What's Up @ Wells
2020-2021 Explorer Staff Information
What happens if you or someone you live with has symptoms or a fever?
Health Services Form- Employees fill this out PRIOR to emailing or calling the Health Services Hotline
Can't keep up with all the online trainings??
Helpful Quick Links for Staff
Updated Cleaning Protocols 9.3.20
CFISD Important Read-Only Updates for Teachers from Cheryl- 9/2/20
Staff Discount Code for Yearbook
wells21staff.
Interested in taking Attendance in Zoom?
Staffing Update- 9/2/20
Thank you Team Leaders!
PEAMS- Kate Stoneham
Paras- Sylvia Garza
Kinder- Jeri Adams
1st- Lauren Oakes
2nd: Rachelle Winter
3rd: Kisa Fields
4th: Lauren Bohm
5th Heather Rodermund
Helpful Schoology Guide for Teachers
September Mental Health Minute
Getting to Know You Slide & Photo
Staffing Updates
Thank you ta the 10 staff members that served on our interview panel for our ELAR IS Position! It was difficult with 4 outstanding candidates and we appreciate each persons time and input. Join me in congratulating Tiffany Cheadle who will be starting in her new role soon! I have made a recommendation for her replacement on 2nd grade so we should be a complete staff again next week! We were able to get a couple of interviews in Tuesday after school and we were lucky to find a great match for our 2nd grade team with an experienced teacher. I will announce who it as as soon as HR processes it.
Virtual Meet the Teacher Slides & Checklist
All Staff Must Watch by 8/31
Wells Staff Jacket
If you would like to place an order for the Wells Staff Jacket, please follow this link:
https://www.ishinebydesign.com/products/wells-teacher-jacket?_pos=1&_sid=3dfe2fb72&_ss=r
All orders placed by September 15th will be picked up for you and delivered to your box by the end of September. Any orders after that date will need to be picked up by the staff member ordering them (IShine by Design is located in Fairfield).
Staff Update 8/20/20
Message from Maintenance
We are experiencing an issue throughout the district. Our Maintenance Department has been receiving a number of work orders for sewer backups. When the plumbers clean out the sewer lines they are finding that Clorox wipes are the main culprit. These types of wipes will not dissolve and can cause major problems when flushed down the toilets. Please ask your staff to refrain from flushing anything down the toilets that are not biodegradable.
Thank you for your assistance,
Matt Morgan, MBA, RTSBA
Assistant Superintendent of Facilities & Construction
Staff Training from the School Nurse
Please complete the following trainings before the first day of school (must open in Google Chrome):
- Covid Training for Staff
- Awareness Training
- Epi-pen Administration & Instructions
Once you have completed the training, sign off with Cathy Hensley in the Clinic.
Wells Technology App
Need help setting up your classroom technology?
Follow the link below for instructions and a video!
Campus staff: Opt-in for emergency communication
Dear teachers and campus staff,
During the past couple of days, CFISD has sent out important communication via email and text message. If you did NOT receive text messages from 67587 asking you to check your email, you have not “opted in” to receive emergency text alerts from CFISD. It is important for the 2020-2021 school year that you receive communication by text messaging, as there may be times when email notification arrives outside of normal work hours.
Here are the steps to make sure you receive all future emergency communication from the school district:
- Step 1 of 2: Log in to my.cfisd.net and choose the “Employee Resources” icon. Then choose the “Employee Access Center” icon and log in. Check to see if your personal cell phone number is listed under “Information” in the “Personal Cell Phone” field (see highlighted field in screenshot below). If it is blank or incorrect, click “Update”, enter your cell number, and then choose “Save”.
- Step 2 of 2: Text Y to 67587.
Both of these steps must be completed in order to receive emergency text communication from CFISD.
Sincerely,
CFISD Communication
Online Health & Safety Course Email
Classroom Move-In and Setting Up
Survey Results- Staff and Team Shirts
2020-21 Wells Liaisons and Contacts
*All Staff Survey- open 8/7-8/10*
CFISD Suicide Prevention and Trauma-Informed Care Training
We are excited to implement Kognito At-Risk as the staff training tool for Suicide Prevention and Trauma-Informed Care. Attached is an overview of the Kognito online program and instructions for getting started. The course is located in My Learning and is now available to access. The course title is CFISD Suicide Prevention and Trauma-Informed Care: Kognito At-Risk, and the section number is 35220.
