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TO:
Assistant Principals

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent


The January Assistant Principal meetings will be held on January 16 (8:00-11:00am) and January 23 (8:00-11:00am). All meetings will be held in-person at the JATC-S. All assistant principals and intern assistant principals are invited. A beverage service will be provided, beginning at 7:30 am at each of the meetings. As a reminder you only need to attend one of the sessions offered. Both sessions will provide the same information. Please CLICK HERE and it will take you to the Google Doc to sign up for which day you would like to attend. If you have any questions please call Nadine Page at 801-567-8182 (x88182).

TO:
School Administrators

FROM:
Brad Sorensen, Administrator of Schools
Cody Curtis, Administrator of Schools
Jill Durrant, Administrator of Schools
April Gaydosh, Administrator of Schools
Becky Gerber, Administrator of Schools
Lisa Robinson, Administrator of Schools


The January 14, 2025 principal meeting will be a half day. All levels meet in the auditorium at 8:00 a.m. A light breakfast and beverage service will be served beginning at 7:30 a.m. No lunch will be served. See you there!

DATE:     
December 19, 2024

TO:     
Principals
School Safety Administrators
School Safety Specialists

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

SUBJECT:  
January Drill Preparation (Fire)


*DRILL MUST BE CONDUCTED WITHIN THE FIRST 10 DAYS AFTER BREAK*

Our monthly drill preparation will be held on January 8th at 3:00 PM with a second session at 3:30 PM. This month we will be covering FIRE. Each School Safety Specialist is expected to attend along with administrators assigned to oversee school safety. All other administrations are welcomed to attend as well. The meeting is also opened to any staff who may be interested. Most of you will have likely already completed this drill prior to the training so it will be more of a debrief and clarification as needed.

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

Information regarding the FIRE response protocol can be found in the Jordan School District Safety Manual on pages 32-33. We will discuss how to implement and execute the drill. This will be an opportunity to ask questions and share ideas amongst the schools.

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

TO:  
Administrators
Administrative Assistants

FROM: 
June LeMaster, Administrator, Human Resources
Brent Burge, Human Resource Administrator, ESP


If you are a contracted employee and need to take Annual/Personal Leave on a Critical Day before or after President’s Day 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
President’s Day February 17, 2025 Feb. 14 and 18, 2025 Jan. 4 – Jan. 14, 2025

Licensed Annual/Personal Leave Taken on a Critical Day 2024-2025

ESP Annual/Personal Leave Taken on a Critical Day 2024-2025

DATE:
Thursday, December 19, 2024

TO:
All School Administrators

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Assessment, Research and Accountability
Michelle Love-Day, Director of Language & Culture Services

SUBJECT:
WIDA ACCESS 2.0 Test Administration Training for Schools


School administrators are asked to pass this information on to anyone who will be proctoring or coordinating the WIDA Access testing in your school this year.

As part of a federal requirement and the state’s accountability system, districts are required to administer the WIDA Access 2.0 annually to all ML students who have earned a Language Proficiency Level (LPL) of less than 4.2 and a Speaking score of less than 3.5. The 2024-25 WIDA test administration window begins on January 7 and ends on March 7, 2025.

All school personnel who will assist with WIDA Access test administration are asked to attend a mandatory test administration training. Participants may choose to attend any one of six training sessions, including one online training. Training participants will need to bring a device. Please note that if schools choose to send a classroom teacher, principals will need to cover the cost of the substitute teacher. Test pool hours may also be used for this.

Those who are to be trained to administer the WIDA should register in Canvas Catalog so that we may create their accounts in the testing and training platforms prior to their selected training date. Please see the dates and times in the attached memo.

Please contact Ben Jameson or JoLynn Snelgrove in Assessment, Research & Accountability with questions about the WIDA Access test administration and training.

The following are new administrative assignments:

New Assignments effective January 2, 2025:

  • Odette Desmarais, principal at Westvale Elementary appointed elementary school level Administrator of Schools.
  • Angela Solum, assistant principal at Heartland Elementary appointed principal at Westvale Elementary.
  • Rachelle Smith, administrative intern at Joel P. Jensen Middle and South Hills Middle transferred as full-time administrative intern to Heartland Elementary.
  • Meredith Doleac, principal at Ridge View Elementary appointed elementary school level Administrator of Schools.
  • Molly Morgan, assistant principal at Elk Meadows Elementary appointed principal at Ridge View Elementary.
  • Stacie Thompson, administrative intern at Hidden Valley Middle and Sunset Ridge Middle transferred as full-time administrative intern at Elk Meadows Elementary.
  • Jarom Airhart, assistant principal at Midas Creek Elementary transferred as assistant principal at South Hills Middle and Sunset Ridge Middle.
  • Ami Anderson, teacher specialist in Teaching & Learning appointed assistant principal at Midas Creek Elementary.

