Derby High School

75 Chatfield Street

Derby, Connecticut 06418

(203) 736-5032 ▪ www.derbyps.org

Principal, Jennifer Olson

Update to Board of Education -September 2024

Presented October 2, 2024

Academics:

• On 9/26 DHS had 18 STUCO leaders participate in the Connecticut Association for Student Councils yearly President's Symposium which included announcements about upcoming initiatives and related CASC news as well as discussions regarding the State Service Project, CTRISES, a brief awards ceremony, and a keynote speaker.
• The Journalism class will be attending the 39th High School Journalism Day held at Southern Connecticut State University on Friday, Oct. 18. Students were issued a journalist notebook and a “press pass” which grants them free access to school-sponsored events like sports games, shows, and events so they can write articles about these events.  Students have been interviewing staff and administration on several topics including: Dress code/uniforms, technology policy, new music teacher, & clubs at DHS.
• Held Class Act Council Training with SAAB mentors from CT Association of Schools/CIAC.
• Held meetings to discuss elimination of Progress Reports and the need to regularly enter grades to keep parent information throughout the marking period.  Agreements of best practices include: After meeting with department coordinators, we established common practices for all teacher/content areas:

• PowerSchool grades will be updated at least once per week (at a minimum).
• Teachers will consistently use the "collected," "missing," or "late" flags to keep students and families informed about the status of assignments.
• Most assignments will be graded & entered in PowerSchool within 3 days; major assignments and projects will be graded within 5 days.

Human Capital

• Prepared the master schedule for daily teacher collaboration time.  Teachers from a variety of departments/grade-levels can utilize collaboration time built in the school day to work on projects, co-plan, or meet with a student in need.  Teachers last year reported the system works well and presents no negative impacts on the school operations.
• Included co-taught classes for English (with ELL support) and special education (with academic content support).  Received positive feedback from students, teachers and parents
• Held first Safety Meeting to review the Incident Command structure.  Meetings are scheduled once per month. Meetings are scheduled once per month.Updating the All Hazards Plan.
• Participated with team at PDEC to begin the work of developing a new teacher growth plans
• Participated with team at MLE to prepare for our first early release professional development
• Assisted with the preparation of  the Title I grant narratives and collaborated w/Business & Grants Manager to submit application

Operations

• Held grade-level meetings during Advisory to discuss school-wide expectations
• Hosted Senior/Parent Night and Financial Aid Night to help prepare students and families for post-secondary planning. Included Jessica Odlum, the Director of the College Place, as a guest speaker. She will share her expertise about the financial aid process and the free follow up services she can provide DHS families who would like to apply for financial aid.
• Planning Fall College Fair is being held in-person at DHS on October 8th
• Held grade-level school safety meetings with Derby PD to emphasize the seriousness of school threats and consequences for the individual and the school community Talking Points for Safety Meeting  
• Held first two Department Coordinator meetings to roll out grading expectations and common instructional models across content areas

Climate/Culture:

• Hosted a successful Back to School Night/Open House with parents participating both in-person and remotely to increase accessibility and participation. Parents/guardians were able to experience a “day in the life of their teenager” and meet all of the teachers during scheduled blocks that follow our school's daily schedule.  A bell rang to start and end classes and parents "switched" classes  every 10 minutes.  Held Open House to engage families
• Held a  “Senior Sunrise”event to bring the Class of 2025 together for a special early morning celebration
• Held Picture Days (senior portraits, school photos, and sports pictures)
• Held a school-wide pep rally to launch the  new year and celebrate fall sports with performances by our cheerleaders and pep band.  
• Student Council planned Homecoming dance and spirit week
• Met with the Culture and Climate Committee to schedule meetings throughout the school year and start the first project, improving and formalizing the New Student Onboarding Protocol.