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Category: Middle School Action Required

Published on

DATE:
December 5, 2022

TO:
All Principals
All Special Education Staff

FROM:
Lisa Robinson, Administrator of Schools
Kim Lloyd, Director of Special Education
Melanie Dawson, Principal of River’s Edge School

SUBJECT:
ASPEN Training Reminder for Special Education Personnel 2022-2023

As we move into the second half of the 2022-2023 school, this is a reminder that ASPEN training is required for all licensed special education teachers, SLPs, school psychologists, elementary school counselors, and for all instructional assistants in SEB and Autism self-contained support classrooms during the 2022-2023 school year. (Exception: Staff with a current Mandt certification will not need to be ASPEN trained).

First year staff and staff who have not completed the full certification ASPEN training should register for the in-person training on JPLS. Training dates and times are attached to this memo. Please note that these are expected to be the final dates for the remainder of the school year.

Although not required, instructional assistants working in any other special education setting may choose to attend ASPEN at the discretion of their building administrator.

If you have more than one teacher or instructional assistant that needs to attend, please consider having them attend on separate days in order to maintain adequate coverage in your school. The Special Education Department will cover the costs of substitutes for licensed special education teachers that will be attending the full certification under budget code 1292. Instructional assistants will be asked to use True Time to record their typical workday hours on the day of the training. Any additional hours spent in the training above their typical workday will need to be recorded on a timesheet.

Staff who participated in a full certification or recertification ASPEN training during the previous school year should plan on taking an ASPEN recertification class that will be offered online. Staff should register at JPLS for the recertification class, they will then receive an invitation within two working days to participate in the online course. Participants will have two weeks during which they can complete the course work at their own pace. This course is expected to take approximately 3 hours and should be completed during available contract hours. Dates for the online sessions are attached to this memo.

Mandt training will continue to be required at Kauri Sue Hamilton and River’s Edge School. Personnel at these schools do not need to attend ASPEN. Others wishing to keep their Mandt training current may do so; however, participation is not mandatory and teachers and instructional assistants will not be compensated for their attendance. If staff members are Mandt certified, they do not need to attend ASPEN training.

For questions please contact: Cassidy Hansen at cassidy.hansen@jordandistrict.org or Daveed Goodrich at daveed.goodrich@jordandistrict.org

Published on

DATE:
Thursday, December 1, 2022

TO:
Principal
Assistant Principal
Panorama SEL Survey Coordinators

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

SUBJECT:
Panorama Mid-Year Survey

The mid-year Panorama SEL Survey window will open January 9, 2023 until February 3, 2023 for a total of 25 days.

As a reminder, prior to administering the SEL Survey parents should be notified allowing them an opportunity to opt their student out if they desire to do so. Student participation in the survey should never be used for grades and should always be voluntary.

Panorama is, by definition, a student record and the information contained in Student Success, including survey results, may be shared with parents upon request.

Survey Coordinators, in consultation with the administration, are encouraged to begin planning for the administration of the survey as soon as possible.

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Custodial items to be covered before the Winter Recess begins on December 22.

  1. There has been some confusion on which days custodians are off during the winter recess. All full-time custodial staff are contracted for 245 days 8 hours per day. The employee calendar for all 245-day 8 hours per day ESP is attached. School recess is from December 22, 2022 until January 2, 2023 however, contracted custodial staff are scheduled to work December 22, 23, 27, 28, and the 29th. Custodial staff are able to take any leave time that is approved by their school Administration during this time.
  2. If a building is going to be unoccupied during any of the following winter recess days December 22, 23, 27, 28, and the 29, 2022 please notify Lauri Spitzenberger at lauri.spitzenberger@jordandistrict.org so the Alarm Response and Maintenance Teams, can be notified.
  3. Energy Management items: any building or area of a building that is unoccupied, the heating and lighting controls should be turned to unoccupied. The heating is not turned off, the temperature is lowered to a non-freezing but unoccupied level around 55 degrees. All lighting except the security lighting should be turned off. Kitchen doors and serving curtains along with vestibule doors should be open to allow for heat circulation. Kitchen and restroom exhaust fans should be turned off.
  4. Mandatory new work order system training (Brightly) for all Head Custodians on either December 22, 2022 at 8:00 AM. or at the custodial work shop on January 18, 2023 at 8:30 AM. Both trainings will be at the Transportation building. Lead custodians are welcome to attend this training but are not required.

