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Category: Elementary Schools

Published on

DATE:  
September 1, 2023

TO:   
All Jordan School District Principals (with bus route students)

FROM:  
Scott Thomas, Administrator of Auxiliary Services
Paul Bergera, Director of Transportation
Kathy Jones, Transportation Trainer/Risk Coordinator

SUBJECT: 
State Required Bus Evacuations and School Bus Safety 2023-2024

State required semi-annual school bus evacuations have been scheduled for this fall. This applies to those students that ride the bus daily to and from school.

The evacuations will be conducted during the week of:

Monday, September 11 through Friday, September 15, 2023

Your school’s regular bus drivers will perform this evacuation as they drop your students off in the morning, one day during that week. This drill will take place at the school and within the students’ regular bus drop off/pick up zone. All professional school bus drivers that transport students are required to perform evacuation procedures in case of an emergency. Bus evacuation will be through the rear door, side door, front door or any combination of the three. Students will then, under the direction and supervision of the bus driver, evacuate and meet in a safe place approximately 100 feet away from the bus.

Your assistance is welcome but not mandatory to complete this required evacuation drill quickly, safely and effectively.

We appreciate all you do to help us safely transport your students.

Published on

Dear Principals,

Please share the following Strategic Planning Participation Survey with all of your parents. The survey can be sent separately or as part of other communications to your community tomorrow, Friday, September 1, 2023. The survey closes Wednesday, September 6th at midnight.

Thank you.

=====================

Strategic Planning Participation Survey for Employees, Parents & Students

We are excited to partner with parents and community members to make Jordan School District the very best it can be for the families and students we serve. As we begin work on updating the District’s comprehensive strategic plan for the future, we invite you to be a part of the process.

The strategic planning process will help define our vision and prioritize our resources. We are committed to developing a plan that is inclusive of the strengths, hopes, beliefs, and values of our community.

Please take a moment to share your thoughts and experiences through the survey below, which should take approximately 10 minutes to complete. Additionally, students in grades 7-12 will have the opportunity to take the survey at their school buildings.

Thank you for your continued partnership as we embark on this important process.

Published on

DATE:   
August 31, 2023

TO:  
Secondary Principals
Elementary Principals

FROM:   
Carolyn Gough, Administrator, Teaching and Learning
Norman Emerson, Fine Arts Consultant

SUBJECT:   
Ballet West 2023-24 Student In-Theater Presentations

Ballet West is again providing free presentations of the following ballets in the Capitol Theater:

  • Dracula (Grades 5-12)
  • The Firebird (Grades 1-12)
  • The Nutcracker (Grades K-12, One and Two-Hour Presentation Available)
  • Swan Lake (Grades 1-12)
  • Fairy Tale Theater (Grades 1-12) 

Each program begins with an educational introduction and is followed by a portion of the repertoire currently being performed for the general public. 

The link to Ballet West’s website with further information (including dates and times) on all of the student performances is Ballet West Student In-Theatre Performances .

If any of your teachers are interested in having their classes attend any of the performances, please have them contact Susy Peterson at susanlyn.peterson@jordandistrict.org or 801-567-8296. Seating is limited and performance slots will be filled on a first come first serve basis.

Please be aware that transportation costs must be covered by individual schools. Neither Ballet West nor the Teaching and Learning Department will be covering the costs of transportation.

Published on

DATE:    
August 30, 2023

TO:    
All Principals

FROM:    
Lisa Robinson, Administrator of Schools
Kim Lloyd, Director of Special Education
Mike Trimmell, Ed.D., Special Education Administrator

SUBJECT: 
Optional Unique & Inspire Professional Development

We are excited to be able to provide two new curricula for our special education teachers this year. Unique provides a convenient, cloud‑based platform for educators to deliver differentiated, standards‑aligned content enhanced by powerful assessments, data tools, and evidence‑based instructional support. Inspire provides a research- and evidence-based intervention curriculum to supplement the core curriculum. There are two optional trainings available on our September 22 Professional Development Day.

  • Unique is for all self-contained classrooms (all grade levels)
  • Inspire is for elementary resource classrooms (secondary content to come soon).

