Jan. 18 - From the Superintendent

Hello, USD 231 Patrons and Employees.

Winter Weather

As you know, the weather has presented some challenges as we've started the second semester; hopefully, we've seen the last snow and ice that might lead to more school closures.

As a district, we know the implications of opening schools during less-than-perfect conditions and closing schools when poor weather conditions exist or are predicted. Our primary consideration is the safety of our students, staff, and parents.

Because the district encompasses 100 square miles of Johnson County, the weather can vary significantly, as can road conditions, in different parts of the county. Major roadways may be in good driving condition, but neighborhood and rural roads may remain treacherous.

District students typically travel to school in five ways. Some ride on school buses, some walk to schools or bus stops, some are driven by their parents, some drive themselves, and some are driven by other students. When the school system considers the impact of weather conditions on the ability to open schools, it considers all these methods of transportation.

Some staff members and bus drivers leave home as early as 5:00 a.m. Many working parents need time to make last-minute arrangements for child care. Accordingly, the school system makes every effort to make decisions regarding inclement weather closings or delays prior to 6:00 a.m. Once I make the decision, it takes approximately 15 - 20 minutes to complete notifying local media, updating the website, and sending text messages.

Oftentimes, snow, sleet, or freezing rain does not start until between 5:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. This sometimes results in schools opening when the conditions are worse than anticipated and closing on days when the weather ends up not being as bad as forecasted. On some days, our residents experience better conditions in some areas of the county and very dangerous conditions in other parts of the county.

The district understands no perfect decision exists. Our goal is to err on the side of caution for the safety of all.

And, finally, two reminders:

1. Always remember that each parent should be prepared to make the best decision for his or her own child as it relates to attending school on questionable weather days.

2. In the event USD 231 closes school due to inclement weather or other emergencies, the information is communicated as soon as the decision is made in the following ways:

• Posted on our website

• Posted on social media (Facebook and Twitter)

• Local television stations (ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC)

Strategic Plan

In my last newsletter, I shared that an important part of our Strategic Plan was the aspect of Teaching. Today, I write to share more about the third aspect of our plan, Leadership.

Gardner Edgerton District 231 believes that the term leadership is not specific to one person or based on a title; rather, it is action oriented and present throughout our community, from the Board of Education to the classroom and the home. We place a premium on identifying and developing the potential in our leaders through a culture of curiosity, listening, and an emphasis toward action that supports successful outcomes for all.

We will design recruitment and retention strategies that reflect our vision to ensure a pipeline of the best educators, support personnel, administrators, and community members ready to continuously move our district forward. Developing our current and future leaders is essential not only to continuity and clarity for our students, educators, and families, but also to our relationship with the Gardner and Edgerton communities. Because of its critical role, we will provide regular leadership development opportunities for our staff members, students, and families.

To ensure cohesive vision progress, strategic plans will be aligned at the district and school levels. The Board of Education, central office, and school leadership will collaborate on developing a shared understanding of expectations for, roles in, and indicators of continuous district improvement as well as regularly measuring the effectiveness of our programs, curriculum, and work to make adjustments where needed. We will empower our leaders to focus on this work by aligning physical resources, personnel, and budget to our priorities while reimagining time and meeting structures to align with our culture, values, and strategic plan.

We will collaboratively set, communicate, and support expectations around learning and working while enabling the autonomy required to deliver on those expectations. From the Board of Education to our student leaders, we will live our expectations by modeling respectful dialogue, seeking to understand, appreciating diverse opinions, and enjoying a healthy work/ life harmony. Our leaders will regularly engage with staff members about what motivates them, professional needs, and promising practices. To match our vision with practices, we will design evaluation structures to be more responsive to the needs of our students, educators, and community stakeholders, intentionally celebrating incremental and large-scale successes.

Through aligned instructional leadership, effective organizational structures, and the intentional fostering of personal wellness among our students and staff members, Gardner Edgerton District 231 will ensure excellence and sustainable leadership.

Closing

Thank you for taking time to read this message. Here's to a warm remainder of the winter season!

Sincerely,

Brian

#Forwardas23ONE #WeAreUSD231

P.S. - Please follow me on Facebook (@usd231superintendent) and Twitter (@usd231supe) for more frequent updates!

Do you know anyone looking for a great job with the school district? Do they like to work outside and are unafraid to get their hands dirty? Our Grounds crew has an immediate opening and the job description is here - Grounds Crew Job Description.

Grounds crew members work 260 days per year (12 months) 40-hour weeks (4-10's in June and July with every Friday off).

Eligible for all benefits, including health/dental insurance, PTO with Vacation and Holiday pay.

Starting wage is based on experience ranging from $17-22/hour

Click HERE to apply.

Please contact Mark Meyer, Executive Director of Human Resources, with any questions at (913) 856-2019.

The newest edition of our "Week-at-a-Glance" document is now available!

We encourage you to bookmark this PAGE, as it will always host the most recent version.

If you feel like we've missed an event or found an inaccuracy, don't hesitate to let us know.

One of the priorities of the USD 231 Community Relations Department is sharing our stories!

If you have student or staff awards, accomplishments, interesting story ideas to share, or fantastic programs to highlight, please submit them via this FORM.

Additionally, we hope you will keep Community Relations and district leadership informed about upcoming events. To do so, please be sure to fill out this FORM in order to:

• Let Community Relations know about potential story ideas and consider the event for coverage on the district website, social media channels, and potentially through local media.
• Invite the Superintendent, Superintendent’s Leadership Team, or Board of Education to an event.

Thank you!!!

To view events occurring at the district-level, please click the image on the right/above. To view school-specific calendars, please visit each building's respective website.

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