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Quiz: Spring Cleaning Your RTI/MTSS Program

As many of your students start to catch “summer fever” (if they haven’t already…), you and your fellow district leaders head into a critical season for RTI/MTSS program implementation: the ramp up to the next school year. And with all there is to prepare, it can get overwhelming.

So, where to begin?

The success of next year’s RTI/MTSS program hinges on your ability to evaluate the success of this past year’s program. What worked? What didn’t work? What needs to change, and when? Which details should you focus on to make next year’s program the best it can be?

Take the quiz below to find out!

*Some of the quiz content comes from Jim Wright’s blog series for Frontline Education. Jim is a highly acclaimed national presenter, trainer and author on topics that cover the essentials and beyond of Response to Intervention and Multi-Tiered System of Supports and is the creator of InterventionCentral.org.

“They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.” — Andy Warhol

When you roll the tape forward to a year or five years from now, what changes would you be excited to see in your RTI/MTSS program?

Of course, these changes can’t happen overnight, and they can’t be owned by a single person in your district. However, by choosing to start the conversation this spring, you could improve outcomes for your students down the road, starting as early as this fall ― and that is worthwhile.

Teacher Appreciation Day: Thank You to Our Teachers

Teachers have one of the toughest jobs out there – a job that’s incredibly demanding and often thankless. But today, we want take a special moment to thank all of our teachers, and in particular, a few who made an indelible mark on the lives of Frontline Education employees.

 

Give a shout-out to your own favorite teacher!

Thank you to my favorite teacher… #teacherappreciationday https://bit.ly/2rgF5wr

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School & District Leaders – holding on to great teachers is a tough challenge for many schools. Many educators say what impacts their decision to stay or go the most is the support, growth and development opportunities they are receiving.

How can you help teachers feel appreciated and supported, not just today, but all year long?

Here’s some additional reading on teacher support you may enjoy:
5 Lessons for Creating Positive Change Through Coherent Teacher Evaluation
Eluding the Elusiveness of Retention: How to Keep Your Great Performers
3 Non-traditional Professional Learning Ideas for Teachers
5 Ways to Reduce Burnout for Special Education Teachers

Transcript

Darryl Shafer

“Mr. Miller, I spent the last 2 years of high school learning algebra 2 and advanced math from you. And you were always patient, accepting and encouraging. I have very fond memories all these years since. Thank you for encouraging my love of math in your class.”

Kristen Graff

“My shout out goes to Mr. Holmberg, who was my Social Studies teacher at Naperville Central High School. … I remember one day after class, I asked how he traveled around the world so much, and he told me just to do it. Well, I’ve been to ten countries, and I’ll be going to my 11th country later this Summer. So, thank you Mr. Holmberg for teaching me a life-long lesson.”

Emily Quebedeaux

“Mrs. Zylak, I was lucky enough to have you for both kindergarten and 4th grade. You approached education as a form of creativity. Learning was a hands-on experience where mistakes were all a part of the process. Every day was a new and different way of looking at the world, and I still carry that with me to this day.”

Mitch Annis    

“Mr. Keating was the Science teacher… he was a great person. When I had a chance to take Horticulture with him, I got to work on the greenhouse on the roof of our high school, and he taught me so much about how to cultivate, and care for these plants, all the different types of plants, and that blew me away. It was such a fun, hands on experience, I still have some of the plants that we planted together in that greenhouse in high school, growing in my house, which is crazy. It’s just crazy to think about how long that moment has endured through time to where I am today.”

Borzou (Bo) Motlagh

Thank you, Mr. Whitcomb, for teaching me so much about music and really just being a solid part of my childhood. … Your lessons taught me discipline, rhythm, the ability to present in public and the knowledge that I can really do anything that I want to. As I studied engineering and science and philosophy, I always felt that I had an edge because of my understanding of music and music theory – and that’s largely because of you. So, thank you.”

Neal Zeleznak  

“My favorite teacher was Mr. Gresk. He’s a high school Science teacher. … He would always just be this funny, off the wall guy, and really got you laughing every day, and got me interested in Science for the first time, that’s for sure. I remember one time, he dropped a bunch of gummy bears on the floor, and still ate them to demonstrate the human body’s immune system, and how strong it was. To this day, I still eat gummy bears if I drop them on the ground. So, thank you very much, Mr. Gresk.””

Juliet Correll   

“Mrs. Millette, you were a phenomenal teacher and my all-time personal favorite. I was so lucky to have you for two years for AP US History. And I know I rolled my eyes once or twice, because I felt like you were pushing me and pushing me… and I don’t remember every date and detail that you taught us, but you taught me how to write, and I have been forever grateful for that. Thank you so much.”

Best Practices for Planning Extended School Year Services

As the trees begin to blossom, our thoughts turn naturally to spring and even summer. But if you’re a special education administrator or intervention specialist, your pre-summer list is probably a mile long, even as early as March.

One of those to-do items is planning Extended School Year (ESY) services for qualifying IEP students, a sometimes confusing and daunting task that tends to bring up questions like:

Who decides which students qualify for services and how?

Do we need to provide yoga and horseback riding if that’s what a parent requests?

Can we just copy ESY goals and objectives from the IEP?

Here are best practices for planning ESY to make your team’s preparations easier this year, so you can enjoy more of spring and summer.

1. ESY basics

The law requires school districts to provide ESY services to qualifying students over the summer, to prevent or lessen regression. ESY is not camp, child care, enrichment or summer school. ESY services are specially designed instruction and/or related services tied to specific goals in the student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP). Every IEP includes an ESY section which requires the team to decide if a child is eligible for services.

2. ESY qualifications

School districts must provide ESY when a child’s IEP team determines that ESY services are necessary to offer a free appropriate public education (FAPE). Common eligibility mistakes include qualifying children just because summer services will benefit them, because they’ve failed to make progress during the year or because they fall within a particular disability category.

