it’s not too late–reach out to me.)  Our next community partner visit is in April, to the Latino Community Association.  Sign up here to participate.  

While this time of year feels particularly busy, these visits (and/or the average home visit) last 30 minutes or less, and hopefully leave you re-energized and reminded of your ‘why.’  This visit is also a tangible action you can take to support your immigrant and Latino families right now.  

Also, for those of you who recently visisted the Kids’ Center with our awesome safety team: Use that as one of your “optional” spots on your Bingo card.  One step closer to your prize!  🙂

Fundraising Listening Sessions:  -Action needed-

Don’t forget to sign up to attend one of the Fundraising and Donations update sessions.  Your parent leaders, coaches, and community members will be getting this information the following week, so we want you to feel informed and be able to give any final input.  See email from Kinsey sent Feb 27 for details (one admin per building, AD, Activities, etc).    

Taking It Up:   -Action needed-

If you have not yet attended Taking It Up, please talk with your Level Leader about their expectation for your participation in this workshop (register here).  I can cover a sub for your admin duties those two days.  Please also include this invitation in your next staff communication, and encourage folks to represent your school/dept in attending.

Black History Month Door-Decorating Contest: 

Wow–we had great participation rates this year, with kindergarten through adult groups submitting entries!    Check out the submissions.  Tomorrow, winners will be contacted via email (we’ll copy building admin so you know if you have a winner in your building–they will also be featured on social media this month) to celebrate and get them their prizes.  

Family Nights:

Save the dates: Asian Family Night = Friday, May 1; Latino Family Night = Thursday, May 14.  (These are on our district Family Engagement calendar in Outlook.)  More information to follow!

Action Items

• Fill out Excellence in Ed Nomination by 3/20
• Document Erin’s Law being taught
• For Conferences, print out and pass out to identified students, the Dyslexia Law paperwork
• Sign up for an LCA (Community Engagement Bingo) visit
• Sign up and/or share about Taking It Up workshop
• Sign up for a fundraising policy listening session if you haven’t already
• Safety Cadre Meeting—3/11. See you there!

Important Dates

• March 8 Daylight Savings Time—jump ahead one hour today!
• March 9. Fundraising Conversation, Board Room 10:00-11:15 (option1)
• March 11 Safety Cadre Meeting at North Star Elementary 1:30-3:00
• March 11 Fundraising Conversation, Board Room 3:00-4:15 (option 2)
• March 18: Teacher work day (8 hours) Conferences (4 hours)
• March 18: Elementary Admin PD 8:00-11:15 a.m. Lunch provided after
• March 19: Conferences (12 hours)
• March 20: No School
• March 23-27: Spring Break!

And finally… Congratulations to our Next Duck Drawing winner Carl Hjeresen!

Carl Hjeresen (pronounced: year-uh-sun) is in his third year as Assistant Principal at La Pine Elementary. Prior to that, Carl was Student Services at Rosland Elementary for 2 years. Fun fact, way back when, Carl started his teaching career at La Pine Elementary, so he has come full circle! Another fun fact, is it was at LPE that he met this amazing 4th grade teacher, named Tracy, who later became his wife! Carl and Tracy have two amazing kids, Hadley and Tate, who are their pride and joy, and also the source of a very busy life for the Hjeresen family, going from sport to sport each season and weekend. Carl and his family, like some of you, had the opportunity to teach overseas in the middle east for several years, where they got to enjoy new cultures, new friends, and an adventurous life. We are so glad they came back, as Bend-La Pine is so lucky to have them here making a difference in the lives of so many every day! When he has a little extra time, you can probably find Carl on the golf course with a brother or two, having the time of their lives! Congratulations Carl! Let us know your drink of choice!

From Tammy and Karen

First, I want to thank you all for your kind words of support and care for my family. It means a lot to know you are thinking of us and I so appreciate your understanding as I step away from work to be close to my family at this time. My mother is making slow progress in recovery from her fall, and I am so glad I can be here with her and my dad. Thank you for your grace!

Mark Your Calendar! We are looking forward to time together with you all on March 18th at the Education Center. We will start at 8 and work together until 11:15 a.m. Afterwards, we invite you to stay for lunch with us in the Board Room. You will be working with your PLC groups and spending 90 minutes getting training on Amplify and 90 minutes starting your next cycle for our PLC work. We have learned a lot over our meetings together this fall and winter and are looking forward to applying some of these changes to our work together moving forward. We will share more information at our Horizontal Meeting next week.

Camp Fire Central Oregon is one of our partner agencies providing after school care in our schools.  Please share these two Camp Fire events in your family newsletter:

✅ No School Day Camps (NSDCs) are happening in South County and BendParent-teacher conferences (March 18-20) Spring Break (March 23-27, Bend only) 💲GIVE $20/GET $20 PROMOTION!💲You and your buddy get a $20 credit when you refer a friend to sign up for March No School Day Camps.To receive your referral credit, ask your friend to add your name at checkout. Limit 1 referral credit per registered youth. Credits must be used within 12 months. Example: Refer 5 friends and get $100 towards future Camp Fire programs Our NSDCs aren’t just a fabulous solution for working families, but they engage kids through fun themes, get them off screens, and focus on building character, nurturing curiosity, confidence, and compassion. Sign up HERE!

Absolutely Incredible Kid Day®  On Sunday, March 15, Camp Fire Central Oregon is celebrating the incredible youth in our lives in honor of Absolutely Incredible Kid Day®—or #KidDay

FREE ice skating party for kids (ages 17 and under), activities, Camp Fire birthday cake, and connection! Kids must be accompanied by a caring adult.Sunday, March 15, 12:30-3:30 p.m., arrive by 3 p.m. to skateThe Pavilion, The Pavilion, 1001 SW Bradbury Way, Bend KIDS CAN ENTER to win a free laptop—must enter online by March 10!

