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Category: Elementary Schools

Published on

TO:
Elementary Administrators
Coaches
Kindergarten Teachers

FROM:
Carolyn Gough - Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Jessica Stowe - Assistant Director of Teaching and Learning
Mandy Thurman - Elementary Literacy Consultant of Teaching and Learning

Dear Kindergarten Teachers,

It’s so exciting to begin another school year and our second year of Planet Kindergarten and Letter Launch! Last year, our kindergarten students left kindergarten and began first grade in a stronger place than they have historically. That is something worth celebrating!

It was wonderful to see so many of you at our Letter Launch Workshop. Thank you to everyone who participated and especially to those who shared their expertise by teaching breakout sessions. I’ve heard so much positive feedback about the presentations! I’ve posted all of the resources shared by our presenters on the Letter Launch Workshop page of the K–2 Goals website.

We have one more Letter Launch class on September 11 at 1:30-3:30. This is a repeat of last year’s Letter Launch class and is designed for new teachers, those who were unable to attend previously, or anyone who would like a refresher.  Please register in Canvas.

Upcoming Dates & Kindergarten Goals

I’ll be sending newsletters throughout the year to help you stay up to date on data and give you a glimpse into some of the inspiring things happening across the district.

Kindergarten has two goals for the first quarter:

    • Students will be able to identify 43 first sounds on Acadience progress monitoring
    • Students will be able to name all letters and their corresponding sounds

Mastery Connect dates for letter and sound data:

  • September 4 — First optional progress monitoring opportunity in Mastery Connect 
  • October 2 — Second optional progress monitoring opportunity in Mastery Connect
  • November 6 — District benchmark for letters and sounds in Mastery Connect

These optional progress-monitoring dates are an opportunity not only to see your classroom data, but also to become familiar with Mastery Connect and the many features the platform has to offer. Larisa Nageli is over Mastery Connect and would be more than happy to talk through any questions or concerns you have. 

Most importantly, remember that you are not in this alone. If at any time you feel overwhelmed, uncertain, or simply aren’t sure what to do next, the literacy team is here to support you. When you share your questions or concerns with us, you help us better understand what teachers need and plan meaningful training and support.

Thank you for all that you do each day. Your work matters tremendously. There isn’t a day that goes by that our literacy department doesn’t recognize the dedication, creativity, and hard work you are putting into building strong readers across Jordan School District.

We are so excited to see what this year brings!

With gratitude,

Lori McCarty 

Published on

Date:
August 20, 2026

To:
All Administrators
All Registrars

From:
Steffany Ellsworth, Assistant Director - Information Systems
Steven Harwood, Assistant Director - Information Systems

Subject:
 Dropout Cohort Cleanup Report

In an effort to improve our graduation and dropout statistics at the State Board of Education, it is important that we correctly account for each student’s enrollment. Each school’s current dropout cohort cleanup report will be provided to registrars by Friday, August 21st. The report will come from JSD Information Systems through MoveIT. This is a report of students who are currently counted as dropouts for your school for the 2025-26 Cohort. Registrars review each record on this report to determine whether or not an existing dropout exit code can be changed (thus lowering your dropout rate).

Please connect with your registrars to ensure they are working to enter the corrected information and return the report in the same electronic format as was sent via MoveIT to Carrie Norris (carrie.norris@jordandistrict.org) in Information Systems by September 28, 2026. They should also send a cc copy to Stacee Worthen in Student Services and Brooke Anderson in Assessment, Research and Accountability.

Information Systems will be providing training for registrars on September 15th at the Attendance/Registrar Admin Assistant meeting. This training will provide registrars with the information and tools needed to review the dropout cohort report and make changes as necessary. If your registrar is new to this report, or just needs a refresher, please ask them to attend this training. 

Feel free to contact the Information Systems Help Desk at (801) 567-8737 with any questions as you work through this process. The UTREx system is a great help in locating students. If your registrar doesn’t have access to UTREx, principals may request access for them by emailing a request to ishelpdesk@jordandistrict.org.

