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Category: Elementary Action Required

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We are excited to announce the JSD Virtual Teacher Transfer Fair will be held on Wednesday, February 17, 2021 from 4:00PM-6:30PM in lieu of the traditional in-person transfer fair. All principals can access Virtual Teacher Transfer Fair resources and tools immediately by clicking on the following link: Feb 2021 JSD Virtual Teacher Transfer Fair. Anticipated openings, based on your 2.0 FTE projections, and school Zoom Meeting links must be added to the “JSD Virtual Transfer Fair Links/Openings” Google spreadsheet by February 16th.

Interested licensed employees will have the ability to start uploading resumes and video introductions on February 10th. Principals can begin previewing these documents by school level (Elementary, Middle, High, Special Ed) in the Form Responses spreadsheet. 2020-2021 Teacher Transfer Fair (Responses) This document will also give you access to a live support Google chat during the JSD Virtual Teacher Transfer Fair on February 17th for any questions or concerns that you may have during your interviews.

If you have any questions, please contact Human Resources:

Elementary - Kim Gibson kim.gibson@jordandistrict.org

Brittany Bauer brittany.bauer@jordandistrict.org

Secondary - Wyatt Bentley wyatt.bentley@jordandistrict.org

Mark Sowa mark.sowa@jordandistrict.org

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DATE:    
February 4, 2021

TO: 
Elementary School Principals

FROM:     
Paul Bergera, Director of Transportation
Kathy S. Jones, Trainer/Risk Coordinator of Transportation

SUBJECT: 
“Safety in the Schools” – Bus Safety Video

Utah State Standards for school buses require students to receive annual bus safety instruction.

This year, bus safety instruction and awareness for students in grades K-6 will come in the form of a video. The video is available at the following link for each individual teacher to present to his or her class.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-xtDcfE5sw&feature=emb_logo

In addition, please require all teachers in grades K-1 to have their students watch the Winnie the Pooh video at the link provided below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF_3MrYXDw4

When every teacher in grades K-6 has shown the video(s) to his or her class, please send a quick email confirmation to tammy.spearman@jordandistrict.org indicating that your school has completed this process.

Feel free to contact Denise Dallin in the Transportation Training Department at (801) 567-8856 with any questions you may have.

We would like to have this completed and turned into the Utah State Office by February 26, 2021.

Thank you for helping Jordan School District achieve “Safety in the Schools”.

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The Utah Legislature has allocated funding to the Utah State Board of Education (USBE) to use to incentivize educators across the state to achieve endorsements in the STEM subjects. The USBE will be using these funds to provide reimbursement for applicable STEM endorsement coursework for both elementary and secondary educators for courses. Funding distribution will be on a first come first serve basis until allocated funds are depleted.

Please see information below or click HERE.

 

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Schools are required to send letters home notifying families of Acadience testing results in grade 1-3. The testing window closes on February 5 and letters should be sent out no later than March 5. Letters may be sent home with students and do not need to be mailed.

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Brigham Young University Career Services is seeking feedback that will help them not only recruit people into education but also help prepare graduates in education to perform well in the hiring process. The attached survey is brief but will provide significant information. Responses will be confidential. Please help out by taking the survey. Thank you!

Principal Survey - https://byu.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_e3EcN4ztIyxGYkJ

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This meeting will follow the format of the past meetings. The agenda and meeting links will be sent out by Monday, February 1st. The meeting will start at 8:00 a.m. and a beverage service will be available beginning at 7:30 a.m.

At this meeting we are going to have Natalie Gordon, from the State Land Trust Office, come and do training with all of you on how to make a concise Land Trust Plan. The plan needs to be Student Centered, Measurable, and Academic. She's going to explain what needs to go into the different parts of the plan; Goal, Measurements, and Action Plan Steps. She will also be available to answer questions at the end.

Looking forward, the website is still under construction and it will come back up later than expected. When it comes back up the 2019-20 Final Reports will need to be completed as well as the 2021-22 plan.

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Below is information to clarify how full evaluations will be completed. Remember that only provisional teachers will complete a full evaluation.

  • In Class Teacher (In the Building)
    • Two classroom observations
    • No interview
  • Online Teacher
    • Complete teacher specialist evaluation on JPLS
    • Upload evidence into JPLS
    • Include at least 2 video clips as part of evidence
  • Psychologists, Counselors
    • Complete on JPLS
    • Upload evidence into JPLS

Administrators may sign up for a virtual training to help refresh the features of the Perform evaluation system. The trainings will last up to two hours depending on need. These trainings will begin next week. To register search “Administrator Perform Refresher” in JPLS. A Zoom link will be sent out to participants before the training.

Administrators may use the bubble sheet to complete observations and enter the information into Perform. If you need help entering the data, please contact the JES office for assistance.