Your head custodian will receive an email with these instruction on Friday December 9th from the Custodial Offices.

Thanks
Steve Peart Director of Custodial/Energy Services
385-272-9530

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Participation is required for all school and District program Administrators/Supervisors with current open positions. Please see the flyer below for all the details.

Date:  January 25, 2023
Time:  6 to 8pm
Location:  Oquirrh Hills Middle, 12949 S 2700 W, Riverton, UT 84065

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As we begin to prepare for the 2023-24 school year, we would like to collect our mid-year 6th grade Acadience and Growth Measure data as soon as possible. This will allow us to provide the data to middle school principals and counselors as they begin their 7th grade registration process in January. 

Please advise your 6th grade teams to administer their mid-year Acadience and Growth Measure in December, with the deadline being Friday Jan. 2, 2023. The mid-year testing window for Growth Measure opens December 1, 2022. 

The data we collect will inform the rubrics that we use as recommended guidelines for Reading placement. (See attached.) We appreciate your patience and collaboration in our efforts to use data to do what is best for students. 

22-23 Reading Placement Rubric

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The following are reminders to keep in mind when completing evaluations. 

Full UETS-based JPAS -- Teachers on a full UETS-based JPAS will upload student performance information (SLO) and stakeholder input in place of completing the interview portion of the JPAS. Teachers can upload the documents directly from their computer by logging into Perform and choosing “My Folder” -- “Evidence” -- “Add Artifact.” Teachers are asked to name the file and can then choose to upload a document from the computer or add a URL. 

  • Student growth can be recorded on the form that was previously sent out in this issue of JAM. Please review the instructions and make sure teachers have the form for uploading. If any other documentation is being used, please  ensure  that the document includes: 
    • The core standard
    • A growth target
    • Pre assessment information (include dates and scores)
    • Post assessment information (include dates and scores)
    • A summary of student growth
  • Stakeholder input could include climate survey information, copies of emails or descriptive phone logs. The intent is to show personalized communication with parents.

Administrators may access evidence by logging into Perform and  selecting “My Staff” -- “Staff” -- the individual teacher’s Folder -- “Evidence.”  (No action is required.)

The first cycle for provisional and probationary teachers is due December 21, 2022.

Adding Observation Data into Perform (Action Required)

  • Forms must be entered into Perform the day of the observation or at the latest the next day. This is to ensure that policy and procedure are followed and evaluations do not end up out of compliance. 
  • Summative Score Form
    • This form will generate the score for you to view before meeting with teachers. You simply click on Go to Form next to the summative form and then click on Save Progress. This will generate the score so administrators may prepare for the professional development meeting. 
    • This form should not be submitted until the end of the professional development meeting with the teacher. This is due to the goal requirement. 

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The Central Warehouse has KN-95 masks available to any district employee that would like them. They come in boxes of 40 for adults and 100 for youth. If you would like a box, please go through your school/department administrative assistant to place an order through Skyward inventory. The details are as follows:

Mask KN95 Adult - #5800861; 40 Masks per box
Mask KN95 Child - #5800862; 100 Masks per box

Warehouse personnel will deliver to the front office on your regularly scheduled stockroom order day, so please indicate in your notes who is requesting them. You can also request a will call pick up if that is more convenient for the employee to pick them up at the ASB. 

AVAILABLE ONLY WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!

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For schools that are considering the purchase of a new Apple TV, you will want to be aware that any model you purchase MUST have the Ethernet option included. An Ethernet port is required to permit setup of the Apple TV on the district’s network. Apple TVs without an Ethernet port will not be able to be used.

Currently, Apple has only two models of Apple TVs available. One is a WiFi only model at $129.00. The other is a WiFi and Ethernet model @ $149.00. Purchases of the WiFi only model have been blocked, so you will only be able to acquire the WiFi and Ethernet models through district vendors. If you choose to acquire Apple TVs through other means, please ensure you are purchasing the model that includes an Ethernet port.

