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DATE: 
Thursday, October 19, 2023

TO: 
Middle School Administrators
High School Administrators

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

SUBJECT: 
2023-24 Stakeholder Input Survey Preview and Administration Materials


Please see the attached memo.

The Office of EDI is excited to offer a PD series on 'Understanding your Diverse Students.' Our first PD is on November 2nd, 2023, at the JATC South from 4-6 PM, focusing on our McKinney-Vento (Homeless) students. All licensed employees will receive 2 hours of in-service pay. The administrators are encouraged to attend.

Register for the PD HERE.

Please see the flyer for additional information on future PDs.

Take note of the following information. There are links to a training invitation and two monthly Newsletters with important communications about the School LAND Trust (SLT) Program.
Please forward the District School Community Councils newsletter and training invitation to all council members.
The newsletters are also accessible online on the USBE website with different language options.

All licensed administrators are invited to complete the following questionnaire by November 3, 2023. This formal process of gaining your input will serve as a conversation starter with your Administrator of Schools about work assignments for the coming school year (2024-25) in Jordan District. Personal preference is one of many factors considered when determining administrative assignments. This does not take the place of the need to sign up for a formal Principal interview. Please use this link to access the form: Licensed Administrator Assignment Questionnaire

DATE:  
Thursday, October 12, 2023

TO:  
TSI School Administrators

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

SUBJECT:  
Root Cause Analysis and Goal Setting with TSI Schools


In preparation for the state’s annual resource allocation review (RAR), teams from schools that have been identified for targeted school improvement (TSI) are invited to a series of workshops that will assist school teams in examining current instruction, conducting a root cause analysis, and then setting strategic goals to address those problems of practice. Thus, schools will walk away from the workshops with a viable, strategic, and robust plan that can be implemented as part of future RAR, LAND Trust, and TSSA plans.

The workshops will address both qualitative and quantitative data from four categories: Achievement, engagement, access, and attendance. The data we will analyze will come from various sources, including Tableau, ELLevation, and Panorama. The workshops will be highly collaborative, so principals are encouraged to bring a team. Besides the principal, team members could include an assistant principal, instructional coach, lead counselor, special education team lead, ELD lead, etc.

The workshops will be offered in a series of three half-day sessions. Tier 2 and 3 TSI schools will attend their own sessions separate from Tier 1 TSI schools. For a list of Tier 1, 2 and 3 schools, please click here. School teams need only attend one half day per session.

Tier 2 and 3 Schools

Session Date Time Location Topic
Session1

JPLS Course #101974

Nov. 6, 2023 12:00-3:30 pm PDC 103 Overview of TSI changes, Achievement and Attendance Data
Nov. 8, 2023

 

8:00-11:30 am PDC 102
12:00 – 3:30 pm
Session 2

JPLS Course #101975

Dec. 12, 2023 8:00 – 11:30 am PDC 113 Engagement and Access Data
12:00 – 3:30 pm
Dec. 14, 2023 8:00 – 11:30 am PDC 102
Session 3

JPLS Course #101976

Jan. 4, 2024 12:00 – 3:30 pm PDC 103 Summarize problems of practice, root cause protocol, goal setting with district departments
Jan. 23, 2024 12:00 – 3:30 pm
Jan. 30, 2024 8:00 – 11:30 am

 

Tier 1 Schools

Session Date Time Location Topic
Session 1

JPLS Course #101977

Nov. 16, 2023 12:00 – 3:30 pm PDC 113 Overview of TSI changes, Achievement and Attendance Data
Nov. 17, 2023 8:00 – 11:30 am PDC 103
12:00-3:30 pm
Session 2

JPLS Course #101978

Dec. 13, 2023 8:00 – 11:30 am PDC 113 Engagement and Access Data
12:00 – 3:30 pm
Dec. 14, 2023 12:00 – 3:30 pm PDC 102
Session 3

JPLS Course #101979

Jan. 8, 2024 12:00 – 3:30 pm PDC 103 Summarize problems of practice, root cause protocol, goal setting with district departments
Jan. 29, 2024
Jan. 30, 2024

For questions about these workshops, please contact Ben Jameson in Evaluation, Research & Accountability.

