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Category: Elementary Schools

Published on

DATE:
Thursday, March 6, 2025

TO:
Elementary School Administrators

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

SUBJECT:
Research Project

The Research Review Committee has reviewed a research project in which your school has been asked to participate.

Project Title: Development of a Narrative Language and Reading Comprehension Program for Students with or At Risk for Language and Literacy Difficulties

Applicant: Sandra Gillam, Utah State University

The project has been approved by the District Research Review Committee.  The applicant has been directed to contact you to discuss the extent of the project and to solicit your participation in a survey.  Participation in the study is at your discretion.  If you have questions or concerns relating to participation, please contact Ben Jameson at 801-567-8243. 

This is a two-year study where teachers and researchers will co-develop model intervention lessons and then teachers will implement the intervention lessons and then assist in evaluating their usability, feasibility, and efficacy.

Thank you for your assistance.

Published on

DATE:
Thursday, March 6, 2025

TO:
Elementary School Administrators

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

SUBJECT:
Research Project

The Research Review Committee has reviewed a research project in which your school has been asked to participate.

Project Title: Elementary Teacher Beliefs About Curricular and General Autonomy:
Exploring the intersection of belief and praxis

Applicant: Laura Wheeler

The project has been approved by the District Research Review Committee. Participation in the study is at teachers’ discretion. If you have questions or concerns relating to participation, please contact Ben Jameson at 801-567-8243. 

The project will involve a survey that is sent to elementary teachers. Teachers may choose to participate in the survey and may also opt into a follow-up interview.

Thank you for your assistance.

Published on

DATE:
March 5, 2025

TO:
All Administrators
Administrative Assistants

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

SUBJECT:
Special Education Resource Instructional Assistants for 2025-26
Special Education Support Class Instructional Assistants for 2025-26

 

This memo is designed to explain how special education instructional assistants can be requested and will be allocated to each schools’ special education program(s) for the 2025-26 school year. If you have any questions, please contact your assigned teacher specialist or program administrator. We want to make sure everyone has the support staff necessary to meet student’s individual IEP needs. Please follow the attached directions carefully and have the needed information returned to your teacher specialist by the due date.

Critical Needs Requests due to your teacher specialist by Friday, March 28, 2025.

Published on

TO:
All Administrators
Administrative Assistants

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

Attached is the Special Ed Newsletter for March 2025.

Published on

TO:
Elementary Principals
Elementary Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Michelle Love-Day, Director of Language & Culture Services

The goal of the Teacher Recruitment Scholarship is to increase the number of teachers in Wasatch Front schools whose backgrounds could best support underrepresented students in the K-12 school system. This scholarship supports students from a broad range of backgrounds to become teachers and return to their communities as educational leaders and mentors for future generations. Through the Jordan Education Foundation and SLCC, students can receive tuition assistance, books paid for, and funding towards a 4-year university after completing coursework through SLCC. Application deadline is March 31st.

Published on

DATE:
March 5, 2025

TO:
Principals - City of West Jordan

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

SUBJECT:
Safe Routes To School Meeting Sign Up (West Jordan Schools ONLY)

 The City of West Jordan is prepared to meet with each administration to discuss your Safe Routes To School.

The meetings will be held on March 19th from 9:00 AM to 12:30 PM over ZOOM.  Each meeting will be held in 10-minute increments.  Please select a time slot on the SIGN-UP sheet provided.  Times are on a first come first served basis.  Feel free to work with one another as needed.

If more time is required to discuss an issue in depth, then we will schedule another time with the city to do so. 

Take a moment to review your district SRTS form and ensure it is accurate and complete as the city will need to review it.

For any additional assistance or clarification please contact Matt Alvernaz at matt.alvernaz@jordandistrict.org or by phone at 801-567-8623.

ZOOM Link

SIGN-UP Link

Published on

TO:
Administrators

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching & Learning
Jared Covili, Consultant in Teaching & Learning

Check out the links below for the latest updates from Teaching & Learning for March. Learn tips and tricks, sign up for upcoming PD, and learn about important updates from the T & L team.