Important Links

• February 18th Elementary TLC Update
• Special EDge   (February 26)
• NEW: BLS School Libraries Newsletters!
• 1-Page Student Management guide
• Dates to recognize groups (Coming soon: March 2-6 Classified Appreciation Week)
• CPI Trained Staff List (let Sara Young know if you see staff who are not at your school)

Notes from our Team: 

From Sara and Gabe regarding MTSS:

Last month, we came out to interview all the buildings about MTSS. HERE are the trends from those interviews.

Thank you all so much for your time and collaboration so we can move forward in creating a stronger system – your insight and tools were critical! We learned so much!

From Curriculum and Instruction: Winter Progress Monitoring Updates

–Updated Winter Progress Monitoring List

Following the mid-year benchmark, please find the updated Winter Progress Monitoring List above. Our primary goal this semester is to maximize direct instructional minutes; every minute spent on testing is a minute taken away from student learning.

Monitoring Frequency Guidelines

To ensure we are gathering necessary data without over-testing, please adhere to the following schedule:

• 1st–10th Percentile: Monitor 2x per month.
• 11th–20th Percentile: Monitor 1x per month.

Efficiency Targets

• Limit Measures: Use the minimum number of measures required to track growth. Do not over-monitor across multiple sub-skills if one key indicator suffices.
• Professional Judgment: You know your students best. Please add any students who were omitted from the list but require tracking.
• Support: If the volume of progress monitoring is impacting your ability to deliver Tier 1 or Tier 2 instruction, please reach out immediately. We are committed to problem-solving solutions that protect your instructional block.

Please share this information with staff members who may not receive this blog.  

Erin’s Law Link Update: The link in the October blog to the Erin’s Law lessons was incorrect.  Here is the correct link.  

From Ryan in HR

I’ve now reviewed all of the responses to the Administrator Preference Survey, thank you for taking the time to complete it.

As a reminder, the goal of the survey is to help better understand your interests, reflections, and professional aspirations as we enter the early stages of planning for the 2026–27 school year and the survey is designed to make sure you have voice in the process.

In a handful of cases, a follow-up conversation would be helpful to clarify interests, better understand context, or talk more about professional goals. If that’s the case, I’ll reach out directly to schedule time. If you don’t hear from me, it simply means your responses were clear and don’t require immediate follow-up at this time.

This is just part of our normal planning rhythm and gives me a clearer picture as we look toward 2026–27. We’re just getting started with that planning, and nothing has been decided.

As always, final assignment decisions are made with the needs of the entire district in mind, and your input informs that work.

If you want to talk through anything you shared (or didn’t share), call, text, or email and we’ll set up time.

From Stephen DuVal, MS Executive Director

Please share the following information with all your 5th grade families as soon as possible. Thanks!

Mark your calendars for Tuesday, March 10. A big milestone is around the corner. Our middle schools are rolling out the welcome mat for Incoming 6th Grade Family Night, and you’re invited to be part of the excitement. This is your family’s first step into the middle school experience!

✨ Tour the campus
✨ Visit classrooms
✨ Meet amazing teachers and staff
✨ Get your questions answered
✨ Start imagining the year ahead

It’s the perfect chance to explore, connect, and get a feel for your new school community. We can’t wait to welcome our future 6th graders and their families!

Action Items

• Mark your calendars for Elementary Admin PD on March 18th from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm (lunch included)
• Review Progress monitoring information from Curriculum and Instruction
• Share Camp Fire events with families

Important Dates

• March 3: Elementary Horizontal 3:00 – 4:30 p.m. in the Board Room
• March 4: Educator Network Day
• March 18: Teacher work day (8 hours) Conferences (4 hours)
• March 18: Elementary Admin PD 8:00-11:15 a.m. Lunch provided after
• March 19: Conferences (12 hours)
• March 20: No School
• March 23-27: Spring Break!

And finally… Congratulations to our Next Duck Drawing winner Trevor Arsenault!

Trevor is in his 3rd year as an Assistant Principal for Rosland Elementary! He is a hands-on problem solver who shows up wherever support is needed. A deeply involved father of two daughters, he can often be found at cheer practices and competitions, fully embracing the role of “cheer dad” and learning the ropes along the way. He loves fishing on his boat — a place where he can reset and recharge — but even downtime tends to spark ideas. Trevor is naturally handy and has recently put his new 3D printer to work creating desk organization tools and practical solutions for staff. He designed and built a mobile cart to support classrooms while working in the commons and most recently constructed a projector cart to streamline assemblies. Whether at home, on the water, or supporting classrooms, Trevor brings creativity, reliability, and a builder’s mindset to everything he does. Congratulations Trevor and please let us know your favorite drink and we will Rocket over to Rosland to drop it off!

From Tammy and Karen

When I read the quote above, it reminded me of our PLC group 4 meeting this week. We were sharing the observations admin had made, specific to discourse, they were looking for during mini observations over the last few weeks. One of the take aways was that when we focus on something we had not been specifically focusing on ( like the types and quantity of discourse) during a classroom visit, we start to see discourse everywhere. What is something you may be struggling with, but can look at differently? What one sees as a problem, another sees an opportunity!

In addition to PLCs this week many APs have been trying out a new observation tool created from the 5D framework and incorporating some debrief questions for each dimension. Strong instructional leaders have quality debrief conversations in which teachers leave knowing what is going well and having next steps to move student learning forward. Here is a link to the tools. The first couple of pages are overviews of the 5 dimensions and look-fors (thanks for the model Beth!) The next pages are the 5 dimensions made to print back to back. Feel free to check them out and use them. We are open to feedback as we want to design a tool that supports you and your teachers. Based on feedback from a group, the tool is designed to collect information on the front and having the debrief questions and next steps on the back.

Important Links

• February 18th Elementary TLC Update
• Special EDge    (February 19)
• NEW: BLS School Libraries Newsletters!
• 1-Page Student Management guide
• Dates to recognize groups (Coming soon: March 2-6 Classified Appreciation Week)
• CPI Trained Staff List (let Sara Young know if you see staff who are not at your school)

Notes from our Team: 

From Jennifer in Student Well Being

🎉In honor of School Social Work Week and Classified Appreciation Week (March 2 -6th), we want to take a moment to specifically honor our Student Success Coordinators, Clinicians, Instructors, and Educational Assistants.

