001Welcome to the Jordan Board of Education study session. Um, today is Tuesday, April 8th. My name is Nikki George. I'm the board president and joining us today we have the full board of education, Lisa Dean, Suzanne Wood, Daryl Robinson, Aaron Barrow, Bryce Denford, and Brian Barnett. Um, as well as our superintendent, Dr. Anthony Godfrey, our associate superintendent, Dr. Michael Anderson, and um, our board attorney, Paul Van, and we are excusing John Larson this evening. We are going to go ahead and begin this session with a discussion on the portrait of a graduate and strategic plan. We're grateful to have education elements joining us virtually today and so we welcome Sarah Baver and Miriam Cohen and we will turn the floor to them. Hi, good afternoon. Thank you so much for that introduction. Miriam and I
002are very excited to connect with you virtually and to share these updates on the first year of implementation for Jordan's 5-year strategic plan. I know that these slides were shared previously and hopefully you're able to have access to them on your laptop because we do have a few links that we want to make sure you're able to follow along with because we would like to get your feedback on a few pieces that we have been working on to support with implementation. But before we get to all of that, just want to make sure to quickly introduce myself again. I know I was with many of you in person back in December. But my name is Sarah. I'm based in Little Rock, Arkansas. Have been working with Jordan for a little over a year now. uh
003when it comes to implementing the strategic plan and portrait of a graduate and have really valued every single conversation and opportunity, especially knowing that we were recently on site with y'all a couple weeks ago and we're excited to share some more information around what we accomplished from those sessions. I'm joined by my colleague Miriam um who is in New York City and later on in the presentation she'll be sharing more especially around our work with the cabinet in terms of implementation of the strategic plan and where we are in our timeline for that. So just to overview what we hope to accomplish during these updates like I mentioned before we want to provide those updates on the year one of our progress especially with alignment efforts. We want to talk about some tangible implementation resources
004especially around the portrait of a graduate with the proficiency scales that we have been working on. And we also want to share how we've incorporated teacher feedback to developing those resources and also solicit feedback from you all as the board as we finalize these resources and get ready to share them with teachers. That's going to lead into talking about our next steps as we prepare for the formal launch of the strategic plan in Portugu Graduate as we look ahead to administrator sessions in June and then teacher PD days in August. So, we want to make sure we're offering clear updates around those next steps and what we're planning to do with messaging for those days. And then lastly, as Miriam talks through reflections on where we are with implementing the strategic plan, really want to
005reinforce how the work to date is setting us up for successful and scalable implementation as we move into year 2 and beyond. So, knowing that these are some of the items that we want to cover tonight in our update, I want to stop here just as a quick check-in question because, you know, at Education Elements, we love that as a grounding practice to hear from you. What is one question that you want to leave this update having more clarity about? So, we don't necessarily need to do a wraparound and hear from everybody, but want to pose this to the group and hear from a couple people. What is one question that you would like to leave having an update with more clarity [Music] around? I think I am interested in leaving this meeting with a
006clearer understanding of next steps and our role in supporting those next steps. Thank you. It's very helpful. I I second um Nikki's question um specifically how um portrait of a graduate will be implemented at the different school levels like elementary and middle and high school. So excellent. Thank you. I'll chime in here. Um this is Aaron Barrow. I'm new to the board and so I tried to do a lot of research on what had already been talked about and went back to board meetings from like 2023. Um, and so I am just hoping to get a little more clarity on uh where we're at in our timeline, uh, where we're headed, what it's going to look like the next few years, and then more specifically um, what implementation it's going to look like on the
007teacher end of this project. Great. Thank you so much. Whether it's This is Suzanne Wood. Hi. um whether it's today or some other time I would be very interested um outside of the proficiency scales how we will be gathering measurements on the impact of portrait of a graduate on in an ongoing basis. Excellent. Thank you. Pause here before I move on to the next slide just in case there are additional questions we want to surface with having clarity about when we wrap up these updates. Well, I'll take silence to be. We've named the big questions that are top of mind for us. And one of the things that you voice was around timeline. And so I want to start with this slide because I think it is very helpful to ground us in thinking about
008this being a 5-year process of implementing the strategic plan and knowing the portrait graduate is embedded into the strategic plan with our pillar around highquality instruction. And so when we look at this roadmap to sustainable implementation, what I really want to emphasize here is that the first year of implementation is really about alignment. And specifically when I talk about alignment, the focus has been on translating the plan's highle vision and pillar strategic objectives into very specific actions, metrics, and responsibilities. And so as we wrap up this work in the first year, our focus will continue to be on ensuring that everyone from district leaders goals and the why behind the plan. And that connects to a lot of the work that we did last semester, especially in our various board retreats where our priorities for
009implementation were around identifying those data sources that we would use to measure and track our pillars impact metrics and in the work that we did with the cabinet identifying and establishing ownership so that every objective has leaders who are accountable for driving the work forward. And so when I think about the work that we did last semester and how we've picked up with our progress this semester, the big questions that we have been really asking are what does success look like in each pillar of the plan? How will we measure that? And who needs to be at the table to make sure we're getting this right? And so this foundational alignment work that we focused on in year 1 has been really essential because it sets us up to now move with clarity and cohesion
010into year two as we think about acclamation and then into year three and refinement knowing that as we move into next year we'll be able to start to look for those early signs of long-term impact as we understand this being a five-year process. And so the headline knowing that one of the questions was named around timeline that I want to offer is this framing that Jordan is on track building really strong alignment across the school system and is really committing to get those details right so that what is communicated in the strategic plan really becomes sustained action and ultimately results for students. And as we talk about these updates, we'll provide more concrete and granular details around some of the things that you have named, but really I want to talk about alignment specifically within
011the context of the three work streams that we've been partnering on this year. And so again, just as a frame of reference, I want to overview what these work streams have looked like in our partnership this year to talk about how that has really supported and promoted strong alignment and cohesion in the early stages of implementation. And so, as I mentioned, that first work stream where we partnered with you as the school board throughout the fall semester with our three retreats to really update and align the END's policies with the strategic plan. And that was that really critical piece that supported us in being able to measure and monitor impact long term. And then in partnership with that, the work that we kicked off in the fall with the district cabinet to make sure that
