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Category: Middle School Action Required

Published on

DATE:  
August 10, 2023

TO: 
School Administrators
District Department Directors
Financial Secretaries
Administrative Assistants

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

SUBJECT:  
Student Data Privacy Resource Review Process

Utah law (53E-9-301, 53E-9-303) requires local education agencies (LEAs) to create a publicly available metadata dictionary that contains a listing of:

  • All personally identifiable student data collected and shared by the LEA
  • A comprehensive list of all recipients with whom the LEA has shared personally identifiable student data, including the purpose for sharing the data, the justification for sharing the data (including if the sharing was required by federal law, state law, or local directive), and how the sharing is permitted under federal or state law.

This means that any third-party resource that receives personally identifiable student data from the District must be cataloged and, where necessary, reviewed for compliance with USBE data privacy expectations.

Prior to making purchases or entering into purchase arrangements, school staff should check the District’s LearnPlatform registry; software listed on the registry as approved can be submitted for purchase without any additional review. Software that is not listed on LearnPlatform must be reviewed BEFORE the purchase request is submitted. Someone with knowledge of the software should submit a review request to Planning & Enrollment using this review request form prior to entering a requisition in Skyward. The individual who will be using the software (and therefore has some knowledge of what the software does and what data it will use) should enter the review request; this is not an assignment that should default to administrative assistants.

Teachers with specific questions about the process should be directed to your location’s digital coach. Administrators and administrative assistants with specific questions about the process may contact Caleb Olson (x88251).

Published on

DATE:  
August 10, 2023

TO:  
Principals
Assistant Principals

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

SUBJECT:  
School Safety Specialist

HB61 requires that each school have a designated Safety Specialist. This person will work with the assigned administrator over safety and serve on the school’s safety committee and is to be selected by the school principal. Administrators should thoughtfully and carefully select a willing individual to be the School Safety Specialist. The School Safety Specialist:

  • Should be a full-time employee
  • Can be from any employee group or type (licensed or educational support)
  • Will receive a stipend for the 23-24’ school year ($3,000 for a full-time employee before benefits/taxes)
  • Serves as a co-chair/backup to the administrator assigned school safety on the school’s safety committee
  • Will be trained and provide training and leadership to school staff regarding school safety
  • Will be trained and a part of your school’s threat assessment team.
    • They will need to be trained in Comprehensive Threat Assessment Guidelines (CSTAG). This training is $85 per person paid for by the school. (Student Services will set up/pay for the training and work with your administrative assistant for reimbursement through a journal entry)
    • It is recommended that all school safety committee members be trained in CSTAG.
  • Will assist with safety assurances and compliance

Identify the administrator assigned to school safety and the School Safety Specialist using this form (also shared with principals via Google Sheets on 8.7.2023) as soon as reasonably possible.

Generally, the administrator assigned to school safety should serve as the school’s safety committee chairperson with the safety specialist serving as the co- or vice-chair. The school committee should meet regularly to discuss, implement, plan, and implement required school safety practices.

The District Safety Specialist will facilitate ongoing training and support. Questions regarding the School Safety Specialist should be directed to Travis Hamblin at travis.hamblin@jordandistrict.org or 801.567.8439.

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Fall Mentor Training will be available online through Canvas July 31 - September 5, 2023. Mentor Training will be provided to new mentors based on administrator recommendation. After checking with potential mentors, please complete the Google Form by Friday, August 11th to add names of mentors you would like to have complete mentor training. We have a limited number of seats. Educators will be added first come, first served. You may add up to three mentors per form. Teachers will get paid $150 stipend for completing the mentor Canvas training.

You can access a list of currently trained mentors on your school’s mentor list shared with you via Google sheets. If you need help accessing your mentor list, please contact Michelle Williams in Teaching and Learning: 801-567-8365.