The ongoing need for specialized and compassionate support for students makes the Student Success team a central role in bridging the gap between home and school, ensuring that social, emotional, and mental health needs are met with expertise and empathy.

Whether they are providing intensive care coordination, fostering family engagement, or offering a steady hand during a mental health crisis, they work to bridge between a student “getting by” and truly thriving. The effort they put into building safe, trusting relationships that extend from the classroom to the home with students is essential.

Please take a moment at your school the first week of March to thank them for their service!

🌟 You’re Invited! Mark Your Calendars!

Join us for end-of-year presentations led by our dedicated Bend-La Pine Schools counselors. During these brief school updates, each team will share progress on their annual goals, highlight key programming initiatives, and reflect on the data gathered throughout the year. These presentations offer an opportunity to see how counseling programs are supporting students academically, socially-emotionally, and in their college and career readiness. Teams will share successes, lessons learned, and how this year’s work will inform future planning within our coordinated system of student support.

This reflection helps us continue strengthening a comprehensive, responsive support system for all students across Bend-La Pine Schools. Your presence matters as we celebrate growth, learn from one another, and look ahead to the next year of impact. I will send a calendar invite for each school. We hope you’ll join us! (From Tammy and Karen—it is an expectation that every school who has a counselor sends at least one administrator to the presentations.)

Tuesday, June 2, 2026
Elementary School | 7:30–10:30 a.m.
Location: Education Center Boardroom & Room 312

From Kinsey–Office of Policy and Advocacy

Guidance on Email Communications and Student Information:

Here is the guidance we reviewed at horizontals recently, and the quiz activity you can use when introducing this to staff.  Please don’t only email this guidance out to staff—it’s not urgent, but take some time to review and discuss it together at some point between now and your August launch next year.  

Policy Updates:  Here is the policy we reviewed and discussed together recently.  This sets out specific expectations for administrators, certified educators, and all employees.  As a reminder, it replaces and covers Staff Responsibilities, Assignment, Employee Dress Code, and more.  Worth being very familiar with!

Here is our policy on showing movies/films in class.  As discussed, it’s not necessarily intuitive in all cases—please share with your teachers. 

Ramadan and Religious Practices: This week marked the beginning of Ramadan, which continues through March 19. Please be mindful of both employee and student needs related to religious observances:

If an employee requests accommodations for fasting or prayer (or any other religious purpose throughout the year), contact me so we can ensure we meet our Civil Rights obligations and coordinate with Benefits.

Please also remind your staff that students may request accommodations related to religious observances. This could include adjustments connected to fasting, prayer, PE participation, or assessments. When these arise, loop me in so we can support the student’s civil rights appropriately and consistently. 

From Andrea in Human Resources

A friendly reminder to please make sure anyone helping with school traffic or crossing guard duties is wearing a high-visibility vest and/or clothing.

Wearing a vest helps reinforce safe practices for our students and families. We appreciate your attention to this and your continued support in keeping our campus safe.

If your site needs a vest, please email Andrea Wilson.

In the spirit of the Olympics, here is an opportunity you may be interested in

Last year, Silver Rail, Elk Meadow, and Bear Creek hosted Paralympian, Rudy Garcia‑Tolson as a guest speaker during an assembly, and the impact was tremendous. Rudy presents on national stages, yet has a unique ability to connect meaningfully with elementary students through stories, humor, and hands‑on interaction with his prosthetics.

This May, Rudy will again be in Central Oregon. His travel, lodging, and most of his time are being covered by the Dean Family Kids Triathlon, making school visits highly accessible.

Why it aligns well with elementary priorities:

• PBIS Support: Rudy’s message reinforces core PBIS themes—perseverance, positive choices, resilience, and inclusive community behavior. Schools last year shared that his assembly strengthened their existing PBIS culture.
• Career Readiness: As the first double amputee to complete an Ironman, a five‑time Paralympian, and a gold‑medal athlete, Rudy provides a powerful example of goal-setting, grit, and exploring future possibilities—foundational elements of early career readiness. 

He can present between two to three schools per day, and typically schools contribute a $500 honorarium (often funded through PTO or PBIS/SEL allocations).

If you’re interested in scheduling Rudy, please reach out to Mark Dean (503-403-8548) for available times and additional details. You can also connect with any of last year’s hosts—Brian Raber, Mary Dean, Amanda Gylling, Lindsey Manitsas—to hear firsthand about the student impact.

Action Items

• Mark your calendar for the counselor presentations (6/2, from 7:30-10:30 at the Ed Center)
• Be mindful of our new policies and Ramadan practices
• Make sure everyone on crosswalk and parking lot (and recess) duty has a reflective vest!! Yes, you too!

Important Dates

• February 24: PLC3PO at Silver Rail 3:00 – 4:30 p.m.
• March 3: Elementary Horizontal 3:00 – 4:30 p.m. in the Board Room
• March 4: Educator Network Day
• March 18: Teacher work day (8 hours) Conferences (4 hours)
• March 18: Elementary Admin PD (3-4 hours–more to come)
• March 19: Conferences (12 hours)
• March 20: No School
• March 23-27: Spring Break!

And finally… Congratulations to our Next Duck Drawing winner Amanda Gylling!

Amanda Gylling is currently in her first year as Assistant Principal at Juniper Elementary, where she has increased her leg strength going up and down all those steps! Prior to Juniper, Amanda was AP at Elk Meadow for two years, Student Services at Bear Creek, Student Services in Redmond and a teacher at Lava Ridge! She has lots of experiences to draw from. In case you don’t know Amanda that well yet, she is the world’s best baseball mom, as she and her husband (who is also a teacher and coach in BLS) travel all over supporting their son and his ball team, who were playing at the national level last year. On any given weekend in the spring and summer, she can be found on the ball field. She also has an amazing therapy dog, who occasionally makes an appearance for all the wildcats at Juniper to enjoy. Congratulations Amanda! Let us know your beverage of choice and we will deliver!