DATE:  
Thursday, October 12, 2023

TO: 
Elementary School Administrators

FROM: 
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability
Rebecca Smith, Consultant, Gifted & Talented

SUBJECT: 
CogAT Sample Parent Notification Letter and Parental Exclusion Form


The 6th grade CogAT testing window opens Monday, October 30 and closes Friday, December 1. In preparation for testing, school administrators may wish to communicate with parents about CogAT testing. To facilitate this, a sample parent notification letter in both English and Spanish has been attached with this memo. School administrators are welcome to use the sample letter as it is written or add additional information as they see fit. It is recommended that school administrators send the parent notification letter via Skylert to 6th grade parents rather than sending the note home with students.

If parents express a desire to exclude their student from CogAT testing, the parental exclusion form on the main page of Evaluation, Research & Accountability’s website may be used. That parental exclusion form may be found here.

Questions regarding the 6th grade CogAT may be referred to Kassidy Towery in Evaluation, Research & Accountability or Rebecca Smith and Taryn Cox in Gifted & Talented.

DATE:   
Thursday, October 12, 2023

TO:
Elementary School Administrators

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability
Rebecca Smith, Consultant, Gifted & Talented

SUBJECT:
6th Grade CogAT Test Administration Training


The test administration window for the 6th grade CogAT opens October 23rd and closes December 1st. 6th grade teachers, in collaboration with school test coordinators, can administer this assessment to their classes.

A test administration training is being offered to school test coordinators as well as 6th grade teachers. School administrators may attend a training session, but it is not required. Testing pool hours may be used for ESPs who are attending a training session outside of their usual hours. There is no funding for substitutes; thus, schools will need to cover the cost of a substitute if a classroom teacher is attending a training session. Attendees should bring a device to the training.

Below are the training session dates, times, and locations. Those who are planning to attend a training session should sign up here.

Date Time Location
Tuesday, October 17 9:00 – 10:30 am Presentation Room
7905 South Redwood Rd., West Jordan
Entrance C
12:30 – 2:00 pm
Wednesday, October 18 9:00 – 10:30 am
12:30 – 2:00 pm

Please contact Ben Jameson in Evaluation, Research & Accountability or Rebecca Smith and Taryn Cox in Gifted & Talented with questions.

DATE:
October 7, 2023

TO: 
Principals
All Special Educators and Related Service Providers

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

SUBJECT:
Important Deadline--Please Read Immediately
SCRAM Data Due by the end of day Monday, November 6, 2023
Updating SCRAM for December 1 Funding Count


We are fast approaching our December 1 SCRAM count deadline. Special Education Resource and SCSC Team Leaders will soon receive a SCRAM report via District Mail of all students who are currently receiving services through your school’s special education program(s). Please pay special attention to the students with the “SCRAM School” highlighted. These students have obvious errors and will need a new SCRAM submitted. These errors are students who are new to your school and are not yet scrammed at your location, likely because they came from preschool or a different school in the district. All team members and service providers need to verify each student on this list as either correct, changed, exited/moved, and/or incomplete. Since only one copy is being sent per “team” (i.e., Resource and SCSC), it is important that resource teams, SCSC teams, SLPs, Guidance Specialists and other itinerant providers work together to check and complete the requested information. It is important to verify every student. Each team member must review and initial the report before returning it to the Special Education Department. Please only return the one original report with all signatures and updated SCRAM documents, please do not send in multiple copies of the report.

We realize that our timeline is VERY tight. Please only send in SCRAM documents for those students who have an error or need a change or correction in services, not those on the report that are already correct. The service provider can be changed on the report without sending in a new scram document by crossing out the current provider and writing in the new one.

All Corrections and SCRAM reports are Due:  By 5:00 p.m. on Monday, November 6, 2023

DATE:
Thursday, October 4, 2023

TO:
All School Administrators
All Administrative Assistants

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

SUBJECT:
2023-24 Stakeholder Input Survey – Preparation and Administration Details


The 2023-24 Stakeholder Input Survey will be administered to parents, school employees, and students in grades K-12 beginning Wednesday, November 1, 2023, and ending Tuesday, November 21, 2023. All parents, licensed educators, education support professionals and students should be invited and encouraged to participate in the survey.

Survey respondents have the opportunity to take part of the survey for school individual principals, assistant principals, classroom teachers and licensed support staff (i.e., instructional coaches, counselors, school psychologists, speech language pathologists, library media coordinators, cluster leaders, etc.). Thus, we need to ensure that the survey contains an accurate list of each school’s licensed educators for whom respondents can take the survey.

