PL Update Administrator Edition

SELF-CONTROL: Restraint used over one's own impulses, emotions or desires.

We are pleased to provide you with the PL Monthly Update for October! As you scan the update, be sure to check out this month’s TOP 3:

You are just a few clicks away from easy access to PL Monthly Updates – present and past. Rather than dig through old emails, consider adding the current PL Monthly Update to your favorites by bookmarking it. To do so, click on the star icon to the right of the above web address. To access past PL Monthly Updates, scroll down to the bottom of this page and click the PL MONTHLY UPDATES button.

As the first grading period moves toward a close, the teacher and appraiser should schedule a face-to-face Goal-Setting Conference to review the Personal Professional Goal as well as the Goal for Student Growth. Together, the teacher and appraiser will discuss each goal to determine any needed adjustments, identify the types of support needed from the appraiser, outline milestones that will help the teacher know that the PPG and GSG are on track, and determine the specific types of evidence that will be collected to demonstrate progress/mastery toward each goal. Scroll down to review the process.

We’ve set up a few reports in CFPGS to help you work smarter, not harder. Principals and DIs can find these reports by clicking on the REPORTING tab in CFPGS. Scroll down to review a few featured reports.

A quick visual reference of the 2024-25 Professional Development Days can be found here.

During Phase 1 of the appraisal process, teachers will establish and implement a Personal Professional Goal, as well as a Goal for Student Growth. As a final step in this process, the teacher and appraiser will schedule a face-to-face Goal-Setting Conference to review the Personal Professional Goal as well as the Goal for Student Growth.

Access this shared folder of available training materials for the Goal-setting Process.

A help guide for teachers for completing Phase 1: Establish and Implement Goals is posted on your CFPGS Homepage under My Appraisal Resources.

The district will continue its pilot for the 2024-25 school year, adding additional groups. The pilot group will include:

• Admin Asst I, Attendance
• Admin Asst I, SPED
• Admin Asst II, Finance MS
• Admin Asst III, Finance HS
• Admin Asst I, HS Counselor
• Registrar, HS

Domain 1 of the evaluation instrument reflects the differentiated areas of responsibility for each role, as defined by the district's HR team.

NOTE: Plans for the Pilot Group have not yet been rolled out. We apologize for the delay. We will follow up soon with more information and details.

We’ve set up a few reports in CFPGS to help you work smarter, not harder.

Principals and DIs can find these reports by clicking on the REPORTING tab in CFPGS. Each report can be downloaded as a CSV and saved as an Excel file.

My Ad-Hoc Reports:

1. Draft Goal from Previous School Year Report – This report allows you to view a teacher’s Personal Professional Goal (PPG) that was drafted when the teacher prepared for their EOY Conference.
2. Active ID, Hire Date, & Assigned Plan Report – This report includes each teacher's employee ID number, hire date, and assigned plan type.

My Reports:

1. Appraisal Entry Report – This report will allow you to review Formal Appraisal entries for all teachers in Domains 2 and 3 with a status of not started, in progress, or completed.
2. Credit Conversion Report – If you allow teachers to submit Credit Conversion Requests (moving eligible off-contract credits to CTE credits), then this report will provide you with an at-a-glance view of those who have submitted hours.
3. PD Calendar Year: Total Credits Report – This report will allow you to see, at-a-glance, the total credits by credit type for each teacher. This is a beneficial report as it allows you to view the total number of CTE credits per teacher. It is easy to access.
4. Required Course Completion Roster Report - This report is aimed at assisting you in monitoring the completion of compliance-related required courses.

In September, we kicked off the 9th annual CFISD New Administrator Institute. NAI provides an invaluable opportunity for first-year DIs, APs, and Coordinators to grow and develop further leadership skills. The content of NAI is organized into four interlocking themes: Self-Awareness, Impact & Influence, Communication, and Resource Management.

All participants complete a DiSC personality assessment. The tool provides a framework for gaining insight into our own work styles while seeking to understand and appreciate the work styles of others. The tool is explored in depth with the help of SURGE Team Building. To learn more about our work with SURGE, click HERE.

For the first time in its history, we had to cancel our summer Teacher Leadership Institute (TLI) due to Hurricane Beryl. We deeply missed the chance to connect with the new teacher leaders recommended by their principals.

Our typical 3-day summer program features a sequence of modules: Setting a Vision for Leadership, Effective Communication, and Conflict Resolution. These sessions are designed with adult learning principles in mind, offering highly interactive experiences to enhance your practice and equip new teacher leaders with the knowledge, tools, and skills for effectively leading adults.

