Conrad/Thomas Jefferson Tribune
WEEK OF AUGUST 19-23, 2019
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP & NORTHWEST GOALS
NORTHWEST VISION, MISSION & GOALS
A MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Illustrious Leaders,
This week was packed with empowering Professional Development from the campuses co-led by both principal and teacher leaders. It was evident how powerful the messages on each campus was. Thank you, principals, for your leadership in ensuring ALL staff had a wonderful week of powerful learning. How about over 600 teachers under one roof for not only to motivate but to provide powerful Professional Development? What a rush to have had such an AMAZING day!
Monday, our halls will be filled with eager and excited scholars whom parents entrust us to educate. In what other profession does someone get the opportunity to positively impact so many lives on a daily basis; the lives of the scholars who will be our future leaders of tomorrow?
Please be reminded that on day one ALL teachers are expected to teach Good First Instruction. No testing should occur other than BOY Reading Assessment/Inventory. Data points used for RTI and small group instruction should be the STAAR and Terra Nova/Supera as your starting data points.
Reminder that campus enrollment counts from August 19th to September 6th should be verified by the principal by 9:30 a.m. Please ensure that you follow the attendance plan you provided so that your campus and our cluster has accurate counts each day. Take time to read the procedures for enrollment counts that you were provided.
Additionally, you and your staff's action and interactions on day one will impact the expectations and perceptions of the culture for your campuses and set the tone for the remainder of the year. What will be the perception? What type of experience will your campus provide our customers? Ensure systems are in place to address common questions and concerns associated with the first day/week of school. Customer service is key; keep in mind 'THE CORE FOUR.'
Each of you have the knowledge, skills and power to lead your campuses to great SUCCESS. this year!
Every child deserves to be a CHAMPION and to become who they want to be. As adults, we are the ones who can make or break their spirits. As leaders, what type of exemplar will you be for your staff? Teachers for our scholars? Staff for our Learning Community? Be that Leader who makes the difference and begins with day #1!
Here's to a STRONG start to the new academic year! When you start STRONG, you finish STRONG!
Excellence and Equity for ALL Scholars! WE ARE IN IT TO WIN IT...GO FOR THE GOLD!!
Ms. Torres
Emmett Conrad/Thomas Jefferson Executive Director
WEEKLY UPDATES
MONDAY, AUGUST 19
First Day of School
Campus Visits w/ED & ILCs
Attendance taken and input into system by no later than 9:45 (warm bodies)
TUESDAY, AUGUST 20
- Campus Visits w/ED & ILCs
- Drop no Shows
- Attendance taken and input into system by no later than 9:45
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 21
- HAPPY BIRTHDAY MRS. DE LA GUARDIA!
- Campus Visits w/ED & ILCs
- Attendance taken and input into system by no later than 9:45
THURSDAY, AUGUST 22
- Campus Visits w/ED & ILCs
- Attendance taken and input into system by no later than 9:45
- Campus Visits w/ED & ILCs
- Attendance taken and input into system by no later than 9:45
- ILC -Just in Time Training
United To Learn Presents Gretchen Bernabei and Jan Richardson
Welcome Back Jefferson and Conrad Cluster
TEACHER 'KICK OFF'
David G. Burnet
It is a strong commitment that goes beyond the conversation about what exemplary customer service looks like to become the norm for the way we operate in the district and in the Conrad/Thomas Jefferson Elementary Cluster daily.
This edition of the Tribune will focus on one 'EXCEPTIONAL SUPPORT STAFF' Congratulations to the Office Manager, Ms. Bonds at Burnet Elementary and for ALWAYS displaying the Core 4. Ms. Bonds is always wearing a smile from ear to ear just like in her photo above and takes pride in her job. She went out of her way to assist all Office Managers under a stressful situation revising and getting the PO's submitted for The Leader in Me. Thank you, Ms. Bonds, for being a leader in our Cluster of Office Managers! I appreciate you! The Burnet Learning Community is very lucky to have such an amazing staff member on their team!
