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Join us for our WebEx virtual Behavior Training! Classes are created for administrators, school psychologists and counselors, Teacher Leaders and others as appropriate. Build your behavior team and join a group or two! The two groups choices are Behavioral Hurricanes: De-Escalating Severe Behavior and Climate Change in the Classroom: Coaching Effective Behavior Management Strategies. Sign up for a group via email to brian.king@jordandistrict.org or melanie.dawson@jordandistrict.org ASAP! See attached flyer for more information, instructions and dates/times.

Attention Administrators,

The deadline for employees to complete the Crucial Policy review is fast approaching. As of today, 79% of administrators, 83% of licensed employees and 79% of ESP employees have completed the required Crucial Policies review, which includes the new required Title IX and Human Trafficking training. However, only 34% of miscellaneous employees have completed the Crucial Policy Review. The Crucial Policy review is required of all employees, with the exception of minor sweepers/student assistants. The Crucial Policies Review is accessed in Skyward Employee Access.

Administrators and Administrative Assistants may access the Crucial Policy Review Report for their location by following the instructions below:

Website link:  https://is.jordan.k12.ut.usOpens in a new window

Click: Documentation
Click: Human Resources
Click: Crucial Policy Review Report Instructions

Please run your report and notify each employee of this requirement. The HR Department is tasked with monitoring these reports for compliance and will be contacting principals as needed. If any employee listed in this report is no longer employed, please email your HR feeder assistant.

Employees needing assistance in accessing Skyward Employee Access are directed to contact the Help Desk at 801-567-8737.

Regards,

Human Resources

DATE:  
October 29, 2020

TO:  
Department Directors/Administrators

FROM:   
HR Administrators

SUBJECT:     
FTE Audit Report 2020-21


Electronic FTE Audit Process:

  • November 2, 2020 – HR will share with directors and department administrative assistants the FTE Audit Report via Google Sheets. Please review the report with your administrative assistant. The report will include verification of faculty/staff, FTE, title and budget code(s). Please refer to the “Instructions” sheet in the document for assistance in completing the audit.
  • November 9, 2020 – DUE DATE for the FTE Audit Report to be completed for HR to process. Check the “yellow” box on the front page to indicate audit completion.
  • THE BEST NEWS OF ALL – All corrections made on the FTE Audit Report will be made by HR upon return. Change forms will not be required; however, new hires not listed on the report will require the submission of a hire sheet to HR.

Please feel free to share any feedback regarding this process with an HR administrator. We will consider all suggestions and work to improve this process for future use.

Thank you for your time and assistance.

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 November 10, 2020.

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 Auditorium, enter at Entrance A. 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.

Masks are required. Social Distancing will be maintained.

We are excited to offer our Utah Skyward Conference virtually this year!

The conference has been scheduled over two weeks, November 2nd-6th and November 9th-13th. The first week is dedicated to Skyward presenters and the second week is focused on state-specific sessions, along with presentations from vendors and other districts that use Skyward from across the country. There will be morning and afternoon sessions offered each day, in order to give everyone the opportunity to attend. For example: Monday morning will have Finance sessions and Monday afternoon will have Student sessions. On Tuesday, the morning sessions are Student and the afternoon sessions are Finance.

Here is a link to the Skyward Virtual User Group. On this site, you can browse the sessions that are offered, as well as download the agendas (also attached to this email), and register for sessions. You can filter the sessions by date, product (SMS - which is the Skyward system we currently use in JSD, and Qmlativ - which we currently do not use), and Skyward area, i.e. Food Service, Student Management, Human Resources, and Special Education. **Important Note** All times listed for the sessions are Central Standard Time.

To register for sessions on this site, you will need to select "Register for SMS 2.0" in order to view the session for the Skyward system we currently use. If the button "Register for SMS 2.0" is not available, that session is not offered for our current Skyward system. Once you select the option to register, you will be prompted to select your state and school district, then enter your login credentials for Skyward (credentials for both Student Management and Finance will work). Select "Confirm". You will be taken to a new screen where you need to enter your first name, last name and email address, then select "Register". You will receive a confirmation email after you register for each session. You will also receive an email one business day prior to the session you registered for that will include instructions on how to attend the virtual session.

