An Internal Newsletter from the
Sherman ISD Communications Department
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Winter Break: No School December 20-31 |
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Sherman ISD schools and offices will be closed Dec. 20-31 for winter break. Staff members return to work on Monday, Jan. 3, 2022 for a teacher workday. Students return on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022. Have a happy and safe holiday season! |
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SISD Staff Honored at December School Board Meeting |
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Secondary Teacher of the Month
Heather Moothart
Biology and IPC
Sherman High School
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Employee of the Month
Sadie Mexia
Library
Perrin Early Childhood Center
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Elementary Teacher of the Month
Benjamin McCrary
Music
Washington Elementary
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Team of the Month
Barry Malvern, Mike Shaw, Curtis Linson and Marvin Taylor
Warehouse and Print Shop
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Heath Wester Sworn In as SISD Police Chief |
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Heath Wester was officially sworn in as the Sherman ISD Police Chief at the SISD Board of Trustees meeting Monday night, marking the start of the district’s own police department.
“It is an honor to be chosen to be the chief of police for Sherman ISD,” Wester said. “I look forward to working with Sherman ISD students, staff and parents, along with our community, to create strong relationships, which is essential to the success of this new department.”
Chief Wester was sworn in to office by Judge Rita Noel in a ceremony attended by representatives from the Sherman and Denison police departments, Grayson County Sheriff’s Office, Anna ISD police department and even some of Wester’s former colleagues from Grand Prairie Police Department. Wester’s son, Grayson, pinned the chief with his badge.
“I want parents to know that our kids are going to continue to be safe,” Wester said. “We’re going to be proactive in dealing with crime and we hope to be role models and mentors that our students can look up to.”
Wester is already working to bring initiatives like Campus Crime Stoppers to Sherman schools.
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Sherman ISD Campus/Department Questionnaire |
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Survey Closes Tuesday, January 4, 2022 |
Sherman ISD's annual employee survey is now open. As we strive to build a world-class school district together, it is important that we regularly evaluate our progress by identifying areas of organizational excellence, as well as areas for continued improvement. Feedback will remain anonymous and will be used in campuses, departments and as a district to make Sherman ISD even better for students, team members and our community.
Please take a few moments to complete this year's survey and consider your experiences this year as you answer each question to provide recognition and suggestions for improvement.
Working together, we can accomplish anything. Thank you for Building Bearcats every day!
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Sherman High School Holds AP Breakfast |
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The AP Breakfast Tuesday morning honored both students and staff for their accomplishments in Advanced Placement Exams. The following are the AP teachers at SHS: |
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- Joe Atwood
- Marsha Bayatfar
- Carrie Butts
- Grace Dewald
- Rachel Grace
- Anthony Hartman
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- Jossette McCurrin
- Deborah Paschke
- Suzi Richardson
- Anthony Shearer
- Steve Schutts
- Sandra Truly
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- Reid Wightman
- Ryan Williams
- Melody Young
- Sherry Young
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Neblett Elementary staff held a going away lunch for school nurse Kristen Waller.
"I will miss so many people that I've built great friendships with over the last couple of years," she wrote.
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Updates from Human Resources |
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Sub Shortage
Across the District, employees have had to pitch in and help when sub jobs weren’t filled. In the spring semester, we will continue to look for new subs and reward our current subs. For our current and future sub pool, the District is offering a spring add-on rate for each day worked in the 2022 Spring Semester. This add-on rate will be added to the pay the substitute is already receiving.
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We have many substitutes that have already worked more than 51 days this school year. Those substitutes will start earning the add-on rate of $30 per day on January 3, 2022. All pay rates will remain the same — this is simply an add-on to the sub’s normal rate. The add-on applies for all substitute jobs in the spring semester — jobs do not have to be consecutive or for the same person.
We have many substitute paraprofessionals and substitute teachers who have already worked 51 days this school year. These substitutes have the potential to earn more than $2,000 of additional income next semester. An email with this information was sent to all substitutes earlier today, but I wanted to make sure all SISD employees were also aware.
For substitute jobs that are not picked up, current employees (not subs) will be paid the following during the spring semester:
- Teachers who work as a sub during their conference period: $25 per conference period
- Teachers who split a class (for the entire day): Teachers will split the long-term sub rate, which is $190/number of teachers who split the class
- Example: There are four third-grade teachers on a team. One is out without a substitute. The three remaining teachers split the class. They will split the long-term rate and each will earn $63.33 for the day.
- For staff members whose work assignment is changed for the entire day due to the lack of a sub in a classroom: $25 per day
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Employee Healthcare
Recent legislation (SB 1444) gave school districts the opportunity to opt out of the TRS-ActiveCare system. Because SISD wants to provide the very best coverage and the very best possible rates for employees, extensive research was done to determine if the District could provide a better healthcare plan for employees. The District partnered with an outside consultant firm to analyze our healthcare claims data. This research showed that employees would see an increase of more than 30% to the cost of healthcare if we moved away from TRS-ActiveCare. Therefore, SISD will remain with TRS-ActiveCare for the 2022-2023 school year. SISD will continue to look at healthcare annually to make sure the best insurance options are available for employees.
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Teacher Incentive Allotment
The Teacher Incentive Allotment was created by the Texas Legislature as part of House Bill 3 in order to reward, recruit, and retain excellent teachers within rural and high socio-economic need schools. TIA allows school districts to create compensation plans for teachers based on teacher effectiveness and student equity. Our TIA Committee will begin meeting in January. Committee members have been notified of the dates and times of the meeting. If you missed the chance to volunteer for this committee and would like to serve, please email me.