Generally, ESY services are only appropriate if the student will experience significant skill loss or regression during summer break without those services. For each child, the IEP team should consider whether – without ESY services – the student:

  1. will not adequately recoup skills lost to summer regression;
  2. will lose emergent skills; or
  3. will be severely hampered in progressing towards IEP goals.

If the answer to any of the above is yes, the student is eligible for ESY services. Notably, a student does not have to actually experience regression to qualify, but there must be a reasonable basis to conclude that regression would result without ESY services. A child’s regression – or lack of it – after shorter school breaks is often considered a reasonable basis for making ESY decisions.

Extended school year is not camp, child care or summer school. ESY services are specially designed instruction and/or related services tied to specific goals.” – Miriam Perlmutter @WalterHav

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3. Data collection

Because ESY determinations are typically data-driven, teachers and other providers should collect data before and after school breaks. Specifically, educators should document levels of performance immediately before and after the break, as well as recording the amount of time the child needed to regain lost skills upon return.

In analyzing before-and-after data, be sure to use an apples-to-apples comparison. For example, don’t compare a child’s score on a fifth-grade reading passage in August with a May score on a fourth-grade selection. Also, don’t limit this data collection to summer or the two-week winter vacation. Instead, collect data for Thanksgiving, spring break and any extended breaks in instruction.

Without this data, denying a parent’s ESY request is legally challenging, so be sure to collect data for every potential ESY student on every goal.

You may enjoy this hand-picked content:

Video: Are We Still Providing FAPE?

4. Goals and services

Because ESY services seek to prevent regression and avoid jeopardizing progress, ESY goals – unlike those in an IEP – are not written to enhance existing abilities or learn new ones. In fact, ESY goals and objectives should focus on skills that the child does not recoup in a reasonable time, or skills needed to avoid significantly jeopardizing progress.

Outcomes should center on reducing skill loss in a critical area and positively impacting recoupment within a reasonable amount of time.

The team decides specific ESY services needed for each child individually, based on their particular FAPE needs. So, no, unless proficiency in yoga and horseback riding are critical skills subject to regression in your particular district, ESY in those areas would be unnecessary for FAPE.

Don’t forget that raw data must be collected on ESY goals as well; make sure your ESY providers are competent in data collection and documentation.

“ESY decisions are data-driven, so staff must collect data before and after breaks, for every student on every goal.”

5. Working with parents

In working with parents on ESY determinations, remember to meet early and explain the decision-making process clearly, along with referencing the specific data that the team reviewed. Acknowledge parents’ input and suggestions, and be sure to consider the child’s individual needs every step of the way.

ESY cannot be provided on a one-size-fits-all basis or categorically limited only to students with certain disabilities. Above all, don’t forget to document the team’s process and decisions through a prior written notice!

Careful forethought and planning with your teams in the spring will lead to an easier and more relaxing summer for everyone.

In working with parents on ESY determinations, remember to meet early and explain the decision-making process clearly, along with referencing the specific data that you reviewed.

Make data-driven ESY and IEP decisions that help learners thrive. Schedule a demo of Frontline’s IEP & Special Education Management software today

Top 5 FERPA & HIPAA Misconceptions for Schools

We live in an age filled with threats to student privacy. As an important member of your school community, you’re a defender of that privacy. And that role comes with a great deal of responsibility. Part of your responsibility is understanding two primary laws that protect against the unlawful disclosure of personal and health information: the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule.

These laws are complex and often misunderstood – which can lead to stress in school employees and can put your students and district at risk.

As an education law attorney representing schools, I help clarify many FERPA and HIPAA misconceptions that keep school personnel up at night.

Here are the top five misconceptions about FERPA and HIPAA that I regularly address in my work with schools.

1. “HIPAA applies to schools.”

Nope.

Educators worry about the confidentiality of all student information, particularly the data relied upon in developing and implementing IEPs and Section 504 plans, often on account of “HIPAA” protection concerning diagnostic and medical records. Such concern is helpful and motivating, because virtually all information regarding students – certainly doctor notes and evaluations – are protected from disclosure and review by anyone without “legitimate educational interests.”

But those protections are not because of HIPAA.

HIPAA, the “Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996,” restricts the access, use and disclosure of “protected health information” maintained by “covered entities.” These entities are typically health plans, health-care clearinghouses, and health-care providers. That means that your school is not a covered entity, unless you’re providing “health care,” like through a free clinic or other service beyond a day-to-day school nurse.

So, stop worrying about HIPAA. But pay attention to FERPA and your state’s student record laws and regulations.

2. “We can’t call the doctor who wrote the student note without a signed release.”

That depends on who’s talking and what they’re sharing.

FERPA, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (also known as the “Buckley Amendment”), ensures access by parents and students and protects against the non-approved disclosure of “personally identifiable information” about students. That information includes virtually all information you collect and maintain on an enrolled student, certainly including the contents of the special education and Section 504 files.

But when you call a doctor to confirm that she authored a note that your Section 504 committee is considering, or to ask a question about a diagnosis for purposes of IEP drafting, or to confirm a medically excused absence, usually you’re not sharing information about the student. You are not disclosing “personally identifiable information” protected by FERPA. Rather, you’re asking for information from the doctor or the doctor’s office. A parent, guardian, or adult student need not permit you to call the doctor. You have that right.

A release needed here, if any, is to be secured by the doctor from the parents/guardians, since any information shared is likely “health information” shared from the health provider to the school ― the school isn’t sharing information about the student.

Any release needed is up to the doctor to determine. You can make your call, and ask relevant questions, so long as that conversation is a one-way street.

You may enjoy this hand-picked content:

Quiz: Test Your 504 Plan Knowledge.

3. “Parents have access to all documents that mention their student.”

Well, most documents, but actually ― not all.

Records that are kept in the “sole possession” of the maker, and not shared with any other person, are not considered “education records” under FERPA, regardless of the nature of the information they contain. This means that notes kept by a teacher, or a related service provider, regarding the implementation of modifications and/or accommodations, or notes kept by persons attending IEP team or Section 504 meetings, so long as not shared with or accessible by others, are not covered by FERPA.

