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Category: Middle Schools

Published on

TO: 
Administrators

FROM:
April Gaydosh, Administrator of Human Resources
Jane Olsen, HR Administrator, Head of Talent Acquisition
Mike Trimmell, Assistant Director of HR, Talent Development

Dear Administrators,
We ask our students to become curious thinkers, responsible teammates, and engaged citizens — and our new educators are the ones who will help them get there. Welcoming them well is our first chance to show what a Culture of Belonging looks like in Jordan School District.

Join us for the “Clap-In,” and “Clap-Out” the joyful, high-energy tradition that kicks off New Educator Induction and officially welcomes the newest members of the Jordan School District family. If you’ve been before, you know: it’s loud, it’s happy, and it sets the tone for the entire year.

Event Details
• Date: Friday, August 7th
• Time: Clap-In: 7:45–8:30 a.m. (estimated 8:30 a.m. departure)
Clap-Out: 2:30-3:30 p.m. (estimated 3:30 p.m. departure)
• Location: Bingham High School, Main Entrance (South side)

What to Expect
This is more than a warm welcome — it’s Jordan’s spirited community on full display, and our first chance to show new educators why JSD is the district of choice. Let’s make it unforgettable.

How to Bring the Spirit
• Dress to Impress: Wear your school or JSD gear with pride — show them the team they’re joining.
• Mascot Magic: Bring your school mascot to spread the cheer.
• Capture the Moment: Snap a selfie with a new educator at one of our two selfie booths — empathetic communicators say cheese!
• Cheerful Welcome Lines: Join the welcome lines and cheer our new colleagues in like the champions they are.

One friendly note: our new educators will already be loaded up with swag and takeaways, so please hold off on gifts of any kind during the Clap-In. Your presence and enthusiasm are the presents!

Show Your Support
Bring your team! If your school has new educators, aim to have two to three staff members there to offer a personal cheer. Nothing says “you belong here” like familiar faces from your own building on day one.

Parking Reminder
Please gather at the South (front) entrance of Bingham High beginning at 7:30 a.m. To keep the best parking open for our new educators, consider carpooling and use the North side student parking lot and walk through the North (back) entrance.

Our new educators chose Jordan — now let’s show them why that was the best decision they’ve made. Together, we’ll welcome the educators who will shape the next generation of JSD graduates.
We can’t wait to see you there as we clap-in an exciting new academic year!

Thank you,
Jane Olsen, HR Administrator, Head of Talent Acquisition
Mike Trimmell, Assistant Director of HR, Talent Development
April Gaydosh, Administrator of HR

Published on

TO:
All Administrators
 All Administrative Assistants
 Employees on 242- and 245-Day Contracts

FROM:
Brittany Bauer, HR Administrator, Data and Operations
 April Gaydosh, Administrator of HR

2026–2027 Calendar Change for 242 and 245 Contracts

Please be aware of a change to the 2026–2027 calendar for employees on a 242 or 245 contract. The non-contract days originally scheduled for Thursday, April 1, and Friday, April 2, 2027, will move to Monday, March 29, and Tuesday, March 30, 2027.

The student calendar and critical dates will not change.

Updated calendars can be found here:
242: 2026-27 ESP Admin 242D7H8H.pdf
245: 2026-27 ESP 245 D7H8H.pdf

If you have additional questions regarding assignments or special calendars, please contact Brittany Bauer, HR Administrator, Data and Operations, at brittany.bauer@jordandistrict.org.

For questions regarding leave days, critical days or impact on scheduled FMLA days, please contact Rebecca Eastman, HR Specialist, Leaves, at rebecca.eastman@jordandistrict.org.

Published on

TO:
Administrators
Directors
Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Bonnie Brennan, Director of Insurance Services

Protect Your Child with Student Accident Insurance 2026-27

Health Special Risk, Inc. is offering two options for supplemental accident insurance, at-school coverage and 24-hour coverage. See attached flyer (English & Spanish) for additional information.  Please consider including the information in your school packets.

This information can be found on the Insurance Services website.

Published on

DATE:
July 9, 2026

TO:
All Administrators

FROM:
April Gaydosh, Administrator of Human Resources
Mike Trimmell, Ed.D., Assistant Director of Talent Development

SUBJECT:
Annual Crucial Policies

Each year, all employees are required to complete a review of crucial policies. This year, crucial policies will be completed through a new platform called Vector. You will receive an email from Vector with login instructions.

Crucial policies will be available starting July 15, 2026.

The deadline for completing crucial policies is September 15, 2026.

To help with timely completion, you will receive a weekly email reminder and supervisors will receive a weekly completion report.

If you have any questions, or need help completing crucial policies, please reach out to your supervisor. If you need support logging in or using the Vector system, please reach out to Mike Trimmell in Human Resources at michael.trimmell@jordandistrict.org.

Published on

TO:
Principals
Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Katie Bastian, Director of Nutrition Services

Included is a new meal prices flyer for next school year. You are welcome to use this flyer to share the information with your school community. New meal prices have been updated in the registration materials and on the Nutrition Services Website.

