Greetings School Leaders!

As 12-month employees, all Specialized Education Assistants (SEAs) are expected to work Monday, November 24, through Wednesday, November 26, 2025. Please see the breakdown below:

Monday, November 24, 2025

• New SEAs hired on or after March 1, 2025
  Required to attend an in-person professional development session at the Teaching & Learning Academy (TLA), Room 115/116, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
• All other SEAs
  Will complete assignments at their regular work location.
  If the school building is closed, SEAs should report to the TLA to complete assignments.

Tuesday & Wednesday, November 25–26, 2025

• All SEAs will complete assignments at their work location.
• If the school building is closed, SEAs should report to the TLA to complete assignments

Assignment Details

• Assignments will be provided by the Department of Curriculum and Instruction.
• If school leaders assign SEAs to complete school-based tasks, it is the school leader’s responsibility to inform the financial secretary.
• The Department of C&I will only submit assignment documentation to financial secretaries for SEAs completing district-assigned tasks.

SEAs may request vacation days during this time. All vacation requests must be submitted and approved by the building principal in advance.

If you have any questions, please contact Dr. Amy Maples or Heba Sammour.

Here are the 11/17/25 MTSS Lead Weekly Updates.

The District Spelling Bee is back! We’re encouraging all elementary and middle schools to host a school-level Spelling Bee and give students the chance to showcase their spelling skills and confidence on stage.

The MSCS Spelling Bee will highlight our spectacular spellers in grades 1-8. But first, they’ll need to win your school’s spelling bee by Friday, January 23, 2026. Now is the time to identify your Spelling Bee Coordinator and plan for e-x-c-e-l-l-e-n-c-e.

Sign-Up Here: Spelling Bee Intent to Participate 2025-26

If you have questions about how to get started, join us for a virtual meeting on Monday, November 17, 2025, at 4:30 p.m.

For more information about the Scripps National Spelling Bee, visit spellingbee.com/enrollment to learn more and register your school. Participation in the Scripps Bee is NOT required for participation in the MSCS Spelling Bee.

Thank you for all you do to create meaningful learning opportunities for our students and for helping them build confidence through friendly academic competition!

Should you have any questions, please contact Dr. Erin Y. Luster <lusterey@scsk12.org>.

We are excited to participate in this year's Do the Write Thing (DtWT) writing program. DtWT is a writing competition where middle school students share how violence has impacted them and propose solutions. We salute our 2025 National Ambassador from Hamilton K-8 School and our finalists from:

• A. Maceo Walker Middle School
• Colonial Middle School
• Grandview Heights Middle School
• John P. Freeman Optional School
• Hamilton K-8 School
• Mt. Pisgah Middle School

We are excited about this year's challenge and look forward to the submission of essays, poems, songs, plays and more! We are looking for submissions from every middle school this year.

Our students will have the opportunity to submit to the local competition and the winning essay will advance to the and national competition in Washington, D.C. This is a wonderful opportunity to showcase our students' talent and there is no cap on the number of submissions per school. Please share this information with your school teams to encourage participation.

Local Entry Information (Deadline: 12/15/25)

• Any form of written expression (e.g. essays, poems, plays, songs)
• Must address the following questions:
  • How has violence affected my life?
  • What are the causes of youth violence?
  • What can I do to reduce youth violence?
• Positive and non-derogatory language
• Fictional writings must be identified as such
• Strong preference will be given to non-fiction writings
• Credit must be given to outside sources
• Writings based upon plagiarism will not be considered

Completed packets may be sent to our office via MSCS Board Mail. Please be sure to include a summary page with the packet noting the contact person for your school and the number of submissions. Also, each submission should contain its own cover sheet with the parent/guardian's signature.

In addition to information on https://www.dtwt.org/, please review the MSCS Do the Write Thing Resources Folder.

For more information about the local implementation of the national program, please contact:

Ernest Brooks, II

Associate Deputy District Attorney/Senior Policy Advisor

Office of District Attorney General Steve Mulroy

201 Poplar Ave., 11th Floor Ernest.Brooks@scdag.com

(901) 222-1547 – Office

(901) 222-1300 – Main Office/Reception

(731) 293-4187

Should you have any questions, please contact Dr. Erin Y. Luster <lusterey@scsk12.org>.