012we were translating the highle vision and pillar strategic objectives into a really concrete timeline with phased implementation. And so that's where we talked about for each of the objectives how we were prioritizing each year knowing that we might need to be in installation, initial implementation or full implementation at various points in time. And that's something Miriam will be sharing more detail about during her section where she provides some updates around the implementation of the plan. And in that work that we kicked off with the cabinet in the fall, that also included starting to identify the specific strategies under each strategic objective and making sure that we were really clear about owners in terms of who was driving this work forward. What I'm about to talk about in more detail is the work that we've been
013doing with the portrait of a graduate. And so this work in particular has involved bringing together K through2 instructional leaders both from the school level and the district level. one to be able to deepen their familiarity with the port of a graduate, but also to collaborate and partner with them as they've helped to create resources that will support teachers and students to use the Pog in a way that it guides instructional decisions and experiences in classrooms. And so we're going to look at those ratified proficiency scales, but also want to make sure that we're speaking to some particular implementation use cases knowing that that is a question we have of what does this look like for students and teachers beyond how they might be utilizing these scales within their relevant grade band. So, I want
014to make sure as we move into these updates around operationalizing the portrait of a graduate that we're clear about the purpose behind this document. And so, the Pog, as you know, is that shared vision of the skills and characteristics that students should develop by the time that they graduate and are leaving Jordan School District. And specifically, when we think about the Pog being operationalized, it really goes beyond academic achievement to make sure that we're including those real world skills that prepare our students for a life after high school that is successful no matter what path they choose. And so we want to think about the POG both as a document that guides educators and also serves as a measure both for student growth and the district's progress in preparing graduates for what success looks like
015both in school work and life beyond. And when we think about the Pog as you're familiar with we have our six characteristics which we also call competencies. So you might be hearing me interchange those two terms knowing that they are synonyms. And so in this year one where we focused on alignment, one of the priorities of course has been to share and build familiarity with these six characteristics and knowing that we are creating that cohesion that has set us up for long-term success with implementation of the Pog. It's been really important in this first year to take a phased approach where we started by focusing on two of these six competencies or characteristics to start building out those specific resources that teachers and students will need to be able to have this guide their instructional
016learning experiences at the classroom level. And because of the alignment with Jordan's overall vision, we decided to start that phased approach with curious thinkers and responsible teammates. And what I'm going to talk through next will help to illustrate specifically what that phased approach will look like and has looked like and how we are working with instructional leaders to build out these resources so that by spring 2026, so next year we're at the place of full implementation with the Pog. So we'll dig into proficiency scales in just a moment and talk about how that also sets up for success around some particular implementation use cases. But I want to pause here again to show what this phased approach has looked like across the six POG characteristics. And so as we're wrapping up our work with curious
017thinkers and responsible teammates, we're thinking about how this process will continue for the four other competencies. knowing that we're getting ready for that formal launch of the Pog this summer with teachers during their August PD day. And so the work that we've done around curious thinkers and responsible teammates is very easily replicable. And we believe that the district is in a very strong place to continue that work for the final four characteristics denoting this colorcoded legend where green represents creative problem solvers and engaged citizens and yellow represents empathetic communicators and resilient lifelong learners respectively. This type of graphic and illustration I think is really helpful for talking about this being a phased approach where we're able to one build familiarity across the competencies but also making sure that we're going deep and have sustained focus
018and building a wealth of resources over time. And so this implementation timeline that you see here is an example of some messaging that we're also going to be sharing with teachers to help them understand what are the tight expectations as we move into next year with implementing the PG and also where are we going over the next couple of years to make sure that this is fully realized. And so thinking of that, I again want to align and make sure that we have a shared understanding and definition of proficiency scales, knowing that proficiency scales aren't unique just to the Pog, but also our standard practice across the district. And so what has been really critical to our success with implementing the Pog has been working with K through2 instructional leaders to develop these scales, knowing
019that these are tools that help teachers to clearly define what success looks like for each of the Pog characteristics. And going back to one of the questions that you named, really understanding what that looks like at the elementary, middle, and high school level. Our current POG document starts to articulate that vision at the grade band level. But to make sure that our teachers and students really understand what that looks like in their particular grade band and grade level, this was a very important and critical next step that we had to prioritize with our implementation. And so these example proficiency scales that you'll have a chance to look at in just a moment help to outline those key skills and dispositions that students need to be able to develop and describe that continuum of performance for
020skill progression going from below proficient to highly proficient. And in just a moment we'll talk a little bit more about why we've landed on using that particular language. And so we want to think about these proficiency scales both being a teacherf facing resource. So a resource that teachers are using to plan their instruction to give meaningful feedback to students and how they approach designing learning experiences. And we also want to think about them as a student-f facing resource and a family-facing resource because they're establishing that shared language and they're helping students to take ownership of their learning by promoting their self-reflection and their self- assessment. And so specifically with these proficiency scales, we've done a series of three workshops with the K through2 instructional leaders again who represent teachers and coaches at the school level
021and district level to create and refine these scales for the four grade bands with curious thinkers and responsible teammates. And what I'm going to share a little bit more about is around how we've also sought to gather feedback from teachers early on this spring semester. So that we can make sure we have some opportunities for iteration and revision and revision that are really specific to how teachers are planning to use these resources so that we know that the final ones we put out there are actually going to support teachers in this practice. And so in this next slide I'm going to share a little bit more about how we gathered that teacher feedback and also what that feedback showed when we dug into the survey results. So just to overview what we learned from the
