EMPLOYEE NEWSLETTER
SAVE THE DATE!
Mark your calendars for our upcoming Teacher Appreciation. Feb. 27 6:00-8:00 p.m.
There will be costumes. There will be prizes. School spirit is encouraged. SIGN UP TODAY!
M&O Moving To New Building
As part of the district’s ongoing efforts to free up space on the Idaho Falls High School campus and consolidate operations, the Board of Trustees recently approved the purchase of a new maintenance and operations building on Hemmert Ave. The building will not only house Maintenance and Operations but also grounds and the warehouse. Those departments will move into the building over the next few months with hopes the moves will be finished by June.  
Souper Bowl Collects More Than 100,000 Cans!
Congratulations to Idaho Falls and Skyline high schools and all our other schools who supported this year's Souper Bowl! IFHS and SHS collected more than 120,000 cans of food for the Idaho Falls Community Food Basket, which is an incredible feat.

The Community Food Basket has come to depend on these donations. About a third of their annual donated food comes from the Souper Bowl. Each year the food drive gives them the ability to stretch their resources to meet the needs of about 12,000 more people than they would be able to help without D91's support.
Compass Accepting Applications
D91 is starting the high school registration process and our 8th graders will be making decisions about whether they want to attend Compass Academy or Idaho Falls or Skyline high schools.

Compass applications are available on the district website. They will be accepted Feb. 19-22. Learn more about the application process. Questions? Send them to us.
A Big Thank You To Brad Barlow!
Fabulous artwork of our students learning and teachers teaching is now hanging in the newly renovated District Office thanks to local photographer Brad Barlow. Brad spent several weeks visiting schools and taking photographs. We appreciate his time and talents!
Looking For A Fundraiser?
There’s no better fundraiser than the D91 Ed Foundation/Teton Raffle. Tickets sell for $10, $9 goes to the group, team or club selling the ticket and $1 goes to the D91 Ed Foundation. This year’s prize is a 2018 VW Atlas and it is wrapped and ready to appear at your event. Please let us know if you would like to sell raffle tickets!
Join Our Team!!
Know someone looking for work? Tell them to check out our career page or to follow the D91Jobs Facebook page.

On Feb. 9 there will be a Job Fair for Elementary Teachers. For more information go to the following link.
Planning For The Future
The Board of Trustees recently approved two land deals that will poise the district for future growth.

As part of a land transfer with Rockwell Homes, Inc., the district recently traded 24.84 acres next to Taylorview Middle School for $263,000 in cash and about 13 acres in the Avalon subdivision. The Avalon subdivision is on Holmes near 65 th South. The property was purchased as a possible site for a future elementary school.

The district also has purchased about 66 acres along 49 th South near Holmes. At one time the land was being considered as a site for a new high school, but those plans were scrapped after defeat of the bond. While the district doesn’t have any specific plans for this property at this time, based on the growth we're seeing on the south side of Idaho Falls, it is clear the district will have future needs in that area.
Idaho Falls Celebrates Engineers Week
D91 is proud to partner with the City of Idaho Falls and INL contractors on the city’s celebration of National Engineers Week Feb. 17-23. The keynote speaker for this year’s celebration is Vera Mulyani, the founder and CEO of Mars City Design , which is developing and nurturing concepts for sustainable life on Mars.

Our 6 th graders will have the chance to learn about the Mars City Design project during a special field trip on Friday, Feb. 22. A few elementary school teachers will tour some INL projects with Mulyani that same day. Science, math and engineering teachers and students will hear from Vera and meet INL engineers at a special reception that night at The Waterfront. Learn more at www.ifschools.org .
IFEA Members Update
Congratulations to Jessica Marboe and Zoe Ann Jorgenson! They were sponsored by the IEA to attend the NEA's National Leadership Summit in Denver this March. The IEA only sponsors four delegates to attend that conference so it's a big honor the IEA selected two Idaho Falls educators. 

