First, I want to extend my gratitude for all your hard work & commitment to the students and families of Schenectady Schools. This week we presented an overview of the programs and services that fall within the Office of Student Support Services to the Board of Education. A link to that presentation is below and as you will see, we packed a lot of information into an hour. We also provided the Board with a folder of resources and additional data around the important work that you are all doing. As indicated in some of the data slides, we are making positive strides in some areas, and still have a lot of work to do in others. Dr. Chisolm and Dr. Mason presented the Qtr. 2 academic report. I would encourage you to take a look at the data they presented as well. You can find it HERE.

This Qtr. 2 news and updates edition aims to highlight the great work happening across the district. We love to celebrate YOU and YOUR STUDENTS! I encourage you to submit your Quarter 3 highlights and pictures to Lisa Meade so we can recognize the hard work you are doing in the next edition!

I also want to wish you a restful & great break week. I hope it is part of everyone’s self-care plan to do the things you enjoy and help you to relax and recharge.

Sincerely,

Andrea Tote-Freeman

Since late November, I've been working with 4th and 5th grade girls at Lincoln Elementary, running a book club every Monday afterschool. We're currently reading the book "Fish in a Tree" by Lynda Mullaly Hunt and using the restorative practices model in discussing the book. Each student takes a turn reading aloud, and we also do many community building activities.

The book deals with themes that many of our young girls will face, from developing their identity, to academic struggles, as well as bullying. Our goal is to have an outlet for the girls to speak about their thoughts and feelings, to develop a sense of empathy, and to build a bond and a sense of community. Our first few sessions have been wonderful and I'm really looking forward to working with these young ladies throughout the school year!

Submitted by,

Katie Tidball, RP Specialist

Lincoln/Howe/MLK

Name: Rebecca (Becky) Fogg

Building/Assignment Location: Martin Luther King Elementary

How many years have you worked in Schenectady as a School Psychologist? 7

What is your favorite thing about being a School Psychologist? Getting to work with all the students in my building. I love that I get to split my time between students in pre-k through 5th grade. It's amazing to have the opportunity to work with students at all ages and varying levels of development.

Name one word people would use to describe you. Advocate

What is a fun fact about you? What kinds of things do you like to do in your free time? Fun fact: I have an unhealthy obsession with Harry Potter (I am a Slytherin). In my free time I love to read in the quiet of my home or try to find new adventures to take my family on.

Name: Michelle Thornhill

Building/Assignment Location: Steinmetz Career & Leadership Academy (SCLA)

How many years have you worked in Schenectady as a School Psychologist? 8

What is your favorite thing about being a School Psychologist? Spending time with students - especially fun activities like playing in PE, field days, or school-wide BBQs. There is also NO better day than GRADUATION day!

Name one word people would use to describe you. Efficient

What is a fun fact about you? What kinds of things do you like to do in your free time?

A fun fact about me is that my favorite holiday is Halloween and my family takes it very seriously. In my free time I love to spend time outdoors hiking or kayaking with my husband and dog. I also love to read. Current book recommendation: “I’m Glad My Mom Died” by Jennette McCurdy.

Name: Karon Ozols

Building/Assignment Location: Out-of-district programs in Schenectady, Albany, and Watervliet

How many years have you worked in Schenectady as a School Psychologist? 5

What is your favorite thing about being a School Psychologist? Making connections - with students, staff, parents; particularly making sure parents attend meetings to have a voice in decisions, and seeing the difference it makes working with school staff to change from problem based to strengths based descriptions of students.

Name one word people would use to describe you. I asked a handful of friends/family and 3/5 said compassionate.

What is a fun fact about you? What kinds of things do you like to do in your free time? I have bred and shown wolfhounds under the kennel name Karontara Irish Wolfhounds for over 25 years. I enjoy walking (with my dogs of course), getting to dog shows when I can, going to concerts, and traveling.

CPMS school counselors worked with 7th grade teams to learn more about Historically Black College Universities.

The SHS Key Club is up to so much good! Social Workers, Debra George and Ellen Tremblay, are excited to have the largest group of student members to date! They are incredibly proud of the service work being done to include the Future Patriot Conference at SHS and the Blood Drive at Proctor's Theater.

March 5-11, 2023, is National School Social Work week. SCSD has 60+ amazing social workers who are committed to making sure our students have the support they need to achieve academic success. Not only do they provide individual and group counseling services, crisis response and promote positive social-emotional developmental health but they are also involved in various committees and groups throughout their school buildings including bullying prevention, PTO, Key Club, drama productions and so much more. Make sure to take a moment to thank your School Social Worker and let them know how much they are appreciated!

Our department is full of amazing success stories. One of the stories include a very special team at Oneida MS and an incredible young lady named Lateefa. Lateefa's success plan included coordination by her entire educational team, our behavior specialist - Brittany Kendall, and her mother. The plan included a very specialized plan, use of additional recommended instructional strategies, creative scheduling and daily communication with her Mom. The plan required consistency and time to implement. Presets and social stories were used by school and home on a consistent basis and this student is now meeting with more and more success every day.

A special shout out to Mrs. Rice and Mr. Bishop for never giving up on their student. We are so proud of Lateefa and everyone involved.

Lateefa's mom was excited for us to celebrate her daughter's successes in this edition.

