Education Forum

Tuesday, February 3, 2015 (All day) to Wednesday, February 4, 2015 (All day)

Thank you for attending the
NCSA/NASB
2015 Education Forum


Handouts provided are linked in the session titles below.

Session Handouts

The Wellness Impact: Enhancing Academic Success Through Healthy School Environments (Handout 2)
John Skretta, Norris School Dist. 160, and Bethn Bruck-Upton, Hunger Free Heartland
Enhancing Academic Success through Healthy School Environments Program Description: The Wellness Impact addresses why school wellness is more important than ever to students’ and our nation’s future. This presentation examines the vital importance of improved nutrition and increased physical activity in ensuring a school environment that enhances students’ readiness to learn. Learning Objectives: Following this presentation, the learner should be able to: Describe today’s health and wellness environment and the impact it has on schools and children. Explain the learning connections between nutrition, physical activity and cognition. Identify the negative impact the current school environment has on students, schools and the community. Identify barriers to implementing wellness policies. List 5 positive action steps schools and community stakeholders can take to improve school wellness.


Corporal Punishment: Sure to be a hit!
Steve Williams and Karen Haase,
KSB School Law
For more than 25 years, Nebraska law has prohibited educators from using corporal punishment.  But what does that mean?  Is it running laps in P.E.?  Is it washing a student's mouth out with soap?  Taping a student's mouth shut? Steve and Karen will review real life case scenarios where corporal punishment became a turning issue.  (NOTE: no reenactments unless you clap loudly.)

Lessons Learned in the PLC Implementation Process for Small SchoolsP
David Fritson and Andrew Farber, Arlington Public Schools
Attendees will learn how one school district has implemented a positive, skill-based behavior management system district wide and the impact it has made with all stakeholders. Presenters will share the change in creating a more positive building climate, empowering teachers, increasing parental involvement with being proactive and the importance of the administration's role.

Transgendered Students
Bobby Truhe and Steve Williams,
KSB School Law
There have a been a few high profile transgendered student issues in the news and in the courts.  There have been several examples from schools in Nebraska, and there will be many more as you continue to educate a diverse generation of students.  This session will cover the current state of the law along with an exploration of the practical issues schools will need to consider in educating this population of students.

Building and Sustaining School Culture: Making the Change
Cameron Soester, Mark Olson, TJ Meyer, Brandon Mowinkel, and Kevin Wingard, Milford Public Schools
Educators know intuitively that a positive school culture leads to higher student achievement; furthermore educational research supports this common sense idea.  So how, then, do schools build a positive school culture?  At Milford Public Schools we are building and reinforcing a positive school culture through the use of an overarching theme.  This comprehensive theme is expressed through this exhortation:  “Everyone has a story . . . make yours worth telling.”  Students are supported as they write their story by our PK-12, district-developed, character education/discipline model - Eagle Pride.  The Eagle Pride model gives us the vocabulary and protocols we need to make sure we are doing what is best for our kids.  The success we have had flows from everyone working toward a common goal while recognizing that school culture is always a work in progress. In our judgment, the work has paid dividends for both our students and staff.

Implementing a District Leadership Academy
Mike Rupprecht, Ralston Public Schools
Effective leadership is what separates a good school district from a great one.  In a time where talented leaders are in short supply, what steps can districts take to ensure their future success?  This session will focus the leadership development program currently offered by the Ralston Public Schools.  The presenter will address issues facing school officials in regards to the planning, content, and administration of these programs.  Special emphasis will also be given to the research that has been conducted on the overall effectiveness of Ralston’s program.

Obamacare Update: 2015 and Beyond
Bobby Truhe and Karen Haase,
KSB School Law
Your district has determined its transition relief, and you've done some planning.  Karen and Bobby will discuss Obamacare as we move into your school's lookback period, and they will discuss the new reporting requirements which begin for the 2015 year.  There's no need to panic, but you should begin thinking about Obamacare beyond transition relief. This session will be particularly helpful for analyzing the types of decisions board members and administrators have to make moving forward.

Getting Analytical: Using Voter Analytics to Assist with Passing a Bond Issue
Steve Dethlefs, Fort Calhoun Community Schools, Representative Minden Public Schools, Representative from DC West Community Schools, Mark Pfister, Boyd Jones Construction
Getting Analytical:  Using Voter Analytics to Assist with Passing a Bond Issue.   In its simplest form, any election is won by gaining more “yes” votes than “no” votes.  In this session, we will describe how (3) separate school districts, (Fort Calhoun, Minden, and DC West) employed voter analytics to gain an advantage in this process.  Political campaigns have employed this strategy for years, but it seems to be a new concept as it relates to school bond issue elections.  Representatives from each school district will share their experience on their recent bond issue elections.

Kearney High Small Learning Communities (SLCs) and Career & Technical Education (CTE) For ALL!
Jay Dostal, Kearney Public Schools
In the fall of 2016, Kearney High School will be opening the doors to a brand new high school due to a bond being passed in September of 2013. In this session, you will learn about the NDE reVision process that KHS went through and how they are developing Small Learning Communities (SLCs) based off of the Nebraska Career Education Model.

Responding to Public Records Requests
James Gessford and Derek Aldridge, Perry Law Firm
Whether its new internet companies from all over the country, the news media, teacher unions or a savvy local patron, some school districts are beginning to face an avalanche of public records requests.  In this session, the Perry Law Firm will discuss these recent developments, review applicable legal standards and provide guidelines for response in case your district is next.

There's Only One Realistic Way to Improve Your School…
Chad Dumas, Hastings Public Schools
There's only one way to improve your school: Improve the quality of teaching in every classroom, every day. There isn’t any other way. So how do you do this? By increasing educator effectiveness. And how do you do this? Through using the “Standards of Professional Learning." Find out how to maximize your improvement efforts by improving educator effectiveness!

 
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