Published on

TO:
Principals
Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Brad Sorensen, Administrator of Schools
Cody Curtis, Administrator of Schools
Odette Desmarais, Administrator of Schools
Meredith McPhail, Administrator of Schools
Becky Gerber, Administrator of Schools
Lisa Robinson, Administrator of Schools

The following information is being provided for your awareness and to share with staff members as needed. While we are still finalizing some aspects of this rollout, please feel free to begin moving forward with these guidelines as you consider the needs of your students and programs. Lunchroom managers are already in compliance with food served in cafeterias.

Please make note of the exceptions to State Code included on the attached flyer. We've also included a template that you may share with teachers who would like to request permission from parents to provide food in the classroom. Principals should approve any permission slips as well as any personalized information about food usage in the classroom that is sent home by teachers. If your teachers have already incorporated this permission into their disclosures, there is no need to change their process at this time.

If you have further questions, please contact your AOS.

Published on

DATE:
August 20, 2026    

TO:
All Administrators    

FROM:
Ian Roberts, Director of Facility Services   

SUBJECT:
2026-2027 Facility Services Contact Updates 

Facility Services has a number of updates to personnel for the 2026 – 2027 school year. You  will find the updated contact information and area responsibilities within the facilities department below. Refer to Facility Services web page for any additional information. Please  share these updates with your administrative assistants and custodians.

 

 

Published on

TO:
Administrators and Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Sarah Palmer, Director of Payroll

Annual Leave During the Contract Days Before School Starts
All Licensed Employees

8/10/26-8/17/26
Licensed employees may not use annual/personal leave during the contract days before school starts. However, they may, through correlation with the principal, arrange to exchange one of these days for another non-contract day.

Annual or Personal Leave During the First Five Days of School
All Licensed and ESP Employees

8/19/26-8/25/26 Elementary Schools
8/18/26-8/24/26 Secondary Schools
8/18/26-8/24/26 District Offices Auxiliary Services

DP335NEG-Annual Leave-Licensed
DP335B-Annual Leave-Education Support Professionals

Per District policy, annual or personal leave days may not be used during the first five days of school, unless the leave reason is listed in policy as an exception. If any of the exceptions do apply, you must provide both the leave reason and the policy exception in the time off description. If the leave reason does not meet the policy exceptions, Licensed employees will be docked $170 and ESP employees will be docked 40% of their daily rate.

Published on

DATE:
Thursday, August 20, 2026

TO:
All School Administrators

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

SUBJECT:
Record of August 11th Professional Learning Day Attendees

School administrators may access a Tableau dashboard that contains a record of all educators who signed in using the QR codes for the morning keynote sessions during the August 11th professional learning day.  The dashboard may be accessed here.  Administrators may also filter the list by conference location.

For questions about this dashboard, please refer to Ben Jameson in Assessment, Research & Accountability.

Published on

DATE:
Thursday, August 20, 2026

TO:
All Assistant Principals Over Testing

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

SUBJECT:
Testing Coordinator & Assistant Principal Collaboration Meetings

In an effort to align practice and support, Assessment, Research & Accountability is sponsoring a collaboration meeting for school testing coordinators and assistant principals over testing. The purpose of this collaboration meeting is to help school testing coordinators and assistant principals who oversee testing to maximize efficiency in their testing procedures and processes. We have found that in providing schools with the opportunity to collaborate with others in similar roles, teams and testing personnel leave feeling better equipped to make testing easier and more efficient for everyone. Please come ready to share what has been working for your school. 

Here are the items we’ll cover during the meeting:

  • Clarification of school personnel roles with statewide assessments
  • Required versus optional assessments
  • Tools and resources to streamline processes
  • Logistics before, during, and after testing

Here are the dates and times for this collaboration meeting:

We anticipate this being a beneficial meeting for all – regardless of testing experience.

For questions about this collaboration meeting, please contact Kassidy Towery or Kristi Schwebach in Assessment, Research & Accountability.

Published on

TO:
Elementary Principals

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Brandon Larsen, Performing & Fine Arts Consultant

Annual BTS Arts Principal Meeting will be held on September 24, 2026 10:30-12:00pm in the Jordan Learning Center

As we gear up for a fantastic school year, please join us for the annual BTS Arts Meeting & Luncheon, a dedicated space to nourish both your body and your school’s arts programming. We’ll be sharing high-value updates, practical strategies to maximize your arts integration, and key insights to support your educators. Most importantly, this interactive session gives you a direct seat at the table to get your burning questions answered, brainstorm with fellow administrators, and ensure your school gets the most out of the BTS Arts program this year.

