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Category: Technology

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STUDENT SERVICES NEWS

Monthly Newsletter September 2025

Happenings

  • September is Suicide Prevention Month Please share the Parent Guidance Mental Health Series resource with parents: including  Parent Guidance Online Mental Health Newsletter  and  "What Parents Need to Know about Suicide Prevention"
  • Thank you to the schools that have already scheduled and implemented regular mental health meetings!
  • Anti-Harassment/Anti-Bullying Student Training is being facilitated by school counselors now through October 1st. The Procedures for Training and Reporting are in the Document Center.
  • All Schools will receive $1000 for Suicide Prevention. Admin, please support implementation of the suicide prevention program at your schools and ensure these funds are being utilized to strengthen it.
  • Insight The Prime for Life and Guiding Good Choices schedule is now available. To see the schedule and register please click here 
  • Peer Court begins on October 6th. Referrals can be submitted here.  
  • Optional Admin/SRO Gun Safety and Active Shooter Training at East High School Library September 26th from 9:00am to 3:00pm RSVP HERE
School Counselors
Student Services Meeting (Virtual) September 17 from 9-12.  All Counselors, Social Workers, Nurses and McKinney Staff attend. Admin are always welcome.

Agendas and resources: Student Services Meetings 2025-2026  

Secondary Counselor Program: 
• All Secondary Counseling Programs will be reviewed by USBE this Spring to ensure adherence to state counseling standards. This program review nets counselor support budgets at secondary schools.
• On-Site Review Performance Evaluation  Data Project Reports  Counselors must present data projects during a staff meeting. If presentations did not occur last Spring, please schedule asap.
• Updates and Essentials Training  All secondary administrators who have not completed this USBE school training within the past six years must complete the course asap. Documentation of completion will need to be provided to the state in March.

Elementary Counselor Program:
• Elementary Counselor folder for resources, training materials, and PowerPoints from elementary counselor breakout sessions of Student Services meetings.
• Bullying One-Sheet outlines anti-bullying and anti-harassment policies and provides resources to families
• Utah Crisis and Suicide Prevention Resources Submit G19-20 documentation by Oct. 1 to this Microsoft link
• Elementary Counselors submit monthly data using this Microsoft form • Elementary Counselor Annual Task Organizer
• SLCSD Elementary Counselor Handbook
• Revised Counselor ECAP and Observation Tool

Helpful Links:
3rd Millennium Substance Violation Option for Secondary Students
Counselor Handbooks
Counselor Document Center
Utah College Application and FAFSA Resources
Digital Awareness: Classroom Curriculum
District Social Work and Mental Health Partnerships
Social Work Services 
• We are excited to welcome Andrea Carrizo, Annie Romano, Haref Montalvo, Jessica Carpenter and Yvette Orr to our team!
• Social workers are conducting mental health screening at all school sites.
• Thank you to the schools that have already implemented and scheduled regular mental health meetings!

Odyssey House
• Salt Lake City School District partners with Odyssey House to provide free school-based therapeutic services to students at East, Highland, Horizonte, Backman and Parkview.

Helpful Links:
Mental Health Screening
Parent Guidance Mental Health Series
Social Work Handbook    
Health Services
Important items this month:
• Vision Screening starts on September 16, 2025.
• CPR/AED/Narcan training continue to be offered once a month at the district office building.  If you would like to be certified or your certification has expired, sign up for a class.
-Remember, schools must have at least three front office staff CPR certified to have an AED in the school.
--Elementary: Kinder, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 5th and special request.
--Middle: 7th grade and any special request.

Helpful Links:
How to access Healthcare Plans
Sick Room Protocol
Guidelines for Illness
Health Services School Assignments and Resources
McKinney Vento
Important items this month:
• Welcome Cisco Ramos our new McKinney Team member
• Housing Questionnaire: This form activates supports for qualifying students. Email completed forms to Becky Baskett and Mike Harman
- See District Documents Center for translated forms.
- See McKinney List in PowerSchool: homeless_code>0 - If students you know qualify and are not on the list, complete the Housing Questionnaire link above
• Reminder: McKinney-Vento eligible students can enroll without proof of address, immunization records, and/or birth certificate
• Reach out to the McKinney Vento team for student support, questions and/or staff training.

