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Jan 21 Riverdale School District News

Friday, Jan. 21

Riverdale School District News
 

Superintendent Search - Stakeholder Focus Groups

Human Capital Enterprises has been engaged to assist the Riverdale School District Board of Directors in the search for our next Superintendent. There will be multiple ways for parents and students to engage in the process. One of these avenues of input is stakeholder focus groups.  Community stakeholders will have an opportunity to be selected to participate in two 30-minute focus groups, which will be conducted on the following days: 
  • Parent and Community Stakeholders - Thursday, Jan. 27th at 5:30 p.m.
  • Student Representatives - Friday, Jan. 28 at 9 a.m.
If you are interested in participating, please click here. Participants will be selected through a random lottery, with care to ensure representation across buildings/programs. The interest form must be completed no later than 5 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 25. If you are selected you will receive notification on Wednesday, Jan. 26.  
All parents and students, whether selected for the focus group or not, wll be invited to complete an online survey to respond to questions regarding RSD's needs in our next Superintendent. The survey will be distributed on January 25. 
Community stakeholders will also be included as part of a 15-person confidential stakeholder interview prior to the Board's final interviews; this too will be available to community members via lottery. You will receive more information about this later in the process.  
 

Equity and Inclusion Corner 

Holidays and Celebrations 

International Holocaust Remembrance Day takes place on the 27th of January. Read below for more information and to hear how we are honoring the day in our community.
February is Black History Month. Our District Newsletter on February 4th will focus on resources, activities, and opportunities for learning over the course of the month.

Holocaust Remembrance Day

Thursday, January 27th, is International Holocaust Remembrance Day.  That day was chosen as it marks the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp in 1945. The purpose of the day, as stated by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, is “to honor the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust and millions of other victims of Nazism.” 
In 2019, Governor Kate Brown signed SB664 into law, which requires Holocaust and Genocide Studies in grades K-12 in Oregon public schools. Read the grade level guidance here.   
In their 2021 Online Antisemitism Report Card, the Anti-Defamation League states, “In recent years, American Jews have faced increased threats of violence and harassment both online and offline. According to ADL’s annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, 2019 and 2020 were, respectively, the highest and third-highest years on record for cases of harassment, vandalism, and assault against Jews in the United States since tracking began in 1979.” It is important that we continue to educate young people about the Holocaust and antisemitism. 
At Riverdale High School, we will be commemorating the day with a virtual guest speaker, Yaffa Nemar.  Yaffa is an educator and has been trained in leading presentations to youth about the Holocaust by Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center in Israel.  Her children went to RGS and RHS and her family now lives in Atlanta.
A big thank you to the Jewish Student Union at the high school for planning this event!!
-  Abby Rotwein (she/her), Director of Equity & Inclusion
 

REMINDER

COVID-19 Updates

 
 
  • Weekly Screening Testing: OHSU informed us that students who have tested positive for COVID-19 should not test again for 90 days as the results will continue to come back positive. 
  • Families can order free COVID-19 tests through this new site.
 
 

REMINDER

 

Special School Board Meeting

The Riverdale School Board will hold a Special Board Meeting on Monday, Jan. 24 at 6:45 p.m. via GoToWebinar.
Please use the "raise hand" feature to be unmuted, or email Chrisie Patrick if you have a public comment related to the agenda item. Our next regularly scheduled board meeting is Feb. 7 where the board will accept public comments on non-agenda items. 

Agenda

  • Superintendent Search Kickoff
 
 
Register here for the GTW Board Meeting
 
 

Important Dates

  • Monday, Jan. 24 - Special Board Meeting at 6:45 p.m. via GTW
  • Monday, Feb. 21 - President's Day (No School)