The table below contains a unique link for each school that will direct viewers to a list of licensed staff that has been downloaded from Skyward. Administrative assistants are asked to verify the accuracy of that list, adding or deleting licensed educators as necessary. Staff verification lists need to be verified by Friday, October 13, 2023. This will allow enough time for Evaluation, Research & Accountability to upload the staff lists into the survey. Once the survey begins, we will be unable to add or delete any staff, so it is essential that administrative assistants carefully verify the accuracy of these lists.

The staff verification list should contain all licensed educators:

  • Principal
  • Assistant principals
  • Counselors and social workers
  • Teachers
  • School psychologists
  • Speech language pathologists
  • Library media specialists/coordinators
  • Cluster leaders
  • Instructional, technology, literacy, Title I or any other licensed academic coaches (non-licensed or athletic coaches need not be included unless they fill one of the above listed roles)
  • Any other licensed and certified educators at your school

Please see the table in the attachment to access your school’s staff verification list.

DATE:
September 22, 2023

TO: 
Principals
Special Education Teachers (Resource & Cluster)

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

SUBJECT:
Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM) Testing Checklist


You are required to complete and return the checklist to Jen Birrell for all elementary teachers and Mikaylee Krebs for all secondary teachers at the District Office by Thursday, December 21, 2023. This form is also available online at specialed.jordandistrict.org/staff/forms on the Special Education website.

If you need help completing any portion of this checklist, please contact the Teacher Specialist assigned to your school.

Please direct any questions or concerns to Jen Birrell at 801-567-8905 or Mikaylee Krebs 801-567-8356. jennifer.birrell@jordandistrict.org, mikaylee.krebs@jordandistrict.org

DATE:
Thursday, October 5, 2023

TO:
All School Administrators

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

SUBJECT:
Earbud Orders for State Testing


Students will have the option to have text read to them on the RISE Summative and Utah Aspire Plus Summative testing systems once again this year. For students in grades 3-6, the Acadience Reading Daze test will also have audio functions. Principals or their designee are encouraged to place an order for student earbuds. Please place your order by Wednesday, November 1st.

To place an order, please click here.

Earbuds may be used for other district- or state-mandated tests, but schools will need to create a system by which the same student uses the same earbuds throughout the year as there is no additional funding to purchase more than one pair of earbuds per student.

If schools wish to purchase additional earbuds for other uses, school administrators are welcome to contact Gaylene Miller in Evaluation, Research & Accountability at 801-567-8185 who can share the purchasing information and quotes used to acquire these earbuds.

DATE: 
September 28, 2023

TO: 
Principals
Assistant Principals
School Safety Specialists

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

SUBJECT:  
Standard Response Protocol (SRP)/Incident Command Training **SAVE THE DATE**


Training for the Standard Response Protocol (SRP) and Incident Command will be held at the JATC South on the following dates (choose one date and one time):

  • Wednesday, November 15, 2023
    • 11:00am – 1:00pm
    • 1:30pm – 3:30pm
  • Friday, November 17, 2023
    • 8:00am – 10:00am
    • 10:30am – 12:30pm

This training is for any who have responsibility within the Incident Command system (including schools, the District Office, ASB, Transportation, or other location). Administrators assigned as the school safety administrator and all School Safety Specialists should attend.

The training will be focused on SRP and Incident Command as well as the roles/responsibilities of the School Safety Specialist and school administrator. School-based safety administrators and specialists will receive materials and information to conduct SRP/Incident Command trainings in schools.

No sign up required to attend. Please mark on your calendars the date and time that best works for you and your school.

Please forward this information to your School Safety Specialist or others you deem appropriate.

DATE: 
Thursday, September 28, 2023

TO: 
Elementary School Administrators

FROM: 
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability
Rebecca Smith, Consultant, Gifted & Talented

SUBJECT: 
6th Grade CogAT Test Administration Training


The test administration window for the 6th grade CogAT opens October 23rd and closes December 1st. 6th grade teachers, in collaboration with school test coordinators, can administer this assessment to their classes.

A test administration training is being offered to school test coordinators as well as 6th grade teachers. School administrators may attend a training session, but it is not required. Testing pool hours may be used for ESPs who are attending a training session outside of their usual hours. There is no funding for substitutes; thus, schools will need to cover the cost of a substitute if a classroom teacher is attending a training session. Attendees should bring a device to the training.

Below are the training session dates, times, and locations. Those who are planning to attend a training session should sign up here.

