Thanks to all school staff who gave the PIRS the attention needed to assess fidelity in implementing Tier 1 RtI2-Behavior systems effectively. We are organizing the raw data in a readable format for the 17 indicators and the open-ended questions. Principals and the school RtI2-B Team Coach and Co-coach will receive the report, which can be used to make plans for continuous improvement for 2022-23. The following may help administration and  RtI2-B Team leaders assess the effectiveness of administering PIRS and help build a road map to improvement next year. Your RtI2-Behavior District Counselor will follow with a site visit to help guide the review.

1. Check the number of PIRS participants. Anything less than 70% participation should raise questions about the RtI2-B Team's commitment to advocating maximum staff involvement.
2. Look closely at the responses to the 6 point rating scale. It will help expose how much staff knows about RtI2-B and its deeply ingrained in the school culture.
3. The Five (5) open-ended questions should provide information about what is going well or what needs addressing. Few responses may indicate that the staff was not adequately informed before the administration.
4. The results will produce a rating score that must be included in the Year-end Annual Report. The score may impact approval for advancement and recognition in reviews by the state. 

Once you have received the report and processed what it means, you can direct questions to your RtI2-Behavior District Counselor.

The Office of Academics is excited to hear feedback on the success of your school's Spring Family Data Night. We have created a brief school-level survey. We ask that you or a designee complete the survey by Monday, April 11. We will use the data from the survey to better serve you and your parents. Use the following link to access the school-level survey: 2022 Spring Family Data Night Follow-up Survey. 

Also, please remind parents that their feedback is valuable to the success of our District Data Nights. We ask that you post the parent survey links on your school’s webpage or direct parents to http://www.scsk12.org/familydatanight to complete the survey. 

If you have any questions, please let our team know.
 

Congratulations to the March Incentive Campaign Winners!

• Reading
  • 1st Place: Zone 3 – Catherine Battle
  • 2nd Place: Zone 2 – Janice Tankson 
  • 3rd Place: Zone 10 – Kimberly Sanders
• Math
  • 1st Place: Zone 2 – Janice Tankson 
  • 2nd Place: Zone 7 – Debra Fox 
  • 3rd Place: Zone 10 – Kimberly Sanders

School Winners March 2022

Zone Winners March 2022

Thank you for all the work you’ve done thus far to assist with the ESL retention prevention process. As we’ve continued to communicate, the goal of this process is to move away from being reactive about EL failures and focus on being proactive to support the students and teachers to prevent retention on the front end.  

Work samples for ESL students who failed Quarter 3 were due in ELLevation on Friday, April 8. For students who have forgotten one of the courses below for two or more quarters (Quarter 1, 2, and/or 3), please schedule a retention prevention meeting prior to April 22. This meeting can be held virtually or in person.

• K-5 - ELA, ESL, & Math
• 6-8 - ELA, Math, Science, Social Studies, ESL 
• 9-12 - Any course that affects graduation

Elementary Leaders, MSCS is taking part in a FREE book delivery program this summer as a part of the Governor's Early Literacy Foundation (GELF)! Each rising 1st and 2nd-grade student, current kindergarten and 1st graders, will receive SIX high-quality books this summer at no cost to the District. The Rising 1st and 2nd Grade Book Delivery Program is an opportunity for current kindergarten and 1st-grade students to build their home libraries with free books delivered directly to their homes, funded by GELF. The book deliveries are expected to begin in June. As a bonus, schools will also receive copies of the texts in June to distribute to their 1st and 2nd-grade teachers to incorporate into their classroom libraries! 

Schools and parents do not have to take any action to participate in this book delivery program. We are very excited to have this great partnership with GELF and would like for you to join us in encouraging our families to celebrate and grow students' home libraries. Additional communications to parents and schools will be shared. Questions? Email ci_ela_team@scsk12.org. 
 

Rising 1st and 2nd Grade Book Delivery Program FAQ 

The Peer Coaching application process for the 2022-23 school year is now open. Please see this attachment for a detailed description of the ESL Peer Coaching Program and its responsibilities.  

To be considered for the program, teachers must meet the position's requirements and complete the application process. This process consists of an online application, an interview, and classroom observation. Applicants will be notified by Friday, April 29, if they have been selected to move on to the interview process.