Helpful Links:
McKinney Vento Resources  
School Resource Officers
Important items this month:
If you need an SRO for any reason:
• Call your school assigned SRO (if no response)
• Call Sgt. Doug Teerlink 385-228-8072 (if no response)
• Call dispatch for non-emergency 801-799-3000
• Call 911 in an emergency
• Peer Court
• Promising Youth Gang Prevention and Intervention Contact Krystyn Stargel 385-312-3104 regarding referrals or click links below.

Helpful Links:
SRO School Assignments
Promising Youth & Promising Youth Referral
Peer Court Referral            

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SmartBoard Replacement Information

After a thorough year-long review, including feedback from school administration, teachers, technical evaluation, and cost/benefit analysis, it has been determined that we will move forward with the following interactive devices in the classroom. 

ViewSonic Interactive Boards at the Elementary Level

Deciding Factors

  • Feedback received through visits and teacher survey.
  • We save almost $200-300 per board.
  • We will have a 7-year warranty instead of a 5-year warranty.
  • ViewSonic software will run the Smart Notebook software that many elementary teachers use.
  • ViewSonic boards performed better than the SMART brand.
  • Will support untethered teaching as well

Installation plan

·IT will work with school administration to determine which classrooms are updated first with as little classroom disruption as possible.

·Installation will take a coordination with district electricians and installers. 

·We are currently working on creating that plan with Auxiliary services and will send out that plan once it is finished. 

·Goal is to replace about 150 boards this year

·The rest of the boards are being replaced over the next 3-5 years.

·The goal is to begin installation in October/November.

Budget Needed

·Schools will not need to budget for this as it will be paid out of the district capital technology outlay funds.

Training

·School technicians are being trained within the next few weeks so there is onsite support.

·IT will work with school administration to develop training opportunities as boards are installed in the school

·IT will work with Teaching & Learning and School Leadership and Support to develop a comprehensive training plan going forward.

Epson Interactive Projectors (still in testing phase) at Secondary Level, with optional ViewSonic Interactive Board option

Deciding Factors

  • Feedback received through visits and teacher survey.
  • having more whiteboard space was one of the most frequent requests.
  • The vast majority of secondary classrooms do not use SMART notebook software or use the touch capability
  • The picture will be displayed on the whiteboard, allowing the whiteboard to serve dual functionality.
  • Allows for untethered teaching.
  • If the Epson Projector does not work in the classroom, ViewSonic Interactive boards will be installed 

Installation plan

·These devices have already been installed in some classrooms in the district

·IT has reached out to high school principals to receive the names of a few teachers willing receive these new projectors for additional testing.

·After final testing is completed, installation will take place over the next 3-5 years.

Budget Needed

·Schools will not need to budget for this as it will be paid out of the district capital technology outlay funds.

Training

·School technicians will be trained on the boards for onsite support.

·IT will work with school administration to develop training opportunities as boards are installed in the school

·IT will work with Teaching & Learning and School Leadership and Support to develop a comprehensive training plan going forward.

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Title: Action Item: Assigning STEM AC Math Digital Learning Student Licenses

Date: 09/12/2025

To: Elementary, Middle School, High School Administrators

From: Holley McIntosh, Director of STEM and Mathematics

Dr. Tiffany Hall, Executive Director of Teaching and Learning

Subject:           Assigning STEM Action Center Math Digital Learning Student Licenses

Summary:

The math digital learning student licenses listed below awarded to schools from the STEM Action Center Math Digital Learning Grant will be assigned by the SLCSD IT Department.

  • STMath
  • IXL
  • Dreambox
  • My Math Academy
  • I-Ready
  • Derivita
  • Math Space
  • Imagine Math
  • Renaissance


Administrators must submit a SLCSD IT helpdesk ticket to inform IT how the licenses are to be assigned in their school no later than October 1.

