Action Items
For Secondary Principals
Important Information about Grades in Canvas
from Curriculum & Instruction
The following information about grades in Canvas needs to be shared with your staff:
1. Official grades are found in Infinite Campus. Grades within Canvas are grades of individual assignments. This information should be shared with teachers, students, and parents. This is what is in the grading policy document – “**Please note, final grades will always be in Infinite Campus. Students and families can monitor assignments in Canvas, but grades should be checked in Infinite Campus.”
2. If a teacher has a year-long course, grades in Canvas will NOT reset at the end of the semester. If a teacher, student, or family member looks at a total grade within Canvas, it will not match infinite campus.
a. Teachers can turn off/hide totals in student grade summary within their Canvas courses. Here is a link to step-sheets demonstrating the process.
An announcement will be shared on Thursday 3/9/22 in Canvas and included in the most recent mobile minutes.
Informational Items
For All Administrators
Participate in Brief Survey, Win $50 Amazon Gift Card
from Communications
Please share with your staff:
You are invited to complete a survey of education professionals working in Kansas City Metro Area public schools, including Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools (KCKPS).
You may access the survey at: https://bit.ly/kcstaffsurvey
As a thank you for your time, when you complete the survey, you can enter a raffle for one of 50 $50 gift cards from Amazon.com.
Your input is important! Answering the survey is an opportunity for KCKPS staff to give district leaders feedback related to factors affecting turnover and working conditions. The results will inform how the district supports you, your colleagues, your community, and ultimately students. Please take a few minutes to share important information about what matters most to you in your job.
Currently, we have received responses from about 10% of KCKPS staff. Our goal is to achieve a 50% response rate. You can see the approximate response rate for the survey by school below.
| School | Responses # | 2021-22 FTE* | Approx Response Rate % |
| Argentine Middle School | 13 | 47 | 28% |
| Arrowhead Middle School | 0 | 36 | 0% |
| Banneker Elementary School | 6 | 24 | 25% |
| Bertram Caruthers Elementary School | 4 | 17 | 24% |
| Bridges Wyandotte Academy | 0 | 14 | 0% |
| Carl B. Bruce Middle School | 1 | 56 | 2% |
| Central Middle School | 4 | 47 | 9% |
| Claude Huyck Elementary School | 4 | 19 | 21% |
| Douglass Elementary School | 2 | 15 | 13% |
| Earl Watson, Jr. Early Childhood Center | 0 | Unknown | Unknown |
| Eisenhower Middle School | 4 | 45 | 9% |
| Emerson Elementary School | 0 | 15 | 0% |
| Eugene Ware Elementary School | 0 | 23 | 0% |
| F. L. Schlagle High School | 4 | 62 | 6% |
| Fairfax Learning Center | 0 | 12 | 0% |
| Frances Willard Elementary School | 5 | 29 | 17% |
| Frank Rushton Elementary School | 0 | 24 | 0% |
| Gloria Willis Middle School | 4 | 41 | 10% |
| Grant Elementary School | 2 | 27 | 7% |
| Hazel Grove Elementary School | 5 | 35 | 14% |
| J. C. Harmon High School | 16 | 83 | 19% |
| John F. Kennedy Elementary School | 0 | 34 | 0% |
| John Fiske Elementary School | 0 | 23 | 0% |
| Juvenile Services Center | 0 | Unknown | Unknown |
| KCK Early Childhood Center | 5 | Unknown | Unknown |
| KVC Academy | 0 | Unknown | Unknown |
| Lindbergh Elementary School | 0 | 18 | 0% |
| Lowell Brune Elementary School | 3 | 32 | 9% |
| M. E. Pearson Elementary School | 3 | 46 | 6% |
| Mark Twain Elementary School | 3 | 19 | 15% |
| McKinley Elementary School | 5 | 22 | 23% |
| Morse Early Childhood Center | 0 | Unknown | Unknown |
| New Chelsea Elementary School | 2 | Unknown | Unknown |
| New Stanley Elementary School | 2 | 27 | 7% |
| Noble Prentis Elementary School | 0 | 14 | 0% |
