UAI Staff News
Volume X
Issue 1
August 22, 2022
Welcome Back! Welcome back to the 2022-2023 school year! I do hope you all were able to have enjoyable, reinvigorating, and memorable summers. I am excited to see you all again soon to catch up, and dive into preparing for another fantastic school year.
Equity, Power, Rigor, and Joy are the pillars of UAI's mission and visions. These core values reverberate through the work we do and relationships we build throughout our school community. As we return from summer, one of our chief charges will be to reconnect with these core values and make them come to life for our students and ourselves as we prepare to launch the school year.
We have two and half more weeks until students arrive. In these next few weeks, there is much to do (there is always much to do), BUT I encourage you to prioritize maximizing your own joy in closing out this summer! Joy too often takes a back seat to the work we need to do. However,Joy is also essential for making the work good. So, practice prioritizing your Joy these next couple of weeks, and prepare to find pathways to Joy through the work we do together!
Important dates.
- Monday, 29AUG thru Wed 31AUG. Classroom Set Up Time
- All staff are welcome to come in August 29th - 31st to set up their classrooms for the school year. All staff will be paid per session (training rate) for up to 10 hrs of work in setting up their classroom. You are welcome to work more hours if you wish, but certainly you are not mandated to do so! The building will be open next week from 8:30AM-2:30PM every day (Mon-Fri). Please make sure to clock in and out (cards will be in clock in room).
- Wednesday, 31AUG. UAI New Staff Orientation 9AM-11AM - Room 403
- (This was originally planned for Tuesday 30AUG, but then Kiri's Principal meeting moved to the 30th). This meeting is for all staff who are new to UAI this year.
- Tuesday, 06SEP. First Day of School for all Staff (PD Day)
- All staff report at 8:30AM to room 205L (library)
- Optional breakfast at 8AM
- Wednesday, 07SEP. Professional Development Day for Staff
- 2nd Day of PD (Agendas to come)
- Thursday, 08SEP. First Day of School for Students
- All students will have Advisory 1st period (rooms TBD). Programs will be delivered in Advisory, and students will follow regular schedules starting 2nd Period.
- We'll have Advisory 1st Period for both Thursday & Friday (09SEP), followed by reguarly program afterwards.
- Other dates.
- Mon 12SEP. First After School PD Day 3PM in 205L
- Mon 26SEP & Tue 27 SEP. Rosh Hashanah - NO SCHOOL
Announcements & To Dos
Classroom Setup. All staff are encouraged to come in next week to prepare their classrooms for student return. The goal is to create warm & welcoming learning environments that make our students feel included and academically challenged.
Planning Time. All staff will have at least 5 hours of per session time (training rate) to plan and prepare for the first few weeks of schools. All ILT team leads will be reaching out to teachers this week to provide support and guidance in reaching out. Please also feel free to reach out to your point person with questions you may have! Your ILT (Instructional Leadership Team) is:
- English & Theater- Marsha Derice: marshad@uainstitute.org
- Social Studies - Kelly Preston: kellyp@uainstitute.org
- ENL Teachers: Kelly Preston: kellyp@uainstitute.org
- Math - Judy Cappuccio: judyc@uainstitute.org
- Science- Liza Backman: lizab@uainstitute.org
- Middle School (6/7th grade): Phillan Greaves: phillang@uainstitute.org
- Special Education Teachers: Phillan Greaves: phillang@uainstitute.org
- Spanish, Computer Science: Kiri Soares: kiris@uainstitute.org
- Physical Education & Health: Annie Annunziato: anniea@uainstitute.org
During our PD days, we will be giving time ahead for Advisory and Learning Lab planning. Next week's blog will focus more on that and on our two new roles for Classroom Management support! Exciting news is still to come!!
Program Review. Please take a moment to review the program (CLICK HERE). Please reach out to Kiri if you see any mistakes or have questions about your program.
Pause on Google Classroom Setup. We are in the midst of moving over to the NYCDOE platform for learning management, grades and attendance. We have trainings this week to learn more about that and will turnkey that info during PD days. For now, do not move to set up classrooms until those PD days. We will be giving time for you to work on that during those first few days.
Per Session Postings
For ALL per session activities, please complete Per Session Application Form
22AUG22
Classroom Set Up. Open to all staff - all staff automatically approved - Just show up to work (and don't forget to clock in and out). A maximum of 10 hours (per session training rate) is approved for pay (though you are welcome to work beyond that if you wish - but any time over 10hrs is volunteer!)
Planning Time. Open to all staff. Stuff will receive up to 5 hours (per session training rate) to individually plan for the opening lessons of the year in their classes.
ILT Team Planning. Each ILT team department (ELA, Math, Science, SocStds, MS) will have 60 hours to work with their teams. These team meetings will be in addition to teacher planning time (teacher training rate).
