WAEA: After The Bell...

Miss Monday's WA Board meeting and need a quick summary of the important events? We catch up with Sue Darden, our diligent WA Observer, to get the run-down on all the issues of the evening.

In this episode we discuss:

• WAEA's Local Lobby Day
• Approval for additional funds for bussing 
• Calendar revisions
• Trampolines/rebounding devices

You can read Sue's fantastic notes on the meeting here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-OBt6H9vWy14RjBJcX88ZD79478u_aLF/edit?usp=share_link&ouid=104733766717476981384&rtpof=true&sd=true

Or you can watch the full board meeting here:
https://youtu.be/vvJy3eWkAPA

Miss Monday's WA Board meeting and need a quick summary of the important events? We catch up with Sue Darden, our diligent WA Observer, to get the run-down on on all the issues of the evening.

You can read Sue's fantastic notes on the meeting here!

The IEA's annual "Educators' Day on the Hill" is coming up on January 16th and many WAEA members will be in attendance to establish relationships with legislators and proactively advocate for public education in the state of Idaho. We have a large group of 1st time Lobby Day attendees this year, so we sat down with the IEA's Political Director and head lobbyist Chris Parri to get a little bit of information about the event, how to prepare and what is at stake. 

While the larger IEA Lobby Day registration is already closed, you can still register for the WAEA's "Little Lobby Day" on January 23rd (email [email protected] for more info) or become a contributing P.A.C.E. member by signing up on the IEA's website here:
https://idahoea.org/advocacy/pace/

In a profession fraught with extremely difficult and complex challenges, there are few as  complex and frustrating as the issue of extreme student behaviors.  In this episode we sit down with Jamie Giebler and Jennifer Tachell, the District's two Behavioral Consultants, to help us unpack the nature of the problem and what supports/solutions are available to those struggling this year.

Mandt Crisis Cycle Chart

Multi-Tiered Systems of Support 

In the last year, there have been few voices or organizations that have championed the cause of public education as powerfully as Reclaim Idaho. Reclaim is the group behind the wildly popular ballot initiatives for expanding Medicaid which was overwhelming approved two years ago, and the Quality Education Act which likely would have passed this year but was pulled in September after successfully accomplishing it's primary goal of increasing spending on education.  

In this episode we sit down with  one of Reclaim's co-founders, Luke Mayville to discus the organizations successful previous actions, organizing strategy and the group's current focus: stopping voucher (or voucher-like programs) from advancing in this year's legislative session.   

Last week, Chief HR Officer Dave Roberts sent out a leadership survey which is taking the place of the climate surveys the district had previously administered.  The WAEA has experienced a large amount of confusion and some distrust over the survey and how its results would be used. As a result, we invited Nick Smith on the podcast to help us clear up a few issues and help put folks at ease about the survey.

All surveys must be filled out by Friday, December 16th  and this information is really an invaluable tool not only for the district but the association in helping identify problem schools. We implore all teachers in the district who have not yet already done so to listen to the interview and take the survey as soon as possible! 

Miss Monday's WA Board meeting and need a quick summary of the important events? We catch up with Sue Darden, our diligent WA Observer, to get the run-down on all the issues of the evening.

In this episode we discuss:

• Math Symposium 
• High School Advisory 
• Tudor.com
• All Day Kindergarten 
• Work Session on WA Core Values

You can read Sue's fantastic notes on the meeting here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rPpF34S87nG1lGRilH3BjkN5YIn_-LI6/edit?usp=share_link&ouid=104733766717476981384&rtpof=true&sd=true

Or you can watch the full board meeting here:
https://youtu.be/Snw8MXW1PZ0

Miss Monday's WA Board meeting and need a quick summary of the important events? We catch up with Sue Darden, our diligent WA Observer, to get the run-down on on all the issues of the evening.

You can read Sue's fantastic notes on the meeting here!

On Friday, October 14th the West Ada School District announced that it would be switching its insurance provider from Blue Cross of Idaho to Regence. Blue Cross has been the districts provider for 22 years, so the decision was not one that was made lightly. 

In this episode, we sit down with the District's Chief HR Officer, Dave Roberts,  to talk us through the decision, help us understand some of the things to expect with the change, and how to best utilize our insurance benefits. 

Miss Monday's WA Board meeting and need a quick summary of the important events? We catch up with Sue Darden, our diligent WA Observer, to get the run-down on on all the issues of the evening.

You can read Sue's fantastic notes on the meeting here!