Since this information is not considered to be FERPA-protected “education records,” it is not automatically accessible by parents.

Keep in mind though, those documents likely become education records if shared with colleagues or kept in a folder or file that is accessible by others. The information must be kept in the “sole possession” of the maker and maintained as confidential and not shared with others in order to remain outside of FERPA’s mandates.

4. “FERPA prohibits paraprofessionals/teacher aides from seeing IEPs and Section 504 plans.”

That’s probably not right.

FERPA prohibits the disclosure of personally identifiable information regarding students contained in education records by schools to third-parties without written consent (typically provided by parent or guardian).

But FERPA does not require written consent when “school officials” with “legitimate educational interest” review student records. Such access does not require prior notice to parents or guardians, other than the usual, annual FERPA notice provided by schools.

So, who are “school officials” with authority to review this information? And what is a “legitimate educational interest?” These terms are not defined by the law. Schools are required to define them in policy or regulation, and that information needs to be noted in the annual notice.

Typically, these terms may be defined by asking the question, “What’s the need to know?” or “What’s the job duty?” that requires access to the information?

If the answer involves the delivery of instruction, or the implementation of modifications or accommodations or related service provided in an IEP or Section 504 plan, then access to the record is likely permissible.

However, if the answer is curiosity, or some purpose unrelated to education, access is prohibited.

Which brings us to the paraprofessional or aide. Does that individual need to review an IEP or Section 504 plan to implement his or her responsibilities under that document? May the para be trained in some other way? May you simply provide a list of responsibilities? What’s best practice? What’s the consistent practice of the school?

The point is ― there is no blanket rule under FERPA (or otherwise) that “non-certificated” personnel have less authority to access student records. And that’s a good thing, because paras have similar ownership of IEP and Section 504 plans. They are valued members of our teams and should be treated as such.

You may enjoy this hand-picked content:

The 2 Sides of Improving Special Educator-Paraprofessional Collaboration

5. “Students can’t see other students’ grades under FERPA.”

That depends on who’s grading.

Typically, grades are “personally identifiable information” set forth in education records which are protected from unauthorized disclosure under FERPA. But in the seminal case of Owasso Independent School District v. Falvo, 534 U.S. 426 (2002), the United States Supreme Court held (in favor of a school district) that students scoring each other’s tests and calling out the grades does not violate FERPA. The Court found that those grades were “pre” grade book and not yet within education records, thus not protected. (To the relief of elementary teachers nation-wide.)

So, the practice of “peer grading” is acceptable. But don’t interpret that to mean that teachers may disclose student grades without consent. Because they cannot. Once a teacher is in possession of a grade, it becomes a protected education record. That information may be shared with parental consent, like through the publication of an honor roll, or sharing records with another school — and as discussed above, those with “legitimate” purpose internally may review the grades. But absent those circumstances, the information is protected.

True or False: The practice of “peer grading” is acceptable under FERPA. Find out here.

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In Summary

Remember to reflect on “Why?” and “Who?” and “What?” regarding student information. And remember to consider the purpose of external communications. FERPA and HIPAA exist primarily to ensure access to information and to protect against the disclosure of that information to persons without the need to know. Be careful out there.

How ERP Software Smooths the Journey for School Business Officials

District administrators are pushing back on K-12 technology companies to do a better job of connecting the data that schools depend on for everything from security and compliance to reporting and funding. Historically, school business professionals have worked on an island in corporate finance software that requires costly code customizations and supplemental spreadsheets to make it work for education.

At a recent regional ASBO conference, we heard tons of questions about how to get HR better aligned with Finance and Payroll departments for compensation like steps, stipends, grades, and supplementals, as well as benefits administration. It came as a surprise to some, but comprehensive ERP software systems aren’t just for the corporate world anymore!

Here are a few main reasons that school business professionals are turning to software that is purpose built for K-12.

You wear multiple hats

In the school business office, you could have any number of responsibilities — transportation, food services, facilities, state reporting, accounts payable, risk management, payroll, requisitions, budgeting, reconciliations, even managing Human Resources matters. Needless to say, you likely wear a lot of hats. One moment you’re wearing a baseball cap, keeping score of district finances. Then, next thing you know, someone’s knocking at your door asking you to switch gears and put on a cowboy hat and round up some paperwork for them.

That can make it difficult to stay focused and get things done.

Research has found that mentally juggling multiple tasks leads to cognitive overload, with the end result of decreased productivity and memory impairment. But the work needs to get done, and you’re the one who has to do it. Chances are, there’s no room in the budget to hire enough staff to truly ease the burden. So, what’s a busy, multiple-hat-wearing school business official to do?

It all comes down to reducing the number of mental shifts and switches you need to perform in a day. If possible, block off time to work on one thing at a time. But if that’s not possible, don’t despair! Every little bit counts.

Making a positive change could mean taking steps as simple as consolidating your software systems so you don’t have to deal with invoices from as many vendors, and don’t have to log in and out of a dozen systems, all with different password requirements. The more you can move toward using one integrated platform, and away from several smaller point solutions, the better off you’ll be. For example, you may want to consider a comprehensive ERP solution that lets you manage Payroll, Finance and Human Resources all in one place.

You need a reliable paper trail

There are plenty of things to worry about in the school business office. Like shrinking (or stagnant) budgets, audits, fines for noncompliance, bad PR — the list goes on and on. It’s imperative that there’s solid documentation for everything that happens in the office. You never know when you might need to double-check which staff member entered data into a system (and when), or who updated an invoice or approved a requisition. Otherwise, you could end up with overdue invoices or necessary supplies not getting to classrooms that need them.

But you don’t necessarily want all of that documentation to take the forms of, well, documents. After all, you have more than enough paperwork floating around already!