During the virtual sessions you will have the opportunity to ask questions via chat or Q&A periods throughout the sessions. However, if you have a problem that will take a bit longer to resolve, we suggest that you call our help desk to get further assistance. If you find that you are not able to attend something that you really wanted to see, Skyward will be recording every session and will post links to each session along with any presenter notes and handouts.

As always, we hope you get the best out of this virtual conference and are able to see new things, learn new tips and tricks, get some of your questions answered, and see some of the new possibilities in Skyward. If you have any questions about attending the conference, please feel free to reach out to me, Steffany Ellsworth, (steffany.ellsworth@jordandistrict.org) or x88240.

Thank you!

DATE:
October 15, 2020

TO:
Principals

FROM:
Administrators of Schools
Michael Anderson, Associate Superintendent
Travis Hamblin, Director Student Services
Caleb Olson, Consultant of Planning and Enrollment
Scott Festin, Consultant of Planning and Enrollment
Steven Harwood, Support Services & Programming Manager

SUBJECT:
Fall Enrollment as of October 1, 2020 - REVISED


Please see memo and report below.

Dear Administrators,

A populated copy of your Compliance and Assurances Report will be sent to you by the Teacher Specialist assigned to your school. Due dates are Dec. 17 and April 15. A couple of things to keep in mind:

1. The document is current as of Nov., 2020. As new EL students enroll in your school, you will need to add those students to the report. You can check your monthly language proficiency report to determine who the new students are.

2.  There will be virtual administrative workshop times where the ELS team will be available to offer support in report completion. Please bring a list of ESL endorsed teachers at your school.  We will be looking up student information with you.

Dear Administrators,

The ELS department would like to continue to support our students who are distance learning and provide an opportunity for them to get a free student desk and chair from the warehouse surplus. Supplies are limited and should be reserved for students participating in distant learning. Please have your secretaries, parent liaisons, ELD leads and anyone else who works with our online students reach out to get a school total. Once you have a total, send the request over to Steven Oldham over at the warehouse. Steve can have the desk delivered to your school or patrons can pick up a desk from the warehouse at the ASB. Know that supplies are limited and on a first come first serve basis.

Beginning of the Year Interims are due October 31, 2020. Remember that this includes the following: self-evaluation, 3 required goals (UETS goal, JPAS goal, Stakeholder & Student Growth goal), and administrator approval with date. Interims for all educators (teachers, teacher specialists, psychologists, secondary counselors, etc.) will be found on JPLS.

DATE:    
Thursday, October 15, 2020

TO:   
All Principals
All District Department Heads and Directors

FROM:  
Shelley Nordick, Ph.D., Administrator of Teaching and Learning
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability
Kurt Prusse, Director of Purchasing
Michael Heaps, Director of Information Systems

SUBJECT:
Student Data Privacy Updates and Reminders


Principals are asked to read and then communicate the following information to their faculty.

We cannot buy or use websites, apps, or software without checking into how they collect, manage, and use student data. If we do, we run the risk of breaking state and federal laws. Because of this, we are asking that all purchases related to website subscriptions, apps, or software go through Purchasing. This includes purchases made with teacher money and p-cards.

We cannot let children under 13 use websites or apps that collect their data without parent notification. This can be done in disclosure documents, emails to parents or other means of communication. Some websites, software, and apps do not allow children under 13 to use their services even with parent permission. These are prohibited by the district for grades K-7. Some websites, software, and apps do not allow children under 18 to use their services. These are prohibited by the district for all students.