| North Central Office Early Childhood Center | 0 | Unknown | Unknown |
| Quindaro Elementary School | 1 | 24 | 4% |
| Rosedale Middle School | 4 | 39 | 10% |
| Silver City Elementary School | 3 | 19 | 16% |
| Stony Point North Elementary School | 2 | 30 | 7% |
| Stony Point South Elementary School | 3 | 22 | 14% |
| Sumner Academy of Arts & Science | 2 | 58 | 3% |
| T. A. Edison Elementary School | 1 | 23 | 4% |
| Washington High School | 4 | 76 | 5% |
| Welborn Elementary School | 3 | 37 | 8% |
| West Park Elementary School | 4 | 29 | 14% |
| Whittier Elementary School | 2 | 42 | 5% |
| Wyandotte High School | 6 | 99 | 6% |
| Total | 134 | 1,405 | 10% |
*FTE was pulled from the publicly available Common Core of Data. FTE may not reflect current number of staff in a particular school.
The survey is funded by the Hall Family Foundation, and is being conducted by Bellwether Education Partners, a national non-profit. Completing this survey is voluntary. Responses to this survey will be confidential and will be analyzed in aggregate at the district or school level. No potentially personally identifiable information or individual survey responses will be shared with district administration.
If you have any questions about the survey, you can contact Bonnie O’Keefe at bonnie.okeefe@bellwethereducation.org.
ESOL Course Recommendations
from ESOL
In maintaining a commitment to equity, excellence, and alignment, the Department of ESOL is once again providing course placements aligned to the course offerings that support emergent bilingual students. The ESOL Department has sent recommendations to ESOL teachers based on student’s language proficiency scores to buildings; any changes to the lists are due by March 23, 2022.
Non-Renewal Timeline – Update
from Human ResourcesPlease review the Certified Contract NonRenewals Timeline for the 2021-2022 school year. The timeline will also be posted on the Administrators Guide. Feel free to reach out to Ana Perez-Matthews if you have any questions.
Reminders
Two-Factor Authentication for Email
from TIS
Please share this with your staff:
All district staff are encouraged to enroll in two factor authentication (2FA) for their district email account. This ensures the security of their district email account and prevents any unauthorized access. The directions for enrolling in the 2FA can be found at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ARv3y25eWkq7ZUeOz_21CJp-Kmqbl6LW9dtVnlYiH6Q/edit
If you have any questions or need assistance please contact the help desk. Thank you.
Celebrate National Social Work Month
from Student Services
March is National Social Work Month!
Social Workers are essential in helping students through behavioral health issues that may impact learning. Social Workers at KCKPS play a unique and valuable role in crisis intervention, assessing and treating mental health symptoms, providing suicide assessments, linking families with needed resources and serving as a liaison between the school, home and community agencies.
This month, please take a moment to write a note of thanks, celebrate your social worker(s) at a PD, or leave a small token of appreciation on their desk. KCKPS is seen as a leader in the state for providing mental health supports in schools, and I am so thankful to have these incredible professionals in each building supporting our students.
Thank you!
Angela Dunn, LSCSW
Behavioral Health Coordinator
Kansas City Kansas Public Schools
(913)954-0219NEW Parents-Right-To-Know Letters for LAPSED CERTIFICATION Classroom Teacher Letters
Title I LAPSED Certification
from Federal Programs
A reminder that Federal Program guidelines require buildings receiving Title I funds to notify parents any time their child receives instruction for four weeks or more without a highly qualified teacher in the classroom. This includes situations where a classroom teacher’s CERTIFICATION HAS LAPSED.
