Administrators' Notice

Diversity & Inclusion

As we return to the classrooms, we cannot forget the various levels of trauma that students and staff are experiencing. In addition to the nuanced trauma that is being experienced as a direct result of the pandemic, the recent and recurring hate crimes against very specific communities add another layer of trauma. It is vital that we validate the fear and many other feelings that families, students and staff are experiencing. The recent hate crimes on the Asian American/Pacific Islander community is another moment that spreads the message to a community that they are not wanted. It is important for us to have deep relationships while also having courageous conversations that challenge deeply held ideology which makes dehumanization and devaluation acceptable. 

Here are two articles that explore first-hand accounts of Asian American families with students and how they are navigating school reopening, their health and well-being, and how they are being targeted.
Amid attacks, school principals concerned over Asian Americans’ return to class

As schools reopen, Asian American students are missing from classrooms

Purchasing

THE DEADLINE FOR ENCUMBERING FUNDS FOR FY 2020-21 SATURDAY, APRIL 10, 2021 This means all funds to be spent from the current year budgets (including grants, fees, etc.) must be ENCUMBERED in BusinessPLUS and submitted to Workflow on or before 11:59pm on April 10, 2021. Please note the following:

1. All requisitions to cover expenses that will occur during the months of April and May must be entered as a “B” type (Blanket) requisition. You are to estimate what will be spent for those months and enter a requisition for each vendor from which you anticipate making a purchase.You must do this not only for supplies, but also for any services, equipment, or furniture purchases. Remember, the goods or services that you purchase must match the purpose of the budget line. You must buy supplies with a supplies object code (56100). You cannot buy equipment (57300) or furniture (57330) with a supply (56100) object code.

2. All funds encumbered under PO’s that are not PAID on or before June 15, 2021 will be disencumbered, and funds will return to the District to use for districtwide projects.

a.“Paid” means that a check has been printed and mailed by Accounts Payable, receiving a PO in BusinessPLUS (POUPRC) DOES NOT pay an invoice. Please review the status of all open POs in your budget regularly to ensure invoices are received so payment can be made no later than the last board meeting in May.
THE LAST DAY TO SUBMIT INVOICES TO AP FOR PAYMENT WILL BE JUNE 15, 2021 (NOON)!
If invoices are not received, it is the responsibility of the school/department to contact the vendor to get the invoice to AP before the June 15 deadline.

b.In past years, several schools/departments waited to order items from POs until close to the PO cancelation date. As a result, items were shipped late, items were backordered, or invoices were not received timely to meet the payment deadline. It is the responsibility of the school/department to ensure items are ordered timely to meet the deadline. Invoices coming after June 15, will need to be paid from the school/department 2021-22 budget.

3. Any expenditures to be made between April 10 and the end of the school year MUST be encumbered before April 1st. This includes travel, transportation, services, mileage, etc.

4. Storeroom and Print Shop orders must be placed by April 10, if you wish to use current year funds.

5.Estimates of salary costs (other than staff regular pay) to be paid between the deadline and the end of the school year MUST be estimated on or before the deadline. While salary costs cannot be encumbered via PO, you MUST email Brad Isnard with details of the name of the person, the date the work will be performed, the estimated cost and the account number the costs are to be charged to. Email must be received in Brad’s office on or before the deadline.

a.Once the work is performed, timesheets must be submitted within one pay period of the work was performed, but no later than on or before June 15, 2021.
b.Please recall that for the timesheets to be paid, the work MUST be submitted to HR for approval through Board. This information will need to be sent to HR on or before the deadline also.
c.Any salary costs not meeting these requirements will be charged to the school/department 2021-22 budget.

6.Professional Development subs, please email Melissa Shields the information to encumber funds for subs.

a.The name of the teacher requiring a sub
b.The date the sub is used
c. What budget is to be used

7.Visa Usage

a.VISA purchases in June will come from next years’ funds. Enter a requisition by April 1 for as much as your budget allows for spending on VISA in your supply funds for April-May spend needs. Please code to the appropriate budgets as best you know today.
b.All reconciliations (Envelopes) must be turned in by June 15c.June spending will be coming out of your FY 2021-22 budget

8.Closing Purchase Orders

a.All December issued PO’s will close April 13
b.All January issued PO’s will close May 3
c.All February issued PO’s will close June 2
d.All PO’s issued after March 1 will stay open for invoices paid on the June 22nd Board

9.Planning deliveries

a.All delivery of product must happen in time for you to also have invoices created on the schedule above. Plan accordingly.
b.Staples will create backorders for items not in stock. This could delay the invoicing of your shipment. As you follow your orders, if you find an item is not delivering, contact Staples for an update. If delayed, we suggest you cancel that item/s so the rest of the shipment can bill. You can always place another order after July 1.
c.Staples bills for weekly deliveries over the weekend. To hit our timeline, you should place your last orders with Staples by May 28th (at the latest), to deliver and bill in time.