While we couldn't meet this summer, we're excited to offer three special Saturday virtual sessions to those scheduled to attend this past summer's TLI! These sessions will deliver the same rich content in smaller, more digestible portions, allowing new teacher leaders to connect with one another and strengthen their skills as they work with those they lead.

The details below provide campus leaders with a preview of the day's content, which was previously shared with the invitees from this past summer.

DATE: Saturday, October 19

LOCATION: Zoom (details provided to registrants)

TIME: 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM

SESSION #: 59474

AUDIENCE: TLI 2024 Cohorts

DESCRIPTION: Discover your unique leadership style and philosophy while learning the key skills and processes of effective leaders. Through self-assessment and reflection, you will gain valuable insights into leadership practices, setting the stage for growth and improvement.

DATE: Saturday, October 19

LOCATION: Zoom (details provided to registrants)

TIME: 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM

SESSION #: 59476

AUDIENCE: TLI 2024 Cohorts

DESCRIPTION: Join us as we explore effective communication strategies. Discover practical tips and tools to foster collaboration, resolve conflicts, and create a positive team culture. Learn how to communicate with clarity, empathy, and impact.

DATE: Saturday, November 2

LOCATION: Zoom (details provided to registrants)

TIME: 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM

SESSION #: 59477

AUDIENCE: TLI 2024 Cohorts

DESCRIPTION: Turn conflict into a catalyst for professional growth and amplify your leadership impact. Enhance your mediation, active listening, and conflict resolution skills to guide your colleagues through differences while fostering a more cohesive and productive team.

“Often we are so busy with sawing that we forget to sharpen the saw.” -- Stephen Covey

We are SO excited to share our newest professional development opportunity with you to sharpen your saw. We recently developed Brain Bits Virtual Sessions, brought to you by Quantum Learning! You’ll find session details in this month’s update.

Quantum Learning is a proven research-based approach to learning and teaching integrating best educational practices into a unified whole. Participants learn a system to effectively facilitate the learning process and understand theory and implementation by creating an optimal learning environment for students K-12.

Our Brain Bits Virtual Sessions are a series of professional development courses that provide small, digestible chunks to provide learners with relevant content in a virtual setting.

AUDIENCE: Those new to Quantum Learning, and those who have experienced Quantum Learning and would like more QL content.

DESCRIPTION: The emotional control center in the brain, also known as the amygdala, has the capability of hi-jacking the pre-frontal cortex of our students’ brains, negatively impacting their learning. In this 2-hour session, we will share research-driven, brain-based strategies that will calm the amygdala to facilitate higher order thinking and start the process of encoding our content into long term memory.

AUDIENCE: Those new to Quantum Learning, and those who have experienced Quantum Learning and would like more QL content.

DESCRIPTION: Do you find yourself telling your students over and over to “Pay attention!”? Guess what? They ARE paying attention ALL THE TIME…to the most exciting thing in the room at any given moment. Is it you? Your lessons? Your activities? If not, have no fear! In this 2-hour session, we will share research-driven, brain-based strategies that will capture and hold the working memory of our students, so that their attention is focused on our content.

*Be ready with a lesson that could use an “upgrade”.

AUDIENCE: Those new to Quantum Learning, and those who have experienced Quantum Learning and would like more QL content.

DESCRIPTION: How often do you ask students to recall something that you taught a day or two earlier, only to hear them say, “I have no idea what you are talking about!”? The part of the brain called the hippocampus plays a critical role in short- and long-term memory retention. In this 2-hour session, we will share research-driven, brain-based strategies that will help our students’ brains keep our content and remember it longer. In Quantum Learning, we call these strategies “feeding the hippo”.

*Be ready with a lesson that could use an “upgrade”.

The district requires that all employees complete a series of yearly compliance-related courses to educate them on the various health, safety, social, and ethical issues that might arise on the job. The directions below enumerate the steps for completing courses launched through Schoology and SafeSchools.

Here is a complete listing of required compliance-related courses for RETURNING EMPLOYEES, NEW HIRE EMPLOYEES, and SPECIFIC AUDIENCES (i.e., nurses, campus admin).

Courses marked with a ⭐ ICON offer the TEST-OUT option. In order to ensure successful completion of each course, users are encourage to follow the directions highlighted in the help guide referenced below.

A help guide and a video tutorial for accessing and completing compliance-related courses are posted on your CFPGS Homepage under Resources for My Learning.

