CONNECTIONS

CENTRAL OFFICE NEWS AND UPDATES

ISSUE 2 • VOLUME 2 SEPTEMBER
2022 In This Issue
Superintendent's Desk
Welcome to September! Labor Day traditionally means the end
of summer and the beginning of fall. It also means the school
year is in full swing. I continue to be excited with what I see
In This Issue
happening in each of our schools. We have so many great Superintendent's Desk
activities and positive stories to share. The month of August News from Human Resources
provided much improved student attendance numbers. As you
all know student attendance has been a challenge for us. I hope
this trend continues. Thanks to you and your efforts the 2022-23
Dr. James Martin school year in Pell City continues its positive trajectory.

Shelter from the Storm

As I stated in last month’s newsletter the Pell City Board of Education accepted the bid for the storm shelters at
Coosa Valley and Eden. We are still hoping to break ground on those projects later this month. These projects are
part of our phased project list we presented to the community last year. We continue to have many more great
things to come for Pell City Schools.

News from Montgomery

Two weeks ago I attended a meeting of school superintendents in Montgomery. The State Budget Director and the
State School Superintendent were part of this meeting. Alabama continues to experience unprecedented state
revenues for the second year in a row. This was probably the most positive meeting I have had about education
budgets. Several budget priorities were discussed ranging from lower classroom sizes, school nurses, transportation
funding and many others. We need to keep our fingers crossed that many of these things can become a reality. We
all know many things can change in the world of legislative budgeting. I will keep you posted as this continues to
evolve.

You are awesome! As always, I sincerely thank all of you for everything you do for our students, schools and
community. Pell City is a better place because of you. Go Panthers!

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News from Human Resources
How Do You Define Teaching?
I went to a workshop this summer where the above question was asked. Strangely, a
room of about 100 educators were stumbling all over themselves trying to state an
answer. We simply could not put it into a succinct definition. The presenter proposed
that we could not define it because it is so multi-dimensional. He proposed that
planning was the center of our profession and a myriad of other considerations
funneled into that planning. The practices defining the teaching profession were as Dr. Leah Stover
follows:

Planning (#1)
Knowing Students
Knowing Subject Matter
Pedagogical Expertise
Knowing and Following Laws/Policies
Creating a Learning Environment
Engaging Students in Learning
Implementing Effective Strategies
Providing Authentic Learning Experiences
Monitoring Learning
Providing Feedback
Supporting Learning
Reflecting on Practice

After he shared his “definition” (list), we all felt better about our feeble attempts. Basically, teaching is a
complex profession. Teaching professionals use substantial amounts of mental energy to plan, execute, reflect,
and refine and all of these tasks occur in a cyclical fashion.

I had not thought about teaching in this way and wanted to share my new learning with you. It made me think
about the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards certification process many of you are
experiencing now. The NBCT process embraces these complexities and challenges teachers to bring
professional thinking/discernment out into the light, massage it, and refine it. With that said, please take time
to digest the above list. Consider what it might look like to participate in the National Board process. To do so
is really embracing yourself as a professional – no different from a doctor or attorney.

If you are interested in pursuing NBCT, please reach out to one of our district mentors. It is the BEST, career
enhancing professional development around.

Sunni Wyatt – sunni.wyatt@pellcityschools.net

Tammy Vincent – tammy.vincent@pellcityschools.net
Hollye Higdon – hollye.higdon@pellcityschools.net

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 Spotlighting Our School Counselors

This year, Nick Fink and I have the opportunity to work closely with our school counselors. We have met (or
are meeting) with each counselor and principal individually to review responsibilities and make plans for the
coming year. Did you know that school counselors….

Participate in or Lead PST

Plan and Execute Lessons
Coordinate State Testing
Create Master Schedules
Collaborate with Outside Agencies (JBS, Children’s Place, DHR, Colleges/Universities)
Maintain Student Records
Provide Responsive Services to Students
Seek Out Mental Health Resources and Social Service Resources
Coordinate 504s
Coordinate EL Plans/Services
Communicate with Parents/Guardians
And many, many other things to support the total school program.

Please take time to thank your school counselor(s) for the many ways they serve students and our
organization.

PCSS SCHOOL COUNSELORS

PCHS PCHS PCHS DJHS DJHS

AMY SMITH BRITTANY GIBSON MEGAN INGRAM DR. SHALONDA GADDIS MARY JANE MCCULLARS

WIS CVES EDEN IOLA WMK

CASSIE WATSON JENNIFER ALVERSON TONYA KENNEDY BRIANA MARTIN JENNIFER BRYANT

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Administrative PLU Opportunity
Anyone who holds administrative certification must earn PLUs to maintain their
certificate. A book study will be offered from January – March 2023 for anyone
with administrative certification in need of a PLU. The text we will use is
Multiply Excellence in Your School by Emily Paschall. If you are interested in
participating, please email me, leah.stover@pellcityschools.net, by October 1,
2022 so I can place a book order. Thanks and I look forward to learning with
you!

Keep up with what is happening. Follow and like the

PCSS Facebook page and visit our website at pellcityschools.net.

For suggestions and comments concerning this

newsletter send email to:
pcnews@pellcityschools.net
2022 Pell City School System
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