Weekly Update: January 29

I did some personal reflection after our first semester forum last week.  One of the predominant themes from this meeting was to focus our attention as a staff on fewer things and do them well.  The timing of this message was perfect for me as I slogged through three straight days with little to no breaks.  I had no time to prepare, as I attempted to race through my day to meet some untenable goals.  When I set out for the year, my plan was to complete two formal observations and Learning Walks.  What I’ve realized is that this goal has taken a toll on my ability to work more directly with students and teachers in meaningful ways.

While I still believe that this is a worthy endeavor, it will have to wait until the arrival of an assistant principal on our campus next year.  Until then I have decided to dedicate the second semester to Learning Walks instead of completing a second round of formal observations.  I believe that the impact of this decision will be greater and result  in more frequent visits to your classrooms providing formative assessment through Learning Walks.  This new plan will go into effect shortly after Tet break.

Have a great weekend,

Jacob

Staff Action Needed

• Enjoy Tet Break

Friday, January 29
Day 6- GHEF
Friday Breakfast- Hosted by the science department, 7:30

Monday, February 1
Day 7- DABC
Advisory Schedule: Tet potluck

University Visit: Hawaii Pacific-1-1:40 HS librabry

Tuesday, February 2
Day 8- HEFG
9th Grade SOC Meeting, Lunch (Counseling Conference Room)
Sunshine Activity: Bia Hoi, 4-?

Wednesday, February 3
Day 1- ABCD
Special Tet Schedule, 2-3pm (Bell Schedule Here)

On the Horizon
Tet Break, February 4-14
English & Science Departmental Dinner: Jacob’s House, February 18
Author Assembly, February 23 (AM assembly)
Arts, SS, PE and Support Services Departmental Dinner: Jacob’s House, February 25
Maths, World Language, Counseling Departmental Dinner: Jacob’s House, March 2

Assistant Principal Update– Stop by the staff breakfast hosted by the science department on Friday morning.  Grab some food, enjoy the company of colleagues, and find out who will be our next assistant principal.

Sunshine Bia Hoi Event- We asked for your opinion, and boy did we hear it! Bia Hoi Hanoi was the clear winner for our HS staff outing. Come join your thirsty colleagues for a glass of fresh beer this Tuesday, February 2nd. The festivities will begin at 4:00 PM but people are welcome to come by any time thereafter.
Here is a link to get you there.  Sponsored by your friendly neighborhood Sunshine Committee.

Possible Internet Issues Next Week– They are doing some significant upgrades to our wifi system in the HS this weekend.  While this will have a tremendously positive impact on speeds in the HS, there is a possibility it could pose some problems next week.  The chance of this are slim, but consider this when planning your lessons for next week.

Tet Assembly Schedule– We will be having a MS/HS Tet assembly on Wednesday, February 3 from 2-3pm (bell schedule here).  The details for the assembly are here along with seating instructions in the MS gym.  You will walk with your D block classes to the gym at 1:55 (at the conclusion of D block) using the back doors of the MS gym.  Sit with your classes on the floor of the gym closest to the elementary school.  Special thanks to our MS and HS StuCo reps along with their advisors William and Robert.

New Observation Plan– As I mentioned in my opening, I will forgo my second round of formal observations with you.  Instead, I will be doing a series of Learning Walks that should have me in your classrooms more frequently for shorter periods of time.

Bell Schedule and Grad Requirements– Some of you were able to attend Mark Sylte’s meeting last Friday about changes coming to the HS next year.  If you weren’t there below is a brief summary.  If you have further questions feel free to see Mark, your department head or me for more details.

• We will be changing from an 8 day to 10 day schedule next year.  Additionally, we will be creating an identical bell schedule to that of the MS.  We need to do this to create predictable room utilization as we continue to grow and the need to share staff between the MS and HS.  It will still have the characteristics of our 4 block tumbling day, just on a 10 day rotation.  Some models were created and shared with the HSLT by Jacob and Molly.  More info to be shared once we have drafts ready to view.
• Graduation requirements for modern world language and visual/performing arts will be changed for the 2016-17 school year.  They will revert to their original number of credits MWL (2) and Arts (1).  These were changed without school board approval a few years back to MWL (3) and Arts (2).  The school board is rolling these back to the original credits, as they do not represent the flexibility for student choice in scheduling that the founders of the school had envisioned.

Author Visit Assembly– We have an amazing opportunity for our students on Tuesday, February 23.  We will be having an assembly with the award winning author S.A. (Stephanie) Bodeen. It will be a special schedule for a 45 minute assembly.  I just wanted to share this in advance for your planning.  Thank you Lara Keller for the information below about the author.

First Semester Forum Feedback– Thank you for your careful attention, willingness to take risks, and thoughtfulness during our 1st Semester Forum on Wednesday.  The strengths surfaced reinforce why I am so excited to work in the high school from collegiality, professionalism and new initiatives like House Leagues.  Juxtaposed to this were our growth areas and potential next steps which included a few key themes like focusing on a smaller number of initiatives, class size reduction, creating a master plan for future growth in the HS, pastoral care and providing targeted professional development just to mention a few.

The leadership team will now digest this data and put a plan in place for our work in the second semester.  You can review all of the post it note comments left on the way out here.  Thank you Thao for typing these.