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Category: High Schools

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The COVID-19 vaccine will be available to all Jordan School District employees beginning in mid-January at locations throughout the district. After the winter break employees will receive a link to sign up for a vaccination time slot and location. COVID-19 vaccinations will be available to all employees, but are not required. More information will be forthcoming.

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The following are new administrative assignments:

  • New Assignments effective December 14, 2020:
    • Elizabeth Felt, assistant principal at Blackridge Elementary appointed principal at Mountain Point Elementary replacing Carolyn Bona who is retiring.
    • Michelle Kilcrease, assistant principal at Mountain Shadows and Copper Canyon Elementary transferred as an assistant principal at Blackridge Elementary and her replacement is to be determined.
    • Ross Menlove, administrator on special assignment in Teaching & Learning appointed an online principal (Elementary) and his replacement is to be determined.
    • Spencer Campbell, assistant principal at South Hills Middle appointed an online principal (Middle) and his replacement is to be determined.
    • Ammon Wiemers, consultant in Teaching & Learning appointed an online principal (High) and his replacement is to be determined.
  • New Assignments effective January 19, 2021:
    • Suzanne Williams, principal at Eastlake Elementary appointed principal at the new elementary school in Daybreak.
    • Kristy Howe, assistant principal at Antelope Canyon and Oakcrest Elementary appointed principal at Eastlake Elementary and her replacement is to be determined.

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Jordan School District will provide free COVID-19 testing to all asymptomatic Jordan District employees beginning this Friday, December 11. Testing is not required and is being provided as a service to Jordan School District employees. Testing will be conducted using the BinaxNOW rapid antigen test. This test involves a minimally invasive swab test taken from inside the edges of the nostrils.

High school employees interested in getting tested should do so at their high school by contacting a member of their administration.

Testing will be offered each Friday from 2-4 pm at the Jordan District Auxiliary Services Building, located at 7905 S Redwood Rd, West Jordan, UT 84088. Employees should use the north entrance marked “Entrance A”. Use this link for parking information: ASB COVID-19 Testing Location Map

  • Please come with personal identification and your JSD ID badge. This form is used for students and employees. Student ID questions are not required for employees.
  • Employees may test weekly but only need to register one time.
  • Employees wishing to be tested must complete the online form found at this link prior to arriving for testing:

Employees will be informed of their test results through email. Those who test positive for COVID-19 will be directed to isolate per the instructions they receive from health authorities.

If you have any questions please email nadine.page@jordandistrict.org

In addition to the Friday testing at ASB, there are two free testing options at the Maverik Center for school employees:

For asymptomatic school employees

Free COVID-19 TestingIf you are a student or staff member of a school and you meet the requirements below, you may be tested via rapid test for same-day results.

  • You were exposed at school only and have no other exposures.
  • It has been at least 7 days since the exposure occurred.
  • Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
  • You do not have any symptoms of COVID-19
  • You must pre register at slco.org/health/COVID-19/testing/

For symptomatic employees
Any employee experiencing symptoms is advised to get tested through their primary care provider or register for PCR testing at the Maverik Center.

  • Tuesdays, Thursdays or Saturdays, 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
  • 3200 S. Decker Lake Dr. in West Valley City
  • You must pre register at slco.org/health/COVID-19/testing/public-testing/

Testing occurs in the Maverik Center Overflow Parking Lot
2051 West  3100 South, West Valley City, UT 84119 Enter off of 3100 South

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A new record, Method of Instruction, has been created in the Skyward student profile to track a student’s learning method, whether full-time In-Person, full-time Online, or Hybrid (both in-person and online). The Method of Instruction can be used in many reports, including attendance reports, scheduling reports and data mining.  In addition, an indicator will appear in the upper, right-hand corner of the student’s profile screen for Virtual and Hybrid students.  The indicator is a blue-green .  This will help to quickly identify the student’s instruction method.