Save the date, bring your questions, and let us treat you to lunch!

Published on

DATE:
August 13, 2026

TO:
All Principals
Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Jordan District Nurses

SUBJECT:
Medication Administration Training

Utah State Law and District Policy requires that all school personnel delegated to administer medication to students in schools must complete Medication Administration Training. 

New employees who will be giving medication are required to attend the live training on Friday, September 11, 2026. 

For the 2026-27 school year, all medication training and sign-ups will be done through Canvas. Everyone in the district has a Canvas account through your district email. You must sign up using the links in this email. If you need help, contact your nurse. ( If you are not able to add the class after logging in, you may already have it in your cart)

If you are a new staff member administering medications in our district, please register for the In-person Medication class. If you are a returning staff member who has completed in-person training in our district in the past, you may sign up for the Online Medication Training.

As a note, we have added a section to this training that includes reminders for the health room and treating common injuries/conditions seen in the health room. This addition must also be completed to receive your certificate. As a friendly reminder, be sure to view the video in its entirety before taking the quiz. Your certificate should be emailed to you from Canvas. The attached instructions also go over how to find your certificate if it is not emailed to you.
Please make sure to print your completion certificate for your school nurse to sign.

Please forward to any staff who need to complete the training. 

Medication Administration Training
Friday, September 11, 2026
9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.
District Office Room 129

Published on

DATE:
August 13, 2026

TO:
Principals
Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Jordan School District Nurses

SUBJECT:
Immunization Policy and Guidelines, Skyward and USIIS In-service

Jordan School District Nurses will be conducting this in-service on:

Friday, September 18, 2024
9:00 – 11:00 a.m.
ASB, PDC Room 101

This in-service is open to all office staff and administrators. If you are involved with new student registration, this in-service will be of benefit to you. 

Class size is limited. Please contact your school nurse if you are planning to attend. See attached nurse assignment list for 2026-27.

Published on

DATE:
August 13, 2025

TO:
All School-based Administrators

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Buddy Alger, Director, Student Services
Caleb Olson, Enrollment Consultant, Student Services

SUBJECT:
August 2026 Discipline Code Update

Two new discipline codes have been added for the 2026-27 school year. Please begin using these codes immediately:

IES: Indecent Exposure (Self) – Used when a student exposes their own private parts to others.
IEO: Indecent Exposure (Other) – Used when a student causes another student’s private parts to be exposed (through any means, including “pantsing” another student)

New discipline code cards should be arriving shortly via district mail for all administrators.

Published on

DATE:
August 13, 2026

TO:
School Administrators
Elementary Administrative Assistants
Secondary Attendance Secretaries
Secondary Registrars

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Buddy Alger, Director, Student Services
Caleb Olson, Enrollment Consultant, Student Services

SUBJECT:
Third Party Information Release Opt-Out

Parents (and students over the age of 18) have the right to opt-out of the release of their student’s directory information to third parties. This right is communicated to parents annually in the FERPA, PPRA, and Directory Information notices in the online “Registration for Schools” process.

To opt-out, parents must provide a written request to the school principal within the first ten school days of the year.
Parents (and students over the age of 18) should be encouraged to use the “Request to Withhold Information” form. The request (whether on the form or by other written means) must be uploaded to the student’s cumulative folder in Skyward. Once received and uploaded to the cumulative folder, the request is entered in Skyward on the Profile screen. The fields are located at the bottom of the screen (as shown below):

The field meanings are as follows:
• Military: Allow release of information to military recruiters
• Higher Ed: Allow release of information to post-secondary institutions
• Public: Allow release of information to local media or public source (schools must still obtain permission before posting student images or information on social media, websites, or before participation in media interviews and stories)
• District: This field is not used and can remain “YES”.
• Local: Allows use of information in items such as yearbooks, performance programs, and sports rosters.

Requests for opt-out must be processed promptly, as various agencies and entities are already submitting requests for
information. The written request can be filed in the student’s cumulative folder. When entered in Skyward, the opt-out
will remain from year-to-year until the parent submits a request reauthorizing the release of information.

Parents may opt-out after the first ten days of the school year but should be informed that information may already
have been released prior to their request.

