Thomas Jefferson Tribune
THOMAS JEFFERSON FEEDER IS IN IT TO WIN IT!
WEEK OF MAY 14-18, 2018
MISSION, VISION & CORE VALUES
MISSION:
The TJ Feeder schools embrace high quality learning opportunities which honor the unique strengths and diverse needs of all Scholars.
VISION:
The TJ feeder schools will be the premier feeder to attract and educate all Scholars to positively impact our community and world.
CORE VALUES:
Innovation, Collaboration, Excellence and Integrity
REVISED-THOMAS JEFFERSON FEEDER PRIORITY GOALS
STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT
Advance teacher effectiveness and improve the quality of instruction through research-based professional learning practices
QUALITY OF INSTRUCTION
Close achievement gaps through effective data practices and alignment of core content curriculum.
CLIMATE AND CULTURE
Develop and sustain a positive and supportive climate and culture of high expectations through effective communication, inclusive practices and leadership development.
A MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR..........
Leaders,
Many of you have worked hard to foster a safe and positive learning environment for your school, applied for grants, supported students who were experiencing grief, developed and implemented action plans designed to target instruction, and motivated and inspired the teachers to strive for 'Instructional Excellence' increasing scholar achievement.
It is that time for our scholars to show what they know on the STAAR and EOC's. Know that the scholars will give it all they have to do a fantastic job! Your leadership has been instrumental in the commitment for 'Instructional Excellence' on each campus!
Although you may be the first to arrive and the last to leave, the first to believe and never give up, you have gone above and beyond what is required of a leader. I want to take this opportunity to thank each and every staff member at the twelve academic campuses in the Thomas Jefferson Feeder Pattern for all the hard work that has been planned and executed all year. I see heroic work every day and am inspired by your dedication and willingness to give it your ALL. Thank you for allowing me to work with such a phenomenal group of educators!!
As we move into this final phase of our school year, maintain servant leadership as a top priority ensuring you maximize our remaining time with scholars, staff, and faculty.
You are the BEST! Your campuses are READY to SHOW WHAT THEY KNOW!
Here's to a SEAMLESS week of testing!
As always, have an awesome week LEADING, COACHING, TEACHING, LEARNING, MONITORING AND MAKING IMMEDIATE ACADEMIC ADJUSTMENTS FOR SCHOLAR SUCCESS!
THE TJ FEEDER IS IN IT TO WIN IT!
Ms. Torres
Thomas Jefferson Executive Director
THIS WEEK AT A GLANCE
Monday, May 14, 2018
- Campus Visits with ED/AF's
- STAAR Math: Grades 3-4 and 6-7-( 5th and 8th re-testers)
- Think Tank Meeting (3rd Floor Conference Room) 8:00 a.m.-Ms. Torres
- Grades 1-12 On-line Enrollment Open
- Campus Visits with ED/AF'S
- STAAR Reading: Grades 3-4 and 6-7
- United to Learn Principals' End of the Year Celebration 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m. Bowlmor Lanes Addison, TX
- Campus Visits with ED/AF's
- STAAR Science: Grades 5 and 8
- Senior Grades transferred from Evening Academy
- Reconnect Center Mandatory Professional Development
- College Access Program Vendor Selections for HS Title 1 Campuses Presentation (Haskell from 3:00-4:30)
- RLA Content Meeting w/RLA AF 9:00-12:30 p.m. @ NCX
- ED/AF Planning Session-in PM
- ED Interviews @ Haskell-Ms. Torres
- Math & Science Content Meeting/Math AF 1-4:30 p.m.@ NCX
- STAAR Social Studies- 8th
- Senior Grades due by Noon
- Data Coordinators export grades in Chancery by 1:00 p.m.
- New AP/ED meeting 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.-Haskell conference room-2nd floor
- NEW DEADLINE TO ENTER EXTENDED, SUMMATIVE AND SLO SCORES
- CHECKPOINT #3 FOR CIP DUE TO MS. TORRES BY COB
- T.J. P-Tech Mentoring Visits w/AFs PM
THOMAS JEFFERSON UPDATED CLIMATE SURVEY RESPONSES BY CAMPUS
NEW TEXAS KINDER ENTRY ASSESSMENT TO ROLL OUT IN SEPTEMBER
The Texas Education Agency (TEA), in collaboration with the Children’s Learning Institute (CLI) at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) received a research award from The US Department of Education to develop the Texas Kindergarten Entry Assessment System (TX-KEA). Once developed, TX-KEA will be an optional tool for schools to use to screen children’s school readiness upon their entry into kindergarten. Dallas ISD will provide a mandatory 3 hour training in the summer for ALL Kindergarten teachers. The assessment will be rolled out in September.