Fall 2023 Mentor Training Request Google Form Link

Published on

DATE: 
July 27, 2023

TO: 
Secondary Principals
Secondary Media Specialists

FROM: 
Administrators of Schools
Carolyn Gough, Administrator, Teaching and Learning Department
Norman Emerson, Instructional Support Services Consultant

SUBJECT:
Networking Meetings for Secondary Library-Media Specialists

In order to prepare and train secondary library-media specialists (teacher-librarians) to effectively provide services to their schools and to build consistency across the District’s library programs, several networking meetings have been scheduled for the 2023-24 school year. The participation of your school’s teacher-librarians in these meetings is appreciated.

The meetings will be held on the following dates from 8:00 a.m.-11:30 a.m.:

  • September 13, 2023 (PDC 112-Auxiliary Services Building)
  • October 18, 2023 (Viridian Center)
  • November 29, 2023 (PDC 112-Auxiliary Services Building)
  • January 10, 2024 (Herriman High School)
  • February 21, 2024 (Valley High School)
  • March 19, 2024 (UELMA/UCET Conference)
  • April 17, 2024 (Valley High School)
  • May 15, 2024 (PDC 113-Auxiliary Services Building)

Please share this information with your school’s teacher-librarian.

Please feel free to contact Norman Emerson (801-567-8364) if further information is needed. Thank you for your continued support of the library media programs in Jordan District.

 

Published on

For the Admin Assistants: Training for the new Digital English Learner Identification process has been scheduled for Friday, July 28th, from 9:00 - 11:00 am in the Presentation Room at the ASB.

Space will be limited to one in person attendee per school with any additional requests attending via Zoom. Register HERE to receive training documents and access to the zoom link.

We will be available at the end of training for questions and any one on one assistance.

Published on

Attached you will find information and guidelines regarding the Extended Year Stipend that is available to Special Education Teachers and SLP's. Please be sure to read the instructions carefully.

The state has allotted 5.5 extra days to work either two weeks before or two weeks after your contract ends. The eligible timeline for these days this fall is July 31-Aug 4 and Aug 7-Aug 11, 2023. You can work them all before contract, all after contract, or a combination of both. Please keep track of the days you worked in the fall so when spring comes you will know how many you have left.

The days you work are turned in on a Qualtrics survey that the state sends us to generate the payroll information. The link for this survey is included in the attached memo.

Published on

DATE:   
July 27, 2023

TO:  
School Administrators
Elementary Administrative Assistants
Secondary Attendance Secretaries
Secondary Registrars

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

SUBJECT:  
Assigning Discipline Officers for New-to-School Students

Each year in August, Information Systems runs a utility to assign students a discipline officer in Skyward. The assignments are made off of assistant principal alphabet assignments reported by each school. In order to be assigned as a discipline officer, an individual must:

  1. Be a District-appointed administrator or administrative intern. Individuals completing internship hours through an assignment by Human Resources who have not been officially appointed as an administrative intern by the District should not be assigned as discipline officers.
  2. Have the “Discipline Officer” box marked on their individual profile on the school’s “Staff” screen.

Schools will receive an email from Lisa Corbett in Information Systems asking for confirmation of their assistant principal alphabet assignments.

After the initial utility has been run, Information Systems cannot easily “mass assign” discipline officers for schools. The utility, if run later in the year, would overwrite any custom assignments made by the school. In order for elements of the discipline process to run in Skyward, however, a discipline officer must be assigned for students who enroll after the utility has been run. This should be done as part of the registration process. An individual with responsibility for entering the student into Skyward should verify that the “Entity Info” screen has an appropriate individual assigned under ‘Discipline Officer”. At the same time, assignments can be made for “Counselor” and “Advisor” (if those fields are in use at the school location).

This process will need to be completed for students who are new to the District and for those who are transferring from another District location. Making this a part of the enrollment process will help ensure that discipline can be reported and processed accurately.

Questions on entering discipline officers may be directed to the help desk in Information Systems at x88737. General questions on recording discipline may be directed to Caleb Olson in Planning & Enrollment at x88251.

Published on

This is a reminder that the Botvin LifeSkills Training program must be offered to 4th, 8th, and 10th-grade students each year in Jordan School District. The Botvin LifeSkills Training Program is currently the only approved program to meet the requirements as outlined in UCA § 53G-10-406 and R277-910. The middle school and high school implementation takes place in health classes. Please share the training information with any new 4th-grade teachers and health teachers at your school who have not been trained. Administrators should ensure that all Botvin materials needed for the 2023-24 school year have been ordered.