Teachers who will be evaluated using the Perform system now have access to sign up for the Canvas training through JPLS. Teachers who will be evaluated using the JPLS system (teacher specialists) do not need to complete the training as the training focuses on the in-class observations. Have teachers search “UETS-based JPAS Online Training 2020-2021” in JPLS to register.

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Dear Principals:

As some registration dates for Middle Schools have shifted to earlier in the year, it is important that we seek to accommodate their efforts. As a result, we ask that the HMH RI (formerly SRI) and Reading Benchmark 1 be administered no later than Jan 15 where possible. We realize this is a week earlier than advised in the Testing Bulletin, and appreciate your flexibility and commitment to helping our team members across the district succeed.

As a reference, the following Rubric will be used for providing reading data to Middle Schools for the transition from 6th to 7th Grade.

Thank you for all of your hard work.

Reading Placement Rubric
Current (20-21 Students)

6th Grade Students going into 7th Grade

CATEGORY Highly Proficient Proficient Approaching Proficient Below Proficient
District Benchmark (Most Recent)

Out of 30

 29-30 24-28 17-23 0-16
HMH RI 

Lexile Score

 1041+ 955-1040 755-954 100-754
CogAt Verbal Stanine 7+

PR: 77+ 

 Stanine 5-6

PR: 43-76

 Stanine 4

PR: 25-42

 Stanine 1-3

PR: 1-24

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A few housekeeping items for Land Trust:

At the February 2, 2021 Principal Meeting we are going to have Natalie Gordon, from the State Office, come and do training with all of you on how to make a concise Land Trust Plan. The plans need to be Student Centered, Measurable, and Academic. She's going to explain what needs to go into the different parts of the plan; Goal, Measurements, and Action Plan Steps. She will also be available to answer questions at the end.

The website is still under construction. When it comes back up the 2019-20 Final Reports will need to be completed.

Our Board of Education has asked that we verify that training with your School Community Councils has been completed prior to the 2021-22 plan being submitted. Completion of the training will be confirmed with your AOS. To help you with the training we are including some links and a Power Point as resources to provide this training.

This video gives a brief introduction of how Utah received trust lands at statehood, how the land creates revenue for schools, how that revenue is invested, and how earnings are distributed through the School LAND Trust program.
Utah School & Institutional Trust System  can be found on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/qlr0wFacsyk. 

School Community Council Training videos and more information can be found on the School Trust System on the website.
https://schools.utah.gov/schoollandtrust/training

A Jordan School District training video was recorded previously with Mike Anderson and Tracy Miller. That link can be found here:
https://jordandistrict.org/resources/communitycouncil/

Here is the PowerPoint that Mike Anderson has used in previous trainings.

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A new record, Method of Instruction, has been created in the Skyward student profile to track a student’s learning method, whether full-time In-Person, full-time Online, or Hybrid (both in-person and online). The Method of Instruction can be used in many reports, including attendance reports, scheduling reports and data mining.  In addition, an indicator will appear in the upper, right-hand corner of the student’s profile screen for Virtual and Hybrid students.  The indicator is a blue-green .  This will help to quickly identify the student’s instruction method.

Below are some key dates in regards to Method of Instruction:

  • On November 23, 2020, Information Systems pre-populated the Method of Instruction for all students.
  • Beginning January 4, 2021, schools will need to maintain the Method of Instruction record as they enroll new students.
  • Information Systems will again update the Method of Instruction on January 20, 2021. This will ensure accuracy after the semester change.
  • After January 20, 2021, schools will need to maintain the Method of Instruction record for all students going forward. There are 3 scenarios in which the Method of Instruction would need to be added/updated:
    1. New enrollment – Students would need a new Method of Instruction record created.
    2. Withdrawal – As students withdraw, the Method of Instruction record needs to have an end date entered.
    3. When a student changes their schedule in a manner that would change their learning method the Method of Instruction record would need to be updated.

A tutorial on how to add/update the Method of Instruction record can be found in the Information Systems Documentation Folder.  If you have any questions regarding Method of Instruction, please reference this tutorial or contact the help desk.

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Thank you all for your patience and understanding this year with your technology orders.  We have experienced unprecedented delays on the most popular models of Chromebooks, laptops, and even Apple laptops and iPads.

