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Category: Elementary Action Required

Published on

DATE:
September 12, 2024

TO:
All Principals
All Special Education Staff
School Psychologists
Elementary School Counselors

FROM:
Lisa Robinson, Administrator of Schools
Kim Lloyd, Director of Special Education
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
Melanie Dawson, Program Administrator of Behavior

SUBJECT:
ASPEN Training For Special Education Personnel 2024-2025

ASPEN training is required for all licensed special education teachers, SLPs, school psychologists, elementary school counselors, as well as all Education Support Professionals (ESPs) in SEB and Autism self-contained support classrooms who do not have a current Mandt certification. Staff members working in any other special education setting may choose to attend ASPEN at the discretion of their building administrator and at the cost of their school.

Please see the attached memo for more information and class schedules and links.

Published on

DATE:
September 12, 2024

TO:
All Principals
All Special Education Teachers

FROM:
Lisa Robinson, Administrator of Schools
Kim Lloyd, Director of Special Education
Brian King, Assistant Director of Special Education

SUBJECT:
Changes to Assistive Technology Referrals and New Resource Guide

The U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Technology, and Office of Special Education recently issued a memorandum that highlights the importance of the provision of assistive technology (AT) for students with disabilities. This communication emphasized that it is critical that IEP teams understand how to consider, procure, implement, and evaluate AT services for children with disabilities.

In response to this memorandum, the Jordan Utah Assistive Technology Team (UATT) has created an Assistive Technology Consideration and Resource Guide that will provide a framework to assist IEP teams in the AT consideration process. This resource will also provide examples of AT tools that can be used to support various areas of academic skills and tasks.

Additionally, the Jordan UATT has updated the AT referral process. UATT referrals will now be submitted in a digital format (Google form). In the past, UATT utilized one form to refer students for AT assessments, and another form that allowed special educators with experience supporting assistive technology to request specific tools without an AT assessment. The new digital format collapses those two forms into a single smart form.

Both of these resources can be found on the Jordan UATT webpage on the JSD Special Education website. Questions and inquiries for assistance regarding the Assistive Technology Consideration and Resource Guide, Jordan UATT Referral process, or any other topics related to assistive technology can be directed to the JSD assistive technology specialist, Cheri Blue at Cheri.Blue@jordandistrict.org.

Published on

TO:
Principals

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching & Learning
Amanda Bollinger, Associate Administrator, Teaching & Learning
Tricia Rojas, Specialist, Health & PE

Principals, it is mandatory for all Health, P.E., and Driver Ed teachers as well as Sports Coaches to have a current CPR/First Aid Certification (every 2 years). Please, share this information with the applicable teachers at your school. Teachers may enroll in the next available course through the Canvas Catalog.

Published on

TO:
Principals

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching & Learning
Amanda Bollinger, Associate Administrator, Teaching & Learning
Tricia Rojas, Specialist, Health & PE

Principals, it is mandatory for all Health and/or 4th-grade teachers to complete the Botvin Life Skills training. Please share this information with the applicable teachers at your school. See the attached document for upcoming training opportunities and requirements for this curriculum.

Published on

DATE:
September 5th, 2024

TO:
All Administrators

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
McKinley Withers, Health and Wellness

SUBJECT:
Employee Wellness Rep Training 9/18 & Last Call!

As a reminder, each school or department is invited to select an employee wellness representative! The Employee Wellness Representatives will support faculty/staff wellness efforts within your school or department. If you haven’t already, please nominate your Employee Wellness Representative for the 24-25 school year!

The first of two trainings for Employee Wellness Representatives will occur on 9/18 where each rep will be able to benefit from the following:

  • Time to plan the year with support from other Wellness Reps
  • Collect information about critical District resources to support your staff
  • Engage in personal wellness
  • Lunch will be served!

Please forward the attached invitation to your selected Employee Wellness Representative.

As a reminder, the cost of substitutes is covered by the school. One substitute is a worthwhile investment for improving wellness in your school or department!

Published on

DATE:
September 5th, 2024

TO:
 All Administrators

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
McKinley Withers, Health and Wellness Consultant

SUBJECT:
Schedule Your School’s “Wellness Check-up!”

Student and Staff Wellness, as a pillar of the Board’s Strategic Plan, continues to be a priority in our District and schools. In support of this priority, the Wellness Team will be conducting “Wellness Check-Ups” to deeply understand the current wellness efforts of the hardworking people in JSD (like you!).