TO:
Administrators

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


The Jordan Ethnic Advisory Committee and Language and Culture Services cannot wait to see you at the annual "What I Wish You Knew Conference: In our shoes." This year the conference will be highlighting and celebrating our teachers making a difference in the classrooms everyday.

  • Where: Riverton High High
  • Time: 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.
  • Date: Jan. 21, 2025
  • What: What is working to enhance student leadership to sustain a culture of belonging in school.
  • There is a $175 stipend for teachers that attend. In addition, hourly employees can time sheet.

DATE:   
December 12, 2024

TO:   
Principals
Assistant Principals
School Safety Specialists

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

SUBJECT: 
School Safety Specialist Responsibilities


As a reminder, here are the details describing the roles and responsibilities of assigned School Safety Specialists. By now each School Safety Specialist should have received the Standard Response Protocols training so they are familiar with it. The training is mandatory for all School Safety Specialists and will need to be attended in order to be in compliance with state law.

All School Safety Specialists shall be trained and certified in level 1 Comprehensive School Threat Assessment Guidelines (CSTAG). The School Safety Specialist acts as a member of the school’s interdisciplinary CSTAG team. Please make the necessary arrangements to have this completed in a timely manner.

It is recommended that School Safety Specialists should be conducting an inventory and visual inspection of all the safety equipment within his or her school. Items to inspect include the tactical emergency casualty care (TECC) kits in the classrooms and common areas, the reunification crate, fire extinguishers, and AEDs. Other items to consider include wheelchairs and staircase evacuation chairs or commonly known as “rickshaws.” Make sure to maintain a record of drills conducted as well.

Use this link to review the School Safety Specialist roles and responsibilities in detail. If a School Safety Specialist or school administrator is still need of training please contact the district School Safety Coordinator, Matt Alvernaz, at matt.alvernaz@jordandistrict.org or by phone at 801-567-8623.

DATE:   
December 11, 2024

TO:  
All Principals, Directors and Supervisors

FROM:   
John Larsen, Business Administrator
Sarah Palmer, Director of Payroll

SUBJECT:   
DP375 – Vacation Schedule for Administrative Personnel


Clarification of administrator vacation days carryover:

  • Administrators receive 20 frontloaded vacation days on July 1st of each year. These frontloaded days are earned throughout that current year.
  • Administrators may carryover up to 20 earned vacation days from the previous year. Any earned days over 20 not used by December 31st of each year will be forfeited.

Therefore, as of December 31, 2024, any unused vacation days above 40 days will be forfeited. These 40 days consist of the 20 days that were frontloaded on July 1, 2024 for the 2024-25 year, as well as up to 20 unused earned days that were allowed to be carried over from the previous 2023-24 year.

TO:
Administrators
Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Bonnie Brennan, Director of Insurance Services


"All employees and their spouses covered on the Jordan School District PEHP medical plan are eligible to participate in the health incentive program. Each employee and their spouse can earn up to $100 each by participating in one of the free biometric testing sessions, completing a questionnaire and participating in a variety of PEHP wellness activities.

If you would like to schedule a PEHP Healthy Utah testing session for your school, please send an email to Stan Moyle, Stan.Moyle@pehp.org, with PEHP with the date and time you would like to host the testing session. Health Utah is currently scheduling on a limited basis and days fill up fast, so don't delay. Testing sessions can be scheduled between January and April at this time. Please see "First Steps Rebate" on the attached flyer.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to the Bonnie Brennan, Director of Insurance Services (801) 567-8285.

TO:
All Administrators

FROM:
Mike Haynes - Director, Jordan Education Foundation


The JEF Outstanding Educator Award Application is now open!

Nominations are due January 16, 2025.

Jordan Education Foundation recognizes and honors superior teachers with a track record of improving student achievement, using innovative instructional strategies and making a difference in the lives of their students.

One teacher from each school will be recognized with a crystal award and $500 cash prize. From these excellent candidates, the top 10-15 submissions will be selected by the JEF Awards Committee to attend a banquet in their honor and will receive an addition $500 cash prize ($1,000 total). Submissions received after January 16, will not be eligible for the banquet and additional cash award. 

Guidelines and additional information can be found on the JEF Website: JEF Outstanding Educator Awards (PLEASE NOTE: THE 2024-2025 SUBMISSION FORM HAS BEEN REVISED)

 

TO:
Administrators
Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Bonnie Brennan, Director of Insurance Services


Volunteer reports need to be submitted to Insurance Services.

Worker's Compensation insurance costs are based on numbers submitted by schools. It is important that this information be accurate and complete.

PTA Figures must be separate from other volunteer hours.

Attached is a copy of the Volunteer Report for the period August 1, 2024 to November 30, 2024.

