We thank our Valerius Elementary students this month for sharing their Encouraging Words.
#webelieveinU
In Travis Bradberry and Jean Greaves' small but mighty book, Emotional Intelligence 2.0 , emotional intelligence (EQ) is defined as "your ability to recognize and understand emotions in yourself and others and your ability to use this awareness to manage your behavior and relationships." Throughout their research, they found that EQ is "the single biggest predictor of performance in the workplace and the strongest driver of leadership and personal excellence."

A core component of EQ is empathy. It's about relating to others in a way that communicates the healing message of, "I hear you, you're not alone, we'll get through this together."

Empathy is a fundamental skill for children and adults. One's EQ is not fixed, in that it's a skill that can be improved over time. To that end, Dr. Brené Brown shares the following four steps when responding with empathy: 1. Perspective Taking/putting yourself in someone else’s shoes. 2. Staying out of judgement and listening. 3. Recognizing emotion in another person that you have maybe felt before. 4. Communicating that you can recognize that emotion.

Ultimately, empathy is about building connection and creating a safe space for others to share their stories. It's letting others know they are not alone. Take a moment to view this  video by the Cleveland Clinic as it communicates (with no words spoken) an incredibly memorable message about the power of empathy.
School Board Elections

Strong leadership is critical to moving education forward in our state and our local school district. School board members play significant roles in our community and school district – they must have leadership, vision, and dedication. They are charged with accountability for student learning, determining educational goals, setting policy, overseeing school finances and much more.

School board members are elected to serve four-year terms, with elections taking place in odd-numbered years. Those elected receive no pay. During this election, we have five (5) candidates running for four (4) seats. The candidates are (in alphabetical order):

  • Ashley Anderson          
  • Judy Downs              
  • John Hollebrands          
  • Katherine Howsare        
  • Brianna Sayre Geiser  
    
This year’s election takes place on Tuesday, November 5th from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. I encourage everyone to get out and vote in this important election. Thank you for your continued support in the Urbandale Community School District.

Respectfully,

Steve Bass
UCSD Superintendent



  • Flyer Hub (flyers for community activities and events)

Urbandale Community School District has been named a 2018 All Star Award winner by Constant Contact. The annual award recognizes the most successful 10 percent of Constant Contact’s customer base, which includes over 600,000 customers worldwide, based on their significant achievements using email marketing to engage their customer base and drive results for their organization during the prior year.
Educational Equity Statement
It is the policy of the Urbandale Community School District not to discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, sex, religion, marital status (for program), ethnic background, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, age (for employment), or socio-economic background (for program) in its educational programs and its employment practices. There is a grievance procedure for processing complaints of discrimination. If you have questions or a grievance related to this policy, please contact the District office at 11152 Aurora Avenue, Urbandale, IA or call 515-457-5000. The District’s Equity Coordinators are Dr. Keri Schlueter, Coordinator of Student Services (schlueterk@urbandaleschools.com), Loren DeKruyf, Director of Human Resources and Operations (dekruyfl@urbandaleschools.com), and Dr. Crista Carlile, Director of Teaching and Learning (carlilec@urbandaleschools.com).
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