Better Schools Fall 2018

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CREATING UPLIFTING CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENTS

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TRAUMA INFORMED LEADERSHIP

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The importance of belonging!

E-RATE TIPS FOR 2019

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In this Issue 5-6 Making a Case for Character 8-10 CCOSA Association Updates 12 The Challenge of Fund Balance Management 13-14 Be the Chief Storyteller for Your School 15-16 Creating Uplifting Classroom Environments 18 Trauma Informed Leadership 19 E-Rate Tips for 2019

C C O S A E X E C U T I V E B OARD C HAI R J ul i e B l os s ( OAE S P) V I C E C HAI R C hr i s L eG r ande ( OAS S P) ME MB E R S D r. J ohn C ox D r. G r egg G ar n C am i l l e Hol t Adam M cPhai l D r. D on R al ei gh Ly nn S chr oeder Tr acy M oot r y J os h Pi er ce K i m C oody J us t i n M ann C C O S A E X E C U T I V E D I R E CTORS & AD M I NI S T R AT I V E S E RV I C E S TEAM D i r ect or s D r. Pam D eer i ng D r. G r aci e B r anch W i l l i am D. Par ker D r. D er al d G l over Andr ea Kunkel S us an Har dy B r ook s , A PR F i nance M anager C y nda Kol ar Mem ber s hi p C oor di nat or O D S S Adm i ni s t r at i ve As s i st ant L aur a C r abt r ee C om m uni cat i ons C oor di n at or K ai t l y n Taggar t Adm i ni s t r at i ve S er v i ces Te am OAS A, OAR S A: McKenz i e Lum r y OAE S P, T L E : Ly nne W hi t e OAS S P/ O M L E A, C E C : C har l ot t e Mur phy

@ CCO S A @ C CO S A S c h o o l A d m in is tra tio n c c os a _ o k Articles submitted to Better Schools do not necessarily reflect the policies or beliefs of the Cooperative Council for Oklahoma School Administration. All articles are subject to editing. A publication of the Cooperative Council for Oklahoma School Administration Editor Susan Hardy Brooks, APR. Editorial and Advertising offices at 2901 N. Lincoln Blvd. Oklahoma City, OK 73105. Membership and advertising rates upon request. Better Schools is owned and published by the Cooperative Council for Oklahoma School Administration, Inc.

Education leaders at the CCOSA Leadership Conference.

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• Support pro-education candidates with your time and money.

• Share the voter registration dates and information with every school employee.

Deadline to request absentee ballot: Oct. 31, 5 p.m.

Early voting: Nov. 1-2, 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. and Nov. 3, 9 a.m. - 2 p.m.

• Schedule an in-service day for Election Day so educators can vote conveniently.

If every educator votes, we can change election outcomes and the future for our students. Every vote counts!

Be the change. Vote for #oklaed C C O S A PA C I n f o r m a t i o n The Cooperative Council for Oklahoma School Administration’s Political Action Committee (CCOSA PAC) is one of the most effective political action committees working to elect to state office candidates who will fight to safeguard and strengthen public education in Oklahoma. CCOSA PAC is our voice at the state capitol– it speaks on behalf of you and over 2,500 active and retired school administrators from all five unified affiliate associations under the CCOSA umbrella. In addition, CCOSA PAC supports former CCOSA members in their campaigns for state office. Our ability to assist candidates and their campaigns allows us to develop meaningful relationships with legislators and other state office holders.If you would like to donate, log-in to your member account at ccosa.org/ 3 | CCOSA.ORG

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Making a Case for Character

by Susan Hardy-Brooks CCOSA Communications Director

The need for character education in public schools continues to grow as school leaders recognize that students require much more than academic learning to succeed in life. In the 2016 Oklahoma Works Business Survey, “people skills” were ranked as the highest need among employability skills.

Character.org has developed a framework for helping schools create a culture where students can learn and practice ethical behaviors that will equip them to thrive in the workplace and in life.

Oklahoma has a state-affiliated organization called OKCharacter. org that works with school districts to implement the “Eleven Principals for Effective Character Education.”

Two CCOSA school districts were recently honored by OKCharacter.org at the Schools of Character Celebration with 2018 Promising Practices Awards. MacArthur High School in Lawton and Pryor High School were among six districts that received the award.

The eleven principals of the Schools of Character framework are ingrained in every aspect of the students’ day in both districts, from the classroom to athletics, service learning projects and other extra-curricular activities.

