Ed Briefs

Dr. Watts joins Jill Edwards, chair of the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce, while she makes the rounds as GCPS’ ‘Superintendent for a Day.’

During American Education Week (November 14-18), members of Gwinnett’s business community and civic leaders took the opportunity to walk in the shoes of a school leader as a “Principal for a Day,” and, in one case, “Superintendent for a Day.”

Participants in this event, co-sponsored by the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce and GCPS, met with students and staff, observed lessons, and engaged in various classroom activities. Get a look at some scenes from schools across the district. Click here to see a slideshow of this year's Principals for a Day.

The approved 2023-24 GCPS Student Calendar is available here. Links to the calendar documents are below the current month displayed at the top of the page.

Gwinnett County Public Schools has 52 schools that will be used for voting on December 6 for the Runoff Election between Sen. Raphael Warnock and Herschel Walker for one of Georgia’s U.S. Senate seats, consequently December 6 has been designated as a Digital Learning Day. To ensure that students have a nutritious breakfast and lunch to fuel their learning, our bus drivers will be on the road and at every bus stop to deliver meals prepared by School Nutrition Program staff. Families should expect buses to run their routes from approximately 10:45 a.m. to noon, beginning at the first stops on the route.

If you're planning to vote on Tuesday, click here to check your precinct location.

National Special Education Day is celebrated every year on December 2! This day commemorates the anniversary of our nation’s first federal special education law, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, signed by President Ford on December 2, 1975 which made public education available to all eligible children with disabilities across the nation. Click here to access a graphic you can use on your school’s social media pages.

The holiday season can be a difficult time for many individuals. MetLife, GCPS' provider of life insurance, offers behavioral and counseling services to all benefit-eligible employees, including retirees, at no charge to the employee. To learn about what is available and how to access those benefits, click here.

Flu season is upon us... and schools are a perfect place for transmission. Many respiratory infections spread primarily from person to person when coughs and sneezes go airborne, or by touching a surface or object where the flu virus is present, and then touching their own mouth, eyes, or nose.

Aside from colds, there is rising concern about RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) infections, that usually cause mild, cold-like symptoms. For more information about protecting yourself and your loved ones, please visit the Centers for Disease Control website.

Here are some resources that can help you connect to online classes, workshops, or certifications. All of us have access to many online learning opportunities through PD&E on the employee portal by searching "Bigger Brains" in the course search.

In addition to PD&E, we also have access to Linkedin Learning through the Gwinnett County Public Library. If you don't have a GCPL library card, you can request one through the employee portal under the About Me tab, through our Branch Out employee library card program.

In case you haven't completed it, don't forget to take the mandatory Cybersecurity Awareness and Education Annual Training by December 15. You can find the training link by selecting the Security Awareness icon on the Employee Portal home page, then clicking on the blue button at the top.

Two-factor authentication (2FA) adds an extra layer of protection to your digital accounts. If your password and username get loose in the wild somehow, 2FA will keep the doors to your accounts shut because an additional code is required for access.

This code is usually generated by an app on your phone and is only required when you're logging into new devices, or after a certain period of time. It’s important to have 2FA enabled on big accounts that access significant data, like your online banking, credit cards, and accounts on Microsoft, Google, and Apple. It doesn't take long to configure and makes everything substantially more secure.

Students begin their break on Monday, December 19 and return to school on Wednesday, January 5. Teachers return on January 4 for planning/staff development. Buses will not be distributing meals during this time. Click here if you or someone you know needs help with basic needs (including food, personal care items, clothing, shelter, utilities, etc.). Or visit this website and enter your ZIP code to find free food pantries near you.

At its regularly scheduled business meeting on November 17, 2022, the Gwinnett County Board of Education (BOE) approved the appointment of Ms. Jacquetta Baldwin as the new Principal for Alcova Elementary.

As you consider your end-of-year giving and the impact of your charitable donations, please consider a donation to Gwinnett County Public Schools Foundation Fund, Inc., a non-profit 501(c)(3) charitable organization dedicated to providing financial resources to enrich and enhance education in Gwinnett County Public Schools (GCPS). Whatever you give and however you designate your gift, know that your donation to the GCPS Foundation is appreciated and will make a difference for Gwinnett County schoolchildren and staff members!

When you are preparing to retire, it is important to contact the Retirement Services Department at (678) 301-6100 to schedule an appointment as soon as possible prior to the date your pension is to begin. You must file a written application with the Gwinnett Retirement System for benefits no later than seventy-five (75) days before retirement benefits are to begin. For more information, click here.

Ensuring that GCPS has top-quality employees doesn’t happen by accident. Our Human Resources and Talent Management (HRTM) team is committed to recruiting, developing, and retaining the very best, but recruitment can be difficult during these challenging times. So, we’re looking to you—our employees—for help. To sweeten the deal, employees can earn a referral incentive by recommending qualified candidates who are hired by the district in these high-need areas:

• Special Education Teacher (any field) ($450)

• General Education Teacher ($350) (Computer Science, Elementary (K-5), Health Occupations, Engineering, Foreign Language (French, Spanish), IT Programming, Language Arts, Math, Science, Technology)

• Speech-Language Pathologist ($500)

• (New!) Paraprofessional ($300)

There are two ways to make a referral:

1. Complete the GCPS referral form here

2. The teacher/SLP/paraprofessional candidate may list the name of the person who referred him or her in the referral section of the online application at gcpsjobs.org.

Want to share a success story about your school or department with the entire GCPS community?

Are you looking for a way to recognize a teacher, student, or team member for their work? Do you want to share an upcoming event or opportunity?

Do you have GCPS Good News to share? Click here to let us know.

• Enjoy this video of the Seckinger HS Dedication as the community gathers to honor former board member Daniel Seckinger and celebrate the bright future students and staff will have at the new high school that bears his name.
• Over the summer, two Parsons Elementary staff members represented the district's Korean DLI program abroad.
  
• The 2023 GCPS Student Media Festival is coming... submissions open December 6!

• Board Meeting and Board Work Session (November 17)
  
• GCPS Links (November 18)
  
• Connected (November 11)
• News Releases
  
• Student Calendars

• Keep Connected with news from GCPS TV… the next episode airs December 9!
• The next regular Board meeting is December 15. (Online, find links to sign up for the public comment sections of the meeting.)
  
• Watch for the next issue of GCPS Links on December 16!