022targeted survey approach that we took is that we had a very intentional approach to make sure that we gathered meaningful input with a smaller group of teachers so that we could tailor our messaging really clearly. Knowing that we wanted to gather this teacher feedback because that would be really important to how we revise these proficiency scales. We also wanted to make sure that we didn't inadvertently miscommunicate anything about the expectations for implementation at this point in time with the Pog. And so we partnered with district leadership to work with principles to identify that specific group of teachers across the four grade bands that we would ask to get their feedback. And so the way that this survey was set up is that teachers were asked to review one of the two draft proficiency scales either
023curious thinkers or responsible teammates within their specific grade band and then share their perspectives. They so they were asked a series of liyker scale questions. So rating from strongly disagree to strongly agree. And then we're also asked a series of open-ended questions around feedback they would give with this being studentfriendly, accessible, and also thinking about implications for training and implementation that we want to make sure we're both creating the resources and also the tailored messaging to be able to support. And so what you'll see on this next slide is a highle overview of what we learned from that survey. But what we also have linked here on slide 13 is a more detailed comprehensive analysis of that feedback if that is something you're curious to dig into and see some more concrete takeaways. But to
024overview those highle takeaways that we had, we identified two major strengths from the current drafts of the proficiency scale. So teachers told us that the proficiency scales were generally detailed enough that they could imagine them being helpful resources to evaluate where students are in their skill development and progression and that the proficiency scales were generally written in such a way that they did not have large leaps in skill progression across levels. And those two pieces are really essential for strong implementation of the Pog. We want to make sure that we have a really clear continuum of how a skill or set of skills are developed over time. One, to make sure teachers know how they can be designing and implementing learning that supports that, but also how they can be using these scales to plan
025for specific feedback and supporting students with their own self-reflection, knowing that the Pog is a really important thing that promotes student ownership. And so the big thing that we took away as the opportunity for growth from that survey feedback was making sure that we were revising the proficiency scales to be written in very studentfriendly language. And so you'll notice an attention to that detail in their ratified and revised scales that we wrapped up our work in March around. And so I want to pause here too and share just a couple of quotes that we took away from the teachers when they gave this feedback. And some of the things that I really appreciated about this feedback is that they offered really clear reflections about how they can see these proficiency scales supporting implementing the Pog
026in their classroom. And so one teacher named, you know, for responsible teammates, it can be really difficult to teach students how to collaborate. and the responsible teammate proficiency scale for their grade band serves as a really great roadmap to help facilitate that particular skill-based instruction. One thing that we also heard from another teacher is that there's this belief that this will be a really good guideline for teachers to have when they're planning classroom activities and that this can be a really great guideline for student reflection. And I want to read this last quote that I think is a great example of the type of planning that we want to make sure we're supporting teachers to do, which is thinking about how the Pog is not something separate from what they're already doing, but is actually
027really aligned and integrated with their current curriculum and instructional practices. And so the specific quote that I'm thinking of is where this teacher said,"I was thinking through each of these proficiency scales as I read them and imagined using them in my class in a variety of ways through the wit and wisdom curriculum. There are plenty of opportunities for students to work collaboratively. and they may differ in opinion, but using this learning scale as a guide for expectations for students as they are working will set the bar high and lead to a really great Socratic discussion. And so I think that quote really illustrates how this work around proficiency skills is really at the core of setting us up not only for effective implementation with the Pog but also making sure that really high bar of
028academic and real world skill is being held for our students. So thinking of that, we want to make sure that we align on language before we look at these example scales because a big thing that came up also from the feedback we gathered from teachers and also in our conversation with the K through2 instructional leaders we've been working with is making sure we're clear on the terms that we're using for this skill progression, especially how we're describing each level. And so there was this open question around should we continue with the language that is used in our academic standardsbased proficiency scales knowing that we've used the word competency for Pog or characteristic. Does that maybe lend itself to using a different set of terms? And so through the feedback we got from teachers and also
029our conversations with the instructional leaders we've been working with, we've decided to align the Pog proficiency scale language around what is already being used in our academic standardsbased proficiency scales. And that's what you see reflected here on this slide. So below proficient, approaching proficient, proficient, and highly proficient. And the big idea here is that this decision means that everyone from students to teachers to leaders to families especially will be using the same language when we talk about knowledge and skill progression whether that is specific to academic standards or related to these real world skills that the Pog helps us to embed in our learning experiences. So knowing that that is a big part of Jordan's vision and is specifically named in the strategic objective under highquality instruction, we believe that it's really important to make
030sure we're using this language consistency and that we have this alignment. So in the example scales that you'll have a chance to look at, you'll see that language reflected throughout. And so thinking of that, I want to pause here knowing that you do have access to these slides. This is on slide 15. I want to give you a chance to click through and see these ratified proficiency scales for curious thinkers and responsible teammates across our four grade bands just to have some time to explore them. And because we really want to make sure we're incorporating your feedback both in refining these scales and also preparing the messaging around how they're shared, want to pause here and also collect some feedback. So I think we can take about maybe five or seven minutes just to explore
031these proficiency scales and then on the next slide we'll open it up for conversation around feedback that you have on things that you've seen or heard that you like some wonderings and wishes that you have as well as we finalize these scales and get ready to include that in the formal launch of the Pog in August. You may not have time to be able to review all of them, but we've organized it. So, if you're curious to see that vertical alignment, you can choose one competency and look at that across the four grade bands. Or if you would like to focus on a particular grade band and look at both of the competencies, you have the opportunity to do that as well. Take about another minute to look at some of those example proficiency scales
032and then we'll move into our feedback conversation. So the framework that we want to use to gather your feedback is I like, I wish, I wonder, which is something that we've used in the past. And we don't necessarily have to go in the order of what you see here, but would be curious to open up and hear from you. What are some of the things that you hear or see in these proficiency scales that you like? What do you wish existed or could be possible? And what would you like to know more about or see as we continue and prepare for the formal launch of the Pog? And as you're sharing, we'll take notes in the slide deck. I like what I see. I couldn't help but think these would be great proficiencies for me