 

From Tammy and Karen

2026 Theme for Black History Month: “A Century of Black History Commemoration

As we observe Black History Month, I’m inviting all of us to pause and reflect not just on the few names we hear most often, but on the many Black educators who changed the face of education in America, from the founders of schools and literacy programs to the leaders who fought for equity and opportunity against impossible odds. The list at the link below highlights 50 African Americans whose contributions reshaped how and where learning happens, from those who opened doors for access and inclusion to those who stood on the front lines of academic thought and civil rights. Take a moment this month to explore that collection, learn their stories, and think about how their courage, creativity, and commitment continue to impact classrooms and communities today. (ctulocal1.org)

BLACK HISTORY MONTH: 50 African-Americans Who Forever Changed Education

.Conference Information:

With conferences quickly approaching, we have several topics to go over concerning this time of the year.  

Conference Length Expectations:  In past partnership with the BEA, we landed on the following information.  If a teacher has 25 or less students, their conferences need to be between 25-30 minutes to accommodate for transition times as needed (25 min gives time for a quick restroom break, time in case one goes longer, etc.).  If a teacher has 26 or more students, their conferences can be 20 minutes, giving the teacher the ability to have a few longer ones as well as including transition times if needed.  

How we conference:  The following link to staff is a mutually developed message from Bend-La Pine and BEA that needs to be copied and pasted into your staff newsletter regarding the parameters around “how” we conference.  Following the letter to staff is a link for a family letter you can use to send to your families explaining what may happen if they choose to go on a vacation during conference times. 

Link to message for teaching staff

Letter to Families re: leaving during conferences.  Using this letter is at your discretion.  

Interpreters: Principals, work with your office team to submit your requests for interpreters ASAP via Linguist Link (do not rely on CAFE members at this point–they should be used for back-up only).  Language Specialists and Family Liaisons can help coordinate languages and appointments.  On conference nights, a front-office staff member needs to be available to support interpreters (direct them to their assignment location, clarify scheduling or meeting access info, etc).  

Important Links

• February 4th Elementary TLC Update
• Special EDge   (February 12)
• NEW: BLS School Libraries Newsletters!
• 1-Page Student Management guide
• Dates to recognize groups (Coming soon: March 2-6 Classified Appreciation Week)
• CPI Trained Staff List (let Sara Young know if you see staff who are not at your school)

Notes from our Team: 

From Dave VanLoo in School Improvement:

NNAT3 Resources: Here is a folder with recent versions of NNAT3 resources including platform and administration user guides, information for identifying new to district students, parent notices, and other documents. If there is anything else helpful you would like added, please let me know. 

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1YVGfeexotrnkH6-oMBM33uLVhGsYL_wd?usp=sharing

From Kayla and Scott in Safety

SRO Appreciation Day– Schools are encouraged to celebrate their SROs the week of February 17th for SRO Appreciation Day. Some ideas for appreciation that have been done in past school years are: decorate their office doors, buy lunch for them one day during the week, have students make cards and drawings, or have breakfast and invite the entire team. You have all done so amazing that the past two years BLS has been featured in the national SRO magazine!!

From Tami Pike – Health Services

As we continue navigating cold and flu season, OSU Extension’s Family and Community Health Department is offering updated High Speed Hand Washing materials for our K–5 classrooms. This method, originally developed and piloted in Central Oregon more than 15 years ago, demonstrated an 82.6% increase in proper handwashing frequency among 1,687 fourth-grade students and has been associated with significantly reduced absenteeism during flu outbreaks. Designed to allow an entire class of 20–30 students to wash their hands thoroughly in under three minutes, the routine supports consistent hygiene before eating or handling food. OSU Extension is hoping to distribute laminated color posters (English, Spanish, or bilingual) across our elementary classrooms and may also offer a brief five-minute demonstration for staff, along with an updated instructional video. Contact Tami if you are interested. This opportunity aligns well with our ongoing focus on healthy habit-building and strong attendance. Please see the linked flyers (English and Spanish) for additional details.

From Scott M. in Technology

Never let an outage go to waste! On Monday,  Clever access was restricted for students and teachers due to an outage.  We know that determining whether something is a “user error” or an actual outage can be frustrating.  

You can reduce your frustration by visiting-https://bls.fyi/status

This handy dashboard lists all of our common tools and their current operational status.  Our team will also update a custom message at the top of the site listing any known issues. Go ahead and bookmark it now.  That way, you can check it out the next time something gets wonky!

Action Items

• Add Date, Time, and Activity to the Kindergarten Spring Orientation List
• Let Lisa know here if you want to be on the assessment team: SB141 Assessment Consideration Team
• Let Lisa know here if you want to be on the Data Dream Team
• Get a jump on planning for interpreters at Spring Conferences
• Make plans to honor SROs the week of February 17th!

Important Dates

• February 16: President’s Day—you must use non-contract to take this day off, as it is not a paid holiday for us. It is a day off for Students and the rest of the staff.
• Feb 17-20: Walk throughs with APs
• February 17: PLC 4, 3:00 – 4:30
• February 18: All Admin PD 3:00 – 4:30 Perseverance Hall
• February 24: PLC 3 3:00 – 4:30
• March 3: Elementary Horizontal 3:00 – 4:30 p.m. in the Board Room
• March 4: Educator Network Day
• March 18: Teacher work day (8 hours) Conferences (4 hours)
• March 19: Conferences (12 hours)
• March 20: No School
• March 23-27: Spring Break!

And finally… Congratulations to our Next Duck Drawing winner Wendy Winchell!