One exception: High School ALEKs licenses will be managed and assigned by your HS Math Content Area Specialist (coach).

Rationale: 

The STEM Action Center (AC) did not have sufficient resources to fund any school’s full grant request for licenses. With only a portion of the licenses provided, schools need to be strategic in assigning licenses to classes or students that will best utilize them. The STEM AC tracks usage to ensure license are being used at appropriate levels.

Schools not actively using their licenses by October 30, 2025 run the risk of having the STEM AC reassign their licenses to another school in the state.

Expectations for Implementation: 

  1. Communication

Administrators are responsible to submit a helpdesk ticket.

  1. Device >Device Software
  2. Category
  3. Subcategory > Application you have selected
  4. Item > Add
  5. Subject >Assign math program

Note in the description:

  • the name of the math digital learning supplemental program you received from the STEM AC grant
  • which grade levels or specific teachers are to have licenses
  • how many licenses for the grade levels or specific teachers

Administrators are responsible to tell teachers in their building which grade levels and specific teachers have access to these programs.

  1. Collaboration: 
  • Contact Holley McIntosh if you have questions about your school’s STEM AC grant award.
  • Work with the District Math Coach/CAS assigned to your school if you have questions about how to match these licenses with student needs.
  1. Evaluation
  • Administrators are to communicate to IT the appropriate assignment of the awarded licenses.
  • Administrators ensure the licenses are used appropriately and as a supplement to our adopted core programs.
  • See the conditions of the STEM AC grant for more information.

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As we kick off the new school year, we’d like to highlight a few important IT procedures.

After-Hours and Weekend IT Support

If you experience an IT issue outside regular hours, please submit an IT help ticket (https://helpdesk.slcschools.org).  When we receive a report of a network or system outage in the evening, it will be addressed the following morning.  If the request comes on the weekend, the problem will be worked on within 24-48 hours, though holiday support times may vary.

If you are having an activity after hours or on weekends relying on the computers or network and would like system support,  please schedule that with me at least two weeks in advance. Be prepared to provide an account number for potential technician overtime costs.

Monthly System Maintenance

To ensure the smooth operation of our IT systems, regular maintenance is necessary. We’ve established a maintenance schedule for the 2025-26 school year to minimize disruptions for staff and students.

Maintenance will occur on designated weekends each month, during which intermittent system outages may be expected. We will send out notifications each month detailing the affected systems.

The planned maintenance window is typically from 5 pm on Friday through Saturday.  Occasionally, maintenance may continue into Sunday.    Critical updates may be applied outside this planned maintenance schedule.

Please review the maintenance dates below and plan accordingly. 

  • August 29-30
  • September 26-27
  • October 24-25 (limited due to end of term)
  • November 14-15
  • December 19-20
  • January 23-24
  • February 27-28
  • March 27-28
  • April 17-18
  • May 15-16
  • June 26-27
  • July 17-18

IT Help Tickets

When requesting support, please remember to use the IT help ticket system (https://helpdesk.slcschools.org).   Tickets submitted through this system are prioritized over emails or phone calls. Utilizing the help ticket system allows us to better analyze data and improve our service.

We wish you a successful start of the school year.

Best regards,

Sam Quantz
Chief Information Officer
Salt Lake City School District
Office: 801.578.8329

www.slcschools.org

www.slcschools.org

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Title:             Human Sexuality Classroom Instruction

Date:              June 25, 2025

To:                 All Administrators

From:            Adam Eskelson, Director 

    Dr. Tiffany Hall, Executive Director

Dept:            Teaching and Learning

Subject:        Human Sexuality Topic Certification

All instruction related to sex education must take place within the context of Utah State Law (53G-10-402) and Utah State Board of Education rule (R277-474). New legislation has added topics beyond health class which require parent notification and permission.  

