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Happy February!  We hope the start of 2025 is going well so far for all of you.  Thank you for working with us to help promote positive attendance and improve chronic absenteeism throughout Utah.  Here are some important attendance items for this month we hope you will read and also share with other attendance contacts in your LEA. 

USBE Attendance Support Specialists 

This month we wanted to highlight the Attendance Support Specialists available at USBE.  We have two attendance support specialists and we are here to support LEAs across the state with anything attendance related. 

Garrett Russell- Garrett came to USBE after previously working as the district Attendance Specialist with Ogden School District.  Before that Garrett worked at Greenwood Charter School and Voyage Academy as well as in Oregon and Colorado.  He is passionate about improving attendance in Utah as well as overseeing Utah’s Prevention Check and Connect program.  His email is garrett.russell@schools.utah.gov. 

Megan Menlove- Megan comes to USBE from Alpine School District where she spent the last 13 years as a school administrator at the elementary, junior high, and high school levels.  Prior to administration she was an elementary school teacher.  She has only been with USBE since August, but is excited to support LEAs with attendance. You can reach her by email at megan.menlove@schools.utah.gov.  

Attendance Incentive Ideas 

It is important to spend time focusing on the positive things that are happening within your LEA with attendance.  Here are just a few ideas of ways you can focus on the positive and create incentives that work for your specific LEA. 

March Madness: Attendance Edition

Monthly Improved Attendance Parties 

Attendance Recognition in Assemblies 

Individual Student Recognition 

Class Attendance Incentives 

Letters/Emails/Phone Calls Home to Parents with Improved/Excellent Attendance Focus 

Attendance Works Incentive Tips from Attendance Works 

Attendance Webinar

We appreciate all of your support and engagement with our first attendance webinar of the series for 2025.  If you were not able to attend but wish to go back and watch, here is the link to our USBE Attendance YouTube Channel.  We will be posting our webinar series and other content here.  Our next webinar will be March 11, 2025 at 10:30am.  More information will be coming! 

Request for Feedback- Statewide Attendance Campaign

We are looking for some input as we are preparing to launch a Statewide Attendance Campaign for the 2025-2026 school year.  Please fill out this google form to give your input on the slogan and to join the planning committee.  We are excited to see what we can come up with together!

Cohorts 

We are looking forward to starting our Engagement and Attendance Cohorts for the 2025-2026 school year.  Engagement and Attendance Cohorts are year long, collaborative learning opportunities for LEAs, charters, and/or individual schools.  Starting in May, this cohort will take part in 6 trainings led by USBE attendance specialists.  These trainings will also be collaborative sessions to help develop, build, and implement an attendance system that works for your specific LEA/charter/school.  Please contact one of the attendance specialists if your team would like to join this opportunity. 

Helpful Articles/Podcasts

What Makes an Attendance Incentive Program Successful? 

Attendance Works 

Continued High Levels of Chronic Absence, With Some Improvements, Require Action 

Attendance Works 

Upcoming Dates/Information 

*January-March 2025- The Utah Legislative Session has started and will run through March 21st.  Watch for updates on legislation surrounding education. 

*March 11th at 10:30am- Attendance Webinar Series #2 

We appreciate all you do. Please let us know how we can best support you and your schools. 

USBE Attendance Specialists 

https://www.schools.utah.gov/prevention/absenteeismtruancyprevention

Megan Menlove

Attendance Support Specialist

Utah State Board of Education

megan.menlove@schools.utah.gov

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All middle and high school’s PowerScheduler for 2025-2026 schoolyear is now set up.  You can start your set up now if you haven’t already done so. Below is a checklist of set up tasks to prepare for the Build. We reserve space in the large training room at 995 West Beardsley, Salt Lake City, UT 84119 for these workshops to offer an opportunity to have a place to work uninterrupted.  The schedule for PowerScheduler Workshop is as follows:

BUILD:  Monday, 03/03/2025 through Friday,03/07/2025   7:30 am – 4:00 pm with Aaron Rudy available on Thursday and Friday

LOAD:  Monday, 04/28/2025 through Friday, 05/02/2025  7:30 am – 4:00 pm with Aaron Rudy available on Monday.

Build Tasks:

  • Course Catalog – Remove discontinued courses, add new courses,   (PowerScheuler > Course Catalogs)
  • Rooms – Review Rooms in use for your school
  • Student Scheduling Preferences – Student Next Year Grade, Priority, Schedule this Student, Next School Indicator. (Note:  Most students should be set however, students enrolled after the beginning of year may need to be set up)
  • Teacher Scheduling Preferences – Confirm that Schedule this Teacher is checked if Teacher is returning.
  • Student Course Request Screens –  Student Course Request Screens should be updated if course options have changed.
  • Review Courses – In PowerScheduler, review individual courses for correct set up.