At Pryor High School students are involved in a variety of service projects in the community that have earned them Schools of Character recognition in recent years. PHC students collect food for the local animal shelter and adopt “angels” from the Chamber of Commerce Angel Tree each year. They also donate their time to manage, pack and distribute the Backpack program food packs for Boys and Girls Club that elementary students take home on weekends to ensure they have healthy meals while away from school.

One of their most successful projects in recent years was supported by Main Street Pryor.

Called Tiger Tank (like the popular Shark

Tank show), the cooperative project assessed community resources and needs, selected a location, wrote a business plan and competed to win the designation as best business proposal.

Several successful community enterprises were established as a result of the project.

“The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People” drive the execution of character education at PHS. As a district, Pryor Schools is a “Leader in Me” district, which means that faculty, staff and students have been trained in the Seven Habits and incorporate them into everything they do as a district.

According to Don Raleigh, Pryor Public Schools superintendent, the district implemented “Leader in Me” in 2010 as their main leadership and character vehicle, then developed “Tiger Tenets” to describe the mission, vision, values and goals to reflect and reinforce the Covey habits.

Since 2010, four Pryor schools have been named State and National Schools of Character, including Pryor High, Pryor Junior High, Lincoln and Jefferson Elementary. Roosevelt Elementary has twice been named a Lighthouse School by the Franklin Covey organization.

At the high school, Tiger Time is a daily advisory period when students learn leadership lessons, explore careers, meet with industry and community leaders and live out the Seven Habits with peers and the community. Thursdays are designated as Club Day, when students spend time participating in a variety of clubs involved in service learning. The Special Tigers Club is making a difference in the lives of students with disabilities and other Club Day student leaders.

Character education also has the full support of district leaders in Lawton Public Schools.

Leaders have made a commitment to invest in the professional development and resources to implement and evaluate the “11 Principles” of character.org.

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“Character education implementation has united our school in our core values, our support for one another, and our commitment to helping students develop soft skills which will help them be successful in their careers and in their lives,” said Laura Puccino, Lawton MacArthur High School principal.

According to Pucchino, staff development days, monthly faculty meetings and professional learning communities at MHS are devoted to character education. Teachers have worked with students to develop classroom expectations based on core values.

The science department created character word walls with student reflections on the core values.

In English classes, teachers use research to incorporate character education. Social studies classes discuss humanitarian principles and democratic ideals. And athletic coaches develop contracts with athletes and parents. The MHS football team has also received a “Promising Practice Award” in character education.

Grade-level sponsors stay with students throughout their tenure. They coordinate a variety of events that encourage students to work as a team and build caring relationships with each other and the faculty.

Support staff even get in the act by sponsoring character education organizations such as LMH’s Celebrate MAC Club, a bullying awareness club.

Annual climate surveys of students and faculty in both districts indicate character education is having a positive impact. Among students surveyed at MHS, 88% believed staff were caring and 98% of students rated the importance of character in their lives as extremely or somewhat important.

Pryor Junior High School saw a 44% increase in students who feel safe at school from 2014 to 2016.

For more information contact Madison Tomlinson, okcharacter.org state coordinator.

CCOSA members celebrating the award-winning schools at the Schools of Character Luncheon are: Dr. Pam Deering CCOSA/OASA executive director; Dr. Jamie Polk Lawton Public Schools assistant superintendent; Susan Jones, MHS assistant principal; Laura Puccino, MHS principal; Sen. Dewayne Pemberton; Dr. Tom Deighan, Lawton Public Schools superintendent; Dr. Don Raleigh, Pryor Public Schools superintendent; Susan Rice, PHS librarian and Phyllis Hess, PHS counselor.

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CCOSA A S S O C I AT I O N U P DAT E S OA SA

Dr. Pam Deering, Executive Director Advocacy OASA Officers attended the AASA Federal Advocacy meeting in Washington, D.C. during the summer. Their agenda focused primarily on ESSA requirements and the federal budget.

Professional Learning The OSSBA/CCOSA August Conference was a great success. More opportunities for professional learning were offered for attendees. Attendance was high and the comments were positive. We value the partnership with OSSBA in making this a conference that school leaders and board members can’t miss. The Women in School Leadership Breakfast was well attended. Inspirational messages were shared by Holly Nevels, Norman Schools, Melonie Hau, Duncan Schools, and Julie Bloss, Grove Schools.

Membership OASA must work to build membership. Our goal is to grow at least 8% each year. Your help is needed to spread the word about the benefits of belonging to CCOSA/OASA. Our OASA Directors have the responsibility of reaching out to members and non-members on behalf of OASA. OASA Communications OASA released its first THE School Leader Newsletter. Included in the edition was relevant information regarding the TRS Offset, Fund Balance Dilemma, and ESSA Methodology. Member responses have been supportive and appreciative of the communications. VALUE ADDED for our members!

