September Messages

Hello, Learning Coaches,

"Welcome" to our newest Learning Coaches who are receiving their first weekly message for Learning Coaches! Please read below, and make a note to return to this message after you finish onboarding if some of the information does not apply to you at this time.

Here is the audio link for today's message if listening will be more convenient. Just be prepared to return to this page to access web links.

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Announcements

1. [Learning Coaches of Fall '21 Enrollees] Please complete this laptop survey today (Friday, 9/24/21) if you can. We are doing one more audit of laptop shipments for new students to ensure everyone receives their laptops. The survey also allows you to verify that a working charger was received. Again, this survey is for Learning Coaches of our new students this semester.

NOTE:

9/21 and 9/23 enrollees' laptops are being prepared for shipment and very likely have shipped. You do not need to answer the survey. Instead, check email daily for a FedEx shipping notification. (FedEx has not been emailing notifications very consistently since Ida. So, be prepared for a shipment even if the notification was not sent.)

2. If you are displaced from your primary residence for any reason, please complete this survey for us. The deadline for submission is the end of the day on Monday, September 27th.

3. [Grades 3-5] LEAP 360 Diagnostic Assessments are scheduled next month as follows: October 18th - ELA, October 19th - Math. Please read your Canvas messages regularly. Additional information will be provided as we get closer to those dates.

4. [High School] Virtual College Visits Begin Friday! Our high school counselors sent Canvas messages earlier this week to announce this opportunity. I am repeating the announcement here in case you did not read the message because two events are today.

Beginning this Friday and throughout October, UVA will be hosting virtual college visits. These are optional but highly encouraged for students and parents to attend. You will hear from college representatives to learn about different college programs and what each has to offer. The link to attend is posted on your calendar. (Note-these are zoom links).

The colleges currently scheduled include:

(TODAY!) 9/24 at 10 AM =LSU

(TODAY!) 9/24 at Noon=University of Louisiana at Lafayette

10/8 at 10 AM =Northwestern State University

10/8 at 1 PM =Southeastern Louisiana University

10/15 at 1 PM =University of Louisiana at Monroe

10/22 at Noon =Xavier University

We will be working to add more college visits so keep watching your calendar. Hope to see you there!

Deadlines/Reminders/Dates

1. Our Fall Break is two days this year. We will be closed on October 4th and 5th.

2. Our PBIS program will launch the week of October 4th. For a refresher on our PBIS program, click here.

3. The first nine-week period ends on October 7th.

Learning Coach Tips and Resources

1. Please use your Canvas Observer account to send messages to your child's teachers There are several benefits to doing that:

• • Teachers are more likely to see a Canvas message. Direct emails occasionally land in the Spam folder.

  • Canvas logs the conversations for easier retrieval.

2. If you are just getting reconnected after Ida:

• Update the Advisory teacher about your circumstances. If you cannot log into Canvas at this time, contact anyone in my department. (Contact info is at the bottom of the page.) We are keeping the faculty updated.

• If your child can resume assignments, please contact your child's teachers immediately so they can provide guidance on which assignments should be completed. Teachers are making adjustments to their courses so students can learn without being completely overwhelmed with a backlog of assignments. Allow them to guide your child's recovery.

3. Notifications about Course Activity and Conversations (i.e., messages in the Canvas Inbox) are most beneficial when delivered to you (and read) in real-time or, at a minimum, are delivered daily. Staying on top of those communications will help you monitor and support your child effectively. Now that we are nearing the end of the first nine weeks, it's time to ask yourself, "Am I receiving Canvas notifications frequently enough?" If you want to review your notification settings but do not remember how to do that, do the following:

• Click once to open the Advisory or Counselor's Course card from the Dashboard in your Observer account.

• Near the top of the home page of the course, click the blue button that says "Student Training" (or "student training") to access the Student (i.e., Canvas) Training module on the Modules page.

• Scroll down the Modules page until you see the activity "Your Canvas Account." (It is the ninth activity in the module.)

• Click once to open the activity and watch the short training video to learn how to adjust your notification settings.

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Our weather is the best it's been in a while. I hope you can take a few minutes to enjoy it this weekend.

Be safe and be well, everyone!

-- Eugenia Cardozo (and the entire team)

Exec. Dir., Student and Home Relations

225-421-2837, ecardozo@uview.academy, and Remind (preferred)

Hello, Learning Coaches,

A small set of new families joined us this week. They are onboarding at this time. Welcome to your first weekly message for Learning Coaches! Please read below, and make a note to return to this message after you finish onboarding. Some of the information will not apply until your child's lessons are underway, but you will benefit from quite a bit of it today.

Here is the audio link for today's message if listening will be more convenient. Just be prepared to return to this page to access web links.

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Announcements

1. [This item does not apply to new onboarders] Live Sessions resumed this week. Recordings are available for students to view.

