Cowboy Courier
March 26, 2020
Hey everyone! I am trying to get back on schedule with regular Couriers for staff. I will receive updates on Thursdays so my Couriers may be sent Thursday evening or Friday morning. We will just see how this goes, but I want to have the most current info when I email you.
I am also copying you on Parent Couriers just as I always do. Please look at it. It may help you answer parent questions with a simple cut and paste from the Q&A section.
I am so proud of how everyone has pulled together this week to get ready for the Canvas launch next Monday. Let's keep communication open and help one another.
Finally, I want to be transparent about the fact that information is being shared rapidly through our large district and sometimes that information changes just as rapidly. There are many people involved in decision-making and implementation. Therefore, if you hear something or receive information that feels different than what I have instructed or shared, please tell me. It is possible that I am a half step behind and need to catch up or I need to help someone else catch up. That is all ok! My job is to specifically take care of our school and our CMS community and make decisions through that lens, so I always want to know how I can help.
Appreciate you so very much!
Amber
ZOOM Guidelines
Beginning March 30, we are back "in" school and I need Zoom to be used for instructional purposes only and I need you to use discretion about how many kids are in a Zoom. We shoot for about 5 students in a small group instructional time so a Zoom should be similar. It should also always be initiated by you. DO NOT join a Zoom that students are setting up on their own.
Zoom IS NOT FERPA COMPLIANT and it is not secure, however we have been given some latitude for instructional purposes during this time. I do not want teachers using Zoom just to “hang out” with students. I will not guarantee you any protection under those circumstances if something goes wrong.
Also remember that we can't "require" a student to be in a Zoom at a particular time. They can choose to not attend.
Recording Lessons
Emails to Parents
Limit our emails to parents! It might also help if you identify the grade and course in the subject line.
Attendance
New Students
Google Voice
I know we have been using Google voice quite often recently. Some concerns have been raised.
1) It requires the use of a personal email accounts
2) Google voice collects and stores call details, including content such as voicemail transcription and other info. See their privacy policy here.
3) This means we could potentially have personal information about our students not only associated with our personal accounts but also available to google to store. There are unanswered questions about what that could mean for FERPA.
Please familiarize yourself with WebEx as soon as possible and begin to use that for phone calls. That is FERPA compliant. No worries about having used Google Voice already! As we learn more and get new tools such as WebEx, we do better.
T-TESS EOY Procedures
If the closure is extended, summative conferences will be conducted virtually from March 30-May 5. If your observation process was not completed, we will contact you with information about rolling to the next year.
Out of Office Messages
Campus Celebrations! Give this a try!
I still encourage you to use this link! While we are all isolated I know everyone would love some good news in their inbox.
May 28 Comp Day-Leaving this in here until we know the future plan
To receive credit for the Comp. Day, we will need the “official” certificate of completion to be turned in to Jenny Zornes. Earlier in the Fall, a majority of the staff “screened shot” the enrollment, but we are now needing to get the official Certificate sent to Jenny by March 27th. If you follow the directions below, it takes about 5 minutes to print the certificate through Strive.
How to print the certificate
Kudos!
We have the BEST staff. I’m proud of my department for learning Canvas fast and how adaptable they have been. I’ve also had the opportunity to help other teachers transition what they do because they want to figure this out for our kids! The new normal isn’t fun, but the passion we all are showing for what we do is inspiring and we all are learning! ❤ -Michelle Rumley