033as an adult to also have. So, I like the reach and the stretch that we're setting the bar for our students. I think that is a great connection to with the Pog document where we have those example questions that parents and families can ask their students around the Pog competencies. I think these scales provide even more color and texture around that to your point that it actually is lifelong development and we can imagine how this will really reinforce those conversations between students and families um outside of you know what's happening in the classroom for the curious thinkers. 's uh proficiency scale, the phrase credible sources is is used a few times and I guess I'm I'm wondering how that is going to be defined. You know, how how do we identify a credible source from
034a noncredible source? That's a great question and I think something that also speaks to how these proficiency scales will be integrated into how highquality instructional materials and curriculum are already being used. And so we also know in a lot of the curriculum our teachers are teaching that terms like credible sources are something that are defined across the content areas. So I think this is a great example of a question that we would pose to teachers around how do you talk about credible sources within your science curriculum and how can you make a really clear connection to that and the work around developing the skill of being a curious thinker. So I think it's both specific to content areas and we can also offer an overarching district-wide definition. also has a really quick tiein to state
035standards. That's a part of what our students are expected to learn um in the state of Utah. Mhm. And I don't know if this is an I wish, but I hope that our our students like our I I hope our teachers can model these different standards for their students and that the students and teachers can make connections together of how the teachers are being um you know team players and how the teachers are curious thinkers and that that inspires the students. And I think that also Oh, sorry. I think I just cut somebody off who was I want to piggy back on that. This is Bryce. These are very heavy text driven. We are describing appropriate um models. And you can't teach someone how to shoot a free throw or hit a golf ball by
036describing that action. And I hope I guess this is a hope. I hope that somehow there's more modes represented than a description that we can show. I think there are teachers and students who will grasp it much more quickly when they see it, not just read it. I think the descriptions were very accurate. But what my brain did every time I read a description was how would I show that so that a student could see it. I I know from my own personal experience if you show if you tell but don't show a good portion of your audience will not grasp it. So we are telling and we're doing a good job telling. I just hope at some point we get into the showing in addition to the telling. [Music] I think both of those
037comments illustrate so beautifully the type of framing and messaging we want to have during the August teacher PD day where in sharing these resources we're setting teachers up in their first few weeks of school not only to offer a really clear definition of what this looks like but start to do those practices around showing when we talk about being curious thinkers this is what it looks like at the beginning of class or when we are working together in a group. These are the things that we want to be seeing and supporting and also really celebrating students for demonstrating that. I know in our conversations with the K through2 instructional leaders we've been working with especially in our March session we started to talk about some of those particular implementation use cases. A lot of schools
038already have the practice of highlighting characteristics and having that as a focus for a month and really identifying students or examples where that is being illustrated. And so something like these proficiency scales can be easily integrated into those practices where we can get a lot more concrete and specific about this, but also make sure we're reinforcing when we see that happening, that we're modeling it, and that we're also celebrating students when they're demonstrating it. Yes, I'll add and I like uh so I think I mentioned I I've been at a conference this weekend and we were listening to a speaker who talked about the way that education is changing. And one of the statements he made that really resonated with me was that gone are the days when educators are the conveyors of knowledge. Instead,
039we are becoming the facilitators of experience. And that rings so true as I read that if you want to be highly proficient, then you seek challenges. And another session talked about how the number one indicator of student success is resilience through failure. And so when I see that if you want to be a proficient student in Jordan school district, you seek out challenges, you find productivity in your struggle. That is very exciting to me. I'm really happy with the direction that this document takes students into learning how to seek and learn from experience. And I love that quote and I think it really speaks to the through line for proficient and highly proficient across these scales. Not just with curious thinkers and responsible teammates, but also what we will know to be true for the
040four other competencies. The through line is that these scales really articulate and support student ownership. And when we think about being facilitators of experience to do that effectively, you have to be cultivating the conditions for your students to own their learning and own the decisions that they're making. And so I think what we have here in these scales really help to support that effectively. I have two I wonders. This is Suzanne. Um, I'm wondering about the difference in the scales from preK through sixth about using the term competence versus the older kids using proficient. And then my other wonder is what have other districts you've worked with done to include all teachers and students including special ed? Yeah. So, two great questions. I think to speak to the first one, we are in the process
041of just finalizing the language and making sure there's that consistent vertical alignment. And so, that's one of the next steps Miriam and I are going to take as we finalize these proficiency scales, making sure that that language is consistent that you've noted. And then I also think one of our next steps is around ensuring that these scales are developmentally appropriate. So making sure when we talk about that skill progression at each grade band level, it matches up with what we know to be true is developmentally appropriate for those age groups. And I think that leads into your second question, which is thinking about how districts made sure that the work around operationalizing a PG is really inclusive. And that's where as we prepare for the August teacher PD day, we want to make sure that
042we have really intentional framing and conversations around what are the current practices you're doing and how does this connect to that knowing that this is meant to be a tool in support of it rather than one additional thing. And when I think about the work especially supporting students in special education, it is often making what is implicit explicit. And these skills help to do that really effectively by making the way that we talk about these skills really explicit. So then we can talk how do we scaffold and make sure that this is accessible no matter where a student might be at currently in their development. I got a wish. Um, and please don't be offended, but No, you're good. My My wonder, I guess, is why are you asking us? And my wish is that
043we would be asking teachers. Like, I'm not a teacher. Like, I don't know what what they think about this. I'm not even an administrator. And so if we the first time we're rolling this out is in August, this is going to fail because topdown programs don't work. And so if we are not getting teachers more involved in the process where we're at right now, this is not going to work. That's my wonder and wish I guess. Yeah. So would you mind describing the ways that we have involved teachers to this point? Because I think that's I and I haven't been involved as on the committee so I don't know. No, it's not point counterpoint. It's just I want to help Sarah to explicit and I interrupted her from doing exactly what you're asking probably but