Published on

DATE:   
Thursday, December 1, 2022

TO:  
All School Administrators

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

SUBJECT: 
Testing Ethics Reminder – Parents Should Not Proctor State Assessments

Principals are asked to share the following information with their faculty at their earliest convenience.

This is a friendly reminder about a few less known but important aspects of the state’s testing ethics policy:

  • All state assessments must be proctored under the supervision of a licensed educator.
  • Unless they are an employee of Jordan School District, parents should not be proctoring any state assessments.
  • Unless they are an employee of Jordan School District, parents should not be allowed in the classroom where students are taking a state assessment. In addition, the public is not allowed to view secure test items or to observe testing sessions.
  • All educators, education support professionals, and administrators who participate in state assessment administration and/or proctoring must complete the annual testing ethics training. As part of their crucial concerns and policies checkoff, licensed employees have completed this training already. School administrators must complete testing ethics training with any ESPs that will participate in any way in the administration of state assessments (see JAM memo dated 8/18/2022 for procedures and training materials).

Testing ethics violations are to be immediately reported to Ben Jameson in Evaluation, Research & Accountability so that an investigation may be initiated. Please contact Ben Jameson with any questions.

Published on

DATE: 
November 17, 2022

TO: 
Principals
Assistant Principals
Elementary Administrative Assistants
Secondary Registrars
Secondary Attendance Secretaries

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

SUBJECT:  
School Choice Permit Allocations and Procedures

The open enrollment permit window opened on Tuesday, November 15, 2022.

Permit seat totals can be found on each school’s Enrollment Dashboard. Open the “2023-24” tab and scroll down to the permit section.

A calendar of required tasks and completion dates is available at this link. As a general rule, the following are the requirements for schools to remain compliant and provide the best response to applications:

  • At least weekly, schools should verify applications in the 2023-24 school year workspace and prepare them to be processed and moved to the waitlist.
  • At least monthly, schools should verify applications in the 2022-23 school year workspace and prepare them to be processed and moved to the waitlist.

Schools should verify all outstanding applications prior to leaving for Winter Recess and verify any applications received during Winter Recess as soon as possible in the morning on Tuesday, January 3, 2023, so that the lottery can be run that afternoon. Once the lottery has been run, schools may immediately begin offering seats (if available). Seats not accepted within two weeks should be revoked (after attempting communication with the parent) and reoffered to the next student in line on the waitlist.

The calendar of required tasks and completion dates also reflects an important change for this year’s permit processing: In previous years, several schools have not kept current on processing permits or seating students, meaning these students were not given the appropriate opportunity to be awarded a seat. This year, to avoid this situation, Planning & Enrollment will “mass approve” unprocessed applications prior to the lottery and will “mass seat” students on the waitlist if schools do not verify and seat in a timely manner. Please note that these mass actions will be done to ensure compliance and permits will not be individually verified for discipline or other requirements. Schools concerned about ensuring that students with discipline or other concerns are appropriately processed should ensure they stay current in their own processing.

During the early enrollment window (now through February 3), the availability of permit seats is governed by BUILDING CAPACITY. Schools that are the most full will have the least available seats. Adding seats is governed by rules of the tier system established by the Board of Education and, in all instances, requires conversation with the Administrator of Schools for the building. In the late enrollment window (after February 3 and 2.0 allocations are released), schools may request additional seats from their Administrator of Schools. Available seats in this window will be determined by the availability of space, by grade, in the teacher allocation based on current enrollment figures.

One final reminder: the early enrollment window (now through February 3) requires schools to seat students if permit seats are available. Schools MUST follow the waitlist order when offering seats. It is inappropriate – and potentially illegal – for a school to modify the waitlist order so that students who listed the school as a “first choice” are placed before others, regardless of their lottery priority. Schools who follow this practice may lose the ability to seat permit applications themselves. School administrators with concerns over this guideline may raise the issue with their Administrator of Schools.

Published on

DATE:  
Thursday, November 17, 2022

TO:   
All School Administrators

FROM:  
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, 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 EL students who have earned a Language Proficiency Level (LPL) of less than 5. The 2022-23 WIDA test administration window begins on January 5 and ends on March 3, 2023.