Published on

DATE:
August 13, 2026

TO:
School Administrators
Elementary Administrative Assistants
Secondary Attendance Secretaries
Secondary Registrars

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Buddy Alger, Director, Student Services
Caleb Olson, Enrollment Consultant, Student Services

SUBJECT:
Annual Reminder of Memos from Planning & Enrollment

School staff are requested to review the following memos that contain reminders of time-sensitive information from Planning & Enrollment. The content of these memos has not changed and remains applicable to schools.

• Initial Enrollment Without Birth Certificate
• Assigning Discipline Officers and Counselors for New-to-School Secondary Students
• New Student Grade Level Placement
• Enrollment of Returning Charter School Students

Published on

DATE:
August 13, 2026

TO:
All Administrators

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
April Gaydosh, Administrator of Human Resources Melissa
Flores, General Counsel
Buddy D. Alger, Director, Student Services
Caleb Olson, Enrollment Consultant, Student Services

SUBJECT:
August 2026: Responding to Subpoenas and Other Orders

Subpoenas and other court orders received by schools require immediate attention and response. There are legal requirements for responding that must be met, meaning schools cannot respond on their own. When school staff wait to request assistance in responding, even if only by a day or two, the District’s ability to either challenge the subpoena or meet the compliance deadline is hampered.

Please note that a subpoena is different from a record request. Record requests from the parent/guardian or eligible student can be processed by the school. In the event of confusion as to what the request is, contact Caleb Olson.

For subpoenas or other court orders regarding student records:
• The receiving school staff member should immediately notify the site administrator. Under DP367 - District Records Management, the site administrator bears responsibility for records at each site or location.
• The site administrator (or receiving staff member, if directed) should send a copy of the subpoena or order to Caleb Olson via MoveIt the day it is received. Caleb Olson will coordinate the District’s response with the site administrator.

For subpoenas or other court orders regarding employees or employee records:
• The receiving school staff member should immediately notify the site administrator. Under DP367 - District Records Management, the site administrator bears responsibility for records at each site or location.
• The site administrator should send a copy of the subpoena or order to April Gaydosh (HR Administrator) and Melissa Flores (General Counsel) via MoveIt the day it is received. Further information will be provided to the site administrator.

For other court orders, including search warrants or orders where the staff is unclear as to the purpose, the site administrator should provide a copy of the order to General Counsel Melissa Flores via MoveIt AND should make contact via phone or text as soon as reasonably possible.

Published on

TO:
Principals

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching & Learning

In June 2026, administrators across the district shared excellent ideas and strategies for incorporating Portrait of a Graduate characteristics in their schools and departments. Check out these links to individual schools to reflect on the good ideas that were shared and to inspire your team to think intentionally about how POG can become part of your Academic, Behavioral, or SEW systems in your school.

Published on

DATE:
August 13, 2026 

TO:
Principals
Administrative Assistants
Attendance Secretaries
Registrars 

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Buddy Alger, Director of Student Services
Caleb Olson, Consultant, Planning & Enrollment 

SUBJECT:
2026-27 Reporting Completion of 10-Day Accounting

Students who are registered to a District school and have not attended (or been marked absent with a valid excuse) for ten consecutive school days at any point in the school year must be withdrawn from membership. This is particularly important during the first ten days of the school year so that our enrollment calculations and reporting is accurate. 

Accurate enrollment counts are used to generate future projections. Projection totals are needed very soon after ten-day adjustments are completed. To assist in preparing projections, we are asking all schools to report the completion of their 10-day drops on a Google Sheet as soon as these drops are processed. Only the staff member responsible for processing the drops should indicate completion status. The Google Sheet is available at this link and will be emailed to attendance staff again close to the 10th day of school. 

10 day drops for high schools may be processed at the end of the day on September 1, 2026.  Elementary (Grades K-6) and middle school may process drops at the end of the day on  September 2, 2026.  

Guidelines for how to process these drops are available at the links below: • No-Show Guidelines 

Published on

DATE:
Thursday, August 13, 2026

TO:
Elementary Administrators

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

SUBJECT:
Acadience Reading Training Options

Any school personnel that will be involved in administering the Acadience Reading benchmarks in grades 4-6 and/or progress monitoring probes in K-6 should be trained in test administration procedures on an annual basis.  There are several training options depending on the employee’s work assignment.

