Regional Office of Education 47

JOIN US : July 9th or August 13th ! Community Parent Cafe's @RegionalOffice47 #RegionalOffice47

Don't miss out on the Summer Events Happening this summer! Join us ! @RegionalOffice47 #RegionalOffice47

Open Position : Family Support Specialist @ Center 4 Change Applicants must have the ability to work effectively with students, parents, staff, colleagues, school districts and community, Excellent communication, organization, and case management skills, Advocacy skills, including the ability to negotiate, compromise, and confront conflict, including crisis intervention, Willingness to persist with students, despite their behavior and decision-making, Experience in creating safe and welcoming social emotional learning environments, Passion for serving at-risk and underserved youth Experience fostering strength based educational programming Reports To: Principal at the Center for Change Education Requirements: Minimal of Bachelor Degree in a human service field (counseling/social work background preferred: Our Family Support Specialist works with and supports students' social emotional needs as well as does work with class schedules, transcripts and other tasks as assigned by the supervisor. Ensures that ALOP procedures are implemented with fidelity (ie obtaining consent, SSP goal development/monitoring, case note documentation, etc). Prepares and facilitates frequent in-person check-ins with all students, Works as a liaison between family and school to create and implement a plan for students academic and social-emotional success Provides ongoing support in areas of academic deficiencies (credit recovery, executive functioning support, tutoring, etc), social emotional development, and resources around other identified areas of need. Proactively communicates with parents/guardians in order to support student growth, Monitors attendance, behavior, and grades Responds and intervenes in student crises in accordance with school policy. Plans and facilitates SEL sessions with other staff. Provide transitional support in career and post-secondary exploration. Terms of Employment: Working hours would be 8:00-2:30 M-F. Salary range $45-48K not counting benefits Evaluation: Performance of this job will be evaluated by the the Principal of the Center For Change For more information, contact Josh Knuth , Assistant Regional Superintendent of Schools Lee, Ogle, and Whiteside Counties .

Parents as Teachers First Years had an overload of cuteness at the parks on Friday! Thank you to East Coloma-Nelson School and Sterling Police Department for sharing their puppies with us. The children (and families and staff) really enjoyed interacting with the dogs and learning about pet safety. @RegionalOffice47 #RegionalOffice47

ROE 47 recently donated 500 outreach bags to the Let's Feed Our Children program sponsored by Whiteside County United Way. Bags contain a book, a personal care item, math games, summer fun events for families, information about trauma and mental health, and other helpful resources - all at no cost to families. This outreach is sponsored by the ISBE community partnership grant and a grant from the Illinois Department of Public Health.

FOCUS ON FAMILIES : Keeping your Kids Safe Online : A Parent's Guide to Popular Apps Virtual, June 13th @ 12:00 pm JOIN US ! @RegionalOffice47 #RegionalOffice47

From the comfort of your own home, join us for an engaging and supportive gathering designed just for you! We'll be chatting about all things summer, including meals, activities, and self-care. 🗓 Date: June 4 ⏰ Time: 7:00 PM 📍 Location: Online - Be sure to RSVP at https://forms.fillout.com/t/4fVKR4jJxdus and the Zoom link will be sent to you. Don't miss out on this opportunity to connect and share with others in our community. Let's make this summer the best one yet!

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Series @ SVCC June 12th - Diving Deeper into UDL June 13th - Putting UDL into Practice Register by June 7th at www.roe47.org @RegionalOffice47 #RegionalOffice47

District Spotlight : Meridian 223 District Meridian 223 District first to receive "Gold Achievement" of Excellence in Education Meridian Community Unit School District 223, is the first school district to receive a Gold Achievement of Excellence award from the internationally recognized performance-driven organization, The Partnership for Excellence, dating back to the organization’s inception 25 years ago. Established in 1998, The Partnership for Excellence is a non-profit four-state (Illinois, Ohio, Indiana, and West Virginia) cooperative that supports, promotes, and evaluates organizations based on the Baldridge Excellence Framework. The framework’s goal is to improve organizational outcomes based on performance excellence, providing assessment tools and criteria, educating leaders across various sectors, and recognizing industry role models through the only award of its kind. Dr. PJ Caposey, Superintendent of Meridian CUSD 223, stated, “The Baldridge Excellence Framework has been a key element in all improvement efforts at Meridian CUSD 223 for nearly a decade. Over the past few years under the direction of Dr. Joe Mullikin, we were able to improve our knowledge of the framework, our internal practices, and our application of it. To achieve what no other school district has been able to do over the past 25 years is nothing short of amazing and a credit to our team.”