Special Education

Human Resources

Purchasing

THE DEADLINE FOR ENCUMBERING FUNDS FOR FY 2020-21 SATURDAY, APRIL 10, 2021 This means all funds to be spent from the current year budgets (including grants, fees, etc.) must be ENCUMBERED in BusinessPLUS and submitted to Workflow on or before 11:59pm on April 10, 2021. Please note the following:

1. All requisitions to cover expenses that will occur during the months of April and May must be entered as a “B” type (Blanket) requisition. You are to estimate what will be spent for those months and enter a requisition for each vendor from which you anticipate making a purchase.You must do this not only for supplies, but also for any services, equipment, or furniture purchases. Remember, the goods or services that you purchase must match the purpose of the budget line. You must buy supplies with a supplies object code (56100). You cannot buy equipment (57300) or furniture (57330) with a supply (56100) object code.

2. All funds encumbered under PO’s that are not PAID on or before June 15, 2021 will be disencumbered, and funds will return to the District to use for districtwide projects.

a.“Paid” means that a check has been printed and mailed by Accounts Payable, receiving a PO in BusinessPLUS (POUPRC) DOES NOT pay an invoice. Please review the status of all open POs in your budget regularly to ensure invoices are received so payment can be made no later than the last board meeting in May.
THE LAST DAY TO SUBMIT INVOICES TO AP FOR PAYMENT WILL BE JUNE 15, 2021 (NOON)!
If invoices are not received, it is the responsibility of the school/department to contact the vendor to get the invoice to AP before the June 15 deadline.

b.In past years, several schools/departments waited to order items from POs until close to the PO cancelation date. As a result, items were shipped late, items were backordered, or invoices were not received timely to meet the payment deadline. It is the responsibility of the school/department to ensure items are ordered timely to meet the deadline. Invoices coming after June 15, will need to be paid from the school/department 2021-22 budget.

3. Any expenditures to be made between April 10 and the end of the school year MUST be encumbered before April 1st. This includes travel, transportation, services, mileage, etc.

4. Storeroom and Print Shop orders must be placed by April 10, if you wish to use current year funds.

5.Estimates of salary costs (other than staff regular pay) to be paid between the deadline and the end of the school year MUST be estimated on or before the deadline. While salary costs cannot be encumbered via PO, you MUST email Brad Isnard with details of the name of the person, the date the work will be performed, the estimated cost and the account number the costs are to be charged to. Email must be received in Brad’s office on or before the deadline.

a.Once the work is performed, timesheets must be submitted within one pay period of the work was performed, but no later than on or before June 15, 2021.
b.Please recall that for the timesheets to be paid, the work MUST be submitted to HR for approval through Board. This information will need to be sent to HR on or before the deadline also.
c.Any salary costs not meeting these requirements will be charged to the school/department 2021-22 budget.

6.Professional Development subs, please email Melissa Shields the information to encumber funds for subs.

a.The name of the teacher requiring a sub
b.The date the sub is used
c. What budget is to be used

7.Visa Usage

a.VISA purchases in June will come from next years’ funds. Enter a requisition by April 1 for as much as your budget allows for spending on VISA in your supply funds for April-May spend needs. Please code to the appropriate budgets as best you know today.
b.All reconciliations (Envelopes) must be turned in by June 15c.June spending will be coming out of your FY 2021-22 budget

8.Closing Purchase Orders

a.All December issued PO’s will close April 13
b.All January issued PO’s will close May 3
c.All February issued PO’s will close June 2
d.All PO’s issued after March 1 will stay open for invoices paid on the June 22nd Board

9.Planning deliveries

a.All delivery of product must happen in time for you to also have invoices created on the schedule above. Plan accordingly.
b.Staples will create backorders for items not in stock. This could delay the invoicing of your shipment. As you follow your orders, if you find an item is not delivering, contact Staples for an update. If delayed, we suggest you cancel that item/s so the rest of the shipment can bill. You can always place another order after July 1.
c.Staples bills for weekly deliveries over the weekend. To hit our timeline, you should place your last orders with Staples by May 28th (at the latest), to deliver and bill in time.

