Friday Memo - 4/23/21

Orchestra concert
Thank you Mrs. Grubb for the lovely orchestra concert last night. Our students did an awesome job, and we appreciate them sharing their gifts and talents with the Hixson community!

Important dates

April 26 - Character Committee meeting
May 1 - teacher packing day, 10:00 am - 1:00 pm
May 3 - Faculty Meeting
May 3 - 7 - Teacher Appreciation week
May 15 - teacher packing day, 10:00 am - 1:00 pm
May 22 - teacher packing day, 10:00 am - 1:00 pm
May 26 - Virtual 8th grade Promotion Ceremony
May 27 - 8th grade celebration activities. More details to come!

May 28 - Last day of school! (half day)
August 9 - rising 6th grade orientation
August 10 - rising 7th grade orientation
August 11-13, 16-18: Back to school work days for teachers
August 23 - First day of school!

Hiring update
We are moving the following candidates forward for approval at tonight's BOE meeting as our new hires for the 2021-2022 school year. You will notice some familiar faces on this list.

1. Lauren Clawson: 0.6 French (French teacher, Barnwell Middle School)
2. Jordan Haddock: 0.5 Library Media Specialist (current Hixson math teacher)
3. Jordan Lewis: Health/PE (current part time PE teacher in Kirksville, MO)
4. Kayla Mattison: Math (current 6th grade Math teacher, Wildwood Middle School)
5. Allyson Johnson: Math (current k-5 Math intervention and former math teacher in Arizona)
6. Megan O'Brien: 6th grade ELA & SS (current 4th grade teacher, Barrington Elementary)
7. Mallory Duncan: 6th grade ELA (former Speech & Theater teacher, Selvidge Middle School)
8. Bianca James: change in position from long term sub to Math teacher
9. Madalyn Baker: change in position from receptionist to Hixson Clinic Aid

As a reminder, we have officially hired the following new teachers.

1. Kendell Sparks - Health/PE
2. Aaron Hummert - Health/PE
3. Andrew Bennett - Health/PE (internal transfer)
4. Amirah Garwood - Science

A receptionist position posted today. We will start interviewing for that position the week of May 3. Please let me know if you have any questions. 

MAP update
Thank you for your patience and flexibility as we worked through MAP testing over the past couple of weeks. We are required to schedule make up exams for the virtual students who did not opt out or show up for MAP testing, and in person students as well. We have until the end of the school year to test as many students as we possibly can, and it is on us to find the appropriate time and location to make that happen. Please keep in mind that NWEA is on the horizon and our participation in that is required as well. I requested for that window to be extended until the end of the year so we have plenty of time to get it done. Thankfully, that request was granted.

Hixson Summer Academy update
Registration for Hixson Summer Academy closed on April 16. We have a total of 131 students enrolled. 71 are rising 6th graders, 40 are rising 7th graders, and 20 are rising 8th graders. We still need teachers for STEM Exploration, Fitness Frenzy, and Reading for Purpose and Pleasure. These three classes are offered the full 5 weeks of Summer School. Please let me know if you are interested.

DOMAIN 1: HIXSON & COVID

Revised plan for supporting students who are quarantined
Click HERE to view our revised plan for supporting students who are quarantined. If you need to change your plan, please let me know as soon as possible so I can update the document. Be sure to let your students know about the change.

Protocol for teaching remotely 
Click HERE to access the protocol for teaching remotely.

Protocol for substitute teachers who will cover virtual classes
Click HERE to access the protocol for substitute teachers who will cover virtual classes.

DOMAIN 2: HIXSON & EQUITY

Thank you to our Social Studies teachers!
The new Social Studies curriculum was BOE approved last night! I wanted to take a moment to recognize Dr. Sherri Rachal (6-8 Social Studies Coordinator), Wardell Ward (Social Studies Department Leader), and all of our amazing Social Studies teachers for their work on writing and preparing to implement the new Social Studies curriculum. Please know that the Hixson administrative team stands with you 100% and I know you have the support of your colleagues as well. We are looking forward to seeing the impact of a more inclusive Social Studies education on our students. Thank you for bringing important parts of the district's equity policy to life and trailblazing a path towards equity!

Speaking of the equity policy (ACI) and the new Social Studies curriculum, I've included a link to both below just in case you haven't read them yet. The Social Studies curriculum is in line with what the Equity policy calls us to do. If we want to create an equitable school for the benefit of all the children we serve, we must to shift ourselves towards action. 

Policy ACI: Equity

6-8 Social Studies curriculum

DOMAIN 4: HIXSON & CONSTRUCTION

The Big Move!

·       What is the “Big Move”? The Big Move will take place on July 15, 2021. It is defined as the day that the district has hired a moving company to help teachers move into their new classrooms. Due to summer construction and cleaning, teachers cannot be in the building prior to this date. This is also the reason why we cannot hold summer school in our building.

·       Moving company – The moving company will provide plastic crates for teachers who are moving from Steger to Hixson and current Hixson teachers who are moving to classrooms in the new areas to use for packing sometime during the week of May 1, 2021. You will pack your belongings inside of those crates/boxes and put them outside of your current classroom by the end of the day on May 28, 2021 for current Steger teachers and  June 4, 2021 for current Hixson teachers. You will clearly label the crates/boxes with your name and new room number. On July 15, the movers will move those crates/boxes to your new classroom for you. The crates must be returned to the moving company sometime during the last week of August. Therefore, you will need to have the crates emptied and ready to return by August 27.

·       Labeling your belongings – You will receive a set of labels from the main office so that all labels are clear and easy to read.

·       Moving your own belongings – You are welcome to move your own belongings if you’d like. You will still need to abide by the aforementioned timeline and process.

Our furniture at the Service Center - Our furniture at the Service Center will remain there until we know more about social distancing for next year. If social distancing guidelines are relaxed, then we will bring our furniture back from the Service Center. If we can bring our furniture back from the Service Center, then that will add another layer onto our moving process.

No access to the building between June 4 and July 14
The S. Elm parking lot is going to be completely demolished and redone this summer. If you are a current Hixson teacher and plan to do any packing between June 1 and June 4 (the building will be closed on May 31 due to Memorial Day), you will need to park on the Moss Field parking lot and enter the building through the Shop entrance. The construction workers will take up the majority if not all of the parking near and around the cafeteria entrance because the S. Elm lot will be gone.

Saturday hours
Mike, Aimee, and I will offer Saturday hours for teachers to pack on May 1, May 15, and May 22 from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm for teachers who would like additional time to pack up their classrooms.