Topics to include:
āstudent engagement
ānew teacher/admin mentoring
āSOREN (Regional Educator Network)
āMedia and Lending Library
āSTEM Hub
āCTE
āEducational Technology
āSchool Improvement
āStudent Success Act
āReady Schools, Safe Learners
āProfessional Development
This September SOESD lanched webPD, an online platform that gives Southern Oregon educators a convenient, flexible way to partake in professional development courses, engage with fellow educators within learning cohorts, and earn the professional development units (PDUs) required to maintain their teaching licenses.
webPD is the brainchild of Director of School Improvement, Dr.Mark Angle-Hobson. The platform was developed in support of the Southern Oregon Regional Educator Networkās tenets (equity, teacher voice, learner relevance and accessibility for ALL educators), and the challenges educators face when attempting to achieve their personal educational goals. āTeachers lead busy lives. Theyāre in the classroom before school begins preparing lessons; they spend the school day delivering lessons and tending to student needs; after school, they spend hours grading papers and caring for their families at home. Even in the calmest of times, itās difficult for educators to attend conferences and workshops. Then you throw in a pandemic and natural disaster or twoā¦Self-paced, online courses with a minimal time commitment make sense,ā says Angle-Hobson.
webPD will roll out over three years. In its first year, webPD will offer five, five-week courses developed around themes based upon district priorities: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) 101, Trauma Informed 101, Equity 101, Social Emotional Learning 101 and Universal Design for Learning 101. Year two will include the 101 courses with the addition of five intermediate (201) courses; year three will offer the 101 and 201 classes as well as five advanced (301) courses. Registration for ACEs 101 is now open.
Angle-Hobson pointed out, āBy the end of year three, educators can earn all the PDUs they need to renew their teaching license through webPD. Whatās more, SOESD is offering free enrollment to its 13 component districts during year one.ā
Our Southern Oregon community is navigating through an extraordinarily challenging time. Pain and up-heaval from the ļ¬res, COVID-19, racial injustice, and the upcoming election are weighing heavily on the hearts and minds of our educators ,who in the midst of all of these trials, are giving everything they can to support students and their families. And while there are deep ripples of heartbreak, loss, and grief, we are also witnessing the resiliency, generosity, and capacity of our community to overcome and come together. As we ļ¬nd our way through these complex times, we are reminded of the power of relation-ship and the necessity of community.
SOESD and Resolve invite you to participate in a series of online care and connection circles created to give educators a facilitated space to check in, share stories, listen, be present, and build a community of support during this time. While participants are encouraged to sign up for either the Tuesday morning or Thursday afternoon series to promote deeper connections and sharing, you are welcome to join any session that ļ¬ts your interests, needs, and schedule.
Circle Dates and Discussion Focus:Ā Ā
Register through PDNetworks. (Search by using keyword, ācare.ā)
āRelationships are all there is. Everything in the universe only exists because it is relationship to everything else. Nothing exists in isolation. We have to stop pretending that we are individuals that can go it alone.ā
~ Margaret Wheatley
As a result of the recent Almeda fire, SOESD suffered the tragic loss of all buildings on the SOESD Phoenix campus, a location which has served the community since 1907. The SOESD Board has passed a resolution declaring an emergency in order to expedite the recovery effort. SOESD staff previously assigned to the Phoenix campus have been relocated to other SOESD buildings, or are working remotely in order to continue providing services to students, families, and the community during this tremendous time of need. SOESD thanks the many ESDs across the state that have contributed to temporarily replace equipment lost in the fire, so that SOESD can continue providing critical services during the larger scale recovery effort.
Our hearts go out to all those suffering incredible loss due to the recent fires, and also to those helping the community recover and rebuild during this traumatic time. Thank you to the many community members that have contributed to various SOESD donation drives in order to provide clothing and supplies to those in the community that have been displaced. In coordination with the Governor, SOESD is participating on a committee to coordinate a variety of housing options and funding through FEMA disaster declaration.
A list of compiled resources to assist those affected by the fires is available here.
OESD’sĀ For Teachers By Teachers Promising Practices SymposiumĀ promises to be a day of learning and sharing for educators from throughout Southern Oregon. Attendees will have the opportunity to virtually attendĀ threeĀ two-hour sessions (andĀ earn up to six PDUs) on hot topics in the areas of science, math and educational technology. Six sessions will be presented by peers, recognized as local experts and leaders. The remaining three sessions will be led by vendors. All nine presenters were part of the recent EDTech Summit and were identified via attendee survey as conference MVPs.
Session titles and times are below. Registrants will select the one to three sessions they wish to attend via a conference app on the day of the symposium. Information on how to use the conference app will be sent to registrants during the week before the event.
Session Offerings for the 8 am to 9:50 am timeslot include:
Session Offerings for the 10 am to 11:50 am timeslot include:
Session Offerings for the 1 pm to 2:50 pm timeslot include:
The STAR Online Learning System (SOLS) for primary and/or secondary students and the STAR Media Center will be used to demonstrate the remote learning methods.
Presented by Oregon Program Autism Training Sites & Support Staff & Oregon Regional Programs
What/Who:
This training is intended as an introduction to the Comprehensive Remote Training Workshops that will be conducted throughout the months of September and October. Participants will receive a brief overview of virtual training options for how to implement asynchronous and synchronous (instructor led) remote learning practices for students with autism and other developmental disabilities. A brief overview of the evidence-based practices as used in the STAR Online Learning System (SOLS) will be incorporated into the workshop. This workshop is appropriate for teachers, assistants, related service providers, specialists and administrators working with students in PreK-Transition level with ASD and other related developmental disabilities.