The TX KEA is:
- a comprehensive school readiness screening assessment to be given to children at the beginning of kindergarten by teachers
- being developed in English and Spanish and will allow adaptations for children with special needs
- designed to inform instruction
- a web-based reporting system to help teachers make effective use of the results
- a combination of teacher-administered direct assessments, child-paced direct assessments, and teacher surveys/observation tools
- a system that will link data to the Texas Education Agency’s Texas Student Data System (TSDS)
- being developed for use on several platforms and devices, including laptops and tablets
- a time-efficient assessment that will allow assessment of all areas within 45 minutes
- a system that will provide reports to parents, teachers, and school district personnel
- being developed with an effective web-based training for teachers
- one of many screening instruments that schools can choose to use at kindergarten entry
TX-KEA will be administered ONCE at the beginning of the kindergarten year.
TX-KEA will provide individual reports for parents and teachers, and group reports for teachers and school administrators.
PRE-K ENROLLMENT UPDATE
UNITED TO LEARN END OF YEAR GATHERING FOR ELEMENTARY PRINCIPALS
THOMAS JEFFERSON FEEDER PATTERN ACHIEVE 3000 DATA
It is hard to believe that the year is coming to a close so quickly. Reminder that your Achieve 3000 students in grades 3-8 need to complete the EOY (post test) assessment by May 25. If you have any questions about the upcoming assessment please do not hesitate to reach out Josh Ellis.
Below, is the most recent Achieve3000 usage data for your review.
STUDENT SUCCESS INITIATIVE (SSI)
The Student Success Initiative grade advancement requirements apply to grade 5 and 8 students who take the STAAR reading and mathematics assessments. It is a good practice to begin preparation for the second administration of STAAR testing to ensure that all of our 5th and 8th grade students are prepared and promoted to the next grade level.
With April 30, 2018 as the scheduled score report date, there is a limited amount of time between this date and the date that students are administered the STAAR re-test on May 14-15, 2017. Although we will not have the data for some time, intervention needs to continue for those students who are still not scoring at the Approaches level.
Please begin the work of creating your SSI Intervention Plan.
Plans should include, but are not limited to:
· Individual Parent Meetings (discuss score reports and intervention)
· Parent Letters
· Student Tiers by raw score or scale score
· Mapped Out SEs
· Schedules with assigned teachers
· Scripted instructional blocks
· Progress Monitoring
SSI Guiding Questions
- Which students failed in each content by five or fewer questions?
- How many students failed reading only?
- How many students failed math only?
- How many students failed reading and math?
- Who is teaching the students that failed Reading? / Math?
- Which resources are being used to address the TEKS/SEs?
- Which Reporting Categories are targeted / SE’s are targeted?
- How are coaches involved?
- When will your plan begin?
- What does the intervention period look like?
- How much time is allocated to support the non-passers?
- Is that more than the normal day? (If classes are 60 minutes will they receive more than 60 minutes of explicit and intensive instruction)
- How will After School and Saturday School tutoring support students?
- Who is teaching during this time?
- When do you plan to meet with parents to notify them?
An updated copy of the SSI Manual is attached. Samples of intervention plans and schedules are attached. A number of materials have been developed to help schools implement the SSI grade advancement requirements.
EOY READING INVENTORY
The window for EOY Reading Inventory begins on Monday, April 16th. Principals should work with computer lab teachers or assigned staff to schedule time for all students to participate in the reading inventory. This data can be utilized to determine if students made progress on their reading/Lexile levels and next steps as it relates to instructional intervention and the focus of the upcoming school year. A good practice is to send home this information with report cards to inform parents and students of progress and needs. Parents should be provided with strategies, websites and resources to work with students on improving reading levels throughout the summer.