DERA

As a reminder, all SC codes for KELPA are due to Samantha by Tuesday, 3/23.  They must be entered on that day to be accepted by the state.  The link to the opt-out form is here –https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdiTk1q92p3ICoVaaJYjKyKN993XlC9d8Q95iUUqjpqPxK3RQ/viewform

Families can either complete this form via this link, or you can complete it on their behalf if you have had contact with them.  As a reminder, a Spanish form is also available for families who might need it – please email Ben if you need it resent, or see Ben’s email from 2/4.  Please be sure to enter your name at the bottom of the form if you complete it on behalf of a family.

Diversity & Inclusion

March Building Rep Meeting Recap

Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning we met with your equity and inclusion building reps. We used two protocols, a full articlebased protocol and a quotes based protocol. These are great protocols to use with staff, groups of 4-7 seem to be ideal, to allow equity of voice and to be able to build and deeply reflect on what others are sharing. The instructions for how to use each protocol are in the attached slideshows. You can find more detailed notes about our discussion here.

April Building Rep Meeting Agenda and Dates

With all of us heading back to buildings, April will be an asynchronous activity on physiologically safe spaces. We will also hold open “office hours” for a check in with all reps when they are available.

Dates and times of open office hours:

Monday, April 12, 2021from 3 – 5 pm
Tuesday, April 13,  2021 from 7 – 9 am
zoom link- https://zoom.us/j/4966668660?pwd=Z0FjbDlXOGIzTEpPV3ZoZ1JTNks1QT09

Asynchronous activity instructions:

Watch this video: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/kckssp2/1

• Start at 41:30, stop at 1:07:22 (we’ll watch the second half, 1:07:23-1:40:52, for May’s meeting, feel free to watch her whole segment now though, it’s perfect timing for reentry and the conversations that we are wanting to embark on)

• Post your new learnings thoughts and ideas on this padlet. Everyone please post at least once and comment on at least one person’s post (you know how this works, think college discussion style, but there is no word minimum or maximum)

What We…

• are reading: Why are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria by Beverly Daniel Tatum

• are watching: Oprah’s Interview with Harry and Meghan

• are listening to: Small Things Often from the Gottman Institute

Women’s History Month

This was shared with principals to share with staff:

Women’s History Month has been observed nationally since 1987. It began in 1978 by a school district in California as a weeklong celebration of women’s contributions. In 1980, President Carter issued the first presidential proclamation declaring the week of March 8th as National Women’s History Week. The following year, Congress passed a resolution and 6 years Congress expanded the event to an entire month. You can read more about Women’s History Month here.

The last week of March we will have a week of themes to incorporate into classrooms, discussions, and learning.

Women’s History Month themes and dates:

Monday (3/22)- Celebrating you, celebrate identifying as a female
Tuesday (3/23)- Take Action, Gender Equity
Wednesday (3/24)- Celebrating Female Voices
Thursday (3/25)- Differing perspectives
Friday (3/26)- Influential Women

ESOL

Attn: Secondary Administrators

Audience: Principals, Counselors, and ESOL Staff 

In maintaining a commitment to equity, excellence, and alignment, the Department of ESOL has made adjustments to the course offerings that support emergent bilingual students. Changes go into effect for the 2021-2022 school year with the following ESOL Course Descriptions. The ESOL Department will send recommendations based on student’s language proficiency scores to buildings; any changes to the lists are due by March 26, 2021.

Federal Programs

Audience: ALL SCHOOLS

SUBJECT: Family Surveys for KESA, District Strategic Plan, School Improvement Plans

And the WINNERS of the Family Survey RUMBLE are:

• Washington High School
• Arrowhead Middle School
• Emerson Elementary
• Hazel Grove Elementary

CONGRATS to these schools who will receive an EXTRA $1,000.00 in their general supply budgets!

Thanks to everyone’s efforts in engaging families to participate in this annual survey.  Participation was up from last year’s surveys and although there is still work to do, we are headed in the right direction!

Subject:  ALL SCHOOLS Enter RE-ENTRY Info In KansaStar –  – DO THIS, Not That!

