In addition to job fairs, the Human Resources department has rebuilt the Jobs@BVSD webpage which offers prospective candidates an overview of the compelling reasons in which to work for BVSD.  We have had an overwhelming number of visitors since the new page launched on February 2, 2016.

The final main recruiting effort used by BVSD is building relationships with universities across the country.  BVSD belongs to the American Association for Employment in Education (AAEE) whose primary goal is to connect university teacher preparation programs with school district’s hiring personnel.  We often reach out to our university partners when looking for hard to fill positions.  

Below are a few statistics about our recruiting practices.

• 12,380 unique visitors have viewed the Jobs@BVSD webpage during the past 4 months
• 231 prospective candidates attended the BVSD Diversity Job Fair on April 9
• 16 job fairs were attended by district and school administrators
• 5 states visited the Jobs@BVSD webpage most often
  • Colorado, California, Illinois, Michigan and Texas
• 5 different job fairs focused on the recruitment of bilingual and bicultural teachers/administrators
• 4 states were visited for recruiting purposes
• 2 job fairs were hosted by Boulder Valley School District
  • BVSD Diversity Job Fair
  • BVSD Student Teacher Job Fair
• 1 job fair was ‘virtual’ which enabled BVSD to interact digitally with candidates throughout the country

By Melissa Ribordy, Human Resources Director, Jerry Anderson, PhD, Principal, Monarch High School and Barbara Kase, President, Boulder Valley Paraeducators Association
Tri-chairs, Educator Pipeline Priority Action Team

The research is clear — when families and schools actively work together to support kids, students are more successful academically, are healthier, and are more likely to thrive (Epstein et al, 2009, Jeynes, 2011, Sheldon & Jung, 2015). At the same time, families and school staff alike are often stretched for time, juggling their many work and family responsibilities. Therefore, as BVSD schools enhance their efforts to welcome, communicate, engage and partner with families, we must avoid slipping into “random acts of family partnership.” When we are strategic and purposeful in our work with families, family partnership can be one of our most effective tools to support our shared goals for kids.

This does not mean that fun, social activities hosted by schools are not valuable — they most absolutely are! Foundational to partnering with families is that schools build strong relationships with every family and that families have opportunities to build relationships with each other. For this reason, activities that promote community-building, particularly those that are welcoming and accessible to all families, are essential. However, we cannot stop there. In order to maximize the positive impact on kids that can be gained by families and schools working together, we must ensure that our efforts to partner with families are also directly supporting our goals for kids.

For example, one of the Success Effect’s priority action areas is Literacy and Early Learning and all of our schools have a literacy goal built into their Unified Improvement Plans. If this is one of our goals, then the question for schools is how can we work with families to support their child’s literacy? Maybe we could be deliberate in communicating literacy techniques that we are utilizing in our classrooms and supplying timely progress reports to families about their kids. Teachers could provide families with literacy activities to do at home with their child that would reinforce learning that is happening in the classroom. Perhaps schools could create new systems for parents to share their own expertise about what gets their child excited about learning. Maybe we could improve family engagement in literacy goals by learning more about what language and in what ways families prefer to receive information.

The good news is that there are already wonderful and strategic family partnership efforts happening at schools all across the District. Through the Success Effect’s Family Partnership Initiative, we have a real opportunity to strengthen and build on those efforts. Here is what we are doing to support strategy, innovation and intentionality in our work with families:

1. All 56 BVSD schools have identified family partnership goals, which will be utilized to focus their family partnership efforts.
2. We have created the BVSD Family Partnership Network, which includes at least one staff person working closely with families from each of our schools. In addition to receiving professional development, BVSD staff collaborate, share ideas, and problem-solve collectively as they pursue their school’s family partnership goals.
3. We are creating a BVSD Family Partnership Toolbox where schools can showcase their most effective strategies to each other through an online platform. As schools pursue their family partnership goals, they will not have to reinvent the wheel; they’ll be able to learn from what’s working at their sister schools.
4. Under the Families and Educators Together in Schools (FETS) project launching in the fall 2016, a cohort of six to seven schools will be forming school-based family partnership teams. These teams will create action plans for family partnership that are centered around the school’s UIP goals and other schools goals. Additional schools will be added to the FETS project over time.

Families are their children’s first and most important educators. When we are purposeful and strategic in the way that we partner with families, we have a real opportunity to have a positive impact on kids.