OASA Executive Committee The OASA Governance Study Committee met during September to review the tasks outlined by the OASA Executive Committee in May of this year. The committee will meet again to finalize any recommendations to the OASA Executive Committee. The first meeting of the OASA Executive Committee was held on September 12. Agenda items included a discussion on the November elections; OASA Director responsibilities and expectations for communicating with members and scheduling meetings in their respective districts; and legislative efforts regarding virtual charters and funding. Most districts reported that they had a great school start this year with high morale and fewer retirements.

OAESP

Dr. Gracie Branch, Executive Director Executive Board The OAESP Executive Board met on Wednesday, September 5. We would like to welcome the following new board members to our group:

Southwest Quadrant: Northeast Quadrant: Southeast Quadrant:

Tulsa Area:

Lori Graham, Carnegie ES, Carnegie PS Kevin Wade, Alexander ES, Commerce PS Melissa Ferguson, Tishomingo ES, Tishomingo PS Katie Brister, Silo ES, Silo PS Angie Teas, Mark Twain ES, Tulsa PS Linda Reid, Jenks East Intermediate, Jenks PS

NAESP National Distinguished Principal On Thursday, Oct. 11 and Friday, Oct. 12, we celebrated with Janalyn Taylor our NAESP National Distinguished Principal in Washington, D.C. NAESP Zone 8 Director Kas Nelson and OAESP Executive Director Dr. Gracie Branch both attended.

Congratulations Janalyn, we are so proud of you!

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Membership Promotion This year OAESP is setting a goal to increase our membership by 8%! We know this is an ambitious goal and to help us reach our full potential as an association we sent out OAESP information statewide. This is the first time that we have mailed out information to all of our potential members. In addition, we will be conducting a membership email campaign and board members will be making contacts with principals in their regions.

A huge thank you to the following principals for hosting a Lead Like Me training this year for their region:

• September 11, Gene Ray, Washington ES, Clinton PS

• September 27, Tara Burnett & Bana Bogdahn, High Plains Technology Center, Woodward

• October 2, Carla Fry, E.M. Trout ES, Ponca City PS

• October 3, Lana Welch, Cameron University, Lawton

• October 4, Amanda Rader, Garfield ES, Enid PS

• October 11, Renita White, Dennis ES, Putnam City PS

• October 24, Glen Abshere, Westside ES, Claremore PS We are not done yet, but this helps to get our student leadership training off to a great start! If you are interested in hosting a training, contact OAESP assistant Lynne White: lynne@ccosa.org or (405) 524-1191.

OASSP & OM LEA

Will Parker, Executive Director OMLEA On Thursday, September 27, OMLEA & OASSP Northeast Oklahoma members meet for a regional luncheon hosted by Pryor Middle School Assistant Principal John Potter. OMLEA’s Executive Committee met Wednesday, October 3, to plan activities and breakouts for this year’s Leadership & Learning Conference. The combined OASSP & OMLEA Leadership & Learning Conference will be held at the Moore Norman Technology Penn Campus Conference Center February 7-8, 2019. We are excited to host Jack Berckeymeyer, author of Deliberate Optimism: Reclaiming the Joy in Education, as the keynote speaker on February 8. On October 24-26, President Adam McPhail, President-Elect Justin Mann, Middle Level Principal of the Year, Diana Lebsack, and Executive Director, Will Parker, travel to AMLE’s National Middle Level Conference in Orlando, Florida.

Adam McPhail will be presenting a breakout session, Culture Trumps Strategy, at this year’s national conference.

OASSP OASSP’s Executive Committee met on Wednesday, September 19, where we discussed membership goals, legislative updates, and regional reports. We also had presentations from Dr. Cindy Koss, Deputy Superintendent for Academic Affairs and Planning and Kristin Atchley, Executive Director of Counselling at the Oklahoma State Department of Education. On Monday, September 24-25 President-Elect Kim Coody and Executive Director Will Parker attended NASSP’s Principal of the Year Awards Program in Washington D.C., where Ms. Coody was recognized as Oklahoma’s High School Principal of the Year. They also visited the offices of Senator Jim Inhofe and Senator James Lankford.

NASSP & NAESP will celebrate October as National Principal Month. Governor Fallin and State Superintendent Hofmeister are issuing proclamations honoring the hard work and dedication of principals. OASSP is excited to co-host this years’ combined Leadership & Learning Conference with OMLEA, February 7-8. NASSP President Christine Handy will bring greetings, and Jeff Zoul, author of The Principled Principal: 10 Principles for Leading Exceptional Schools, will provide an opening keynote on February 7.