Wendy Winchel has led Westside Village K-8 Magnet School for over 25 years.  It was the brainchild of Wendy and a group, who were at the time, teaching in the basement of the old Kenwood School gym (Kenwood is the current home of Highland Magnet School).  Prior to that, Wendy taught in England for several years, where she first experienced teaching in a more project-based, justice-driven, blended school, where the desire to provide students with an alternative educational experience, different than a more traditional setting was born.  Wendy loves the outdoors, whether it is on an outdoor adventure with the kids at Westside, paddleboarding on local lakes and rivers, or gardening with her husband, she lives for fresh air!  Congratulations Wendy—let us know your drink of choice and we’ll head your way with your goodie. 

From Tammy and Karen

2026 Theme for Black History Month: “A Century of Black History Commemorations” 

The 2026 theme marks exactly 100 years since the first national observance began in 1926. It focuses on the historical evolution of these commemorations and their role in the pursuit of racial justice and equality.

What are you doing in your building to celebrate? We’ll be decorating our door to room 332!

Kindergarten Orientation Preparation: Yay!! It’s that time of the year to start preparing for kindergarten spring orientation. Can you believe it? There are two things you need to do now to be ready. First, identify your spring orientation date, time, and what you will be doing. This is important to do now because we need to post it on our website for families. Becca mentioned needing to post, because we have families already looking for the information. Please add your date, time and activity to this list.

The next thing is to review this document, and make sure you use this when planning.

We hope that you have been able to get out and enjoy the amazing sun and warm temperatures that we have had this week. Get ready, some colder air is on it’s way!

Wayfinder Help–please share with your teachers!

Wayfinder is seeking your feedback on the updated Wayfinder Elementary Core Curriculum for the 2025–26 school year. If you used the Wayfinder curriculum in the 2024-25 and 2025-26 school years, please click here to complete a brief, four-question survey to share your feedback. Your insights are invaluable as Wayfinder continues to refine and improve its curriculum to better support teachers and students.

Important Links

• February 4th Elementary TLC Update
• Special EDge   (February 5)
• 1-Page Student Management guide
• Dates to recognize groups (Coming up: School Counseling week–first week of Feb! and School Resource Officers – Feb 15)
• CPI Trained Staff List (let Sara Young know if you see staff who are not at your school)

Notes from our Team: 

From Lisa, Deputy Superintendent:

Assessment Team: As you know, SB141 will require interim assessments in grades K-8 for reading and mathematics to begin in the fall. In mid-February, we will know the identified assessments and logistics related to their implementation. We would like a team of administrators and teachers to review tools, give input, and consider implementation plans in preparation of this requirement taking place in our district. If you would like to be considered to be part of this group, please add your name to the following sign-up sheet by February 13th. SB141 Assessment Consideration Team

Data Team: Throughout this year, we have spent time considering data related to EWS and MTSS needs for our teams. However, as an administrator it is likely that you have specific data that you’d like to be able to see about your school frequently to help guide your training, actions, and team plans. I would like to bring a team of administrators together to discuss what would be most beneficial to have access to in a dashboard format that you would be able to consistently access daily to lead your school best. If you have ideas and would like to join this team, please sign up using the following sheet by February 13th. Data Dream Team

SIF Budgets: When you receive your budget for next year, you will notice that SIF will no longer be a separate budget tab.  In the past, these dollars were governed by a grant and required specific spending approval. That is no longer the case and remains as an extra hurdle for our business office. To streamline processes, it will be included in the dollars for your general fund moving forward. Your level leader will continue to meet with you for general budgeting guidance as always.

From Kinsey in Office of Policy and Advocacy

Family-teacher conferences:

Please work with your language specialist and family liaison to submit ASAP your interpreter needs for conferences.  Remember to schedule blocks/back-to-back appointments for families who need interpreters, to the extent reasonable.  This helps maximize interpreter resources, which will be tight this year.

Also, please remind staff that virtual interpreters are perfectly acceptable and sometimes even better quality than in-person services.  If the Linguist Link team says an interpreter will be available virtually for your request, the teacher(s) should provide a link to their Teams/WebEx/etc account (send the link to the language specialist and/or paste into the Linguist Link request), and pull up the interpreter on their iPad or laptop during the conference.   We are prioritizing in-person interpreters for secondary conferences, given the format of those conferences.  

Someone should be available in your front office during all conference hours, to greet interpreters and point them in the direction of their assigned rooms, and/or to answer phone calls if interpreters are trying to log into a virtual appointment and getting locked out.  Interpreter no-show?  CAFE Program members can step in in a pinch, as available.

Remind teachers to honor family requests for virtual or phone conferences, within reason (if you need reminders about what’s ‘within reason,’ check in with your liaison or ELL specialist for details).

From Jess Scott about TAG:

TAG Support: In addition to the four elementary and middle school PD sessions offered throughout the year, I am happy to meet one-on-one with assistant principals to provide support with complex TAG case studies or to further walk through the TAG identification process. These individual conversations can be a helpful space to ask questions and talk through specific situations. Please feel free to reach out to Jessica Scott to coordinate a time to meet.

From Triz in Human Resources

Any new classified staff member hired after tomorrow, Friday February 6, 2026, will not need to have a summative evaluation completed for the 25-26 school year.  Classified employees hired as of February 9, 2026, through the end of the year, will participate in goal setting in the fall and be evaluated for the 26-27 school year.  Please let me know if you have any questions/concerns.

From Sean in Student Services:

Hi All! This has been sent out to selected teachers and SSC’s.  We want to expand to invite administrators or anyone on Kinseys team.  COREN has provided us 25 subs for the first 25 folks that register that need subs.  

Collaborative Problem Solving Training: We wanted to reach out and share an upcoming Collaborative Problem Training for Educators this March. The training is free, and slots will be limited. 

Please check out the Collaborative Problem Solving Flyer and Registration Link to learn more!

From Ryan in Human Resources:

Elementary and Middle School Admin  Human Resources will be sending an Extra Duty Attestation Form to employees we have on record as currently serving in the Elementary Music Director, Elementary Yearbook Advisor, and Elementary OBOB Advisor roles prior to their formal inclusion on the Extra Duty Schedule, as well as to the building principal for verification.