Also in March, Janette Duarte will be attending the NEA's ESP Quality Department's ESP State Staff Coordinator's meeting. Each ESP State StaffCoordinator was asked to bring two ESP activist/leaders from their state and Janette was picked from the IFEA to be part of Idaho's team. 

The IFEA is proud that three of its members are helping to shape the future of the profession and our association!
D91 Gears Up For Kinder Registration
Our elementary schools are gearing up for kindergarten registration. Parents with incoming kindergartners are encouraged to register early, especially with increasing enrollment pressures on our south side elementary schools.

Kindergarten registration kicks off March 5. Parents can download a registration packet from the district website or pick one up at an elementary school. To register, parents must bring a copy of the child’s birth certificate, updated immunization records and a document to verify their address. Children must be 5 on or before Sept. 1 to enroll in kindergarten in Idaho.
New Standards Mean Curriculum Changes
A team of D91 teachers is working on updating our courses and curriculum so they meet the new science standards Idaho adopted last year. The standards are based on the Next Generation Science Standards, which were developed over several years to improve science education for all.

Some of the new standards’ features include: three-dimensional learning, engineering principles and the nature of science integrated throughout, science connections to math and literacy and students engaging with phenomena and design solutions.

The goal is to adopt new science curriculum to meet the new standards for K-8 in time for the 2019-20 school year. Curriculum work for grades 9-12 will begin next year with new curriculum for the 2020-21 school year.

These changes also will affect when students study different areas of science . Our teachers have selected the following course progression: Grades K-5 General Science, Grade 6 Earth and Space Science, Grade 7 Life Science and Grade 8 Physical Science. The high school progression will be finalized as that curriculum work is done next year.
To learn more about Idaho’s new science standards go to ww.nextgenscience.org
D91 Sets Supplemental Levy Election
The Board of Trustees is asking D91 patrons to renew the $6.8 million supplemental levy, which provides critical funding to the district. It has been in place for more than 30 years. The amount has not changed since 2003. The election is March 12. Polls will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Learn more about the Supplemental Levy Election .
Questions? Send them to us.
D91 Ed Foundation Offers Scholarships
If you know a senior make sure they know about the D91 Education Foundation’s Scholarship programs.

The foundation oversees the Odd Fellows Scholarship, which provides two $5,000 scholarships to a graduating D91 senior and a former D91 graduate now attending college. It also manages the Maeck Family Foundation Scholarship Fund, which offers at least one $2,500 scholarship to a graduating D91 senior.

There aren’t many local scholarships around that offer such sizeable awards so please help spread the word to our students. Learn more.  
How to Spot Bogus URLs
Our email filter often blocks suspicious links in district email, but it is unable to monitor staff personal email. Public email companies may also have built-in protection for their users. Despite these protections, a high percentage of known breaches have some human component. Our employees are the last line of defense against malware. Be extra vigilant with your personal email when on the district network. When you are uncertain about an email, place your cursor over a link to see the destination URL. The main address of a site consists of the text that comes after the two forward slashes and before the next forward slash.
Questions? Send them to cybersecurity@d91.k12.id.us.
Indicators of Bogus URLs
  • Addresses with all numbers for the main part or for the site name
  • Addresses that use common internet site names as part of the address but actually have different site names
  • The presence of the @ sign in a URL (a web browser reads the address portion of the URL from right to left and ignores everything to the left of the @ sign)
  • Misspellings or small alterations of a well-known company
Increased Flu Activity
We're seeing colds, flu and other winter time illnesses in eastern Idaho, and as a result we're seeing the same in our schools.

The district is monitoring absences and taking some extra precautions to try and reduce the transmission of colds and flu, such as wiping down surfaces with antiseptic wipes.

Best thing staff can do is follow the CDC recommendations to reduce the spread of germs.MOST IMPORTANT one being to stay home from school or work if you're sick.