Published on

TO:
All Administrators
All Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Steffany Ellsworth, Support Services Manager, Information Systems

Upcoming July Workshops! Please note the location change on July 28, 2026.

Drop in anytime between 9:00 AM and 3:00 PM to:
● Get answers to your specific Qmlativ questions.
● Walk through complex processes with hands-on help.
● Set up and customize your personal list screens.

No appointments are needed—just bring your laptop and stop by when it's convenient for you!

Upcoming Workshop Dates:
● Tuesday, June 30th: District Office, Rm 129
● Thursday, July 9th: ASB, PDC 101
● Monday, July 13th: District Office, Rm 129
● Monday, July 20th: District Office, Rm 129
● Tuesday, July 28th: District Office, Conference Rm 100 (Please note the location change)

Published on

TO:
All Administrators
All Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Steffany Ellsworth, Assistant Director - Support Services, Information Systems

ParentSquare Pointers - End of Year Archive

📁 All ParentSquare posts for the 2025-26 school year will be archived on June 30th.

Why do we archive?
●Let’s start the 2026-27 school year with a clean slate.
●To avoid clutter and make it easier for parents to navigate through posts.

📁 What will be archived?
●All posts and any photos included in posts.
●Media and documents uploaded to the Photos, Videos, Files section.
●Posts sent to Groups.

What will NOT be archived?
●Post sent on or after June 30th.
●Scheduled posts set to go out after June 30th.
●Posts tied to events happening after June 30th.
●Groups and group members.●Direct Messages.

📦 Access to Archived Posts
●You will still be able to access archived posts through the Advanced Search.

Should you have any questions or need assistance accessing archived posts, contact the Information Systems help desk at (801) 567-8737, or ext. 88737.

Published on

TO:
Principals

FROM:
Carolyn Gough, Administrator of Teaching & Learning
Amy Lloyd, K-12 Math Consultant, Teaching & Learning

Principals,

Please invite your newly hired middle school math teachers to an Open Up/Illustrative training on August 4, 2026. The session will be held in Room 101 at the ASB from 8:00 AM – 3:30 PM. Participants will receive a stipend for attending.

Our current middle school math teachers are engaged in Open Up/Illustrative training that began in April and will continue through the 2026–27 school year. New hires will join this ongoing professional learning track, and this August 4th session is designed to bring them up to speed quickly. The training will provide an initial launch into the curriculum and equip new teachers with the foundational knowledge they need to begin the year confidently.

Thank you for your support in ensuring our new teachers are informed and prepared.

 

Published on

DATE:
June 11, 2026

TO:
Principals Administrative Assistants

FROM:
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent

SUBJECT:
Fee Waiver Materials 2026-27

Schools need to collect and maintain the following, which may be requested as part of the school fees monitoring visits:

  • Students given waivers
  • Students denied fee waivers
  • Students who worked in lieu of a waiver

All USBE School Fees Notices and School Fee Waiver Applications can be found by clicking HERE.

Forms can be found under Grades K-6 and Grades 7-12 in multiple languages. The Fee Waiver Application, for both elementary and secondary was revised April 2026. Use the current form when having parents fill out the application.

Attention: Students who previously showed verification of eligibility do not need to resubmit documentation. It may be necessary for the principal (or designee) to contact the previous school of transferring students for verification of fee waiver status. Kindergarten students coming into the school, new students to the District, and students with extenuating circumstances will still be required to submit documentation.

Published on

TO:
Principals
Assistant Principals
Other Administrators

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

As announced in a previous JAM, a discipline training for new administrators and administrative interns will be held on July 28, 2026, at the ASB Presentation Room from 8 AM to noon. Approximately 30 seats are available for current administrators who would like a discipline refresher.

See the previous JAM for details on the training.

Sign up for the training here.

Published on

DATE:
Thursday, June 18, 2026

TO:
All Administrators

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

SUBJECT:
2025-26 Assessment Results Now in Tableau

All state assessment results for the 2025-26 school year are now available in Tableau.  Viewers will be able to see results for the district, schools and individual students.  Where relevant, viewers may also see results by classroom teachers (except with the ACT, Utah Aspire Plus, and the WIDA Access, which are not connected to classroom teachers).  The links below will help administrators navigate directly to the updated results for each assessment:

STAMP for DLI

Acadience Math

Acadience Reading

ACT 11th grade administration

6th grade CogAT

RISE (growth scores will be available in the fall)

Star Reading

Utah Aspire Plus (growth scores will be available in the fall)

WIDA Access (growth targets will be available in the fall)

AP exam results will be available in Tableau by the end of July (pending a release date from the College Board of July 10th).  The state will release DLM results for students with significant cognitive disabilities sometime in the fall.

For questions about these dashboards, please contact Ben Jameson in Assessment, Research & Accountability.  To request additional data or to see these results in another way, please contact the district’s data scientist, Brooke Anderson, in Assessment, Research & Accountability.