Published on

TO:
Administrators

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching & Learning
Jared Covili, Consultant in Teaching & Learning

The USBE Digital Teaching and Learning (DTL) Grant provides opportunities and tools for teachers in Jordan School District to address and close student achievement gaps through the use of high quality instruction that integrates technology. This survey will help us determine technology training and hardware/software needs for the 2025-2026 school year. Use the links below to complete the end of year DTL Survey from USBE. Survey is due April 9, 2025.

Admin Link for Survey - https://www.metirisurveys.com/se/601EA2D53C7D99AC

Teacher Link for Survey - https://www.metirisurveys.com/se/601EA2D57A84FAFE

Published on

TO:
Elementary Principals

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching & Learning
Amanda Bollinger, Associate Administrator, Teaching & Learning

Consider sending your P.E. teacher/ESP to the SHAPE Conference, where they can attend numerous breakout sessions specific to their content. Examples of sessions include: games, behavior management, adaptive strategies, ML Support and more. You can sign up your teacher by completing the form, and the district will pay for their registration. The school will be responsible for covering classes and hourly pay.

The Shape Conference is a full day event on March 10, 2025. You can sign up your teacher by completing this form.

SHAPE Utah Website: https://www.shapeutah.org/

Published on

DATE: 
March 3, 2025

TO: 
Applicable School Principals and Administrative Assistants
All Area Administrators of Schools and Administrative Assistants

FROM:   
John Larsen, Business Administrator
Daniel Ellis, Director of Accounting, Budgets and Audits
Natalie Grange, Accounting Administrator

SUBJECT:
School External Auditor Visits March 17-24, 2025

The external auditors (Squire & Company, PC) will be visiting the following schools on the dates indicated. They will be reviewing school fees (appropriate amount charged, waivers, etc.) and financial information. Once finished, the auditors will want a few minutes with the Principal. If the Principal is unavailable, an Assistant Principal may meet with them. The auditors are planning on coming to the schools in the order listed. Exact times of arrival will vary depending on length of stay at earlier schools and travel time. If you have any questions or if your administrative assistant will not be available, please call Natalie Grange at (801) 567-8312.

Published on

TO:
Administrators

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching & Learning
Jared Covili, Consultant in Teaching & Learning

Need help with Canvas and Mastery Connect as you assess students in your classroom? Digital Teaching and Learning would like to invite you to attend an optional PD training to help you use Canvas and Mastery Connect to its fullest potential.

Please bring your device and your questions to learn along with DTL and Instructure.

What: Assessing Students with Canvas and Mastery Connect: Optional PD Training
When: 1 - 3 p.m. on Mar. 14
Where: Herriman High Tech Atrium
Who: All Teachers Interested in Canvas/Mastery Connect
RSVP: https://forms.gle/W1zgDaUuN69kwex39

Published on

TO:
All Administrators

FROM:
Scott Thomas, Administrator of Auxiliary Services
Brandon Conti, Risk Management Coordinator

All chemicals used at work, even “household” chemicals, should be considered potentially hazardous. Always understand the hazards of any chemical that you are using.

See the flyer below for more information.

Published on

DATE:
Thursday, March 6, 2025

TO:
Elementary School Administrators

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

SUBJECT:
Elementary Summative Testing Changes for 2024-25

With the change in the ELA core approved by the Utah State Board of Education in recent months, the state’s summative assessments will now reflect those changes. The changes to RISE are highlighted below:

RISE:

  • The summative RISE ELA assessment and the summative RISE Writing assessment (5th and 8th grades only) have been revised according to the new ELA core. Scores for the summative RISE ELA and summative RISE Writing will not be available until fall 2025. Automatic scoring for both summative assessments will resume in the 2025-26 school year.
  • Scoring for RISE Math and Science will still be available after students complete and submit the assessment.
  • For RISE ELA and Math, students will see up to one cluster question (see Feb. 6th JAM). The RISE Math cluster questions will be field test items. The RISE ELA cluster questions will be actual questions that count towards students’ scores.
  • RISE blueprints, performance level descriptors, and writing rubrics may all be found on the RISE Portal under the Resources tile.

Please see the attached RISE updates document released by USBE for more information.

For questions about these changes, please contact Ben Jameson in Assessment, Research & Accountability.

