District Dialogue

Local marketing company Click Rain Inc. gave their summer interns a special assignment: work with the SF School District to help resolve one of their biggest challenges - getting kids to school. The result is a marketing campaign launching this month.

The District has taken many steps to address school attendance issues, including adding attendance liaison positions at six schools in 2023. Earlier this spring, the District felt the need to bolster these efforts by adding marketing support, and reached out to local digital marketing agency Click Rain for help. Over the course of the summer, four interns from both Click Rain and Lemonly met with representatives from the Sioux Falls School District to understand the assignment and make marketing recommendations. The result of their work together is a multimedia campaign with the message “Show Up” that launched on August 22.

The Community Learning Center model of out-of-school-time care has just completed its first year, and it's been a busy year! Efforts to increase accessibility resulted in a 35% overall growth in student participation, and over 1,000 additional students were able to receive care. Additionally, the initiative collaborated with over 60 community providers, implemented family listening sessions, and hosted health and wellness fairs, further strengthening community engagement.

Looking ahead, the CLCs plan to focus on enhancing the quality of the elementary program, expanding middle school offerings, deepening career exposure opportunities, and prioritizing family engagement.

Read the full board report below.

Architecture Incorporated established an annual grant program to award multiple worthy K-12 educators with a total of $5,000 in funding to help their students thrive and succeed. They are seeking out-of-the-box ideas of all sizes to address teachers' challenges and encourage ingenuity in education. The grant was named to align with their core values of Creative Solutions and Proven Service.

To be eligible, you must be a teacher in the state of South Dakota or within 100 miles of Sioux Falls or Rapid City. Grant applications can be for any amount up to $5,000, but the money should be used for this school year. Grant materials can be used in a classroom, across a grade level, throughout a building, or district-wide, but cannot be for food.

In an effort to remove any bias, the applicant's name and school district will be excluded prior to judging. The grant applications will be judged on the following criteria:

• Clearly and concisely written
• Enhances curriculum or teaching standards
• The need/rationale is explained
• There are clearly defined outcomes/benefits
• The requested grant funds are specified and supported
• It will have a positive impact on the community
• If there other funding avenues available

Applications will be accepted through Friday, September 13, 2024, and recipients will be awarded in the fall.

Please consider dropping a note to thank our sponsors for the “I Show Up For Kids” t shirts provided to reinforce this year’s theme. Architecture Incorporated has generously sponsored t shirts for staff since 2006. That’s a stellar commitment from a community partner – especially recently. As a consumer, you know prices have increased dramatically on some items. Cotton is one of them, so they enlisted the help of other contractors to divide the cost. Please don’t overlook their generosity.

Architecture Incorporated

Attn: Holly Haberman

415 S Main Ave.

Sioux Falls, SD 57104

Sayre Associates, Inc.

216 S. Duluth Ave.

Sioux Falls, SD 57104

Associated Consulting Engineering, Inc.

340 S. Phillips Ave.

Sioux Falls, SD 57104

Structural Engineering Associates, Inc.

401 E. 8th St., Suite 201
Sioux Falls, SD 57103

Please find time to thank these folks who are not obligated… but who willingly partner with SFSD because they appreciate you!

Welcome back to the second week of the 2023-24 school year! A reminder that there is no school Friday, August 30 through Monday, September 2. We hope you have an enjoyable long Labor Day weekend!

Check in on all four SFSD high schools as they, along with Brandon, Brookings, Lennox, and O'Gorman work with clinicians throughout the day on August 24 at the 10th Annual RHS Marching Band Clinic! Hear from a couple of directors and students from each of our bands.

Sports offer huge benefits to the girls involved: Leadership opportunities, scholarship possibilities, and self-development are just a few. But perhaps most important - it's FUN to participate and spend time with friends old and new! Learn about high school sports opportunities for girls in the Sioux Falls School District.

SHINE stands for Scholarship, Honors, Innovation, Networking and Exceptionalism. We’re looking for stories we can tell about high school seniors, any-age students, staff (yes, you can and should absolutely fill out this form for yourself!), projects and programs. Have a new partnership that is benefitting the classroom? Win a grant you think the world should know about? Get nominated for or receive a state-wide, regional or national honor? Know a senior stand-out on a team, in the fine arts arena, or in the classroom? How about younger students who are leading by example, making giving to charity a priority, or are making the most of a bad situation? Should a program or portion of your school be highlighted? What about some current projects: experiments, field trips, new collaborative lessons?