044just just to to explain the ways that we have involved teachers including the sur the initial survey and the later surveys and feedback um because that's something that we really have to work to make explicit because there I heard a rumor from a couple of teachers that we hired this group who came in created this for us instead of the fact that this was created with a lot of input and just to to reiterate some of what Sarah said and what we've talked about before when we that second half of the professional development day that the board negotiated with JA years ago at the beginning of the school year the entire afternoon will be spent at school in teams talking about how your work as a teacher connects to this broader plan, not only what
045you're already doing, but things that you're thinking about doing. So, the big emphasis will be you're already doing a lot of things that fit in with this plan, but now it connects to the plan. So, what can you do next? And what do you maybe not to need to spend so much time on? So, the idea, and we're using education elements to create that m those materials for teachers, is that every special education teacher will think, how does this work for me? And every teacher e every regular ed teacher will think okay how do I connect my work to this and so hopefully it becomes very personal for each individual teacher but they won't be working on every element at every moment every day but if they can connect with it at the beginning of
046the year we'll also see what adjustments we may need to make what additional support we may need to provide so that will be another opportunity for every teacher to give input it once they try to connect with it individually. And I totally understand that some of that work needs to be done before we bring in a large group of people. So, but that's my big fear, I guess, is that this becomes our project and not their project. That's that's the fear. And if we don't if we aren't very intentional about continuing to connect to the plan, then there's there's there's an ongoing risk of that. It's not like we dodge that risk initially and we're good to go. We have to continue to be vigilant on that very point. And I think I would just
047add this the way I've watched the process switch over this year. So last year, boy, it was like I was a part-time portrait of a graduate employee. I was really involved in this process. Now over the course of this year, it is our teachers. They're building this. all of these documents that you're looking at today were written by them. So I think that's very important to to recognize that that shift is not only happening but has happened and this is really their document. So I definitely want to underscore that point and I really appreciate the question. As a former teacher, that is always where my mind goes of making sure teachers are a part of this process. And similar to the quote that was shared around, you know, the switch in education is around facilitating
048learning experiences. That is often the work that Miriam and I do, right? We help to hold that container of bringing the right people to the table to have the conversations that they need to have to make the decisions that they need to move this work forward rather than Miriam and I imposing what that needs to look like. And so both in the three workshops that we've had where we had teachers at the table who were creating these proficiency scales and also in the feedback that we saw from another group of teachers across the district to represent each grade band. I do feel really confident that we're in a place to have documents that reflect teachers and how they will be utilizing this really effectively. And I think your question helps us to get even sharper
049with telling that story and making sure that framing is clear when we have that August PD day. And I think that speaks to our next steps in terms of what Miriam and I will continue to do to hold that container to help set up for success both in June and August. So, based off of some of the reflections and feedback that you shared tonight, we're going to continue to make those revisions to the proficiency scales, really prioritizing vertical alignment and making sure they're developmentally appropriate. So, we're not changing the work teachers have done, but knowing what needs to be true to support them in implementing this. We're helping to ensure that standardization. We're also going to take the draft scales that you see and put them in a different template. That template is going to
050be the proficiency scale template that the school district already uses for academic proficiency scales. And again, that will really support this idea of alignment and that these POG proficiency scales are not one more thing or something separate from what we're already prioritizing about academic excellence and the experience that students have in our classrooms. So that will be our work throughout the rest of this month of April. And in May, we're going to continue to support with crafting those materials for the official launch of the Pog in August, knowing that as we move into the summer, there'll be that June admin day where administrators will be able to review and prepare for delivering that August PD day and August being the time where teachers will start to make those connections with what they're already doing and
051be really clear about the expectations moving forward. And so when I think about these next steps, again going back to that question of well what do teachers think and want to make sure that teachers are at the heart of this there's a quote that I read in the survey that we had asked teachers to weigh in on that I think really aligns with this so beautifully and speaks to a teacher perspective about their own experience but also how they understand how their other colleagues might be experiencing this. And the quote is that the Pog is not one more thing to add. It's relevant to what teachers are already doing. This needs to be the focus seeing the relation between the Pog and the curriculum teachers are already using. I think that many teachers will be
052open to learning more about the goals of the Pog. They will just need to know this isn't meant to take more time, but be a part of what they're already doing to see how it all correlates. And I think that quote sums up so beautifully, especially with what Dr. Godfrey shared of what the focus of the messaging will be during that August PD day and how we're going to set up administrators in June to really lead that conversation with their teachers in their schools. Can I ask a quick question? Yeah. Um, how were our teachers chosen to help with these documents? Is it just through the survey responses or were there uh group in-person groups or anything like that? Yes. So we had a series of three inerson groups. So one in October, December and
053March. So we had two groups that were working across those three different days that we came together. We had an elementary group. So teachers and leaders from kindergarten all the way through sixth grade. And then the other group was secondary, so 7th through 12th grade. So again, a group of teachers and leaders that we worked with district leadership to identify who would be at the table for those conversations. people who were really invested and kind of early adopters of the Pog that would wanted to help to craft these documents, but also people that really cared about going back into their buildings and having conversations with their peers so that they could bring that to the next workshop as we continued to refine these documents. And then we also worked with district leadership to identify a
054different group of teachers in January to take the survey and give us additional round of feedback that then were used in the March workshop to finalize the scales that you looked at today. Thank you. So I know we just did a very deep dive on the portrait graduate in particular and we know that the Pog is a part of our strategic plan. I want to make sure that we have time to zoom out and talk about implementation for the strategic plan broadly and so I'm going to pass it over to Miriam to share some updates around what that is looking like at this moment in time. Awesome. Thank you. And I just want to clarify, do we have a hard stop at because I can get through uh in more detail or less detail depending