A good ERP system will ensure that every action taken in the software is logged and timestamped. And remember — these records won’t do you much good if you can’t see them without specifically requesting them from the vendor and waiting for their developers to export the log. Look for software that not only keeps a record of all the actions taken by users, but also makes it easy for you to access the information you need, when you need it.

You need to stick with budgets and district policy

So much of the work you engage in demands accuracy. That often translates to feeling like you’re constantly updating spreadsheets and trying to keep everyone in the loop.

When all the data you’re working with is in real-time across HR, Finance and Payroll it finally feels attainable to stay in compliance and still be nimble. And that’s what a comprehensive ERP does for business office folks who are juggling budget and district policy — but only when it’s purpose built for K-12 school districts!

Districts that use ERP software made for the needs of schools can process all the unique demands of district budget and policy natively without resorting to the costly code customizations needed for generic corporate systems. Business office professionals embed approval workflows, and automated rules and conditions that head off overspending and noncompliance for everything from hiring and professional development to travel and assets.

Just think about all the time you gain from not having to endlessly reinforce budget and policy regulations when your district ERP software handles all of the rules and reminders for you.

You can’t afford to waste time 

And that brings us to our final point — time is at a premium in the school business office. You have enough to do, without having to deal with all the back-and-forth that comes with inefficient manual processes.

All the time management tips and tricks in the world won’t help you get everything done if you don’t have the information you need to cross a task off of your to-do list.

It’s frustrating when you’re constantly taking time out of your day to chase people down when forms weren’t completed correctly (or at all) or waiting on others to get information to you. And in the meantime, you have deadlines to meet and a mountain of work to get through.

This is really where an ERP system can shine: saving you time in getting work done, easing communication between departments and making sure that data is accurate.

But here’s the catch: your software system should work for you, not against you.

One-size-fits-all software meant for the corporate world just isn’t made for the nuances of K-12, and you might end up spending more time working around the system than you ought to. Look for a configurable ERP system made specifically for K-12 education that gives access to real-time data, and you’ll be on your way to Time Savings Central. (That’s not a real place, but if it was, we would buy you a ticket there today.)

5 Tips for Using Video as a Professional Learning Tool for Teachers

You know that feeling you get when you hear yourself on tape, or see yourself on video? Is that really what I sound like? Do I really look like that?

April Strong can relate. After all, she has filmed herself teaching more than most. And she says it’s worth the awkwardness of watching herself on screen.

“Video brought clarity to my practice so I could bring the greatest work to my classroom for my students. That’s the power of video. Nobody told me I had to do it. There was no other reason other than it was the perfect time, because I was wondering what I truly looked like as a teacher. Video was, and is still, very clarifying. I might be [using] the most effective strategy ever, but if I don’t actually see it like my students saw it, I’m not growing and I’m not truly clear on if I hit my target. That’s what makes me most passionate about video in the classroom.”

“If I don’t actually see it like my students saw it, I’m not growing and I’m not clear on if I hit my target. That’s what makes me most passionate about video in the classroom” – @LoveAStrong

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Get Started Using Video as Learning Tool

As a teacher at Martin County School District in Florida, April has been using video to grow and develop her own teaching practice for years. Now as an instructional coach, she is using this technology to support other teachers in the same way.

 

Earlier this year, April told me how she got started. For any teachers, administrators, coaches or other instructional leaders considering video to support teacher professional development, here are 5 things to remember.

To get started, just get started.

“All you need is your cell phone, and a place to prop it up, and the bravery to literally just push that red button. So to get started with video, it’s just a matter of being brave enough to push record and commit to actually watching — maybe not the full video, but enough of it to realize there’s something to grow from.”

Don’t let technical missteps get you down.

When April first began using video, it wasn’t all smooth sailing.

“That whole first week or so of recordings has become a highlight reel for me, in that I captured no audio, most of my back, none of anything that I needed and everything that I never knew I wanted in order to clarify my practice. So it was very clunky, and not a lot of great video product came from the first multiple attempts. But it’s been the most beautiful journey, and most vulnerable journey, that I’ve allowed myself to go on with my students watching.”

White Paper: “10 Strategies to Improve Teaching with Video”— a look at ten different ways video is useful for improving teaching practice, and real-life examples of organizations that have successfully used video to support educator growth.

Offer reflection questions.

Providing a springboard for reflection can help teachers get more out of watching their videos:

“What are some things you should ask yourself or ask a person if you’re watching their video? Offering sentence stems or question prompts for yourself or for a person you’re watching is a really great resource to slowly start to edge into giving feedback.”

Encourage teachers to share videos with colleagues.

April describes a collaborative conversation around a video she shared of using hands-on lessons as she was teaching science. She said that her colleagues were able to see aspects of her teaching that she hadn’t noticed herself:

“I wanted to show the engagement strategies that I included with these hands-on lessons and how I managed that. They helped me grow my practice and make my hands-on lessons more manageable than I thought I needed. I was missing some management pieces. I might not have noticed that I could have moved students in a group more easily around the room, or if I asked a question and answer response this way I could save some minutes, because I was really struggling to finish my hands-on labs. And I shared that with the team. So as they watched, they were really looking at where my wasted minutes were that I was oblivious to…

“The power that comes from watching yourself on video, the conversation you have, I think is a deeper way of learning, not just about yourself but also about your profession.”

“The power that comes from watching yourself on video is a deeper way of learning, not just about yourself but also about your profession.” -@LoveAStrong

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But be sure to make recording and sharing videos optional.

Many people may be resistant to the idea of using video at first, April says. The key is to make it optional, and find someone who is willing to lead the charge and model for everyone else.

“[Don’t tell] anyone else they should do it, but do it for yourself and do it for a while, and whether or not you choose to share it is your personal choice, but if you’re not pushing ‘go, record,’ then you’re not going to get any further with video for yourself or as a program for your school district…

“I pushed record that day because I was assured, in the video that I was using, it would be stored in a place that was password-protected. Only I could see it, and it would not be shared or go live until I was in control of doing that, and I was the only person able to do that. And I think that’s the most powerful piece about a video program is having full control over your video until you’re ready to share it and collaborate around it.”