NAMI Sauk Area- CHECK THIS OUT! @RegionalOffice47 #RegionalOffice47

Lani Lawson's Teach- Train - Thrive Presented by : Illinois Elevating Special Educators Network June 6th in Macomb June 11th in Dixon June 25th in Peoria August 14th in Sterling @RegionalOffice47 #RegionalOffice47

Congratulations to Rock Falls High School student Israel Alvarado was featured in the Midwest Technical Institute welding competition video. He placed 13th out of Midwest region competition. @RegionalOffice47 #RegionalOffice47

CONGRATULATIONS to Mrs. Stacy Germann who is the 2024 Marigold Award Winner! Stacey is a reading interventionist at Fulton Elementary School and was nominated by Principal Jeffrey Hoese. I am honored and privileged to nominate Mrs. Stacy Germann for the ROE 47 Marigold Award in recognition of her exceptional contributions and leadership to our school community. Stacy currently serves as a reading interventionist at the Greatest Little Elementary School in the Universe (also known as Fulton Elementary School) and as the varsity volleyball coach at Fulton High School. Her 29-year career has made a lasting impact in our district as she devotes so much time, expertise, and energy to our students. Stacy is a devoted and passionate educator with a keen focus on early literacy. She works with students in our low reading rooms in both Kindergarten and first grade, provides tier 3 and tier 2 intervention support for students in grades K-2, and supports our highest need first graders as a certified and trained Reading Recovery teacher. Using student data, Stacy is vital to our school process in identifying students who need additional support and collaborates with colleagues in helping to meet those needs. To start the 23-24 school year, FES had an open interventionist position that needed to be filled for the entire first semester by a long-term substitute teacher. Putting students first, Stacy took it upon herself to handle the additional lesson planning, preparation, and organizing for the substitute which essentially doubled her own workload. She has also provided key mentorship to several new K-2 teachers throughout the year helping them with literacy strategies and planning. During the second semester, Stacy has provided additional mentorship and support to a Steamer alum who graduated college in December and is currently teaching abroad in Thailand. She has stayed in close contact with the alum, provided key mentorship, and sent her numerous literacy materials to help her be successful. It is amazing to see Stacy’s impact is not just restricted to our Steamer Nation community, but is international as well! In addition, Stacy is currently in the first year of the LETRS cohort offered through ROE 47. She has taken it upon herself to begin piloting many of the concepts and strategies she has learned in order to share her experiences with her colleagues. Her leadership has also led to meaningful collaboration with our Early Literacy Team as we look to restructure our curriculum and process with our early learners. Moreover, Stacy consistently makes positive contributions to our school climate and culture. Her enthusiasm, professionalism, and dedication to continuous improvement as well as her advocacy for students have had a profound impact on our students, staff, and families alike. Her ability to build strong relationships and create a welcoming and inclusive environment is truly commendable. I believe that Stacy Germann is highly deserving of the ROE 47 Marigold Award for her leadership qualities, positive impact on our school community, and outstanding performance of continually going above and beyond. She truly embodies the spirit of excellence and dedication that this award seeks to recognize. In this school year alone, she has coached a successful and busy varsity volleyball season, performed outstandingly in the classroom, mentored numerous new teachers, doubled her workload in assisting our long-term interventionist substitute, supported a Steamer alum teaching internationally, and done all of that while tackling the LETRS coursework. This may be her 29th year in education, but I would confidently say this is her finest year yet. Thank you for being a marigold in our schools! Congratulations!

Let's Feed the Children! @RegionalOffice47 #RegionalOffice47

CONGRATULATIONS to Jennifer Popejoy, who was nominated for the Marigold Award! Jennifer is a teacher at Riverdale was nominated by Catherine Workman. This was Jennie's first year teaching our Special Ed class. It was something expected and anticipated but a great challenge. Jennie started out nervous, unsure, and unprepared for the struggles she would face, including multiple times where she was short staffed and her paraprofessionals changed throughout the years. It has been a year where the needs of her students have been the highest we have seen. Rather than feel defeated each day, and just take on an attitude of "after this year I won't have to do this", Jennie has risen to the occasion. Jennie has formed beautiful relationships with her special students, found new ways to teach and reach each one. Jennie still has difficult days, such is the life of a teacher, but she has truly embraced this role and her students have made amazing progress under her guidance this year. She has let their victories, great or small, bring her joy. I am incredibly proud to be able to witness Jennie's transformation this year. An already fantastic teacher, became an outstanding one. Thank you for being a marigold in our schools!