Published on

DATE:
Thursday, March 6, 2025

TO:
All School Administrators

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

SUBJECT:
State Testing Reminders

The following are friendly reminders from the state’s testing ethics policy:

  • “Utah LEAs and Licensed Utah educators may use a student’s score from a statewide assessment to improve the student’s academic grade for or demonstrate the student’s competency within a relevant course.”
  • “Licensed Utah educators shall ensure that:
    • “Students are not penalized who have been exempted from a statewide assessment
    • “Students aren’t provided a nonacademic award for participating in or performing well on a statewide assessment
    • “Students are provided an alternate learning activity if they are exempted by a parent from a statewide assessment.”

The following additional guidance may help address specific questions that arise from the part of the state’s testing ethics policy quoted above:

  • Using a student’s score from a state assessment can only improve a student’s grade – not hurt it. However, points are awarded for those who meet goals or earn proficiency on the state assessment, students should either receive 100% of the points possible or be excused from the assignment.
  • Educators may not use a student’s score on a state assessment to determine an overall grade for the course. It can be used, in conjunction with other evidence, to help determine a student’s overall grade.
  • Educators may not assign participation points on students’ grades for taking a state assessment.
  • The alternate learning activity for students whose parents have opted them out of taking the state assessment can be an alternate assessment. That said, using a student’s score on the alternate assessment or activity on a student’s grade can only improve the student’s grade – not hurt it.
    • In addition, if the incentive is that a student who demonstrates proficiency on a state assessment means that they don’t have to take the class final exam, then students who have been opted out would also need two opportunities to demonstrate proficiency. For instance, if a student who was opted out demonstrated proficiency on the alternate assessment (administered while other students took the state assessment), then they wouldn’t have to take the class final exam.

Please contact Ben Jameson in Assessment, Research & Accountability with questions.

Published on

DATE:  
March 6, 2025

TO: 
Principals
Administrative Assistants

FROM:  
Odette Desmarais, Administrator of Schools
Meredith Doleac, Administrator of Schools
Becky Gerber, Administrator of Schools
Lisa Robinson, Administrator of Schools

SUBJECT: 
Parking Lot Duty Guidelines for Elementary Schools 2024-25

Through the 2018-19 negotiations process, the Board allocated funds to pay each elementary teacher $400 for parking lot duty each year. The stipend will be paid out on April paychecks. The following are additional details and clarifications for the implementation of this payment.

  • Although parking lot duty requirements will vary from school to school, the payment is the same districtwide.
  • Administrators are encouraged to reduce parking lot duty for teachers as much as possible while maintaining necessary coverage.
  • All full-time K-6 licensed educators districtwide who are responsible for parking lot duty are eligible for the $400 stipend. Half-time educators are eligible for a $200 stipend.
  • All elementary school Special Education cluster teachers and preschool teachers are eligible for an $800 stipend.
  • Licensed educators (psychologists, BTS teachers, etc.) who have not previously been assigned parking lot duty may choose to participate and be paid a stipend but should not be required to do so.
  • Administrators and classified staff are not eligible for a stipend.
  • The stipend will be paid out on April paychecks.
  • Teachers are required to complete parking lot duty unless they coordinate with the principal to give their assignment and stipend to another willing teacher.
  • Teachers can take on as many parking lot duty assignments (and stipends) from other teachers as will fit in the calendar.
  • Teachers can only give up their parking lot duty assignment and stipend or accept an additional assignment and stipend in coordination with the principal.
  • Teachers can only give up or accept an entire assignment and an entire stipend.
  • Principals should adjust the parking lot duty schedule as necessary to allow as many teachers to take on as many extra assignments as needed.
  • Special Education cluster teachers and preschool teachers cannot give up their parking lot duty assignment.
  • Stipends for parking lot duty are included in retirement pay calculations.

A Google sheet will be shared with elementary administrative assistants and principals in March. Please complete the payroll sheet by April 2, 2025, so that teachers can be paid the stipend on their April 25th check. The elementary AOS administrative assistants will verify the payroll sheet and submit it to payroll. Please list each educator in your building and beside each name indicate the dollar amount ($0, $200, $400, or increments of $400, or $800) the teacher should be paid.

The budget code for Parking Lot Stipends is 10 E XXX 0050 1024 131

Please contact your Administrator of Schools with any questions.