Any course which involves "Sex education instruction" [now includes] any course material, unit, class, lesson, activity, or presentation that, as the focus of the discussion, provides instruction or information to a student about:

  1. sexual abstinence;
  2. human sexuality;
  3. human reproduction;
  4. reproductive anatomy;
  5. physiology;
  6. pregnancy;
  7. marriage;
  8. childbirth;
  9. parenthood;
  10. contraception;
  11. HIV/AIDS;
  12. sexually transmitted diseases; or
  13. refusal skills, as defined in Section 53G-10-402.

In accordance with Rule R277-474-7-4, teachers may answer student questions or correct inaccurate statements as long as the answer is consistent with state law and the approved instructional materials. Educators may also direct students to parents.

Teachers will be sent this survey and are required to indicate if they cover any of the listed topics. All teachers must respond by September 30, 2025.

The parental Consent Form is included in all student registration and information is available to teachers regarding the parent’s option for instruction.

Rationale:

Utah Code 53G-10-402 states:

  1. That “parental consent requirements of Sections 76-7-322 and 76-7-323 are complied with”
  2. And, “require a student's parent to be notified in advance and have an opportunity to review the information for which parental consent is required under Sections 76-7-322 and 76-7-323.”
  3. “An LEA governing board shall provide appropriate professional development for the LEA governing board's teachers, counselors, and school administrators to enable the teachers, counselors, and school administrators to understand, protect, and properly instruct students in the values and character traits referred to in this section and Sections 53E-9-202, 53E-9-203, 53G-10-202, 53G-10-203, 53G-10-204, and 53G-10-205, and distribute appropriate written materials on the values, character traits, and conduct to each individual receiving the professional development.”

To facilitate compliance, each secondary teacher is required to complete the form to let SLCSD know which topics they are and are not teaching.

USBE guidance states:

  1. “Health, CTE, science, and psychology teachers should [acquire parental permission and complete this training] if they teach eligible courses like Health, Child Development, Health Science, Medical Anatomy, Human Development, Genetics, or any course with instruction on sex education as defined in Utah Code 53G-10-403.”

Expectations for Implementation:

  1. Communication:
    1. Administrative memo will be sent to all building administrators to share with faculty.
    2. Link to required form will be sent to all educators with the deadline of September 30, 2025, for completion.
    3. The Canvas course required for all teachers who present an effected topic (listed above) will be provided once the USBE creates the course after July 1, 2025.

2.        Collaboration:

  1. Contact Katie Lowery, Content Specialist over Health and Physical Education, for assistance.

3.        Evaluation:

  1. The district will check for the completion of the required form by due date.  If it is not complete, the assistance of building administrators will be requested.
  2. The district will keep a current record of all teachers who have completed the USBE Canvas course. 

Keywords: Human sexuality, health education, Utah Code 53G-10-402

Administrators: https://www.shapeamerica.org/MemberPortal/prodev/leading-healthy-schools.aspx

Leading Healthy Schools (LHS) is a free, year-long professional development and coaching program for school administrators to help them gain the knowledge and skills necessary to lead a school that prioritizes student health and wellness. Participants engage in collaborative learning experiences and coaching that are flexible to their school’s context and relevant to their role as a school leader.  

Interested in learning more about the program before you register? Sign up using the link above to attend an information session with LHS Program Director Kaitlyn Gaddis Thompson and hear from members of the 2024 and 2025 LHS cohorts!

For Administrators: Health textbook adoptions are complete, and we are ready to order for the upcoming year.  Please contact Katie Lowery for more information. Each school must complete a requisition. 

For Teachers:  Deadline to complete the required questionnaire for those who teach HEALTH, or ANY SUBJECT with human sexuality content is September 30th.  

All teachers (not just health) who discuss any topic below that they must include a statement in their disclosure for parents to sign and that parents must sign the USBE form as well. Do not just rely on the electronic registration for the 7-12th graders. 

Teachers should complete this survey and are required to indicate if they cover any of the listed topics. All teachers must respond by September 30th. 

HEALTH / HUMAN SEXUALITY SURVEY 

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All Tests

THANK YOU! Together, we successfully administered
over 158,000 tests. Thank you for your attention to detail, patience, and dedication
to ensuring accurate test data for all students.

