We will distribute this newsletter on the Wednesday following the monthly Board of Education meeting. This newsletter will have information from District Departments and other helpful tips. If you have suggestions for content in this newsletter, please send them to Collin Brooks at BrooksB@jcschools.org.

May 2024

• School Principal's Day - May 1
• School Lunch Hero Day - May 3
• Teacher Appreciation Week - May 6 -10
• School Nurse Day - May 8
• National Speech & Language Pathologist Day - May 18

Calendars

• Click here to view Printable Calendars 2023-2024 & 2024-2025
• Click here to view the Staff Holiday Schedule for the 2023-2024 School Year.
  

On-line enrollment opens for Kindergarten and NEW students on April 1.

The in-zone transfer spaces available will be posted on April 1 through April 14 with the application window opening on April 15 and ending May 14.

All links will be available through www.jcschools.org/registration.

Johnson City Schools will be moving to ParentSquare to replace both Bloomz and SchoolMessenger. It is the expectation that this platform will be used for all communication from the district, school, classroom and extracurricular activities.

ParentSquare Introduction Video

ParentSquare is a unified communication platform that offers a whole host of tools that allows district, school administrators and teachers to more effectively communicate and engage with families and students. Some features include:

· Mass notifications and Urgent Alerts

· Mobile application for administrators and parents (iOS and Android)

· Attendance notifications

· Teacher and classroom communication

· Direct Messaging with two-way translation

· Forms and Permission Slips

· Appointment Sign Ups (parent-teacher conferences, technology pick-ups)

· Calendar and RSVP

· Volunteering and classroom supply sign-ups

· And so much more!

Communication to Parents

This platform will be plugged into our student information system so that over the summer, parents will receive an activation email for their ParentSquare account. Those who do not register will still receive text, email, and phone notifications. Parents who do create an account can interact by viewing photos, downloading attachments, leaving comments, messaging teachers, signing permission slips and managing their communication settings and preferences.

ParentSquare Resources

The district will provide a variety of resources to ensure an effective launch at each site, including: training videos, flyers, PowerPoint presentations for parents and more.

Training Resources

• Self-Paced Teacher Training Modules
• Teacher Training Video (Preparation Handout)
• Live Teacher Training Webinar Registration
• Training Calendar

For training courses that can be accessed without a registered ParentSquare account, please click here.

Johnson City Schools is in the process of evaluating a proposed 6-day Family Life Curriculum to be used in the lifetime wellness course at Science Hill High School. The curriculum, developed by a team of Science Hill High School teachers and administrators, would be presented over a 6-day time frame within all wellness courses. Beginning Monday, May 13, there will be an opportunity for the public to examine the materials and provide feedback using the provided form. The curriculum will be on display at the Johnson City Schools’ Central Office, 100 E. Maple Street, on Monday, May 13 through Friday, May 18, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The proposed curriculum, following comment, will be under consideration during the Johnson City Board of Education meeting on June 3. The Board of Education appreciates the input from parents and interested citizens. For more information, please contact central office at 423-434-5200.

Changes in Contacts for Full-time Employee Benefits

As Johnson City Schools grows and more staff have come onboard, the responsibilities of employee benefits will be shifting from the Finance Department to the Human Resources Department. Going forward, Human Resources will now be handling enrollment, changes in coverage, and questions related to health and dental insurance as well as other voluntary benefits that are provided through Mark III (flexible spending accounts, vision, short-term and long-term disability insurance, etc.) The Finance Department will continue handle retirement, life insurance provided by Johnson City Schools, and questions related pay, insurance pay deductions and insurance coverage end dates when leaving employment with Johnson City Schools. Both Finance and Human Resources will work closely together to assist employees.

Please see the updated list of contacts below.

Health Insurance and other voluntary benefits:

Sharron Livingston: livingstons@jcschools.org or 423-434-5207

Retirement: Leia Valley: valleyl@jcschools.org or 423-434-5212

Christy Fair: fairc@jcschools.org or 423-434-5210

Hartford Life Insurance:

Christy Fair: fairc@jcschools.org or 423-434-5210

Payroll/Questions related to Pay:

Jan Mominee: momineej@jcschools.org or 423-434-5209

LaQuata Lazenby: lazenbyl@jcschools.org or 423-524-8240

Johnson City Schools is hiring Educare assistants, custodians, and instructional assistants. Current job postings can be viewed at www.jcschools.org/jobs.

Johnson City Transit is in need of bus drivers. Please visit this page for more information about open Bus Driver positions.