EOY K-2 ISIP DATA INFORMATION
We are now one week into the EOY K-2 ISIP assessment window, so Early Learning are again providing weekly updates on completion for each feeder and school.
Below is an update for our feeder which shows how many of your K-2 students have completed the EOY ISIP assessment. All K-2 students must be assessed between May 01, 2018, and May 31, 2018. Though many feeders are “red” in the spreadsheet, we are off to a great start.
Goal is to have our feeder score at or above 90%.
Key Reminders:
- All K-2 students are required to take the EOY assessment this month.
- The EOY assessment window lasts until May 31.
- Make sure this is proctored and that someone is ensuring the computer is working, students have working headphones, and that they are testing in the correct language.
- Students must be assessed in the correct language (i.e., English or Spanish), which is outlined in the WAIP.
*****PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES*****
I-STATION TRAINING
Please encourage your campus leadership to attend the last sessions of the 2017-2018 school year. I-Station wamts to celebrate best practices, the successes and new strategies. Register today; find the registration link in the Tips from Tipping Spring Message that is below.
CUSTOMER SERVICE SHOULD BE A PRIORITY!
Have you ever arrived to an establishment and not been greeted? Has the level of engagement left you feeling like you didn't matter? We certainly do not want any of our stakeholders to feel that way. For that reason, please take time over the next two weeks to review the Customer Service Expectation Sheet with your entire staff using the link below.
ALL stakeholders should receive the same consideration and it starts with each of us! Please ensure that your campus teams are keeping customer service a priority.
CAMPUS IMPROVEMENT PLAN CHECKPOINTS
As discussed at our March feeder meeting, we will institute checkpoints for your campus improvement plans leading up to June. The first checkpoint deadline IS Monday, April 20 by 5:00 PM.
PEI CHECKPOINT #4
The Key Outcome for PEI Checkpoint 4 will be for the principal and ED to use data as a way to check progress towards CIP implementation. Particular attention will be placed on the data outcomes for the year.
Timeframe: May 21st – June 21st
DETAILS:
Only one meeting will be held. The Principal will submit the self-evaluation in advance in cornerstone. Data that are available to use for this final checkpoint are:
- Student Discipline Data
- Attendance Data
- TEI Spot Data
- Common Assessment Data
- ACP Data
- STAAR Data
- Climate Survey Data
- Student Survey Data
- Parent Survey Data
- Principal Performance Data
While not required, the Principal has the option to share artifacts during the check point conference.
PEI METRICS
EVALUATION DEADLINES FOR ALL EMPLOYEES BELOW
ELL TESTING FOR CAMPUSES
Pursuant to §89.1225. Within 20 school days of their initial enrollment in the school district, students shall be identified as English language learners and enrolled into the required bilingual education or English as a second language program. Attached is a graphic presentation that shows several of our campuses who have MISSED the deadline to have students tested. It is expected that your campus review your system to have these students tested. I should not be seeing any campuses with missed opportunities to test our scholars.
DALLAS ISD SPORTS SUMMER CAMP
*****THOMAS JEFFERSON FEEDER PATTERN KUDOS*****
Join Us in CONGRATULATING One of Our Own~ Mr. Israel Rivera!
P-TECH Saturday TSI Camp!
Thomas Jefferson P-TECH ECHS Saturday TSI Camp is a program dedicated to assisting 8th grade students in learning the material required to fulfill the TSI requirements. The program is taught by our dedicated TSI specialist, Mr. Mikesell, Ms. Small, Mrs. Johnson, Mrs. Caldarera, & Ms. Herron. Ninety-nine scholars participated in this test prep session today. We are excited about our new cohort of students!
North Texas Literacy Summit!
Mrs Maia with Douglas Fisher
Mrs. Maia and Mr. Hobbs enjoying learning from the best and brightest!
Tom Field Representing at the District Chess Tournament!
Tom Field 's Chess team and coaches Anyeli Bronze, Leo Silver, and Edgar Silver at the district wide tournament @ Dade Middle school Saturday, May 5th.
Medrano's Symphonic Band Represents Well!
Friday, May 4th, Medrano's Symphonic Band had the honor to represent their school with the City of Dallas. Their ambassadors met Deputy Mayor Pro-Tem Adam Medrano, City Council members, and the Chief of Police. Well done Eagles. We are very proud of them and their outreach!
