September Updates

Despite the many challenged we are facing this year, we are off to a great start. I want to compliment all of our teachers and staff. I know that you are working harder this year than ever before and I want you to know that we see you and appreciate all that you are doing.

The district has received lots of feedback from parents over the past 3 weeks with most being very positive and complimentary. One common concern across the district has been parents having trouble navigating eLearning and websites because it is different from school to school and even teacher to teacher. Based on this, there will be some requirements pushd out on Monday that outline the format/ content every website will need to have. Our teachers are in good shape but you may need to spend a little time this week tweaking some things to ensure that everything is there. The turn around on this will be quick (Friday), so I wanted to make sure that you knew it was coming Monday and to be on the look out.

Students who are engaged in eLearning from home Mon-Thurs should be engaged in the same lessons as those that are in the building. We need to keep all students moving forward so that we can cover the required content. There are many ways that you can achieve this. You may want to start planning your lessons with elearning in mind and then you can make adjustments and add on enrichment activities for the students who are sitting in the class. You could record certain portions of your lecture/ class and post that online. Teachers should be posting lessons daily. The district does not want us posting all 4 days worth of lessons at once.

During office hours, teachers should be using that 45 minute time frame to email students, reach out to students not engaged, hold one on one or small group Google meets for those that have questions or are struggling or hold large Google Meets that students can drop in on for support. You must be available during that entire planning period.

On Fridays, teachers should have live lessons during Google Meet times that have been already established. Each class has been allotted 20 minutes with the expectation that teachers are teaching a concept for the first 5-10 minutes and then time alloted for practice, discussion and questions. Students may have work they need to complete after the class but it should not exceed 20 minutes per class.

You are expected to be sitting at a computer and actively engaged on Fridays. You should never be in a car or traveling during your contractual hours. Your camera must be on for all Google Meetings and trainings.

The remainder of the time on Fridays is set aside for Faculty meetings, grade level meetings and content planning.

Very soon we will begin our On-Track Meetings on Mondays. On-Track is a student tracking system that allows us to quickly review the attendance, behavior and academic success for each individual student. If a child is at-risk in any or all of these areas, they are referred to On-Track. The On-Track team is comprised of admin, guidance, school psych, teachers and any other staff member that has direct contact with that student such as mental health or nurse. The committee meets and discusses each student identifying challenges and successes and then developing interventions to attack areas of concern.

The teachers are only present for the discussions that pertain to the students they teach.

Open Enrollment will be held from September 16th through October 31st this year. Our enrollment partner, Ward Services, has prepared a video overview for the 2020 Insurance Open Enrollment. Click HERE to view the open enrollment video; click on the box, “Click here to learn about your benefit options,” click on the drop down arrow, click on Greenville and click submit to start the video. You may also visit PEBA’s Open Enrollment website for additional information.

We will not have any in-person enrollment meetings this year. All meetings will be held by phone.

All coverages other than MoneyPlus Spending Accounts will rollover to 2021. If you need to schedule an appointment to enroll or make changes for 2021 please following the instructions below. Please note you are not permitted to schedule your appointment at a different location other than your assigned school/work location. Your location secretary will NOT follow up with you this year to make sure you have scheduled an appointment. It is your responsibility to make an appointment for any applicable coverage changes for the calendar year of 2021.

1. Visit wardservices.com/greenville
2. Select your location, date and time for your appointment*
3. Enter your contact information to confirm your selection

* If you are a teacher in the Virtual Program, please select the Virtual School option in the drop down menu. Transportation employees will schedule their appointments by paper sign ups at their bus center, but the appointment itself will remain a phone call appointment.

It is critical to enter a good contact number when scheduling your appointment. The phone number you provide is what will be used to contact you at your designated appointment time. Please do not to use your District classroom number as many of those do not ring during the school day. You can request a text message reminder and change your appointment time online, if needed. You will receive an email confirmation of your selected appointment date and time. Please keep the email confirmation in the event you need to change your appointment. If you need assistance scheduling your appointment through the online scheduler please contact Ward Services at 1-844-533-2022.

For additional questions, contact the Benefits Department at benefits@greenville.k12.sc.us or 355-0960.

If you need to be out please use the sub list below to try and secure a sub. If you need to request a personal day, you will need to complete the form and secure a sub before I will approve.

This year, we will have very limited seating at our athletic events. Due to this, we will pre-sell 2 tickets to each athlete so that they can have family members at the games. However, all schools will be unable to admit teachers for free as we have done in the past. Some gyms are smaller in size so parents may not be able to attend away games.

Monday- Volleyball Home Vs. Mauldin

Thursday- Volleyball Away vs. League

Debbie will be sending out informational slides and checklists to assist you in developing your SLO. Be on the lookout for those this week. We will also hold PD sessions so that teachers can have additional help if needed.