Below are some key dates in regards to Method of Instruction:

  • On November 23, 2020, Information Systems pre-populated the Method of Instruction for all students.
  • Beginning January 4, 2021, schools will need to maintain the Method of Instruction record as they enroll new students.
  • Information Systems will again update the Method of Instruction on January 20, 2021. This will ensure accuracy after the semester change.
  • After January 20, 2021, schools will need to maintain the Method of Instruction record for all students going forward. There are 3 scenarios in which the Method of Instruction would need to be added/updated:
    1. New enrollment – Students would need a new Method of Instruction record created.
    2. Withdrawal – As students withdraw, the Method of Instruction record needs to have an end date entered.
    3. When a student changes their schedule in a manner that would change their learning method the Method of Instruction record would need to be updated.

A tutorial on how to add/update the Method of Instruction record can be found in the Information Systems Documentation Folder.  If you have any questions regarding Method of Instruction, please reference this tutorial or contact the help desk.

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DATE:    
December 8, 2020

TO:  
Secondary Principals

FROM:  
Chris Richards-Khong, Teaching and Learning Staff Assistant Administrator

SUBJECT:   
USBE Accreditation Waiver 2020-2021 and Deferment Notice Request

On December 7, 2020, the Utah State Board of Education voted in a Board Meeting to waive the accreditation requirement for the schools up for renewal or in their initial accreditation process due to the demands of COVID-19. Jordan District schools that are renewing their accreditation or seeking initial accreditation may wait until next year to go through the accreditation process. USBE staff will connect with Cognia to make them aware of the waiver decision. The official Board motion is referenced below.

If schools are scheduled for an accreditation review this year and wish to defer their accreditation review until next year, they are asked to contact Chris Richards-Khong via email. This notification will allow her to amend and defer the accreditation budget allocation for that school.

Important Note: This waiver will not alter the rotation of other schools anticipating accreditation beyond 2020-21.

USBE Board Motion 12/07/2020: 

1)    for a school renewing the school’s accreditation or a school in its first or second year of operation during the 2020-21 school year, waives the requirement in Section R277-410-3 for the school to obtain accreditation from a regional accrediting body and allow the school an additional year to obtain accreditation; and

2)    for a student enrolled in a school in the school’s first year of operation during the 2019-20 or the 2020-21 school year, waives the requirements of Subsection R277-410-3(2) and deems credit granted from a non-accredited school during the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school year as credit earned from an accredited source.

CC:
Shelley Nordick, Ph.D., Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Brad Sorensen, Administrator of Schools
Cody Curtis, Administrator of Schools

CRK:cw

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DATE:  
December 10, 2020

TO: 
Principals
Assistant Principals
Administrative Assistants
Attendance Secretaries

FROM: 
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services

SUBJECT:  
Changes to Marking Attendance for COVID-19

This information supersedes the information given in the August 13, 2020 memo “Marking Attendance for Quarantining or Isolating Students 2020-21”

In most schools this year, there are as many as three instructional models in use:

  • In-Person Classes
  • Virtual Classes
  • Hybrid / Blended Classes (at student discretion, meaning the student is able to decide, on any given day, if they attend class in-person or virtually. A hybrid/blended class may also have mandatory instruction days.)

A student, particularly at the secondary level, may have a combination of in-person or virtual classes throughout the day. The way attendance should be marked will change based on the instructional model of the class the student is participating in at any given moment.

Attendance is a legal requirement to indicate a student’s compliance with compulsory education laws, and it may not be used to determine a student’s academic grade (attendance may impact participation in a course, which can in turn impact a grade, but the attendance marking by itself may not directly influence a grade).

Four attendance codes (E, G, H, and P) come into play when considering the impact of COVID-19 isolation and quarantines on the three instructional models. Other attendance codes continue to be used as warranted based on a student’s attendance and activity. Their usage and meaning is unchanged.