Date Time Location
Tuesday, October 17 9:00 – 10:30 am Presentation Room

7905 South Redwood Rd., West Jordan

Entrance C

12:30 – 2:00 pm
Wednesday, October 18 9:00 – 10:30 am
12:30 – 2:00 pm

Please contact Ben Jameson in Evaluation, Research & Accountability or Rebecca Smith and Taryn Cox in Gifted & Talented with questions.

Utah State Senate Bill 150 requires schools to assess students in grades 1-3 three times per year (fall, winter, & spring) and inform their parents/guardians of whether or not their child is reading on grade level. Please use the attached letter templates to send information home to all parents/guardians of students in grades 1-3 by October 18, 2023.

In addition, schools are being asked to print the Home Connection letter that can be downloaded from Acadience Reading to send home with the required parent letters. The Home Connection letters give parents more details about their child's reading progress and gives some helpful tips parents can use at home to support their child in reading.

Please see the attachment for instructions to print the Home Connection letters from Acadience Reading.

 

SUU is offering endorsements for free with a USBE Grant if you are currently teaching K-12 In Utah

  • Educational Technology
  • Elementary Stem
  • Elementary Science
  • Elementary Math
  • Elementary Math Specialist

Other endorsements are available for only $300 per class:

  • Gate (6 classes)
  • ESL (6 classes)
  • K12 Literacy Specialist (6 classes)

Ready To Learn More? Join a quick 30 minute Zoom With SUU to learn how to apply and why you should capitalize on this enrichment opportunity.

DATE:        
Thursday, September 21, 2023

TO:  
All School Administrators
All Administrative Assistants

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

SUBJECT:  
2023-24 Stakeholder Input Survey – Preparation and Administration Details


The 2023-24 Stakeholder Input Survey will be administered to parents, school employees, and students in grades K-12 beginning Wednesday, November 1, 2023, and ending Tuesday, November 21, 2023. All parents, licensed educators, education support professionals and students should be invited and encouraged to participate in the survey.

Survey respondents have the opportunity to take part of the survey for school individual principals, assistant principals, classroom teachers and licensed support staff (i.e., instructional coaches, counselors, school psychologists, speech language pathologists, library media coordinators, cluster leaders, etc.). Thus, we need to ensure that the survey contains an accurate list of each school’s licensed educators for whom respondents can take the survey.

The table below contains a unique link for each school that will direct viewers to a list of licensed staff that has been downloaded from Skyward. Administrative assistants are asked to verify the accuracy of that list, adding or deleting licensed educators as necessary. Staff verification lists need to be verified by Friday, October 13, 2023. This will allow enough time for Evaluation, Research & Accountability to upload the staff lists into the survey. Once the survey begins, we will be unable to add or delete any staff, so it is essential that administrative assistants carefully verify the accuracy of these lists.

The staff verification list should contain all licensed educators:

  • Principal
  • Assistant principals
  • Counselors and social workers
  • Teachers
  • School psychologists
  • Speech language pathologists
  • Library media specialists/coordinators
  • Cluster leaders
  • Instructional, technology, literacy, Title I or any other licensed academic coaches (non-licensed or athletic coaches need not be included unless they fill one of the above listed roles)
  • Any other licensed and certified educators at your school

Please see the table below to access your school’s staff verification list.

Administrative assistants, please click the link next to your school to view and verify your staff list for accuracy. Contact Ben Jameson (ben.jameson@jordandistrict.org) with questions. Please check the following items for accuracy:

  1. Position Assignment Description: Use the drop-down menu to indicate if the licensed educator is an administrator or classroom teacher. For all other licensed positions for staff members that are not administrators or classroom teachers, please use the Licensed Support Staff designation.
  2. Grade Level: For elementary schools, please verify the accuracy of the grade level for classroom teachers. This is because there is a different survey for students in grades K-3 and grades 4-6.
  3. Missing Teachers: If a teacher in your building does not appear on the list, please add their name on the left side of the list. Elementary administrative assistants will need to add preschool teachers to their list since Skyward does not connect them to their elementary school.

