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September 2023 Meeting Minutes

NOJH Community Council Meeting Agenda Minutes

Monday, September 18, 2023 - Main Office



  1. Welcome - Sherry Patton
    1. In attendance: Sherry Patton, Matt Deamer, Rhett Fronk, Harry Short, Ryan Gross, Mike Hipwell, Katie Brown, Josh Sawyer, Alan Reese, Angie Erickson, Julie Simmons, Maylie Jeppsen

 

  1. New Member Introductions

 

  1. Schedule New Member Orientation & Training 
    1. School LAND Trust Plans for Councils (2021-2022)
    2. Training for School Community Councils  
      1. Links to Community Council training will be provided for all members to view at their convenience. 

 

  1. Review of Website Requirements/Rules of Order & Procedure (Maylie Jeppsen)
    1. Website has been updated with all items required.
      1. Updated the following items for the 2023-2024 school year
        1. Council Member names with direct contact
        2. Proposed Meeting Schedule for the year
        3. Approved council Minutes for at least a year
        4. Invitation for all parents to serve on the council
        5. Current year School LAND Trust Plan

 

  1. Counselor Report - Matt Deamer
    1. Midterms were September 18th.
    2. Powerschool is coming out with many new functions. At this time we can not pull a report to know our exact enrollment number but we expect it to be approximately 906 students. 
    3. Smaller class sizes are a priority
      1. 246 classes are held every day at NOJH
      2. Goal is to keep class sizes under 30 and no more than 35.
      3. At this time, only 7 classes are barely over 35 students.
    4. 504 accommodations are wrapping up.
      1. Counselors and administration meet with parents and students to ensure their accommodations are made for their learning abilities.
    5. Preparing for Needs Assessment
      1. Counselors are making sure they are following all state guidelines
      2. A survey will go out to Faculty, Students, and Parents 
      3. Counselors will use data from the survey to improve in needed areas
  2. PTSA Report: Rhett Fronk
    1. Incentives
      1. Purpose of incentives is to reward students for  improvement in multiple aspects: Attendance, Grades, Etc.
      2. Counselors have 6 activities, waiting for approval
      3. Every student should have a chance to be recognized for their hard work. 
      4. Students can be eligible for incentive activities by receiving a 3.0, improving GPA by 0.5, no tardies or no tardies beginning that quarter.
      5. The focus is on growth.
      6. Incentives may look like a movie at the school, STOMP’s, Glow Stick, Just Dance Parties, etc. 
      7. What input to students have on what incentive activities are provided?
        1. A survey went out to students last year asking what activities would incentivize them to work hard. Students suggested activities they have always had.
      8. How do Parents feel about incentives?
        1. Off-Campus Incentives may be a safety concern
        2. Students may be more motivated by activities that are provided at the school during class time. 
    2. Assemblies
      1. Corey Greenwood Assembly
        1. Counselors would like to continue bringing in speakers
        2. Corey Greenwood’s message was that each student has a purpose. “You Matter”.
        3. If you ask different students what the assembly was about they may all give you different answers. Students heard what they needed to hear from that assembly.
      2. 9th Grade counts
        1. Essentially telling 9th graders that everything they do in school counts towards graduation.
        2. Does the name “9th Grade Counts” insinuate that 7th and 8th don’t count or that they don't matter?
        3. It is a part of the transition to high school and preparing students for that shift after 9th grade. 



  1. Action Item: Elect Chair/Co-Chair 
    1. Unanimous vote for Angie Erickson - Chairperson, Julie Simmons - Co-chairperson.

 

  1. Internet Safety - Blake Pope
    1. DTNL’s job is to let parents know what the district is doing to protect students from digital threats. 
    2. Filters are provided through UEN
    3. We have 2 data gateways so if one goes south, the other is a backup.
    4. Youtube is the toughest platform to filter. Youtube puts all filtering responsibilities on the district.
    5. NOJH has piloted a program called Blocksi.
      1. Blocksi allows teachers to monitor students' screens during class. They can turn screens off, block websites, push specific content, and interact with students through the Blocksi messaging system.
        1. A scenario was shared of a teacher who noticed a student was not making progress on the assignment based on their screen activity. The teacher was able to message the student asking them if they needed help or further instructions. The student, who normally wouldn't have been one to stand up and ask for help, was able to privately respond back to the teacher and say that they did need help.
        2. Teachers can block students from exiting a test to look up definitions or online resources
        3. Blocksi and another filtering system will be presented at a board meeting to decide which one WSD will use.
        4. One of the programs will be implemented across all schools later this year
      2. Bark allows administration and parents to monitor students' online activity. 
        1. Bark can follow students home. Parents are able to monitor what their students are doing online. They can also filter what they receive notifications for. 
      3. Digital Literacy in students
        1. Children are starting out on screens much younger than they ever have before.
        2. It is important that we teach students how to be good Digital Citizens and how to be Digitally Literate. 
        3. All students were required to complete the CIPA training at the beginning of the year. Teachers tracked who completed it so that we could get every student trained. 
      4. The Junior High level needs digital filtering the most. Elementary kids don’t have enough knowledge yet and High School students have more self-control.
      5. Resources for parents”
        1. The Art of Screen Time by Anya Kamenetz
        2. Digital for Good by Richard Culatta
        3. https://beinternetawesome.withgoogle.com/en_us/interland

 

  1. Review of Current School Land Trust Plan 
    1. Chromebook Leases
    2. Maintain Tech
    3. Buyouts - Science, math, and English classes
    4. Homework Haven - After-school math tutoring
    5. Credit Recovery Options

 

  1. Review of Current Teacher and Student Success Plan (TSSA) 
    1. Goal - Increase GRIT: Teach students to not give up.
    2. 2 full-time Student Advocates
    3. Intramurals
    4. Professional development
    5. 10 extra days for registrar
    6. Clinical Social Worker.
    7. ALEKm Oabiranam /Edgenuity

 

  1. District and School Goals: Professional Learning Communities (PLC), Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS)
    1. Enhance Professional learning communities.
    2. Singletons have the opportunity to meet with like-educators from other schools

 

  1. Policies & Procedures - Student Training
    1. Teaching students expectations
      1. Code of Conduct posters in hallways
      2. What is means to be a Knight
      3. No Tardy rewards
      4. Noble Knight awards
      5. Student of the Month
      6. SafeUT app
    2. Asking parents to not deliver food to the school. Parents can always check their students out of school and go to lunch. We are trying to avoid the number of unknown vehicles coming to the school. Students running out to the parking lot to meet someone in a car has become a safety concern. 

 

  1. Proposed Meetings Following Meetings - (11/13/23, 3/4/24, 5/6/24)
    1. Agenda will be sent to members 1 week prior to the meeting

 

  1. Community Comments or Concerns