📝NOTE: Beginning on page 3 of this document, you’ll find directions for completing courses with the TEST-OUT option.

Four key principles govern a comprehensive induction program: orientation, ongoing support provided through the district's New Teacher Institute, mentoring, and networking. The goal of mentoring and induction programs is the retention and growth of new teachers so that every student succeeds.

Supporting New Teachers in October

Lead Mentors at every campus are equipped with proven strategies for mentoring novice teachers as well as preparing campus mentors to meet the needs of novice teachers during the Phases of First Year Teaching. Each new teacher is paired with a mentor and meets on a regular basis while developing relationships that involve trust, open communication, and collaboration.

Mentoring is a partnership created to help support new teachers by providing them with

an experienced teacher to discuss topics and provide guidance confidentially. Below

are a few suggested items mentors can do/share to support mentees on their campuses during the month of October:

• Check to make sure emergency lesson plans are in place. Encourage the teacher to have enough material for 2-3 days just in case.
• Discuss formal observation(s) or upcoming observations.
• Observe each other’s classroom instruction sometime between October through December (one observation each during this time frame).
• Debrief department, grade level, team, and committee meetings. Answer questions about unknown terms, acronyms, or unclear processes. Be prepared to explain the rationale for or history behind comments/decisions.
• Discuss how their classroom management & discipline plans are going. Encourage the mentee to keep a list of changes they may want to make for the following semester.
• Review how grades are reported & how grade reports will be distributed to parents.

• Discuss parent/teacher conferences, including tips on how to conduct and/ or handle parent issues, support staff available, and what to prepare.
• Explain spirit weeks/special events and extra-curricular activities.
• Show the mentee where they may find opportunities for professional development or attend conferences.
• Make sure the mentee has received proper documentation or has access to necessary information for special education students, students with 504s, or are provided with other special services.

Lead Mentor Share Session

Lead Mentors are invited to join us on Wednesday, November 6th, from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. via Zoom. Remember to register in CFPGS, session #56521.

Checkout Our New Teacher Induction Webpage

You are just a click away from additional resources to support Lead Mentors, Mentors, and New Teachers. Simply click HERE.

Feel free to reach out to tonya.dixon@cfisd.net with questions or concerns

At every campus, Professional Learning Liaisons are specifically chosen to serve in the role based on their knowledge and willingness to help others grow. As the school year begins, PLLs help monitor staff’s progress in completing the beginning of the year Compliance Courses.

In addition, PLLs assist staff with accessing professional development transcripts and records and share information about professional development opportunities.

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING LIAISON SHARE SESSION

The next Professional Learning Liaison Share Session will be held on Thursday, November 7th, from 5:00-6:00 P.M. via Zoom. Please remind PLLs to register for session #56525. During the session, they will receive timely information about professional learning opportunities. This year, we are reading “Adventures in Teacher Leadership: Pathways, Strategies, and Inspiration for Every Teacher.” Organized around five key tools—communication, collaboration, professional development, data, and advocacy—this text covers every aspect of what is involved in taking on leadership responsibilities.

Because we know that you continuously seek opportunities to grow others and yourself, we encourage you to explore and share two available resources that are just a couple of clicks away. Scroll down to learn more.

• Leadership Development Resources – visit here to find information regarding the district’s Leadership Institute Series
• Graduate Resources – this one-stop-shop provides various graduate programs for those seeking principal certification and/or a M.Ed., Ed.D., or Ph.D.

The professional learning department is committed to providing support, building capacity, and cultivating talent by partnering with departments across the district to provide research-based professional development that can translate into improved student achievement and overall school effectiveness.

The team offers educators a continuum of support services through multiple professional learning opportunities. From new teacher induction and mentoring to the teacher appraisal process, leadership development, and Quantum Learning, the Professional Learning staff strives to provide high-quality, job-embedded professional learning for all stages of professional growth. The essential functions of the department are as follows:

1. Cypress-Fairbanks Professional Growth System (CFPGS)
2. New Teacher Induction and Mentoring
3. Teacher Appraisal Process
4. Graduate Cohorts and Resources
5. Districtwide Professional Development

Glenda Horner, Ed.D.

Director for Professional Learning

Torine Champion, Ed. D.
Coordinator for Professional Learning

Tonya Dixon, Ed.D.

Professional Learning Specialist

Belinda Sepulveda
Administrative Assistant to Director for Professional Learning

Pat Bice
Administrative Assistant for Professional Learning