THANK YOU MS. BONDS! WE APPRECIATE AND SALUTE YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE TO OUR CLUSTER!
MARSHALL MEMO #746
Effective Teacher Coaching
Effective Teacher Coaching
The failure of traditional PD programming to improve instruction and achievement has generated calls for research to identify specific conditions under which PD programs might produce more favorable outcomes,” say Matthew Kraft and Dylan Hogan (Brown University) and David Blazar (University of Maryland) in this Review of Educational Research article. They summarize a growing consensus that effective professional development needs to be job-embedded, intense, sustained, focused on discrete skills, and actively involve educators. Given these desiderata, teacher coaching would seem to be a promising avenue for improving instructors’ knowledge and classroom skills, hence boosting student achievement.
Kraft, Hogan, and Blazar report on their meta-analysis of 60 studies of teacher coaching, finding average effect sizes of 0.49 standard deviations on classroom instruction and 0.18 standard deviations on student achievement. These impact figures compare favorably to almost all other forms of professional development and schoolwide interventions. Although coaching is expensive (one estimate is $3,300 to $5,200 per teacher), if support is focused on the teachers most in need of improvement, the authors believe it’s more cost-effective than providing conventional PD to all teachers.
However, the researchers noticed that the impact of coaching was much more positive in initiatives with around 50 teachers, a small number of coaches, and teachers volunteering to take part. Larger-scale initiatives – 100 or more teachers, more coaches, and teachers with mixed levels of interest – had much less impact. Kraft, Hogan, and Blazar note two key considerations in taking coaching to scale:
• The quality of coaching – Building a corps of capable coaches whose expertise is well matched to the diverse needs of teachers in the school or district is essential. Some districts recruit highly effective local teachers as coaches, which can subtract from the amount of good teaching in classrooms. One solution is to make coaching only part-time. Pairing teachers with different strengths and weaknesses and encouraging them to coach each other is a promising strategy. Some districts are adding coaching to the evaluation duties of administrators, but this can undercut the trusting relationship necessary for coaching to be successful and may also result in infrequent and superficial coaching if evaluators aren’t trained and supported. Web-based virtual coaching using video technology can maximize the impact of high-quality coaches and cut down on travel time and expense; surprisingly, studies have found little difference in the impact of virtual and in-person coaching.
• Teacher buy-in – “No matter the expertise or enthusiasm of a coach,” say Kraft, Hogan, and Blazar, “coaching is unlikely to impact instructional practice if the teachers themselves are not invested in the coaching process… Coaching requires teachers to be willing to open themselves to critique and recognize personal weaknesses. This openness on the part of teachers is facilitated both by a school culture committed to continuous improvement and by strong relational trust among administrators and staff members.”
HIRING REMINDER
CVS Project Health ~ Now through September 12th
As part of CVS Health’s commitment to building healthier communities across the country, they are expanding their free health and wellness screening campaign in Texas. Project Health provides access to care in multicultural communities with a large number of uninsured or underinsured Americans. The screenings will take place at select CVS Pharmacy locations throughout Texas beginning Thursday, September 12.
STUDENT TRANSFERS
FALL LEVELING
COMPLIANCE VIDEOS
The window for both the annual policy acknowledgement and the compliance training videos, will open on September 3, 2019. October 31, 2019 is the deadline to complete both the annual policy acknowledgement and the compliance training. See the WAIP 08/01/19.
2019-2020 ADJUSTED BELL SCHEDULES
Future Important Dates to Remember
MAPS Training.... Please resgister NOW!!!!!
BENCHMARK ASSESSMENT SYSTEM (K-2)
SWAG NIGHTS (K-5) & Specials Teachers
SWAG SPECIALIST TEAM LEADS
TRANSPORTATION UPDATES
Teaching Trust Summer Intensive
OPEN INNOVATION ENGINE GRANT OPPORTUNITY
The Innovation Engine is DISD's newest grant opportunity for neighborhood schools to submit an application for an opportunity to receive an award of $50,000 to implement an innovative program or initiative.
