March 4, 2019

Welcome to the March edition of the PL Lighthouse! 
This monthly email blast and webpage has been designed to serve much like a lighthouse, to serve as a way forward and help in navigating through the busy school year. Nothing else speaks of safety in the face of adversity and challenge quite like the lighthouse.

February Priority Benchmarks are now PAST DUE
Thank you to the following campuses for meeting the deadline for submitting your priority benchmarks: Chapel Hill, PL Prep, Jack Lowe, Thelma Richardson, and Rogers Elementary! 

If you have still not submitted your February Priority Benchmarking, click here for an overview and example of the process. If you have any questions or need support for completing, please reach out to your campus central coach (Jason, Nafia, or Ciane).

April Design Studio [April 2nd]
Our last design studio will be held on Tuesday, April 2nd 6th from 8:30AM-4:00 PM and will be held at Edison Learning Center [2940 Singleton Blvd.,Dallas, TX 75212]. 

It is crucial that principals plan to join their team and attend for the full day- as this is when you'll be finalizing your PL plans and identifying supports for the 2019-2020 school year. 
If you have any questions or concerns please reach out to Kristen as soon as possible. 

• [PAST DUE]: Please submit team members attending no later than Friday, March 1st COB by adding names + contact information to the spreadsheet here. We'll use this list to send out final communication to attendees Monday, March 25th. If you have any questions about who should attend from your campus, please reach out or join the PL monthly huddle to ask. 
• [Action item]: Forward the design studio calendar invite to team members attending. 
• We will not be providing lunch for this workshop, so please plan to bring your lunch and/or know you'll have some time to leave for lunch during design studio. 

Coming Soon! 
End of Year PL Celebration 
We'll be voting on two dates and ideas for our end of year PL celebration at the April design studio. If you have any ideas, please share with Vanessa + Kristen ASAP.

2019-2020 PL Cohort Calendar 
At the April design studio we'll be sharing the 2019-2020 calendar and summer PD opportunities for leadership teams, onboarding for new teachers, and opportunities to become Google certified. ​

REPEAT ANNOUNCEMENTS 

Spring Conferences
Blended + Personalized Learning Conference
April 4-6th 
Providence, Rhode Island

If you’re planning to attend the Blended and Personalized Learning Conference April 4-6th, let us know! If you're interested, please know that the PL central team will not cover registration and travel, but we're happy to help assist you in doing so. Check out the conference trip itinerary here and please add the name(s) of who will be attending. We'll use this list to send out directions for submitting your advance (you may submit after February 18th), reimbursement, and an invitation to a district dinner at the conference.  Also, if you're planning to attend and want to help facilitate some mini-workshops within sessions, we're looking for some extra hands. Reach out to Kristen ([email protected]) for more information. 

Education Elements Personalized Learning Conference 
May 14-16th
Atlanta, Georgia 

If you’re planning to attend the Personalized Learning Conference May 14-16th, let us know! If you're interested, please know that the PL central team will not cover registration and travel, but we're happy to help assist you in doing so. Check out the conference trip itinerary here and please add the name(s) of who will be attending. We'll use this list to send out directions for submitting your advance (you may submit after March 12th), reimbursement, and an invitation to a district dinner at the conference.  Reach out to Kristen ([email protected]) for more information. ​

Innovation in Teaching Fellowship
It's time to fill our next cohort of the fellowship

This fellowship is a 10-month experience that equips educators to grow in their understanding of and pilot Next Generation models in their classrooms. Fellows will draw from research, best practices, and their own ingenuity to design and test personalized learning in their classrooms.

This opportunity is open to any teacher in Dallas ISD. If you know someone who would make a great fellow, nominate him/her at tiny.cc/nominateafellow. Teachers do not need to be nominated to apply. 

Applications are due by Friday, March 29th at 11:59 PM CST.

To learn more and apply visit www.thepltoolbox.com/fellowship. ​