ISBE – Middle School Designation
Dear Julian Families,
The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) has designated Julian as an underperforming school based on the performance data for our low-income student group. I am disappointed by this designation and what it means not only for the student group that was identified, but for every member of our school community.
While this single designation does not reflect the totality of who our students are or what we do as a staff to help them succeed, it serves as a critical reminder of the work that must be done and progress that must be made in order to ensure that every child has the chance to reach their full potential. It also serves as an opportunity for us to grow and improve as an organization so that we can make sure we are always doing our very best to meet the needs of our students, our staff, our families and our community.
As Superintendent Kelley mentioned in a message sent earlier this week, we will be taking part in the IL-EMPOWER improvement process, which will include the completion of a local needs assessment and the creation and implementation of a comprehensive work plan for improvement. We believe that this process, coupled with our school improvement plan and the IB framework, will provide us with a strong foundation upon which we can meet the expectations and achieve the level of excellence we have set for ourselves. While the process, plan and framework will help guide our efforts, it is the hard work and commitment of our amazing faculty, staff and families that I believe will lead to our ultimate success.
We anticipate that ISBE will be sending us additional information about the IL-EMPOWER improvement process in the next few days. We will keep you updated on the next steps in this process and how you can contribute to our efforts. In the meantime, I want to thank you for all that you do on behalf of our school and the students we serve.
Sincerely,
Dr. Todd Fitzgerald
8th Grade IB Community Project Update
Yesterday’s IB Community Project Fundraising Event was a huge success! Six groups of students put their projects into motion by participating in this school wide fundraising event. The 8th grade students advertised their projects to the student body by going to classes, putting up posters, and using social media. These groups of students raised a total of $361.55.
The organizations students fundraised for were:
- Hephzibah
- Equality Now
- Campaign for Female Education
- Sea Otter Foundation and Trust
- World Vision
- Bee Raw
Bella Trotter, Cassidy Jones, and Leah Curitan group’s group raised the most money for their organization, Hephzibah. Maggie Marko, Zoe Warzecha, and Caroline Revsine earned the most “thumbs up” tickets for their organization, Bee Raw. “Thumbs up” tickets were given out by teachers and a select group of students for the groups knowledge about their cause and overall presentation set-up. Congratulations to all our students for their hard work and thank you to everyone that participated!
Middle School Scheduling Focus Group
We are currently seeking parents/guardians who have time and are interested in helping us explore and assess our existing master schedule for students. We have had two focus groups in the evening over the past couple of weeks to gather feedback about this topic. There is one more opportunity to participate on Friday, November 16 at Brooks Middle School from 9:00-10:00am. We will discuss our present middle school daily schedule for students and consider possible ideas to make it better for next year. I hope to see many of you there!
PowerSchool and Canvas Parent Access
Please click here to get step by step directions on how to access PowerSchool and Canvas.
PowerSchool
Students should access grades for assignments, projects and tests through PowerSchool (Not Canvas). Canvas is used as a tool to post assignments and related resources to complete the assignments. Occasionally, assignments can be automatically graded via canvas, but the grade reflected in Canvas is not the “official” grade. Grades are accurately recorded in PowerSchool only.
Canvas
Canvas is a Learning Management System (LMS). This program enables teachers, students and families to communicate in a centralized location. Canvas allows teachers to share resources and assignments, offers multiple ways to complete and submit work, and provides a safe place for students to collaborate.
Vision97 4ALL Dashboard
A link to the Vision97 4ALL has been provided. Please take a look at this information to see what we are doing as a district to work toward meeting the needs of all our students. (http://www.op97.org/about/vision-updates).
Substitute Teachers and Teaching Assistants
The Oak Leaves published an article in the past few weeks about the steps we are taking to increase and further strengthen our pool of candidates for our substitute teaching and teaching assistant positions. You can access the article by visiting http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/oak-park/news/ct-oak-park-97-substitute-teachers-tl-1018-story.html.
If you or someone you know is interested in serving as a substitute teacher or substitute teaching assistant for the district, please visit http://www.op97.org/hr/substitutes for additional information about the process and requirements.
OPEF's Super STEAM Saturday!
Please join the Oak Park Education Foundation for a free fun morning of crafting, collaborating, and creating. Drive a robot, write a poem, unleash your inner artist and learn more about OPEF with great activities for kids ages 5-12. Saturday, November 3 from 10-12 at Beye School. You can learn more about the event on OPEF's website or their Facebook page.
Upcoming Events:
No School / Teacher Institute Day – Tuesday, November 6
Sincerely,
Dr. Todd Fitzgerald