All building employees are required to complete the Kognito training by September 30, 2020. Teachers can take this course off-contract to earn PD hours.
CTE Verification Form
Teachers,
Please fill out this form for CTE verification.
Thank you!
Our family is complete!
Staff Meeting Thurs, Aug 6 at 3:00
I hope you are all well and enjoying your last two weeks before we kick off the 2020-2021 school year! We have had our CFISD Leadership Conference this week, in addition to our admin planning on Monday and a principal meeting. I would like to meet with our staff via zoom, with you on Thursday at 3:00 if you are available. I understand if you cannot attend and I will record the video to send it to you so you can still get the information. I know everyone has lots of questions and is anxiously awaiting more information, so I would like to be able to 1) See your faces! 2) Share with you what I know..."at this time" 3) Hopefully help you feel more prepared with what to expect as we navigate this together.
Meeting URL:
https://cfisd.zoom.us/j/95454639349?pwd=Qk9WcEU0RzAwRk5JZHJNQlM0TU1CZz09
Meeting ID:
954 5463 9349
Password:
945048
Before our meeting, I wanted to bring to your attention several resources that are full of current information and have been available to you. If you have not had the opportunity to read through these documents posted on the CFISD website, I would encourage you to do so.
- CFISD Lead Safely 2020-2021 found on the main website
- Reopening Toolkit (intranet) https://inside.cfisd.net/employee-news/reopening-cfisd-toolkit
- FAQ information found on the main website. This is a MUST for all staff to read and it will be updated periodically by the district. As you read through, I think it will answer a lot of things that you may be wondering about and help you feel more comfortable.
- The e-mail and video that I sent out to parents and staff last week. They can also be found on our school app. The video link is: https://www.wevideo.com/view/1782438896.
We are excited to announce we recommended a teacher for our 3rd grade math/science team and that she accepted! HR is processing her now and we hope she will be able to be announced and join us at the meeting. This means we are fully staffed and will all be back together again next Friday, the 14th! I pray each of you are staying healthy and focused on the positive. During this pandemic, it is so easy to get caught up in negativity with all of the social media, news stories, etc. No doubt this will be one of our most challenging years in education, but it is also an opportunity to make a difference in the lives of students who need structure, love, patience, flexibility, food, a smile, a safe place to go everyday (whether that be learning online or face-to-face), and most of all YOU!
August's Mental Health Minute
CFISD Updates- 7/27/20
Paraeducator Staff Development Website
Our Paraprofessional PD site is now live on the CFISD website. Currently the site can only be accessed through your CFISD account. You will be required to login to Google. Using Chrome will be most effective.
Staff>Professional Learning>Paraeducator Resources>Paraeducator Staff Development
Click “Go to Site Home” (This step should be eliminated soon.)
The direct link is: https://www.cfisd.net/en/staff/professional-learning/paraeducator-resources
Staff Children Shuttling Between Campuses
Campus staff employees interested in applying to have their child/ren (students) shuttled between their work campus and the student’s campus of attendance should say YES to district transportation on all correspondence the district requests.
They must also apply with details as follows:
The Application Form is located on the District Shares Drive in the GLOBAL FOLDER: Global, TRANSPORTATION, 2020-2021 Campus Employee Shuttle Request – follow the directions on the form to send a request:
1) Confirm a DIRECT bus run connection between the requested campuses for regular education. (See DIRECT CONNECTIONS list also on the Global drive.)
2) Complete form with all signatures/dates and forward to my secretary, Ms. Debra McNair @ Debra.McNair@cfisd.net
3) Provide email address - parent will receive notification via email once availability of service has been determined.
4) Sending and receiving principal's approval must be received by Transportation to verify both principal's awareness and agreement with the shuttle.
Due to student load considerations regarding the pandemic, shuttles of this type will begin no sooner than October 1, 2020 and if this criteria is met. Until that time, parents will need to make other arrangements.
- Space availability will be determined after school begins and student loads are leveled
- Route combinations change from year to year; there is no guarantee of ‘connection’ between campuses.
