November 2022 Newsletter
What a positive start to our school year! I’m so thankful to see our students coming together around the region. We had a great turn out of our local schools for CTE Manufacturing Day and the Holocaust speaker. Seeing our students and the normalcy of Halloween parades, Homecoming celebrations and sporting events makes me so thankful! The ability to return to in-person training for staff also brings me great joy.
I am extremely thankful for all our staff at the EUPISD and in our local districts. Thank you for being a critical partner in educating our students! As we celebrate this month of thankfulness, I hope each of you has a wonderful Thanksgiving!
GENERAL EDUCATION
EUP MiSTEM REGION
SOCIAL STUDIES
Fall 2022 Newsletter Highlights:
- Regional History Day is March 10, 2022. History Day is a project-based learning program of the Historical Society of Michigan. More information on developing projects and educator support can be found here.
- The Social Studies Teacher Leader Corps invites K-12 teachers of social studies to join us in professional learning and planning around region-wide needs for social studies instruction and assessment. Our next meeting is on Tuesday, December 6. Register now!
REGIONAL DATA SYSTEMS/INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGY
REMC 22 Lend-Items Library Access
REMC 22 has a library of classroom materials that can be checked out to support student engagement and learning... books, robots, maker materials, tools, and technology. Contact Marianna Ripple (mripple@eupschools.org) or REMC 22 (remc22@eupschools.org) if you have questions or if you want to set up your account.
Need SCECHs? REMC Free Virtual Courses for November
Regional Data Manager Meetings
Data Managers from all regional schools are asked to participate in these meetings in order to create and communicate regional processes related to student enrollment, NWEA, technology, and reporting. Please see Wisdomwhere to register for the meetings: 1/5/2023 - 2/9/2023 - 3/23/2023 - 5/11/2023.
Weekly support sessions will be available on a drop-in basis. These will take place on most Thursdays at 1pm. See the Data Management Team in O365 for updates and meeting links.
NWEA Testing for 2023
Testing plans will help ensure that all students have the opportunity to demonstrate their learning and growth. A plan to complete testing one week before the end of the testing window can help account for student absences.
Winter: January 2 – February 3, 2023
Spring: May 1 – May 26, 2023
Discovery Education Access
Discovery Education offers video and activities content to support learning. Are you using blended teaching or virtual settings with your students? Discovery Education (DE) has engaging content for you and your students! Contact Marianna Ripple (mripple@eupschools.org) for access, questions, and support.
HEALTH
November 2022 Newsletter Highlights:
- Sault Area Middle School PE teacher Kerry Grant is the recipient of a Tri-Found Grant from SHAPE-Michigan. Kerry received a $1,000 grant to keep the morning movement program available and provide new equipment for middle school students. She will be formally recognized at the SHAPE-Michigan Conference in November. Congratulations Kerry!
- Upcoming workshops:
- November 2, 2022 (9 a.m. - 3 p.m.): HIV Framework for Elementary Teachers
- November 3, 2022 (4 p.m. - 5 p.m.) Selecting SEL Curriculum & Resources (Facilitator – Amy Wassman, MDE).
- November 17, 2022 (9 a.m. - 3 p.m.): Regional Health & PE Curriculum Resource Team - Theme: Drug & Alcohol Prevention Education, Part 2
- MDHHS has issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) to plan for new health centers through the expansion of the Child and Adolescent Health Center program’s school-based or school-linked health services. The full press release is available here. The application deadline is December 15, 2022. A pre-application conference will be held on November 4.
LGBTQ+ Student Support Network
The School Psychology department would like to recognize the work of the LGBTQ+ Student Support Network (LSSN), a new cross-disciplinary team formed in the spring of 2022. LSSN is working to bring EUP schools the necessary knowledge and resources to establish effective policies, procedures, and supports for LGBTQ+ students. The 2019 Michigan Youth Risk Behavior survey reported that nearly 13% of Michigan high school students identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community. LGBTQ+ students are more likely to experience academic and social challenges than their peers. CLICK HERE to read more about the challenges faced by LGBTQ+ youth and the work the LSSN is doing to support students.
SPECIAL EDUCATION
Personal Curriculum
In 2021, almost 9,000 high school students in the state of Michigan dropped out. This correlates to a dropout rate of 7.6% which is significantly higher than the national rate of 5.1%. Students with disabilities are at a higher risk for dropout than their general education peers with a national dropout rate of 16% for this group. In Michigan, personal curriculum can be a very helpful tool for supporting successful school completion for all students, especially students with disabilities. The Michigan Department of Education has provided guidance for supporting graduation decisions of students with disabilities – Graduation Decisions for Students with Disabilities. Additionally, a parent resource regarding personal curriculum can be found here - Family Matters: Personal Curriculum.
National School Psychology Week (November 7-11, 2022)
Many people think of special education evaluations as the sole work of school psychologists. While that is one component, there are many other ways school psychologists support the school community. School psychologists collaborate with teachers, families, and other school-employed mental health professionals (i.e., school counselors, school social workers) to develop individualized support for students. They work with school administrators to improve school-wide practices and policies and they also collaborate with community partners to coordinate needed services. The EUPISD school psychology team supports special projects including concussion baseline assessments, the Youth Mental Health Committee, the LGBTQ+ Student Support Network, the regional Emergency Student Assistance Team process, regional crisis response, and much more. Thank you to our EUPISD school psychologists: Joe Sbar, Samantha Campbell, Cinthia Mendoza, Nathan Visser, and Abby Coberly as well as our school psychology intern Ashley Sherlund and contracted school psychologist Barb Weber.
November 2022 Special Education Newsletter
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Please write or call with your comments, suggestions, and/or concerns.
Angie McArthur, Superintendent – angiem@eupschools.org