These roles were added to the Extra Duty Schedule through agreements between the District and BEA. 

The form is intended to document prior service – within Bend-La Pine Schools or in other districts – so that employees can be accurately placed on the Extra Duty Salary Schedule. Employees will be asked to complete, sign, and return the form, with the supervising administrator reviewing and confirming the information.

The Middle School OBOB Advisor role was also added to the Extra Duty Schedule. Because we in HR do not have a record of who may be serving in this role, Human Resources will send the attestation form to all middle school Principals to share with the individual currently performing these duties, if applicable, for completion and return.

Please let Ryan know if you have any questions.

From Dave in School Improvement

“Testing season” is quickly approaching. Here are a few resources to help with planning and organization. Please reach out with any questions or suggestions. I’m happy to come out and meet with you as is helpful, especially with anyone who may be new to testing-related roles.

• Here is an updated for 2025-26 OSAS Essential Information and Planning Resources document for school test coordinators. This resource is meant to compliment ODE’s resources and highlight some of the most important big ideas.  This document will be updated as needed. Note that we have made a change to the opt-out and exemption tracking tool to streamline it and make it easier to use. Please save and use as a resource https://docs.google.com/document/d/1tTBz01GxuRhjZvxM8RoqF02uGBuRM4c2daIoPlv7f4Q/edit?usp=sharing 
• I’m resending this high-level summary of 25-26 test and survey timeframes. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1PTS5BYZPRJTJcmcB1o_Fb3nFEVmoQlec3xnE2-uQNWQ/edit?usp=sharing 
• I’m also resending this document that summarizes key purposes and scheduling considerations of many commonly used tests in the district. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Qe6LnQ2IOKwaWUne6TF-AIctTlDAQHh2Y6taoAhFL8Y/edit?usp=sharing 

First District Cup Golf Tournament will be May 15 at River’s Edge

Bend Tech Academy Business Leadership is excited to announce the first District Cup Golf Tournament at River’s Edge on May 15 starting at 4:30 p.m.

Participation is open to District staff. So far, teams have registered representing our School Resource Officers, Information Technology, and Bend Tech Academy. Registration deadline is April 15. The entry fee is $200 per team plus cart fees.

Action Items

• Share Wayfinder survey ask with teachers
• Add Date, Time, and Activity to the Kindergarten Spring Orientation List
• Let Lisa know here if you want to be on the assessment team: SB141 Assessment Consideration Team
• Let Lisa know here if you want to be on the Data Dream Team
• Get a jump on planning for interpreters at Spring Conferences
• Please check out the Collaborative Problem Solving Flyer and Registration Link if you want
• Look for the Extra Duty Attestation form from HR and fill out when you get it

Important Dates

• February 10: PLCs 1 and 2, 3:00 – 4:30
• February 16: President’s Day—you must use non-contract to take this day off, as it is not a paid holiday for us. It is a day off for Students and the rest of the staff.
• Feb 17-20: Hope to schedule next rounds of walkthroughs this week—this time APs!
• February 17: PLCs 3 and 4, 3:00 – 4:30
• February 18: All Admin PD 3:00 – 4:30 Perseverance Hall
• March 3: Elementary Horizontal 3:00 – 4:30 p.m. in the Board Room
• March 4: Educator Network Day

And finally… Congratulations to our Next Duck Drawing winner John Craft!

John is in his fourth year as the Assistant Principal at Miller Elementary, where he has been dabbling in principalship as acting principal this winter. Prior to that, he was Assistant Principal at Silver Rail for one year. Most of you who have been in the district for a while, probably know John best, as one of our Instructional Tech coaches, where he would come out to our schools and dazzle us with his tech knowledge and ideas for integrating technology into our day. When not at school, you may find John running all over local trails, flying by on his bike, or swimming in a nearby body of water. Put all that together and you have a triathlete! A very humble one, as John’s accomplishments would make your jaw drop. (Think qualifying for the Hawaiian Iron man in Kona!). Education runs in the family, as John’s wife and sister work for BLS as well. Congratulations John–let us know your drink of choice and we will deliver!

T

From Tammy and Karen

The statement above is meant to make you laugh, but I think we can all relate to the feeling that January goes on a looooooong time! We made it, and we’re already halfway through the school year. The next few months will move quickly and, we hope, be filled with fun, inspiration, laughter, and lots and lots of learning. Congratulations, and thank you for all you do to make school a place where every student feels excited to learn and a true sense of belonging in our community.

Here is some news to brighten your day: We will be cancelling our Horizontal Meeting on Tuesday February 3rd! The meetings we have had recently have covered the important topics for this month. We thought you might all enjoy the gift of time to focus on what is needed at your school site on that date!

Train Your Brain:  It’s that time of the year, to identify your person in charge of the third grade “Train Your Brain” helmet safety program, which takes place each spring in all of our schools.   Please identify the contact person for your school that Stuart Schmidt will connect with to organize the program.  Often, it’s a third-grade teacher.  The sooner you identify a person, the better choice of date you get!  Click here to enter the information for your school.   Thank you and safe riding!

All Admin PD:  Kudos to Scott, Heidi, Kit, Nichole, Andy, Wendy, Julie and Karen for your work to lead the All-Admin PD this week.  Leading in a school district is bigger than just keeping your strengths and skills contained in one school.  Thank you for sharing your gifts with us all!  Also, a big shout out to all who came early to set the room up.  It was a nice transition to be all ready when people started showing up.  Side note:  Here is the slide deck from the All Admin PD on Wednesday (slide 27 has been edited to remove a dignity violation while keeping the context and message of the quote). 

Field Trip Idea: Classroom Trips at Oregon Sled Dog Rides – $250 for 20 students! Check it out!