 


Parental Exclusion- One copy stays with the teacher, one
copy goes into the student’s file and one copy must be sent to the Assessment Department
– ATTN: Terrilyn Lee for K-8 assessments,
ATTN: Dan Del Porto for 9-12 assessments.

 

Illuminate/Renaissance- Performance Matters will replace Illuminate
at the end of the year. Please see below for more information.

 

Acadience Reading and Acadience
Math

Important Dates
Required By:
Additional Information
Contact
Websites

4/15-5/16
State

DDC-Acadience

Lynette Peck

Schedule--DDC

The district Acadience window closes on May 16th.  We are
required by the state to test any student enrolled in the district during the window,
even if they registered after the testing team was at a school.  Please be
aware of these students to ensure we are testing 95%+ of our K-3 students.

Acadience Math Computation and Concepts & Applications scores should be recorded
by classroom teachers in ALO within three days of testing.  Please remember
to administer these indicators to absent students upon their return to class. 
All math scores must be recorded in ALO by Wednesday, May 14th. 
Score entry directions can be found within the TAM packet or linked
HERE.

USBE is offering the following Acadience trainings this summer:

Acadience School Leader Data Analysis (June 2nd) 9:00
AM-12:00 PM.  Participants will focus on analyzing the EOY Acadience Reading/Math
data at the district, school or grade level.  Intended for school administrators/academic
coaches.   This will be a virtual meeting, here is the link: https://schools-utah-gov.zoom.us/j/81397339038?pwd=r5TkBb3XfXMfmlWS6g1mZgpbSpaq4g.1

Acadience Reading Essentials (June 26th) grade level
specific times.  Course held online.  Registration through MIDAS Course
#62609.  Intended for those new to Acadience Reading, or those who would like
to update their skills.  Training required prior to administration of indicators
for benchmark and progress monitoring.  There will be a second session offered
on July 25th.  MIDAS registration will be available soon.

End-of-Levels K-2

Important Dates:
Required By:       
Additional Information
Contact:
Website:

4/7 - 5/16 1-2

4/28 - 5/23 Kinder
SLCSD Board

 
Brittany Dimick

 

1&2 EOL—Make sure all offline items are administered before 5/16. Renaissance
has a tile to help monitor completion. Make sure students click submit as they finish
the online portion of the test. Please return the materials, as a school, according
to the instructions on the Packing list.

Kindergarten- If you enter the Math Kinder scores directly into Renaissance, you
do not need to fill out the bubble answer sheets.  Please return the materials,
as a school, according to the instructions on the Packing List.  Kindergarten
Fall testing window starts on July 28.  Materials should arrive in June.

Because of the tight timeline, it is unlikely that SLCSD EOL testing will receive
reports this school year.

Goodbye to Renaissance/Illuminate

Important Dates:

Required By:       

Additional Information

Contact:

Website:

6/30

 

 


Brittany Dimick

 

Tests Transfer—If you would like to save any tests you have created,
please view this
video and save them before 6/30.

Crosswalk- This is a
crosswalk document of the two platforms.

If you want to learn more about Performance Matters, please view my
canvas course.

NWEA Map Growth Reading

Important Dates:

Required By:       

 

Contact:

 

4/21-5/16

District

 

Brittany Dimick

 

NWEA spring window opens April 21st and closes May 16th.  

Alternative Assessments

Important Dates:

Required By:       

Additional Information

Contact:

Website:

 

State

 

Terrilyn Lee

 

Please make sure to complete all DLM Testlets by May 23.  If you have questions,
please contact Terrilyn

K-3.  ELAA and MAAA Alternate Assessments (for Acadience) results due May 23. 
Please sent them to Terrilyn via
email or district mail (Terrilyn – Assessment@Beardsley)

 

WIDA K-12 (Screener &
ACCESS)

Important Dates
Required By:       
Additional Information
Contact
Websites

Complete
State

DDC
Terrilyn
Lee
WIDA Secure Portal
& WIDA AMS

 

WIDA Results are in.  You can find them in Illuminate, Ellevations
and AMS.