The Wellness Team wants to learn from you! We would like to stop by in person to let you show off your wellness work. This might include visits to wellness rooms, meeting staff members, hearing about curriculum offerings, understanding current needs and programs, or any other concern or celebration. Mostly, we’ll be admiring your hard work!

Our intention with Wellness Check-Ups is not to take a lot of time, or add anything to your plate, it is to more deeply understand our school’s efforts, needs, and goals. This will allow the Wellness Team to better advocate and support you in your work!

Calendar a time at this link or email McKinley Withers (mckinley.withers@jordandistrict.org, 801-567-8245) for alternative arrangements.

We look forward to learning from your school!

Published on

TO:
Elementary Principals

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Kaye Rizzuto, Consultant in Teaching and Learning

Principals,

The Teaching and Learning Department will be providing some training to K-6 teachers about the new elementary social studies standards. These new standards should be implemented this year. Please select one teacher from each grade level in your school to attend. It could be a team lead or someone on the grade level team who could use some extra training on teaching social studies.

Please complete this form: https://forms.gle/9eBjhUjto5esWV6dA

Published on

TO:
Elementary Principals

FROM:
Becky Gerber, Administrator of Schools
Garett York, JAESP Committee Member

Please submit concerns to be discussed by JAESP committee and cabinet by September 4, 2024. Send items to be discussed to Ann Pessetto at Westland, Megan Cox at Midas Creek, Kaleb Yates at Juniper Elementary, or Garett York at Southland. All items are discussed anonymously as we work to provide clarification and solutions to concerns of elementary administrators.

Notes of the discussions will be published on a Google Doc titled "JAESP Committee Notes 2024-25" which will be shared with Elementary Administrators following this school year’s first meeting.

Published on

DATE:
August 29, 2024

TO:
Principals
Assistant Principals
School Safety Specialists

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
Matt Alvernaz, School Safety Coordinator

SUBJECT:
Monthly Drill Preparation (SECURE)

Our monthly drill preparation will be held on September 4th at 3:00 PM with a second session at 3:30 PM. This month we will be covering SECURE.  Each School Safety Specialist is expected to attend along with administrators assigned to oversee school safety.  All other administrators are welcomed to attend as well. The meeting is also opened to any staff who may be interested.

After each monthly training all school staff should be trained by the administrator over school safety and the School Safety Specialist. After being trained each month, teachers should educate their students on each safety drill. Additionally, schools should communicate with their patrons regarding Standard Response Protocol(s) (SRP) and the drill being conducted each month. Videos, handouts, and other resources can be found at the link(s) below.

Information regarding the SECURE response protocol can be found in the Jordan School District Safety Manual on pages 8-11.  We will discuss how to implement and execute the drill.  This will be an opportunity to ask questions and share ideas amongst the schools.

We will be holding this meeting over ZOOM so please join using this link.

Published on

DATE:
August 30, 2024

TO:
Elementary Principals

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Administrator, Teaching and Learning
Norman Emerson, Instructional Support Services/Fine Arts Consultant

SUBJECT:
JSD-Arts Representatives for 2024-25

This year we will continue to invite two District Arts Representatives (DARTS) to represent your school throughout the 2024-25 school year. We are pleased to be able to continue this program which received the Sorenson Legacy Exemplary Program Award in 2023. We have appreciated the work of past DARTS representatives and how they have helped strengthen arts instruction in your schools. Meaningful progress toward a greater level of arts integration has been made, and we wish this to continue.

DARTS meetings will be held on the following dates: September 11, November 13, January 22, March 26, and April 30. The meetings will be held at the Auxiliary Services Building Auditorium from 4:30-6:00 p.m. (the last meeting on April 30th will be a shorter meeting and will be from 4:30-5:30 p.m.). 

Please assign two classroom teachers to serve as your school’s DARTS representatives. The DARTS representatives will meet five times throughout the year to learn and collaborate. Teachers will be paid at the inservice rate and will earn relicensure points (Note: In addition to the two regular classroom teachers, your school's BTS arts educator will also be attending the DARTS sessions). 

Please email the names of your choices for the JSD DARTS Team for the 2024-25 school year to jana.shumway@jordandistrict.org or jacquelin.webster@jordandistrict.org by Monday, September 9, 2024 if possible.