Bailey Stanley (StanleyB@jcschools.org) is the new Administrative Secretary for Human Resources and her number, (423) 232-5384, will be the main line for Human Resources.

Open Enrollment for Hartford Life Insurance begins May 15th through June 30th. Be on the lookout for an email from Finance with forms and instructions if you are interested in picking up or increasing supplemental life insurance on yourself and/or your dependents. Changes will be effective 9/1/2024.

JC Schools provides life insurance for all full-time employees equal to your annual salary. Once you have been employed full-time with JC Schools for more than 2 years, the amount of coverage provided is equal to 2 times your annual salary.

Presented by Dr. Allison Gardenhour & Shannon Suttle,

District RTI Coaches

July 23rd @ Central Office/Oak Room

8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Registration code required.

Presented by Dr. Tiffany Hogan, Dr. Shelley Burton,

& Amanda Fenner, District ELA Coaches

July 24th @ Mountain View Elementary School

8:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Presented by Dr. Chris Bowen, District STEM Coach

July 25th @ Liberty Bell Middle School

8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Presented by Erika Patterson & Glenda Conner,

District Math Coaches

July 25th @ Mountain View Elementary School

8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Presented by Dr. Lori Church, District Literacy Coach

July 25th @ Liberty Bell Middle School

8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Registration code required.

Presented by Ann Ferenbach, Lake Ridge Art Teacher

July 25th @ Lake Ridge Elementary School

8:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Registration code required.

Presented by Misty Shively,

District ESL Coach

July 25th @ Central Office, The Learning Center

8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. (Registration code required.)

Presented by Dr. Timbs, Tina Faust, Tech Leaders,

& Vendor Partners

July 26th @ Science Hill High School

8:00 a.m. - 3:45 p.m.

Presented by Dr. Chris Bowen & Dr. Nancy Miles,

District STEM Coaches

July 29th @ Fairmont Elementary School

8:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

Presented by Dr. Chris Bowen & Dr. Nancy Miles,

District STEM Coaches

July 29th @ Fairmont Elementary School

12:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Presented by Westley Harris, North Side Music/Art Teacher

July 30th @ North Side Elementary School, Little Theater

8:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Teachers may register now using Learning Stream "Training Registration" in the SSO Portal. Interns and other guests may contact Tracey Coffey for a PDP certificate. Be sure to sign-in at each event you attend. We hope you'll join us!

Congratulations toTowne Acres 4th-grader Cheng-Xi Hou for winning the recent Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education Competition, Grades 3-5 division.

Byron Eisenzopf- 7th Grade

Sam Quaintance- 7th Grade

Mushabbar Raza- 7th Grade

Congratulations to these Liberty Bell students who recently competed in the National Civics Bee Competition. As I call your name, please come to the front to receive your certificate. Cooper Reeves, Director of Marketing & Communications for the Johnson City Chamber, will speak briefly about the event.

First Place: Eleanor Simpson, 8th Grade

Second Place: Ryan Rodig, 8th Grade

Third Place: Benjamin Park, 8th Grade

During her last board meeting, we honored our Director of Food Services Karen McGahey. She will be retiring after 42 years with Johnson City Schools. We want to thank you for your service and dedication to the students of Johnson City Schools.

We recognized Cohort #8 of our Technology Teach Leader Program led by Dr. David Timbs and Tina Faust. Those teachers include:

David Cross

Lori Campbell

Robert Grunder

Andrea Lowery

Taleah Rogers

Renee Becker

Hannah Hess

Ryan Glenn

Rebecca Weems

Emily Stevens

Dianna Bone

Karla Clapper

Megan Scott

Katie Van Horn

Nicole Cross

Jessica Joyner

Russell Minatel

Angela Taylor

Anne Timbs

Dedra Lamb

Hannah Barnett

Kristi Presley

The next Johnson City Board of Education meeting will be held on Monday, June 3 starting at 6 p.m. inside the Board Room at Central Office (100 E. Maple Street). Board meetings can be viewed on the Johnson City Schools' YouTube channel.

Register your high school student for an engaging summer program in Applied STEM or environmental health!

These programs are only $25 and college credit is available.

Learn more at https://www.etsu.edu/applied-stem

Johnson City Schools loves celebrating the accomplishments of our students, staff, and community. If you know of any events, awards, programs, or other compelling stories involving the Johnson City Schools' community, please fill out this form or reach out to Collin Brooks at BrooksB@jcschools.org