Francisco Medrano Middle School
Teachers' Appreciation Week 2018: Service with a Smile
Happy Kids Create Happy Communities: K.B. Polk & Sudie Williams Merge as One
The Halls were alive with the sound of Students!
Opening Ceremony
T.J. Feeder AFs and Polk's CICs Enjoy Collaborating
Our Campus Tour Guides
Registration tables multiplied to accommodate the crowd!
Teachers enjoyed a pre-fiesta FEAST!
STAAR Pep Rallies!
May 23rd is Educational Bosses Appreciation Day!
May 23 is Educational Bosses day. Please do not forget to remember all the wonderful things that your Principal does for you on a daily basis.
IMPORTANT NEWS REGARDING THE TEACHER EXCELLENCE INITIATIVE (TEI)
NEW DEADLINE FOR ENTERING EXTENDED, SUMMATIVE AND SLO'S
he website has been updated with the Performance Evaluation Reports. Please note that the deadline to enter Extended, Summative, and SLO scores is Friday, May 18th.
Please use this link page: https://sites.google.com/dallasisd.org/edreports You may consider creating a bookmark for easy access in the future.
Summatives may be completed after a minimum number of spot observations and the extended observation are conducted May 21st - June 4th.
READ THE WEEKLY WAIP!
CICs Managing Up Folders Updated and Completed by May 18
2017-2018 DALLAS ISD DISTRICT-WIDE TESTING CALENDAR
DISTRICT COMMON ASSESSMENT DATES
Instructional Days Until Testing Calendar
UPCOMING DATES & REMINDERS
MAY
- May 21-ALL CIP'S DUE TO MS. TORRES
- May 21-June 21--PEI Checkpoint 4
- May 10-24--TEI Roster Verification
- May 22-Sudie scholars visit K. B. Polk for a day of learning
- May 23 Educational Bosses Appreciation Day!
- May 28-Deadline to submit PD agendas to ED for June 4 PD
- May 31-Last day for Parent Surveys to be conducted
JUNE
- June 1-Last day to conduct Spot Observations
- June 1-ALL CIP'S DUE TO MS. STEPHENS FROM ED
- June 15-Secondary Master Schedules completed by COB!
- June 18-Jiv Daya Meeting w/ED & AF's
JULY
- July 13-19-NPLI Conference with School Leadership in New York-Ms. Torres & Mr. McLaurin
AUGUST
- August16- Mandatory 3rd-5th grade teacher training from TJ Feeder @ Joe May for Jiv Daya from 1:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.-Kindle distribution will be handled on this day for ALL teachers.
RESOURCES AND TOOLS
MARSHALL MEMO #735
Using Behavioral Science to “Nudge” Students in the Right Direction
In this interview with John J-H Kim and Dani Dichter in District Management Journal, Todd Rogers (Student Social Support Lab and In Class Today) talks about how families and students can be influenced by thoughtful, low-cost interventions. Rogers started working on this when he learned how little the parents of high-school students know about their kids’ school lives. “It’s not that there’s anyone trying to exclude families from schools,” he says, “but… there’s a natural feedback process where schools think parents don’t want to know and don’t want to be involved. Parents get the impression that schools don’t want them involved, and at the same time kids want autonomy and they’re pushing parents away anyway.”
One important area is student attendance. “There are multiplying externalities and growing consequences of chronic absenteeism,” says Rogers. Students fall behind, teachers have to get them back up to speed, students’ level of engagement suffers, and so does the culture of the class. What makes things more difficult is that there’s a story behind each absence. Maybe the kid doesn’t want to go to school, or the parent works at night, or there’s an illness in the family, or the family lost its home. How to address multiple possible causes in an effective way?
For starters, Rogers and his colleagues found that parents tend to underestimate how often their kids have been absent, and believe that their own children’s attendance is better than that of other students in the school. So the researchers sent postcards to parents updating them on their kids’ attendance record up to that point and comparing it to that of other students. In several school districts, this simple process brought about a 10-15 percent reduction in chronic absenteeism, with very little investment of time and resources. “We’re just drawing parents’ attention to the issue and we’re also correcting their false beliefs,” says Rogers. “They don’t realize how many days their kid has missed in total or how their kid’s absences compare to those of their classmates. But when all of a sudden they realize it, it alarms them.”