As Re-Entry occurs and building teams make plans for the return of students and staff, a reminder to capture ALL RE-ENTRY Building Leadership/PLC Team notes in KansaStar, versus a separate Google Doc or Planning Sheet.

SHARE your KansaStar account credentials with trusted members of your building leadership team so they can enter in information as different PLCs plan and facilitate this important work.

Every RE-ENTRY plan should align to one of your SIP Indicators in KanaStar and we want your building to get credit for your AMAZING EFFORTS!

Remember –

• A written plan provides clarity to all stakeholders – One plan, One effort;
• A written plan helps keep people grounded and focused on things that are important;
• A written plan will clarify the most important priorities;
• A written plan is an essential communication tool;
• A written plan keeps a team from spending time on tasks that won’t get them closer to their goals.

At the end of this year, each of you will SUBMIT your SIP in KansaStar to KSDE.  Your submitted SIP will impact our District KESA accreditation, as well as our ability to move OFF of state improvement lists and access additional funding set aside for CSI and TSI schools.

Audience: ALL PRINCIPALS and DEPARTMENT LEADERS

Subject: 3rd Quarter Title IX Coordinator Training Follow-Up

As students and staff return a reminder that any form of sexual misconduct, regardless of how small it might appear to be, must be screened through the District’s Title IX process.  At the onset of receiving a report of sexual misconduct, send the ‘Please Call’ email to titleix@kckps.org.  The District Title IX Coordinator or District Title IX Investigator will call you to determine the appropriate approach, based on the details of your incident.

Please refer to the new Title IX Reporting & Investigations page in the HR Admin Guide for all Title IX forms, as well as a detailed guide to each step of the Title IX process.  If you need additional assistance or have questions that cannot be answered via the HR Admin Guide, please don’t hesitate to contact Lisa Walker, District Title IX Coordinator or Curtis Nicholson, District Title IX Investigator.

Human Resources

Non-Renewal

Leaders –

We’re reaching out to provide an overview of the Non-Renewal process for your certified staff in advance of the deadlines so that you can prepare. Please note that this is a message to all and action is only needed if you intend to non-renew a staff member.  The following steps should provide some framework for you:

1. Identify Teacher(s) you are considering for Non-Renewal

• • For a teacher to be non-renewed, your teacher should have 3 or fewer years of experience with KCKPS and an unfavorable evaluation must have been completed this school year.  The evaluation should not mention or make reference to non-renewal.  However, the evaluation should reflect the employee’s deficiencies.

  • For a teacher currently on Intensive Assistance, an unfavorable evaluation must have been completed this school year.  The evaluation should not mention or make reference to non-renewal.  However, the evaluation should reflect the employee’s deficiencies and not having met the intensive assistance goals set forth in the original notification.

  • For teachers currently on IA who did not successfully complete IA, Ronnie and Jody may provide approval following your conferences for those teachers to be automatically considered for non-renewal.

2. Send an email to ariel.kittling@kckps.org with the NAME and grade level/content of the teacher(s) under consideration for non-renewal at the close of the 2020/21 school year.

• • Names will be added to our tracking but, should you later decide against this action, you can remove them from consideration.

  • Final Confirmation of names will be March 15, 2021

3. Provide supporting documentation to Ariel Kittling for review

• • Documentation should include any information relevant to their deficiency in the classroom and reflective of the supportive measures you’ve already attempted to put in place. Please include any current year evaluation forms and a copy of the teacher’s growth plan from iObservation. We can access prior year evaluations from the system so there is no need for you to try and provide those as well. Any other documentation about the teacher’s performance that has been shared with the teacher should be submitted as well.

4. Conference with Jody and Ariel to reach a decision regarding non-renewal determination by March 26, 2021.

• • This can be done by Zoom or Teams.

  • If approved, you will be sent a confirmation email with a letter template to begin the process of notification via formal letter

  • Provide a copy of the signed and prepared letter to Ariel in advance of providing to the employee.

5. Provide the Letter to the employee no later than March 30, 2021.

• • You are required to hand deliver a copy of the letter during a scheduled meeting by Tuesday, March 30 as their name will be processed for the following board meeting.  Before meeting with the employee to provide them with the non-renewal letter, you must extend a 24-hour notice allowing them the opportunity to invite union representation to the meeting.  This meeting is, technically, considered disciplinary in nature.

  • You can offer to release them from duty for the remainder of the day, after you secure class coverage if you feel they are unable to remain composed enough to return to the classroom. This is important to note in the instance you cannot meet with them at the end of a workday.