By Madeleine Case, Director for Parent & Family Partnerships
Chair, Parent & Family Partnerships Priority Action Team

The School Safety and Emergency Operations committee, which is part of the Systems of Support priority action area, is tasked with designing and implementing a comprehensive building security plan based on current best practice.  The coordinating team began its work last fall and is comprised of school-based administrators, Education Center administrators, and community partners.

The committee completed in-depth training sponsored by the Colorado School Safety Resource Center during which they learned about current best practice in school safety and security.  The team is currently soliciting input from building administrators and clerical staffs about the content and format of building-specific Emergency Operation Plans. This committee is exploring possible partnerships with outside groups that have created computer and cell phone apps for use with the Emergency Operation Plans.

On June 1 and 2, all building administrators will be trained in current best practice and will complete new Emergency Operation Plans for their schools.  Other staff members will be trained in new plans and procedures at the beginning of the 16/17 school year.

By Robbyn Fernandez, Executive Director of Elementary School Leadership
Co-Chair, Systems of Support Priority Action Team

Our district is redefining what it means to succeed—building on our strengths, elevating the state of our schools and providing all students with the tools and confidence needed to meet the great challenges of their time. That’s The Success Effect in action.

More than 75 teachers, administrators, staff, parents and community members are presently developing implementation plans to accomplish The Success Effect. Six action planning teams are refining activities to achieve short-term outcomes for the next two to three years. Six priority areas are embedded in three organizing principles of The Success Effect:

Learning

• Systems of Support
• Literacy & Early Learning
• Successful, Curious, Lifelong Learners

Talent

• Educator Pipeline
• Educator Growth & Development

Partnerships

• Parent & Family Partnerships

We believe that communication is key to keeping staff, students, parents, and the greater community informed and involved in The Success Effect as our work progresses. To that end, Boulder Valley School District is proud to announce the release of our newly redesigned website. The website is designed to update all stakeholders about our goals and the priority action areas in the strategic plan. The improved website will serve as a gathering place for information about the strategic plan, school improvement plans, and innovation in our schools. There are expanded capabilities for learning, sharing and interaction.

We encourage you to visit: bvsdsuccesseffect.org.

By Superintendent Bruce K. Messinger, Ph.D.

As students return to school and begin second semester, school and district staff continue work on numerous initiatives supporting student success. Priority action plans are being implemented supporting the district strategic plan, The Success Effect. Phase one planning is well underway on the new bond construction and innovation work. The Board of Education and administration will begin developing the 2016-17 budget. Information describing the Colorado state student assessment will be distributed later this month.

The 2016 Colorado legislative session will begin January 13. This is an optimal time to work with legislators to secure adequate funding for public education. Underfunding public schools in Colorado is having a negative impact on schools, teachers and students throughout the state. BVSD has lost $175M since 2009 due to underfunding and the governor’s proposed budget will result in over $30M additional loss of funds.

If funding from the state had kept pace with inflation and enrollment growth since 2009, BVSD would be able to provide additional services for students including district-wide full-day kindergarten, implementing a comprehensive literacy program, and hiring more school counselors, nurses and teachers. For details, view this handout about The Cost of Education Student Services at BVSD.

Following are a few websites that provide information on organizations working on school funding and related issues.

• Great Education Colorado – an excellent advocacy organization for parents and educators http://www.greateducation.org/
• Colorado School Finance Project – BVSD is an active member of this organization. You can find a lot of information on this website and search TABOR on the site to find specific information. http://www.cosfp.org/
• Colorado Fiscal Institute – another excellent resource and we will be asking them to provide a presentation to the BVSD community after the first of the year. http://www.coloradofiscal.org/
• Colorado Futures Center at Colorado State University – provides vital research and analysis of public policies impacting Colorado’s future and quality of life. It has helpful information about TABOR.http://coloradofutures.colostate.edu/

I encourage all parents, students and staff to contact the governor and legislators to remind them of the importance of public education and encourage them to provide adequate funding. Legislators whose districts are wholly or partially within the boundaries of our school district are listed on the BVSD website. A full directory of members of the Colorado General Assembly is on the state’s website.

I’m looking forward to a great start for the new year!

By Superintendent Bruce K. Messinger, Ph.D.

