JCS Staff Newsletter

By Indian Trail 6th-grader Riley Tharpe

Our winter break is just around the corner and I hope you enjoy an opportunity over the holidays to spend time with friends and family. This time of year as we remember our blessings, I was reminded while watching some of our students participate in Saturday’s parade how fortunate we are to live and work in this community. Whether it’s JROTC, the fine arts, athletics, or any number of afterschool programs, the City of Johnson City and Johnson City Schools provides many worthwhile and enriching moments for children. With the hard work and dedication of so many, we provide students in Johnson City with a world-class education. Because of you, students feel welcome and safe as we continue to significantly impact their lives. I greatly appreciate all that you have done and will do on behalf of our students and wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Sincerely,

Steve Barnett, Ed.D.

Superintendent

December 11 (7 pm) & December 12 (3 pm) - Science Hill Showstoppers "Much Ado About Nothing" Click here for more information

December 17 is a half-day for students

December 17 - January 3 - Winter Break

January 17 - Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Holiday)

We wanted to take some time to recognize and thank our food service workers. Thank you for taking care of our students. If you see one of your food service workers in school, take a moment to thank them. Here is an inspiring read called Elegy For A School by Silas House.

The Johnson City Board of Education is embarking on the development of the most recent 5-year plan by establishing subcommittees to formulate strategies and objectives for their district goals. This plan will serve as a guiding document for the Board and the district over the next five years. The Board is seeking community participation and requests people who are interested in serving on a subcommittee complete an interest form for consideration. Click here to fill out the subcommittee interest form.

Announcements

• For those staff that submit timesheets, please make sure you submit your timesheet before leaving for the Holiday Break on December 17th.

• 2022 Health Insurance Rates will take effect on the 1/5/22 paycheck. Most will see a slight increase in rates. Those on Employee + Spouse coverage will see a larger increase than others. The 2022 Rates can be found at jcschools.org under Finance/Insurance or by clicking here.
• *Rates listed at tn.gov/partnersforhealth are the full Premium charged by the State of TN. JC Schools covers 70% of the cost.

• Any changes made to Medical, Dental, or voluntary benefits during Open Enrollment will take effect 1/1/2022. Your premiums will change with the 1/5/22 paycheck.

Johnson City Schools is hiring custodians, Educare assistants, and instructional assistants. Current job postings can be viewed at www.jcschools.org/jobs. Johnson City Transit is in need of bus drivers. Please visit this page for more information about open Bus Driver positions.

1. Think before you click - Avoid clicking on strange-looking links or opening unexpected files.
2. When in doubt, throw it out – Avoid opening emails from strangers.
3. Passphrase it – Create and use strong passphrases – a passphrase is a long password (14+ characters) that is easy to remember.
4. Confirm you are you – Use any additional confirmation tools available to protect your accounts (Two-factor or multi-factor authentication).
5. Secure your home WiFi – Make sure you have a strong password or passphrase on your home WiFi router.
6. Update your tech – Make sure devices, software, and web browsers are up to date by turning on automatic updates.
7. Know what you’ve got and where it is – Make sure you know where your physical equipment is at all times and know how to “untrust” lost equipment.

Published by Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) with permission to copy

TLC has great news to share about the Learning Stream PD software program implemented in July 2021. We've had 173 sessions uploaded, 3,172 registrations submitted, and 2,190 PDP certificates issued so far this year. I'd love to hear any feedback you have regarding your experiences using the new software, and I'll continue to make improvements where necessary.

During this transition period, please remember to register for your trainings if you would like to earn PDPs for your attendance. You may register until 11:45 p.m. the same day of the training in your PD account. Keep in mind that evaluations are required to be completed to receive your PDP certificate. Also, check your training records often, upload your certificates to TNCompass immediately, and contact me with any questions about your PD records.

Instructors, please plan ahead for 2022 and submit your upcoming trainings via the JCS New Training Request Form on our Professional Learning web page. Advance preparation will help me greatly manage my time and ensure all trainings are available online especially as district in-service days approach this spring. You may send me your attendance sheets or take attendance in your instructor accounts. If you are registered as a student in any trainings you instruct, please contact me to remove you from the course.

Visit our Professional Learning department web page to find out how to order die-cuts and classroom resources from The Learning Center. Contact Tracey Coffey with any questions at coffeyt@jcschools.org or (423) 434-5218. ~Tracey Coffey, TLC Manager

TLC will be closed over the holiday break. Please check out materials prior to December 15th. We have an extra, free book binder at TLC to give away. Contact me if you would like to keep it at your school. Have a wonderful break!

Bloomz is a two-way communication app that allows teachers, schools, and the district to quickly communicate with families. Parents can receive notifications through the app, e-mail, or text message. Each JCS staff member in grades K-8 has access to a free premium account. All they need to do is use their school e-mail to create an account. If you have any questions or problems with Bloomz, please contact Collin Brooks at BrooksB@jcschools.org.

Bloomz On-Demand Training for Teachers

• Beginning with Bloomz: Teacher Basics

• Beginning with Posts/Announcements/Alerts/Messages

• Beginning with Events, Sign-Ups, and Conferences

• Beginning Parents on Bloomz | More Information
  

The next Johnson City Board of Education meeting will be held on Monday, January 3 starting at 6 pm inside the Board Room at Central Office (100 E. Maple Street). Board meetings can be viewed on the Johnson City Schools' YouTube channel.

Johnson City Schools loves celebrating the accomplishments of our students, staff, and community. If you know of any events, awards, programs, or other compelling stories involving the Johnson City Schools' community, please fill out this form or reach out to Collin Brooks at BrooksB@jcschools.org

We will distribute this newsletter on the Wednesday following the monthly Board of Education meeting. This newsletter will have information from District Departments and other helpful tips. If you have suggestions for content in this newsletter, please send them to Collin Brooks at BrooksB@jcschools.org.