On the Inside is joining the greenBVSD initiative!
In an effort to cut costs AND reduce paper use, BVSD Communications seeks to decrease the print quantity of On the Inside, our bi-monthly newsletter for employees. We don’t want to just eliminate the print version, because we know that some employees prefer getting it in print and would probably not read the newsletter if it was available only online.

Beginning with the Oct. 28 issue, we will send print versions ONLY to people who have specifically asked to receive it that way. To get on our print distribution list, please fill out and return a subscription form to BVSD Communications or email Allison Metz. Be sure to include your name, dept. or school and how many copies of On the Inside you need. Subscription forms can also be found inside this week's print edition of On the Inside.

A message from Superintendent Chris King
Our Employee Contributions Campaign is underway and I am writing to ask for your support. Your contributions help people in need who live and work in our community. During hard financial times like the present, the need is even greater.

The money we raise goes to four worthy nonprofit organizations that we support through this campaign: Impact on Education, Foothills United Way, Community Health Charities of Colorado and Community Shares of Colorado. Employees designate which agency or agencies they wish to receive their donations. For your convenience, details and pledge forms are available here.

In addition to our usual paper method of processing pledges, we are also offering an online option this year. If you would like to make your pledge online, please make sure to have your employee ID number handy when you visit the site to make your pledge. It is noted on your pay stub.

Lunch will be provided to the school or department with the highest increase in participation over last year! The deadline to submit pledge forms is October 31st. If you have questions, please email Jeanne Aguilar or call her at 303-447-5093.

P.S. Last year only 13 percent of our employees made a contribution to this campaign. If we can get that participation rate up to 40 percent, I will shave my head!

Students benefit from bond dollars as construction
wraps up at Lafayette Elementary
This week, Lafayette Elementary celebrated the completion of its bond construction project with a ribbon cutting ceremony and All Cultures Dinner. The $3 million project included a four-classroom addition, a multi-purpose room and a new administrative suite and entryway. The new classrooms are currently being used by second graders. The project also included improvements to building systems such as ventilation and communications. Find out the latest on all the bond projects here.

Return to top of page

Open Enrollment for the 2009 BVSD Section 125 plans is open from
Nov. 1 – Dec. 1, 2008 for the plan year Jan. 1, 2009 – Dec. 31, 2009
This includes the Health Care spending account, the Dependent Care spending account and the Transportation account. These plans offer opportunities to set aside a portion of your paycheck to pay for eligible medical and childcare expenses while reducing your taxable income (participation in these plans also reduces your PERA eligible salary*).

To enroll, forms must be received by Human Resources no later than Monday, December 1, 2008.  We will have more information on on-line enrollment in the near future.  You can find the enrollment forms and more information about the flex plans in Human Resources and on the BVSD website.

The district will make a one-time dollar-for-dollar matching contribution, up to a maximum of $120 for participants enrolling in the Health Care spending account. Employees who participated in the health reimbursement account in 2007 and/or 2008 and are near retirement may be interested in a new feature of the plan this year that allows them to receive the district’s $120 contribution without making any contribution of their own.

*November 1- December 1 is also the Open Enrollment period to “opt out” of the Pre-tax Dependent contribution plan. This is important to consider for employees within four years of retirement who are covering dependents (or who are enrolled in the Premium Great-West plan) or employees considering other insurance for their dependents. If you are “opting-out” of the Pre-tax Dependent Premium program, (applies to employees within four years of retirement who are covering dependents or employees who are considering other health insurance) you will have to complete the paper opt-out form available here.

If you have questions, please contact Susana Aguirre at 303-447-5022 or Beth Collins at 303-245-5936.

BVSD Blood Drive - Wednesday, Nov. 5th
Boulder Valley Schools is hosting a blood drive on Wednesday, November 5, 2008 from 1:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. in the board room. Bonfils Blood Center needs more than 4,000 blood donors each week to meet Colorado’s needs and to be prepared for any unexpected events. To schedule an appointment online, please reference 2721 when searching for a donation location. You may also contact Susana Aguirre at 303-447-5022 or email her to schedule an appointment to donate blood.

It takes just a little time to make a big difference in the lives of patients in our community, with one blood donation saving and enhancing the lives of up to three people. For more information about Bonfils Blood Center, visit their website or call 303-363-2202 or 800-365-0006, opt. 1 with questions about blood donation or for general information about blood donor eligibility.

Bolder Boulder highest BVSD staff participation winners
The Bear Creek Elementary staff proudly displays the shirts they received as winners of the friendly competition for being the school with the highest staff participation in the Bolder Boulder for the past two years.

