July 17, 2026
The District has transitioned to LanguageLine Solutions for on-demand interpretation and translation services. LanguageLine Solutions interpreters are available in more than 240 languages and are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to communicate with our multilingual families. Please follow these instructions to access Language Line:
To access a phone interpreter, please follow these steps:
Dial: 1-866-874-3972
Provide: Client ID 666137
Press: 1 for Spanish – 2 for All Other Languages; If 2, indicate Language
Provide: School Location Code
Invitations to ELPA Data Meetings have been emailed to school leaders. Meetings are centered on discussing ELPA test scores, the growth ESL students have made, and how ELPA Performance factors into your school accountability data. If you have not already done so, please schedule your meeting with your ESL Advisor before Monday, Aug. 3, to review your data.
July 16: ESL 101 Kick-Off for all New and Novice ESL Teachers. K-5 8:30 - 11:30 a.m., 6-12 12:30 - 3:30 p.m., TLA Multipurpose Room
July 23-24: New Teacher Orientation at Southwind High School
July 29: DLD for all ESL Teachers, in-person at Bellevue Baptist Church, 8 a.m. - 3 p.m.
August 3: Final date to schedule ELPA Data Meeting.
TEAM Student Growth scores have been released in the TeachAll platform. Portfolio educators may check TN Portfolio for scores.
Educators with questions regarding their portfolio score should contact their Content Advisor for score-specific feedback and guidance related to scoring results and content-area requirements.
Grievances may be submitted only for the following reasons:
- Data Accuracy Issues – Evaluation data assigned to the wrong educator. Disagreement with a score is not grounds for a grievance.
- Procedural Errors – Significant evaluation process errors, such as missing required observations or conferences.
Please refer to the Guidance for Grievance for complete procedures and eligibility requirements.
A portfolio will be assigned an Incomplete (I) and the teacher’s LOE (Level of Overall Effectiveness) score will NOT generate for the 2025-26 school year if any of the four collections were not 100% complete by the deadline. These educators will also be assigned to the Novice track in PLZ for SY26-27 and will receive four observations.
Please contact the District Portfolio Lead, Floresha Smith via email (smithf2@scsk12.org) for any questions or to report any issues.
In accordance with Tennessee State Board of Education Policy 5.201, all educators must be evaluated annually by a certified evaluator. To support administrators in meeting this requirement, Memphis-Shelby County Schools offers multiple pathways for obtaining or maintaining TEM Certification for the 2026–27 school year.
Returning Observers
An email was sent out in early June for recertification. Administrators who were previously certified as evaluators must:
- Complete the Self-Paced TEM Training in Canvas
- Complete the required Calibration Exercise in PLZ
- Complete all certification requirements by September 8, 2026
Important: If you are still in an eligible role for certification and did not receive the email, please contact EPS at eps@scsk12.org. All Returning Observers must successfully complete coursework and calibration by September 8, 2026, to remain certified for the 2026–27 school year.
New Observers
Administrators pursuing TEM certification for the first time can register for the course below:
Self-Paced Canvas Course
- PLZ Course #50074
2-Day Virtual
- PLZ Course #50075
Completion of the selected training pathway and all required calibration activities is necessary to obtain TEM certification. All New Observers must successfully complete coursework and calibration by March 30, 2027.
For RETURNING NIE Evaluators that were previously NIE Certified during SY2025-2026, NIE Recertification is NOT REQUIRED for SY2026-2027. Eligible Returning NIE Evaluators will be automatically identified and added as NIE Evaluators in PLZ for SY2026-27.
- NEW NIE Evaluators
For SY2026-2027, there are two (2) options offered in attaining NIE Evaluator Certification:
- Self-Paced (Canvas)
- Live/Virtual Session
Course numbers and date information can be found HERE.
Questions/Concerns? Send an email to eps@scsk12.org.
July 2026 District Learning Day follows a school-based and department-led format, featuring sessions encompassing a whole-group address, school-based professional learning, instructional planning, and deliberate practice.
Action Required:
- School leaders are to submit agendas outlining their day, including professional learning opportunities teachers will engage in for the day, using the link provided below. School leaders should submit this form by Wednesday, July 22, 2026.
- Inform teachers to register for their appropriate content sessions in PLZ.
- All teachers must use the sign-in and survey links to receive credit in PLZ.
Link: School-based Agenda Submission
Dear MSCS School Leaders,
We’re excited to share that your school’s ClassDojo account will be fully rostered for the 2026-27 school year. That means student rosters, staff accounts, and classes will be set up for you automatically.
ClassDojo is a widely adopted tool across MSCS that serves as a communication hub between school staff and parents. Key features include school-wide announcements, class announcements, and 2-way messaging between school staff and parents. Additionally, ClassDojo offers automatic translation services in more than 190 languages for multilingual families.
Middle & High School Principals: Please note that ClassDojo has significantly adjusted its platform to offer a feel and functionality that is more appropriate for secondary schools.
Your Action Steps:
Schedule an individualized consultation with ClassDojo: If you haven’t already, go over this year’s updates and build a strong back-to-school plan for your building.
Remind your staff what to expect with this Mini Slide Deck
Classes will automatically be set up for teachers and students will automatically be added to your directory. Staff should not create classes before July 27. Rostered classes can still be archived as needed if you don’t plan to use them on ClassDojo, or they can be renamed.
Connect Families: Make sure that your staff has a plan to send a connection invite to new and non-connected families via ClassDojo by August 3. Families are especially responsive to their students’ teachers during this time of the school year!
What’s coming
Students will be added to the directory and classes will be set up for teachers by July 27.
For PreK-8 Schools: New and non-connected staff will be automatically invited to create a ClassDojo account on July 27.
Students will be added into their classrooms by July 28, so families see final class placements close to the start of the new school year. Please do not add students before this date.
For PreK-8 Schools: New and non-connected families will be automatically invited to create a ClassDojo account on July 28.
If you have any issues or questions, please refer to ClassDojo’s FAQ here or reach out to ClassDojo Support.
Prefer to learn at your own pace and earn a certificate? Take our asynchronous School Leaders training course here: 👉 ClassDojo School Leader Training
Thank you for your continued partnership and commitment to making ClassDojo even more impactful for your students and families.