In general, remember the following when marking attendance for COVID-19 related absences:

  • E is an EXCUSED ABSENCE. It does not “count against” a student for average daily membership or for 10-day accounting. Work has – and should continue to be – provided to students marked with an E as requested by the parent. The school determines the process and timetable for gathering and providing work. This code will begin to be used effective December 14, 2020 to indicate certain parent-directed COVID absences (family-related quarantines and confirmed cases).
  • G is a GUARDIAN-EXCUSED ABSENCE. It does “count against” a student for average daily membership and excessive consecutive totals of G absences may result in a 10-day drop. Work has been – and should continue to be – provided to students marked with an G as requested by the parent. The school determines the process and timetable for gathering and providing work. This code will begin to be used effective December 14, 2020 to indicate certain times when a parent is opting their child out of participation in school that are not the direct consequence of a COVID illness or quarantine.
  • H is for HOME AND HOSPTIAL INSTRUCTION. It indicates – as it has always done – that the District is maintaining its obligation to provide instruction to this student. For quarantines at the direction of the Salt Lake County Health Department, this obligation can be met through packets of prepared work, work prepared and available in a digital platform, or synchronous learning activities.
  • P can be used to mean two things, depending on the context and date it is used, as outlined in the table included with this memo.

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All Principals:

When there is an unforeseen situation that requires an emergency substitute, we recommend the following steps:

  1. Submit the request in Absence Management. Contact preferred substitutes. If no sub is available,
  2. Call Juli Martin, substitute assistant at 801-567-8219 to request a substitute and if a substitute is not available,
  3. Consider using the CARES assistant at your school location; however, these employees are not to exceed a total of 25 hours per week. Hours worked will be paid at their hourly rate.
  4. Consider using hourly assistants who are also set up as substitutes in AESOP; however, these employees are not to exceed a total of 25 hours per week in combination of both positions. If needed, these aides may increase their substitute hours, but must reduce their assistant hours in the same week. Hours worked as a substitute will be paid at the substitute pay rate. If this is an option you want to explore, please contact an HR Administrator.

NOTE:  Using hourly assistants who are not set up as a substitute in Absence Management, should be used in this way on a limited basis. Time worked is documented using TrueTime and will be paid at their hourly rate. These employees cannot exceed 25 hours/week. They will be paid out of the budget assigned in Skyward.

For assistance with any of the options described above, feel free to contact an HR administrator.

Thank you,

HR Administrators

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October 13 - JSD Communications Email to Teachers

  1. FFCRA Leave - The procedure for using FFCRA is being simplified as outlined below:
    1. Teachers on quarantine who can still teach from home, even if a sub is needed in the classroom, do not need to take leave of any kind. Instead, in Skyward select “Other” and “Quarantined but Working From Home” as the reason for the absence.
    2. If you have already taken FFCRA leave after July 1st for days when you were teaching while quarantined, please contact your school administrative assistant or principal. They can make a request to the appropriate Administrator of Schools to change the recorded leave.

 

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Thank you all for your patience and understanding this year with your technology orders.  We have experienced unprecedented delays on the most popular models of Chromebooks, laptops, and even Apple laptops and iPads.

Here are a few updates and recommendations regarding these devices:

  • JSD’s Information Systems department has now asked that we purchase the Jamf School device management licenses for all Apple devices.  We’ve been buying these for the last year or two for the iPads, but this requirement now extends to iMacs, MacBook Airs, MacBook Pros, all iPad models, iPods, etc.  If you are requesting your own quotes from Apple, please ask the sales representative to include these on the quote for you.  You will need a license for each device.  These are ordered under Apple part# HL2M2LL/A, and run $17.50/each.
  • Apple iPads are now experiencing 6-8 week order lead times.  Please plan ahead for your purchases.
  • Other Apple devices are typically on 4-6 week order lead times.
  • Please be aware that Apple has recently discontinued models with Intel processors, and are being replaced with the new Apple processors.  If you have an old quote, we may need to update it to the new equivalent part number.   So far prices seem to be the same.
  • For your Chromebooks, for the most part these are on 16+ week order lead times, and the touchscreen models seem to be taking longer than the basic Chromebook.
  • Please check with Tonya Hodges in Purchasing if you need a rush order on the basic Chromebooks.  Occasionally we can find vendors that have them in stock, but at higher prices.  We can work with you on a case by case basis to see if we may make a purchasing exception to get you some stock right away for your immediate needs, but use the better pricing and longer lead times to get the remainder of your Chromebooks.
  • It is recommended to start planning now and place orders by the end of January 2021for Chromebooks you will need for the 2021-22 school year.  This would allow enough time to get the devices delivered by summer break and ready to go for the start of school in August.