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More information about the Teacher Incentive Allotment: |
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COVID Reporting
If you test positive for COVID-19 during Winter Break, please complete the SISD Employee Reporting Form. The form will be monitored during the break. Impacted employees will be contacted on January 2 and a return to work date will be set.
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Virtual TRS Retirement Seminar - February 5, 2022
Whatever your years of school experience, you are invited to attend a virtual retirement seminar hosted by the Texas Retired Teachers Association (TRTA).
Learn more about:
- General review of TRS benefits available
- Focus on retirement information
- Eligibility, tiers and calculation of benefits
- Retirement plans and death benefits
- Employment after retirement and insurance
If you are told the seminar is full, contact Cori Pratt, TRTA District 10 Retirement Ed Chairman at coripratt57@yahoo.com for assistance. |
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The SISD Board of Trustees approved several changes to Board and Local policies during Monday night's board meeting.
CFD(LOCAL): ACCOUNTING - ACTIVITY FUNDS MANAGEMENT
- Revisions of this policy have been updated to align with the recent amendments to the financial accountability guide on activity funds.
CQB(LOCAL): TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES – CYBERSECURITY
- Revisions to this policy gives the superintendent authority to impose consequences for failure to complete required cyber security training and to report any security breaches to TEA and others as required by law.
DFE(LOCAL): TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT – RESIGNATION
- Adjusted revisions to this policy to give the superintendent or other designee authority to accept employee resignations.
DP(LOCAL): PERSONNEL POSITIONS
- The policy was adjusted to match the job duties required for school counselors as a result of SB 179.
EHAA(LOCAL): BASIC INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAM - REQUIRED INSTRUCTION (ALL LEVELS)
- New provisions are recommended regarding requirements for adopting the human sexuality curriculum materials. A number of steps are required before action by the school board to approve the curriculum as recommended by the SHAC committee.
EHBC(LOCAL): SPECIAL PROGRAMS - COMPENSATORY/ACCELERATED SERVICES
- The revisions in this policy reference changes to accelerated instructions for students who fail to perform satisfactorily on math or reading state assessments in grades 3,5, or 8 to include a written education plan developed by an accelerated committee.
EIE(LOCAL): ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT - RETENTION AND PROMOTION
- Revisions to this policy includes removing the grade advancement testing section and adding in new language to allow parents the option to retain students in Pre-k through grade 8 or to allow students to retake a high school credit course.
FDE(LOCAL): ADMISSIONS - SCHOOL SAFETY TRANSFERS
- Revisions reflect a change as a result of HB 375, to amend the offense of continuous sexual abuse of a young child to include continuous sexual abuse of “a disabled individual.”
FEA(LOCAL): ATTENDANCE - COMPULSORY ATTENDANCE
- Revisions to this policy add text to create an optional excused absence for a student who is at least 15 years old to be absent for one day to obtain a learner license and for one day to obtain a drivers license.
FFG(LOCAL): STUDENT WELFARE - CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT
- The revisions to this policy include the standard of reporting child abuse and neglect to “reasonable” cause to believe and the definition of a person responsible for the care, custody or welfare of a child has been added.
FL(LOCAL): STUDENT RECORDS
- Adjusted language was added to remove “grade placement committee” to “accelerated learning committee” in accordance to HB 4545.
DEC (LOCAL) – COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS – LEAVES AND ABSENCES
- With the development of a Sherman ISD Police Department, additional policy was added to include mental health leave and quarantine leave provisions for police officers.
CKE (LOCAL) – SAFETY PROGRAM/RISK MANAGEMENT – SECURITY PERSONNEL
- With the development of a Sherman ISD Police Department, new policy has been added to our manual to describe the district police department including jurisdiction, police authority, and other requirements set forth by the district.
BE (LOCAL) – BOARD MEETINGS
- Revisions to this policy included adjusted language to the agenda preparation, time and place of meeting to reflect current practices.
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Don't forget to wear your United Way t-shirt (and jeans!) on United Way Wednesdays from now until January 26! |
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Dallas Mavericks Teacher Appreciation Night |
Come join the Dallas Mavericks on December 21 for Teacher Appreciation Night!
All educators, friends and family can enjoy a special discount on tickets as the Mavs take on the Timberwolves. All attendees can shoot a free throw on the Mavs court after the game!
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Holiday Skip a Pay from Texoma Educators Federal Credit Union |
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AirMedCare Network Annual Membership Offer |
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Notifications of Positive Case
Communication Guidelines for SISD Teachers and Staff
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The SISD Communications Department notifies families via email when an individual on their campus reports a positive case of COVID-19. These emails direct parents to the SISD COVID Dashboard for further information about cases on a certain campus.
If you receive questions about a notification from parents or students, please direct them to the SISD COVID Dashboard for further information.
The tabs at the bottom of the dashboard will open a campus-specific spreadsheet that gives additional information on each case. At the elementary level, cases are identified by positive test date, student/staff, grade and homeroom. At the secondary level, cases are identified by positive test date, student/staff, grade and extracurricular activities/clubs.
Due to privacy laws, we cannot release further information regarding individual cases.
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We would love the opportunity to feature honors and recognitions received by SISD employees. Please send accomplishments and news to Arena Blake at ablake@shermanisd.net.
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