March 4, 2016 at 4:00 PM - Superintendent's Weekly Update to the Board of Education

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Please see attached the final floor plan for the elementary school remodel.  We are going to save several tens of thousands of dollars by NOT extending out the exterior wall.  The secure office will be where the existing girls bathroom and community education office is.  Something that is really nice in this new layout is the glass windows between the office and the hallway - it opens everything up and inviting. 

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Phil shared with me some excellent support he and our elementary staff are receiving from NJPA.  Over the last 16 months, all of our elementary teachers and paras (about 56 in all) have been trained in Envoy--this has included four on-site coaching visits with two more to go.  Nine teachers have taken the extra step of getting Envoy certified and at least six more are interested in doing the same.  If we can generate enough interest, we could have an Envoy certified school with follow-up coaching every year. 

In the last month, all of the teachers, including Social Worker, Title, and G & T, had half-day training on the FAST system---there was a positive response.  People now see what an excellent data tool it is and how to use it more fully.  Later this year NJPA will be working with us on Guided Reading and strengthening our Grade Level data teams.  They have also worked with teachers on Marzano's teacher evaluation.

Last summer, six teachers and Phil went to a two day workshop on RTI/MTSS---and they now meet every other week to strategize implementation.  They are also making use of Resource Training & Solutions.  Shari Bishop has signed up for workshops on Math Activities that Engage Higher Level Thinking and Reading Activities that Engage Higher Level Thinking.

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Phil also sent me the following information I want to pass along to you about our elementary and middle school students' participation in Destination Imagination:

Tomorrow Shari Bishop, Cathy Hesch, and Heidi Norberg are taking 13 elementary and middle school students (and parents) to participate in an Imagination Destination event at Blaine HS.  This is a terrific program and they have worked hard getting the students prepared. I believe they are presenting a play. This is a great example of the GTE program at work uniting both schools.

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Please know Mr. Swenson has begun the process of having our school PLTW certified in Engineering.

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Just as we joined the Resource Training & Solutions recognition banquets for our support staff and teachers we've decided to begin recognizing our exceptional students (see attachment).

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Please see attached the minutes of the Winkelman construction meeting on 2-23-16. 

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Please throw away the previous forms I sent you for the upcoming superintendent evaluation.  I spent some time this week simplifying the eval form and process.  

The first attachment is an illustration of the alignment between the superintendent, principals, and teachers evaluations all aiming toward student achievement.

The second attachment is the actual eval form we'll use in our discussion and ratings w/ comments.

The third attachment illustrates the alignment of our district goals with Marzano's evaluation model.

The fourth model is a guide to understanding Marzano's evaluation model.

IMPORTANT:  I cannot emphasize enough how helpful it'll be to you, other board members, and me if you find the time to come in and visit with me about the evaluation tool and the evidence associated with each of the six domains.  We'll save ourselves lots of time on April 11.

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Please see attached the weekly bills for your approval.