Published on

DATE: 
August 29, 2024

TO:
Principals
Assistant Principals
Panorama Survey Coordinators
Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services

SUBJECT:
Panorama Student Feedback Survey Opt-In Report

Panorama (Early Warning System) and social-emotional surveys may only be administered to students whose parents have opted-in. Parents are asked to opt-in to the student feedback survey during the registration process. When the online registration process closes on Oct. 1 schools will manually enter the opt-in information into Skyward.

The Survey window is August 30-September 20, 2024. The following information is provided to inform and assist you as you administer student surveys:

  • The list of students who may take the survey (opted-in) will be provided to Panorama prior to the administration of the survey by Student Services. Only opted-in students will be able to log in and take the survey.
  • Schools should print out the list of students who have opted-in and provide teachers with the list of students in their classes that have opted-in. The registration opt-in information can be accessed through Skyward using this data mining report.
  • Using the list provided to them by the main office, teachers will be able to manage the administration of the survey. Using the opt-in list, teachers will be able to identify why students may not be able to log in and take the survey.
  • If there are students wishing to take the survey and they are on the opted-in list, but are having log-in issues – the school survey coordinator should contact Panorama directly for assistance at support+utahjordan@panoramaed.com. Student Services does not have the ability to manage access to surveys.
  • Students may choose to not take the survey even though their parents have opted them into the survey. Student feedback surveys administered through Panorama are never required and are always optional.
  • Parents/Guardians should always be informed/notified regarding the administration of any survey.

Survey coordinators and administrators should view the Administering Panorama Survey presentation for information, instructions, and guidance regarding the student feedback surveys. Other Panorama information may be found on the Student Serves website here.

Should you have any questions please reach out to Travis Hamblin (travis.hamblin@jordandistrict.org) or Michelle Reyes (michelle.reyes@jordandistrict.org).

Published on

DATE:
August 22, 2024

TO:  
Teaching & Learning Consultants
Secondary & Elementary Assistant Principals

FROM:  
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
Sharon Jensen, Student Support Consultant

SUBJECT: 
Safe School Hearing Committee 2024-2025

District Safe School Hearings are essential to a student’s due process. Safe School Hearings are held weekly and are chaired by the Student Support Consultant, Sharon Jensen, and consists of a committee made up of school and district administrators.

Please find your Safe School Hearing Committee assignment(s) at this LINK

Should you have any questions or conflicts regarding your committee assignment(s), contact Janie Hyde, Administrative Assistant, Student Support Services. 801-567-8326.

 

Published on

DATE:    
August 22, 2024

TO: 
Building Principals
Elementary Administrative Assistants
Secondary Registrars
Secondary Attendance Secretaries

FROM: 
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director, Student Services
Scott Festin, Planning Consultant, Student Services
Caleb Olson, Enrollment Consultant, Student Services

SUBJECT:  
2024-25 Preparations for Done.0 and 10-Day Drops

As mentioned in a previous memo, 2024-25 Preparations for Done.0 and 10-Day Drops, processing for 10-day drops may begin on September 3 and 4. Planning & Enrollment will begin preparing “Done.0” FTE allocation recommendations for Cabinet shortly thereafter. Please note the following tasks that MUST BE COMPLETED BY FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2024.

Administrators:

  • Ensuring hiring totals are updated on your school’s Enrollment Dashboard. Each year, once Done.0 has been issued, multiple schools require adjustments due to forgetting to update hiring totals. This impacts the availability of funds to address critical needs throughout the District. If hiring totals are not accurate on the Dashboard AND in Skyward, the school may need to fund positions through alternative budgets.
  • Ensure that hiring does not exceed the 2.0 allocation issued in February 2024. Even if enrollment has increased above projections, schools are not authorized to hire above 2.0 without the express consent of the Superintendent and Cabinet.
  • Hiring also should not exceed qualified FTE totals based on enrollment as of Day 10.
  • ELEMENTARY: Many schools have not recorded hiring for their BTS instructor. Total FTE for the position should be entered in column E of row 33; budgets paying for that FTE should be recorded in row 76.

