CCSD15 Staff Newsletter
September 30, 2021
SUPERINTENDENT'S OFFICE
A Message from Superintendent Laurie Heinz
Dear District 15 Staff,
It is hard to believe we were together over a month ago being inspired by Manny Scott’s spirited message of hope, doing whatever it takes to get to really know the students with whom you work, and the importance of building trusting relationships teachers and school staff are so adept at doing. I hope his words are still in your hearts and minds as you work with students throughout the year ahead. Thank you for helping to make the opening few months of the 2021-22 school year a success.
Please help me congratulate WRS for earning the National Blue Ribbon Award! What a day we had last Tuesday as we hosted three important leaders at our school and honored a staff that truly loves everything about the work they are doing with and for students. WRS -- you have made us proud. We will be honoring their achievement at our October 13, 2021 Board of Education meeting and in Washington, D.C., on November 4 and 5.
Moving 15 Forward/Beyond Just Boundaries At our September 22 meeting of the Board, we presented an update to our ongoing Beyond Just Boundaries work. If you haven’t had a chance to watch the meeting, please consider doing so here.
Citizen Task Force Launched As part of our continued work with our Moving 15 Forward/Beyond Just Boundaries project, I have launched a citizen task force composed of citizens from across our District. We conducted our first meeting last week and shared a great deal of background information about our District. Our next meeting will focus on educational offerings and will be held on Thursday, October 14.
Many Thanks! #MoreThanEver I want to thank you all for all you do! I know how hard you continue to work during these challenging and continually changing times. Not only have I seen myself just how hard you are working, but I also continue to hear it from others who are just as appreciative as I am -- THANK YOU!
I hope you have a great rest of your week!
BENEFITS
Insurance Enrollment Paperwork Reminder for New Employees
If you are a new CTC or ESPA employee who has not yet returned your insurance enrollment paperwork, please do so at this time. You have 31 days from your start date to enroll. As long as your completed paperwork is returned within that time frame, your coverage will be effective as of your first day of work. Even if you do not wish to enroll in the District’s coverage, you must complete the white card confirming this. Please send all enrollment materials via interoffice mail to “Lea Brianas - Business Dept”.
Annual Federal Notices
Here are the 2021 federal notices and disclosures that we are annually required by law to provide to staff members. These notices do not change your health insurance coverage in any way; they are simply required to be distributed on an annual basis.
Annual Flu Shot (CVS Pharmacy)
The District has partnered with CVS/Caremark as the pharmacy benefit manager for our PPO plans, and is once again offering an easy, convenient way for our PPO-covered employees to receive their flu shots.
PPO Members: Simply bring your Blue Cross Blue Shield card (with the red CVS logo on the back) along with a valid photo ID to any CVS pharmacy to receive your free flu shot. Flu shots are available at every CVS store, every day while the immunizing pharmacist is on duty. DO NOT go to the CVS Minute Clinic as this will result in a cost to you. Be sure to visit the pharmacy instead.
HMO Members: Schedule a visit to your primary care physician's office to receive a flu shot. As the flu vaccine is "preventive care", it will be provided to you with a $0 copay.
Again, ALL EMPLOYEES (PPO, HMO, or not insured through the District) have the opportunity to obtain a free flu vaccine at our 10/12 on-site clinics. We encourage you to take advantage of these free flu vaccine options!
HUMAN RESOURCES
COVID-19 Vaccine Requirement Reminder
In compliance with the Governor’s directives, staff members who have not provided the District their vaccination cards are required to provide the District the results of a negative COVID test on a weekly basis which began on September 19, 2021.
Each building/department has one point person regarding testing and documentation. If you are unsure who your point person is, please ask your building administrator.
Weekly Testing Requirements
Weekly, documentation confirming a negative covid test must be shown to the point person.
Test Results must have your name, the date of the test, type of test and the result.
The documentation will be shown to your building/department point person. Once you show your documentation, it will be noted on a tracking document. There is no need to leave the documentation with the office or turn it in. We will not be collecting and/or maintaining these records.
The administration will review the tracking document each Friday. Administration will follow up with those who are not in compliance.
Home tests will not be accepted at this time.
A variety of places offer walk-in and drive-thru (or mobile) testing for COVID-19. These include:
Primary care providers - contact your primary care provider
Pharmacies, such as CVS and Walgreens – visit websites for more information
IDPH Mobile Testing Sites open to all regardless of symptoms
IDPH has a comprehensive list of testing sites. Please scroll to the bottom of the page to view the map and list.
Fully Vaccinated Individuals
For those who are fully vaccinated and have supplied documentation, you will not be required to test weekly, provided you have submitted your documentation and full vaccination has been verified. If you were informed that you need to submit weekly test results, there may have been an issue with the upload. If that is the case, please reach out to Human Resources and any of our staff will be able to help you get your documentation uploaded and noted on the building's tracking document.
Upcoming Job Fairs!
Please share with friends and families that District 15 will be holding Job Fairs on the following dates -- Come apply onsite!