Important Links

• January 21st Elementary TLC Update
•  Special EDge   (January 29)
• 1-Page Student Management guide
• Dates to recognize groups (Coming up: School Counseling week–first week of Feb! and School Resource Officers – Feb 15)
• CPI Trained Staff List (let Sara Young know if you see staff who are not at your school)

Notes from our Team: 

From Kinsey – Office of Policy and Advocacy

Immigration/ICE:    -Action needed-

In light of ongoing national events, many of you have recently received questions from families and/or staff about the district’s preparedness should ICE activity occur on or near our campuses.  Please copy and paste this message into your next staff communication–thanks for making sure both classified and certified receive this from you.   

Additionally, this half-way point in the year is a good time to review the guidance (for admin and front office) for what you are expected to do should ICE activity occur on or near your campus.  Note: Some edits were made this week–please be sure you and your office team are familiar with these expectations and that this updated version is printed and accessible where your front-entry greeter sits.  One important note: Depending on your building’s layout, you may receive from me via interdistrict mail some signage: “Public Area” and “Not a Public Area.”  I’ll send details with the signs for where to post them—just know these are related to our procedures here.  

Complaints and Bias Incidents:    -Action needed-

As the semester wraps up, please go into your Complaint Dashboard and ensure that all submissions there have been fully addressed (investigation, circling back with reporter and all parties, written findings when applicable, all copies and documents uploaded or linked, etc).  When complete, you should select “Resolved By School: Yes” to close it out.  If a complaint gets appealed, we’ll grab the documentation and records from there, so you don’t need to worry about that step.  

From Kayla in Safety

• SRO Schedule Change– Officer Koehnke (Summit) and Officer Avery (Caldera) have shifted their schedules effective Feb 9. Please review the SRO sheet here. 
• SRO Appreciation Day– Schools are encouraged to celebrate their SROs the week of February 17th for SRO Appreciation Day. Some ideas for appreciation that have been done in past school years are: decorate their office doors, buy lunch for them one day during the week, have students make cards and drawings, or have breakfast and invite the entire team. You have all done so amazing that the past two years BLS has been featured in the national SRO magazine!!

From Aimee Snyder from Healthy Schools

The upcoming “Start the Conversation” workshops are a family engagement opportunity for families of students with Tier 2 and Tier 3 needs.  There will be repeat offerings of this 3-hour workshop in Feb – March.  

The “Start the Conversation” workshop will improve families’ abilities to start difficult conversations with their student about topics such as mental health, attendance, substance use, and sex.  The workshop is provided by Dr. Amy Yillik, HDESD Culture of Care. 

The workshops are centered on developmental needs of middle school students, but are open to families of all BLS students.

Personal invites from admin and staff already working with students and families with Tier 2-3 needs would be the most effective approach. 

Here’s the promotion fliers and a promotion blurb to use for promoting the workshop to your families:

Spanish StC Flyer

StC 2026 Flyer

How to Start a Difficult Conversation with Your Student

Have you ever struggled with how to talk to your student about difficult topics?  Conversations with questions about drugs, sex, mental health, school attendance, etc.  

Culture of Care and Shared Future Coalition have partnered to bring this Parent and Caregiver ‘Start the Conversation’ workshop to BLS Families.  Some of the topics covered in the 3 hour workshop (food included!) are:

• Leading conversations with love
• Strengthening listening skills
• Engaging the youth in problem solving, collaborative and restorative conversations
• Differentiating high-priority and low-priority concerns
• Learning about community resources and asking for help
• Workshop will include non-stigmatizing ways to honestly and appropriately address youth questions about parent/caregiver history with substances and/or risky behaviors

There is also time built into the workshop for parents and caregivers to practice new skills and engage with other families experiencing the same challenging dynamics of raising adolescents.  Please make sure to register so we have enough food and space for all registrants!

From Jennifer in Student Well Being

🎉 National School Counseling Week 2026 (#NSCW26) is February 2–6, 2026! This special week shines a spotlight on the incredible impact of our school counselors and the unique ways they support students every day.

The 2026 theme, School Counselors Amplify Student Success, says it all! Presented by ASCA, National School Counseling Week celebrates how school counselors help students thrive academically, socially, emotionally, and as they plan for future careers.

📅 National School Counseling Week is always held during the first full week of February, and we’re excited to share several resources below to help you celebrate the amazing school counselor(s) at your site.

💙 Please note: We will also be celebrating our Student Success Staff during School Social Worker Week, the week of March 1st.

🏅 Included below is a Certificate of Appreciation you can use to recognize your counselors, along with additional ideas and resources to make this week extra special. Let’s show our counselors how much they are valued and appreciated! 😊🎉

Resources:  

• Certificate of Appreciation
• Sign
• NSCW Toolkit
• Promo Kit

Training Opportunity from the High Desert ESD

We are hosting a regional book study of Gender-Inclusive Schools, which will begin in late February and conclude in early May. Two sessions are virtual, and then we’ll culminate with a live session. This book is an easy-to-read, easy-to-use guide to help make our schools more welcoming to our LGBTQ2SIA+ students and their families. We would LOVE to have school and district leadership teams participate, though individuals are welcome, as well. Registration information and sub request information are in the attached handout. 

Action Items

• URGENT: Complete letters for P3 employees by end of day tomorrow.
• Copy and paste this message regarding ICE into your next staff communication for classified and certified staff
• Go into the Complaint Dashboard to ensure all complaints have been addressed
• Identify you Train the Brain person and enter on spreadsheet.
• Get ready to celebrate School Counseling week! AND School Resource Officer Apprecation Day the week of February 17th.

Important Dates

• January 30: Progress Reports – No school for students (review BEA Article 15.8 regarding working from home that day for certified members)
• February 10: PLCs 1 and 2, 3:00 – 4:30
• February 16: President’s Day—you must use non-contract to take this day off, as it is not a paid holiday for us. It is a day off for Students and the rest of the staff.
• February 17: PLCs 3 and 4, 3:00 – 4:30
• February 18: All Admin PD 3:00 – 4:30 Perseverance Hall
• March 3: Elementary Horizontal 3:00 – 4:30 p.m. at the Board Room
• March 4: Educator Network Day

And finally… Congratulations to our Next Duck Drawing winner Tim Broadbent!