Admin Assistants / Attendance Secretaries / Registrars

  • Work with teachers to try to generate accurate attendance for the first ten days. At the secondary level, if a single teachers does not record a student absence during the first ten days, Skyward will not identify the student as continuously absent.
    • The “Suspect or Questionable Attendance Report” (located in Office > Attendance . Reports > Verification Reports) may be beneficial in identifying teachers who are not accurately recording attendance. Run the report for a specific day of school and select the “Validate Limited Student Presence” option. This will identify students who have been marked absent in most periods but have a small number of periods where the student was marked present. The report will also identify the teacher who may not have accurately recorded attendance.
  • Review the previous memo on 10-Day drops, 2024-25 Preparations for Done.0 and 10-Day Drops, and be ready to run reports, withdraw students, and report completion of drops.

Published on

DATE:  
August 22, 2024

TO:  
Principals
Assistant Principals
Safety Personnel
School Safety Specialists

FROM:  
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
Matt Alvernaz, School Safety Coordinator

SUBJECT: 
SRP/Incident Command Training – Administrators/School Safety Specialists

To ensure current and best practices in school safety are implemented uniformly across the district, training in both the Incident Command System and Standard Response Protocols is required annually. This training is required for all principals, assistant principals, district administrators, district safety personnel and assigned school safety specialists. This is an opportunity to receive the most up-to-date instruction and gain clarity on how both systems work cohesively to improve safety for students, staff, and guests. Trainings will be held on:

  • Thursday, September 5th, 2024 from 8:00 AM to 10:00 AM at JATC South
  • Wednesday, September 11th, 2024 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM at JATC South
  • Wednesday, October 9th, 2024 from 8:00 AM to 10:00 AM at JATC South
  • Tuesday, October 15th, 2024 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM at JATC South

Please sign up for one of the training sessions using this link.

Should you have any questions please contact Matt Alvernaz, the District Safety Coordinator, at matt.alvernaz@jordandistrict.org or by phone at (801)567-8623.

Published on

DATE:  
August 15, 2024

TO:  
All Principals

FROM:  
Lisa Robinson, Administrator of Schools
Kim Lloyd, Director of Special Education

SUBJECT: 
Providing a Consistent Space for Itinerant Service Providers

As the school year begins, please be mindful that the itinerant service providers assigned to your school require a consistent and viable space to work with the students that they are assigned to in your school. These service providers include OTs, PTs, Hearing & Vision, etc. The services that these professionals provide are required by students’ IEPs and 504 plans and aid in students being able to engage more effectively in instruction and other related activities. These providers serve students in multiple schools each day and have very tight schedules. If they are required to spend time locating a space to serve students each time they arrive at a school, or if they are unexpectedly moved from a space, it can greatly affect their ability to provide these required services to each of the students that they are assigned to.

Please be sure to work with your itinerant service providers at the start of the school year to identify a consistent viable space where they can serve the students at your school. If you need to change that space during the school year, please notify the itinerant service providers well in advance.

Also, as you plan for the year and additional staff to your school, please keep in mind that Speech Language Therapists are an integral part of your faculty and need space to work with small groups and individual students.

We appreciate your support in these efforts.

Published on

DATE: 
August 12, 2024

TO:   
Principals
Assistant Principals

FROM: 
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
Michelle Reyes, Truancy Prevention Specialist

SUBJECT:   
Free Attendance Campaign Banners, Stickers and Back to School Attendance Resources

Back to school is the ideal time to convey the right message about attendance to families, students, and the community. Attendance messaging aids in building the habit and culture of attendance by helping everyone understand why going to school every day is important. The Student Services Department has developed materials for your use to promote attendance in a positive way this school year using the campaign slogan: Be Present, Be Powerful.

Banners, posters, stickers, tracking calendars, and attendance pledge templates are available in English and Spanish here. Back to School Night is a great opportunity to share positive messages with families about attendance.

Student Services has ordered 24, 4’ X 8’, outdoor mesh banners and 2,000 vinyl stickers that are immediately available, free of charge to interested schools. Due to limited supplies, they will be first come, first served using this google sheet. Schools may request 1 banner and up to 100 stickers each until supplies are gone. If you miss the sign up or would like to order more, you can find links to order your own banners and stickers for a very reasonable price on the bottom of the google order sheet.

September is National Attendance Awareness Month. Watch for more information/ideas in an upcoming JAM memo.

Should you have questions or need assistance with attendance, please contact Michelle Reyes @ michelle.reyes@jordandistrict.org or 801-567-8205.