Send your suggestions today, and keep this in mind for the days, weeks and months ahead!

Imagine Solutions Conference is a nationally known thought leader conference that brings world-class visionaries to share ideas on today's most relevant issues. The conference offers an impressive speaker lineup in topics, such as Science and Technology, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Arts, Music and much more. We are excited to provide Sioux Falls School District teachers the opportunity to attend this year's conference virtually. Registered attendees will receive a link to the recorded videos.

During the past 14 years, the Imagine Solutions Conference (ISC) has brought together more than 550 world-class experts to learn, springboard, and leverage their capabilities to effectively address social issues. Their mantra, "a profound respect for learning" mirrors the heart and soul of teachers who "love to learn." The ISC Virtual Learning Program for the Sioux Falls School District was created out of these beliefs, allowing all teachers to participate for free.

All registered teachers qualify for 5 hours of professional development for registering and completing a brief survey after watching all of the videos.

Do you have a coworker or colleague who is constantly going above and beyond? Do you notice when somebody is going out of their way to make a student's day just a little bit brighter? Do you have a staff member who consistently brings their best, day in and day out? We want to hear about it! We know that amazing things happen every day in every building of the Sioux Falls School District, and we need your help to tell those stories. Follow the above info (or click the link below) to nominate a coworker to be recognized for their amazing dedication to the work of SFSD.

• Do you have questions about your personal leave options, SEMS codes, and personal leave balances? If so, please see the attached “Personal and Wellness Day Leave Memo” for the 2024-25 school year!!
• Personal and Wellness Day Leave Memo for the 2024-25 School Year

• Do you have questions about which days in the 2024-25 school year are “restricted dates” for the use of personal leave? If so, please see the attached “No Meeting-No Personal Days Memo” for the 2024-25 school year!!
• No Meeting-No Personal Days Memo for the 2024-25 School Year

• Do you have questions about the Comp Days you will earn by working the fall and spring conferences? If so, please see the attached “Comp Days Memo” for the 2024-25 school year!!

Comp Days Memo

The South Dakota Retirement System (SDRS) has created Retire Ready, a new virtual format for group presentations. The SDRS Retire Ready series will consist of four short presentations, all designed to increase your financial awareness and help you prepare for retirement. All SDRS members, at any stage of their career, will benefit from the information provided. These 45-60 minute presentations are held via ZOOM every Wednesday on a rotating-basis.

Q&A Session: August 28th, 2024 at 4:15 pm

Ask your questions and get answers from SDRS staff. Every session will have unique questions from our members, so feel free to tune in often.

Register via ZOOM

Did you know you can earn 10 points towards your wellness program requirement by completing a personal challenge? Personal challenges cover a wide range of health and wellbeing topics, and they vary in length. Here’s one of SFSD’s favorites: the TV Commercial Workout Challenge!

TV Commercial Workout Challenge

Stay active at home while multitasking and enjoying your favorite TV shows! Use the commercial breaks as an excuse to get up and complete a series of exercises. Even if you are streaming a series, set a timer every 8-11 minutes to get up and get moving – it’s easy fun.

Length of Challenge: 1 Day

Recording is open the entire length of the challenge to go back to record for previous days. You will have 7 days after the end date of the challenge to record all data before the recording window closes.

Check out the Personal Challenges library on your wellness portal to sign-up for the TV Commercial Workout Challenge and/or to explore all available personal challenges!

www.sfsdwellness.com

Caffeine, commonly found in coffee, tea, and various energy drinks, acts as a stimulant that can enhance alertness and reduce feelings of sleepiness. It works by blocking adenosine, a chemical that builds up in the brain throughout the day and signals the need for rest. However, regular caffeine consumption can lead to increased adenosine production, making it necessary to consume more caffeine over time to achieve the same effects. Additionally, sudden cessation of caffeine can lead to withdrawal symptoms such as headaches and increased sleepiness.

Stay Alert Without Caffeine

• Get enough sleep. Most adults need between seven and eight hours of sleep every night to feel rested.
• Eat regularly. When you don’t eat, your blood sugar levels drop, making you feel tired.
• Drink enough water. Staying hydrated can help you stay alert.
• Take a break from exercise. If you’re feeling drained in the middle of the day, it helps to move around.

Adapted from NIH - National Institutes of Health

Click HERE to read the full SandCreek article!