CCOSA’s Education Leaders Webinar Series Mark your calendars as this year’s CCOSA award-winning school leaders present a series of webinars on leadership practices for K-12 schools. Register online for these free offerings: • November 20, 2018: Lessons in Community Engagement from Piloting ICAP - Kim Coody, OASSP • January 15, 2019: Building Collaborative Learning Communities that Work - Diana Lebsack, OASSP/OMLEA • February 19, 2019: Cultivating Culture for Leading School Communities - Rob Miller, OASA • March 19, 2019: The Power of Involving Students in School Leadership - Stephanie Williams, OASSP

MARK YOUR CALENDARS! OASSP & OMLEA 2019 LEADERSHIP & LEARNING CONFERENCE OMLEA & OASSP will be hosting their first joint secondary principals and educators “Leadership & Learning” Conference at the Moore Norman Technology Center South Penn Campus on February 7-8.

Spread the word to secondary principals and middle level educators about this great conference!

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ODSS

Andrea Kunkel, Executive Director For the 2018-19 school year, ODSS welcomes the following leaders to the Executive Committee:

Lynn Schroeder, Sequoyah – President

Tracy Mootry, Inola – President-Elect

Michele DeBerry, Duncan – Past President

Angela Rhoades, Woodward – Legislative & Policy Liaison

Vicki Hampton, Skiatook – TADSS leader

Scott McCall, Putnam City – Metro leader

Sherri Coats, Byng – Southeast leader

Leslie Burnett, Pryor – Northeast rep

David McCune, Enid – Northwest rep

Teresa Golden, Kingston – Southeast rep

Janelle Shepherd, Clinton – Southwest rep

Linda Coffman, Valliant – At Large

Melisa Kifer, Stillwater – At Large We appreciate OSDE-SES approving the ODSS Best Practices Conference Oct. 16 for Project 613 reimbursement for registration, substitute cost and travel expenses, which helps make the information widely available. The morning was devoted to investigating trauma and trauma-informed practices for students with disabilities, featuring author and practitioner Dr. Barbara Sorrels, Kristin Atchley and Shawna Keene of SDE and Jacqueline Johns and Michelle Brown of Collinsville Schools. After a great free lunch from Ted’s Café Escondido, the afternoon focused on strategies to improve attendance for students with disabilities, with Dr. Maridyth McBee and Christa Knight of SDE, Dr. Lynette Thompson of Bridges, Dr. Erika Olinger of Putnam City Schools, staff from ABLE Tech and panelists from various schools, presented thoughtful strategies designed to support students with health/medical issues, anxiety and other stressors.

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Using Advanced Education to Advance Your Career The path to becoming a school administrator isn’t an easy one, and it takes the right person, program, and mindset to go from a bachelor’s degree to advanced education. Oftentimes, teachers who want to advance in their careers attend school while working full time and juggling family obligations.

Dr. Teresa Wilkerson, the Mustang High School principal, knows first-hand what it takes to bring your career to the next level. She graduated with a master’s degree from Southern Nazarene University in 2002, and she said, “The education I received at SNU was excellence at its highest level.”

“I am proud to be an educator, and challenged by what has been put on my heart to be a system-changer.”

Sometimes what you learn is equally as important as the atmosphere you learn it in. In addition to attending class only one night a week, for

Wilkerson, attending a Christian university set her on the right path for success as an administrator.

“The Christian-based atmosphere, combined with educational practitioners as instructors, provided an authentic leadership experience which has prepared me for every level of my career,” Wilkerson said.

With a true servant heart and an educational background to match, Wilkerson currently works in Mustang, Oklahoma as the principal.

“I am proud to be an educator,” Wilkerson said, “and challenged by what has been put on my heart to be a ‘system-changer.’”

If you’re interested in being a system changer and reaching your career or educational goals like Teresa, SNU is pleased to help.

To learn more about advanced educational opportunities and adult-focused programs, visit snu.edu/snuforadults or speak with an admission representative by calling 405-491-6332.

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The Challenge of Fund Balance Management

by Vernon Florence, CCOSA Financial Consultant The fund balance is one of the primary factors in determining whether a school is financially stable. If the fund balance of a school declines below the optimum level, then that school will eventually face a financial crisis.

A question frequently asked by school district administrators and budget managers is “How much fund balance should I have for my school?” There is no magic answer for what any individual schools’ fund balance should total.