Link for ordering Banners
Link for ordering Stickers

Published on

DATE:  
Thursday, August 8, 2024

TO: 
Elementary School Administrators

FROM:   
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability

SUBJECT: 
ALO Acadience Reading Training Options for ESPs and Others

It is recommended that ESPs who will be assessing Acadience Reading measures (either progress monitoring in grades K-6 or benchmark testing in grades 4-6) be trained on test administration procedures on an annual basis.  There are both in-person and virtual training options.  Elementary school administrators are asked to pass this training information on to relevant ESP employees in their buildings as well as any others who may want more Acadience Reading assessment training.

Please see the attached memo for all of the dates and information.

Published on

DATE:      
Thursday, August 8, 2024

TO: 
Elementary School Administrators

FROM:  
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability

SUBJECT: 
Student, Teacher, Administrator, and Other Accounts in ALO

Student Rostering:
Rostering of students in ALO will be automated and updated nightly. Rostering data will be extracted from Skyward, sent through the state’s UTReX system, and then uploaded into ALO. The process can take up to 72 hours for newly enrolled students. If students are missing from ALO, please contact Janice Sperry in Assessment, Research & Accountability who will investigate the issue. Students cannot be entered into the system manually.

Classroom Teacher Accounts:
All classroom teachers will be rostered in ALO through the state as a one-time upload. The upload was submitted to USBE as of August 5th. If classroom teachers have been added to Skyward after August 5th or if a teacher is hired during the school year, an account will need to be manually created in ALO. School administrators or their designee should fill out this form to request an account for newly hired teachers.

Classroom teachers should receive a welcome email from ALO on the second or third day of school asking them to set their password. Their username will be their work email address.

Accounts for Other Personnel:
School administrators are asked to fill out this form for other personnel who need ALO accounts. Examples of such personnel would be instructional coaches or classroom aides who will assist with progress monitoring or benchmark testing in grades 4-6. We will add these accounts manually after classroom teacher rostering has occurred. Please allow up to a week for accounts to be added as each person’s account must be created one at a time for all 42 elementary schools.

School Administrator Accounts:
Administrator accounts will be added to ALO manually once rostering for classroom teachers has occurred. There is no need to submit administrator names using the above form.

For questions about ALO, please contact Janice Sperry (janice.sperry@jordandistrict.org) or Ben Jameson (ben.jameson@jordandistrict.org) in Assessment, Research & Accountability.

 

Published on

DATE:   
August 5, 2024

TO:  
All Administrators

FROM:   
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
McKinley Withers, Health and Wellness

SUBJECT:  
2024-25 Employee Wellness Representatives

As a reminder, each school or department is invited to select an employee wellness representative! The Educator Wellness Representatives will support faculty/staff wellness efforts within your schools.

Action Items for administrators: If you haven’t already, please nominate your Educator Wellness Representative for the 24-25 school year!

Educator Wellness Representatives Duties include:

  • Will attend bi-annual in person training on 9/18/24 & 1/8/25
    • **Schools will need to cover the cost of the sub**
  • Promote wellness initiatives at the District and school level
  • Lead and support faculty/staff wellness efforts at your school throughout the year
  • Maintain a connection with District Wellness Specialists
  • Model educator wellness for the school community

Steps to having an educator wellness rep for your school or department:

  • Consider the following:
    1. Reps must be a licensed, non-administrative staff member. We highly recommend using a non-mental health team staff member. Also, we recommend they work with a leadership team or social committee at your school.
    2. Principals may work with their current reps to see if they’re interested in doing this important work again for the upcoming school year.
  • Principal nominates ONE educator wellness representative for each school using this form.
  • Support your wellness rep throughout the year as the work to enhance your school or department!

Published on

DATE:      
August 5, 2024

TO:  
All administrators

FROM:  
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
McKinley Withers, Health and Wellness Consultant

SUBJECT:
Beginning of Year SafeUT Reminders

Administrators,

As a reminder, SafeUT tips will continue to be sent through the Dashboard to all individuals assigned. If staff members would like to make any changes to their settings (such as text message notifications) or there are needed updates to your school’s dashboard, please inform Angie Rasmussen or McKinley Withers.

In addition, it is essential that ALL SafeUT tips are “closed” and that the SafeUT Dashboard for each school is up to date for the following reasons:

  • When the tip is not closed, the issue appears to not have been addressed or handled.
  • The legislature and USBE can review this data as part of funding decisions.
  • It allows SafeUT to improve how tips are distributed.

Here is a step-by-step information sheet that includes this process with images.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Angie Rasmussen at angie.rasmussen@jordandistrict.org