MRVED Business

Upcoming Meetings
March 21, 2017  Counselors
March 22, 2017  Superintendents' Council
March 23, 2017  Social Workers (maybe)
March 24, 2017  Principals' Council (9:00 a.m. start)

April 13, 2017  MRVED Common  Day of Professional Development (Todd Whitaker)
April 19, 2017  MRVED Board (7:30 p.m.)
April 21, 2017  Title III Teachers
April 26, 2017  Superintendents' Council


APRIL 13, 2017 AGENDA FOR TODD WHITAKER (MONTEVIDEO MN)
8:00 - 8:45 Coffee, Juice, & Donuts (Fine Arts Center, Montevideo)
9:00 - 11:15 Todd Whitaker Presentation (Fine Arts Center, Montevideo)
11:30 - 12:30 Catered Lunch at the TACC
12:45 - 2:30 Afternoon Sessions Begin (Meet in Best Practice Teams)
a. Debrief Todd Whitaker
b. Follow up from October 19th

A final agenda, room numbers and more details for the day will be sent closer to the event.

MRVED Business

Upcoming Meetings
March 17, 2017  Title III Paraprofessionals
March 21, 2017  Counselors
March 22, 2017   Superintendents' Council
March 23, 2017  Social Workers
March 24, 2017  Principals Council (START TIME OF 9:00 A.M.)

April 13, 2017  MRVED Common Day - Todd Whitaker will be presenting


Learn to Use the MDE Data Center
Holly Brunson, Outreach and Training Specialist from the Minnesota Department of Education will be coming to the MRVED on May 4th to provide a training on accessing the MDE data center.  More information and how to register will be coming in the next few weeks.  Mark the date on your calendar for this great learning opportunity.

MRVED Business

MRVED Meetings
February 22, 2017  Superintendents' Council
February 23, 2017  TAC
February 24, 2017  Principals' Council

March 17, 2017  Title III Paraprofessionals
March 21, 2017  Counselors
March 22, 2017  Superintendents' Council
March 23, 2017  Social Workers

MRVED Business

Upcoming Meetings
February 3, 2017    Title III Teachers
February 15, 2017  MRVED Board (7:00 p.m.)
February 22, 2017  Superintendents' Council
February 23, 2017  TAC
February 24, 2017  Principals' Council

MRVED Business

Upcoming Meetings
January 25, 2017  Superintendents' Council
January 27, 2017  Principals' Council

February 3, 2017    Title III Teachers
February 15, 2017  MRVED Board (7 p.m.)
February 22, 2017  Superintendents' Council
February 23, 2017  Teachers' Advisory Council
February 24, 2017  Principals' Council

MRVED Business

Upcoming Meetings
December 21, 2016  Superintendents' Council
December 21, 2016  MRVED Board (7 p.m.)

January 6, 2017  Strategic Planning - Core Planning Team (American Legion)
January 10, 2017  Title III Paras
January 16, 2017  MELT

Happy Holidays From The MRVED

MRVED Business

Weather Policy
Since we are located in the Montevideo School District area, if Montevideo schools are open and on time, we will hold the meeting. If Montevideo has a late start, the meeting will be cancelled and rescheduled.

However, even if the meeting is still being held, if the weather is unsafe to travel in your area, stay home! We want you to be safe. If you have any questions, feel free to call us at 320-269-9297. 

MRVED will also submit meeting cancellations and/or updates on WCCO’s TV channel and website wcco.com (See School Closings under Quick Links). We will be listed under MRVED (just our initials.)

Upcoming Meetings
December 5, 2016  District Assessment Coordinators
December 15, 2016  Teachers' Advisory Council
December 16, 2016  Principals' Council
December 21, 2016  MRVED Board (7 p.m.)
December 21, 2016  Superintendents' Council

January 6, 2017  Core Strategic Planning Team
January 10, 2017  Title III Paras
January 16, 2017  MELT

MRVED Business

Superintendents Meet with Senators and Representatives
The MRVED Superintendents had the opportunity to meet and visit with a couple local senators and representatives on Wednesday, January 27th.  Senator Dahms, Senator Koenen, and Representative Swedzinski talked with the Superintendents and answered questions regarding the upcoming session. Overall, it was a positive meeting and both sides felt they learned something from each other.  Thank you to the Senators and Representatives for taking the time to meet with our school administrators and hear the issues facing rural schools.

Upcoming Meetings
February 17, 2016  Community Ed
February 19, 2016  Principals' Council (11:30 a.m. start time)
February 22, 2016  Science
February 23, 2016  Teachers' Advisory Council (TAC)
February 24, 2016  Superintendent's Council

MRVED Business

Upcoming Meetings
December 7, 2015  District Assessment Coordinators (DAC)
December 8, 2015  World Languages
December 11, 2015  Social Studies
December 16, 2015  Superintendents' Council
December 16, 2015  MRVED Board (7 p.m.)
December 17, 2015  Teachers' Advisory Council (TAC)
December 18, 2015  Principals' Council (11:30 a.m. start)

Best Practice Meeting Updates
Industrial Technology
The Industrial Technology best practice meeting was cancelled due to the weather.  We will meet in the Spring.

English Language Arts
The English Language Arts teachers gathered at the MRVED for their best practice meeting yesterday, December 3rd.  Like all the other best practice groups, the day started with an activity centered around grading practices.  Great discussion was had amongst the groups.  After the grading practices activity, they had the opportunity to meet as a district team and dissect data.  Pizza Ranch was amazing as usual.  In the afternoon the group networked and learned a little about integrating technology.  Another great meeting!


