What's True for 102October Newsletter

Board of EducationEleven candidates are vying for four positions on the USD 102 Board of Education, and theywill have a public forum on October 21st and 22nd. The candidates will be in two separategroups to provide ample time to each. The panel will begin at 6:00 p.m. each evening. Therewill not be a platform for the public to ask questions. The questions will be the same for eachcandidate. Please make time to hear the candidates discuss their ideas on these crucialtopics.

Chronic AbsenteeismThe administrative team, with the help of teachers, staff, parents, and students, need to worktogether to reduce the number of students falling into chronic absenteeism. ChronicAbsenteeism is de�ned as a person missing 10% of the days or more - excused, unexcused, orsuspension days. For students in USD 102, this is approximately 16 days or one day permonth. Our goal is to have all students in "Regular Attendance" at school; that is missing lessthan 5% of the days of a school year.

Social Media Information

There are many options to view or contribute to social media. Whether your experience ismostly positive or if it is mainly negative, it seems social media is here to stay. It has becomesomewhat fashionable to blame social media for many of the undesirable effects we witnessin society today. There are many positive effects of social media! There has never been a timein history when we can connect quickly with someone in a different time zone or different

New Broadcasting Technology Class at CHS

country (Connectivity). Social Media hales to spread and share ideas. For me, it is my "go-to"place for information on educational topics - with chats, live events, and much more - I can getideas from anywhere (Education). It is a critical means to tell the community of thehappenings in USD 102 (Communication). It is a place to advertise any open position(Advertising) - and much more. But, we continue to hear of the downfalls of social media - fake accounts, schemes,intimidation, saying things online that would not be said in public, etc. This negativism hasbeen used to harm people and at times, with disastrous results. In my years of being aprincipal and superintendent, I believe Dr. Bruce Perry has the best explanation of social mediaand relationships, "Fire can warm or consume, water can quench or drown, wind can caress orcut. And so it is with human relationships, we can both create and destroy, nurture andterrorize, traumatize and heal each other." And, so it is with social media - we can each choose to have magni�cent ideas, share, andstay closely connected - but we can use it for any adverse reaction. It merely comes down tothe willingness of the user (author, creator) to do good or harm. As Bluejays, I hope that weare always using social media for the positives in life!

The Epidemic of Vaping

Mitch Holthus is the voice of the Kansas City Chiefs. His hometown is Smith Center, Kansas -a town with less population than Cimarron - located in north-central Kansas. Cimarron HighSchool has implemented a new Broadcasting Technology class for the 2019-2020 school year.They began their live broadcast on September 16th for a JV football game against Meade. Thestudents in this class have produced a commercial and it can be heard on the radio at 95.5FM. Who knows, maybe the next voice of the Chiefs is sitting in the booth on Friday nights inCimarron, Kansas! Stay tuned for more information. You can watch live events and recorded events at:http://www.citylinktv.com/channel/cimarron-schools/ or you can click on the scrolling banneron our webpage (https://www.cimarronschools.net/ see below for details).

http://www.citylinktv.com/channel/cimarron-schools/https://www.cimarronschools.net/

Vape Pen Vape Devices Vape USB Device

As we hear more about the dangers of vaping, it is pushing schools to �nd means by which itcan be controlled. There will be policy updates and recommendations from theCommissioners Task Force on Vaping. This provides USD 102 with an opportunity to reviewour policies and discuss the addition of vape detectors in the school. We will hear more aboutthis topic in the upcoming months.

Employment Skills

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I have the opportunity to speak with many employers in our community and surrounding areas.Many employers are saying it is not a lack of knowledge that hurts a person's employability; itis their lack of "soft skills." What are soft skills, and why do they matter so much? Soft Skillsare challenging to teach. A person willing to learn can master the technical aspects of a job.However, if an employee cannot work with others, shows up late for work, and takes off manydays from work, it is much more di�cult to change the behavior.

Kids are so different today... yet, still the same“The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they showdisrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise. Children are now tyrants, not theservants of their households. They no longer rise when elders enter the room. They contradicttheir parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, andtyrannize their teachers.”--- Socrates (400 BC)

ACT InformationI have talked about the ACT many times this year. It should bea goal of our district to score above the state average in eachtested area. I am very proud of our teachers and staff for thescores we have received over the last several years. Ouraverage ACT Composite score is 21.1. This average score isthe second-highest average in the Hi-Plains League and is tiedfor the highest in the GWAC. A 21 composite score is equal tothe 57%ile of all students taking the ACT. Why does the ACTmatter? It is directly linked to college �nancial aid packages.What if a student wants to go to a trade school or straight intothe workforce? The ACT is not for everyone, but the KansasCommissioner of Education and the Kansas State Board ofEducation are considering the ACT to be our 11th-gradeassessment. If this happens, it is a crucial assessment forevery student. There are many life pathways for students asthey exit Cimarron High School. Not all of the paths need anACT score, and many of those paths are excellent employmentopportunities.

Outside the Box SolutionsMrs. Kallie Soeken is a third-grade teacher at Cimarron Elementary. She thought of a way toget a new book every month in the hands of each child in her classroom. She made aFacebook post and asked for Scholastic Sponsors. The cost was $8 for the entire year. Shehas made this a reality in her classroom! Great job, Mrs. Soeken! You can see from the picturebelow the kids are incredibly proud of their new book.

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What is something USD 102 is working on for thenext few months?Threat Assessment, Threat Assessment Team, and Reporting a Threat

A threat is a communication of intent to harm someone that may be spoken, written, gestured,or expressed in some other form, such as via text messaging, email, or other digital means.An expression of an intent to harm someone is considered a threat regardless of whether it iscommunicated to the intended target(s) and regardless of whether the intended target isaware of the threat. Threats may be implied by behavior that an observer would reasonablyregard as threatening, planning, or preparing to commit a violent act. When in doubt, treat thecommunication or behavior as a threat and conduct a threat assessment. Threats that are noteasily recognized as harmless (e.g., an obvious joke that worries no one) should be reportedto the school administrator or other team members. The administrator or another teammember makes a preliminary determination of the seriousness of the threat. The student,targets of the threat, and other witnesses should be interviewed to obtain information usingthis protocol. A transient threat means there is no sustained intent to harm and a substantivethreat means the intent is present (or not clear) and therefore requires protective action. Thisform is a guide for conducting a threat assessment, but each case may have unique featuresthat require some modi�cation.

Kansas has 34 different pathways to become a teacher? You may read more at www.ksde.com October 2nd is Custodian Appreciation Day October is National Principal Month

Ask the superintendent about how a threat assessment can work together with ourestablished safety and security measures. Ask a principal about how they may use the Marzano's Re�ective Teacher "green" book

http://www.ksde.com/

Ask a high school administrator or the high school counselor about the new "debt-free"programs of college and employment (i.e., Max Jones Excavating, John Deere at Garden CityCommunity College, etc.) Ask a teacher why they chose the education profession. Ask a paraprofessional if their job entails more than laminating papers and running copies. Ifso, tell me about your job.