The school can use arbitrary numbers such as the state average of approximately 13% of the total revenue. Or the school may use the maximum allowed by law as their fund balance requirement.

Either of these procedures should provide a starting point in determining the appropriate fund balance for a given school.

The two functions of the fund balance are (1) Cash Flow requirements and (2) Stability Management Reserve or Safety Net in the event of revenue shortfalls.

The most critical cash flow period is from July until January when ad valorem tax receipts are at their lowest point of collection. The minimum fund balance requirement should be one that is adequate to meet the cash flow requirement.

The Importance of the Safety Net The fund balance, above the cash flow requirement, is the Safety Net which is set aside to keep the school district stable during a financial crisis. Different schools will have different amounts for the Safety Net. A small or no Safety Net will result in mandatory RIF’s and reduction of educational opportunities every time there is a financial shortfall. Or the school can determine a certain amount that will be set aside for financial crisis management to reduce the stress of negatively affecting the education programs for the students.

Inadequate, Optimal or Too Large?

School district fund balances may fall into three categories. Some districts have a carefully planned strategy to maintain an optimum fund balance to assure financial stability for the district. Some districts place their schools in jeopardy with an inadequate fund balance. Some districts have a large fund balance and are subject to fund balance penalties from time to time. These districts should make every effort to maximize educational opportunities by reducing their fund balance. Otherwise, these schools may face future legislative action to negatively impact these school districts.

Each school district should have a carefully crafted fund balance policy that assures the balance between maintaining financial stability while maximizing educational opportunities for the students in their school districts.

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Be the Chief Storyteller for Your School 7 strategies to lead beyond the newsletter by the National Panel on Innovative Communication.

by Julie Bloss CCOSA Executive Committee Chair

Because there has been a dramatic shift in the past five years regarding student and family communication, I was extremely excited to attend “Beyond the Newsletter: National Panel on Innovative Communication & Student Voice” at NAESP’s 2018 annual conference in Orlando. The session promised to “empower the principal to lead beyond the newsletter.”

Moderated by NAESP’s Kaylen Tucker, the panel featured Amber Teaman, Latoya Dixon, Brad Gustafson, Jon Harper, and Lynell Powell. Because I follow so many of the panelists on social media, I knew the session would definitely leave me empowered and full of new ideas for the upcoming school year. Here are my top 7 takeaways.

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Choose the right communication tools for your school, students, and families. Select a variety of communication tools to reach your audience. It isn’t useful to use a tool if your audience doesn’t use it or have access to it. For example, if your audience population doesn’t use Twitter, gravitate to the social media tool that they do use.

Consider whether families in your district have access to devices and Wi-Fi. Also, determine if families will also want print copies of items such as newsletters.

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Try new tools. What platform will deliver the biggest “bang for my buck” to transform communication? Facebook stood out as the go-to platform for the panelists.

Principals can use it to highlight what students and schools are doing daily, as well as showcase instruction and share announcements. By communicating this type of information in “real time” versus the traditional weekly or monthly newsletter, families are better connected and informed.

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Help students show ownership. Involve students in telling their own stories. By simply creating a school hashtag and using the same phrases or references, families and community become connected to the school site and students. Examples: #proudprincipal, #wearewhitt, #GWreads. Such hashtags build relationships with families and help them immediately become a part of whatever message you are sharing.

Be the chief storyteller. The principal should be the chief storyteller of the school.

But when the storyteller is quiet — others provide the story — and it may not be the correct one or the one you want told. Social media is a powerful communication tool — use it to highlight student learning and to show families what is happening in schools in real time.

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Use innovative strategies to communicate with you staff. Video record your weekly staff bulletins, and then consider throwing in a carpool karaoke to jazz things up.

Panelists suggested using Smore and Flipgrid to spice up communications.

Hold small group meetings. Some parents may fear schools due to misconceptions or based on their own negative experiences. Consider having monthly small group meetings with parents to discuss key issues and to assist nervous parents who may have qualms or need reassurance.

Don’t forget face-to-face and other low-tech strategies. Panelists discussed going on home visits to distribute welcome materials and to introduce themselves, sending postcards, and making daily positive phone calls. If people don’t feel seen and heard, they will not care about your social media presence. One panelist shared how he tries to listen on the phone more with upset callers, then carefully selects his words to help the caller feel heard and understood. Another principal shared how she hosts a variety of parent activities before school begins in order to have positive face-to-face contacts.

While communications platforms have evolved over the years, the key components are still the same.

Families need to be informed about their children’s progress at school, programs, and engagement opportunities. Through determining your audience’s preference of tools (paper, social media options, face-to-face contacts, phone calls, written correspondence, websites, etc.), the principal now has many options available to become the chief storyteller of his or her school. Be bold! Be passionate! No one knows your school, students and story better than you!

