CSD Weekly Staff Update: 5/18/23

It's been a great week in Colonial Nation and we hope you have an even greater weekend!

- The CSD Communications Department

See all previous staff updates at http://www.colonialschooldistrict.org/employees/your-employment/staffupdates/

Check out some of the newest opportunities to join the Power of We!

• https://www.applitrack.com/colonial/onlineapp/
  

PreK-12 Teachers, paraprofessionals, instructional/support staff and secretaries… we want to hear from you!

Our annual Colonial End of Year Survey is an opportunity to gather feedback from each of you in order to help us to understand and prioritize our needs specific to Colonial School District. The results of this survey will be used in addition to other feedback from staff and local stakeholders to develop and inform our district plans for next year.

We truly appreciate your time in providing us with this feedback!

Please take a few minutes to complete THIS FEEDBACK SURVEY by Friday, May 20th, 11:59pm. We hope to have 100% participation!

Now that we’ve completed Open Enrollment, let’s take a minute to think about our wonderful, glorious, spectacular RETIREMENT.

If you want a wonderful, glorious, spectacular retirement - you should start saving for it TODAY.

There are many ways to prepare for retirement. The State of Delaware Pension Plan is one method. Another method is through investment. Voya is another method to save for your retirement. Remember, Voya is an investment plan similar to the 401k. Later in life, it will help to supplement social security and applicable pension payments. Please watch this two-minute video to learn more about Voya.

https://voyadelivers.com/delawaredefer/

Please note the HR/Benefits staff cannot enroll you in this plan. You have three options to enroll:

1. Online - please see enrollment flyer https://drive.google.com/file/d/12D7S8Wb6p5gw7KP0LXM1TBLYdmxRENer/view?usp=sharing

2. In-person: To schedule a meeting with a financial advisor https://go.oncehub.com/Voya_DelawareDeferComp_1on1MtgRequest

3. Phone – 302-318-8840

Beneficiary changes are often overlooked following a divorce, marriage or after the death of a loved one. It is important to update beneficiaries from time-to-time.

An easy way to remember to keep your beneficiaries up-to-date is to use your employer's annual benefits enrollment to revisit the details of your accounts and insurance policies.

As a new hire, you provided beneficiary information on various forms, such as:

1. District Life Insurance

2. State Of Delaware Life Insurance

3. Pension Plan

4. Investment plans 457b or 403b

Now is a good time to double check your beneficiaries.

Have your beneficiaries changed? Have you updated your beneficiaries lately? Did you create a personal file of all of your beneficiaries? Please review the Updating Beneficiaries newsletter to stay abreast of this subject. https://www.smore.com/ctwka-updating-beneficiaries

(Masters in School Leadership)

Are you interested in earning your Master’s in School Leadership? Colonial School District and Wilmington University have created a Master's of Education in Educational Leadership program tailored to our district. The program is designed to focus on the critical aspects of leadership aligned with the CSD Leadership Framework while ensuring that participants graduate with their M.Ed. and are eligible for certification as a School Leader in Delaware and surrounding states.

If you are interested in learning more about the opportunities of this cohort experience and the costs of participation, please complete this form and join us on Tuesday, May 23th at 4:00PM via Zoom. A link will be shared with those registered prior to the session.

Are you interested in becoming an Early Childhood Education teacher? If so, the Early Childhood Innovation Center is hosting virtual information sessions on May 24th to learn more about career advice, scholarships, incentives (such as a free laptop), financial stipend opportunities and much, much more…click here to sign up TODAY!

Colonial Nation,

• Are you interested in a more personal and collaborative learning experience around Equity?

• Want to dig deeper into your own Equity journey?

• Want to be a part of a community of learners within and beyond Colonial?

If you answered ’yes’ to any of these Qs, then the Equity Practitioner Program (EPP) program might be good for you! ~We have about 8 slots for the fall cohort!

Check out this flier with dates and contact Crystal Lancour if you would like to join the spring EPP cohort. (crystal.lancour@colonial.k12.de.us)

Do you have any unsubmitted timesheets for PD? Login to DSC and click the “Timesheets” application. Then click the purple box that says “Submit Professional Development Timesheet”. You can scan th ePD sessions you have attended and see if there are any timesheets that need to be submitted before the end of the year!

The last Tuesday of every month, Colonial Nutrition Services highlights the heritage of global cuisines by offering our students new and diverse foods to explore. Tuesday, May 23rd, we’re presenting our students with a taste of Tsukune and Tsukemono (Japanese Meatball & Pickled Vegetables). Tsukemono means pickled vegetables in Japanese. Tsukemono first appeared in Japanese culture before refrigeration, when pickling was the typical method of preserving vegetables. Tsukemono is typically eaten as a side dish or garnish, which cleanses the palate during the meal. Tsukune is a Japanese meatball that is cooked Yakitori style (grilled on a skewer). It is usually covered in a sweet soy sauce. WE want our students to have the opportunity to taste diverse foods and flavors and explore other cultures' cuisines!

Are YOU a paraeducator in Colonial who is thinking about becoming a middle or high school teacher? If the answer is YES, you still have time to become a Relay year long teacher resident. To learn more about the residency, click here.

Relay Graduate School of Education is a fully accredited, not-for-profit institute of higher education offering several programs to enter the teaching profession. Dana Davisson, Clinical Practice Director of Relay Delaware, is available to chat through program details with you. Sign up for her office hours here. Feel free to reach out to kathryn.kremer@colonial.k12.de.us or jennifer.alexander@colonial.k12.de.us for assistance or to answer questions about the residency experience in Colonial!