Return to top of page

Make a new choice: Reduce Stress NOW!
We live in a fast paced world with so much input that it can be hard to keep up and stay on track. Are you feeling overwhelmed? If yes, this workshop is for you! To deal with stress, you need to change your body and life choices. This workshop will cover both.

First, you will complete an assessment exercise that will clearly show you the stress levels in your life. Second, you will learn Qi Gong exercises --traditional Chinese exercises that incorporate gentle, rhythmic movements to synchronize the body, breath, and awareness. These simple exercises will help you deal with stress, focus your mind and get the energy you need to accomplish what you desire. You will then develop strategies and goals which will move you forward to living the stress-free life you deserve. You will leave feeling refreshed physically and mentally!

This class will include some time for journaling. Please bring a sack lunch, pen, paper and wear comfortable clothing to class. A materials fee of $5 is payable to the instructor in class. Register online or call 303-499-1125 x222 by October 21, 2008.

1 session on October 25, 2008
9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Cost $59 , Materials Fee $5
Instructor: Regina Sisco   Location: Boulder - New Vista High School

Return to top of page

National School Bus Safety Week
October 20-24 is National School Bus Safety Week. This year’s theme is: “Stop on Red, Kids Ahead.”
Here are some things to remember about school bus safety:

• School bus warning lights mean the same thing as traffic signal lights: flashing yellow lights mean caution, the bus is preparing to stop; and flashing red lights mean stop, children are boarding or exiting the bus.
  
• It is illegal to drive past a stopped school bus when the red lights are flashing.
  
• Yellow school buses safely transport almost 25 million children to and from school every day. BVSD transports 8,160 students on a daily basis.
  
• Use extra caution when driving in school zones – watch for children, slow down and pay attention to bus traffic.
  
• As daylight hours become shorter, it may be darkening or dark when children are boarding or exiting buses. Over half of all fatal pedestrian crashes and over one-fourth of fatal bicycle crashes involving school age children (ages 5 through 18) occur in low light or dark conditions.
  

Remember: Stop on Red, Kids Ahead!
(Information from the National Association of Pupil Transportation)

Saving for a Healthy Retirement – October 29, 4:00 p.m.
in the Aspen Room at the Ed Center
Human Resources and Payroll are sponsoring a series of information meetings about the district voluntary tax-deferred savings plans. BVSD offers three voluntary tax-deferred savings plans that you can contribute to through payroll deductions: 401(k), 403(b), and 457(b). Representatives of all the BVSD plans, including PERA, are scheduled to participate and answer questions. The first presentation in the series will be “Investing in a Volatile Environment."

Return to top of page

Impact on Education presents Andrew Romanoff
Andrew Romanoff is the second youngest Speaker of the House of Representatives in Colorado history. Over his eight years in the House of Representatives, Romanoff authored numerous measures to help improve education and is widely credited as the author of Referendum C, a major fiscal initiative approved by Colorado voters in 2005. In his final legislative session (he is term-limited), Romanoff successfully led an effort to put SAFE (Savings Account for Education) on the November ballot as Amendment 59. Romanoff is an engaging speaker who will share his perspectives on the inner workings of the legislature and how public policy is shaping the future of education in Colorado.

The event takes place Friday, October 24, 2008 from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. at the Millennium Harvest House in Boulder. Tickets are $25 and include breakfast. To purchase tickets go to boulderchamber.com and click on Register for Chamber Events. For more information, call 303-524-3865 or email Impact on Education.

Return to top of page

At our October 14, 2008 meeting with Superintendent Chris King,
the Teacher Advisory Council worked on the following:
IT: The appropriate use of Information Technology for teaching has been an ongoing agenda item during TAC meetings over the past several years, as we have seen so many new changes and requirements brought to us regarding computers and their use in classrooms. Most teachers have reported that their level of technology use for teaching and learning has diminished in the past few years due to a variety of problems with hardware, software, and service issues. In order to be more proactive regarding teachers' needs and suggestions for the future of IT,  TAC had a very productive round-table discussion with Dr. King regarding a new vision and implementation of instructional IT in BVSD. We will keep you updated as we move forward to improve IT for BVSD.

RtI: Dr. Ellen Miller-Brown identified this year as an “awareness year” regarding RtI. She also told us that a comprehensive list of appropriate interventions for each RtI tier is being compiled, and will be available in early December. TAC also asked for suggestions of acceptable modifications and accommodations for RtI students during regular tests and assessments. According to Dr. Miller-Brown, regular education teachers serve as the content experts in RTI, and Special Education teachers are the learning experts. They collaborate to help each individual RtI student. Every school is sending a team to an RtI leadership academy to learn more about this model. These teams will serve as RtI coaches for their schools.