055on if that hard stop is in six minutes or so. It would be ideal to be done around there. All right. But we're not going to stop you. Okay. No, but that's good to know. Um so Sarah mentioned the stages of strategic uh plan implementation. We use the same framework that the national implementation implementation research network uses. Um you don't see the initial stage of exploration here because that's really what we did during the strategic planning process. Really identifying what are the strengths and needs in Jordan School District. Um but the three phases that we're really focused on now are installation, initial implementation, and full implementation. And essentially installation is really just when we're setting the the structures in place um to have a really strong initial implementation in the following year. Initial implementation is
056when we're doing implementation but on a smaller scale in some capacity. So whether that be we're doing if there's multiple strategies under a strategic objective maybe we're only doing some strategies to start or perhaps we're only doing some campuses and piloting that way. And then of course we think of full implementation as when that new practice is truly embedded as as standard practice. And as a board, I know you all looked at the timeline and thought about our strategic objectives and when each one should sort of be phased in. And so, um, you know, some this year are in installation or initial implementation already, whereas some are moving into in initial implementation next year and eventually down the line for for full implementation. And so what we did um is we met with the strategic
057objective owners within the cabinet um for specifically the objectives that were in implementation this current school year. And so you can see those four um here on this slide. And through those conversations, it was actually really great to be able to see just how much progress has already been made in these different areas. Um, and even for the cabinet to be able to draw connections to here are all the things that we're doing and here is how it applies within the strategic plan. Um, we can go to the next slide, Sarah. So, we had those one-on-one conversations to really think about, okay, where what's our kind of current state of those that we said would be in initial implementation this school year? And then we brought those conversations and those learnings um back to our
058working session with the entire cabinet on March 27th. And during that time, what we did is we evaluated our current progress in more detail of those strategic objectives that we talked about um in order to determine next steps and then we also outlined strategies for strategic objectives going in going into implementation next year. So again, we had talked about in detail with the the owners about those this year, but we spent a lot of the session on March 27th planning forward for next year and making sure that we were aligned on what is it that we need to do? What is it that we're already doing uh when it comes to trying to accomplish the strategic objectives coming up moving from installation into initial implementation? Um, and then we also talked about, which Sarah's referenced,
059you know, multiple times, how do we want to communicate um, and launch this the strategic plan and purchase of a graduate with teachers in August? Um, and so to do so, we planned for the admin sessions coming up in order to make sure that we equip principles with the proper context and materials that they'll need to launch the the strategic plan and portrait of a graduate on their individual um, campuses. So here before I talk too much about um what that launch will look like, I want to just show you an example of you know what I mean when I me when I say that we drafted strategies within a strategic objective. So um I chose this one in part because we've talked a lot about the portrait of a graduate today. Um but one
060example of the strategic objectives in the plan is you know we will prepare students for real world experiences by embedding skills in Jordan school district's portrait of graduate in our instructional practices. But how do we make that really digestible um for others? How can when we present to teachers and principles, how can they understand what that really means in practice? And so we outlined with the cabinet what different strategies were occurring kind of with within the strategic objective. And so you can see here introduce the six compet competencies u with faculty and identify what is already happening in schools. Where are those connections? Begin to socialize the understanding of the current two competencies that are basically finalized um and some low lift strategies for schools if they'd like to use them. And then in connection
061with those high impact teaching strategies, teachers will begin to use those proficiency scales in instruction. Eventually have a group of teachers pilot and then ultimately it'll almost be a cycle in which we move on to the the same proficiency scale uh creation and and related practices for the other four. Um, so this just a very nitty-gritty of what it looks like to really flush out one of the strategic objectives. Okay, so I really did Nikki, I listened to you. I got it done in um but so in June principles will receive additional training and materials to prepare to launch the plan and the portrait of a graduate with their teachers in August. And really, I think Sarah already highlighted this, but some of our main goals for for those u materials is we want principles
062and teachers to know the why, to be able to make connections to current practices, and to understand their role with implementing the strategic plan and the portrait of a graduate. I know that Sarah mentioned before, but we really don't want it to feel like just one more thing on their plate, one initiative that's going to come and go. The reality is we want the strategic plan and the portrait of a graduate to just provide more intentionality uh behind what they're already doing. And um we think that by them being able to identify all of the practices um and things that they're already doing in relation to the strategic plan and also the portrait of a graduate that that'll also hopefully raise investment. Um, and I didn't get to mention this, but we will also be
063having additional one-on-one conversations with the cabinet to continue kind of the work that we set um back in March to finalize what are um those strategies that we want to implement next school year and then how can we measure their effectiveness. And so that's where we'll be moving ahead of um ahead of the launch with principles. Thank you. I know I said a lot there. Were there any immediate questions? Just just to clarify um the meeting in June with the principles and training them on the material. Uh we will that be you guys as well as like cabinet members training them and then are they they then take that training to their teachers? Is that how the process works? We will be as cabinet we will be working with the materials provided by education elements
064because principles will be the ones who will be presenting. So teachers will be at one of six locations or a speaker one of six or seven locations in the morning for a keynote speaker of their choosing. So we have a variety of speakers as we've had for the last two years that they'll choose in the morning and then in the afternoon they'll return to their school which is something we haven't done for a long time with this day and in the afternoon the principal will facilitate the discussions. So we want the principles and assistant principles to be very conversant in what those materials look like and how that works. It's really going to be scripted out so that there's a consistent experience across the district in terms of and that's where we want to show
065a video with board members who are introducing this so that everyone sees how the board fits in how teachers fit into this as Mr. Robinson described just so that they're they get an overview of this that is consistent because everyone watches the same video and then principles to say script is overstating it perhaps but a very closely curated experience for teachers to be sure that those discussions are being had consistently across the district. Thank you. We actually had feedback from administrators last summer when we had education elements come in that they appreciated the full day from education elements, but then they were hoping for our next training to be from to be internal so that we were able to really make that um they wanted to hear from us from cabinet about that next time.