6. Manage behaviors and instructional deficiencies for the remainder of the school year as you would normally

• • These dates are mandated by the negotiated agreement and Kansas statutes; we recognize that it is not ideal to notify someone of this action considering there are still valuable days left in the semester that we need them to focus on.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

New Progressive Coaching Form

Administrators,

HR would like to announce the development of a new form to use for progressive coaching. Previously, supervisors and administrators have been required to use the Letters of Concern, Reprimand and Suspension. We understand that writing these letters is time consuming and do not allow effective communication of coaching or disciplinary actions.

We will begin using the attached form for all coaching and disciplinary concerns effective Monday, March 15, 2021. The Administrator’s Guide has been updated to reflect information surrounding how to use the new form and who to contact in HR for assistance. We will also be hosting Zoom sessions to provide guidance on using the form and answer any questions that you may have. The dates/times of the Zoom sessions have been listed below. If you have any questions, please contact Elizabeth Faircloth at Elizabeth.Faircloth@kckps.org.

Zoom Session 1: Mon. March 15th at 2:30 p.m.

         https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84585665412?pwd=cnBIOEpYVlYxMjJIMTZ0QW9xL1NEQT09

Zoom Session 2: Wed. March 17th at 9:00 a.m.

         https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87096891006?pwd=RUlBR0xPMHloZjBFY2R4UlZCNU1Odz09

Zoom Session 3: Fri. March 19th at 1:30 p.m.

         https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85986289740?pwd=RW43TXg4UTFFK2F2a2xIWHdLblBUUT09

Attachments: Progressive Coaching Action Form

Board Policy Review-Classified Staff 

Message: On Wednesday, March 4th, HR will be hosting a board policy review via zoom for classified staff only. This is an opportunity for classified staff who are not able to complete the board policies review activities through Frontline. The training will begin right at 4:00 pm and because the videos are short, we will not allow staff to enter the meeting after that time.
The zoom link and details are included below.

If you have any questions, please contact Jared.Alexander@kckps.org or Ana.Perez-Sievert@kckps.org.

Board Policy Review- Classified

Time: Mar 24, 2021 04:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81169347368?pwd=cWFMaVpRNmlTejhTWTdudzFETWYvZz09

Meeting ID: 811 6934 7368
Passcode: 645144

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Meeting ID: 811 6934 7368
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kdRzPUIQac

IARC (Fine Arts)

Elementary Principals

Principals,

This is a friendly reminder the customized dyslexia training provided by IARC last month satisfies the requirement for both module 2 and module 3 for the music, art, PE and strings teachers.  Please reach out if there are questions.

Instructional Technology

KCKPS Mobile Minute – IDP Points for Canvas learning, Minecraft EDU and more!

Purchasing

THE DEADLINE FOR ENCUMBERING FUNDS FOR FY 2020-21 SATURDAY, APRIL 10, 2021 This means all funds to be spent from the current year budgets (including grants, fees, etc.) must be ENCUMBERED in BusinessPLUS and submitted to Workflow on or before 11:59pm on April 10, 2021. Please note the following: 

1. All requisitions to cover expenses that will occur during the months of April and May must be entered as a “B” type (Blanket) requisition. You are to estimate what will be spent for those months and enter a requisition for each vendor from which you anticipate making a purchase.You must do this not only for supplies, but also for any services, equipment, or furniture purchases. Remember, the goods or services that you purchase must match the purpose of the budget line. You must buy supplies with a supplies object code (56100). You cannot buy equipment (57300) or furniture (57330) with a supply (56100) object code.

2. All funds encumbered under PO’s that are not PAID on or before June 15, 2021 will be disencumbered, and funds will return to the District to use for districtwide projects.

a.“Paid” means that a check has been printed and mailed by Accounts Payable, receiving a PO in BusinessPLUS (POUPRC) DOES NOT pay an invoice. Please review the status of all open POs in your budget regularly to ensure invoices are received so payment can be made no later than the last board meeting in May.
THE LAST DAY TO SUBMIT INVOICES TO AP FOR PAYMENT WILL BE JUNE 15, 2021 (NOON)!
If invoices are not received, it is the responsibility of the school/department to contact the vendor to get the invoice to AP before the June 15 deadline.

b.In past years, several schools/departments waited to order items from POs until close to the PO cancelation date. As a result, items were shipped late, items were backordered, or invoices were not received timely to meet the payment deadline. It is the responsibility of the school/department to ensure items are ordered timely to meet the deadline. Invoices coming after June 15, will need to be paid from the school/department 2021-22 budget.

