CSD Staff Scoop
Get the Inside Scoop on all CSD news!
Table of Contents:
-Wilson Center Synopsis
- Staff Support
- Equity and Student Support
- Finance
- Information Services
- Operations
- Research and Analytics
-Staff Website
-CSD Staff Shout Outs!
-Scenes from our Schools... Photos from around the District!
-Important Dates Around the District
-About the Staff Scoop
CSD Teachers of the Year
(Please note: Since this is Talley Street's first year, they will be an observer in this process which is the standard practice we have used for years when new schools open.)
Angela Gabriel
Angela Needham
Kathryn VanDuzer
Shannon Staton
Kristen Gwaltney
Heidi Westbrook
Nailah Carty
Drew Ann Tucciarone
Ayoka Shakir
Staff Support Update:
Updates and Reminders from Staff Support:
Open Enrollment for your CSD benefits will be from October 21-November 8. The 2020 benefit plan has a few changes this year, so please plan on attending one of the Open Enrollment meetings at a location that is convenient for you. The full list of Open Enrollment meetings are in the graphic below. You can find information about benefits online any time at www.csdbenefits.com.
Flu Shots- Just two more chances!
There are only two more opportunities to get your flu shot at CSD this season.
- October 15, at DHS from 2:30-5:00 pm
- October 21, at Winnona Park from 3:00-6:00 pm
This is a drop-in event, no appointments necessary and families are welcome.
For any questions related to Staff Support, please contact David Adams at davadams@csdecatur.net.
Open Enrollment Meeting Dates, Times, and Locations
Launching CSD University for 2019-2020
This is CSD University’s second year! Monday, October 14th is the first day of Elementary (Birth to Grade 5) courses. The Secondary courses (Grades 6 to 12) will begin on Monday, October 28th. This year’s CSD University courses are aligned to the goals of our District Improvement Plan: Advancing Racial Equity, Accelerating Student Learning, and Building a Positive Culture and Climate. Most courses are designed to enhance formative assessment practices and to support students in “leading their own learning;” while others are designed around equity, social-emotional learning, and differentiated best practices for our most vulnerable students.
The CSD University Design Team would like to take this opportunity to thank all our 2019-2020 CSD University Learning Facilitators. As building, district, and teacher leaders, you’ve stepped up to plan and facilitate and explore new ideas using book studies, courageous conversations around equity, differentiation strategies, best practices for instruction and assessment, as well as PLCs for fellow content area teachers to collaborate! Again, we appreciate our facilitators for sharing their learning, curiosity, commitment to equity, and last but not least, your instructional leadership.
We hope to build upon the success of last year’s positive outcomes as we venture into our second year. Some survey results from last year are:
I learned and/or relearned skills and concepts in my CSD University course that I would apply in my practice: 90% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed
My learning in CSD University has lead to changes in my teaching/practice: 87% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed
I predict that my learning in CSD University has positively impacted student learning in my classroom/school building: 82% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed
May all of us engage in meaningful learning that will lead to increased learning outcomes for all students. For more information about CSD University, please contact Marcia Fowler at mfowler@csdecatur.net.
Equity and Student Support:
We are delighted to have Cynthia on our team. She will support the department and connect the CSD community with the Equity and Student Support leadership. Contact Cynthia to schedule appointments to discuss ideas or concerns related to equity and student support. Please join us in welcoming Cynthia. She can be reached at 404-371-3601 ext 1032 or via email cbrown@csdecatur.net.
Finance:
The Finance Department wants to remind you of how to access your pay stubs and tax documents.
We use Doc e Fill, available to staff at https://findocs.csdecatur.net. This site is also available from the “Essential Links” page of the Staff section of the CSD website.
Doc e Fill hosts several years of W-2s, pay stubs, and 1095-Cs (insurance verification forms).
Here are some resources to help you use this tool:
Doc e Fill user guide – information on setting up your account, using the tool, and a Q&A.
Request your employee ID number – you need your employee ID to log into Doc e Fill. If you don't know, ask for it here.
For more information or if you have any questions, please contact Cathy Karmakar at Ckarmakar@csdecatur.net.
Information Services:
IncidentIQ
When we return from Thanksgiving break, Information Services will expand the rollout of the new incidentIQ ticketing system district-wide. This will replace the Freshdesk ticketing tool. Additional information will come from your site technician and via email from the IS department. For more information about this project, contact Lisa Jones (Ljones@csdecatur.net).