066So I think we're going through the right sort of phases of presenting this. That's a high compliment. They would request that they hear from you guys. Oh, especially when their options are education elements. So that's true. They appreciated that. They just thought the next phase was to hear. Okay, other questions. All right, looks like you described it so well. We are okay. Thank you so much for visiting with us. We will invite education elements back to a board meeting in June. So, this isn't the last time that we'll hear from them. Um, and you can be gathering your questions between now and then. Great. Well, thank you so much. Enjoy the rest of your evening. Bye. Thank you so much. Let's go ahead and move into agenda item B, a review of process for school
067land trust and teacher and student success act plans and approvals. Dr. Anderson, thank you. Um, all of you should have received a an email yesterday with the information relevant to this this item. Um all of our schools have completed their 2526 TSSA and land trust plans. Uh that's next year's plans. And the next step uh they've already gone through the vetting process of the the school community council uh that approved the land trust plans. They also give input on the TSSA plans. The administrators of schools over the relevant schools have approved them. um my administrative assistant Naen who deserves a big shout out in all of this process um has vetted them as well and check checking budget codes, checking numbers. So you can those types of details have have uh been checked. Feel free
068to to double check them if you'd like. I just wanted to let you know that the details on that have been have been scrutinized already. Um for the land trust plans, they've already been approved by the school community council, of course, and the signature pages are in there. There is a checklist of things to look for for the land trust plans. That's because it's pretty pretty rigid and stipulated by law as to what you can and can't have in the land trust plans. And there's an there's an area that you can provide comments or notes if you'd like. If you want if you have specific questions or concerns about a plan, it's probably best to to note them in there, but also follow up with me specifically so that I can direct you to the
069right right school and we can we can get it resolved. Um, same thing goes for TSSA plans. As a reminder, um the TSSA plans, uh they follow a framework created by the school board in those three areas of of coaching, professional learning, or a school-based initiative. So, that's, you know, all of the goals should be centered around those. School-based initiative is kind of a broader um catchall for the schools, but everything should still be centered around um learning and what goes on in the classroom. Okay. Okay. If you have qu questions, please reach out to me individually. If you have concerns about any any of the goals or the plans in in the land trust or TSSA, don't hesitate to reach out. Just a note that you need to do your schools and then one
070other precinct and those have been precincts. Thank you. Yeah, great reminder. Those have been um assigned. You've got all of your own schools within your area as well as one other board members. you should have received that other board members um thing so you know who those what your assignment is on that. And then if all goes as planned u two weeks from tonight in a in a general session uh we'll be approving those items. It'll be on the consent agenda unless you stipulate otherwise. Any questions there? Um, couple years ago we had a rubric for new board members just kind of as a here's what you're looking for. Can we pull that up and send that out? I think that might be very helpful just to say here's kind of what you as a
071board member are looking for as you review. Do you remember that rubric we created? Yeah, we may have incorporated that into the checklist and the feedback, but um let me let me see what we sent out a couple years ago and see if it's different than what we've incorporated into that. and and certainly I've talked with uh Miss Barrow and and Miss Wood already as well and and if again if anybody has any questions because this is you know I just remember that was very helpful just kind of a hey here's what you're looking for as you reviewed these yeah we'll we'll look at that and if there's if it's different than what we've already included in there I'll certainly do that. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. So board members, just budget your time and
072come prepared to have those all signed off um at our next meeting. And by sign off, there is a a dock in there that where you can just initial it so that you you can see that it's been done. Literally signed off. So great. Let's go ahead and turn the time to Dr. Godfrey for a discussion on some proposed changes to policies AS67, discipline of students AA418, discipline of students staff rep responsibilities and DP378 employee code of conduct. Thank you. These three policies um are policies that I discussed with Mr. Barnett and our discussion. He's referenced it in previous board meetings where the board talked about a priority for classroom management and helping support with behaviors. And he's taken a close look at uh state board rule and the law and the constitution. and we
073met, had long discussions, and I've talked with special education staff. Of course, all behavior is not related to special education, but there's there's a component there sometimes depending on on um whether a student is on an IEP. And there these three policies need to be updated to reflect the law, board rule, and our current practice. And [Music] um Mr. Barnett has pointed out to me that it's important to make it clear what teachers can do and there's confusion around that and then what they should do. And we also talked about what can be done to keep teachers from having to make those choices in the first place by helping if we provide support to teachers on how to structure class, how to meet the needs of students, and how we can come in when there
074are more severe circumstances, we can assess how we can help. Kindergarten students, first grade students who are just coming into the system, um students who are new to the system. These are areas where we need to concentrate support. So um we will be bringing back draft language with really minor updates in terms of the number of words we're changing but major updates in terms of providing greater clarity around a difficult issue. This is one of the thousands of decisions that teachers have to make every day. That's one only one of the reasons that it's exhausting at the end of a day of teaching. Um because you're deciding, okay, what do I do about this behavior? How do I address it without giving too much attention to negative behavior instead of giving the attention to positive
075behavior, for example? So, I'll be bringing back a draft that changes the language in these three policies. and I've appreciated our deeper discussions that have tapped into the the priority that has been set by the board more broadly as an extension of these changes. Then it's our intention to provide video training for all teachers at the beginning of the year on what they can and cannot do, what they should and should not do, and on what can be done to prevent um situations where behavior or feelings have escalated. Um to Mr. Dunford's earlier point, we want to show what that looks like in the video as opposed to describing it. So the policy is the necessary description, but then showing beyond that, I think will be really instructive and we can we'll work with administrators
076and our specialists to produce a video that really hits on the common behaviors and the common concerns. Also, because of funding the board provided, we've been able to greatly expand the number of teachers who are able to be part of the ET, which is individual teacher training. The PBIS is schoolwide system, and ET gives individual teachers the opportunity to be trained on how to set up your classroom, how to respond. So this is the policy change is one component of training which which Mr. Barnett suggested and I think it's a great idea and staff are supportive of that and um so changing policy providing training um providing a video for all teachers and I know we're talking about MTSS and PBIS and possibly expanding that. So that's where this fits in with everything else. We'll
077bring that language back in our next meeting and ideally that's approved with a couple more meetings in May and then we can move forward with training materials over the summer that we can use as we launch the school year. Plan is to have them ready for fall roll out, right? And if we can bring back a draft in our next meeting, then we have a couple of meetings in May to discuss that. And if it gets approved by the end of May, then we're able to work over the summer on a training video and I know some staff already have some ideas for how we can do that effectively. A brief video but that covers some really key components and where to go for more help. One thing that was eyeopening to me in in
078some of our discussions in a um contrasting what I can do as a teacher versus what I should do. Just because you can do something doesn't necessarily mean that's the approach to take. Um superintendent mentioned um some of the policy uh uses the word deescalate. So a a teacher wants to deescalate a difficult situation and one of the things that a teacher can do is physical restraint. But that's not always the best approach. Sometimes physical restraint in a difficult situation escalates the problem rather than deescalates. And so that's why we wanted to have a difference in what I can do versus what I should do. Yeah. Thank you. Sounds like a big undertaking and we appreciate the effort. Okay. Agenda item D. You'll remember that we began a discussion on a review for potential revisions
079to GP 104, board officers and appendix procedures for election of board officers. Um, Mr. Larson is ill this evening and so I would appreciate a motion to postpone this agenda item. I move that we we table item No, I move that we postpone items D and E. Second. We have a motion to postpone items D and E for a prior board meeting. Um motioned by Mr. Deford. Future board meeting. You mean next? What did I say? Next. Oh, a future board meeting. I apologize. Motioned by Mr. Dunford, seconded by Miss Woods. Is there discussion? Um I was just going to add F. I'm not ready to report on the school board. I still have jet lag and haven't looked through my notes and prepared that. So, I would much rather and that's 50% of the
080people that went 50%. I could do it tonight, but you're going to get, "Hey, I went to Atlanta." But, um, and there was not a tornado, although there was a watch. Yeah. Yeah. I felt like it was a tornado. There was a ton. I learned a ton, but I would rather um put it in a meaningful way, but it's up to you. I if you if you're ready, you can. I second his substitute motion. Okay. So great. You guys are going to make me really dip into my knowledge of Robert's rules. So now, do we have a motion by Mr. or by Dr. Robinson and a second by Mr. Deford? Did I say it right? Oh, good. Okay. Two, postpone discussion on items D and F for a future board meeting. Okay, any discussion there?