3. Any expenditures to be made between April 10 and the end of the school year MUST be encumbered before April 1st. This includes travel, transportation, services, mileage, etc.

4. Storeroom and Print Shop orders must be placed by April 10, if you wish to use current year funds.5.Estimates of salary costs (other than staff regular pay) to be paid between the deadline and the end of the school year MUST be estimated on or before the deadline. While salary costs cannot be encumbered via PO, you MUST email Brad Isnard with details of the name of the person, the date the work will be performed, the estimated cost and the account number the costs are to be charged to. Email must be received in Brad’s office on or before the deadline.a.Once the work is performed, timesheets must be submitted within one pay period of the work was performed, but no later than on or before June 15, 2021.b.Please recall that for the timesheets to be paid, the work MUST be submitted to HR for approval through Board. This information will need to be sent to HR on or before the deadline also.c.Any salary costs not meeting these requirements will be charged to the school/department 2021-22 budget.6.Professional Development subs, please email Melissa Shields the information to encumber funds for subs.a.The name of the teacher requiring a subb.The date the sub is used

Page 2 of 2 

c.What budget is to be used

7.Visa Usagea.VISA purchases in June will come from next years’ funds. Enter a requisition by April 1 for as much as your budget allows for spending on VISA in your supply funds for April-May spend needs. Please code to the appropriate budgets as best you know today.b.All reconciliations (Envelopes) must be turned in by June 15c.June spending will be coming out of your FY 2021-22 budget8.Closing Purchase Ordersa.All December issued PO’s will close April 13b.All January issued PO’s will close May 3c.All February issued PO’s will close June 2d.All PO’s issued after March 1 will stay open for invoices paid on the June 22nd Board9.Planning deliveriesa.All delivery of product must happen in time for you to also have invoices created on the schedule above. Plan accordingly.b.Staples will create backorders for items not in stock. This could delay the invoicing of your shipment. As you follow your orders, if you find an item is not delivering, contact Staples for an update. If delayed, we suggest you cancel that item/s so the rest of the shipment can bill. You can always place another order after July 1.c.Staples bills for weekly deliveries over the weekend. To hit our timeline, you should place your last orders with Staples by May 28th (at the latest), to deliver and bill in time.

Special Education

RE: SPED Expectations for ReEntry

Greetings Principals, SPED Teachers, Related Service Providers and School Psychs!

Once we return to full in person, IEPs, Evaluation and ReEvaluation meetings will need to be held in person on the school campus with social distancing and mask. Parents should be given an option to attend their student’s meeting in person on the school campus or via zoom or phone.

SPED Teachers and Related Service Providers will be able to pull students from various cohorts/pods to go into a separate room locations for services a written in their IEP, but students should social distance while in that group, and the service schedule must be consistent and include specific student names for contact tracing.

SPED Teachers who need to pull a small group of students from various cohorts/pods to provide collaborative services in the gen ed classroom, will be able to pull students into the required classroom and should social distance in a consistent specific space in that classroom. The service schedule must be consistent and include student names for contact tracing.

Students who attend Parochial schools will be able to attend in person on campus for their specific time and services as written in their IEP. Students will be able to join the gen ed classroom and must have an assigned seat where they can maintain social distancing and student names for contact tracing.

If the SPED teacher needs to group students from the Parochial school together for services, they should go into a designated classroom where they can socially distance and the service schedule must be consistent and include student names for contact tracing.

Related Service Providers are expected to provide services in person for their students who are in person.

School Psychologists are expected to test students in person.

If there are any questions, please contact me.

Thank you!

Communications

Administrators, please share this with parents.

Register for the Community Forum Here.

Also, if you have not, please take the Enough is Enough pledge and encourage staff to review and take the pledge as well.

Curriculum & Instruction

Attn:  Secondary Administrators 

Re:  MS & HS Big Ideas Consumable Print Student Journals for 21-22 School Year

Consumable Big Ideas Student Journals will not be purchased at the system (C&I Department) level for classrooms next school year (21-22) and throughout the life of the adoption.  Most classrooms have found that the digital student journals work best with our digital platforms.  Teachers and students will continue to have full digital access to materials, which includes student journals.  However, if your site has a need for any additional consumable print copies of the Big Ideas Student Journal they may be purchased with building budgets directly from Cengage at a discounted rate.  Directions can be found on this order form.  Please contact Dr. Kurt Parker or Suzie Legg with any questions. 

