Superintendent's Corner

Volume 1, No. 6 January 3, 2025

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Happy New Year! As we begin 2025, I want to take a moment to reflect on the important work happening in the Coos Bay School District and share our ongoing commitment to supporting your children’s success.

This year, we continue to prioritize several district-wide initiatives designed to improve student outcomes and provide a strong foundation for learning. These include:

District Initiatives

• The Science of Reading: Ensuring all students develop the critical literacy skills they need to thrive.
• 120 Minutes of Reading, Writing, and Discussion Daily: Strengthening our focus on comprehensive literacy and communication skills.
• Reestablishing Our PLC Culture (Early Release Fridays): Centered around the four essential questions (below) of a Professional Learning Community, we are deepening our collaboration to improve teaching and learning.
• Proficiency-Based Grading: Providing clearer feedback on student learning to support academic growth.
• Using Student Data: Leveraging data to drive improvement for both student achievement and staff development.
• Teacher Collective Efficacy: Fostering a culture where educators work collaboratively, believe in their collective ability to make a difference, and are supported in their professional growth.
• Talented and Gifted Program (TAG): Strengthening opportunities and support for our gifted and talented students to ensure they reach their full potential.
• MTSS (Multi-Tiered System of Supports): Enhancing our processes to provide targeted academic, behavioral, and social-emotional support to meet the needs of every student.
• Advanced Placement and Dual College Credit Opportunities: Expanding opportunities for students to engage in rigorous coursework through AP classes and dual college credit programs. These initiatives help students earn college credit while still in high school, providing them with a strong foundation for postsecondary education and careers.
• Increasing Math Rigor: Focusing on increasing the number of students enrolled in Algebra 1 as 8th graders and ensuring more students take a calculus course in high school to prepare them for advanced academic and career opportunities.

Enhancing Mathematics Instruction

We are excited to implement our new Savvas (K-8) and Big Ideas (9-12) math curricula, which provide a cohesive and rigorous framework for student learning. Additionally, we are ensuring that all K-8 students receive 60 minutes per week of personalized instruction through the SuccessMaker adaptive software. This tool tailors instruction to meet individual student needs, reinforcing foundational skills and promoting academic growth.

The Importance of Attendance

Attendance is one of the most critical factors in student success. Research consistently shows that regular attendance is linked to higher academic achievement, better social-emotional outcomes, and improved graduation rates. While there are valid reasons for occasional absences, such as illness, family travel, or activities, we encourage families to make every effort to prioritize school attendance. Every day matters! Together, we can work to ensure our students maximize their learning opportunities.

Refining Emergency Preparedness

Following the recent tsunami evacuation alert, we have dedicated significant time to refining our processes and protocols. Through after-action reviews and debriefings with both internal and external stakeholders, we’ve identified ways to improve our responsiveness and procedures in the event of another evacuation. These ongoing efforts are critical to ensuring the safety and well-being of our students and staff. Once we finalize our update Emergency Operation Procedures (EOPs) plans we will be sharing them with the public.

As we move forward in 2025, we remain committed to our mission: To know ALL students by name, strengths, and needs, and ensure that ALL students graduate with a plan—Enrolled, Employed, or Enlisted (3Es). If you have any questions, concerns, or needs, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your child’s school, the district office, or me directly at 267-3104.

Thank you for your continued partnership in making Coos Bay a community where every child can succeed.

One Compass—One Goal—One Mission,

Dr. Ainsworth

Superintendent, Coos Bay School District

1/6: NO SCHOOL - INSERVICE/ TEACHER WORK DAY

1/20: NO SCHOOL - HOLIDAY BREAK

1/31: NO SCHOOL - GRADING DAY

2/17: NO SCHOOL - HOLIDAY BREAK

3/24-3/28: NO SCHOOL - SPRING BREAK

The Coos Bay School District is seeking dedicated and enthusiastic substitute teachers to support our schools. Substitute teaching is a rewarding opportunity to make a positive impact on students’ lives while enjoying a flexible schedule. The daily rate for substitute teachers is $220 per day. If you are interested in joining our team and/or know someone who is interested in being a substitute teacher, please contact our Human Resources department at (541) 267-3104 for more information. We’d love to have you as part of the CBSD community!

The evacuation zone on this map was developed by the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries in consultation with local officials. It is intended to represent a worst-case scenario for a tsunami caused by an undersea earthquake near the Oregon coast. Evacuation routes were developed by local officials and reviewed by the Oregon Department of Emergency Management. The Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries is publishing this brochure because the information furthers the mission of the Department. The map is intended for emergency response and should not be used for site-specific planning. A LOCAL TSUNAMI could come onshore within 15 to 20 minutes after the earthquake—before there is time for official warning from a national warning system. Ground-shaking from the earthquake may be the only warning you have. Evacuate quickly! A DISTANT TSUNAMI will take four hours or more to come onshore. You will feel no earthquake, and the tsunami will generally be smaller than that from a local earthquake. There will typically be time for an official warning and evacuation to safety.

The Safe Oregon hotline is a confidential and anonymous service designed to help students, parents, school staff, and community members report safety concerns, including bullying, threats of violence, drugs, and self-harm. Available 24/7, the hotline allows users to submit tips via phone, text, email, web form, or mobile app. By providing a secure way to report issues, Safe Oregon aims to create a safer school environment and empower individuals to speak out and prevent potential harm.