Looking for a way for teachers to share and collaborate around their own videos of teaching practice? Check out Learning & Collaboration Resources, part of Frontline Professional Growth. Through online collaborative groups, teachers can share and discuss videos, artifacts, lesson plans, earn micro-credentials, and use a massive library of courses and videos of instructional strategies and techniques.

Schedule a demo of Learning & Collaboration Resources today  

Breaking Down the New Hire Orientation Checklist

Beginnings are important. If you start a book with an underwhelming first chapter, or a television show with a subpar first few episodes, you’re less likely to see it through to the end. The same could be said for work — people are more likely to be engaged and stay in a job where they feel prepared and appreciated from Day 1. And in a setting like education, engagement and retention are even more critical because they directly impact students.

The Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) has found that successful onboarding programs incorporate four distinct levels, or building blocks, that they call “the Four C’s.”

The Four C’s are:

  • Compliance: Training employees on basic legal and policy-related rules and regulations
  • Clarification: Ensuring that employees understand their new job and expectations
  • Culture: Providing employees with a sense of organizational norms— both formal and informal
  • Connection: Fostering vital interpersonal relationships and information networks

So, what are some must-do tasks for your new hire to get started off on the right foot? We’ve organized them to align to the Four C’s, so you can be sure that all the building blocks of a successful onboarding process are covered. Not every task on our list will apply for every new employee, or every district, but this should provide a good starting point for you to compare your own process against.

Level 1: Maintaining Compliance in the Onboarding Process

First and foremost, it’s imperative that your school district protects itself and stays in compliance with applicable rules and regulations. To that end, you’ll want to make sure that required personnel forms have been completed by the new hire and securely filed with the district.

Where possible, you may want to have these tasks completed online, before the employee’s first day. Managing the compliance and administrative side of onboarding with digital document management (ahead of time) helps keep employees focused on their new job from Day 1 — and that’s a win-win for everyone. You don’t want a new teacher distracted by thoughts of direct deposit forms or W-4s while standing in front of their new classroom!

To-do list:

  • Finalize background checks
  • Complete required personnel forms
    • I-9
    • W-4 and state tax forms
    • Direct deposit forms
    • Etc.
  • Provide information on perks and benefits (health insurance, retirement plans, etc.)
  • Enroll employee in benefits plans (if applicable)
  • Have new hire read and acknowledge the employee handbook
  • Explain emergency procedures, security policies (e.g. building access) and school safety plans
  • Take employee photo for their badge

Level 2: Clarifying Expectations

To set employees up for success, the basic operations of the job as well as the school and district’s expectations must be clearly communicated from the get-go. This includes both the operational (knowing where to go, or how to use district-provided technology) and the more aspirational (understanding how they will be evaluated). There may be some overlap with the “compliance” level here. For example, you’ll want to ensure that every employee is trained on your emergency procedures and school safety plans.

Tip: New staff members have to absorb a large amount of information.

To-do list:

  • Provide agenda for new-teacher orientation
  • Go over school and district policies
    • Dress code (for students and staff)
    • Keys and access cards
    • Visitor policy
    • Medication procedures
    • Attendance procedures (for students and staff)
    • Purchase requests or expense reporting
  • Train on school/district technology
    • Classroom telephone
    • Intercom system
    • Email
    • Software used: Student information system, school administrative systems, etc.
  • Provide a tour of their building
    • School layout: classrooms, bathrooms, cafeteria, lounge, office, supply room, nurse’s office etc.
    • Bus entrance
    • Teacher parking
  • Explain the organization’s approach to curriculum
    • Curriculum development process and expectations
    • Lesson plan procedures and expectations
    • Classroom assessment system
    • Grading procedures
  • Review student discipline
    • Behavior expectations inside & outside of the classroom
    • Expected staff supervision outside of classroom
    • Referral process for students with special needs (gifted, special ed)
  • Lay out the employee evaluation process
  • Share resources and information on professional development opportunities

Level 3: Building a Shared Culture

As we’ve written before, building a positive school culture needs to start with the hiring process. It’s important that your onboarding process reflects your organization’s culture — for example, if you’re proud of your school or district’s digital initiatives in the classroom, it might be jarring for new hires to hear about online programs while going through a manual, paper-heavy onboarding process.

A positive school culture can’t be built through checklists or one-off tasks — it will always be a work-in-progress requiring participation from everyone. But, here are a few things to start with.

To-do list:

  • Distribute a welcome packet
  • Share your organization’s mission, vision and goals
  • Communicate the school and district’s values
  • Set expectations for collaboration and positive interpersonal interactions

Level 4: Fostering Connections

At the highest level of onboarding, relationships are key. Hopefully, your school culture values ongoing collaboration, which will make it easier for new hires to build productive relationships with their colleagues. You can help foster these connections by making introductions and helping new hires understand who they can go to with questions.

To-do list:

  • Explain the organization chart and ensure that new hires know where to find key personnel.
    • Their principal (of course)
    • Secretaries
    • Counselors
    • Instructional coaches and facilitators
    • Custodians / facilities personnel
    • Who to contact in the central office (e.g. for questions about payroll or Human Resources)
  • Introduce new hires to their mentors

After the First Week

Don’t let employee onboarding end with orientation, or even after the first week. Ideally, induction processes should last for a few months — or the new hire’s first year —and segue into a retention strategy to keep the best educators in your district.

It’s also a good idea to follow up with new employees after their first month, and throughout the year, to gather their feedback. This will give you the insight you need to further refine your onboarding strategy and help future new hires succeed.

K-12 Data Security: It’s Never Been More Important to Have a Plan

Unless you’ve been offline since the days of dial-up and connecting to the internet courtesy of a CD from America Online, you know what it’s like to turn on the news and wonder if your passwords are now in some hacker’s grubby fingers.