Attn: Elementary Principals

Re: Amplify Reading K-5 Pilot

Amplify will be hosting another optional PD opportunity Wednesday, March 10th from 11:00-11:45am to provide teachers, coaches, and administrators with additional information regarding the Amplify Reading K-5 pilot. This session is titled, “Dashboard & More.” The Zoom link can be found on this document. It will be recorded for those who are unable to attend. The recording of last week’s session, “Getting Started,” is also housed on this document. 

Please contact allison.rice@kckps.org if you have any questions.

Federal Programs

Audience:  Principals & Department Leaders FORWARD to Teachers and Department Staff

Teachers & Staff PLEASE NOTE: KCKPS has procedures in place for requesting funds from outside the district including DonorsChoose.org projects and grant requests, which include principal/department director pre-approval and signature. Be sure to follow the procedures to ensure requests can flow through the process in a timely manner so that application deadlines can be met.

• Link: Procedures for Seeking External Funding

The KCKPS Grant Opportunities Database is available to staff members seeking outside funding to enhance student learning. Updated bi-monthly, the database includes grant opportunities to support classroom projects, school-wide programs, professional development, and support for teacher fellowships/professional growth.

All information is available on the district website and in the links below.

• Link: Grant Opportunities Database

Police Department

Safe and Secure Schools SAFEDEFEND™

Members of the SAFEDEFEND™ staff will be in the USD 500 buildings over the next two weeks (March 8^th – 19^th) to check the installed devices.  This is a routine process for determining system wellness.  During the visits the system may be activated for a brief few seconds to check sirens and strobes.  Announcements will be made over the intercom prior to any activation. All SAFEDEFEND™ staff will follow the districts COVID protocols during the visit.  Visits should take less than 30 minutes per building.

While the SAFEDEFEND™ staff are in your building they will be happy to answers any questions about the system, assist with explanations about the enrollment process, or address other concerns.

Any Questions or Concerns:

Police Support PoliceSupport@kckps.org
KCKPS Police Dispatch: 913-627-4111
Contact will be made with the SAFEDEFEND™ staff on site

Purchasing

Spending Cut-Off 2021 PDF

Student Services

All Principals: Flyer Connect

Flyer Connect presented its solution with two-way translated communications, calendars, and resources at yesterday’s principal meeting.  As requested please complete this short interest form to gain access to your school’s Flyer Connect account to designate: COMPLETE THE FORM

1.    Who (in addition to yourself) you would like to authorize to communicate with your school community.  Most schools are choosing their AP and a front office staff member.

2.    Who (in addition to those chosen in #1) would you like to provide access to retrieve personal ID codes to support your family onboarding.  This person would not have permission to message families, just support them by looking up their personal ID code they’ll use to verify themselves on their Flyer app.

You and your designees will receive invites to login into the Flyer dashboard and send messages.

Please see additional information here including the presentation from yesterday’s meeting.

You may send any questions to Zuben Bastani (zuben@flyerconnect.org) or support@flyerconnect.org

Curriculum & Instruction

Attn:  Elementary Principals

Re: Amplify Science Adoption Process/Material Distribution Reminder

In preparation for the new Amplify Science materials for the 2021-2022 school year which will be distributed this spring, Curriculum and Instruction has created a support document. This document has been prepared to explain the process of Amplify Science implementation, material distribution, as well as what to do with previous science materials. Linked within the document is a timeline of distribution, GVC revisions, professional learning, and other responsibilities for teachers, coaches, and administrators. There is also a National Geographic keep/discard document by grade level to assist in the science material organization. If you have any questions, please contact Cheryl Beyer cheryl.beyer@kckps.org 

Attn:  Secondary Administrators 

Re:  Secondary ELA

Assessments in MyPerspectives

Savvas Realize integrates content, assessment, and student data. Through Realize Reports, you can view learning data and analytics in real time. You can also set custom mastery levels to drive student achievement. Usage data is available once teachers and students begin using Savvas Realize. Student progress data is available after students complete assignments.  If you are interested in more information regarding Realize Reports, please reach out to Kristi Chalk and Wendy Elkins.  We would welcome the opportunity to visit with your leadership team and set-up administrator log-ins for Realize Reports.   