Options to Register for 1-hour Mini-Overview:
Comprehensive 2-Day Workshops | Click here for More Information
Comprehensive 2 Day Workshop Only
The Oregon Department of Education has made a small amount of funds available to reimburse participating agencies for staff substitute pay or to pay a stipend to staff who are not yet under contract at the time of the workshop. These funds are to provide release time to staff to be involved in ORPATS training (Workshops and/or visits to ORPATS Training Sites). This funding must be approved ahead of time and is on a first come first served basis. Please click here to download forms and instructions for submitting or visit the orpats.org website. Persons with disabilities or who are in need of additional accommodations or a language interpreter in order to attend should contact Kathi Dehm, 503-297-2864.
Please note: Attendees will get access to the STAR Media Center when attending this workshop. Access to SOLS will require a separate fee. However, participants can use the remote learning techniques described at the workshop without purchasing SOLS.
The 2020-2021 school year was kicked off by theĀ Southern Oregon Equity Summit 2020. The event included high-profile speakers and breakout sessions that provide strategies for understanding equity through a trauma-informed practices approach.
SOESD developed a book list to support the event topics.
View the Online Store
Under the Governorās Executive Order 20-25(10) each district and Education Service District in Oregon must follow the Oregon Department of Education (ODE) Ready Schools, Safe Learners (RSSL) requirements. Over the summer, the ODE in partnership with the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) released several iterations of the RSSL requirements for the new school year.
The RSSL requirements create a framework for serving students using remote strategies in a āComprehensive Distance Learningā (CDL) model, or using āOn-siteā and āHybridā models to deliver in-person instruction across all grade levels when certain health metrics are met related to COVID-19 infection rates across Oregon. Districts are required to develop Operational Blueprints for Reentry for each school, and have plans for transitioning between CDL and On-site or Hybrid models.
Currently all districts and ESDs in Oregon will start school this fall using the CDL model, since the statewide COVID-19 test positivity rate is not <= 5% for the past 7 days for three weeks in a row. The CDL model leverages remote learning options but also provides some exceptions for K-3 students, students in small and rural schools, and other students to receive in-person instruction in certain defined situations.Ā
SOESD aligns our plans with the plans of the districts and the communities we serve in order to provide services that meet the needs of students and families across our regional service area. To meet the needs of students, families, and districts, we are planning to offer limited in-person instruction opportunities under the defined exceptions to the CDL model, and are working through those requirements recently released by ODE on 8/11/20. We are also updating plans based on requirements released by the Early Learning Division (ELD) on 8/14/20 for our Early Childhood Services program (EI/ECSE) and preschool. SOESD plans to serve districts offering in-person education for K-3 students under the defined exceptions to the CDL model when county metrics are met, and using āHybrid Learningā or āOn-Site Learningā models when county and statewide metrics are met.
SOESD provides evaluative services in our offices, as well as direct student instructional services in the schools of the districts we serve. Each district we serve submits a blueprint for each of their schools where we may serve students. SOESDās other direct instructional services for students are outlined in separate SOESD blueprints:
SOESD assists districts with preparing and updating blueprints with resources available at www.soesd.k12.or.us/readyschools.
The blueprints for all the districts in southern Oregon (and the state) are located on ODE’s web site.
Southern Oregon Education Service District condemns racism, racial violence, white supremacy, hate speech, and bigotry in all its forms within our district and by affiliated school districts and partners. All incidents of racism experienced by students, parents and community members in our districtās service area create racial disparities in social, health, economic, legal, and academic outcomes for students of color.
The SOESD Board has passed Resolution #5 reaffirming SOESD’s policies promoting nondiscrimination and an environment free of harassment based on an individualās race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, disability, marital status or age of any other persons with whom the individual associates.
SOESDās Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policy states a commitment to be responsive and welcoming of diversity among students, parents, faculty, and staff and to reflect the demographics of our students while fostering a diverse workforce. It also states a commitment to an equity lens and a resolution to be actively anti-racist.
SOESD is actively engaged in promoting diversity, equity, inclusion, and anti-racism through SOESDās Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee and the regional Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Collaborative of school districts in Southern Oregon facilitated by SOESD.
A Resolution of the Southern Oregon Education Service District Board of Directors Condemning Racism and Reconfirming Commitment to Being an Anti-racist District
Whereas, Our nation and the world have been made aware of and/or witnessed the death of George Floyd and countless other members of the Black Community slain as the latest victims of racism and police violence;
Whereas, Mass peaceful protests have taken place across the nation and the world, with people refusing to remain silent or complacent about racial injustice and ongoing systemic oppression;
Whereas, The Southern Oregon Education Service District Board of Directors has supported:
Whereas, All incidents of racism experienced by students, parents and community members in our districtās service area create racial disparities in social, health, economic, legal, and academic outcomes for students of color.
Now therefore be it resolved that, The Board of the Southern Oregon Education Service District condemns racism, racial violence, white supremacy, hate speech, and bigotry in all its forms within our district and by affiliated school districts and partners.
The board strongly reaffirms the adoption of our districtās Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policy which states a commitment not only to being responsive and welcoming of the diversity of students, parents, faculty, and staff to reflect the demographics of our students and fostering a diverse workforce, but a commitment to an equity lens and resolving to be actively anti-racist.