1. Learning
   • Systems of Support
   • Literacy & Early Learning
   • Successful, Curious, Lifelong Learners
2. Talent
   • Educator Pipeline
   • Educator Growth & Development
3. Partnerships
   • Parent & Family Partnerships

Education Northwest – Northwest Regional Education Laboratory out of Portland, Oregon, continues to provide consultation with the strategic planning process. Education Northwest works with state and local education agencies utilizing evidence based decisions that foster efficient, effective, and equitable educational systems. The Education Northwest team helped BVSD identify key actions most likely to achieve the district goals. Key actions for each team will guide the development of the implementation plans.

Learning: Systems of Support – Key Actions

1. Data System: Create an Assessment Advisory Team
   1. Review current data-collection systems
   2. Design/develop a comprehensive data-collection system
2. Establish a district Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) Leadership Team and provide professional development (PD) across the district as identified in the CDE District Systems Self-Assessment
3. Create a Safe and Healthy Schools Coordinating Team
   1. Review all related data to establish attendance, behavior, and safety baselines
   2. Design and implement a comprehensive building security plan.
4. Provide increased translation and interpretation to schools and BVSD departments.

Learning: Literacy & Early Learning – Key Actions

1. Identify and implement common assessments PK-12 to develop a common understanding of student mastery of standards and to differentiate instruction
2. Establish a committee to review English language arts (ELA) and English language development (ELD) materials:
   1. Adopt resources to meet Boulder Valley School District (BVSD) Literacy Instructional Framework and Curriculum
   2. Identify high-leverage strategies in literacy, scaffolds for language development, and purposeful technology integration
3. Align instruction, curriculum, and assessment—horizontally and vertically—for grades PK-3
4. Develop an evaluation cycle that enables continuous improvement in program strategies, professional development, interventions, and assessments

Learning: Successful, Curious Lifelong Learners – Key Actions

1. Develop BVSD Success Skills, new graduation requirements, and expectations for postsecondary and career readiness
2. Implement individual career and academic plans (ICAPs) for all students, beginning with grades 9-12, followed by PK-8
3. Integrate BVSD Success Skills and principles into school design, curriculum and instruction, and teacher professional development and evaluation, beginning with grades 9-12, followed by PK-8
4. Use the BVSD Success Skills Framework as a guide to increase student-led learning experiences and instruction in and across secondary classrooms

Talent: Educator Pipeline – Key Actions

1. Evaluate the effectiveness of BVSD current hiring, retention, and development practices for teachers and building administrators
2. Determine the key attributes and skill sets that contribute to candidate success. Refine current hiring and recruiting process to select for these attributes and skills. Develop assessment procedures that enable candidates to demonstrate the desired skills and attributes
3. Develop a comprehensive marketing plan to attract and recruit qualified candidates locally and nationally, based on findings that emerge out of work on priorities 1 and 2
4. Build systems to induct and retain outstanding BVSD professionals through recognition and professional development opportunities and other incentives. Create pathways for exemplary teachers to become building administrators, instructional coaches, or mentor teachers

Talent: Educator Growth & Development – Key Actions

1. Combine professional learning team and educator evaluation committee
2. Build a job-embedded, customized, educator-directed professional learning model based on research and best practices. Analyze how current structures must change to accommodate new model, including allocation of professional learning hours and days, technology and data system requirements, and training needed to implement new system
3. Budget to implement and sustain the new professional learning model. Ensure that the model is sustainable with anticipated funding

Partnerships: Parent & Family – Key Actions

1. Develop a district wide definition of meaningful family engagement
   1. Align district efforts with new Colorado Department of Education (CDE) parent engagement regulations
2. Recruit and hire a bilingual, culturally competent, full-time Family Partnerships Coordinator
3. Identify strategies to increase parent and family engagement
   1. Hold parent/guardian focus groups
   2. Develop strategies based on feedback and research

Launch of The Success Effect priority action plans will occur in the fall semester 2015 through school improvement plans and district unified improvement plan.

Leslie Arnold has been appointed Assistant Superintendent for Strategic Initiatives. Ms. Arnold most recently served as Assistant Superintendent in the Clark County School District, Las Vegas, Nevada where she led the district’s assessment, accountability, research and school improvement departments. Ms. Arnold’s primary responsibility in BVSD is to lead the implementation of The Success Effect.

Learn more about The Success Effect.

By Superintendent Bruce K. Messinger, Ph.D.