Individual Student Reports in multiple languages are in the AMS.  Paper copies
are on their way and should arrive next week.

Please Note: WIDA Screener grades K-12—Remember, eligible students
must be screened within 10 days of enrollment throughout the rest of the school
year.

Students who have previously tested in the state of Utah, either with WIDA ACCESS
or WIDA Screener, do not need to be re-screened.  Please contact Terrilyn
Lee or Mischelle Colby,
to assist in locating student test histories.

 

RISE 3-8

Important Dates
Required By:
Additional Information
Contact
Websites

March 24-May 23
State

DDC
Terrilyn Lee
RISE Portal

 

All staff administering Spring RISE summative tests, need to complete the following:


  1. USBE Standard Test Administration and Ethics

  2. RISE Teacher Training & Certification

 

There are changes to the RISE writing and the RISE ELA Summative tests this year.

  1. The new Writing Rubrics are here
    Resources
  2. The new ELA blueprints are here 
    ELA Blueprints
  3. Due to the changes in both tests, cut scores will need to
    be re-set.   Results will be delayed until Fall 2025

 

Writing Field Test Window February 18- May 31.  Please participate. 
If there aren’t enough responses to train the scoring engine, Writing Benchmarks
will not be available next year.

Teachers new to the district/changed schools- Fill out theRISE
User Information Survey  

Reminder- When administering ALL RISE tests (Interims, Benchmarks,
and Summative) the
Test Administration Manual must be followed explicitly.

 


USBE Test Participation & Accommodations

Visit the RISE Portal and the
RISE folder in the District Document Center or contact
Terrilyn

Advanced Placement (AP)
9-12

Important Dates
Required By:
Additional Information
Contact
Websites

5/5-5/9 & 5/12-5/16
 

DDC
Dan
Del Porto

AP Central

Regular Testing Window open now until May 16th.

 

Ordering AP Exams for Students Unable to Test on
Late-Testing Dates:

Exception testing is available if students are unable to
test on the late-testing date due to unforeseen circumstances.

Starting May 5 (the first day of the AP Exam administration),
AP coordinators can order exams through:

 


AP Registration and
Ordering.

 

Note: These exams must be administered during the school
day on any of the three exception testing dates:

May 28, 29, and 30.

 

Utah Aspire Plus 9-10

Important Dates
Required By:
Additional Information
Contact:
Website:

3/3-5/9 – UA Plus

8/1-6/30 - Benchmarks
State

DDC
Dan
Del Porto

Utah
Aspire Plus Resource Center

UTIPS WIKI

Utah Aspire Plus and ADAMImportant Items/Dates:

  1. Spring Summative Window – March 3–May 9. All-district testing day was April 23rd.
  2. Student detail reports have been available within roughly
    24 hours of completion.
  3. ISRs, Test Scores
    Date File, and Test Events Data File are available May 23, 2025.
  4. More information is provided in the Score Interpretation Guide

ACT 11th Grade

Important Dates:
Required By:
Additional Information
Contact:
Websites:

3/11-4/18
State

DDC
Dan
Del Porto

ACT State Testing;
Success;

ACT Now

March 12th was the all-district ACT testing
day.

 

State and District Testing windows closed as of April 18th

 

Scores available 3-8 weeks after testing.

 

Dual Immersion 3-9

Important Dates
Required By:
Additional Information
Contact:
Website:

10/14 – 11/29
State

DDC

Stephanie Mecham
https://www.languagetesting.com/aappl

Congratulations on an amazing job with AAPPL Testing! 99% (445
of 446) of DLI students completed testing.

 

Please send score reports to parents within three weeks of the testing window closing.


How to print score reports and certificates

 

Reports – 2024 Testing data is now available. Click the following
links to ACCESS your DLI testing data:


AAPPL Test Scores Report | Illuminate Education


AAPPL Student Longitudinal Scores Report | Illuminate
Education

Seal of Biliteracy 11-12

Important Dates
Required By:
Additional Information
Contact:
Website:

3/3/2025 – 4/11/2025
 

DDC
Stephanie Mecham
https://www.languagetesting.com/aappl

Congratulations to all students who earned the Seal of Biliteracy!