Teachers interested in applying to be a part of the ESL Peer Coaching team should submit their application by Sunday, April 17 at 11:59 p.m.

Please contact ESL Manager Magda Sakaan (sakaanm@scsk12.org) with any questions regarding the position or the application process.

Following district policy is essential to ensure legal and regulatory compliance and efficient district functions. The AOSS Manual Appendix 13 - Policy includes several links to district policies that may be useful for your school’s daily operations. Please take some time to review the information with your teams. For the complete District Policy Manual, please see the district website.

Take a moment to review and share the March edition of Curriculum Connection! 

The Division of College, Career and Technical Education seeks K-8, middle school, and high school College, Career, and Life Readiness (CCLR) Leads to ensure a cohesive plan to develop a culture of College, Career, and Life readiness in place for each middle and high school.

The plans will include ACT Prep, Naviance, and Ready Graduate implementation milestones. After successfully executing school milestones, a $2,000 stipend will be paid to each CCLR Lead. Please complete the form to submit someone. https://forms.office.com/r/yUWqQwdgeg

You should have a link to take the 2022 Tennessee Educator Survey (TES) in your inbox. The TES is an annual joint effort by the Tennessee Department of Education and the Tennessee Education Research Alliance to gather information about schools across the state. 

Not only is it essential to encourage your teachers to take the survey, but it’s crucial that you also participate. The survey provides you an opportunity to tell us and the Department of Education what is working and what improvements need to be made for your teachers and your school. Your feedback provides critical, actionable data that influences strategies and goals in our district and in the state. 

We hope you’ll participate because: 

• Your feedback will provide critical, actionable data as we refine our district’s strategy for the next school year.
• Sharing your perspective will help us understand and highlight both the challenges you are facing and the successes you are having as a school leader this year.
• Your insights will help us and state leaders to understand what supports and resources you need to best support your teachers and your students going forward.

Survey Quick Facts 

• Open to all educators from March 7th to April 29th
• Completely confidential – District and school leaders will not receive individual results
• Is voluntary – Though we strongly encourage participation, it isn’t required
• Only takes about 20 minutes to complete
• Contains questions on issues such as instructional materials, planning, student engagement,  educator support, and teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic

You will be sent a personalized invitation via email to complete the survey.  If you have questions regarding the survey, please reach out to tned.research.alliance@vanderbilt.edu. 

Attention Leaders!

We are excited to announce that in collaboration with TDOE, Early Reading Training will be offered again this summer for K-5 Memphis Shelby County Schools teachers. Early Reading Trainings are designed to develop knowledge & application of foundational skills for K-5 teachers. Teachers that successfully complete Courses 1 and 2 will receive a $1000 dollar stipend. 
 

Course 1 Asynchronous

• Use this link to access Course 1: 

➢ https://bestforall.tnedu.gov/binder/reading-360-modules 

• For more information regarding Course 1 click here. 

Please encourage teachers to sign up for this week-long of in-person early reading training using the following link: 

➢ https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080e4aa8ad2ba1fa7-tdoe 

Training Dates & Times

• June 13th-17th 9:00 am-4: 00 pm (CST)  

• June 21st- 24th 9:00 am-5: 00 pm (CST) 

• June 27th- July 1st 9:00 am-4: 00 pm (CST) 

• July 5th- July 8th 9:00 am-5:00 pm (CST) 

Noteworthy: To be eligible for the $1000 stipend, teachers must meet the following criteria:

• Current K-5 classroom teacher with a valid TN teaching license 

• Complete the asynchronous Course 1 

• Attend ALL dates associated with the face-to-face training selected

For additional information email ci_ela_team@scsk12.org

Early Reading Training Flyer

Registration for the 2022 Midsouth Leadership Symposium is now OPEN.  Please see details on this flyer.

• Time sheets will need to be submitted weekly on Fridays by 12:00 noon
• Schools can work from April 6 thru May 27
• Upload 3 after hours staff members here Submit Your 3 Staff Here    
• Submit Your Time Sheets
• See the attached time sheet and info for additional details.

NEED MORE CLARITY?