Please complete this form and return it to Bonnie Brennan, Director of Insurance Services, by December 20, 2024.

If you have questions, I can be reached at bonnie.brennan@jordandistrict.org or (801) 567-8285.

Thank you.

TO:
Administrators
Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Jason Skidmore, Director of CTE


What's happening in Work Based Learning?

  • New to our Team
  • Elementary Career Lessons
  • YouScience
  • Safety Tips & Tricks
  • Internships
  • WBL Events
  • Social Media Links

DATE:      
Thursday, December 12, 2024

TO:  
All School Administrators

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

SUBJECT:  
New Accountability Indicators Dashboard on the Data Gateway


The USBE’s Center for Continuous School Improvement would like to share this new resource with you. It is a new data dashboard titled "Accountability Indicators" that can be found on the Data Gateway. No login is required to access this dashboard. When you are on the Data Gateway, click on "Accountability Indicators" under Accountability to access the dashboard.

We hope that this new data dashboard is helpful as it shows longitudinal data for schools within each LEA and provides some additional data points. One of its main features is to provide a longitudinal view by student group of school report card indicator points. It allows schools, particularly those that are designated as or at risk for being designated as TSI, ATSI or CSI.

Please do not hesitate to reach out to Megan Tippetts, USBE’s School Improvement Data Specialist (megan.tippetts@schools.utah.gov) or Ben Jameson in Assessment, Research & Accountability if you have any questions about this new resource.

DATE:  
Thursday, December 12, 2024

TO:   
All School Administrators

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

SUBJECT: 
2024-25 Stakeholder Input Survey Results


41,641 students, parents and educators participated in the 2024-25 Stakeholder Input Survey, which was administered in November 2024.

The Stakeholder Input Survey results have been released on Tableau. Those with Tableau accounts will be able to see aggregated responses to each of the question items that were administered to K-3, 4-6 and 7-12th grade students as well as parent and faculty responses.

Those with Tableau accounts may access school and district survey results by clicking here or through the Explore menu: Explore > Surveys > Stakeholder Input Survey.

As a reminder, the Stakeholder Input Survey fulfills state statute (53G-11-507) requiring that LEAs seek for student and parent input (and employee input for school administrators) as part of an educator evaluation program. Printed reports containing school, principal, assistant principal, and individual educator effectiveness ratings will also be distributed to principals in January 2025. Those reports will need to be distributed to educators who may choose to use those results as part of their educator evaluation. It may also be beneficial for principals to meet with individual educators to discuss their results.

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

 

DATE: 
Thursday, December 12, 2024

TO: 
All School Administrators

FROM: 
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Assessment, Research and Accountability
Brandee Bergum, Secondary Language Arts Consultant

SUBJECT: 
Star Reading Account Logins


The Star Reading assessment, replacing the retired Growth Measure, is now up and running. The middle-of-year assessment window opened on December 2nd and will close on February 14, 2025. This assessment is optional for students. However, Star Reading is a required assessment for 6th grade students in the middle-of-year window as the results are used with other assessment results to determine 7th grade reading placement. 6th grade testing should be completed no later than January 10, 2025.

Teachers and students may login to Star Reading using their Google waffle. They should look for this Renaissance tile (see the memo below for a picture of the Renaissance tile).

School administrators and other non-teaching staff may login here. For the first time logging in, users will enter the following Renaissance ID: 252187-11TN. The username is the firstname.lastname part of district email addresses. Then users will need to go through the Forgot Password procedure to set up a new password. After the first time logging in, return users will only need to enter their firstname.lastname and their password to login.

For more information on the Star Reading assessment, take a look at the Star Reading Quick Start Guide.

For any other questions about Star Reading, please contact Kassidy Towery in Assessment, Research & Accountability or Brandee Bergum in Teaching & Learning.

TO:
All Administrators
All Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Sarah Palmer, Director, Payroll


Please share with your employees.

IMPORTANT DECEMBER PAYCHECK INFORMATION FOR ALL EMPLOYEES

The District Office will be closing for Winter Recess at the end of the day on Monday, December 23rd and will not return until Thursday, January 2nd. To avoid any delays in receiving your paycheck during this break, the Payroll Department is making the following recommendations:

  1. If you need to close your bank account, please call Payroll immediately.
  2. Paychecks are available for viewing in Employee Access on Wednesday, December 18th. Please review your paycheck and contact Payroll immediately with any questions or concerns at (801) 567-8154 or email payroll@jordandistrict.org. Instructions are attached on how to view your paycheck.
    If you need help logging into your Employee Access, please call the help desk at 801-567-8737.
  3. If you are a True Time employee, instructions are attached on how to view your True Time to make certain it has been approved and processed by Payroll.
  4. Payday is on December 20, 2024.

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 December 2024.