2024–2025 Seal of Biliteracy Highlights:

  1. 370 students achieved the Seal of Biliteracy
  2. 226 graduating seniors will
    receive the Seal of Biliteracy
  3. Seals were awarded in 17 different languages
  4. 17 students earned the Seal in multiple languages

 

 

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Data Request Form Instructions

Please adhere to the following guidelines when requesting data from the Assessment & Evaluation Team:

  • Log in with your credentials if prompted
  • If you receive an error message, please contact Brenda Wiebe or Jeffrey Lutz
  • Read each question carefully before responding
  • Note that the following fields are mandatory and must be completed:
    • Contact information
    • Data question
    • The due date field
  • You will receive a confirmation message once your submission is successful
  • You may receive follow up emails from the data team for further clarification 

Important Reminders

  • Please allow a minimum of a week for data requests and reports and 48 hours for ad hoc requests. Depending on the nature of the requests, some projects may take longer. The data team will reach out and inform you if this is the case.
  •  
  • Principals and assistant principals can only request aggregate level data from their schools
  • Teachers and counselors can only request aggregate level data from their classrooms
  •  
  • If more information is needed, email Jeffrey Lutz or Brenda Wiebe, and we will determine whether requests can be fulfilled on a case by case basis
  • For technical assistance, please contact the data team

The request site can be found here – 

https://saltlakedistrict.sjc1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_1NsNhCOwA1JGFi6.

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Dear Salt Lake School District Team,

We hope this message finds you well. We are writing to provide guidance regarding HB 77 – Flag Display Amendments, which was recently passed by the Utah Legislature and will take effect May 7, 2025. This legislation outlines specific regulations regarding which flags may be displayed on or within government property, including public school campuses.

For years, Salt Lake City School District has been known for our commitment to fostering an inclusive and welcoming environment for all students and staff, and we remain committed to this goal and the values underlying that commitment. We also appreciate the pride and passion many of our students and staff feel in their beliefs and causes. While this law imposes certain limitations, we will continue to foster school environments where all students feel seen, supported, and valued.  In order to understand and implement this legislation, we are providing the following protocols for our schools.

Key Provisions of HB 77

HB 77 defines “display” as placing a flag in a prominent location where the flag is easily visible. A “flag” is defined as a usually rectangular piece of fabric with a specific design that symbolizes a location, government entity, or cause.

To ensure district-wide compliance, please note the following flags are permitted for display:

  • The official United States Flag
  • The official Utah State Flag
  • The current and official flag of another country, state, or political subdivision (e.g., another school district or city)
  • A flag that represents a city, municipality, county, or other political subdivision within Utah
  • A flag representing a branch, unit, or division of the U.S. military
  • The National League of Families POW/MIA flag
  • A flag that represents a recognized Indian tribe
  • An officially licensed college or university flag
  • A historic version of the U.S., Utah, or other state/national flags
  • An official public school flag
  • An official flag of the U.S. Olympic/Paralympic Committee, International Olympic/Paralympic Committee, or a specific Olympiad/Paralympiad that occurred or will occur
  • A flag of an organization authorized to use space within a public school, during the time they are using the space

We understand that some of you may feel inclined to demonstrate your support for various causes, groups, and beliefs by displaying items that do not meet the definition of flag and thus do not violate the new law. While we support you in your goal of signaling a welcome environment, there is additional information that you should consider in displaying items. In addition to HB 77, the Utah State Board of Education (“USBE”) issued a letter on April 10,2025, reminding educators of Utah Admin. Code R277-217(25), Educator Standards, that states that an educator may not “through instruction, materials, or symbols . . . endorse promote, or disparage” a particular viewpoint. The letter also indicated how the public may report violations of this section. We are providing you with this information not as a threat of district action, but as an awareness that USBE, as the licensing authority for Utah educators, has indicated that compliance with these rules and laws is not only expected but vital.  