The new Oklahoma School Report Card will soon be released. In this workshop, you will have the opportunity to clarify your understanding of the report card indicators, find and review your data that will be used in the report card, and prepare for the December report card release by developing a plan for sharing your school's story. We will also look to the future and talk about how to prepare for SY2019.

This workshop will provide plenty of time for questions, whole-group conversations, and individual school planning with school teams of three or fewer.

Workshop goals include: 1. Gain an understanding of the new Oklahoma School Report Card.

2. Find and ensure the related data for the report card are accurate.

3. Develop a plan for sharing your school's story and review the planned dashboard.

For more information and to register, go online to: ccosa.org or email Charlotte Murphy at: charlotte@ccosa.org.

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Creating Uplifting Classroom Environments

by Sharon Dean K20 Associate Director of College and Career Readiness

Decades of repeated studies conclude that the single greatest effect on successful student learning and achievement is the effectiveness of the teacher. Teachers entering the profession have received foundational training with a focus mostly on academic content and less on strategies for managing a classroom. Many of them become overwhelmed and even disillusioned when faced with managing the day-to-day, hour-to-hour operation of a classroom with students. The Cooperative Council of Oklahoma School Administration has partnered with the K20 Center for Education and Community Renewal to provide a program which supports early-career teachers.

This research-based model, Uplifting Classroom Environments, combines pressure and support, passion and performance, and motivation to learn and demand for excellence. These “push” and “pull” efforts are comparable to the forces used in the study of aerodynamics and are identified as “environmental support” and environmental challenge” in the model. Environmental support provides the push through motivational soft skills that educators use in developing supportive structures to increase student learning, while environmental challenge provides the pull structures that create accountability for performance. This professional development opportunity offers knowledge and skills needed by teachers to develop and sustain both the environmental supports and challenges to foster student learning in a supportive environment that serves both students and teachers.

Participating teachers actively engage in two days of powerful, authentic learning. The learning objectives for environmental support concentrate on designing physical spaces, developing rules, procedures, and interventions, developing positive student/teacher relationships, and examining “withit-ness” and mental objectivity. Throughout these two days the environmental challenge objectives are accomplished by integrating and modeling instructional strategies that actively engage the

teachers in higher order thinking skills. Teachers can immediately use these in their classrooms. The participants become their own professional learning network sharing ideas and planning application of their new knowledge. They are asked to return to their classroom, apply their knowledge and come back in a month with artifacts (student work, pictures of bulletin boards, letters home to parents, etc.).

Teachers return for a third day, having an administrator join them. This day of learning begins with reflection of the first two days of the teachers’ learning and experiences. They reflect on the past, learn from each other, and plan for the future.

This day highlights the 5E Instructional Model for lesson development and examines the role of the administrators as they support and coach teachers through sharing their knowledge of curriculum and instruction, monitoring and evaluating school practices, and intellectually stimulating teachers to impact student learning and achievement.

Why offer this professional learning opportunity for early-career teachers? Research shows that (1) new teachers who do not receive support leave at more than twice the rate of those who are supported; (2) the national average cost of new teacher recruitment, hiring and training is $9.000; and (3) high teacher turnover has high correlation to low school performance. The Uplifting Classroom Environment program promises to grow teachers, and thus grow the profession. With 2565 emergency certifications granted in our state, CCOSA and the K20 Center are supporting early-career teachers and their administrators by providing research-based tools that foster a positive learning environment.

Quotes from teachers on the most meaningful ideas from Uplifting Classroom Environments:

“Discovering resources, learning to build relationships with students, class management strategies.”

“I loved all the different strategies we learned. They will be a great tool to use.”

“Just understanding how to have a positive outlook and classroom.”

“The strategies to engage students in higher order level thinking.”

“Using the strategies with us but suggesting how to utilize them in class.”

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“I love and am planning on implementing instructional strategies throughout my lessons.”

“As a special education teacher, I am often dealing with a variety of needs and behaviors.

Keeping students actively engaged in learning activities has been very effective for helping to manage classroom behavior and meeting student needs at the same time, student participation also has increased, impacting successful performance.”

Quotes from administrators on the impact of Uplifting Classroom Environments:

“I really see the need in our school for more of a coach rather than an evaluator at this point. Changing that environment will improve several of our classrooms. Thanks for a great workshop.”

“I can tell a difference in student-teacher interactions after the implementation of many of these strategies.”

“The teachers are applying what they learned during the previous sessions, Great training.”