Yahoo!. Equifax. MySpace. Facebook. LinkedIn. MyFitnessPal. Or, to limit our scope to those discovered just in 2018: Starwood Hotels, Twitter, Quora, Facebook (again)… even Panera Bread.

Hundreds of millions of records, including usernames, passwords, email addresses, credit card data, passport information, personal data and more, intentionally stolen or accidentally leaked.

It’s bad enough when our own information is at risk. Is this going to be a big headache for me? But what about those who have entrusted their data to us? Are we doing enough to protect the data of students and employees?

Are we doing enough to protect the data of students and employees?

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Apparently not. According to the K-12 Cybersecurity Resource Center’s review of 2018, there were 122 cybersecurity incidents in 119 public K-12 education agencies in 38 states. That number is probably low, since it only includes incidents that were discovered and publicly disclosed. As of this writing there have been over 420 incidents since the beginning of 2016.

At the same time, district leaders aren’t backing away from technology. When Project Tomorrow released “The State of K-12 IT” in November, it found that 97% of district administrators view technology as important to student success — with many pointing to initiatives like flipped learning, competency-based learning and online professional development as quickly-growing trends.

Protect Data Security by Preparing Your People

Two more striking statistics from Project Tomorrow’s study: 61% of district administrators say it’s a top priority to provide teachers with professional development on protecting student data — even though only 8% of teachers say that they need that kind of professional learning.

EdTech Strategies CEO Doug Levin agrees with the district administrators. Speaking to EdWeek in November, he said that training on how to protect sensitive data is key: “Perhaps just as important as hardware and software that guards against malicious attacks is raising awareness about them and providing training to staff, students, and parents.”

In the same article, Marie Bjerede of the Consortium for School Networking concurs. “The big hitter in protecting your systems and data is to train all staff on detecting and not clicking on fraudulent phishing e-mails, and on exercising good password hygiene.”

Where to Begin?

In addition to cloud software that meets the highest security standards, it has never been more important to have a plan for K-12 data security. Frontline’s “Cybersecurity Program Getting Started Guide” pulls together resources you’ll need to build a team, examine and classify your data, perform risk assessment and gap analysis, and then take action.

Download the Cybersecurity Guide Today  

 

Foster Diversity Among Teachers With a “Grow Your Own” Program

What do you do when your teacher workforce doesn’t reflect the diversity of your student body?

It’s a question many education leaders have found themselves asking. According to data from the National Center for Education Statistics, over half of public school students identify as people of color, compared to only 20 percent of public school teachers. The consequences of this disparity are profound — research shows that when students of color have at least one teacher who shares their racial and cultural background, they:

  • Perform better on standardized tests
  • Are more likely to graduate from high school
  • Are more likely to attend a four-year college

Suffice to say, the diversity gap reinforces the opportunity gap. As to why this disparity exists, that’s a topic we could write about ad infinitum. But for now, let’s focus on what you can do to make a positive impact and close the diversity gap.

Launch a “Grow Your Own” Program In Your District

One strategy is to launch a “Grow Your Own” program in your district to focus on cultivating a pool of diverse teachers from your own community.

Grow Your Own programs can be two-pronged:

  • Provide opportunities for community members or current support staff to become licensed educators
  • Identify and incentivize students in your high schools to pursue education majors and enter the teaching profession in your district

Verona Area School District’s Grow Your Own Teacher Program

Verona Area School District (VASD) near Madison, Wisconsin launched their Grow Your Own program for two reasons:

  • A growing teacher shortage in the district
  • A glaring mismatch between the racial makeup of their teaching workforce and student population

At one point, the district’s student body was over 30 percent students of color, yet only four percent of their teachers fit the same description. At the same time, the district was only receiving four or five applicants for hard-to-fill positions, like Special Education or STEM.

Jason Olson, the Director of Human Resources, knew that the research. Students of color do better when some of their teachers share their cultural and racial background. And he knew that the vast majority of public school teachers attended high schools within a one-hour drive from where they work now. Focusing on recruiting locally, from the district’s own community, could lead to a teacher workforce that more accurately reflected the student population.

Active Recruiting for Strong Candidates and Learning Outcomes

Leaders at VASD implemented their two-pronged approach thoughtfully. They intentionally recruited district support staff who exemplified the natural qualities of an educator in their day-to-day roles:

  • A positive attitude
  • A growth mindset
  • Perseverance
  • Smarts
  • Adaptability
  • Dedication
  • Excellent problem-solving skills

After a screening and interview process, they offered the strongest candidates an 18-month alternative teacher certification program, at the end of which they had a group of certified teachers who were community members with attributes that could make a difference for their students.

Simultaneously, they developed a longer-term initiative as the second-prong of the Grow Your Own Program. They identified high school students with those same characteristics of a high-quality teacher and ran them through a similar selection process, slightly adjusted for these younger candidates.

Jason shares:

“Those questions aren’t as focused on lesson planning and grade books and curriculum, you know, set-up and things like that. We figure we can teach people about that. What we can’t teach them about is some of the things that are born and early formed in terms of conflict resolution, conflict de-escalation, race relations, advocacy for students, standing up to bullying, things like that.”

The district partnered with a local college to offer reduced tuition for students in the Grow Your Own program and picked up the remaining tuition not covered by financial aid or internal scholarships. As a result, those students in the program have all of their tuition paid for a bachelor’s degree and walk away with a teacher certification. The money paid by the district toward the degree is forgiven once the student has taught in the district for four years.

Prioritizing the Program in the Budget

With a pipeline of roughly two to eight students in the Grow Your Own pipeline, and two students enrolling in each year, Jason calculates that the program costs about $80,000-$100,000 per year. It’s not cheap, but Jason is quick to point out that turnover isn’t cheap either. The program is a priority in the budget due to the positive long-term impact district leaders expect it to have on their teacher workforce and student outcomes.