Dates:
- Monday, November 1, 2021
- Monday, December 13, 2021
- Monday, January 24, 2022
- Monday, March 7, 2022
Location: Palatine Library, 700 N. North Court, Palatine, IL 60067
Time: 12:00pm-3:00pm
We are looking for the following positions:
Bus Drivers - no experience necessary; paid training; free benefits (employee only); pension; paid holidays
Substitute Teachers and Substitute Program Assistants - set your own schedule!
Full time Program Assistants
Office and Library Clericals
Maintenance/Laborers/Custodians
And more!
Please contact Chanell Lopez at lopezc@ccsd15.net or Lori Thum at thuml@ccsd15.net with any questions.
Message from the National Board Certification CEO
Please watch this short video message from Peggy Brookins, NBCT, our president and CEO, in which she expresses her gratitude and shares highlights of ways the National Board will be supporting educators in the year ahead.
Tuition Waivers
COMMUNICATION
Emergency Communications
Not receiving D15 emergency notifications? Or messages from your school?
It's possible your information in Skyward is incorrect, which feeds into our Blackboard system.
Please login to Skyward to update your contact information (email address, cell phone number*, and/or home number).
*If you'd like to receive text messages from D15 and/or your principal:
Log in to Skyward to update your contact information.
Click on "Employee Information."
Then "Personal Information."
From there click "Request Changes" and enter your cell phone number in the "phone 2" field.
EVEN IF YOUR CELL PHONE IS ENTERED IN THE "Phone 1" field, it also must be entered as "phone 2" in order to be recognized as an SMS/text number.
The staff data is updated into our communications system weekly. The changes occur every Tuesday night.
#ProudToBe15
Looking for a new background for your computer or phone? Check out these fun #ProudToBe15 backgrounds!
Paper Shortage
Some of you may be aware that there is a nationwide paper shortage. We ask that you please be mindful of this and only print what it is absolutely imperative.
ED SERVICES
FastBridge Benchmarking
FastBridge Benchmarking is underway! We appreciate your team's hard work and dedication to completing the testing. FastBridge training for reports and progress monitoring will be provided in the coming weeks.
We have trained our Reading Specialists and Interventionists with our new literacy interventions which focus on explicit phonics and decoding instruction. For those students who qualify, Fundations (K-2) can be provided by RCSs and Interventionists and Just Words (3-8) can be provided by RCSs. We have been collaborating with the Multilingual Programs Department on rules for entry into reading intervention.
We are collaborating with Teaching and Learning department to train our interventionists on the options for math interventions and looking at our data to determine who will receive Tier 1+ math intervention.
TEACHING & LEARNING
T&L Times
Make sure to check out the monthly Teaching and Learning newsletter! This newsletter will go out monthly with important updates about teaching and learning so keep an eye out for it. You can read today’s newsletter here.
Pilot Groups
We are excited to share that during the month of September, multiple pilot groups began meeting! Our 6-8 science and 7-8 ELA kicked off their official training this week, with K-5 coming up next. These groups are participating in professional development around our District’s instructional vision along with exploring and implementing pilot materials. These new pilots highlight the importance of having a teacher voice in our materials selections and will help ensure our District provides resources that are meaningful for our students.
Small Group Guidance
Just as a reminder: although there are restrictions around COVID, students are still allowed to meet in small groups. Remember that small groups are fluid and flexible, so you can, and should, adjust the size and participation in your groups as often as needed. As long as students are socially distanced (a minimum of 3 ft), they can meet together to engage in powerful learning!
Online Access to SAVVAS
ALEKS Overview
We had an overview session of ALEKS for teachers on Wednesday, September 15th. We were able to record the session, and you can view it here using the passcode zh3*j7DN.
Community School
This year, District 15 is offering two after-school student programs. The first program is our Extended Day Program. In this program, Teachers may teach groups of up to 15 students after school. After-school sessions are 90 minutes long and will use structured academic programs. The after-school program will start in mid-October. The second program is our Warrior Way Community School Program at Winston Campus Junior High. This program started on September 7. Teachers and other staff may teach a variety of subjects or activities at the Warrior Way Program.
If you are interested in helping our students, working a few hours after school, and earning a few extra dollars (at the contractual rate), please complete this Google form to show your interest in either program. If you have any questions, contact Bart Bates, Supervisor of Community School and After School Programs at BatesB1@ccsd15.net.
ONE-FIVE FOUNDATION
Mini-Grant Application
The one-five Foundation is once again offering an annual mini-grant program open to staff members of District 15. These grants can support a wide range of opportunities for
the students of the District with a focus on programs or technology.
The online application form is available on the one-five Foundation website at https://www.one-five.org/teacher-mini-grants.
Questions regarding the mini-grant process can be directed to Joan Scovic, one-five Foundation Vice-Chair and Mini-Grant Committee Chair, at jscovic@gmail.com or 224-400-8530.
CALENDAR
*The 2021-22 calendar was re-amended at this week’s Board of Education meeting. Our March 15 student non-attendance day was changed to an attendance day due to a change in the scheduling of the Illinois Primary Election. Please click here to see the final version.
October 11 - No School
October 12 - Student Non-attendance Day
October 13 - Board of Education Meeting