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Jordan School District Employees are responsible for knowing and adhering to all District policies and procedures. The crucial policy review is now available to District employees in Skyward through “Online Forms.” As a condition of continued

employment, all employees (i.e. Licensed, ESP, Substitutes, Coaches, Miscellaneous adults, etc.), with the exception of minor students, will be required to complete this training. We ask your assistance in notifying your employees of this required training and ask that this training be completed by November 1, 2023.  

A message will appear upon login of Skyward Employee Access for the employee to complete an “Online Form.” Employees can complete the steps at that time or can return to the review at another time by selecting “Online Forms” under “Employee Information.”  Attached is a tutorial to assist in completing the review.

Reports of completion will be available through Skyward so you can verify that your staff members have completed this process. A tutorial is attached for your reference. If you or any staff members need technical help, please call the help desk at 801-567-USER (8737).

Published on

Legislative Supply Fund Clarifications

See below for clarification on the following common questions about legislative funds:

  1. Should sales tax be included in the use of funds? (Yes, sales tax may be included)
  2. What types of expenditures are allowed? What is the purpose of these funds? (Per State Rule R277, funds are to be used for educational purposes to benefit students)
  3. Are the items purchased with legislative funds the property of the teacher or the school? (Per State Rule R277, items belong to the school)

IMPORTANT Changes
There are some licensed positions that do not qualify for the Classroom Supplies Appropriation per State Board rule R277-459, but were mistakenly funded in the past by the District. As a courtesy, these positions will receive legislative funds for one more year (2023-24). We are asking principals to inform anyone with a following job description, that beginning in 2024-25, they will no longer receive legislative classroom funds:

Clinical Support Specialist
District Home & Hospital Instructor
Instructional Coach
Intern
Library Media Specialist
Occupational Therapist
Physical Therapist
School Counselor – Intern
School Psychologist
School Psychologist – Intern
School Social Worker
Special Ed Itinerant Services
Speech Language Technician
Speech Therapist
Teacher Special Ed Associate

We appreciate your help in making sure these guidelines and upcoming changes are shared with the licensed educators receiving these funds at your school. For your information, attached is State Rule R277 and the legislative funds guidelines sent out each year.

Published on

Our annual Fall Family Fair will be held Thursday, Sept. 7th. We are so excited to share District and community resources with our families. Please share and place in your parent communications. Plan on having you and your teachers attend as well!

 

Published on

Teacher mentor lists will be distributed to principals through email on Friday, June 16.

School administrators will want to identify the school administrator over mentoring, school coach over mentoring, and any other school leader that will need to have access to this list. Please update that information on your school spreadsheet on the instructions tab.

If you have questions about your spreadsheet, contact Michelle Williams (michelle.williams@jordandistrict.org or 801-567-8365) in Teaching and Learning.

Spreadsheets will be sent through email on Friday, June 16.

Published on

DATE:  
June 7, 2023

TO: 
Principals

FROM:  
Carolyn Gough, Teaching and Learning Administrator
Chris Richards-Khong, Teaching and Learning Staff Assistant Administrator
Amanda Bollinger, Teaching and Learning Staff Assistant Administrator

SUBJECT: 
Save The Date - Coaching Kick-Off with Principals

Who:
Building principals and instructional and digital coaches

What:
The JSD Instructional Coaching Institute (ICI)
This will be the first meeting of the year. We will have principals bring their coaching teams to 1) receive further implementation training on the JSD coaching and mentoring model, 2) discover how applying the ten research based coaching roles leads to greater student impact, and 3) design a unique building coaching plan for the year.