Goals and Results of the Program

So far, the program is poised for success. It’s helping the district take positive steps toward equity for all students in the district.

In it’s first year, the program had strong results:

  • The first cohort of internal staff members who completed the 18-month certification program have now entered the teaching workforce
  • The first high school student from the program graduated with a degree in Special Education and will take a role in special education at the district
  • The diversity of applicants to the district increased greatly and diversity in their teaching workforce doubled

Jason attributes this incredible change to an improved reputation in the community. He shares, “I really attribute that to word of mouth out in the community, that, ‘Wow, something’s different here this year, and I don’t know what it is, but I like it.’ … Like that curb cut effect where if you do something good for one particular group of people, what do you know, it ends up being a good thing for everybody.”

He adds:

“What I heard was that people appreciated the honesty of saying that what we’ve been doing in the past, for our students of color in particular, hasn’t been working very well, and owning up to that. And being humble enough to put that out there, I think, resonated with a lot of people. And also acknowledging the fact that there is an important connection between students of color and teachers of color and making that a priority, I think, elevated that with a lot of our applicants — kind of elevated their thought of us as a district, and also as an employer.”

Starting a Grow Your Own Teacher Program in Your School District

Looking to start a Grow Your Own initiative in your own district? Learn more about how Verona Area School District launched their program, and the results they’ve seen, by checking out this episode of Field Trip, Frontline’s podcast about leadership in education.

Why Include Student Voice in Professional Development?

Let me tell you what I got for Christmas.

It was a banner year for me, at least in terms of what lay inside that shiny package I ripped open. There, inside a long, thin, triangular box, was a brand new, heavy, matte black, metal, 0.5mm rOtring mechanical pencil. Alongside it came a gorgeous leather cover for my beloved Field Notes.

A bit nerdy? You bet. A rather poor gift for someone else? Perhaps. But was it exactly what I wanted?

Yes.

And here’s the thing: I’ve gotten so much joy out of that simple gift — a gift that was easy to give and didn’t cost a lot — because the person who gave it to me asked me what I wanted.

What does this have to do with professional development?

Making sure that professional learning moves the needle on teaching and ultimately on student achievement means spending time and resources on the right content, methods and learning opportunities for each individual teacher. It also means thinking through the needs of each class, each group of students.

Increasingly, schools are bringing students into those conversations.

More schools are bringing student voice into conversations about professional learning.

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Last year an Edutopia article made the case for including students’ voices in the professional development process, either through interviews and surveys, or even inviting students to attend a workshop. By participating in this way, students can help to remove the guesswork, further focusing professional learning on not just what teachers believe will be most effective, but on what students see as their own needs.

Students are perceptive, and can also provide a unique window into a teacher’s practice. In a recent interview, Dr. James Stronge discussed indicators of quality instruction, and considered the merits and shortfalls of several often-used data points, like observations, self-ratings, peer feedback and summative evaluations.

But, Dr. Stronge said:

“The source that’s really good, over and over, is when students rate teachers. The correlation between student feedback on ‘whether my teacher is effective’ and student achievement gains in reading has a correlation coefficient, in some studies, of about 0.75….Kids are better, more valid evaluators of teacher effectiveness than teachers are of themselves and, I would conjecture, of teachers watching other teachers or principals rating teachers. The correlation with math achievement is also high, not quite as high as reading, but it’s still very high. Kids know good teaching.”

By extension, parents can also bring perspective to professional learning. Mary Kathryn Moeller, Director of Professional Development at Jenks Public Schools in Oklahoma, describes the importance they place on collecting feedback from many different voices:

“In May we tend to do a visioning meeting around professional development for the next year. We always invite parents into that as well, which might seem odd, because they might not think that we would include them in discussions around teacher professional development. But, in fact, having the parents as part of that conversation is really, really valuable. Because they know what’s going on in the classroom, and they work with their own child. As we’re thinking about, ‘In the end we’re all working together for the benefit of the students,’ the parents are an essential part of that.”

Of course, it’s easier to assume we know what people want or need — whether we’re giving gifts or planning professional learning. (For the record, I’m very much in favor of taking a risk and giving a terrific gift that the recipient has no idea is coming.) Yet directly asking those who are most impacted by the decision, “What are your thoughts? Where should we focus our time?” could very well be the difference between an exercise that’s “just okay” and professional learning that has measurable results in the classroom.

Do you include students’ voices when planning professional development? Take this instant poll:

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Do educators at your school system explicitly ask students (and parents) for input into professional learning plans?

Take our super-quick poll — it’s only 2 questions — and let us know (and see poll results instantly!):

4 Ways to Improve Transition Planning in Special Education

Providing individualized special education services in school is crucial to fulfilling the mission of the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA). However, in-school services only get you partway to accomplishing IDEA’s goals for students with disabilities.

The preamble to IDEA illustrates its long-term vision: “Improving educational results for children with disabilities is an essential element of our policy of ensuring equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living and economic self-sufficiency for individuals with disabilities.”

Transition planning is the vehicle educators use to help students with special needs live as independently and self-sufficiently as possible after high school.

Yet, for busy educators it can be easy to get caught up in daily planning and lose sight of a student’s post-secondary goals.

By following these four best practices, you can increase your confidence that students are well-positioned for a successful transition to life after high school.

The following best practices were taken from the video The IEP and Transition Services by special education author, consultant and national speaker Carol Kosnitsky. Content has been edited for brevity and clarity only.

1. Start the transition services process before it’s required

Formal transition planning may not be required before the age of 16 in your state. However, starting early can help kids identify strengths, needs, self-awareness and the ability to engage in self-determination skills, which include not just self-awareness but self-evaluation and decision-making.

Starting early also helps educators pick developmentally appropriate skills for kids. The process can begin in elementary school and be as simple as asking a student, “What are you interested in?”