Unique Professional Development (all grade levels for self-contained teachers)

  • Friday, September 22, 2023 at Valley High School from 1:00 p.m. until 3:30 p.m.

Inspire Professional Development (All elementary resource teachers)

  • Friday, September 22, 2023 at River’s Edge School from 1:00 p.m. until 3:30 p.m.

Please sign up on JPLS to confirm your attendance.

Unique:
Course- 101963
Section- 127735

Inspire:
Course- 101964
Section- 127736

 

Published on

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. For questions please contact: cassidy.hansen@jordandistrict.org or daveed.goodrich@jordandistrict.org.

Please see the memo below for all the details.

Published on

September has been designated as Founder’s Month by the Utah State Legislature. The bill states that public schools are encouraged to recognize and observe this occasion. You can do this through programs and teaching in class about the Founding Fathers and important founding documents. September 17th is also Constitution Day and all public schools who receive federal funding are asked to observe this day.

You may have received a Founder’s Month Curriculum in the mail. Please remember that all curriculum should be approved before use. It will not be mailed directly to you. Teachers have access to materials on the district website: Social Studies

Jordan District currently has a team of teachers K-6, who have been asked by USBE to create curriculum for the whole state on the new elementary social studies standards. These teachers have been working on great lessons that teachers can use for Founder’s Month and Constitution Day that are grade level appropriate.

We want to make sure that we are following all state and federal mandates and guidelines. You will be notified of these important dates through JAM and teachers will receive notifications through JEM. When teachers have questions, please direct them to the district website or you can contact Kaye Rizzuto, JSD Social Studies Consultant at kaye.rizzuto@jordandistrict.org (801) 567-8320.

Published on

DATE:  
Thursday, August 21, 2023

TO:  
All School Administrators

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

SUBJECT:
Parent Invitation to Participate Volunteer List

The Parent Invitation to Participate Survey was disseminated to parents throughout the district earlier this month. Parents had the opportunity to indicate their willingness to participate in school community councils and PTA/PTSA organizations for their students’ schools. Parents provided their contact information as part of their survey response.

A list of parent volunteers for each school has been made available in a Tableau dashboard. There is a separate dashboard for each level (elementary, middle and high). Those dashboards may be accessed here.

School administrators are encouraged to provide the PTA/PTSA contact list to their parent organization presidents.

Please contact Ben Jameson in Evaluation, Research & Accountability for questions about the survey or the dashboard.

Published on

DATE: 
Thursday, August 31, 2023

TO:   
All School Administrators

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

SUBJECT:  
Record of August 15th Professional Learning Day Attendees

School administrators may access a Tableau dashboard that contains a record of all educators who signed in using the QR code for the August 15th 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 Evaluation, Research & Accountability.

Published on

DATE:     
September 1, 2023

TO:  
All School Administrators

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

SUBJECT:  
BARK Content Monitoring

Now that school is back in session, here is a review of our districtwide content monitoring system which runs through a software system called BARK. BARK monitors all student Google accounts across all JSD schools and levels. This is different from iboss and Lanschool and does not detect student internet searches. Here is a summary of the notification protocols and procedures for this school year.

  • BARK uses an AI to scan student Gmail messages, Google chats, Google documents, and Google slides, regardless of the device or IP address that is used. As long as the student is logged into and using their Jordan District Google account, the content can be monitored.
  • Notifications and alerts are categorized as non-severe, severe, and imminent.
  • The alerts are monitored primarily by Angie Rasmussen, JSD Student Safety and Wellness Some alerts will require additional investigation at that level to determine the context and to weed out false positives.
  • Notifications to schools will include administration, counseling, and other mental health teams. This allows for several adults to receive notifications in case they are somewhat time sensitive.
  • Notifications will come in an email from Angie unless it is urgent, then a phone call or text message will be communicated.
  • Notifications that are not considered emergencies or urgent will not be sent after 3pm on a school day to ensure that intervention is reasonable and timely for school personnel.
  • Content alerts are not monitored over the weekend or on days students don’t attend, but emergency alerts will still be sent when immediate intervention is needed.
  • We will continue to receive after hours imminent alerts and will continue to work with administrators when immediate intervention is required.
  • Should you have any questions please reach out to Angie Rasmussen at angie.rasmussen@jordandistrict.org.