A template (English) for these individual classroom situations is located in the Elementary/Middle Title I Schools – Required Documents 21-22 folder in the Federal Programs shared drive or on the KCK Principal Handbook Title I resource page. (The Spanish version will be coming ASAP.)
Any time you are notified of a classroom teacher with an expired or invalid Kansas teaching certificate, you will need to provide a letter to your families. Please provide Bridgette DeSmet with a signed copy on your school letterhead to retain for the 2122 SY compliance report.
As these situations occur during the remainder of 2122 SY, please use these Parents-Right-To-Know templates to inform families of long-term substitutes OR lapsed certifications and provide a signed copy to Bridgette DeSmet. Thanks for your help and let us know if there are questions.
Title I Lapsed Certification Letter PDF
Important Information for Employee Appreciation Week
from Human Resources
The district is hosting an appreciation week for all staff Monday, March 21st – Friday, March 25th. Your assistance is needed to make necessary arrangements for your building/department to make this a week special for your staff.
GENERAL INFORMATION –
When: Monday, March 21st – Friday, March 25th
Overall Theme: KCKPS Spirit (District Spirit and/or School Spirit). All staff are encouraged to wear their school colors/district swag and jeans all throughout the week.
Daily Themes:
Monday – Re-new your buildings with school/district spirit
Tuesday – Re-fresh yourself by focusing on your wellness
Wednesday – Re-lax it’s national chips and salsa day.
Thursday – Re-decorate – Each School/Department will submit a photo showing their best pride
Friday – Re-veal (Building/Department’s activity choice) – Building Administration will plan their own day of celebration for staff
Additional Information on this event:
District BINGO will run Monday, March 21st – Friday, March 25th
Thursday’s Re-decorate contact winner will have Pizza delivered on Friday
Random drawings for each department – all active employees are eligible
Snacks will be delivered to buildings for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
The Communications Department will be sending out multiple emails during Employee Appreciation Week
**Additional details, updates and staff communication will be distributed this week**
DETAILS AND YOUR ACTION NEEDED –
DETAIL – Daily staff snacks will be delivered to each building during the week of Spring Break – Monday, 3/21 (granola bars), Tuesday, 3/22 (fresh fruit), and Wednesday, 3/23 (TBD chips/salsa and/or chips/cheese dip). We are working with Physical properties to ensure this delivery from our Nutritional Services staff is received by the staff working over Spring Break (more information to come on these details).
ADMINISTRATION ACTION NEEDED – before leaving for Spring Break – Plan how you will distribute these snacks to your staff on Monday, 3/21 (granola bars), Tuesday, 3/22 (fresh fruit), and Wednesday, 3/23 (TBD chips/salsa and/or chips/cheese dip).
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DETAIL – On Monday, March 21st, staff will be invited to make posters, decorations, etc. (get creative!) and begin to decorate your buildings. This can be done on a break, plan time, etc. and not made to interfere with instructional time. Please use the supplies that you have in your locations, this is meant to be a no cost activity.
ADMINISTRATION ACTION NEEDED – before leaving for Spring Break – locate the creative space in your building and collect the art supplies that may be used.
ACTION NEEDED ON MONDAY, MARCH 21st – Monday’s all staff communication will state that each building administrator will announce where to find their supplies. Also, you will need to provide instructions to your staff on where to hang their creations and what to hang things with. Plan to provide this communication to your staff on Monday, March 21st.
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DETAIL – A building/department winner will be chosen on Thursday, March 24th for the photo showing the most creative spirit using the art from Monday, staff in building/district spirit and any other spirit decorations the building places in the photo. This photo will be due by Noon on Thursday, March 24th. Details will be provided in a later email regarding how to send your photo.
ACTION NEEDED ON THURSDAY, MARCH 24th – submit your spirit photo (details coming).
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
DETAIL – On Friday, March 25th the activity and/or celebration is up to you! The Central Office is not providing funds for this day, but I know some buildings/departments have a small budget for this. There are many ways to celebrate staff without spending money. If you need assistance in planning, please reach out to Jody Mitchell no later than Thursday, March 10th.