Any questions or more detailed instruction for these tasks, please contact Christy Martini (christy.martini@slcschools.org).

______

Thank you,

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The Salt Lake Education Foundation would like to express appreciation for your unwavering support of SLCSD students and families. Your dedication and advocacy play a pivotal role in enriching the lives of the students at your school.

I am sharing with you the list of available resources for your students. You can also find this information in the District Document Center under Salt Lake Education Foundation - District Document Center - Salt Lake Education Foundation - All Documents (slcschools.org)

Available Resources:

·         Community Learning Centers/Clinics

·         Vision Referrals

·         Dental Referrals

·         West High Clinic

·         High School Student and Family Support/Teen Centers

·         Bus Passes

·         DI Vouchers

·         Bishops’ Storehouse Vouchers

·         Food Pantries

·         Volunteer Opportunities

·         Emergency Gift Cards

·         Foundation App

·         PeachJar

·         Internet (Submit a ticket to IT to request a hotspot)

·         Computers (Please check with the school IT or designee to check out a computer for your students)

Reminder:

Please be sure to download the Salt Lake Education Foundation App, which provides access to partner agency information and community resources to assist students and their families.

To build on this incredible momentum, I am pleased to invite you to an in-person meeting with your student and family support designee or key stakeholder. The purpose of this meeting is to strengthen collaboration, streamline processes, and enhance achievement through the effective use of available resources.

Meeting Details:

Secondary Schools

Date:          Wednesday, February 5, 2024

Time:         8:00 to 10:00 a.m.

Location:    District Administration Building, 406 East 100 South, Room 1055

Elementary Schools

Date:          Wednesday, February 5, 2024

Time:         10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

Location:    District Administration Building, 406 East 100 South, Room 1055

Please RSVP to Liz.Young@slcschools.org or contact her at 801-578-8212.

If you have any questions or need additional information, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me. Thank you for your continued support and dedication to our students and families.

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Dear Principals,

We have enjoyed observing the progress you are making in your schools around PLCs. Many of you are establishing mission and vision statements, focusing on priority standards, or developing PLC leadership teams. We feel the conversations around the Learning by Doing readings have been productive and informative, and we have seen regular referrals to our district's tight PLC expectations.

As we are midway through the school year, our area director PLC would like to examine, calibrate, and discuss evidence of PLC implementation at all of our schools. Here is the assignment:

We've created a PLC Implementation folder embedded in your SIP folder (to reduce the number of folders). The link is below. Please upload the following artifacts to this folder:

  • One artifact from a PLC that is high functioning (you determine what high functioning means).
  • One artifact from a PLC that is on track at a basic but sufficient level (per our district's PLC phase timeline).
  • One artifact from a PLC that is struggling with an explanation (comment on doc or even separate Word doc) of how you are supporting this group and/or holding them accountable.

Artifacts may include agendas, minutes, placemats, common formative assessments, etc. 
 
Please upload all three documents to your PLC Implementation folder by 5pm on February 12, 2025. Thank you! We look forward to seeing samples of your teachers' work.

Please put PLC artifacts in the "PLC Implementation" folder:

School Folder to submit PLC Implementation artifacts

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As part of our ongoing dedication to ensuring the safety and well-being of our students and school communities, we are reaching out to gauge interest from teachers and administrators in serving as School Guardians. This role directly supports the implementation of the HB 84 Utah School Safety Act, a key initiative aimed at enhancing safety protocols across our schools.

We are seeking committed volunteers to join this important effort. Your involvement would play a crucial role in fostering a secure and supportive environment for all. If you are interested in volunteering, we kindly ask you to complete the survey linked below.

Safety Survey Link

https://forms.office.com/r/QSRakuEzbx

Thank you for your continued dedication to the safety and success of our students.

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Setting the Next School/Next Grade/Graduation Year Indicators During Enrollment

When enrolling students in your school, it is important to ensure that the ‘Next Year Grade’, ‘Next School Indicator’, and ‘Year of Graduation’ indicators are set.  To enter these settings, follow these steps in PowerSchool:

  1. Find the student in PowerSchool.
  2. Select ‘Courses and Programs’ in the left side menu.
  1. Select ‘Scheduling Settings’ from the Registration sub-menu.
  1. Enter the settings in the highlighted field and click ‘Submit’.

Finding Students Missing These Indicators:

  1. Use the following search on PowerSchool’s Start Page:
    1. Next_School  
    2. Sched_NextYearGrade=
  1. Once you find the students, go to Scheduling Settings and add the missing information.