Additional information that may be useful:

The Bark Community Partnership Program is LIVE . This program helps serve your PTA's in supporting your parent and family communities in an effort to better protect our children online (and in the real world). The program is optional and is free. It is easy to sign up. If you or your PTA are interested in this additional resource for parents about all things kids and technology, click here Sign-up Here

Published on

Thank you for your patience while the State of Utah updates their process to report student injuries. The attached will assist you in getting your UtahID set up and completing the Administration Form to get your access to REDCap. Once you log into the REDCap site you will "Add new record" and complete the necessary fields to report a student injury. There are very helpful video tutorials on the site for additional training.

Student Injury Report in REDCap

Step 1:
Create a UtahID at id.utah.gov. Instructions on how to create one and a short video tutorial can be found above, or on the UtahID Account Creation page. A verification email will be sent.

Please note that using the user's professional email address is the preferred method. If they opt to use a personal email account, a justification note is required from Project Owners stating the reasons for doing so.

Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) will be required for all new UtahID public user accounts. New users will have the option to have the MFA code sent by email or SMS text message. Please note, when a user first registers, the only option available will be email since that is the available method listed on the account until the user adds a mobile phone number to their profile in id.utah.gov.

Open the verification email and enter the code into the field provided on the UtahID creation webpage.

Finish setting up UtahID after numerical code is entered.

Send an email to: Vanonda Kern, Project Owner, studentinjury@utah.gov to let them know you have created a UtahID. The Project Owner will reply to your email to let you know you can move on. You will not be able to access REDCap to create an account until you are notified by the Project Owner.

Step 2:
Fill out the Administrative Form. The form will be received by the Project Owner and information from the form will be reviewed and entered in for REDCap approval.

Published on

If you are a contracted employee and need to take Annual/Personal Leave before or after the Critical day around Fall Recess for any reason not listed in policy DP335NEG or DP335B, you must submit a request as follows:

How to Request

During the window, the employee must send the request through email. Please include your name, school, position, and the date you are requesting the leave. Requests left on voicemail or over the phone will NOT be accepted.

Licensed employees submit their request to licensedpersonalleave@jordandistrict.org 

Education Support Professionals submit their request to classifiedpersonalleave@jordandistrict.org

The employee will receive an email confirmation within two working days after submitting the request. If the employee does not receive a confirmation email, then Human Resources has NOT received your request and your leave will not be approved.

School Holiday Date of Holiday Critical Days Window
Fall Recess

(Licensed)

 Oct. 24-27, 2023 Oct. 20 and 30, 2023 Sept. 9 – Sept. 19, 2023
Fall Recess

(All 242, 245 Contracts)

 Oct. 26-27, 2023 Oct. 20 and 30, 2023 Sept. 11 – Sept. 21, 2023
Fall Recess

(206 Contracts)

 Oct. 24-27, 2023 Oct. 20 and 30, 2023 Sept. 8 – Sept. 18, 2023
Fall Recess

(180, 184, 187, Contracts)

 Oct. 23-27, 2023 Oct. 20 and 30, 2023 Sept. 8 – Sept. 18, 2023

Licensed Annual/Personal Leave Taken on a Critical Day 2023-2024

ESP Annual/Personal Leave Taken on a Critical Day 2023-2024

 

Published on

DATE:
August 25, 2023

TO:
Elementary Principals

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Teaching and Learning Administrator
Norman R. Emerson, Fine Arts Consultant

SUBJECT:
Assemblies by Artistic Resources for Teachers and Students, Inc. (ARTS, Inc.)

ARTS, Inc., now in its sixty-fourth year of operation, was founded in 1959 and has provided performances in all forty-one school districts in Utah, reaching more than 250 schools each year with professional arts and education programming.  We welcome their artists in our schools again for the 2023-24  school year. 