Google Calendar Working Hours:
CSD Google Calendar recently rolled out a feature that made guesses about folks' "working hours." When users recently logged into CSD Google Calendar, they were presented a quick message with Google's best guess at their "working hours" ... but often 1) that guess was way off for educators! and 2) folks clicked past the message without changing what Google had set. As a result, some colleagues trying to schedule events with peers see strange warnings about a proposed event being outside a recipient's "working hours." Information Services encourages all staff to follow these directions to 1) just turn off the "working hours" feature entirely or 2) adjust them to fit the actual reality of your work day.
Operations:
Transportation Update:
September was a very hot month with temperatures in the high 90’s almost every day. To help students with the heat while on the buses, transportation issued water bottles to students who didn't have a water bottle. We are also replacing 15 of our older buses with new ones. The new buses will have air conditioning adding to buses we already have with air. The new buses started arriving at the dealer last week. We are expecting to have all of the new buses in our lot by October 25th.
Research and Analytics
What is the CCRPI and when will we get our scores?
The College and Career Ready Performance Index (CCRPI) is Georgia’s annual tool for measuring how well its schools, districts, and the state itself are preparing students for the next educational level. It provides a comprehensive roadmap to help educators, parents, and community members promote and improve college and career readiness for all students.
The CCRPI includes five main components each scored on a scale of 0 to 100: Achievement, Progress, Closing Gaps, Readiness, and Graduation Rate (high school only). These components, encompassing multiple indicators, are combined for a total CCRPI score on a scale of 0 to 100. The CCRPI also reports other information, such as the performance of student subgroups, school climate, and financial efficiency status.
2019 is the second year scores from the redesigned CCRPI will be released. We expect the Georgia Department of Education(GaDOE) to release the new CCRPI rating at the end of October.
Resources Available on the GaDOE's Accountability webpage:
An Overview of Georgia’s CCRPI (3-minute animated video)
Navigating the CCRPI Report (10-minute tutorial)
A Family’s Guide to Georgia’s CCRPI
A Family’s Guide to Georgia’s CCRPI in Spanish
Do you know the people in your neighborhood?
Spotlight on staff in the Wilson School Support Center and around the district
Do you know Rodney Thomas is the Athletics and Activities Director for the entire District?
Prior to being named as the system's first Athletics and Activities Director in 2017, Rodney has worked with CSD for over 13 years, at F.AVE and Glennwood. Rodney's responsibilities include not just sports, but also district-wide cultural arts, performing arts, band, choir, and chorus.
Rodney was born and raised in this community and Decatur is truly home for him. He went to St. Thomas Moore and graduated from Druid Hills High school. Rodney grew up playing soccer and football and went to Georgia State on a soccer scholarship. At Georgia State, Rodney was an All-Conference player for three years and team captain his junior and senior year. Now he enjoys watching his favorite soccer team, Manchester United and loves fishing in his free time. He and his wife live nearby and love eating out, his favorite is a nice steakhouse. His favorite play is "A Soldier Story," a drama by Charles Fuller. Growing up he was a huge Roald Dahl fan and he loves the Lion King.
Stop by Rodney's desk next time you are at the high school, his office is behind the gym on the second floor.
Staff Website:
CSD Staff SHOUT OUTS!
SHOUT OUT to Allison Gordon, a kindergarten paraprofessional at Westchester. She has worked at Westchester for three years but she actually attended Westchester as an elementary student! Just last week Allison was honored as the Westchester Employee of the Year. This is what her co-workers say about her, "Ms. Gordon has high expectations for all of her students and supports their social/emotional/academic growth to help every child meet them. She is a hard-worker and goes above and beyond to show leadership in the school. She has shown teamwork as a part of the hospitality committee and leadership as the chair of the safety committee."
SHOUT OUT to Winnona Park's PE teacher, Carrie Beauchamp, who was chosen to do a presentation at the 2019 Georgia Association of Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance Convention(GAHPERD) next week. Her session will focus on Activate, Breathe, Connect - which demonstrates how yoga and mindfulness techniques can be used to enhance the physical education curriculum and atmosphere. Coach Beauchamp will explore how shapes, breathing, listening, setting intentions, and visualizations help students dig deeper into a lifetime of physical activity. Way to go Coach Beauchamp!
SHOUT OUT to Talley's Coach Kelly Nichols and the Talley Cats led by Stephanie Trauner, for the amazing Talley Rally's which have been engaging, encouraging, supportive, and really well organized. Each week, all Talley students, teachers, staff, and many parents pack into their new gymnasium give shout outs to teachers, staff, and students, sing songs- including the unofficial school song, Eye of the Tiger-, and meet as a crew. Parents crowd in the back and sides of the gym and all who attend feel more connected to the school, which is key for this new school community.