Published on

DATE:
June 8, 2026

TO:
Principals
Assistant Principals
School Safety Specialists

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

SUBJECT:
2026-27 Monthly Drill Schedule

This schedule is designed so that our district will remain in compliance with state regulations.  The design is set up so the district can help prepare and support each of your schools throughout the year to better implement these drills.  This schedule is to be followed throughout the district.

Secondary schools are required FOUR (4) evacuations a year.  You may do more if desired.

Elementary schools are required to conduct an evacuation EVERY OTHER MONTH.  These evacuations can follow any drill and DO NOT have to be in conjunction with a fire drill.  Due to this regulation and the mandated fire drill after winter break, an evacuation drill will need to be conducted in both December and January in order to remain in compliance.  This only applies to elementary schools.

Three virtual drill preparation trainings will be held back-to-back on the first Wednesday of each month at 2:40, 3:10 PM, and again at 3:30 PM.  The ZOOM LINK will remain the same for each session throughout the year.  School Safety Specialists are expected to attend.  Other administrators or interested employees are always welcome as well.

MONTH DRILL TYPE NOTES
August Fire First 10 days of school
September Secure
October Lockdown Evacuation required for elementary schools
November Shelter
December Hold Evacuation required for elementary schools
January Fire First 10 days of school after winter break
February Secure
March Lockdown Evacuation required for elementary schools
April Earthquake Great Shakeout. Evacuation is optional
May Drill of Choice Choose whichever drill is appropriate for your school

If there are any questions, concerns, or conflicts, please contact the District Safety Coordinator Matt Alvernaz at matt.alvernaz@jordandistrict.org or by phone at (801) 567-8623.

Published on

DATE:
June 8, 2026

TO:
Principals

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

SUBJECT:
School Safety Specialist List Update/Confirmation

Beginning the 2026-2027 school year, the School Safety Specialist must be an administrator. The School Safety Specialist also attends, completes, and participates in the following:

  • All trainings required by USBE for School Safety Specialists (dates and times will be shared by USBE later this summer)
  • Monthly safety/SRP trainings (held on the first Wednesday of each month) provided by the District’s School Safety Coordinator, Matt Alvernaz (specific dates and times will be shared in an upcoming JAM).
  • SRO trainings are held annually and each quarter (a future JAM will provide dates, times, and locations).
  • Standard Response Protocols, Incident Command, and other duties as outlined here.

Please complete the spreadsheet linked below for the 2026-2027 school year on or before Friday, August 14, 2026. The information entered needs to be accurate for them to receive communications from the District and the USBE, as well as getting enrolled in the USBE Canvas course.

2026-2027 School-Based Safety Specialists

If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to:

Matt Alvernaz
School Safety Coordinator
Matt.alvernaz@jordandistrict.org
(801)567-8623

Published on

To:
All Administrators
All Office Staff

From:
Steffany Ellsworth, Manager - Information Systems
David Bowman, Assistant Director of Systems and Security

This is a reminder of a previous JAM sent on March 26th regarding a system downtime on the Juneteenth holiday.

Information Systems wants you to be aware of upcoming essential maintenance that will affect the availability of the internet and core systems during the upcoming observed holiday on Monday, June 15th.

The following major systems will be inaccessible on this day:

Skyward Finance & Student Systems
Phone Systems Including Voicemail
Internet Connectivity
Department and School Websites

Thank you for your understanding and patience.

Published on

TO:
All Administrators and All Financial Administrative Assistants

FROM:
John Larsen, Business Administrator
Dan Ellis, Director of Accounting
Bonnie Brennan, Director of Insurance Services

For fiscal year 2027 the insurance composite rate will be increasing to $17,652 annually or $1,471 per month. This rate represents the District’s portion of medical and life insurance premiums for an individual employee. Please ensure you are using this amount when forecasting personnel budget costs for next year.

Additionally, for fiscal year 2027 the industrial insurance rate will be increasing to 0.2%.

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

Thank you.

Published on

TO:
All Administrators

FROM:
David Bowman Assistant Director of Systems and Security

The district-wide student YouTube block will be put in place, discontinuing direct student access to YouTube from their Chromebooks beginning August 18, 2026. This change applies only to student accounts.

As announced in the November Principal Meeting, principals continue to have the option to block students from accessing YouTube sooner. If you would like to have YouTube disabled before August 18th, please contact David Bowman in Information Systems.

Teachers will continue to have access to YouTube and may use instructional video content with students through MyVideoSpot. MyVideoSpot allows teachers to import videos from YouTube and other sources, create custom video links, remove advertisements, and select specific start and end points for classroom use. These videos can then be easily shared with students through Canvas, Nearpod, Google Slides, and other instructional tools.

Training and support resources are available through Digital Teaching and Learning.

To access additional training information, please see the JAM below:

https://jam.jordandistrict.org/2025/11/20/myvideospot-for-student-youtube-access/