Tim Broadbent has been the Principal of Three Rivers for more than a decade, bringing steady leadership and deep commitment to the school community. Originally from the East Coast, Tim and his wife Elizabeth made their way to the Pacific Northwest years ago, drawn by the outdoors and an active lifestyle—both of which continue to shape how Tim approaches life and leadership. When he’s not at school, you’re likely to find him traveling, staying active, and cheering passionately as a devoted Buffalo Bills Superfan (sending condolences your way, Tim). Tim and Elizabeth, a teacher in Bend-La Pine Schools, are proud parents to their daughter Camille, a Gonzaga University student and member of the cross country and track teams. Congratulations Tim! Let us know your favorite school-appropriate drink and we will deliver!

From Tammy and Karen

Nothing like a week shrouded in low clouds and chilly fog to make you crave some good crusty bread and a hearty bowl of soup! Here is one of my favorite recipes, “Zuppa Toscana”, otherwise known as the Olive Garden soup. Enjoy!

Here is the link to the January Slide deck from Horizontal. Remember, there is a link to the Core Effectiveness meeting slides for your mid year review. This is also mid-SLGG review time. Don’t forget to check in with your staff on their goals (there is no where to document the conversation in the eval system, but please make sure to have these conversations.). Tammy and Karen will connect about SLGGs at upcoming site visits. In the meantime, Here is the SLGG form that your teachers and you will use to fill out your SLGGs as well as a list of plug and play SLGGs for everyone in your building.  

Important Links

• January 21st Elementary TLC Update
•  Special EDge   (January 22)
• 1-Page Student Management guide
• Dates to recognize groups (Coming up: School Counseling week–first week of Feb!)
• CPI Trained Staff List (let Sara Young know if you see staff who are not at your school)

Notes from our Team: 

From Andrea in Human Resources

❄️ Cold Weather Reminders from Human Resources ❄️

While our winter has been relatively mild thus far, we wanted to share a few helpful reminders – just in case Old Man Winter decides to show up! Please be sure to review our Inclement Weather Guidelines.

If winter weather does roll in, remember to: 

• Don’t forget to walk like a penguin – short steps, slow and steady wins the race.
• Give yourself extra travel time (driving and walking),
• Bundle up and wear weather-appropriate footwear,

From Kayla in Safety

Reminder for recess/lunch winter weather guidance:  When the outside temperature falls to 20°F or below (not including wind chill), the administration will use caution when allowing outdoor school activities(This information is found in the Quick Reference Guide for Emergencies aka “the Red Green”). See the NOAA Windchill chart here. 

Administrators have the discretion to send students outside in inclement weather. For example, it could be above 20°F but extremely icy, so you may decide to keep students inside. 

From Becca in Communications

It’s never too early to get Educators’ Night Out at the High Desert Museum on your calendars! The annual back-to-school night for teachers is Thursday, September 24, 2026. All educators are invited to network with community organizations to support and enhance their upcoming school year. 

As we look toward spring and getting our own school open houses on calendars, we can leave this date open for our staffs. In other words, please do not schedule your Open Houses on this date, so that your staff can attend. Thank you!

From Jennifer in Student Well Being

🎉 National School Counseling Week 2026 (#NSCW26) is February 2–6, 2026! This special week shines a spotlight on the incredible impact of our school counselors and the unique ways they support students every day.

The 2026 theme, School Counselors Amplify Student Success, says it all! Presented by ASCA, National School Counseling Week celebrates how school counselors help students thrive academically, socially, emotionally, and as they plan for future careers.

📅 National School Counseling Week is always held during the first full week of February, and we’re excited to share several resources below to help you celebrate the amazing school counselor(s) at your site.

💙 Please note: We will also be celebrating our Student Success Staff during School Social Worker Week, the week of March 1st.

🏅 Included below is a Certificate of Appreciation you can use to recognize your counselors, along with additional ideas and resources to make this week extra special. Let’s show our counselors how much they are valued and appreciated! 😊🎉

Resources:  

• Certificate of Appreciation
• Sign
• NSCW Toolkit
• Promo Kit

Action Items

• Download the Core Effectiveness Slides
• Review and share Inclement Weather Guidelines
• Review inside recess guidelines
• Block out September 24 as a “no evening event” for the fall to attend Educators Night Out
• Get ready to celebrate School Counseling week!

Important Dates

• January 27: PLCs 3 and 4 from 3:00 – 4:30
• January 28: All Admin PD 3:00 – 4:30 Perseverance Hall
• January 30: Progress Reports – No school for students (review BEA Article 15.8 regarding working from home that day for certified members)
• February 3: Horizontal Meeting 3:00 – 4:30 at Bear Creek in the Library
• February 10: PLCs 1 and 2, 3:00 – 4:30
• February 16: President’s Day—you must use non-contract to take this day off, as it is not a paid holiday for us. It is a day off for Students and the rest of the staff.
• February 17: PLCs 3 and 4, 3:00 – 4:30
• February 18: All Admin PD 3:00 – 4:30 Perseverance Hall

And finally… Congratulations to our Next Duck Drawing winner Brooke Catterson!

It’s back to back Porcupines, with this week’s winner being, Brooke Catterson! Brooke is Assistant Principal at Ponderosa Elementary, where she has trained at least 3 different principals in her tenure there! 🤣 Prior to Ponderosa, Brooke was Student Services and a classroom teacher at Ensworth Elementary for many years. Need to know the history of BLS? Brooke is your gal, as she has been in the district for many years. One of Brooke’s greatest joys has been getting to attend school each day with her daughter Mackenzie. How lucky to have a front row seat to your child’s education. She joked for years that she would retire when Mckenzie graduated Ponderosa…she wasn’t joking! It’s no secret that Brooke is retiring at the end of the year as Mackenzie moves onto 6th grade! We are missing you already, but until then, congratulations for winning this week! Let us know your drink of choice and we will be happy to deliver. Thanks for all you do Brooke!