Here are a few updates and recommendations regarding these devices:

  • JSD’s Information Systems department has now asked that we purchase the Jamf School device management licenses for all Apple devices.  We’ve been buying these for the last year or two for the iPads, but this requirement now extends to iMacs, MacBook Airs, MacBook Pros, all iPad models, iPods, etc.  If you are requesting your own quotes from Apple, please ask the sales representative to include these on the quote for you.  You will need a license for each device.  These are ordered under Apple part# HL2M2LL/A, and run $17.50/each.
  • Apple iPads are now experiencing 6-8 week order lead times.  Please plan ahead for your purchases.
  • Other Apple devices are typically on 4-6 week order lead times.
  • Please be aware that Apple has recently discontinued models with Intel processors, and are being replaced with the new Apple processors.  If you have an old quote, we may need to update it to the new equivalent part number.   So far prices seem to be the same.
  • For your Chromebooks, for the most part these are on 16+ week order lead times, and the touchscreen models seem to be taking longer than the basic Chromebook.
  • Please check with Tonya Hodges in Purchasing if you need a rush order on the basic Chromebooks.  Occasionally we can find vendors that have them in stock, but at higher prices.  We can work with you on a case by case basis to see if we may make a purchasing exception to get you some stock right away for your immediate needs, but use the better pricing and longer lead times to get the remainder of your Chromebooks.
  • It is recommended to start planning now and place orders by the end of January 2021for Chromebooks you will need for the 2021-22 school year.  This would allow enough time to get the devices delivered by summer break and ready to go for the start of school in August.

Please contact Tonya Hodges in the Purchasing Department at tonya.hodges@jordandistrict.org or 801-567-8706 for assistance with your Technology orders.

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In anticipation of next year's planning and scheduling, we will be turning pre-transfers on earlier than we have in the past. We have scheduled this task for the afternoon of December 11th. You should then be able to start running reports and see your next year's students beginning December 14th.

A few reminders about pre-transfers:

  • A pre-transfer is an active student who is currently attending Jordan School District and will be attending next year at a different school within Jordan School District. The student’s record will pre-transfer to the student’s next year boundary school based on their current address.
  • Once pre-transfers are turned on the School Pathtab will show current year permits under Previous Reason Code and next year permits under Reason Code.
  • Current permits for 6thand 9th grade students will be removed for next year as of December 10th. This will allow these students to pre-transfer to their new entity for next year.

In addition to turning on pre-transfers, the course master will be rolled over on December 10th for next year scheduling preparation.

Please contact the help desk with any questions or concerns regarding the timing of the pre-transfer process.

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DATE:  
Thursday, December 3, 2020

TO: 
Elementary School Principals

FROM:  
Shelley Nordick, Ph.D., Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability

SUBJECT:  
Updates for Fall Testing

Reading Inventory
Reading Inventory (RI) is up and available for all elementary (4-6) schools. Please contact the teachers at your school to make sure they know that it is available and ready to use. All in-person teachers and virtual teachers should have access to the Reading Inventory test. If teachers are unable to login, please have them email kira.jensen@jordandistrict.org. Kira is now able to easily add any virtual classes that could not be added with the original upload.

Additionally, Teaching & Learning has just purchased more licenses so that all the students who qualify to use RI can test! This means no more shuffling licenses at your schools!

CogAT Testing for 6th Graders
Schools that have gone virtual for two weeks can still complete their CogAT testing when students return to school. We will be extending the testing window until December 18, 2020, to allow for the change in circumstances. Please contact kira.jensen@jordandistrict.org if you need help with CogAT, or if you have any questions or concerns.  Principals are strongly encouraged to not wait until the end of the window to test students, if at all possible.

AAPPL Testing for DLI Schools
The AAPPL testing window has now been extended through January 15, 2021. If any teachers at your school do not complete their AAPPL testing by the original deadline of 12/11/2020, they can still test until 01/15/2021, but they will need to let us know so we can contact the State Office. Please email that information to kira.jensen@jordandistrict.org.

 

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Any and all websites that are domain specific to Weebly or Wix will be blocked by the JSD iBoss Filter on January 18, 2021. All Weebly or Wix sites content will need to be transferred to a JSD supported website. For assistance please contact your school Digital Coach and your school assigned Digital Learning Specialist, Contact Us.

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DATE:  
Thursday, November 19, 2020

TO:    
Elementary Principals
Elementary Administrative Assistants

FROM:  
Shelley Nordick, Ph.D., Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability

SUBJECT:  
MOY 2020 Acadience Reading Testing – In-person and Online Students

Acadience Reading Benchmarks are once again required this year by the state – both students receiving their instruction in-person and online. USBE has extended the middle-of-the-year testing window by one week to Friday, February 5, 2021. This memo contains information on how the benchmark administration will be accomplished for both.

Students Receiving Instruction In-person:
Principals should have received an updated Monday-Thursday schedule of when district testers will be in schools to administer the state-mandated K-3 Acadience Reading Benchmarks. For questions about scheduling, please contact Shannon Johnson at 801-567-8873 or shannon.johnson@jordandistrict.org.