Schools will administer the WIDA Access to students in grades 1-12. Because the WIDA Access test is administered one-on-one to kindergarten students as well as students with severe cognitive disabilities that are eligible for the WIDA alternate assessment, Evaluation, Research & Accountability will complete testing for these students.

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 JPLS so that we may create their accounts in the testing and training platforms prior to their selected training date. Following are the training dates and times:

Date Time Location Additional Information
Thursday, Jan. 12 8-11 am ASB Presentation Room All participants should register on JPLS – Course #101930.

 

Participants should bring a laptop/device.

 

If schools choose to send a classroom teacher, principals will need to cover the cost of a half day sub.
Friday, Jan. 13 8-11 am
1-4 pm
Wednesday, Jan. 18 8-11 am Zoom
Thursday, Jan. 19 8-11 am ASB Presentation Room
1-4 pm

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

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We want to share exciting new opportunities in Utah for teachers, campus leaders, students, and families and also take time to celebrate the great work that you are doing to provide early college opportunities in your communities. Please forward this information to AP teachers, AP coordinators and education leaders at your school sites ASAP so they can make their dinner reservation prior to November 28, 2022.

Utah AP Educator Dinner (see link)

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For many years, Apple TVs have been an essential part of the instructional environment in Jordan School District, permitting teachers and students to display their digital screens through the classroom projector. One significant limitation of these devices has been their compatibility solely with the Apple platform, leaving Windows and Chrome platforms without options. A new device has recently entered the marketplace that solves this dilemma.

The Vivi company produces devices that permit all three major computer platforms to project through a single device (see attached for more specifics, reference the company website at http://vivi.io/product/, or view informational videos at the Vivi channel in YouTube, such as https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjHO-hO1X3U and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTEj0EKy9GI). This is a tremendous advance in classroom technology, particularly for Jordan District, where the majority of student devices are Chrome-based.

Because of the potential value that Vivi units advertised, Information Systems purchased and tested a number of them at multiple locations throughout the district. The results of these tests indicated that the Vivi units live up to performance levels as promoted. For references, reach out to Curtis Jenson (principal) or Matt Gates (tech), at South Jordan Middle, to discuss their school’s experience with Vivi.

Information Systems wants to ensure that all schools are not only aware of this new technology, but also have an opportunity to try it out so that it can be considered when planning future technology purchases. For schools that have interest, Information Systems will provide one Vivi unit for testing among the school’s instructional staff. If there is sufficient interest, the school can retain the single Vivi unit, and then pursue the purchase of additional units on their own.

The cost for a Vivi Pro unit is $499.00. These units are great not only for classroom purposes, but also for digital signage and other advanced features. Vivi also offers a “Lite” version, which could be considered where additional features are not necessary. The cost for these units is $399.00 each. This pricing is valid through October of 2023. While the pricing for these units is clearly higher than Apple TVs, Information Systems believes that the advantage of projecting screens from computers of any platform makes these devices worth serious consideration.

To arrange for delivery of a Vivi unit to you school, please contact Mark Sowa at 801-567-8392 or mark.sowa@jordandistrict.org. We would like to have these units assigned and distributed by the end of November. If we have not heard from you by that point, it will be assumed that you are not interested in Vivi, and the unit previously reserved for your school will be redistributed to a different location. We look forward to your response.

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DATE: 
October 13, 2022

TO:  
In-Person Elementary, Middle, High School Principals

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

SUBJECT:   
Preparation for Permits 2023-24

Utah Code 53G-6-402 (which governs the out-of-boundary permit process) was amended in the 2022 Legislative Session. The major change is a shift in dates for the permit windows, as outlined below:

Window Description Old Dates New Dates
Open Enrollment Permits awarded by Board lottery priority; seats available based on school capacity. December 1 to third Friday in February November 15 to first Friday in February
Late Enrollment Permits awarded first-come, first served; seats available based on 2.0 FTE allocation space. Third Friday in February through June of the next year. First Friday in February through June of the next year.