The Fall 2025 Student Perception Survey closed on Friday, November 7, 2025. 

Next Steps:

• Site Coordinators will receive a Roster Verification file to assist with removing students who are no longer enrolled at their site.
• Results for the roster clean-up will be finalized on Friday, November 14, 2025.

For additional support, contact:

• Panorama Support: support+shelbycounty@panoramaed.com
• District SPS Lead, Chiquita Allen-Bradley: allenbradleyc@scsk12.org.

Growth & Achievement containers are open for educators who transferred schools or were hired after the initial window closed on Monday, November 3. The containers will close Friday, November 21. 

Educators who did not make G & A selections during the initial window may also make selections during this time.   

If you have questions, please reach out to Employee Performance and Support by telephone: (901)-416-2475 or email: eps@scsk12.org.

The Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE) has released 2024–25 Educator Level of Overall Effectiveness (LOE) scores in TNCompass.

To receive an LOE score, all required component scores (depending on the evaluation type) must be present in TNCompass. Components may include:

1. Observation
2. Achievement
3. Growth
4. Professionalism
5. Student Perception Survey.

*LOE Generation/Evaluation Track Update

• Educators identified as Partial Year Exemption (PYE) will not receive an LOE score.
• Evaluation tracks have been updated in PLZ for educators who have generated LOE scores.
• Educators new to MSCS who have generated LOEs should email eps@scsk12.org to have their tracks updated.
• There are approximately 1,200 educators who have not generated LOE scores.  These educators selected achievement measures that have embargoed data.  Scores will be updated when the data is released.

*Best of All 

The “best of” option will apply to AGM-URS (K-2 ELA Teachers—IReady)  scores for the 2024-25 school year.  

• Educator level of overall effectiveness (LOE) scores based on TN-URS data, when available, will be used only if the scores are higher than LOE scores produced with the educator’s selected TVAAS composite growth score.
• Both LOE scores will be displayed in the TNCompass platform, but only the higher of the two will be used.

Due to challenges with CTE data submissions, a “best of” option is available for educators who have selected TVAAS CTE Concentrator or TVAAS CTE as their growth measures for the 2024-25 school year only. 

• The District will select another growth measure from available measures, as determined appropriate for that educator.

All SY24-25 evaluations in TN Compass should be finalized and signed by Personal Identification Number (PIN) by the Educator and Administrator by December 10, 2025.  The process must be initiated by the school Administrator.

If you have questions about missing component scores or other evaluation-related questions, please submit an Ivanti ticket so the EPS team may research the issue. Employees may use this ​​​​step sheet​​​​ ​​for information on how to submit a ticket. 

The deadline to complete TEM Announced Observation #1 is Friday, December 5.

For questions or support with observations, please reach out to eps@scsk12.org.

LEADERSHIP ALERT: MANDATORY ACTION REQUIRED

Principals, it's time to secure your operational expertise!

This mandatory, high-impact Title IX Operational Leadership Lab is the most crucial training of the year. We are moving beyond simple compliance to build your confidence and risk management skills for real-time campus scenarios.

The outcome? You will master the precise, objective documentation and foundational skills needed for a compliant and supportive initial Title IX response. This directly empowers you to protect our students and our institution.

🔥 YOUR ACTION: Register for ONE date ONLY in PLZ.

DO NOT DELAY! Register now—this is a mandatory requirement for all Principals.

This advisory provides key steps for school leaders regarding Flex Day requirements, transcript reviews, and support for newly hired teachers or those returning from leave.

Important Dates & Actions

Key Details

• Teachers writing lesson plans earned 9 or 18 hours. Principals should verify PLZ course #49251: “Intentional Planning for Impact: Strengthening Instruction Through Effective Lesson Design” and any additional courses, if only 9 hours were earned.
• Notifications of Canvas course completion will be shared with schools in mid-December.

Special Note for Teachers Hired After Sept 9 or Returning from FMLA

• These teachers are not required to have Canvas courses on their PLZ transcript for November Flex Days but must make up hours by February.
• Teachers hired or returning between Sept. 9 and Nov. 5 must complete all courses during the next open window: Dec. 1–Feb. 3.

ILT Content Leaders, see the flyer regarding the November ILT Make-Up Support Session logistics.