Invite kids to physically participate in IEP meetings as early as possible. The sooner you’re able to get kids to physically come to their IEP meetings the better. This way, by the time the student is expected to be a fully-fledged team member, she/he is comfortable and confident about that roll.

Invite kids to physically participate in #IEP meetings as early as possible to make the transition planning process less daunting for them. Click here for more tips.

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2. Make sure post-secondary goals are measurable

Measurable post-secondary goal can be a confusing term because the word “measurable” in every other part of the IEP process is about collecting data and being accountable for a student achieving the goal. When thinking about “measurable” post-secondary goals, you are really thinking about “observable” goals.

Help your students articulate what they want to do after leaving high school as it relates to two or possibly three different areas. The two post-secondary goals that are required for all students are:

  1. An education and training goal
  2. An employment goal
  3. If appropriate, you would also engage kids in planning a third goal around independent living

Measurable post-secondary goals begin with, “After high school, I will _____” statements. They should be results-oriented and specific. The specificity is how you make them observable.

Real-world example:

Your student mentions wanting to go to college. You’re not going to measure if he ends up attending a four-year college, but now that you know it’s his goal, you’re able to take steps to help him prepare. You can determine the criteria to get into college and what course of study that student should take in high school to prepare for that post-secondary goal. You’ll also be able to consider if any of that student’s disability-related needs could prevent him from meeting his goal.

3. Keep referring to present levels of performance

While IDEA doesn’t specifically mention present levels in the transition process, you should always refer to present levels to understand the gap between a student’s actual performance and the skills and behaviors you know she/he needs to make a smooth transition. Always go back to the rest of the IEP to look at strengths, interests, preferences and kids’ skill levels.

What is required in transition services is a clear statement of the student’s course of study. To build this statement, you’ll need to consider the following question: Given what a student’s post-secondary goal is, are you planning the appropriate course work and opportunities that will increase the likelihood of that transition?

A big part of course-of-study planning is helping students see the relevance of classes they take in high school and how those relate to their future.

You may enjoy this hand-picked content:

Checklist to Elevate Each IEP

4. Coordinate a transition “action plan”

The last part of transition planning is called transition services. This is the coordinated set of activities that make up your “action plan” for a student. If you know what the student wants to do after high school, and you know the courses that she/he is going to be engaged in, what other things are on the to-do list that you – as a student-support team – need to take care of over the next four, six, seven years?

Your action plan should be a long-range plan that can be changed every year. It could include the school, the special education team, the guidance department, the parent, the student and representatives from any other agencies the child is or will be involved with.

The law requires that you look at seven different areas to say, “Is there an action plan necessary around this big area of instruction?”

Seven areas to review

  • Course of study/instruction
  • Employment
  • Functional volitional assessment
  • Community experiences
  • Other post-school and adult-living objectives
  • Acquisition of daily-living skills
  • Related services

Not every student needs services in each area. These seven are a kind of checklist to make sure you’ve covered the full range of things that are not course-related in your action plan for that student.

Real-world example:

A student who was receiving special education in high school is going to college, where any support and protection he has will come under Section 504. Do you need to do any instruction around that change?

In summary: begin with the end in mind

You want to be able to think forward and say, “10 years from now, I know this child is going to have experienced economic self-sufficiency, is living to the maximum extent possible, as independently as she can,” and that’s really thinking with the end in mind. Allow post-secondary goals to influence everything you do and the decisions you make for that student, and fulfilling IDEA’s vision will be well within your reach.

Transitioning a student from an IEP to a Section 504 plan to prepare for college? Frontline Special Ed & Interventions can help you lead a smooth transition. Schedule a demo to learn how  

What Can MASH Teach Us about Position Control in Schools?

There’s a reason that shows like “Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?” and books like “All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten” quickly became so popular. While it may have been a while since you were running around on the playground with your classmates, don’t you remember how intensely strategic some of the games were?

One of the games that stands out to me as having real-life applications in the K-12 Human Resources world is the game MASH. No, I’m not talking about the popular TV series. The playground game MASH, where just a few scribbles on a composition notebook could determine your fate.

Take a trip down memory lane and explore what that game teaches us about position control in schools!

What Does a Game Have to Do with Position Control?

Let’s start with a refresher on the game (just in case the rules are escaping you right now).

With some friends in the school yard, you’d write out the letters M.A.S.H on a piece of paper. Each letter stood for mansion, apartment, shed, house, then you’d proceed to list out a ton of different options.

  • The name of your spouse?
  • The number of kids you’ll have?
  • Which city to live in?

The entire objective of the game was to cross off options from the list until you ended up with a choice from each category. In the 90’s, most kids were trying to rig the game to end up in a mansion, married to Brad Pitt or Jennifer Aniston, maybe with a handful of kids in Honolulu.

It’s fun to dream and have options, but in the world of K-12 HR you want processes to be reliable and predictable. When it comes to position control and management in schools, you need more than simply a grasp on all the available options.

When you don’t have a strong position control strategy in place, it can feel like you’re playing this game every time you hire — except it’s less fun when there are real-world implications. Shuffling through mountains of options and permissions to finally end up with the designations for that specific position and the corresponding new hire.

 

What’s the Difference Between Knowing and Controlling Positions?

School HR professionals undoubtedly know all the information necessary to build out a position. However, there’s a huge difference between having an expansive list of all the available designations for a position and having a comprehensive position management plan in place to support district-wide operations.

Manually sorting through the pay structure, data and security permissions, and reporting for each individual employee who comes and goes is incredibly time-consuming and error-prone. It’s not nearly as fun as playing a game like MASH during recess, so it’s not something you want to spend hours on. With position control, you can be confident that each position proactively has the appropriate designations, and employees automatically inherit the settings for the positions that they’re hired into.

When you have this level of transparency and control, district-wide processes run more smoothly, and the information that you have access to becomes more reliable.

Want to learn more about implementing a position management and control plan in your school district?

Take a look at the Position Management & Control Playbook.