In preparation for the opening of the permit window, the following items must be completed by the building principal no later than November 1, 2022:

  1. Access your school’s enrollment dashboard. There is a new tab for the 2023-24 school year. In the permit section, enter the names and authorizations of all individuals who should be allowed to process permits at your school for the 2023-24 school year. Names have not been copied from previous years due to high turnover at many schools.
    • Elementary permit information begins on row 124
    • Middle permit information begins on row 170
    • High permit information begins on row 198
  2. When permit names and authorizations have been updated, click the checkbox to the right side of the permit section to signal your school’s completion.
  3. Review your school’s anticipated open enrollment permit seat total, shown just below the permit staff names and authorization section. These are anticipated numbers and are subject to change until they receive final authorization by the Jordan Board of Education.

If your school has new staff responsible for permit processing or there are administrators new to the process who need training or review, please communicate the following training information to them:

Permit Trainings
When: Wednesday, November 2, 2022
Where: District Office, room 129
Times: 9:00 AM-11:00 AM or 12:30 PM-2:30 PM
Who: Staff new to the permit process and any staff/administrators who need refresher training.

Attendance is NOT mandatory this year; only those who need training must attend.

Seating is limited to 30 per session. Please sign up using the link below. If both session fill, additional sessions will be added.

Link to Sign Up

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School/Department Administrators:

With your great input, we have simplified the process for hiring licensed employees through Frontline. These changes include:

  • A video screening/interview feature
  • Interview documentation simplified
  • Reference forms simplified

Please schedule a training time to see these important modifications. This training is available to administrators and administrative assistants, especially those who are new to Frontline Recruiting/Hiring.

All trainings will be at the District Office room #129. Two sessions will also be on Zoom. Please bring a laptop or have one available for the hands-on training. For available dates/times and to schedule a training session, visit the link below. Space is limited in each session. Additional sessions will be added as needed.

Frontline Training Schedule for Appointments

Also available on HRConnections and HRAdminOnly are the training videos and tutorials. Contact Brent Burge at #88224 if you have any questions.

Sincerely,

Human Resources

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The final session of the optional training for office and administrative staff of schools and District offices will be held Tuesday, October 4, 2022, beginning at 8:00 a.m. If you would like to participate, please send an email to Lisa LeStarge at lisa.lestarge@jordandistrict.org and let her know you would like to sign-up to attend. Attendees will receive an email the day prior to the training with instructions for connecting to the Zoom meeting. The agenda is attached.

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AVOID DENY DEFEND (ADD) is simple response strategy that can be used during an act of violence, threat of violence, or dangerous situation. ADD is a continuum that doesn’t need to be exercised in any particular order. Always respond with the best part of the strategy that is called for based on the information you have at the time and your proximity to the threat.

  • AVOID the threat whenever possible.
  • DENY the threat access to you by LockOUT or LockDOWN.
  • DEFEND as a last resort. You have the legal right to defend yourself from harm.

All school and district staff members, and secondary students are encouraged to watch the seven-minute ADD training video on the Auxiliary Services Incident Command Web page, link:
Incident Command Website

Parents/guardians are invited to watch this ADD video as well. It is not appropriate for elementary-age students.

Additional emergency training videos on the Jordan School District Google Drive, link: JSD Incident Command Training Videos

  • AVOID DENY DEFEND (ADD) Instructional Video for staff, 58 minutes
  • Tactical Emergency Casualty Care (TECC) Instructional Video for staff, 56 minutes
  • LockDOWN Training for students and staff, 3 minutes
  • LockOUT Training for students and staff, 3 minutes
  • Shelter-in-place Training for students and staff, 3 minutes

Additional trauma care training for all staff will be made available at a later time.

Please contact Emergency Operations Manager Lance Everill with questions: 801-567-8623, lance.everill@jordandistrict.org

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Principals:

We have scheduled two separate training sessions on the operation of the school’s security camera and software. The training will include the use of the software, saving of camera footage and the transferring of that footage to the appropriate device. We receive many requests for help in this area.

The training will be held on October 5, 2022.

Session 1: 9:00-10:00 am
Session 2: 1:00-2:00 pm

Both sessions will be held at the Auxiliary Service Building in the Presentation Room, enter at Entrance C. It is recommended that at least one administrator per building attend one of the sessions and if possible send one hall monitor to each session.