- There must be an existing run available that services the 'direct connection' between requested campuses,
- A routing change is not necessary to accomplish the shuttle,
- ‘Drive by’ service will not be provided; there must be an actual direct connection on the bus run between campuses.(For example, if the bus serves Cy-Fair, Arnold and Lamkin, a connection may be provided from Cy-Fair to Arnold at the completion of the Cy-Fair run. Service between Cy-Fair and Lamkin would not be possible because there is not a direct connection)
- Sufficient space must be available on the bus.
2020-2021 LIaison Application
Gifted and Talented Training—Additional HAC Classes
From Lynlea & Megan- Wells CTE Schoology Course Access
Principal's Update- 7/17/20
I want to keep you updated as much as I can, but the struggle with that is that plans are all in the discussion/draft stage across the board. I can assure you that the district administration and re-opening committee, along with the campus leaders and curriculum Covid Committee (I am on that one!) have been carefully researching and planning with student and staff safety as the top priority. I trust everyone to make the decisions they have to make with the information that they have each day to the best of their ability. It's how CFISD operates every day and can find a lot of comfort in knowing they will have the best version there is during these ongoing challenges.
What I can share with you now is that TEA is driving the decisions and plans since we do have to remain in compliance with the state to receive funding. They are requiring districts to submit plans that meet all the requirements and CFISD leaders have been drafting those plans. Once it is "final" (which we know even final things can change as circumstances change often now) they will be presenting it to principals and then sharing with the public. You can refer to the e-mail the district sent all staff and families last week for the anticipated dates for that.
The district has shared with us that as of Monday, July 20 all employees must report on-site to their job as their contract begins. For now, the contract start date for teachers and paras on campuses has not changed and we will all be back together finally as those dates occur. Everything can be taken with the knowledge that is is "as of now" and subject to change.
Until we have an instructional plan finalized by the district, we are pausing on partnerships and room assignments, as these may be impacted by the instructional options and requirements that we will be given.
If you know of someone amazing that would be interested in our 3rd grade math/science opening, send me their name! I'm looking every day, but as of now we do not have a strong candidate. I have faith that it always works out where we find our match and it typically falls in to place quickly!
Let me know how you are doing and if you need anything. I am sorry I can't give you all the answers now but I hope you can trust it is coming soon and try not to worry about things that are not happening in our district. I know it is hard with all the rumors and natural fears so just have faith knowing if we made it through the spring, we can do this and anything else that comes our way with the support of each other and our CFISD leadership!
I'll be in touch!
Big hugs to you all,
Cheryl
Special-Called Board Meeting Tuesday, 7/21 at noon
ACTION ITEMS A. The Board will consider modifying the 2020-2021 approved instructional calendar to help minimize instructional disruptions and adjust for learning loss in the event of future school closure(s) as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Presenter: Dr. Linda Macias
B. The Board will consider authorizing the superintendent to approve the purchase of desk and tabletop protective dividers through Board approved cooperatives at an amount not to exceed $3.75 million.
Presenters: Matt Morgan, Roy Sprague, Bill Powell
Wells Campus TE Day Update as of 7/17/20
Teacher CTE Options:
My personal thoughts in determining the best option this week was that there is so much out there online already created by content by the district that I do not want teachers have to do an additional 14 hours for CTE in addition to what you will already want to take with Schoology and content area virtual learning training that will support your instruction this year. Teachers will be given a "choice board" for content courses that you can take online that will count towards your CTE hours. One that I recommend everyone take would be the CFISD DLC conference that I shared about in May. It is on our calendar and anyone can join in all day virtually to get more training with Schoology and many other classes. This would count as one of your CTE days and you could do 7 hours of additional content specific or you could do all 14 hours content specific if you don't do the CFISD Digital Learning Conference on Tuesday, 7/28.
Para Teacher Options:
TBD, but it will be virtual and you will have plenty of time to do it before November. Coming soon...
Digital Learning Conference Info- 7/28/20
You do not have to register this year, attendance will be taken at each session. You can review an agenda of presentations here: https://sites.google.com/cfisd.net/cfisddlc/sessions?authuser=0
All 20-21 Wells Staff Please Join The Remind Group ASAP
Digital Learning Conference- let's win!