More After Hours Support Stipends Info

Time Sheet: Attendance & Discipline Supports

Dr. Blocker, Manager of EDA

School Health Profiles Survey Administration: As a requirement of our cooperative agreement with the CDC, in April and May, MSCS will conduct surveys of principals and lead health education teachers to assess the status of school health policies and practices at all traditional and alternative middle schools and high schools. We will administer the School Health Profiles surveys online through Survey Monkey.  Each school will receive one questionnaire for the principal and one for the lead health education teacher.

By Friday, April 15th, please complete this two-question participation form that provides more information about the questionnaires and asks you to designate a teacher or staff member to complete the lead health educator survey.

Do you have teachers who missed Engage2Learn’s February 2022 DLD session, First Steps to Implementing Blended Learning?  A make-up course will be available in Canvas starting April 12th. 

Please have teachers register for CADRE1210 in PLZ and the course will appear on their Canvas dashboards.  This opportunity is open through May 5th.  Credit for the make-up course will appear on teachers’ transcripts on May 13th. 

The April Principals' Business Meeting will take place Tuesday, April 12th at the TLA Auditorium.  The agenda can be viewed here.

Do you have an incredible aspiring educator in your building looking for a pathway to become a fully licensed teacher with Memphis-Shelby County Schools? Nominate them to apply for the Relay Teaching Residency cohort in 2022, and nominators can earn $500 for referrals.

Relay works in partnership with MSCS to train educators using a rigorous, supportive program where they can earn a teaching license and a Master of Arts in Teaching degree. Eligible educators receive financial support from the district to help offset tuition costs. Educators must receive a nomination from their school leader, fill out an interest form, and complete Relay’s graduate school application. 

You can nominate an educator at this link: https://link.relay.edu/SCS22. 

There are still a limited number of slots available to interested candidates, and nominations are reviewed on a rolling basis until all slots are filled, so get your nomination form in as soon as possible. Please see here to learn more about Relay and here for more information about the Residency program. 

Poster 1

Poster 2

SY2020-2021 LOE scores are calculated, and the nullification process has concluded. Educators who received an LOE score of 1 or 2 AND did NOT nullify will be placed on the Focus track. 

Please note: Two plans will be visible in PLZ: one archived (old plan) and one new (focus plan).  

The Focus track requires one announced and two unannounced observations to be completed. Please see container updates below:

• Classroom Educators: If Announced #1 observation was completed in the old plan, the evaluator must complete Unannounced #1 and Unannounced #2 observations in the Focus plan.
• If Announced #1 and Unannounced #1 observations were completed in the old plan, the evaluator must complete Unannounced #2 in the Focus plan.
• Non-Classroom Educators: If Announced #1 observation was completed in the old plan, the evaluator must complete Announced #2 and Announced #3 observations in the Focus plan.

ICC Omission: For SY2021-2022, the ICC will be visible but will not be required for the TEM Focus evaluation plan. 

The educator effectiveness team seeks experienced portfolio peers and expert reviewers from across the state to review and score submitted portfolio collections. Final aggregated portfolio scores are used to determine an educator’s effect on student growth and are anticipated to represent 35% of a teacher’s level of overall effectiveness (LOE). 

 The ideal candidate must: 

• demonstrate content area, grade level, and instructional experience;
• be detail-oriented and exhibit a rich understanding of standards;
• understand and be able to complete the processes involved in scoring student work effectively;
• be comfortable using and have access to technology;
• articulate confidence in the portfolio model to demonstrate student growth; and
• be available to conduct peer reviews within the scoring window.

Responsibilities of the Contractor: 

• Score the recommended number of collections once all portfolios have been submitted. The number of collections will be equally distributed among content area reviewers with a minimum of 20 collections per reviewer.
• Participate in virtual training and certification.
• Align portfolio scores with a panel of expert reviewers.

Compensation: 

• This is a flat rate of $17.00 per collection.

Application Process: 

• Applicants must meet all requirements of this solicitation and apply no later than 5 p.m. CST on April 15. Applications will be scored on a rubric aligned to the information shared above. Applicants will be notified with next steps by May 6.

For additional details, please email Portfolio.Questions@tn.gov. 

April 29 - 100% TEM Completion                                    

May 13 - 100% Professionalism Completion           

May 13 - 100% End of Year Conference Completion 

Considering working at a new school next year? The 2022-23 transfer period will open for IZone and Fresh Start Schools on March 28 and all other schools on April 4!