2. [This item does not apply to new onboarders] If you have not done so already, please notify the Advisory teacher if your child is unable to log into Canvas to complete assignments because of a power or internet outage post-Ida. We will still accept your updates in our department, but reporting to the Advisory teacher is the method Dr. Clayton identified in her message last week now that most teachers are up and running again. (Remember to update the school when you have power, internet, etc.)

3. [New Onboarders] If you have not done so already, please notify my department if you are without internet access or power due to Hurricane Ida.

4. [New without the school laptop yet] If your child is a new student this year and you have not received the school laptop, please be aware that shipments have resumed. Hurricane Ida significantly impacted the shipping schedule we established just before the storm. In addition, FedEx halted shipping for at least a week following the hurricane. With the input from our laptop surveys and your messages about Ida impacts, we were able to devise a shipping schedule that we hope will put a laptop in your child's hands in the near term.

5. Our department's contact information is in the footer of every page on this website. Our department's email address, our names, and our phone numbers are listed. Remind is the preferred method of contact. It's great for sending screenshots and links, etc.

TIPS:

5. 1. • If you receive Remind messages via text and email rather than via the Remind app, you might not be able to send an initial message to Mr. Henderson or Mrs. Hollins. You will be able to reply to a message from either of them once a conversation begins. Just send your Remind message to me.

      • Those of you with the Remind app will be able to send messages directly to "Wade Henderson" and "Thomas Hollins" as long as there are no typos in their names.

Deadlines/Reminders/Dates

1. Our PBIS program will launch the week of October 4th. For a refresher on our PBIS program, click here.

2. If you are a new Learning Coach with internet access and you have access to a computer to continue the UVA Onboarding Course, be sure to create your Observer account in Phase II of the course. Instructions are on the page "Create/Update the Learning Coach (Observer) Account." That page follows "Let's Log in, Students!" Please keep your eyes open for that page.

3. We will begin contacting Learning Coaches who do not have Observer accounts next week. The steps to create your Observer account are relatively straightforward. New Learning Coaches have access to those instructions in the UVA Onboarding Course. If you have been here a while and realize you did not create your Observer account, contact one of us and request the link to the instructions. (Our contact information is at the bottom of this page.)

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Learning Coach Tips and Resources

1. If you have enough data on your mobile plan and are still without internet access, consider installing the Canvas Student app on an available mobile device so your child can resume assignments. Be sure to reach out to your child's teachers for guidance on recovery strategies. They will work with you so your child is not overwhelmed with a backlog of assignments. (This is only suggested as an option for those who have data plans that can support increased usage.)

2. We typically host an information session for Learning Coaches in September. However, Ida threw a wrench in those plans. I hope we will be able to launch our monthly Learning Coach Information Sessions in October. Stay tuned...

3. Quite a few of our students are living with ADHD. You have access to several articles about learning with ADHD on this page in the Resource Emporium section of Learning Coach Corner. In addition to those articles, you might find the following article insightful -- "ADHD and the Myth of Laziness." It has not been added to Resource Emporium yet.

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We hope recovery is proceeding for those of you who were impacted by Ida (and Nicholas). Know that plans are in place to get your child on a learning path again. Please keep the Advisory teacher (or my department) posted on your recovery status. As soon as your child has internet access and a computer, we will help you get things underway.

Finally, teachers and employees are receiving very thoughtful emails and messages from families about our personal recovery efforts. We appreciate your thoughtfulness. It just proves how wonderful our UVA family is.

Be safe and be well, everyone!

-- Eugenia Cardozo (and the entire team)

Exec. Dir., Student and Home Relations

Hello, Learning Coaches.

We welcomed additional families this week. So, welcome to your first Weekly Message for Learning Coaches. These messages keep you informed and provide coaching tips and resources to assist you in your Learning Coach role. Some of the items below might not apply to you right now, especially if you and your child are still onboarding, but please read the entire message so you are aware of its contents. You can re-read a message any time.

Here is the audio link for today's message if listening will be more convenient. Just be prepared to return to this page to access web links.

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Announcements

1. From our Superintendent earlier this week. Please be prepared for revisions to our post-Ida policies as we move ahead.

UVA Family,

For the remainder of this week, we will start to re-engage students by providing assignments, teachlets (short recordings) and optional live sessions from those teachers who have internet access. We will continue to work with families who have been impacted by the storm. We appreciate your patience and flexibility as we all work to regain some semblance of normalcy. Please reach out to your advisory teacher if you are experiencing impact from the storm that will affect your student’s ability to work regularly moving forward.

Sincerely,

Dr. Michelle Clayton, Superintendent

2. In light of Dr. Clayton's statement, please begin reporting post-Ida impacts to your child's Advisory teacher if you can. We will still accept your updates in our department but reporting impacts to the Advisory teacher is a more direct route now that most teachers are up and running again. (Remember to update the school as power and internet are restored, etc.)