Parent-Teacher Conferences: As each school community has different needs, each school tends to handle parent teacher conference schedules and teacher expectations differently. BVSD guidelines are being developed regarding number of hours and number of days required to earn release time, but these are guidelines for clarification purposes only, and are not to be used in a lock-step manner.

CSAP Calendar: TAC received the 2009 CSAP schedule from Jonathan Dings. We are reviewing the schedule and the list of comments Jonathan has received from teachers. We will follow up on this at our next meeting.

Return to top of page

BVSD switches to recycled content paper!
A big thanks to Becky Zidan and the purchasing department for making the switch from virgin paper, to paper with 30 percent post-consumer recycled content. This new paper will be stocked in the warehouse for use in all BVSD schools and the Ed Center. Becky’s keen eye caught the price drop in this paper, which allowed the switch (the differential had to be roughly 10 percent or less than the cost of virgin paper according to BVSD policy and practice). 

The environmental impact of this switch is monumental. In one year, the paper switch will require 182 tons less wood, 877 million BTU’s less energy, 459,385 gallons less water and will save 110,674 pounds of greenhouse gases from entering the atmosphere and prevent 58,992 less pounds of solid waste from entering landfills.*

TIP: Let’s build on this momentum by using less paper in our regular operations. When making copies, make only what you are certain you will use and always make copies double sided. This is an easy change which can cut our paper use in half.
*Environmental impact estimates were made using the Environmental Defense Fund Paper Calculator. For more information visit http://www.papercalculator.org. These estimates are based on purchasing 7,000 cases of paper (weighing 50 pounds each).

Return to top of page

Under New Management
James Hill, Assistant Principal Fairview High School, effective January 5, 2009.

Other Board Approvals

• The rescheduling of the November 11, 2008, board meeting to November 18, 2008 was approved by the board. The motions to cancel the November 25, 2008 and December 23, 2008, meetings were also approved.
  
• A donation of $20,000 has been made from the Foothill PTO to Foothill Elementary School. The board approved donation will be used to increase hours for non-licensed, classified personnel.
  
• The Intergovernmental Agreement between the Boulder County Sheriff's Office and the Boulder Valley School District RE-2 for a Joint School Resource Officer Program was approved. BVSD and the Boulder County Sheriff's Office have agreed to partner in sharing the expense of a Boulder County Sheriff School Resource Officer at our Arapahoe Campus. 
  
• American Sign Language classes are currently offered at New Vista High School, Nederland High School, and Monarch High School. The board approved an out-of-cycle textbook adoption for these classes.
  
• Final acceptance for the construction of the Professional Development Center was approved by the board. The construction of the PDC by Whitestone Construction is substantially complete and final punch list inspections have been completed by district staff.
  
• Historic landmark designation from the City of Lafayette for the original Lafayette High School building (1925) and gym (1952), currently part of Pioneer Bilingual Elementary School was supported by the board. Recently City of Lafayette representatives and BVSD staff have been in discussions over the establishment of an historic landmark designation for a portion of the Pioneer Bilingual Elementary school site under Lafayette’s historic preservation code. Such a designation would help assure the preservation of the original school structure and gym and require Historic Preservation Board review prior to any exterior modifications. The designation would also make the site eligible to access grant money slated for historic preservation. Only two other schools in the district, Whittier Elementary and University Hill, have a landmark designation through a municipality (Mapleton is in a historic district but is not individually landmarked). 
  
• The board approved the agreements with the University of Colorado to utilize the University's Baseline Lateral to carry the district's water from the Anderson Ditch to the Base Line Campus. The agreement with the University to lease water rights from the Smith and Goss Ditch for irrigation at Boulder High School was also approved.
  
• The board approved a structured consultant interview as the recommended method toward implementing a community engagement process.
  
• Resolution #08-25 in support of Amendment 59, the “SAFE Amendment,” on the November 4, 2008 Colorado General Election Ballot was ratified by the board. Amendment 59 will amend the Colorado Constitution to dedicate a new funding source for the benefit of public education and create a savings account to stabilize education funding during tough, economic times.

Return to top of page

Hat's Off! Superintendent's Honor Roll!
Congratulations to this week's Superintendent's Honor Roll recipient:

On October 2, 2008 the Boulder County Community Action Program held its 20th annual Multicultural Awards Banquet to recognize individuals who further the program's mission of reaching out to youth and low-income residents. BVSD Attendance Advocate Christina Suarez was chosen as the multicultural award winner for the field of education. Described by former Boulder County Public Health Director Chuck Stout as someone who, "has touched innumerable lives in amazingly positive ways and has created positive changes in systems that affect our most vulnerable residents," Christina has focused effectively on the needs of children and their families.

Return to top of page