SHOUT OUT to Glennwood Principal Dr. Kristy Beam for an amazing Astronomy presentation during Glennwood's recent Starlab expedition. Dr. Beam brought a Starlab, an inflatable, portable planetarium from her former district and her presentation rivaled any you might get a local planetarium. The students were engaged and enthralled by this interactive learning experience!
SHOUT OUT and welcome to Ms. Eva Parks over at Talley Street Upper Elementary. Eva is new to the CSD Family but she has jumped in and hit the ground running. Thank you so much Eva for keeping our Talley Street Tigers together, that's a big job and you are doing it with a bright smile. Keeping shining over there!! Also today, Friday, October 11 is her birthday, so Happy Birthday Eva!
SHOUT OUT To DHS English teachers, Beth McMahon and Cara Gray, for organizing a theater outing for 120 senior Literature and Composition and AP Language students. The students are reading The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time and will attend the play by the same name at the Horizon Theater on October 17. Beth and Cara have worked hard to create a challenging and engaging curriculum for our seniors, and we appreciate their hard work and creativity! Thanks also to the Decatur Education Foundation for their grant funding to help support the trip.
SHOUT OUT for Nurse Lola at College Heights. Not only does she keep the safety, health, and well-being our our students and staff a priority, but she goes above and beyond in many other ways. She recently orchestrated a revitalization of our staff lounge, complete with a serene paint job and new furniture. In addition, along with our school social committee, she has created a week of Breast Cancer Awareness events. We appreciate the contributions she makes to our school family.
SHOUT OUT to DHS German teachers, Timo Snider and Brent Eickhoff, for organizing the Decatur side of our exchange with thirty-two students from Straubing, Germany. This exchange has become a hallmark of Decatur High's phenomenal German program, and Timo and Brent play a pivotal role in arranging home-stays, outings, and educational experiences for our visitors during their two-week stay here in Decatur.
Did you just complete a training or program, have some exciting news to share or want to give a shout out to a fellow colleague? Send that over to sjones1@csdecatur.net and you will see that in this section in future newsletters.
Scenes from our Schools... Photos from around the District!
Renfroe 8th graders teach Yoga to College Heights Pre-Kers
Talley celebrating the birthday of Ms. Parks their Admin Assistant
Dr. Beam teaching Glennwood 2nd graders about our solar system
DHS Cheerleaders during a game
F.AVE's New Mural by Art Teacher Nick Madden
Renfroe Students read to Winnona Park students
Winnona Park got a visit from their mascot, Whiskers
Oakhurst celebrated the design principles
Ms. Q received Westchester's read-a-thon cape
Coach Nichols, Ms. Trauner and the Talley Cats lead the Talley Rally
Fine Motor Workshop Organized by ECLC's Angela Webb
Westchester's Employee of the Year, Kindergarten Para Allison Gordon
F.AVE students participated in a Fire Safety Program
Glennwood Students receiving Bus Safety program
Decatur's Firefighters read to Clairemont Students
Modern art by ECLC students
Talley Tiger Recipients: Staff Recognition
Renfroe Student Art: My 360 World
Blue & Gold Squad Bowling at Comet!
Important Dates Around the District:
DHS Homecoming Week: October 21-26, 2019
Decatur Farm to School Taste Tests: October 24 -25, 2019
Almost, Maine by DHS Performs!
October 11- 20, 2019
Decatur Performing Arts Center
You can find out more information about DHS performs at www.decaturperforms.org.
Upcoming Appreciation Days:
October 21-25, 2019: Bus Safety Appreciation Week
October 14-18: National School Lunch Week
October is National Bullying Prevention Month and National Principals Month
November 8: National STEM Day
November 11: Veterans’ Day
November 18-22: American Education Week
November 20: Educational Support Professionals’ Day
November 21: National Parent Involvement Day
November 22 Substitute Educators’ Day
About the CSD Staff Scoop
If you would like to submit some good news, a shout out or a student or staff recognition, please feel free to submit it here or by emailing Sarah Jones, Communications and PR specialist at sjones1@csdecatur.net. Also we love photos! Please share your photos with us and we will share them with the district here and on CSD’s social media pages.
PDFs of these newsletters will be saved under the staff section of the website for future review.
Wilson School Support Center
Email: sjones1@csdecatur.net
Website: csdecatur.net
Location: 125 Electric Avenue, Decatur, GA, USA
Phone: 404-371-3601
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cityschoolsofdecatur