There will be 7-8 district testers during your assigned testing time. We also ask that the instructional coach, who was trained in September on Acadience Reading testing, assist with testing students as well. To better be able to social distance between individual testing areas, we are requesting that schools use one of two room options:

  1. Schedule the media center.
  2. Schedule two classrooms that are close together. This allows classes to be easily funneled into both classrooms.  It also allows team leads to gather cards easily and assist with technology glitches quickly to minimize lost testing time.

If neither of these room options is possible, please contact Ben Jameson at 801-567-8243 to make other arrangements.

Each district tester is equipped with an 18x18 plexiglass shield along with their Chromebooks and student materials. For this reason, student desks do not provide enough table space for everything. We are requesting tables with chairs to accommodate our testers’ equipment.

For information on the cleaning and disinfecting procedures district testers will follow after each student, please see the document entitled Acadience Reading Testing Protocols and Procedures for COVID-19 that accompanies this memo.

Besides the changes listed above, our district testers will follow a similar routine for testing that they have followed in the past.

Students Receiving Instruction Online:
We are required to administer the Acadience Reading Benchmarks to all students – including our students who have opted to learn online this year.  Parents of online students can choose to have their student tested in-person at their boundary school or virtually via Zoom.  Testing of online students will take place on Fridays at each elementary school.  Evaluation, Research & Accountability will be sending a small team of 4-5 district testers to meet with and administer the benchmark assessments in-person to online students (principals have already been notified if their assigned Friday).  We are requesting that schools set aside a location for the testers to administer the benchmarks that will have access to larger table spaces to accommodate the plexiglass shield, Chromebooks and student materials.

Evaluation, Research & Accountability will schedule online students for a testing appointment.  Schools will not need to schedule anything themselves.  If parents of online students or online teachers request the link to schedule a testing appointment, schools may provide the following link:
https://jordandistrict.sjc1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5mYuLUZcEtt9QOx

Please contact Ben Jameson with any questions or concerns.  We look forward to working with you on a smooth Acadience Reading test administration.

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If your building has extra PPE that is going unused or if your building desires extra PPE currently located at another building, please let Kris Wishart in Purchasing (x88708) know. She will try to match up any existing surplus with existing desires across the District.

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Administrators: Please encourage your Educational Support Professional employees to attend this fun event. They do not need to be off contract time.

We invite you to join us as we celebrate Educational Support Professionals Day with the help of Utah Jazz star Thurl Bailey.

Mr. Bailey will share his inspirational story during a special event honoring Jordan School District ESPs for their hard work and dedication supporting students and education.

Please RSVP for one of four sessions at 8:30 a.m. or 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, November 18 or Friday, December 4 at Copper Hills High School.

You can RSVP at the link below:

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Dear Principals,

Sign templates are available for schools to print:

  • To create hallway traffic flow patterns
  • To encourage proper handwashing
  • To encourage proper use of face coverings

Attached below is a PDF package containing the templates.  New signs were added on Nov. 12, 2020.

If you would like them customized with your school logo and colors please contact Chad Margetts in the Office of Communications. 801-567-8201.

The Instructional Support Center is available to print traffic flow signs for those who would like to purchase through ISC.

 

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DATE:
Friday, October 30, 2020

TO:  
Elementary Principals

FROM:  
Shelley Nordick, Ph.D., Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability
Rebecca Smith, Consultant over ALPS/Gifted and Talented

SUBJECT:     
Universal CogAt Testing of 6th Grade Students Training and Test Administration

Time Sensitive:  Principals are asked to share the following information with their school test coordinator and 6th grade teachers.

Dates and Times for training are:

  • Mon, Nov. 2, 2020 11:30 AM - 12:25 PM MST
  • Tue, Nov. 3, 2020 1:30 PM - 2:25 PM MST
  • Wed, Nov. 4, 2020 8:00 AM - 8:55 AM MST
  • Thur, Nov. 5, 2020 3:30 PM - 4:25 PM MST
  • Mon, Nov. 9, 2020 1:00 PM - 1:55 PM MST
  • Tue, Nov. 10, 2020 3:00 PM - 3:55 PM MST
  • Wed, Nov. 11, 2020 12:30 PM - 1:25 PM MST

Please see more information on the memo below, as well as the Parental Exclusion form.

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In an effort to effectively and efficiently provide access to report cards for all families, but especially our online families, Info Systems will be adding the report cards to Skyward Family Access on November 9th. This is typically only done at the end of each school year. Online teachers are not able to print report cards of students outside of their homebase school. The teachers will be asking parents to access report cards through Skyward Family Access.  

Please direct families to follow these steps to access the report cards. 

  1. Log in to Family Access
  2. Scroll toward the bottom and click on Report Card/Academic Progress
  3. Select the current term report card file to open a PDF of the report card.

Please remind teachers that all grades must be finalized by November 6th.