Classroom Teachers and Instructional Coaches
Teachers and coaches need complete only one of the following options:

  • Training Option 1: In-person training – Please sign up using this link.  The in-person course is a half day.  Schools will need to cover the cost of a sub if sending a classroom teacher.
  • Training Option 2: JSD Acadience Training

ESP Employees
ESP employees should complete one of the following options as part of their regular contract time:

  • Training Option 1: In-person training – Please sign up using this link.  The in-person course is a half day.  Schools will need to cover the cost of a sub if sending a classroom teacher.
  • Training Option 2: JSD Acadience Training
  • Please note that ALO account access will be granted once ESP employees successfully complete one of the two training options listed above.

If any employee needs one-on-one mentoring or extra support for administering Acadience Reading benchmarks or progress monitoring probes, time with the district’s Acadience Mentor can be requested here.

In addition, training resources, testing practice materials, how-to instructions, and printable student materials may all be found on the Acadience Reading Resource Hub.

For questions about Acadience Reading training, please contact Janice Sperry in Assessment, Research & Accountability.

Published on

TO:
Principals & Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Katie Bastian, Director of Nutrition Services

Spread the word! Let your families know Free & Reduced Meal Eligibility Notification Letters are electronic going forward. Parents will receive their Free & Reduced Eligibility Letter by email and it is also available to view and print in Skyward Family Access. See the attached instructions for assistance. Contact Nutrition Services with any questions.

Published on

TO:
Administrators and Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Sarah Palmer, Director of Payroll

Annual Leave During the Contract Days Before School Starts
All Licensed Employees

8/10/26-8/17/26

Licensed employees may not use annual/personal leave during the contract days before school starts. However, they may, through correlation with the principal, arrange to exchange one of these days for another non-contract day.

Annual or Personal Leave During the First Five Days of School
All Licensed and ESP Employees

8/19/26-8/25/26    Elementary Schools
8/18/26-8/24/26    Secondary Schools
8/18/26-8/24/26    District Offices & Auxiliary Services

DP335NEG-Annual Leave-Licensed
DP335B-Annual Leave-Education Support Professionals

Per District policy, annual or personal leave days may not be used during the first five days of school, unless the leave reason is listed in policy as an exception. If any of the exceptions do apply, you must provide both the leave reason and the policy exception in the time off description. If the leave reason does not meet the policy exceptions, Licensed employees will be docked $170 and ESP employees will be docked 40% of their daily rate.

Published on

TO:
Directors, Administrators, Administrative Assistants

FROM:
McKinley Withers, HR Administrator

Tagline: Exciting updates on employee wellness initiatives!

Jordan’s Employee Wellness Initiative is taking a new form. As of July 2026, Employee Wellness is now a part of the Human Resources Team! This will expand Jordan’s ability to serve employees and meet their needs. Our mission is to empower employees to sustain their well-being. 

Administrators can expect to receive regular updates about program offerings throughout the year. Here are two exciting updates to be aware of as we kick off the school year:

  • The Employee Wellness Representative Program is being revised based on feedback from prior years. This will create opportunities for more employees to get involved. Please note the following changes:
    • During the 2026-27 school year, ANY employee can become an Employee Wellness Champion as a “Connector.” A form will go out in JEM that will invite employees to apply to become a connector. These employees will receive the latest updates and spread information about wellness offers. The goal is to create a network of Employee Wellness Champions who support a happier, healthier workplace in Jordan District. 
    • School and department leaders will select a Worksite Wellness Advocate who will attend three trainings (one in person and two virtual) and who will host a wellness initiative at your worksite with District support. Please nominate your Worksite Wellness Advocate using this link by September 4th. 
  • Our top priority as we kick off this new program is hearing from YOU. Please share your ideas and interests with us. We will be connecting with you to schedule a time to spend a few hours at your school to hear from employees who have something to share about their experience and well-being. We will be visiting all worksites in JSD throughout the Fall and will connect with administrators to arrange an appropriate time. 

Please note that the employee wellness team is available to offer professional development or resources tailored to your needs; please reach out if you are interested. Reach out to McKinley Withers (mckinley.withers@jordandistrict.org, cell: 801-448-1404) to schedule PD for your staff.