Please contact Tonya Hodges in the Purchasing Department at tonya.hodges@jordandistrict.org or 801-567-8706 for assistance with your Technology orders.

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In anticipation of next year's planning and scheduling, we will be turning pre-transfers on earlier than we have in the past. We have scheduled this task for the afternoon of December 11th. You should then be able to start running reports and see your next year's students beginning December 14th.

A few reminders about pre-transfers:

  • A pre-transfer is an active student who is currently attending Jordan School District and will be attending next year at a different school within Jordan School District. The student’s record will pre-transfer to the student’s next year boundary school based on their current address.
  • Once pre-transfers are turned on the School Pathtab will show current year permits under Previous Reason Code and next year permits under Reason Code.
  • Current permits for 6thand 9th grade students will be removed for next year as of December 10th. This will allow these students to pre-transfer to their new entity for next year.

In addition to turning on pre-transfers, the course master will be rolled over on December 10th for next year scheduling preparation.

Please contact the help desk with any questions or concerns regarding the timing of the pre-transfer process.

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For the 2020-21 school year our District has received substantial grant funds to meet student’s mental health needs through our Mental Health Access Program (MHAP). We encourage schools to refer any student or family that would benefit from these services. There is no limit on referrals for any particular school and the grant funds will be able to accommodate all needs-based referrals.
Please refer to the attached flyer for additional information about MHAP or contact McKinley Withers, 801-567-8245.

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Volunteer reports need to be submitted to Insurance Services.

Workers' 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 from August 1, 2020 to November 30, 2020.

Please complete this form and return it to Cheryl Matson, Director of Insurance Services, by December 22, 2020.

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DATE:  
December 1, 2020

TO:  
High School and Center-Based School Principals
High School Special Education Team Leaders

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

SUBJECT:  
Destruction of Special Education Records

School districts are required to keep special education records five years past the student’s twenty-second birthday. In compliance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), Jordan School District must notify parents and afford them the opportunity to receive special education records before destruction of those records can occur.

As of December 1, 2020, such notice will have been advertised to parents for students whose birthdates are prior to September, 1993 (i.e., students who are 27 years of age). Any records for students over the age of 22 will be stored off site until they are ready to be destroyed when the student turns 27 years of age.

Please see the attached memo for instructions for storage and destruction of Special Education Records.

 

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DATE:   
December 1, 2020

TO:
All Elementary, Middle, and Traditional High School Principals

FROM: 
Derek Anderson, Director of Accounting, Budgets, and Audits

SUBJECT: 
December 2020 Budget Transfer Request

If you would like to transfer budget between your postage, supply, textbook, technology supply and equipment budgets, please complete the form below, sign and return to Derek by January 4, 2021. If Derek does not receive this back from you by January 4, 2021, Derek will assume no transfer is requested. The next opportunity to make such a transfer is June 2021.

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DATE:   
Thursday, December 3, 2020

TO: 
Middle School Principals
High School Principals

FROM: 
Shelley Nordick, Ph.D., Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability

SUBJECT: 
Reading Inventory Updates

Reading Inventory

Reading Inventory (RI) is up and available for all secondary schools (grades 7-12). Please contact the teachers at your school to make sure they know that it is available and ready to use. All in-person teachers and virtual teachers should have access to the Reading Inventory test. If teachers are unable to login, please have them email kira.jensen@jordandistrict.org. Kira is now able to easily add any virtual classes that could not be added with the original upload.

Additionally, Teaching & Learning has just purchased more licenses so that all the students who qualify to use RI can test! This means no more shuffling licenses at your schools!

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2020 has certainly brought its share of challenges.  We recognize with so many unique educational & life situations, a 2021 JEF Outstanding Educator may look much different compared to previous years.

Please use the attached as a guide for your 2020-21 outstanding educator nomination from your school, not the rubric from previous years.