Current processes for purchasing websites, apps, and software: 2020-2021

  • The school submits the requisition for the purchase of an app or program to Purchasing.
  • Website, app, or software is vetted for student data privacy.
  • Purchasing will send the district’s data privacy agreement (DPA) to the vendor to sign if needed.
  • Once the vendor signs the DPA, the purchasing process is completed.
  • If a vendor chooses not to sign or does not respond, the purchase of the app or program is halted and Information Systems is asked to block the website or application. There are currently two apps that have been blocked because of student data privacy reasons:
    • Quizlet
    • Beano

At a later date, Evaluation, Research & Accountability will be contacting digital teaching and learning coaches at each building in order to train them on vetting apps and programs. In addition, together with Teaching & Learning, we are working to develop an interactive website where schools and teachers may go to see what apps and programs have been approved and denied.

Please email the district student data privacy managers if you have any questions.
Holly L. Allen: holly.allen@jordandistrict.org
Steven Harwood: steven.harwood@jordandistrict.org

 

Due to the District Office closing for Fall Recess at the end of the day on Thursday, Oct. 22, and not returning until Monday, Oct. 26, the Payroll Department is making the following recommendations:

  1. If you need to close your bank account, please call Payroll immediately.
  2. If you are a True Time employee, make sure your time is submitted. If you are a True Time approver, please make sure all time is approved.
  3. Paychecks are available for viewing in Employee Access on Tuesday, Oct. 20.
    Please review your pay check and call Payroll immediately with any questions or concerns.  (801) 567-8155.
    If you need help logging into your Employee Access, call the help desk at 801-567-8737.
  4. Payday is on Oct. 22nd.

The Payroll Department will resume work on Oct. 26, 2020 and will be available if you have any questions.

Thank you for your efforts in assisting Payroll.

Dear Administrators,

The Utah Department of Health, under the direction of Governor Herbert, has approved adjustments to the 14-day quarantine. Students and employees who have been quarantined due to an in-school exposure, while wearing a mask, may return to school if they are symptom-free, and have a negative test result after day 7 of quarantine. The test may be taken on day 7. State officials and medical experts indicate that this new guidance aligns with the best medical practice. 

The following are key points provided by the State:

  • Masks are effective at preventing transmission in classroom settings
  • This only applies to mask on mask exposure
  • Only applies to exposures that occurred in school
  • % of individuals who will develop symptoms do so on: 
    • Day 7 -75%, 
    • Day 9 - 90% 
    • Day 11- 95%
    • Testing picks up positive cases two days before symptoms onset; therefore, testing on day 7 means there is less than a 10% chance that an individual will contract after day 7
  • This is for individual exposures, and does not pertain to the threshold recommendations for classroom or school virtual learning 

The COVID-19 School Manual will be updated to reflect this change but the change takes effect immediately. 

Please carefully read the attached Low Risk Test and Return guidance document found below.  

More information will be forthcoming as it becomes available.  

 

 

Cabinet members will be interviewing all administrators currently employed by Jordan School District who wish to be considered for an elementary, middle or high school principal position between now and October 2021. Your participation in these interviews is the way for you to declare your interest in a principalship. Similar interviews will be held each fall for anyone who has not interviewed previously. This year’s interviews will be held on Thursday, November 19th and Friday, November 20th.

Any administrator interested in being interviewed this year should email Angela Montague at angela.montague@jordandistrict.org by Monday, October 19th at 5:00 p.m. Please indicate whether you would like to be considered for an elementary, middle or high school principal position. This process is not designed to select principals for newly-constructed schools nor any school in particular. No application or documentation is required.

Any questions should be directed to a Cabinet member. We look forward to getting to know you better.

Trauma can have a detrimental impact on students' functioning in the school setting. Educators need tools to identify and support students who may have experienced or are currently experiencing traumatic stress. Please see the attachment below for helpful information and strategies.

The final session of the optional training for office and administrative staff of schools and District offices will be held Thursday, October 15, 2020, beginning at 8:00 a.m.  There is space available for an additional 50 attendees.  If you would like to participate, please send an email to Jeri Clayton at jeri.clayton@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.