“These teachers were better prepared to begin the school year and had strategies to help them be successful.”

“Stronger relationships between administrators and teachers—certainly a strong PD experience for them on days one and two and a great follow-up today.”

“I appreciate the protected time I had to interact with my new teachers.”

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Creating Uplifting Classroom Environments

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Trauma Informed Leadership Kristin Atchley Executive Director of Counseling Oklahoma State Department of Education

Talk to any educator and you can find a story that was wrought with the passion and grace that only is inherent to that profession. In one way or another, those narratives have helped to shape their careers through experiential trial and error. It is then feasible to believe you became an administrator because somebody spoke life and truth into you and helped you believe you could do great things.

At the forefront of the need to have a likewise experience are students who come from traumatic backgrounds. This is also likened to those who have experienced ACEs (adverse childhood experiences); the students who need that pivotal person who can be a change agent in their lives. They need someone to believe in them, to connect with them and ultimately to guide them. Most importantly, they need a school that feels safe.

In my own trauma-informed journey, I have found that most issues can be understood through a lens I have only recently learned to exist. While research continues on brain development in children, as educators, we have learned a great deal about kids who experienced trauma. Those students think and react differently. Understanding the cognitive process they experiences (often referred to as fight, flight, or freeze) in times of stress or uncertainty is the foundation for becoming trauma informed.

For many, brain development continues until age 25, and the developing brain is much more sensitive to trauma and adverse events. A biological adaptation, take survival for instance, can become maladaptive over time. A key piece of understanding comes when we as educators realize when kids are in this fight, flight, or freeze state, they are not taking in new information and are not capable of rational decisionmaking. A trauma-informed perspective shifts the question the educator should ask from, “What is wrong with this student?” to, “What has happened to this student?”

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Think of a time when your brain became dysregulated, when your thinking became chaotic, you seemed to be reacting rather than responding, and you felt agitated or unsettled. It is likely the process you engaged in to regulate your brain did not involve punishment, scolding, or lecturing. Our students need an environment that allows them to regulate after dysregulation. This can take many forms like a calming room, brain breaks, or a walk down the hall.

So what do you do once you have the realization that a student is acting out of trauma? A great starting point and the most simple intervention is to practice empathy. Empathy is feeling with people. It is allows room for a student to feel without receiving judgement or solutions. When students and professionals have a relationship built on empathy, they are forging an authentic and vulnerable connection. Think for a moment about how different the connection could be if it is centered on an empathetic approach. This kind of meaningful, healing connection puts students in a position to perform well academically.

Any effort to create a trauma-informed school should focus on relationships. Greeting kids in the morning, seeing them off at the end of the day, talking with them at lunch, attending their extracurricular activities, and visiting classrooms are all ways for administrators and teachers to make simple differences. Being visible throughout the day to provide the kind of connection that empowers students to feel safe and connected and thereby more productive in school will lend itself to an overall more productive environment. We all know that if it starts with the leaders and teachers see it happening, that followers are far more likely to model those practices. Be the leader, be different, and seek to understand from a trauma-informed, empathetic approach.

E-Rate Tips for 2019

by Deborah Sovereign, CPA, CEMP Owner of Kellogg & Sovereign Consulting, LLC

Fall is a key time for school administrators to review your E-rate funding and ensure you properly plan and file your E-rate application for the upcoming school year. The following are steps you should take to ensure that your E-rate filings are in order and you are properly utilizing these valuable funds: 1. Review your prior year E-rate filings beginning with 2015. Your E-rate consultant can provide you with your E-rate history or you can use the USAC funding tools (https://www.usac.org/sl/tools/default.aspx) to download your funding for each year. Check that authorized disbursements were issued for services you used. The invoicing Mode field will show SPI if the service provider applied discounts to your bill, BEAR if the district paid in full and filed for reimbursement, or NOT SET if no disbursements were made. Verify that Forms 486 were timely filed by looking for a date under the 486 Service Start Date field.

2. Review your prior year category two expenditures and funding. 2019-20 is the last year of the 5-year budget cycle to file for category two services (network switches, cabling, wireless access points, maintenance, etc.). If you were funded for category two services, look to see if all the money that was funded was disbursed. If not, you may have funding that was set aside for your category two budget in a prior year that can be used to increase your budget cap in 2019-20. For example, if you received $12,000 in funding for network switches in 2015 but only spent $9,000, you can move the remaining $3,000 to your budget cap for 2019-20 which will give you additional discounts for items you may need in 2019-20.

services. Explore alternatives such as SIP trunking and eliminate unused phone lines or cell phones.