When:
Elementary
Friday, August 25, 2023
8:30 am - 11:30 am

Secondary
Wednesday August, 30, 2023
8:00 am - 11:00 am

Where :
Auxiliary Services Building
Auditorium
7905 S. Redwood Road
West Jordan, Utah 84088

Published on

DATE:
Thursday, June 8, 2023

TO:
Middle and High School Administrators

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

SUBJECT:
Utah Aspire Plus Individual Student Reports Uploaded to Skyward

Utah Aspire Plus Individual Student Reports (ISRs) have been uploaded into Skyward Family Access student portfolios by the Information Systems Department. These ISRs include all of the subscores for English, Reading, Math, and Science as well as predicted ACT scores. Each ISR has a code and instructions for parents to access the parent portal for more information.

Included with this memo are step-by-step instructions for parents on how to access these ISRs. Principals are encouraged to disseminate this information to parents via Skylert or by any other means deemed appropriate. Principals may also consider keeping copies of the step-by-step instructions in the main office to distribute to parents as needed.

Please contact Brooke Anderson in Evaluation, Research & Accountability with any questions about the Utah Aspire Plus ISRs.

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If June 2nd is the last day True Time employees and approvers are working before summer break, please make sure all True Time is submitted and approved on time to avoid a delay in receiving June paychecks.

True Time employees MUST clock out and submit all of their True Time on their last day of work this week, no later than Friday, June 2nd.

True Time approvers MUST approve all of their True Time by the end of the day on Friday, June 2nd.

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Administrators: Please share the attached flyer with those in your building who might be interested in becoming a principal.

Apply by August 25, 2023 at the BYU Aspiring Principals Academy page.

Published on

DATE: 
May 25, 2023

TO:  
All Administrators

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

SUBJECT: 
2023-2024 School Wellness Representatives

The wellness team is excited to announce the continuation of our Wellness Reps Program that is intended to support employee health and wellness. The Educator Wellness Representatives will primarily be responsible for supporting faculty/staff wellness efforts within your schools.

Wellness Reps Information:

  • Duties include:
    • Will attend quarterly in person retreats and monthly Zoom meetings
    • Promote wellness initiatives at the District and school level
    • Lead and support faculty/staff wellness efforts at your school throughout the year
    • Maintain a connection with District Wellness Specialists
    • Model educator wellness for the school community
  • How are they selected?
    • Principal nominates ONE educator wellness representative for each school using this form.
    • Must be a licensed, non-administrative, non-mental health team staff member. Also, we recommend they work with a leadership team or social committee at your school.
  • Principals may work with their current reps to see if they’re interested in doing this important work again for the upcoming school year.
  • Eligible chosen individuals will receive a stipend.
  • Action Items for administrators:
    • Please nominate your Educator Wellness Representative by August 25, 2023

Published on

DATE:    
May 25, 2023

TO:  
All Administrators & Threat Assessment Teams

FROM:  
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director of Student Services
McKinley Withers, Health and Wellness
Angie Rasmussen, Student Safety & Wellness Specialist

SUBJECT:  
Comprehensive School Threat Assessment Guidelines (CSTAG) National Study Participation

This is a reminder for those who have not yet completed this survey, please do so before June 2nd.

Our district is participating in a national study conducted by Dr. Dewey Cornell’s research team at the University of Virginia. As part of the study, you are asked to complete an anonymous survey about your threat assessment team.

Please complete the CSTAG Implementation Fidelity Survey at this LINK:

The deadline is 6/2/23.

The survey will take about 20 minutes. Each member of the school’s threat assessment team should complete this survey. If you serve on more than one team, complete separate surveys for each school team.

If you have questions about the survey, please reach out to Angie Rasmussen at angie.rasmussen@jordandistrict.org.

This survey does not replace documentation for each individual threat assessment done at your schools. Thank you for providing your valuable time and input.

Published on

Please update your registration materials and anything that is online or sent out to families that includes old meal price info.

Approved Meal Prices for the Upcoming 2023 - 2024 School Year

• Elementary Breakfast: $1.05
• Elementary Lunch: $2.00
• Secondary Breakfast: $1.25
• Secondary Lunch: $2.25
• Adults Breakfast: $2.50
• Adults Lunch $4.10
• Reduced Breakfast: $0.30
• Reduced Lunch: $0.40