The 2022-23 transfer period is open for all school staff interested in transferring to a new school site next school year. The transfer period will remain open through April 29. Please CLICK HERE from HR for the full details on the 2022-23 transfer process.

If you have completed your NIE Goal Setting Conference and Mid-Year Conference, be sure that you have finalized ALL components to generate the overall green check. If the green check does not appear, a component may be incomplete.

NIE Partial Plans –Please ensure that the Goal Setting Conference is completed within 30 working days of the hire/contract start date. The Mid-Year Conference is not required for NIE partial plans and will not appear as a container to complete.

Questions? Contact Employee Performance and Support: eps@scsk12.org | 901.416.2475

STAR12 ACCOUNT HOLDERS! Have you completed at least 2 courses within the STAR12 platform? If not, don’t miss out on the thousands of FREE e-learning professional development courses offered by STAR12!  

Please Note: Access to certain learning courses will depend on your STAR12 account type.  

• If this is your first time logging in OR you do not remember your login password:
• Go to MySTAR12.com
• Enter your SCS email address, then
• Click “forgot password.”
• As Access accounts are limited, inactivity may result in loss of STAR12 access.

Questions? Contact Employee Performance and Support: eps@scsk12.org | 901.416.2475 

The Memphis-Shelby County Schools Human Resources Benefits Division is pleased to announce the launch of our new electronic leave of absence process, effective April 8, for all eligible employees.

LEAVE OF ABSENCE PROCESS

Memphis-Shelby County Schools Benefits will host the following retirement meetings:

• Virtual retirement meeting on Tuesday, April 12, from 4:30 – 5:30 p.m.
  • Please note that you must register with your SCS email address one day before the meeting to attend the virtual session.
  • Please click the link to sign up https://www.signupgenius.com/go/904094BACA628A7FD0-memphis
• In-person retirement meeting on Wednesday, April 20, from 4:30 – 5:30 p.m.
  • 3022 Jackson (Enter the gate at Jackson and Pope – Building on the left)
  • No sign-up is required for the In-person meeting

The retirement sessions will begin promptly at 4:30 p.m. We will discuss the following topics:

• Types of retirement
• Eligibility Requirements
• Retirement Application Process

You can also visit the Benefits website for detailed instructions on how to begin the retirement process www.scsk12.org/HR2 (go to the Benefits tab).  You are not required to attend a meeting to start the retirement process or submit retirement paperwork.

Memphis-Shelby County Schools will be administering the Annual Employee Engagement Survey to all non-instructional school-based staff, central office staff, and school leaders until April 8.  Employee Engagement Flyer2022 (v2) (3) (1).pdf

New Summer School Report:

• School staff now has access to our new Summer School Report in PowerBI. Anyone with access to the Student Profile has access to this report. 
  With it, you can see ->
  • The number of students currently eligible for Summer School by grade band based on current grade failures
  • Breakdowns of the number of eligible students and course failures by demographic and priority groups
  • A list of eligible students at your school
• Virtual Office Hours training will be available next week.

Fixes and Repairs:

• The Characteristics of Dyslexia Screening Compliance report in the RTI Dashboard has been fixed and is now accurately pulling in Letter Sounds scores for students

Student Profile Dashboard Redesign 22-23:

• Tell us about the data you are using the most and which information you wish you had. Take 60 seconds and visit: Measure What Matters 901

DAIM Hub and Data Quality Alerts:

• Does something in a dashboard look wrong? Check the DAIM Hub and our Data Quality Updates.

Training and Support Resources:

• Upcoming Virtual Office Hours->
  • Week of April 11th: Summer School Reporting
  • Week of April 25th: 3GC SLA Eligibility Report
• Check out our latest video trainings on the new Feeder Pattern and Tutoring reports!

And check out the rest of the DAIM Support Sharepoint site, complete with additional video tutorials, walkthrough guides, and more!

The MSCS disposal procedure and the Asset Disposition Form has been updated. Please click the link below to access the summarized review of the District’s Disposal Process. 

Share the link with your Asset Inventory Designee, Plant Manager, etc., so that all school staff and district personnel may familiarize themselves with this information.  If you have any questions, please call 416-2830.

Thank you for your continued support. 

https://tinyurl.com/MSCSDisposalProcess

Asset Disposition Form