Inside WGSD

Our new employee website is now live (webster.k12.mo.us/inside) - be sure to bookmark it! This is where you can get all your work calendars, benefits information, newsletters and more.

You can use your Webster Google account to login by clicking the 'Login with Google' button below the login space.

This WGSD Cares employee recognition program recognizes any team member who does their part inspiring others with a smile.

This week we are recognizing Nikita Hicks, who is the office secretary at Hixson Middle School. Nikita was nominated by Lisa Eckert who works in the office at Edgar Road Elementary. Lisa said "Nikita is so warm, nice, and caring! She is willing to help or be a shoulder to cry on whenever!"

Nikita has been with WGSD since 2021 and started at Givens/Steger. She transitioned to Hixson the following year. She works in the front office and is often the first person to interact with student, staff and parents. She said what she enjoys about her job is the "amazing staff" that she works with. She also loves that she is "never bored" and that she always has something to do. One of her favorite things to do is to recognize 6th graders when they are new to Hixson. She said she wants everyone she interacts with to take away something positive, but it is especially important to her that new 6th graders be "seen and heard" so that they can become confident.

As the front office secretary, Nikita has many people to communicate with throughout the day and she says this can be the most challenging part of her job. Even though it can be challenging, she always strives to make communication with students, staff and parents as seamless as possible, whether it is checking attendance or helping a student who is waiting for a ride. She realizes the value of communication and knows being positive in each interaction is always important, no matter what it is.

Thank you, Nikita, for inspiring so many students, staff and parents with your friendly smile and welcoming disposition. We are grateful to have you as part of our district -- thank you for caring so much about others and thank you for everything you do!

Do you want to recognize a special colleague? Nominate them below. All nominees will receive a brand new WGSD lapel pin and they could be featured in an upcoming issue of Inside WGSD and district social media.

Nominate someone deserving today!

We're extending an invitation to all dedicated individuals in our district to engage and contribute your expertise to our various committees. Your active participation can help shape and improve our district in a variety of areas. Here's a list of committees with current staff openings:

• Administrator Compensation

• Budget Planning

• Calendar

• Curriculum Coordinating Council

• Equity in Action

• iDEA (Professional Development Committee)

• Insurance

• PBTE (Performance Based Teacher Evaluations)

• Safety and Security

• Staff Recognition

• Strategic Planning

• Support Staff

• Wellness

  
  

To express your interest in these committees, please reach out to your building leader or administrator. Thank you for your commitment to Webster Groves School District.

We're throwing a Family BBQ, and you're invited!

Date: Saturday, September 9th

Time: 11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Location: Ivory Crockett Park

Join us for a fun time together, celebrating what inspires us -- each other! Among those in attendance will be the WG girls and boys basketball teams, lacrosse athletes, the Webster Groves police and more. We've got hotdogs, chips and beverages covered, just bring your own blanket.

Join our event on Facebook and see you there!

As always, it's important to remember to slow down and evaluate all your email messages with the number of phishing emails that come to your email.

Be on the lookout for emails that try to impersonate someone you know, someone important, emails that have large amounts of typos or grammatical errors, or ones that try to get you to purchase gift cards or make other financial transactions.

Here's a graphic that shows some other ways to detect a phishing message. If you are in doubt, please forward the message to the technology department.

The Standard Response Protocol (SRP) is based on an all- hazards approach as opposed to individual scenarios. The premise is simple - there are five specific actions available during an incident. The SRP is based on the following actions: Hold, Secure, Lockdown, Evacuate, and Shelter.

Notifications

In addition, we have begun to use the Raptor Emergency Alert system to rapidly alert staff of incidents in our schools and buildings. The system also allows leaders to effectively manage drills and instantly notify first responders of potential incidents. The district is able to utilize Raptor due to state funding.

More information on keeping our students and staff safe can be found here.

By now you have heard about ParentSquare, the all-in-one communications platform in our district. This unified communications platform is designed to keep staff informed as well as parents and guardians. ParentSquare allows us to to:

ParentSquare is not just for parents, it's for all employees as well. All teachers and staff should have received a signup email. We will resend this a few more times. Signup is not required to receive communication from us.

Learn more about ParentSquare here.

Sept 9 Family BBQ, 11 a.m., Ivory Crockett Park

Sept 11 Late Start All Schools

Sept 14 Board of Education Meeting, 6:30 p.m., Service Center

This week's background photo is of teachers and staff from Bristol Elementary on our Opening Day event.

If you have a group photo of your school staff or department that you would like to be featured in an upcoming staff newsletter, email connect@wgmail.org.