MELT Registration
It is that time of the year again!  Registration for the annual MELT conference will be coming to you on the morning of December 9th.  This year there are over 120 sessions to choose from.  Be sure to register early as sessions fill up.  The deadline to register will be December 22nd.  Registration is crucial to the process of the MELT, so please make a point to get it done right away.  Last year we had over 200 people register on the first day!  Let's top that number this year!  Look for the registration on December 9th from your Principal!

MRVED Business

MRVED Meetings:
November 10, 2015  Counselors
November 11, 2015  Community Ed
November 12, 2015  FACS (meet in Marshall with Gail Polejewski)
November 13, 2015  Ag (Hutchinson tour)
November 20, 2015  Principals' Council (11:30 a.m. start time)
November 25, 2015  Superintendents' Council


MELT Update
The Call for Proposals has closed.  If you submitted a proposal, but did not receive an email either confirming or rejecting your proposal, please let Brandon know (braymo@mrved.net).  If you have any ideas for MELT, the planning stages are winding down.  Contact Brandon and let him know of your idea.  MELT registration information will be coming out the 2nd week of December.

Also, the MELT Networking Group facilitator sign-up is located in this update.  If you feel the need for your group to network, please sign-up as a facilitator or urge someone to.  If your group does not have a facilitator, your group will not network.  You can network as a content area, grade level, or even around a topic.

Best Practice Meeting Updates
Art Meeting
The Art teachers embarked on a special day on October 22.  The teachers had the opportunity to meet with local artists throughout the day.  The first stop was to AtoZ Letterpress in downtown Montevideo.  After hearing about the letterpress process, the group ventured to Milan to visit Celeste Suter's Fiber Arts studio.  Then the group spent the rest of the morning at Tokheim Stoneware learning new tricks and watching a true artist create clay pots.  Over lunch, the group made their way to Granite Falls to meet with David Hall and talk more letterpress and see different ways to do that process.  The last stop was to the Peterson's to see scrimshaw art.  The day was nicknamed the "MiniMeander".

Math Meeting
The Math teachers gathered at the MRVED on October 27.  The morning was spent in conversation and thought about grading practices.  After a great conversation, the group then split into district teams and tackled the process of vertically and horizontally aligning to the the math standards.  After a catered meal, the group then split into grade alike groups and networked and the day ended with Brandon talking about integration of technology.  Overall it was a great day.

Business Meeting
The Business teachers met at the MRVED on October 29 with Karen.  Much like the math group they had the opportunity to talk about grading practices within the business classroom.  Karen then took the group through a formative assessment activity and discussion.  Gail Polejewski met with the group over lunch and discussed Perkins updates.  The group networked in the afternoon and shared ideas.

MRVED Business

Music Teachers Meet
The Music teachers gathered at the MRVED on Wednesday, October 7 for their annual best practice meeting.  As usual the day was filled with great discussion and awesome ideas were shared all around.  The morning was centered around grading practices and a "standards audit".  The afternoon consisted of lots of sharing and planning for MELT.  Overall, it was a great day with a great bunch of educators!

MELT Call for Presentation Proposals
It is that time of the year again!  Time to start looking for teachers to present at the MELT (MRVED Educators Learning Together) Conference in January.  The past few years we have had some great presentations by our local teachers.  Hopefully this year can be better yet.  Last year, there were over 90 sessions to choose from throughout the day with about 1/4 of them being led by local teachers.  My goal is to get to 50% led by local educators.  This is a great opportunity to share some of the awesome and unique things going on in your classroom.  If you would like to present, please fill out the form (linked below).  If you know of someone that would do an awesome job, encourage them to present.
Payment:

• $100 - Present one, 1-hour session
• $150 - Present the same 1-hour session twice
• $150 - Present one, 2-hour session
• $200 - Present two different 1-hour sessions

Please Note:

• If you want to present as a team, only one proposal needs to be made.  The person that makes the proposal will be the contact person for that group.
• Submitting a proposal does not commit you to presenting.  You are only providing the MRVED with information that you are interested in presenting.
• Brandon will contact you by the end of October if your session was selected.
• You may fill out more than one proposal.

Possible Session Ideas:

• Cross-Curricular Projects
• School Readiness
• SMART Training
• CPI
• Teaching Vocabulary
• 6+1 Traits of Writing
• Writing in the Elementary
• Daily 5
• Daily 3
• STEM/STEAM
• Coding
• Technology: SMARTBoard, Tablets, Content Area, Grade Level, Apps

MELT Call for Presentation Proposal Form

Upcoming Meetings
October 14, 2015  MRVED Common Date
October 22, 2015  Art Best Practices
October 23, 2015  Principals' Council
October 27, 2015  Math Best Practices
October 28, 2015  Superintendents' Council
October 29, 2015  Business Best Practices

Please note:  There will be no update next week due to MEA break.  Have a great break!

MRVED Business

Upcoming Meetings

October 7, 2015  Music Best Practices
October 9, 2015  CURE Event (all day) Mussels in the River
October 14, 2015  MRVED Common Day
October 22, 2015  Art Best Practices (Mini Meander)
October 23, 2015  Principals' Council (11:30 a.m. Start Time)
October 27, 2015  Math Best Practices
October 28, 2015  Superintendents' Council
October 29, 2015  Business Best Practices