Click this link to find:

  • The assembly schedule with the date and time the artists will be at your school.
  • The contact information for the performing group coming to your school.

The artists have been instructed to contact you at least two weeks prior to their assembly to verify starting times and specific needs for their performance.  If the date selected for the performing group to perform at your school does not work with your schedule, please contact them as soon as possible to reschedule.  The name and phone number of the contact person for each group have been provided.

If you have any questions, please contact Norman Emerson at 801-567-8364. 

Published on

The last training session for 2023-24 will be held November 1, 2023.

Please see the zoom link below. A PDF of the presentation used in these trainings is attached for use in training your entire School Community Council. 

All new principals and new SCC Chairs need to attend one of the SCC Trainings for this year. Two trainings will be held in a Zoom format. In order to better coordinate with Parent Teacher Conferences and the election process, we've changed one of the meetings to a later date. For specific questions or topics you would like to have covered, please submit them through email to Nadine Page (nadine.page@jordandistrict.org) before the meeting dates. For any other questions contact Nadine Page, nadine.page@jordandistrict.org or 801.567.8182 (x88182).

September 27, 2023 - 6:30-7:30 p.m.
Join Zoom Meeting    LINK

November 1, 2023 - 6:30-7:30 p.m.
Join Zoom Meeting    LINK

Published on

DUE TODAY! - NOVEMBER 16, 2023. Get your form turned in if you haven't already done so.

DATE:  
August 31, 2023

TO: 
All Principals, Jordan School District
Administrative Assistants

FROM:  
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Jordan District Nurses

SUBJECT:  
CPR/First Aid/AED Certification

Jordan School District requires that at least 3 full-time employees in each building be certified in CPR, First Aid, and AED. Most certifications are valid for 2 years. It is also recommended that employees who will have direct responsibility for student health and safety be CPR/First Aid/AED certified. This may include front office staff, playground aides, hall monitors, P.E. teachers, etc. It is also recommended that you keep a list of current CPR/First Aid/AED certified staff members by all main phone lines where calls for emergency help may originate. A template is attached.

CPR, First Aid, and AED training and certification is now available to district employees in an online format through the National Safety Council (NSC). The attached document will outline the steps necessary to complete the online portion of the course. Information can also be accessed by going here: CPR & First Aid. The cost of the course is $29.95 and should be paid by the employee at the time of registration. Schools may provide reimbursement for the course, if funds are available, by following appropriate pre-approval and reimbursement procedures.

Once the online course is completed, employees may sign up to complete their certification by attending a 2 hour skills check session with our district nurses. To sign up for a skill check, you will need to register with JPLS under CPR/First Aid/AED skill check. All skill checks must be completed within 45 days of sign-up for the online course. The dates and times for the skill check sessions are listed on the attached flyer.

Please complete the attached CPR/First Aid/AED certification form and return it to the Nursing Services office (Nadine Page) by November 16, 2023.

 

Published on

The following professional development days have been added to this year's calendar.

2023-24 School Year Calendar

Professional Development Day (No Students Attend)
Friday, September 22, 2023
Tuesday, January 2, 2024
Friday, April 12, 2024

All employees should work in the building on these days. As you are planning Professional Development in your schools and departments please plan as follows: Principal-Directed School Level Professional Development will be held in the morning hours and optional District-Level Professional Development may begin at 1:00 pm.

Please provide these dates to your employees.
If you have any questions please contact your Administrator of Schools.

Published on

DATE:   
August 24, 2023

TO:        
All Administrators

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

SUBJECT:  
2023-2024 Employee/Educator Wellness Representatives

The wellness team is excited to announce the continuation of the Employee Wellness Representative. This program is intended to support employee health and wellness. The Employee Wellness Representatives will primarily be responsible for supporting faculty/staff wellness efforts within your schools or department.