3. In the wake of Ida, we are delaying the start of the PBIS program until the week of October 4th. For a refresher on our PBIS program, click here.

4. We have a new department email address -- LearningCoachSupport@uview.academy. Please use that address when seeking general assistance from us via email. Someone from the department will respond as quickly as possible. (Remind is still one of the fastest ways to obtain assistance, but phone and email work as well.)

Deadlines/Reminders/Dates

1. If you are a new Learning Coach with internet access and you have access to a computer to continue the UVA Onboarding Course, be sure to create your Observer account in Phase II of the course. Instructions are on the page "Create/Update the Learning Coach (Observer) Account." That page follows "Let's Log in, Students!" Please make a note so you do not overlook the page.

2. Our efforts were paused due Ida, but we plan to resume our audit of students' accounts to identify students without Observers in Canvas very soon. Please ensure you created your Observer account if you are not in the middle of onboarding as a brand new Learning Coach.

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Learning Coach Tips and Resources

1. If your family is not in the onboarding period and you have phone service but no internet service, consider installing the Canvas Student app on a mobile device so your child can resume assignments. Be sure to reach out to your child's teachers for guidance on recovery strategies.

2. [New Learning Coaches Who are Onboarding] Please send me a Remind message and let me know which phase you are in (i.e., Phase I, Phase II, or Phase III).

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We hope those of you who are impacted by Ida are in a state of recovery. We appreciate your reports about Ida impacts and we wish you well.

As I mentioned last week, people are being advised to be cautious about FEMA scams related to Hurricane Ida. This website is FEMA's official site for hurricane relief information. Please use legitimate websites only.

Be safe, be cautious, and be well, everyone!

-- Eugenia Cardozo (and the entire team)

Exec. Dir., Student and Home Relations

225-421-2837, ecardozo@uview.academy, and Remind (preferred)

Hello, Learning Coaches.

This has been an unusual week for most of us. Even if you were not directly impacted by Ida, you probably know someone who lost power, internet, or worse. UVA families and employees were impacted, and most of us are still in a recovery phase. Recovery will last longer for some than others. So, I will keep this message short today.

Believe it or not, we actually welcomed a set of new families to the fold this week. "Welcome!" to our newest Learning Coaches. Our Weekly Messages are designed keep you informed, and they typically provide coaching tips and resources to assist you in your Learning Coach role. Please be aware that some of the items below might not apply to you right now, especially if you and your child are still onboarding. I recommend that you read the entire message anyway so you are aware of its contents. Weekly messages remain posted. So, you can re-read a message any time.

Here is the audio link for today's message if listening will be more convenient.

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Announcements

1. From our Superintendent regarding our going forward strategy following Hurricane Ida:

UVA Families,

In looking ahead to next week, we will continue to address everyone's post-hurricane situations. We will cancel all live sessions on Tuesday, September 7th. You may receive messages from teachers who are able to offer assistance to you, and we do appreciate your patience in knowing that some of our teachers have limited ability to communicate. We will continue to update you as information becomes available.

Sincerely,

Dr. Michelle Clayton, Superintendent

2. Keep us informed about your status if you were impacted by Ida. Send a Remind message to Thomas Hollins if you are displaced, without power or internet, etc. We are maintaining a spreadsheet that the principals have access to. If you are a new family who is still onboarding, please let Mrs. Hollins know where you stopped in the UVA Onboarding Course (i.e., Phase I -- Orientation, Phase II -- Course Selection and Canvas Training, or Phase III -- Detailed Learning Coach Training).

3. [MIDDLE SCHOOL] Today is the last day for new middle school students to select an elective in the onboarding course section "Phase II -- Course Selection and Canvas Training." Here is the link to the page if you haven't made it that far. Please bookmark the page you are on in Phase I if you are not in Phase II yet. That way you can return to Phase I to continue your orientation.

Deadlines/Reminders/Dates

1. Monday, 9/6/21 is a school holiday -- Labor Day.

2. If you are a new Learning Coach with internet access and you have access to a computer to continue the UVA Onboarding Course, be sure to create your Observer account in Phase II of the course. Instructions are on the page "Create/Update the Learning Coach (Observer) Account." That page follows "Let's Log in, Students!" Please make a note so you do not overlook the page.

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Learning Coach Tips and Resources

• Keep your child's teachers informed about your status if you were negatively impacted by Ida. Do your best to get your child working, but your family's safety and security are paramount. Get settled and connect with us so your child's teachers can provide guidance about how to resume assignments.

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Finally, be cautious about FEMA scams related to Hurricane Ida. They are prevalent.

This website is FEMA's official site regarding hurricane relief.

Be safe!

-- Eugenia Cardozo (and the entire team)

Exec. Dir., Student and Home Relations

225-421-2837, ecardozo@uview.academy, and Remind (preferred)