Published on

TO:
School Administrators

FROM:
Brad Sorensen, Administrator of Schools
Cody Curtis, Administrator of Schools
Odette Desmarais, Administrator of Schools
Meredith Doleac, Administrator of Schools
Becky Gerber, Administrator of Schools
Lisa Robinson, Administrator of Schools

A beverage service will be provided at 7:30 a.m. Lunch will be provided.

LOCATION - PLEASE NOTE THAT WE WILL START WITH LEVEL MEETINGS AT 8:00 AM
Elementary/Sped - Auditorium
Middle/High - Presentation Room

Published on

TO:  
Principals - Cities of Riverton and Herriman

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

Schools located in the cities of Riverton and Herriman please use the corresponding link to sign up for a time slot to meet with the city. The date is March 12th with Riverton in the morning and Herriman in the afternoon (see sign up for times)

The three schools with a shared border between the cities have a set time to include both cities in the discussion. The times are already on the sign up. Contact Matt Alvernaz with any questions or if your school falls into this category.

Riverton Sign Up

Herriman Sign Up

Published on

DATE:   
February 27, 2025

TO:  
Principals
Assistant Principals

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

SUBJECT:  
February Attendance Newsletter & Resources

February 2025 Attendance Newsletter

Spring is right around the corner with warmer weather and sunny skies! Although we are all looking forward to warmer weather and longer days, this can make it increasingly difficult to motivate students to attend school. Research by TASC has shown that students are much more likely to miss school during the spring semester. Lessons in the spring tend to be more rigorous and build on groundwork laid in fall semester. Missing spring semester lessons can lead to a more substantial learning loss. Attendance and achievement go hand in hand. Keeping students motivated to attend school through the “Spring Slide” benefits all stakeholders involved in a child’s education.

Spring Slump Attendance Ideas- Supporting Attendance, Engagement & Learning
Included are some ideas to help you reduce the spring attendance slump.

Resources for communicating with families-

Request for Feedback-State Attendance Campaign Slogan Input
The USBE is looking for as much input as they can get on the slogan for a statewide attendance campaign that will launch this summer. Take a minute to fill out a very brief survey to share your input.

Attendance Cohorts-USBE
The USBE is seeking schools interested in being part of an Engagement and Attendance Cohort for the 2025-2026 school year. The Cohort will start in May and will take part in 6 trainings held by the USBE Attendance Specialists. The trainings are collaborative sessions to help develop, build, and implement an attendance system that will work for your school. Reach out to Garrett Russell, garrett.russell@schools.utah.gov, or Megan Menlove, megan.menlove@schools.utah.gov, attendance specialists at the USBE, if you are interested in joining this opportunity.

What’s New: Resource Roundup-
Helpful research and reference articles:

Attendance Works 

Attendance Works 

Attendance Incentive Ideas
Tier I/Foundational Intervention is vital for combating chronic absenteeism in your schools. Incentives are a great Tier I intervention that reaches all students and can help reduce absences. Here are just a few ideas of ways you can focus on the positive and create incentives that work for your specific LEA.

  • March Madness: Attendance Edition-
    • Every Day Labs hosted a Webinar highlighting a Berkeley Unified School District Using March Madness to Increase Attendance. Find the webinar slide deck here.
    • Murray School District has also been using this to increase attendance. For more info you can contact Sierra Marsh, smarsh@murrayschools.org
  • Monthly Improved Attendance Parties
  • Tardy Contest-East Hollywood High recently held a contest and reduced tardies by 50% in target group
  • Here on Time Tickets-Raffle drawings
  • Attendance Recognition in Assemblies
  • Individual Student Recognition-include awards for improved attendance
  • Class Attendance Incentives
  • Letters/Emails/Phone Calls Home to Parents with Improved/Excellent Attendance Focus

Attendance Works Incentive Tips from Attendance Works 

If you have bright spots with attendance interventions at your school, please share with Michelle Reyes, michelle.reyes@jordandistrict.org.

Upcoming Attendance Training Opportunities/Dates

  • USBE Attendance Webinars-

The Utah State Board of Education will be hosting attendance webinars throughout the year.

Spring Recess Reminder
English-
Facebook Post
Instagram Post

Spanish-
Facebook Post
Instagram Post

Questions? Contact Michelle Reyes at michelle.reyes@jordandistrict.org or 801-567-8205.