If you’d like to have a representative for your school or department, please note the following information:

  • We will be holding an Employee Wellness Representative Training Retreat on 9/19/23 & 1/19/24, details will be shared with wellness reps and administrators from schools who designate a representative for their school or department.
    • As a peer support program, we recommend that each school select a non-administrative, licensed staff member (we also encourage you to choose someone who is not a member of the mental health team). Ultimately, it’s best to choose someone who is not a supervisor, has the trust of their colleagues, and can support employee wellness initiatives at your school or within your department.
    • If a substitute is required to attend the training retreats, schools will need to cover the cost of a substitute.
    • Administrators are invited to attend the retreat with their designated employee wellness representative, these trainings will focus on strategies for employee
    • Our District Wellness Specialists will maintain contact with each representative and support your efforts.

Click this link and nominate your school or department rep by September 7, 2023.

Published on

DATE:   
August 24, 2023

TO: 
All School Administrators

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

SUBJECT:
Important updates to the Mental Health Access Program

Please note the following important updates regarding the Mental Health Access Program. In order to promote the sustainability of this program, given limited funds, it’s essential that all administrators review the following changes:

  1. There is no longer a "MHAP referral" form. This is now a "Request to Screen a Family for Community Mental Health Resources.” The new form is attached to this memo and can be found at wellness.jordandistrict.org. Rather than "referring" families, we want to shift our language to be "recommended for screening." This change will allow better allocation of our limited resources to the students and families who most need it. Our District’s clinical team has been trained on a screening process to support this change and make a decision regarding a family’s options.
    • What this means at the secondary level: if you are considering a family for community mental health services such as MHAP, please work with your school's assigned clinical support specialist to conduct a screening. Because funds are limited, your school’s clinician has been trained to tease out other community mental health options. It’s best that other staff members do not promise grant funds that may not be available or needed without consulting the clinical support specialist and following the screening process.
    • What this means at the elementary level: if you are considering a family for community mental health services such as MHAP, please fill out the attached form and email it to Kevin Mossel (kevin.mossel@jordandistrict.org). He will call, set up a meeting, and meet with the student and/or parent to screen and assess them for community resources and services. If MHAP is recommended at this screening, the clinical support specialist who conducted the screening will proceed with having the parent sign the MHAP consent form and help them access a provider that best fits their needs by authorizing and facilitating a referral. The clinical support specialist will then report back to you about what was recommended for the family.
  2. With limited funds it’s essential to manage expectations we may inadvertently be setting when communicating with parents or caregivers about their options. It’s best not to promise “free therapy” and instead use language such as "the District has a program where you can be screened for community mental health services and recommendations will be provided to help you and your student." Not every family may need financial help through MHAP and in some situation’s outpatient therapy may not be the best fit for a family’s needs.
  3. We are no longer offering students "8 sessions" or "$800 of MHAP funds.” Please do not say this to a parent as it will not be accurate. If you opt to explain MHAP to a parent, it would be more accurate to say “we have a resource in the community that might help pay for some initial mental health services and get your student started quickly.” Then, the extent of the referral can be explained after a family has been screened and the recommendation was made after a more thorough review of available options.

Since its inception in 2020, over 2000 MHAP referrals have been made. We acknowledge your vital role in supporting students as they work to improve their mental health. If you have questions or issues with these changes, please contact McKinley Withers, Travis Hamblin, or Kevin Mossel in Student Services.

 

Published on

DATE:    
August 24, 2023

TO: 
All School Administrators

FROM:   
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
McKinley Withers, Health and Wellness Consultant

SUBJECT:  
2023-2024 Clinical Support Specialist Calendar

Please be aware of the Clinical Support Specialist (CSS) meeting dates listed below. It is essential that school-based clinicians are allowed to prioritize these meetings to be current on best-practices relevant to their role.

CSS Team Trainings (1pm-3pm)

  • October 6, 2023
  • January 5, 2024
  • February 23, 2024
  • April 5, 2024

PLC Meetings (730am-830am)

Purpose of PLC’s: Case staffing and professional consultation

  • September 15, 2023
  • October 13, 2023
  • November 10,2023
  • December 8, 2023
  • January 19, 2024
  • March 8, 2024
  • April 19, 2024
  • May 10, 2024

Should you have any questions please reach out to McKinley Withers at mckinley.withers@jordandistrict.org