D91 Employee News

Throughout my career, I’ve been fortunate to work with support staff who made a difference. As a principal, I worked with a custodian who loved our students. She went the extra mile to talk to students and help them do their best.

In response to significant budget cuts that impacted our custodial program, our custodian worked to establish the student custodian program. Students completed an application and interviewed to clean chalk and window ledges, wipe down light switches, and empty the trash. Because our custodian was so positive, we had more students apply than we needed. We used all of them of course. Along with contributing to our school, they each got daily instruction in “doing your best” from our custodian.

Our custodian had a unique way of reaching even the most difficult students. In fact, she willingly took on some of our most challenging students by meeting them each morning, providing alternative cleaning activities to help them remain calm, and more. Yes, she kept our school sparkling clean. But she contributed so much more than that. Our custodian could reach children who were acting out or had shut down. She would consistently help these students refocus, engage in learning and do their best. Our school custodian was an important part of our work to build a safe school community.

This is just one example of the incredible support staff who work tirelessly to help each child have a positive experience at school. Each and every day, our support staff serve and go the extra mile to make a difference for our students. This week we celebrated Education Support Professionals Day. I hope you will join me in honoring the dedication and sacrifices made by our education support staff, not only today but every day. We couldn’t do the important work of educating our children without them.

Watch your November paycheck for the one-time payment that was agreed to by the Interest Based Bargaining teams for Idaho Falls School District 91 and the Idaho Falls Education Association. This year's one-time payment is $500 for all full-time teachers and staff and $250 for all part-time teachers and staff

• Oct. 10-Feb. 23: ISAT interim Assessments, Optional Benchmark Assessments
  (To learn more, contact Thomas Kennedy, D91's Director of Intervention & Support. You can reach him at kennthom@sd91.org)
• Nov. 20: Teacher Work Day
• Nov. 20-24: Thanksgiving Break
• Nov. 26: Grades due at 11:59 am on 11/26/2023
• Nov. 29: Try-It-Out Professional Development, Effective Grading Practices K-12 & D91 Structures of Teaching & Learning, 3:30 pm at Dora Erickson library
• Nov. 30 & Dec 1: ES Parent-Teacher Conferences (Online learning day on Dec. 1)
• Dec. 1-8: iStation District Universal Screener window
• Dec. 6: Try-It-Out Professional Development, Effective Grading Practices K-12 & D91 Structures of Teaching & Learning, 4:15 pm at Compass Academy, Room 204
• Dec. 13: School Board Business Meeting, 5:30 pm, IFHS Library
• Dec. 15: First Teacher Evaluations Due

The new Idaho LAUNCH program provides Idaho seniors with up to $8,000 in tuition and fees for eligible colleges, universities and training programs, and initial applications are due Nov. 30. So, if you know a senior, encourage them to learn more or apply today!

If they miss that Nov. 30 priority deadline, they can still apply for Idaho LAUNCH through April 15, but the sooner students apply for the program, the better their chances of landing an award.

The Board of Trustees has approved a calendar change for Idaho Falls and Skyline high schools. Friday, Jan. 19, will be an Intervention/At-Home Learning day to accommodate the Tiger-Grizz Wrestling Tournament, which brings hundreds of wrestlers from around the state and around the region to compete at Skyline and Idaho Falls high schools. The calendar change was made to address safety concerns. Again, this calendar change will only impact Idaho Falls and Skyline high schools.

Congrats to Ethel Boyes Elementary School, which just received a $2,000 award from the Idaho Lottery Commission's Bucks For Books program. The program was started in response to a 2012 study that showed school libraries were having a difficult time stocking their shelves with updated books and literary materials. Boyes' Librarian Nicole Coverstone will use the money to purchase easy readers, popular new titles and student requested titles.

If you know someone looking for an RV, there's still time to submit a sealed bit for CTEC's Skoolie. Students from the welding, industrial mechanics and construction programs at D91's Career & Technical Education Center have spent the last 11 months converting an old school bus into an RV. It has a queen bed, full kitchen with propane fridge, a stove/range, storage and a dining area that can be converted into an additional sleeping area.

Anyone interested in bidding on the converted RV can submit a sealed bid to Jessica Swartwood, D91’s Comptroller, at the D91 District Office, 690 John Adams Parkway, Idaho Falls, ID 83401. Bids will be accepted through noon. Dec. 7. The minimum bid is $48,000. Learn more about the bid submission process. Those who would like to see the Skoolie, can call CTEC at (208) 525-7549 and make an appointment.

Dora Erickson's 4th graders were out last weekend decorating the windows of Smokin' Fins with Christmas trees decorated with Idaho's symbols. Students made ornaments featuring Idaho's state symbols like the mountain bluebird, cutthroat trout, peregrine falcon, Monarch buttery, appaloosa and more. "The kids had so much fun and loved every part of it," said teacher Laura Milton.

We love seeing our students out in the community sharing what they have learned in fun ways! Way to go!

Transporting our students safely from home to school and back again is a very important job, and D91 is looking for more drivers to join its Transportation Department. With recent salary changes, D91's bus drivers now start at $18.76 to $22.12 an hour with full benefits, holiday pay, personal and sick leave and PERSI available for full-time drivers. D91 provides in-house training for its drivers and reimburses CDL fees. If you know anyone who is interested, have them fill out an application.

In the new year, D91 is shifting from Skyward to Infinite Visions, which will be a big change for the district because all our HR, payroll, purchasing, accounts payable and budgeting functions are currently done in Skyward.

If you're a secretary, bookkeeper or administrative assistant make sure you sign up for the trainings on Dec. 13, and if you're a principal, director, supervisor or administrator make sure you sign up for the training on Dec. 14. There will be two sessions each day -- 9 am to noon OR 1 pm to 4 pm. Pick the session that works best for your schedule. (You should have received an email with a link to sign up. If you didn't get that email, check with Jimmy Horsely in IT.)

The current implementation plan is for Phase 1 of Infinite Visions to go LIVE on Jan 1, which will include all business functions and most payroll functions. Then, in Phase 2, beginning March 1, we will move from Skyward’s True Time system to Infinite Vision’s version.

An ADA County court ruled this week that school districts can only have one facilities levy at a time so the levy that D91 parents and patrons approved in May is null and void. The levy was going to pay for a new elementary school to alleviate crowding on Idaho Fall's south side.

The Board of Trustees will meet soon to discuss next steps. We will share those updates as they become available. The Board of Trustees is committed to addressing its critical facilities issues and ensuring that every student in Idaho Falls School District 91 can learn in an environment that is safe and meets their needs.

We are very disappointed in the court's ruling," said Board Chair Hillary Radcliffe. "D91’s parents and patrons clearly supported this levy as a way to address the district’s ongoing facilities issues. It passed with almost 70 percent of the vote. It’s frustrating that the directive of our local taxpayers has been challenged by the Idaho Idaho Tax Commission and dismissed by the courts."