MyPerspectives:  Leader Survey 

We would like to conduct a mid-year review with administrators for MyPerspectives, the new secondary literacy resource.  This is an anonymous survey that takes about 5-10 minutes.  The Leader Survey will help strengthen support and guide next strategic steps.  Teachers have already had the opportunity to participate in a mid-year review during the January 25th professional learning.  If you have any questions regarding this survey, please contact Kristi Chalk.  

Upcoming Secondary ELA Cadre Work

• Secondary ELA myPerspectives and Canvas Cadre Work:  This cadre will run throughout the month of March.  Informational letters, as well as application forms, were sent to teachers last week based on teacher usage data from both myPerspectives and Canvas.  This work will launch on March 9th.  
• Secondary ELA (6-12) Revision Cadre Work:  This cadre will focus on revisions and updates to enhance and support classroom planning and instruction for grades 6-12 for the 2021-2022 school year.  Specific guidelines will be added to the GVC to address year one and year two implementation of the new resource, myPerspectives.   Informational letters and application forms will be sent to ELA educators later this month.  This cadre will begin in April. 

Attn: K-5 Administrators

Re: Eureka Math In Sync Professional Development

On March 24 from 3:00-4:30, Great Minds is offering a free Eureka Math In Sync professional development session. 

Participants will:

• explore the structure of the Eureka Math in Sync digital platform;
• explore the new curricular resources intended to support teachers’ instruction for continuous learning;
• experience a sample virtual Eureka Math lesson designed using Eureka Math in Sync resources. 

If you have staff that did not participate in the initial training and are interested in learning more about the platform please have them complete the registration form by March 11, 2021, at 4:00 p.m. 

Participation is limited to the first 30 applicants. 

Registration Link

Session Agenda

If you have additional questions please do not hesitate to contact  marica.rhone@kckps.org (Curriculum Instructional Coach, EC-5th Grade Mathematics), for additional support.

DERA

HGSS note:  (3^rd, 6^th, and 9^th grades only) As you begin HGSS assessing and scoring, please check your m drive for your data collection sheets that were sent out in late January.  Please note that the deadline for submission of these data collection sheets aligns to the deadline for any grade adjustments.

As a reminder, the KAP Interim #3 window opens on 3/8.  If you have opted in, testing must be completed prior to Spring Break, as the testing window will close on 3/19.

Diploma+

Congratulations to these elementary Connector Rock Stars for having at least 50% or more of their staff hold sessions:

Virtual Career & College Fairs – It is not too late to plan! If you would like to plan a Virtual Career Fair or College Fair for your school there is still time. Next week Banneker will be hosting 6 career speakers every day of the week for their students. What a great experience this will be for their students. Way to go Banneker!!

Your students can be next. We are happy to guide you through the process of arranging something like this. Simply reach out to Renee Freers at renee.freers@kckps.org

Police Department

Preparing for Your Fire Inspection

A major responsibility of the Office of the State and local Fire Marshal is fire prevention. One method employed to reduce the number of fires is by conducting fire safety inspections. Our safety team wants to work with you to ensure that if a fire were to occur, damage is limited as much as possible and firefighters can operate efficiently and safely. Practicing fire prevention and addressing fire hazards is a great investment. A collaborative effort has put together this Administrator’s Guide to assist our district leaders in preparing for operational fire safety throughout the District. Please utilize this guide while conducting safety team meetings and or your building walk-throughs.

Related Documents

Kindergarten through 12 Schools

o    USDs Alcohol Based Hand Rub Dispensers

o    Active Shooter Variance (PDF)

o    Conducting Fire Drills in Kansas Schools – Kindergarten Through 12 (PDF)

o    Crisis Drill Question and Answer (PDF)

o    Door Locking Devices Guide (PDF)

o    Educational Facility Handbook (PDF)

o    Fire Drill Record – Preschool (PDF)

o    Fire Rated Door Booklet (PDF)

o    Kindergarten Through 12 Fire Safety (PDF)

o    Kindergarten Through 12 School Drills Explanation (PDF)

o    Kindergarten Through 12 School Drills Form (PDF)

o    Notice of Waiver – Magnetic Hold Open Devices on Required Fire Rated Doors (PDF)

Purchasing

Spending Cut-Off 2021 PDF

Student Services

Infinite Campus will be down for a necessary upgrade on Friday, March 12 at 9:30 p.m. until Saturday, March 13^th at 12:00.