Sandy Plains
Roundup February 13 - 20, 2015
Administrators' Address
Essential Events
February 25: Awards Assemblies
February 26: NAEP Assessment, Grade 4 only
March 2 - 27: PARCC Assessment Window
April 1: Third marking period ends
April 2 - 12: Spring Vacation
April 13: School Reopens
Kindness, compassion, and empathy continue to be "headliners" in education. Click on the link below to read more about creating a kinder and more compassionate classroom.
The envelopes contain classmate-to-classmate kindness comments! Wow!
Who's Got the S - P - I - R - I - T ?
BCPS Bytes
598. 2015 BULLYING PREVENTION WEEK
The Superintendent’s Student Advisory Council's third annual Team BCPS Bullying Prevention Week is planned for March 2 - 6, 2015. The student advisory council understands the significance of this issue in BCPS schools and wants to use their voices to create a culture in every school and community that will not support or tolerate bullying. The group has also worked closely with BCPS-TV to produce a video to kick-off the week, and developed the attached suggested activity list for schools so that all students can demonstrate their unity around this issue. Additionally, schools will receive stickers and other items for students to wear proudly to show their support for Team BCPS Bullying Prevention Week. These items will be in schools by Friday, February 27.
Questions regarding this information should be directed to the following individual(s):
Nora Murray, Program Specialist 4329 x352
608. LIFE INSURANCE ENROLLMENT OPPORTUNITY – OPTIONAL LIFE AND PERSONAL ACCIDENT INSURANCE (PAI)
A special life insurance enrollment period will run from Monday, February 23 through Monday, March 16, 2015. Employees will be able to increase their optional life insurance as well as their PAI during this special enrollment period with Prudential Life Insurance. Enrollment can be completed online or by telephone. Paper applications will not be accepted.
Under this plan, employees may enroll in important life insurance coverage for themselves, as well as for their eligible spouse or domestic partner and children. Any coverage elected during this enrollment period will have an effective date of Friday, May 1, 2015. Note that, for coverage to become effective, employees must be in an active pay status on Friday, May 1, 2015. If employees apply for an amount that
Employees may purchase optional life coverage in levels of one to ten times their annual earnings up to a maximum coverage amount of $1,000,000. Without answering health questions, employees may elect to increase their current coverage by one times their annual earnings, up to four times their earnings or $500,000. If employees choose to elect more than one times their annual earnings, or if they were previously declined or waived optional life coverage, they will be required to answer health questions. If employees elect to purchase or increase optional dependent life coverage for their spouse or domestic partner, they will be required to answer health questions. If employees elect to purchase or increase optional personal accident insurance for themselves and their family, no health questions are required.
Not sure how much coverage to enroll for? Once employees enter the enrollment Web site at http://www.prudential.com/EZLifeNeeds, they can utilize an easy-to-use Needs Calculator to help determine how much coverage is right for them.
To enroll for coverage, employees should first review and confirm their personal information. Once confirmed, enrollment for coverage may occur. At the completion of enrollment, employees will have the opportunity to obtain a summary of elections.
For assistance, call 855-201-8256 to speak with a Prudential Service Representative who can review coverage amounts and costs, help evaluate coverage needs, and provide enrollment over the phone. Enrollment ends Monday, March 16, 2015, at midnight.
Questions regarding this information should be directed to the following individual(s):
James Aldon, Supervisor 8948
610. E-MAIL SPAM MESSAGE: COMPROMISED BCPS ACCOUNTS
A recent phishing attempt was made through a spam message that infiltrated the BCPS e-mail system. Any BCPS user that receives this e-mail should delete it immediately. All enterprise-level precautions have been taken by the Department of Information Technology to try and limit any potential impacts that this phishing attempt may cause. Although the method of this phishing activity may change over time, staff should implement these e-mail best practices:
Do not open any unexpected attachments or e-mails sent by unknown parties.
Do not click on any links within e-mails that are unexpected or sent by unknown parties.
Do not "unsubscribe" from an unexpected e-mail by clicking links or sending e-mails to addresses indicated within an e-mail.
Ensure that the anti-virus application on your computer is a current version and updated with the most recent definitions before opening any attachment.
Do not include any sensitive or confidential information in e-mails.
Remember that BCPS will never ask users for their username or password within an e-mail.
For any BCPS user that has already accessed the link within this e-mail and provided their username and password, their credentials may have been compromised. These users should IMMEDIATELY reset their passwords. Any users that are concerned, a password can be changed at any time.
If you have any questions or inquiries, the Technology Help Desk technicians can be reached Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 410-887-4672.
Instructions for changing your password are below:
From a BCPS computer at work, press CTRL+ALT+DEL and a menu will appear. Click Change Password. Enter the old password, the new password, and confirm the new password. Click submit (or the little blue arrow) and the password will be changed.
From a computer at home, open Outlook at http://email.bcps.org and log in. Once logged in, click on the Options button in the upper right and choose Change Your Password. Enter the old password, the new password, confirm the new password, and click on Save. The password should be changed in approximately one hour through BCPS.
Questions regarding this information should be directed to the following individual(s):
Jodi Obenstine, Director 3858 x427
BOARD OF EDUCATION RULE 2370, CONDUCT
At the February 3, 2015, meeting, the Board of Education approved the deletion of Policy 2370. The policy has been removed from the BCPS Web site.
Questions regarding this information should be directed to the following individual(s):
Dale R. Rauenzahn, Executive Director 4360
BOARD OF EDUCATION POLICY AND SUPERINTENDENT'S RULE 4203, ABSENCES AND LEAVES
At the February 3, 2015, meeting, Board of Education Policy 4203 was presented to the Board of Education. The policy was revised to (1) include guidelines that require the superintendent to establish and monitor the school system’s employee absence and leave of absence system; (2) clarify that requests for leaves of absence greater than 90 days are subject to approval by the board; and (3) comply with the Policy Review Committee’s editing conventions. The policy is now available on the BCPS Website at http://www.bcps.org/system/policies_rules/policies/4000Series/POL4203.pdf.
Superintendent's Rule 4203 was also presented to the board as an information item. It was revised to reflect procedures for defining the types of leaves available to employees, outline eligibility guidelines, and provide instructions for applying for leave. The Superintendent's rule is now posted on BCPS' Web site at http://www.bcps.org/system/policies_rules/rules/4000Series/RULE4203.pdf.
Questions regarding this information should be directed to the following individual(s):
James Aldon, Supervisor 8948