Action Steps for Schools

  • Review all flags currently displayed in your school or on your school property, including in classrooms, hallways, and offices.
  • Remove any flags that do not fall within the categories listed above by the end of school onMay 6, 2025, to ensure full compliance with the law upon its effective date.
  • When in doubt, please consult with the General Counsel before displaying a new flag to confirm it meets the legal criteria.
  • Ensure that flags displayed during temporary use by authorized organizations are removed promptly after their use of the space ends. 

The Office of the State Auditor is tasked with overseeing compliance with this legislation and may impose fines for violations. As such, we must be diligent and proactive to ensure our flag displays align with this new legislation.

Thank you for your attention to this important matter and for your continued leadership in ensuring our schools remain compliant, welcoming, and student-centered.

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Stakeholder Feedback Surveys

SLCSD stakeholders will begin to receive notices of their access to the stakeholder survey. All surveys must be completed by May 2. Please encourage everyone to participate.

In case any questions arise, here is the information you should know:

  1. This survey is OPTIONAL, no one should feel compelled to take it. However, it is incredibly useful feedback, and we strongly encourage all our stakeholders to participate.
  2. This survey is CONFIDENTIAL, and participants should be encouraged to complete it at a time and location where they feel comfortable giving honest feedback.
  3. Survey links will be sent out to adults via EMAIL. If they do not see the link, they should check junk/spam folders or reach out to jeffrey.lutz@slcschools.org.
  4. Students can access the survey through Clever. To increase response rates, we encourage you to work with your teachers to provide time for students to do their surveys while they’re in school.
    1. Students may see more than one survey when the go into Clever. There is the USBE Stakeholder Survey and the Teacher Feedback Survey. Please encourage them to complete BOTH.
     Parents/Students
  5. A student must have been enrolled for at least 40 days to receive a survey.
  6. Students and parents will be asked to provide feedback on each individual course/teacher they have as well as the administrators in their building.
    1. They may skip any sections they wish
    2. Parents with multiple children in the district may receive separate survey emails for each child.
  7. Class information is pulled from PowerSchool so if a student is in an afterschool program or a class that they know by a different name than what is in PowerSchool, please help them determine which class that is (i.e. After School might be Chess Club).

Alli Martin, Ed.D. (she/her/hers)

Director of Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) and Prevention Services

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Safe Walking Route Maps

Hello School Administrators,

Your school website will soon have a new and improved Safe Walking Routes map.  To access your map, try this:

  1. Go to your school website and click on the "OUR SCHOOL" tab near the top of the page.
  2. Click on "Maps & Transportation."
  3. Click on "Safe Walking Route" under "Resources."

Please note the following:

  1. This map allows you to zoom in and zoom out - it is not a pdf.
  2. The tile in the bottom left corner of your map (just click on it) allows you to see it as a FOOTPRINT MAP or as a SATELLITE IMAGE MAP.
    1. The satellite image map is very effective when viewing with your community, SCC, or staff.  That's because you can see the actual crosswalks, street widths (these vary a lot around our city), and recently added structures in your community.
    2. Some of you will notice that the footprint map is a bit dated:  For example, it may show the location of your old building before rebuild (see Edison as an example).  I looked into getting the footprint maps updated but that is proving difficult.  The satellite map is much more recent.
  3. We did not include all the features that the Safe Routes UT site had because the icons won't scale down when using the zoom feature; the resulting mess of piled-up icons made the maps too confusing.  We went with a more simplified, easy-to-read-and-navigate approach.
  4. Please look over your new map and share any concerns, questions, or necessary changes with me.
  5. Please share this map with your parents/community.
  6. Please do NOT refer parents to the Safe Routes UT website (that site still doesn't have maps that outline our school boundaries).
  7. You can use this map for all sorts of reasons like navigating through your yearly safe walking routes updates or for mapping school walking field trips/fun runs.

Thank you,

Sam Quantz

Chief Information Officer, Information Technology

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