4. Review your contracts for Internet, wide area networks, and maintenance. If you need to upgrade bandwidth or your contracts are expiring, you will need to get confirmation on the exact contract expiration date from your existing provider.

Transitioning service in an E-Rate funding year requires careful planning and clear communication so that you can successfully receive both E-rate and OUSF (Oklahoma Universal Service Fund) support for the old and new services. Neither program will pay for duplicate services, so be prepared to cut over and timely disconnect old services. It is critical that you know the exact expiration dates and then plan accordingly.

5. Gather your school enrollment and low-income data. The administrative deadline for submitting your enrollment information online with USAC is expected to be the first week of January. This information determines your E-rate discount rate.

Work closely with your child nutrition department to gather and report your enrollment and low income or CEP data online in USAC in December before you leave for winter break. Be sure to report school name changes, address, and program changes. If your district is fortunate to have a new school opening or remodeling, make sure to add the site in USAC’s online E-Rate Productivity Center (EPC) prior to January.

6. File your Form 470 for 2019-20 as soon as possible. USAC expects applicants to provide service providers with a full 28 days after the last information is provided to service providers during the competitive bidding period. For example, if you provide a 14-day period for questions and you post answers on the 15th day, you will need to be sure to allow a full 28 days after the answers are posted before you close your bidding period. Plan to complete your bidding period early enough to carefully evaluate your bids, follow your district’s procurement procedures for appropriate approvals, then award your bidders and negotiate contracts.

The E-rate application filing window is expected to close March 21, 2019.

3. Review your voice services. E-rate discounts for Deborah Sovereign, CPA, CEMP is owner of Kellogg & voice services will be phased out completely as of Sovereign Consulting, LLC, www.kelloggllc.com. The firm’s June 30, 2019. It is extremely important that you E-rate experts serve schools and libraries as “Your Partners review your contracts for voice services and make in Funding” and specialize in filing and managing E-rate sure you don’t have any unexpected surprises with applications along with assisting with the Oklahoma high month to month rates if your contracts expire.

Services Program. Email dsovereign@kelloggllc. www. breakfastinthec la ssro oUniversal m . o rg Carefully review your phone bills and cancel unused com for more information.

19 | CCOSA.ORG

New Administrator Training Regis ter online a t: ccos a .or g/

This three-day training will cover both Process Training and Calibration Training. Upon completion of the training, and passing the test, participants will be certified in Tulsa Model Process and Calibration Training, and be familiar with the following: Tulsa Model Overview and Background

• The Rubric

• The Observation and Evaluation

Process

• Calibration Using Rubric Indicators BETTER SCHOOLS | 20

Sessions dates and times: January 08, 2019 8:30am - 3:30pm January 09, 2019 8:30am - 3:30pm January 10, 2019 8:30am - 3:30pm All sessions will be at the CCOSA Office in Oklahoma City.

Contact: lynne@ccosa.org Members: $320

Non-Members: $320

Oklahoma School Assurance Group

OSAG Saves Oklahoma Public Schools $100,000,000!

The Oklahoma School Assurance Group was established in 1994 as a remedy for Oklahoma public schools to save money to use for educating our children rather than for paying workers’ compensation premium. No other company exists like OSAG, providing full coverage insurance to our members, with no financial risk, while rewarding members with premium refunds, participating dividends, upfront premium savings, safety grants, and ongoing, added benefits for our membership.

OSAG is quickly approaching a total of $100,000,000 in savings to Oklahoma public schools!

WOW!

This savings goes a long way in helping to provide benefits to our district members and the children that they educate.

OSAG is proud to be the largest provider of workers’ compensation services to Oklahoma schools.

We continue to live by our motto of “providing the most efficient and economical workers’ compensation services to Oklahoma public schools.” OSAG members enjoy so many benefits, and we appreciate each and every district in our program. **A new 2018 OSAG Safety Equipment Grant application process is currently underway. Make every effort to submit your application to ensure receipt of your district grant award.

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Hunger Free Oklahoma, State Superintendent Joy Hofmeister and other champions of childhood hunger hosted a celebration of Breakfast in the Classroom at Highland Park Elementary School in Mid-Del Public Schools on March 9. The event highlighted the importance of Breakfast in the Classroom’s role in ensuring that kids have the food they need to focus, stay healthy, learn and succeed.

Guests had the opportunity to tour the BIC program, talk to teachers and students about the benefits of breakfast and have conversations with school nutrition staff about how the program works.

If your school district is interested in a Partners for Breakfast in the Classroom grant, go online for more information and to download the grant application.

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