Here is a summary of the recent upgrade to our system that we are going to be sharing with families in the coming days/weeks.

1. Our system now has the ability to communicate with more than one parent/guardian per child. Until now, our system only sent robo calls/emails to one guardian per child. This has caused a lot of frustration for families, especially where a child may have multiple parents/guardians in more than one household.
2. Parents/guardians can now CHOOSE how we communicate with them (robo call, email or text) for four "categories" of communication: attendance, general outreach, emergency and school closure/delays. (This will allow a parent to opt out of early-morning robo calls for school delays but still get this information via text or email).
3. Our system now offers parents the option to receive TEXT messages from the District.
   

Parent/guardians or families MUST have a Family Access log-in to choose their communication preferences (Families or parent/guardians can share one log-in for both parents in one household).

Having all families signed-up for Family Access is laying some important groundwork for MORE changes coming down the road as we move to more on-line paperwork and processes to save time, money and paper - and make things more convenient for our families. Stay tuned for more info as things progress!

Compiled by Board Secretary Ioanna Cossack

A Study Session was held and the Board enjoyed a presentation by Dr. Kevin Fleming, author of “(Re)Defining the Goal.” Great conversation followed in regard to providing students with opportunities to explore career choices early, make informed decisions when declaring their college education goal, and to pursue technical skill acquisition and real-world application in tandem with a general education. Dr. Fleming provided the Board with a “Research Brief” that gave some very interesting data about our students and schools.

The District Leadership Team has been working on reviewing and updating the District’s Strategic Initiatives and Belief Statements, and Aaron provided drafts of these to the Board for their review and future discussion/adoption.

School-Based Health Clinic: Assistant Superintendent Iva Scott and representatives from North Mason School District and Peninsula Community Health Services began a discussion about co-locating a Peninsula Community Health clinic on the Mountain View Middle School campus. Dr. Leavell and the Board are very excited about being able to provide a variety of services onsite to improve the overall health of students and their family members. Services would include primary care, counseling, health education and screenings, as well as immunizations and other services.

NEW POLICIES: Three newly revised policies were adopted by the Board this evening. They are attached for your review.

• Policy 3115; Homeless Students: Enrollment Rights and Services
• Policy 2110; Transitional Bilingual Education
• Procedure 2110P; Transitional Bilingual Education
• Policy 1440; Minutes

Good reports were provided to the Board summarizing both staff and student absences for the first half of the school year. The Board realizes that there is a direct correlation between attendance and achievement – this includes not only student attendance but staff as well.

Along with other usual District business on the Consent Agenda, the following overnight field trips were approved for students to participate in competitions: 1) NJROTC will participate in the Regional Drill Championship Competition in Oregon City, OR, March 15-16th; and 2) the BHS Robotics Team will journey to Mt. Vernon, WA, March 1-3rd, for the First Robotics Competition. Do well!

Some of the upcoming events include several school and community concerts and performances at the Performing Arts Center throughout March. A reminder to all - Classified Employees Appreciation Week is coming up the week of March 11-15. Traditionally at the first Board meeting in March, the Board is happy to work with the BPEA and SEIU in honoring those employees who have reached milestones in regard to their length of time working with us.

You can find these reports, other attachments, and more information on the agenda/BoardDocs site

In December, the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction released the newly redesigned state Report Card, which provides data and information about the state’s public schools. This included the release of 2018 graduation rates, which hit an all-time high.

For the fifth year in a row, the 4-year statewide graduation rate has grown, breaking another record according to OSPI. The 4-year graduation rate in the 2017–18 school year was 80.9 percent, an increase of 1.6 percentage points from the previous year.

New School Report Card: The federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) required OSPI to add several additional measures to the state Report Card, including measures about student success, educators, and school expenditures. Report Card now displays information using a consistent format across all measures. In addition, all measures are introduced by guiding questions and contextual information – allowing members of the public to understand each one individually. The site also has the capability to be translated to all languages supported by Google Translate.

Learn more here.

If you know of any students who would be interested in participating, please have them contact:

Kenny Via, Assignment Editor, Q13 NEWS at 206-674-1305 or Via@kcpq.com.

This is not a school function. The student would have to provide his/her own transportation.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2019 Law Day Essay Contest: It is time for the 2019 Law Day Essay Contest, sponsored by the Kitsap County Bar Association! The topic this year is an exciting one, “Free Speech, Free Press, Free Society.” Six cash prizes are awarded, three each in two grade categories:

First Place – $350

Second Place – $250

Third Place – $150

Each year the Kitsap Bar Association has seen a growing number of teachers who assign the Law Day Essay as a classroom assignment. The students and teachers all report an enriching educational experience. The essay topics are being sent three months prior to the due date to allow you sufficient time to incorporate the Contest into your curriculum. Additionally, many winners mention the Essay Contest in their college applications.

All essays must be received by April 19, 2019. Below is a document with the the rules and essay topics.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

BSD Staff Updates Newsletter Issue #6 distributed February 25, 2019.