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Category: Middle Schools

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Principals and Administrative Assistants:

The Alternative Language Services (ALS) Department is providing a training for secretaries and all office staff who work with English learners and other students who are eligible for services through ALS (migrant, immigrant, refugee, homeless, and Native American). The training will cover the identification process and procedures for each population, as well as other relevant information needed to help schools provide support for these students and help keep schools in compliance with state and federal laws.

See flyer below for dates and times.

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DATE:    
July 1, 2016

TO:   
Principals

FROM: 
Administrators of Schools
Laura Finlinson, Administrator of Curriculum and Staff Development
Clyde Mason, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability

SUBJECT: 
2016-17 Required Testing Ethics Professional Development Procedures

Instructions, materials, and documentation forms for the required 2016-17 Testing Ethics professional development, are being sent to schools via the Jordan Administrative Memo (JAM).  These materials will also be available online at http://assessments.jordandistrict.org/ethics/ .  The four required procedures for completing this testing ethics professional development are listed on the “2016-17 Principal’s Test Ethics Checklist” form provided in the materials.

It is important that all school leaders and teachers be reminded that the professional testing ethics required for all State-mandated assessments such as SAGE, ACT, and WIDA Access, also apply to all District-mandated assessments such as benchmark tests, SLO assessments, and other District-created assessments including MasteryConnect® assessments.  Students must not be given secured assessment questions as homework or discussion items.  Any use of secured assessment questions for instruction, discussion, or homework compromises the validity and integrity of the assessment questions and constitutes a violation of professional testing ethics protocol.

Principals are to make sure that teachers understand that professional testing ethics must be followed when working with District-mandated as well as State-mandated assessments. Principals are also to remind teachers that any potential disciplinary action specified for violating professional testing ethics on State-mandated assessments, also applies to any violation of professional testing ethics on District-mandated assessments.

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All middle school teachers, counselors and administrators are invited to attend

Guest Speaker:
Craig Zablocki
Please see attached bio on Craig or check him out online at http://www.craigzablocki.com/testimonials/

Date:  
August 17, 2016, the first contract day for teachers

Venue:
Riverton High School Auditorium

Time:
8:00 am - Check-in, light breakfast provided
8:45 am - Welcome in the auditorium
11:15 am - Dismissed to return to schools

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DATE:
June 28, 2016

TO:
All Administrators

FROM:
Laura Finlinson, Administrator, Curriculum and Staff Development
Rebecca Lee, Administrator, Jordan Evaluation Systems

SUBJECT:
UETS-based JPAS Bubble Sheet Changes

Beginning the 2016-2017 school year, Jordan School District will be using a new scantron bubble sheet for UETS-based JPAS evaluations.  Attached you will find a sample of the changes.  All changes will be found on the front page of the bubble sheet.  Below are the changes to make note of.

Teacher Number:
We will no longer be using social security numbers.  Cactus ID numbers will be used for all employees.  Evaluators need to write the number and then fill the rest of the spaces in with zeros.  Correction: Evaluators need to write the cactus ID at the end and fill in zeros in the front (see attached example). 

Teacher Status:
There are now five choices for teacher status.  Evaluators will need to select only one for each teacher evaluated.

 

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DATE:  
June 21, 2016

TO: 
All School Principals
All School Financial Secretaries

FROM:  
John Larsen, Business Administrator
Heather Ellingson, Director of Accounting, Budgets and Audits
Daniel Ellis, Accountant/Internal Auditor

SUBJECT: 
School Bank Account Balances for June 30, 2016

Please send the following information for each bank account balance as of June 30, 2016 to Accounting by July 29, 2016.  If you have multiple bank accounts, please list each account separately.

School Name
Name of Bank
Type of Account (checking, savings, money market)
Account Balance

The balance requested is the balance from your June bank statements, not Skyward.  This information is required annually and will be used to complete reporting requirements for Utah Money Management Council.

If you have questions or need assistance, please call Dan Ellis at (801)567-8389.

Thank you.

Cc:
Michael Anderson, Administrator of Schools
Jill Durrant, Administrator of Schools
Anthony Godfrey, Administrator of Schools
Brad Sorensen, Administrator of Schools
Teri Timpson, Administrator of Schools

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DATE:   
June 21, 2016

TO:  
All School Principals
All School Financial Secretaries

FROM: 
John Larsen, Business Administrator
Heather Ellingson, Director of Accounting, Budgets and Audits
Daniel Ellis, Accountant/Internal Auditor

SUBJECT:  
Quarterly School Financial Report for April, May and June 2016

Each school is asked to report the quarter end account balance and transaction detail with the Apple Volume Purchase Program and return with your bank reconciliation.  If your school has no Apple account, please so indicate and return.

Please include the account balance with Apple on the reconciliation sign off form and print a report or screen shot(s) of the balances and quarterly transactions from Apple’s website.  If you need assistance, please contact your Curriculum Technology Specialist – Bonnie, Deana, Harrison, Nancy.

Please photocopy the selected elements and send to Accounting by July 22, 2016.

Please include:

  • The signed attached memo to Accounting
  • A copy of your April, May and June 2016 Reconciliation Worksheets
  • A copy of your April, May and June 2016 Bank Statements
  • A copy of your April, May and June 2016 Skyward Balance Sheets
  • A copy of your April, May and June Outstanding Check Reports
  • Screen shot(s) of your June 30, 2016 Apple Volume Purchase Program transaction history and balance

If you have questions or need assistance, please call Liz Robins at (801)567-8267.

Thank you.