081I did get in at 2:30 in the morning. I was at work at 4:30. So, that was quite anyone else that wasn't super human. That would have been horrible. But Mr. or Dr. Robinson, as we know, doesn't need sleep. Luckily, my students were more tired than I were. So, you slept more than normal. In other words, it was it was about the same length of time that Dr. Godfrey sleeps. It was the most adventurous return I've ever experienced. I will add that. Yeah, for sure. Okay. Uh, no other discussion. Okay. All in favor say I. I. I. And any oppose say nay. Right. That motion carries. We will pick up on those agenda items in a future board meeting. All right. Let's go ahead and move in just with a reminder that we do have
082public comment on fees at 5:30. So, let's go ahead and start a discussion with board and superintendent reports and comments for facilities. I don't have much of an update today. We're meeting uh this coming Friday and finance meets next week. Government relations is meeting tomorrow. So, uh, foundation the, um, awards banquet recognizing the outstanding educators is on April 16th at 6 o'clock at the ballpark. Also, the um, licensed employee advisory committee will be meeting on April 23rd from 4 to 6 here at JATC South. Can I just jump in on that? Did everyone get an invitation to the foundation dinner? Okay. Make sure that you everyone doesn't have to go, but I just want to be sure you had that invite. Yes. And please RSVP. Is there any talk of renewing the all county pass
083this year? Redoing that whole program? So, um I think that it's an ongoing thing. I think that the county has a I mean it's like going on until uh 2026. Do you know what I mean? Like it's been approved for 2025. I don't know about for 2026. So like when it's so this June, you'll have to my county rack. No, it I think it goes from January. Does it go from June to June? Uhuh. Okay. Yeah. So, okay, great. It's been a absolute blessing to a lot of people I know. That's what I've heard, too. And I I have not been to I've had a lot of conflicting things and our meeting this month that is tomorrow that I could go to has been cancelled. So, the foundation is increasing entrance fees for state competitions
084uh to keep up with their budget. So, watch for that. $8 an individual and $13 for a an adult. Oh, $18. $8 for a student and $13 for an adult. Is that just at state games or is that every game? No, that's state games. We don't have to charge the same in that. regions can charge whatever they want to do, but that's for state competitions. And anything specifically on JPAC as we're getting closer to those dates, all the notices have gone out and whatnot. Gone out for We'll send a reminder out this week. I guess there's um looking at my calendar, I don't think I'll be able to go, but there's the unified sports botchi tournament at Elkridge Middle School next Tuesday from 10 to 1. I think people got the email about it. It's
085kind of I think I've reported this already, but JLC is has a couple of meetings coming up where we'll be able to work on the 2026 legislative session. um the feedback that they've received at the spring regional meetings will be the jumping off place for that and they're seeking continual input. So if anyone has something that they would like me to relay in those meetings, please let me know. Um they're April 18th and May 16th are the next two. Um, and those will prepare for the draft that's presented at the pre-delegate and delegate assembly June 6th and 7th. Um, and then more information will be forthcoming, but the leadership academy this year will be held at um, Embryce Canyon. I know we've typically been at the Zermont. This is a little bit of an adjustment.
086Those dates are September 25th through 27th. And for those that haven't been around for a leadership academy, we generally are given a number of seats that we can use in those conferences. So, I'll come back with that as it rolls out. I have a um a meeting in the end of April and I imagine that's where some of those details will get flushed out, but those are coming and I will report to you when I have them. A three-day conference. It's Yeah. Yes. But like there's the golf tournament is usually one day and and they have had I don't know what like for three hours in a morning or something like that Friday, Saturday. So I think they usually have like an opening session. You just have keynote that first night. It doesn't start until
087that evening and then Yeah. I don't know. Maybe it's an adjustment again. I haven't gotten lots of details back on that. Just kind of save the dates for everyone. You can keep those in mind. Um yeah, I think the rest of this I USBA um Lexi spoke out against the proposed DEI resolution from USB on Thursday, which um that resolution did not pass. So just a good example of what USBA is doing to advocate. Okay. Any other reports? Great. All right. We have like five minutes. Um there's nobody signed up yet for public comment on fees, but uh we did that a time short at 5:30. So we could take like a five minute break. Okay. Okay. Go ahead and take a break. Great. All right, welcome back to the Jordan Board of Education study
088session for Tuesday, February 8th, 2025. All board members are still present as well as our superintendent, associate superintendent, and board attorney. Um, at this point, we have scheduled public comment on fees. We have no one signed up to speak and no one in the building to speak. So, I move that we adjourn. I'll second. All right. We have a motion to adjourn and a second. All in favor say I. I. And any oppose say nay. All right. A world record has been met in Jordan school district. We are adjourned at that's a plaque. We need a plaque somewhere on the wall. Mickey George first pres first board president to exe get out at 5:30. I really don't think I can take it.