Interestingly, the researchers found that e-mailing or texting these attendance updates had no impact at all. Why? Because the hard-copy postcards “become social artifacts in the home,” says Rogers. “People report putting them on the fridge or putting them on the kitchen counter, and they end up being talked-about objects. They have a social life in the home – a shelf life. Digital communications are great for immediate action, but absenteeism is a behavior that unfolds over time.”
That’s why texting parents with the news that their child hasn’t turned in a homework assignment or is in jeopardy of failing a subject is highly effective. This is immediate, actionable information and parents follow up, in many cases turning around problematic student behaviors and improving achievement. If all teachers are using the same electronic grading systems and the school has up-to-date cell phone numbers for parents, the process is quite easy to implement. “If we give parents more useful information,” says Rogers, “they’ll use it, they’ll improve student achievement, and they’ll want more of it.”
Another approach is asking students, “Who in your world cares about you and cares if you finish school?” Students come up with a wide range of responses: My Mom. My grandmother. My manager at Home Depot. My girlfriend. My coach. My pastor. The researchers launched a project getting students to nominate the person who cared most about their academic success and designated those people as the student’s “study supporter.” In the case of the Home Depot manager, they sent a text saying, “Hey, John, you see Todd at work every day. This week he has a midterm. Ask him what his study plan is and what he’s worried about.” And the following week, another text: “Hey, John, ask Todd what his plan is for getting his homework and reading done for the rest of this semester. Ask him what his plan is for making sure he has enough to study.”
The study supporter idea is getting promising results in several settings, says Rogers, and his group is following up with programs in a variety of schools. “We give these supporters hard-copy activities to talk to the kid about,” he says. “We send report cards to the pastor or coach; we send the class schedule, etc. The idea is to turn the social system that cares about the kid into an academic support system. These are all pre-existing resources that are just unleveraged. It’s investing in the community around kids and leveraging social capital – and also building social capital.” (He notes that FERPA – the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act – needs to be addressed when sending student records to someone other than the student’s parent or guardian.)
THOMAS JEFFERSON SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
- Thomas Jefferson High School: Principal, Sandi Massey
- Francisco Medrano Middle School : Principal, Theresa Sigurdson
- Edward Cary Middle School: Principal, Ben Dickerson
- David G. Burnet Elementary: Principal, Sonia Loskot
- Leonides Cigarroa Elementary : Principal, Douglas Burak
- Tom W. Field Elementary: Principal, Shondula Whitfield
- Stephen C. Foster Elementary: Principal, Irma De La Guardia
- Joe May Elementary: Principal, Israel Rivera
- K.B. Polk Elementary: Principal, Misty Rathermund
- Julian T. Saldivar: Principal, Chaundra Macklin
- Walnut Hill Elementary: Principal, Robert 'Chase'McLaurin
- Sudie Williams Elementary: Principal, Michael Jackson
LEADERS OF THE FEEDER
Thomas Jefferson High School
Franscisco Medrano Middle School
Edward Cary Middle School
David G. Burnet Elementary
Leonides Cigarroa Elementary
Tom W. Field Elementary
Stephen C. Foster Elementary
Joe May Elementary
K. B. Polk Elementary
Julian T. Saldivar Elementary
Walnut Hill Elementary
Sudie L. Williams Elementary
Tamieka Porter
Lisa Maia
Erica Rosas
Trustee Edwin Flores District 1
Trustee Dustin Marshall District 2
Trustee Miguel Solis District 8
DISD GOALS
- All students will exhibit Satisfactory or above performance on State assessments. Students below Satisfactory performance will demonstrate more than one year of academic growth
- Dallas ISD schools will be the primary choice for families in the district
- The achievement gap by race, ethnicity and social economic status will be no greater than 10 percentage points on all academic measures
- 95% of students will graduate. Of the graduates, 90% have qualifying scores for community college, college, military, or industry certification
- 95% of entering kindergarten students are school-ready on a multidimensional assessment
- All students will participate in at least one extracurricular or co-curricular activity each year.