Elementary Schools

School Link to Staff Verification List
Antelope Canyon Elementary Link
Aspen Elementary Link
Bastian Elementary Link
Blackridge Elementary Link
Bluffdale Elementary Link
Butterfield Canyon Elementary Link
Columbia Elementary Link
Copper Canyon Elementary Link
Daybreak Elementary Link
Eastlake Elementary Link
Elk Meadows Elementary Link
Falcon Ridge Elementary Link
Foothills Elementary Link
Fox Hollow Elementary Link
Golden Fields Elementary Link
Hayden Peak Elementary Link
Heartland Elementary Link
Herriman Elementary Link
Jordan Hills Elementary Link
Jordan Ridge Elementary Link
Majestic Elementary Link
Midas Creek Elementary Link
Monte Vista Elementary Link
Mountain Point Elementary Link
Mountain Shadows Elementary Link
Oak Leaf Elementary Link
Oakcrest Elementary Link
Oquirrh Elementary Link
Ridge View Elementary Link
Riverside Elementary Link
Riverton Elementary Link
Rocky Peak Elementary Link
Rosamond Elementary Link
Rose Creek Elementary Link
Silver Crest Elementary Link
South Jordan Elementary Link
Southland Elementary Link
Terra Linda Elementary Link
Welby Elementary Link
Westland Elementary Link
Westvale Elementary Link

 

Middle Schools

School Link to Staff Verification List
Copper Mountain Middle Link
Elk Ridge Middle Link
Fort Herriman Middle Link
Hidden Valley Middle Link
Joel P. Jensen Middle Link
Kelsey Peak Middle Link
Mountain Creek Middle Link
Oquirrh Hills Middle Link
South Hills Middle Link
South Jordan Middle Link
Sunset Ridge Middle Link
West Hills Middle Link
West Jordan Middle Link

 

High Schools

School Link to Staff Verification List
Bingham High Link
Copper Hills High Link
Herriman High Link
JATC North Link
JATC South Link
Kings Peak High Link
Mountain Ridge High Link
Riverton High Link
Valley High Link
West Jordan High Link

 

Special Schools

School Link to Staff Verification List
Kauri Sue Hamilton School Link
River’s Edge School Link
South Valley School Link

The following are reminders to keep in mind when completing evaluations.

Full UETS-based JPAS -- Educators on a full UETS-based JPAS will upload student growth with data and stakeholder directly into the Perform system. Educators can upload the documents directly from their computer by logging into Perform and choosing “My Folder” -- “Evidence” -- “Add Artifact.” Educators are asked to name the file and can then choose to upload a document from the computer or add a URL.

Student growth with data must include the following:

  • The core standard
  • A growth target with reflection
  • Pre assessment information (include dates and scores)
  • Post assessment information (include dates and scores)

Stakeholder input could include climate survey information with reflection, teacher initiated email chain with parents or other stakeholders, or descriptive phone logs (must include date, who talked with, summary of discussions). The intent is to show personalized communication with parents.

Administrators may access evidence by logging into Perform and selecting “My Staff” -- “Staff” -- the individual teacher’s folder -- “Evidence.”

The first cycle for provisional teachers is due December 22, 2023.

Please contact the JES office as soon as possible when you know you may have trouble meeting deadlines.

Interim -- Educators on an Interim JPAS will complete a self evaluation and 3 required goals at the beginning of the year and reflect on the 3 required goals at the end of the year. Educators can access the evaluation by logging into Perform and choosing “My Folder” -- “Tasks” -- “Beginning of Year Interim Form.” Educators must click on the “Save and Submit” button once they have completed the beginning of the year form so that the evaluator can access the form for approval.

Administrators may access and approve Interim Evaluations by logging into Perform and selecting “Signatures.” Evaluations will not be available for approval until after the educator has “Saved and Submitted.”

Beginning of the year requirements and approval are due October 31, 2023.

Educators on an Interim JPAS will complete an end-of-year reflection by logging into Perform and choosing “My Folder” -- “Tasks” -- “End of Year Interim Form.” Student growth with data and stakeholder input are uploaded at this time.

Student growth with data must include the following:

  • The core standard
  • A growth target with reflection
  • Pre assessment information (include dates and scores)
  • Post assessment information (include dates and scores)

Stakeholder input could include climate survey information with reflection, teacher initiated email chain with parents or other stakeholders, or descriptive phone logs (must include date, who talked with, summary of discussions). The intent is to show personalized communication with parents.

Deadline for completion of End of the Year Interim Evaluations is May 31, 2024.

Please use the attached flyer(s) to promote the upcoming clinic at your school. If you want to show the list of all available clinics, use the one with the QR code. If you want to be more specific to your clinic, use the editable English and Spanish versions.