Congratulations to all the Marigold Award Nominees and stay tuned to see our winner named! We are so excited to be announcing our 2024 Marigold Award Winner on Monday, May 13th !

Parents as Teachers had a great time at the YWCA's Cinco de Mayo Wellness Festival on Friday, May 3rd. @RegionalOffice47 #RegionalOffice47

CONGRATULATIONS to Lacy Halverson, who was nominated for the Marigold Award! Lacy is a teacher at Challand Middle School and was nominated by Linda Brown. Lacy is extremely dedicated to her students. She has an upbeat, energetic personality that is contagious and brings laughter and positivity to her students on a daily basis. Lacy has an amazing memory and understands so much about her students beyond the classroom. I have witnessed her take a student from tears to laughter in seconds and the way she offers support to those struggling is really amazing to behold. She goes to great lengths to make sure her students have all the tools and support they need to succeed. When other teachers or students are in need of assistance Lacy does not hesitate to jump in and help. Challand is a better place for having Lacy Halverson as a teacher. Thank you for being a marigold in our schools!

CONGRATULATIONS to Maggie Block, who was nominated for the Marigold Award! Maggie is a teacher at Challand Middle School and was nominated by Kelsey Stringer. Maggie has made herself available to help me learn what I need in order to be comfortable and capable in my position at Sterling Public Schools. She is responsive no matter what time of day (or night) I approach her, and tries to make sure I have the tools I need to serve our students. I could recount numerous instances in which she has been able to offer direction to help me be more efficient and effective. She also offers support with the goal of making sure her colleagues are satisfied with their jobs on a personal level - caring about the person and not just the profession. Maggie always has a smile ready, and an open door as well. Whether it's a piece of chocolate or a funny story, she knows that we need something for our soul to help make the hard days bright. Her ability to be this person is possible in part because her years of experience have made her a capable teacher who has the job under control. It is clear she desires to secure the best possible outcomes for all students at Sterling Schools regardless of their ability or background. Her work is indicative of her belief that all students can learn, and she is willing to help equip her colleagues to contribute to this shared endeavor. Maggie values and has knowledge of multiple content areas across several grade levels. She is not only an invaluable resource, but wants each team member to succeed so students can receive a well- rounded education. Finally, in addition to being committed to her work, Maggie is even more dedicated to her family. Her love for them is so obviously the impetus behind her hard work. This is a source of inspiration, and I appreciate having a role model from which to gain perspective on navigating the balance between work and family. I appreciate and have benefited greatly, both personally and professionally, from having worked alongside someone with this experience. Thank you for being a marigold in our schools!

CONGRATULATIONS to Diane Gould, who was nominated for the Marigold Award! Diane is a teacher at Washington Elementary School and was nominated by Ellen Johnson. I am writing this letter to enthusiastically recommend Diane Gould for the Marigold Award in recognition of her outstanding contributions to education. Diane is a remarkable educator who has dedicated her career to fostering a positive learning environment and shaping the lives of countless students. She is completing her last year of teaching and will be going into her retirement era! Diane has dedicated many years to the field of education, and throughout her tenure, she has consistently demonstrated qualities that set her apart as an exceptional teacher. Her kindness is evident in every interaction, creating a warm and welcoming atmosphere in her classroom. Students feel supported and valued under her guidance, which greatly contributes to their academic success and personal growth. One of Diane's most admirable traits is her unwavering dedication to her students' well- being and academic achievement. She goes above and beyond to ensure that each student receives the attention and support they need to thrive. Whether it's offering extra help during lunch breaks or providing encouraging words during challenging times, Diane consistently goes the extra mile for her students. Furthermore, Diane is a supportive colleague who actively collaborates with her peers to improve teaching practices and enhance the overall learning experience. Her willingness to share ideas, offer guidance, and lend a helping hand has had a positive impact on the entire school community. I am so sad that I have only been able to work with her for a short amount of time. As Diane embarks on the next chapter of her life in retirement, it is only fitting to recognize her outstanding contributions and legacy in education. She has left an indelible mark on her students, colleagues, and the school community as a whole. I wholeheartedly endorse Diane Gould for the Marigold Award and believe that she is more than deserving of this honor. Her kindness, dedication, and supportiveness have made a lasting impact on everyone fortunate enough to know her. She is a true Marigold. Thank you for being a marigold in our schools!