Good afternoon!
Can you believe it? The Digital Learning Conference is just a few weeks away! The EdTech Team is busy working on creating an exciting, completely virtual event that can be attended by anyone in the district! We have been fortunate to secure some of the top names in EdTech as guest speakers and we hope that you and your teachers will take advantage of this event!
Because of VERY generous donations recently received by our vendors, we are able to purchase robotics kits and other interesting tech tools for schools. We’ve decided that we would hold a contest to distribute the equipment! The campuses by level (ES, MS, HS) with the most attendees will win equipment provided by the incredible vendor donations! Attendees will have to check-in during the online sessions (there will be a link in the presenters’ presentations each hour) and we’ll gather the attendance records through their check-ins! Winners will be notified in early August and equipment will be delivered to your campuses as soon as it arrives in the district.
We’re very excited about this opportunity to provide any teacher or administrator in the district with a full day of online PD and the opportunity to win some new robotics equipment and other neat tech tools for campuses!!!
See you online July 28th!
Staffing Update- July 8
Getting to know the Leadership Team
Cheryl Fisher, Principal
@CyFairCFisher (Twitter)
Suzanne Davies, 1/3/5 Assistant Principal
@SuzanneCFISD (Twitter)
Ann Pruitt, K/2/4 Assistant Principal
Abby Ehlers, Counselor
@abbydehlers
Charlotte Miller, Counselor
@char_miller4
Julie LeCompte, Librarian
@B00Kqueen
Megan Breidenthal, Math/Sci Instructional Specialist
@MBreidenthal
Lynlea Dickerson, ELAR Instructional Specialist
@lynleateaches
Cathy Hensley, Nurse
@Nurse Hensley
Instructional Specialists: Teacher Codes for Google Classrooms
All Kinder, 1st or self contained teachers will need to join BOTH google classrooms:
Lynlea's google classroom ELAR and Self Contained - The code is 4wawbqb
Megan's google classroom- Math/Science and Self Contained. The code is 4wnfp6i
Schoology
Teachers,
Please see the attached document with directions from CFISD regarding getting started with Schoology. This will help you have a better understanding of what it is and what to expect for next year. There is a code specific to Wells, so you can login with that code from the document.
Please let me know if you have any remaining questions after reviewing the video and FAQ’s.
Thank you,
Cheryl
Summer 2020 Professional Development Opportunities
Due to popular demand, additional classes have opened up in the month of June.
Register quickly! Seating will go fast.
Virtual Math Summit 2020
This is the link for an online and FREE math PD that has been shared with us. You will submit a certificate to get off contract PD hours.
Quantum Learning VIRTUAL STYLE!
Greetings!
Special times require special efforts. Join us this summer for Quantum Learning VIRTUAL STYLE via Zoom! These QL sessions will be the best of series, purposeful, condensed, and delivered for relevance, rigor, and relationships. You do not want to miss it!
- This is your summer to see the best of the best! The training is applicable to our current norm and is safe, socially distanced approved.
- Participants will earn 8 off-contract professional development hours for participation in each 2-day learning opportunity, as well as 2 hours of GT credit. Please note that you will need to attend both days of training in order to receive the 2 hours of GT credit.
- Registered participants will receive a Zoom link 3-days prior to the training via CFISD email.
Please click on the attachment to access an informational flyer that includes available sessions.
Don’t miss out! Sign up TODAY!
Productive Math Struggle - Book Study with Megan
This is our book study for the summer and into the fall. It was recommended by both Garland and Laura. I love it and am already nerding out. You will get off contract PD hours for this. Below is an image of the book. The title is "Productive Math Struggle: A 6 6 Point Action Plan for Fostering Perseverance.
Let me know if you have any questions!
Megan
Updated Summer GT Training Opportunities
Please click on the link to take you to the revised listing of GT training opportunities being offered by the Houston Area Coop (HAC) over the summer. Additional sections are also being added to the CFISD courses indicated to accommodate the number of teachers wishing to take these workshops.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fhS-xgZixDkZ0nBC9twbh7Csr0fmq_Rmc2FuepjywFQ/edit?usp=sharing