ACTION NEEDED FOR FRIDAY, MARCH 25th – Communicate the activity to your staff in advance and celebrate accordingly.
Please note, there are details that may change, and you will be made aware of any adjustments before leaving for Spring Break. Please email Jody Mitchell or Jared Alexander with any questions or comments.
Sack Lunch Requests
from Nutritional ServicesAs we approach sack lunch and field day season, please direct staff to use the Nutritional Services request form here to order sack lunches or reserve grills. Requests should be submitted 2 weeks in advance to give kitchen staff time to order and prepare the sack lunches. Please make sure student counts for the sack lunches are accurate. Any last minute changes to the student count for the sack lunch should be communicated with the cafeteria manager as soon as possible. Any sack lunches that were ordered but not picked up will be charged to the school building. If you have questions, please see your cafeteria manager or call the Nutritional Services main phone line at (913) 627-3900.
Instructional Technology Support
from Curriculum & Instruction
In an effort to be available to support staff on the use of the Canvas and other instructional technologies, Wendy Elkins is hosting open, drop-in office hours (via zoom) in March. These times occur on most Tuesdays and Thursdays. You can find the exact times and the zoom links on the mobile minutes. If you or your staff needs more personal assistance, they can schedule a time with Wendy Elkins using this Calendly Link. Please share this information with your staff.
NonRenewals Timeline
from Human Resources
Please review the Certified Contract NonRenewals Timeline for the 2021-2022 school year. The timeline will also be posted on the Administrators Guide. Feel free to reach out to Ana Perez-Matthews if you have any questions.
New Staff Intranet Launching Soon/Review of District Forms and Departmental Pages
from Communications
Due to new and ongoing issues with the old intranet system, we are launching a temporary (but more user-friendly and accessible) staff intranet for everyone’s use. The new, temporary intranet will also have a section titled “Administrators’ Corner,” with links to this newsletter’s homepage, admin-only form links, and more.
Before we launch this temporary intranet, however, we need a lot of old data updated or even removed. To start, there is a page that housed a number of all-purpose forms and manuals; if your department handles any of these forms (or used to), please visit this link and send any changes needed to forms or links directly to Mike Keener as soon as you can, as it will help speed along the live launch of this new intranet page. Additionally, let him know about any other content on either the live site (or old intranet) that needs to be edited for inclusion on the new site.
New District Letterhead
from Communications
Please use this letterhead template for district communications.
Spending Cutoff – April 1st
from Purchasing
Click here to view information via PDF about the April 1 spending cutoff.
Electronic Reporting Forms for Injuries and Incidents
From Communications & Marketing
Just a quick reminder that many of the forms you need when it comes to incidents are now electronic.
Student injury forms have now been included to the list.
To find the reporting form for students go to this link: https://form.jotform.com/212366215525047
To make the reporting of workman’s compensation accidents less time consuming, the Supervisors Accident Report is now an electronic form.
Regardless of severity, immediate supervisors & directors are required to report all work-related injuries within 48 hours to Risk Management.
To do so, please use the following link: https://form.jotform.com/212304621025035
The Incident Report helps document any incident involving non employees.
This includes our students, visitors, parents and guardians.
The incident form is to be filled out for a number of situations including: a child is missing, if a student is injured in a way that could require medical attention in the future, police have to be called during an incident, there is a fight, or even to report property damage.
An example of a fight that needs to be recorded- a fight that breaks out that others are around and it may have been recorded. A fight that someone may not realize they are injured immediately but could later on in the day. Fights that do NOT need to be recorded: two kids on the playground hit each other in the arm over a ball.
There may be other incidents that could also require use of this form.
If you have questions about whether an incident falls into this category, please reach out to your IIO.
Here is a link to the Incident Report form: https://kckps.org/incident-report/