Updating Indicators for Another School’s Request:

If another school calls requesting the Next School/Next Grade/Graduation Year Indicators to be updated for a student, please follow these steps:

  1. Find the student in PowerSchool.
  2. Click on ‘Student Profile’ in the left side menu.
  3. Select ‘Addresses’ in the Student Details sub menu.
  1. Click the Validate button under the student’s address.
  1. Verify if the student lives in the requesting school’s boundary.
  1. OR verify that the student has been accepted through Open Enrollment or is part of a district placed program (ELP, SPED, etc.)
  1. If Open Enrollment is not complete, don’t change the Next School indicator.

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We are pleased to announce that a new contract with Wasatch Gardens has been finalized, providing an excellent educational option for our schools. This initiative supports hands-on learning while utilizing community resources.

To clarify, the district is not pursuing the expansion or promotion of additional gardens currently. Schools with existing gardens may continue to use them for educational purposes. However, no new gardens, plantings, or expansions will be approved or allowed.

It is important to note that the unauthorized creation or expansion of gardens on school property, including pollinator gardens, is strictly prohibited. As outlined in Board Policy G-10, only designated facilities staff are authorized to make alterations or changes to district properties. Administrators and teachers are explicitly prohibited from making such changes.

If any unauthorized garden or alteration is found, the responsible parties will be subject to the consequences stated in Board Policy G-10. This includes a minimum fine of $500.00, which will be used to restore the space to its original condition. Restoration of any altered space will occur in every instance, regardless of the circumstances.

We appreciate your cooperation in adhering to district policies and ensuring our facilities remain consistent with district standards. If you have any questions or require further clarification, please feel free to reach out.

Thank you for your understanding.

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Here is the Student Services January Newsletter link. 

  • National School Counselor Week is February 3rd -7th. The theme this year is Helping Students Thrive. Please see resources at this link for morning announcement suggestions, certificates of appreciation and other ideas to celebrate your school counselors.
  • SRO Assignments have adjusted: UPDATED SRO School Assignments
  • SHARP Survey Principals, please select the survey window for your school at this link.  Eight schools have responded so far.  Parent permission was gathered at registration. Call Student Services with any questions.
  • Mental Health Series through Parent Guidance: Schools and parents now have access to a series of regularly scheduled webinars and a monthly Ask-a-Therapist event to support student mental health and wellness. Reach out to your school counselor or Stacey Lindsay for ideas about how to promote this to your community.
  • Early Open Enrollment will close February 7, 2025
  • SafeUT Administrator Portal Training Be sure to assign, enter a disposition, and close every tip.  

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Summary: The following information was provided to social studies teachers on 1.14.2025 to help them navigate topics that are, in Utah, deemed as “sensitive.” Our goal is to help teachers be able to navigate these topics in

classrooms if they are raised by students or encountered in classroom discussions.

Email

As social studies teachers, we know everything has a history. In learning social studies, part of our instructional practices call for teaching students to formulate and respond to compelling questions, conduct research, apply analytical thinking, and discern between valid and invalid sources as they seek to draw conclusions and formulate arguments about various current or historical topics. We know these are critical skills for an educated and civic ready citizenry, which is essential to sustaining our democracy.

We also recognize that today our students are savvy and care deeply about justice, and in response we provide students with valuable opportunities to explore topics compelling to them in an effort to help them better understand themselves and their communities. With

that said, as public school teachers, we are bound to follow Utah law. Our Board Policies are designed to capture the essence of the laws and inform what we must do to abide by Utah law.

This email is generated as a result of two laws: Utah Code Section 53G-10-402 and Utah Code Section 53G-10-403. I know you are not teaching health, sex ed, biology or the like, but since everything has a history, you may find that students choose to investigate a topic for a

history fair or civic action project that may be considered sensitive or unlawful according to Utah law.

What does this mean for you as social studies teachers? It means that if any instruction or information pertains to any of the sensitive topics listed in the law, I strongly encourage you to do the following:

  • Review our Board Policy I-7 regarding Curriculum and Instructional Materials

and Board Policy I-12 Human Sexuality Education to empower you with appropriate information.

$30/hour PD rate and receive 1 relicensure point for completing the course.

  • Confer with your school administrator letting them know what you are doing and

what, if any, topics might be deemed sensitive. Together, determine the parameters of the project so it stays within the boundaries of the law.

  • Keep parents informed and get appropriate parent permission prior to proceeding or allowing students to proceed with any topic deemed to be sensitive.
  • Plan accordingly. If student projects include any materials deemed sensitive under Utah law/Board policy, students are not allowed to share their projects with any other students. Students are not allowed to receive peer feedback or present their projects in any school or district venue. In these cases, what are your plans for student alternatives?
  • Please Note: Utah History Day (UHD) is aware of Utah Code and working to determine how that may affect student presentations during UHD contests.

Please be assured that this email is not meant to alarm you or stifle student learning or your instruction. It is merely meant to equip you with important information. If you have further questions, please refer to your administrator.

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