Cycle One Timeline-2019-2020 School Year:
• July 17-September 6: Application window open
• July-August: Three optional information sessions available (sign-up here)
• September 6: Proposals due by 11 :59 p.m.
• September 9-13: Grantees selected and announced
• September 27: Grant funds released
• October-May: Grantees receive implementation support
Resources:
• Review the WAIP 7/18/2019 for more info
• Review application materials and more information at bit.ly/ieqrantprogram.
• Submit applications by 11:59 p.m. on September 6th to choice@dallasisd.org with the subject line "Innovation Engine Application - <Your School Name>".
For questions or to learn more, contact OTI Strategic Development Manager, Courtney Rogers, at corogers@dallasisd.org or 972-925-3778
* I HAVE PAPER COPIES FOR EACH OF YOU IF INTERSTED!
NEW BILINGUAL STIPEND PD ASSIGNMENTS
ALL IN LEARNING
New Items and Features to the All in Learning platform:
Make sure to include the All in Learning platform in the campus budget to access awesome and efficient new features! NOTE: To access Challenge boards and Exit tickets - click "Activate" and the kids use their 'clicker' to answer ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- NOTE: To access Challenge boards and Exit tickets - click "Activate" and the kids use their 'clicker' to answer
New Items and Features to the All in Learning platform:
UNITED TO LEARN
Learning Launch 2019! Accelerate Student Achievement!
Please consider joining in to assist in accelerating student achievement by supporting United to Learn’s 3rd annual Learning Launch through August 16th. Learning Launch is not your typical back-to-school drive. This initiative provides teacher-requested resources for rigorous instruction. You can help fulfill personalized requests for teachers in our neighborhood Dallas ISD elementary schools – where 90% of students qualify for free and reduced lunch.
Three ways you can help:
1) Make a Cash Donation. When you make a cash donation, United to Learn will purchase teachers’ highest-need items.
2) Shop Online for Classroom Resources. Select items from the Top Classroom Needs list or by your neighborhood school.
3) Buy Classroom Resources In-store and Drop Off. Shop local retailers
(Barnes and Noble, Office Depot, and Lakeshore Learning) from the Top Classroom Needs list and drop them off at the United to Learn office on weekdays between 9:00am - 4:00pm:
5310 Harvest Hill Road Suite 190
Dallas, Texas 75230
Thank you for considering! Better tools for teachers means greater learning for students!
Math ILC COrner
FALL 2019 TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES
Oracle Finance Systems and Payroll classes are also available. ATS is now offering a new Open Lab for iExpense. The attached schedule of classes is on our website at: https://www.dallasisd.org/ATS.
See the WAIP 7/18/2019 for more information
EXTRACURRICULAR CALCULATIONS FOR SPF
IMPORTANT LINKS TO READ
SEPTEMBER
3-Compliance Videos for all campus and central staff
14-Entire Northwest Network Community Event-ALL Principal/AP's and staff are expected to attend @ Conrad-details to follow soon
26-United 2 Learn-Network Meeting
OCTOBER
3-Network Day
31-Last day to take and pass Compliance Videos
NOVEMBER
7-Network Day
JANUARY, 2020
9-Network Day
FEBRUARY
27-Network Day
APRIL
16-Network Day
JUNE
4-Network Day
10-Principal Luncheon
EMMETT J. CONRAD/THOMAS JEFFERSON SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
- Jack Lowe Elementary: Principal, Sandra Barrios
- Jill Stone : Principal, Rosalinda Pratt
- Highland Meadows: Principal, JoAnna Bahena
- David G. Burnet Elementary: Principal, Sonia Loskot
- Leonides Cigarroa Elementary : Principal, Douglas Burak
- Tom W. Field Elementary: Principal, Selena Deboskie
- Stephen C. Foster Elementary: Principal, Irma De La Guardia
- Joe May Elementary: Principal, Israel Rivera
- K.B. Polk Elementary: Principal, Kourtnei Billups
- Julian T. Saldivar: Principal, Edgar Jaramillo
- Walnut Hill Elementary: Principal, Phillip Potter
- McShan Elementary: Principal, Cecilia Criner