Cc:
Michael Anderson, Administrator of Schools
Jill Durrant, Administrator of Schools
Anthony Godfrey, Administrator of Schools
Brad Sorensen, Administrator of Schools
Teri Timpson, Administrator of Schools

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Leveraging Enrollment and FTE

Using Enrollment Data and FTE to plan and inform decisions with Travis Hamblin and Luann Leavitt
Monday, July 11, 2016
Time:  10:30 -11:30
Place:  District Office Room 129
All Administrators are invited
All Assistant Principals are invited
No registration is necessary
DO NOT MISS for new Principals.

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Thank you to all administrators who attended the Enrollment and FTE Training held on June 14th and 15th at the District Office.

See document below for a summary of the 10 Key Points discussed in the training.

As a reminder, there will be one more training held on July 11th @ 10:30am in room 129 at the District Office.

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JSD Administrators:

Congratulations to Steven Peart and Duane Devey!

Steve Peart was recently selected as the new Director of Custodial & Energy Services replacing Duane Devey who is retiring at the end of July 2016, following 41 years of dedicated service in the Jordan School District.  Duane will be missed.

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Principals:

The following are updated guidelines received from the State Office.

  • Schools may spend no more than $2 per awarded student in an academic year from School LAND Trust funds for incentives.  This applies to incentives in behavioral goals.  This applies to incentives in already approved plans for 2016-2017.
  • All classroom assistants, computer lab assistants, trackers, etc. must spend at least 75% of his/her time in direct instruction of students.

Please ensure that these guidelines are being followed for your 2016-17 plans.

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Principals:

Attached is information regarding a free Mastery Connect professional development opportunity intended for new teachers. This PD is being taught by instructors directly from Mastery Connect. All of the details needed are included in the two attachments from Mastery Connect. Please be aware that there is no compensation being offered to teachers from Jordan School District for attendance at this event.

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DATE:
May 31, 2016

TO: 
All Special Educators
All Principals

FROM: 
Laura Finlinson, Administrator of Curric./Staff Development & Special Programs
Lisa Robinson, Director of Special Education
Julie Brown, Program Specialist

SUBJECT:
Woodcock Johnson IV Training

Jordan School District has purchased the Woodcock Johnson IV Test of Achievement to replace the Woodcock Johnson III, which will no longer be on the approved list for achievement testing for the 2016-2017 school year. All special educators must attend this mandatory training.  Special educators must have completed all aspects of training before they will be able to conduct achievement testing with students. Registration is available through JPLS (course number 101079). The schedule of training dates is attached.

Special educators will either be paid at inservice rate, or if you are on contract, may request a substitute using budget code 1292.

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DATE: 
May 25, 2016

TO:
Principals
All Special Educators and Related Service Providers

FROM: 
Laura Finlinson, Administrator of Curriculum/Staff Development & Special Programs
Lisa Robinson, Director of Special Education
Julie Brown, Program Specialist-Special Education

SUBJECT: 
Information Regarding Beginning of the 2016-17 School Year

As the Special Education Department reflects on the 2015-16 school year, we would like to send out our heartfelt appreciation for the hard work and dedicated service you have provided to students in Jordan School District. Each week we celebrate the amazing acts of teamwork, kindness, extra mile actions, and support that you provide to students, their families, and your colleagues. Your efforts are recognized and celebrated at all levels.

In looking towards the upcoming school year, there are several items that we wanted to make you aware of prior to the start of the new school year. We will provide a general description below and send out detailed information closer to the start of the new school year.

Upcoming:

  • Opening Professional Development – This year’s opening information will be provided in a variety of learning opportunities, including online, and small group targeted content trainings. We recognize that preparation time, prior to school starting, is limited and valuable. Therefore, we will not be convening a whole group opening training during the 3 preparation days for the 2016-17 school year.
  • Extended Year for Special Education Teacher Stipends – This year the legislature has extended the stipend options for qualifying Special Education teachers, Special Education Preschool teachers, and Speech-Language Pathologists to include 6 days. The details and timesheets will be sent to your school, but we wanted to inform you of the option to use these 6 extended days to complete IEP related duties the two weeks prior to or following your contract days beginning July 1, 2016. Year-round off-contract options are also available.
  • Woodcock-Johnson IV Training – Jordan School District has purchased the Woodcock Johnson IV Tests of Achievement to replace the Woodcock Johnson III, which will no longer be on the approved list for achievement testing for the 2016-17 school year. To facilitate the training of all special education teachers to administer this assessment, we have scheduled a variety of training opportunities on the JPLS website. A detailed flyer with registration information will be heading your way.
  • Compliance Reviews – Compliance updates and reminder information will be provided in an online format for you to complete during contract time at your convenience.
  • On-going Professional Development – There are many continuing and additional opportunities, available for targeted groups of staff, to participate in on-going professional development, that will begin either in the summer months or shortly after school starts in the fall. Please watch for additional information and registration information. Some examples are:
    1. Math Training for special education and general education math co-teaching teams
    2. Math content and instructional support for elementary resource teachers
    3. Revised eligibility for Specific Learning Disability (SLD) for secondary students
    4. Positive Behavior Supports and new Least Restrictive Behavioral Interventions (LRBI) Guidance
    5. IEP planning, development, and compliance support training for teams
    6. Essential Elements core curriculum alignment PLC’s

Once again, thank you for all you do, enjoy your summer, and we are looking forward to another fantastic year.

Published on

DATE:
May 27, 2016

TO:
Principals

FROM:
Laura Finlinson, Administrator of Curriculum and Staff Development
Clyde Mason, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability

SUBJECT:
Research Project - Parent Breakfast Survey

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

Project Title: “Parent Breakfast Survey”

Applicant: Lori Anderson, PhD, EHES

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 obtain your permission to conduct the study at your school. If you have questions or concerns relating to participation, please contact Clyde Mason at 567-8243.

Thank you for your assistance.