Other recommendations include:
  • Cover your mouth with a tissue when you cough and sneeze.
  • Wash your hands with soap and water frequently or with an alcohol-based hand rub.
  • Clean and disinfect surfaces that may be contaminated.
Pros of Outdoor Winter Exercise
Plummeting temperatures and less daylight cause many people to cut back significantly on exercise or shift exercise indoors. Don't be temped, here are three great reasons (and a few precautions) to encourage you to bundle up and head outside.
  • You burn more calories. Research shows that exercising regularly in cold temperatures can increase the production of calorie-burning brown fat and can increase your overall metabolism significantly.
  • Your mood improves. A 2017 study found that climbing outdoors for several hours, compared with indoor walking on a treadmill, improved feelings of pleasure and reduced feelings of fatigue.
  • Your overall health improves. According to a large study from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, outdoor exercise may decrease the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease by up to 27% and was strongly associated with higher levels of vitamin D.
Important considerations:
  • Consider your heart. If you have a history of heart disease or two or more risk factors for heart disease, cold weather exercise can actually cause a heart attack.
  • Don't forget to drink. Even though you may not sweat as much, you are still losing a considerable amount of body fluid exercising in the cold.
  • Protect your skin. It may not seem as sunny, but you can still get a sunburn during the winter.
  • Dress smart. Don't over- or underdress if you are exercising outdoors. Exercise causes your body to heat up fairly rapidly, so bundling up too much can cause you to get overheated.
For more info, click here.
UPCOMING
Feb. 27: Teacher Appreciation Celebration
Mar. 1: End of 2nd Trimester
Mar. 4: Teacher Work Day - No School
Mar. 7: Early dismissal grades 1-6 for Parent Teacher Conferences
Mar. 8: No School K & Pre-K for Parent Teacher Conferences
Mar. 10: Daylight Savings starts
Mar. 17: St. Patrick's Day
Mar. 18-22: Spring Break - No School
Apr. 15: Tax Day
Apr. 21: Easter Sunday
D91 Teams Headed to State
IFHS boys basketball and Skyline wrestling are heading to state! Tigers boys basketball beat Bonneville over the weekend to win the district championship and secure their spot at state. This week the grizzlies are sending off their wrestling team to compete in Pocatello at state.
We are D91Proud of our sports teams! Good Luck!
Boyes Continues Recycling
Ethel Boyes 6th grade is conducting a yearlong recycling initiative as part of Recycle Rally. They just completed a 2-week challenge to Love the Planet where they filled 2 truck beds with recyclables. Keep it up bulldogs!
Taylorview MathCounts WINS!
Taylorview's MathCounts team took FIRST PLACE out of the 16 teams that competed recently in Pocatello! They are headed to state in March. Congratulations students and adviser, 8th grade math teacher, Mike Teske!
Erickson College and Career Day
We are D91Proud of all our students thinking about college and life beyond high school. Dora Erickson had a college and career day where everyone researched colleges and careers and made posters. Students planned for their futures and they look bright!
Erickson Advances to Finals
D91 schools have been competing in and winning prizes through Imagine Learning's literacy programs. We are D91PROUD of Dora Erickson, which advance to the finals and took 2nd place! They logged the second most minutes of literacy learning. Way to make literacy fun and interactive!
Boyes Brings Learning to Life
Ethel Boyes had some visitors from Teton Raptor Center. Sixth grade students got to see and interact with different kinds of birds from their current expeditionary learning reading material. What a way to bring learning to life!
Taylorview Gets Career Ready
Taylorview students are getting career ready! Students took part in a career fair featuring more than 30 local professionals who talked about their careers and the steps they took to land those jobs.

A BIG thank you to all the staff, parents and community members who gave their time to inspire young minds and make this amazing event possible.
BPA Regional Competition
Teams from Compass, Skyline and Idaho Falls High Schools competed in the regional BPA competition and 60 students qualified for the state competition.
A big thanks to Mr. Waetje, Ms. Hott and Mr. Smith for mentoring these students!
Have something we should be D91Proud of?
Let us know what is going on in your school or classroom! If you have pictures, videos or information you'd like us to post send it our way.
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Idaho Falls School District 91  | (208)525-7500