Ms. Grimm, Mrs. Amedore's, and Mrs. Gaul's class all had the opportunity to attend a field trip to "Bring on The Spectrum". The students were able to engage and socialize in a safe environment. They all loved the swings, ladders, games and sensory break room.

Many of our students receiving Assistive Tech use the Read and Write app to help them access the curriculum. In addition to the free version, our Assistive Technology Department, in concert with our Ed Tech Coaches, have been working together to pilot the premium version of Read and Write/Text Help.

The following teachers have agreed to pilot the software in their learning spaces. See any one of them for more information.

HS

Sarah Telban, SHS

Sarah Franklin, SCLA

MS

Neil Wahab, CPMS

Caitlin Pieniezny, MPMS

Dr. Archie, OMS

Jacklyn Newberry, OMS

Rebecca Penn, MPMS

Daniel O'Brien, OMS

To collect data around student objectives, behavior, or IEP goals, Google Forms has been a valuable tool. Information can be collected quickly and easily. Anyone with the link can report the data (e.g., other teachers, paraprofessionals, etc.) Google Forms collects the data automatically. The data can be easily sorted to find trends, and the infographics provided by Forms makes the data easy to understand and to share.

In an attempt to understand a student who went to class, but did not engage with the work, and often asked for a pass to leave the room, a simple form was created and shared with each of their teachers. The form took teachers about 30 seconds to complete. All teachers (content area and complementary classes) were able to record what happened in the class and share it with the case manager. Patterns emerged quickly to show the frequency of tardies, the level of engagement (or disengagement) throughout the day, and the target of the student’s escape. This information was helpful in determining the most appropriate setting for student success.

The most successful forms of data collection are quick and simple. Here are a few pointers:

• Choose one question or 2-3 related questions to answer. In the example above the questions focused on (1) level of engagement; (2) the frequency of pass requests, and (3) desired location for the pass request.

• Provide a specific question (e.g., level of engagement) with more general levels (e.g., independently engaged; some adult prompting; continuous prompting; refused to attempt).

• Use different question types that best connect to the item.

• Date – using the specific date question provides a calendar in the form that users can simply click for today’s date or tap on a prior date.

• Drop Down – Great visually when there are more than 5 choices. (e.g. Period number or teacher names). Visually less overwhelming.

• Check Boxes – This is important when more than one item can be selected for a question. If the person completing the form can choose more than one item, this is the way to go.

• Multiple choice – This feature is good for forced choice. If you want the data to reflect one specific answer, use multiple choice.

• Rating Scale – This one can be tricky. If you use a rating scale be certain to give a clear operational definition of each level. Use an even number to avoid that middle ground (e.g., every choosing 3 on a scale of 1-5)

• Multiple Choice Grid – Good for capturing a group of behaviors across multiple settings. Requires forced choice of one item per.

• Check Boxes Grid – Same as above, but allows for more flexibility in answering

• Short Answer – Good for allowing new information to be added.

• Provide “OTHER” as an option for write-in answers. This is especially helpful the first time out. When OTHER captures the same response multiple times, the form can be updated to include another choice.

• Required v. Not Required – Use “required” for data that must be traceable, allow “not required” for any questions that are not essential.

Send the link (“eye” icon) with your team and encourage them to complete the form at the interval needed (often daily). When the form created is simple and easy to understand, your team will eagerly complete the form as needed.

Here is a sample form to get you started! Make a copy and try it out.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1omeA3SoXhWEHXDdEFbtCuAEvfh28O56a7blFB16ts44/copy

Mrs. Rytel and Mr. Dady have established a mentor/mentee program. Both classrooms also share the school store in Mr. Dady's classroom. Both initiatives are being enhanced by an Educational Foundation grant.

With this grant, students will be making their own business proposal. Mr. Dady's students will help support the sixth graders in Mrs. Rytel's classroom in writing business plans, doing market research, pricing and advertising.

The students are very excited to start this new venture.

According to our team at Yates, students had the following reactions to a recent attendance incentive:

Student 1: “At first when you called me up I thought I was in trouble, but then when you said it was good because my attendance improved I was like “cool, this NEVER happens”.

Student 2: “ I think you should do this more”.

Students were excited to be recognized for improved attendance.

At Hamilton, students with improved attendance were also recognized.

4th grader, pictured here was asked how she felt when she received the attendance gift card, her response was:

"I was really excited and surprised to receive a Stewart's gift card, I am going to try to come to school more often now".

All of our elementary school counselors reported increased engagement with these particular students and that it made them think about other students who may need Tier 2 support, or recognition for improvement versus perfection.

Robert (Bob) has been a long time Administrator in Special Education for over 24 years and since his retirement in 2017, has been filling interim positions within the Capital District. He will be filling in for our Elementary Assistant Director for Special Education, Meghan Widrick, through June 2023.

He is very happy to be part of the Schenectady City School District Special Education Program.

We want to celebrate all of the work our Health Services team does each day in our district buildings and some non-district buildings. Our nurses work to ensure our students are healthy, safe and ready to learn. Through care coordination and family engagement our nurses assist in providing students with equitable access to health care for both acute/emergency care as well as chronic disease management for affected youth. See the link below for current nurse assignments.