Let’s get ready to start the school year with a bang at Convocation 2023! This year’s theme is Build the Legacy.

All Sherman ISD staff will attend the morning session at 8 a.m. on Friday, August 4 in the Sherman High School Competition Gym, and breakfast will be provided starting at 7:30 a.m. in the gym foyer. After the main session, elementary and secondary staff will break into sessions in the auditorium and competition gym before attending the Partner Fair in the CTE hallway and gym foyer.

New teachers are invited to the New Teacher Luncheon, hosted by the Sherman Chamber of Commerce, in the SHS cafeteria from noon to 1:30 p.m.

Sherman ISD is thrilled to welcome dozens of new staff members for the 2023-24 school year. New teachers begin August 1, while the rest of our teachers start August 3. Check out the schedule of the great learning that will be taking place August 1-4 as part of New Teacher Academy. We can’t wait to meet everyone!

Summer is a great time for T-shirts and shorts, but once the school year starts, it’s time to look your best! Employees must adhere to the student dress code as a minimum and are expected to maintain higher standards and model professional dress to students, parents and the community at all times. In addition, an employee’s attire and appearance must not be distracting or create a potential safety hazard.

Open enrollment for district health benefits is going on now through August 11. If you are a new hire or need to make any changes to your TRS Medical coverage, please enroll during this time. No action is needed if you are happy with your selections in the spring.

Due to IRS rules, employees who participate in a flexible spending or health savings account have to enroll annually. If you have one of these types of accounts and you did not re-enroll during our spring enrollment period and you would like to continue with your savings account, please re-enroll by August 11.

Benefits will be effective on September 1, 2023. You can enroll online here.

The required annual trainings for the 2023-24 school year are now available through the Canvas learning management system. The deadline is September 30.

Completing these trainings satisfies one of the requirements for the two Professional Exchange days this school year. To get credit, you should complete the trainings when you are outside contract time or off the clock if you are an hourly employee. Once you complete the trainings, you should print two copies of your certificates for each course; one copy for your personal file and one to be turned into your supervisor as documentation.

Also, please complete the cybersecurity awareness training from KnowBe4, which was sent in a separate email. It can be accessed through your SSO.

Area church leaders and congregations will gather on the Sherman Municipal Lawn and at 6 p.m. on August 6 to pray for our schools. After that, groups will visit campuses to lift up and encourage our students, families and staff. All are invited to attend!

Sherman ISD is engaging students, parents, community members, and staff in envisioning what the district’s newest elementary schools will look like. Stakeholders are sharing their ideas about everything from the buildings’ exterior to the placement of key spaces, including classrooms, collaboration areas, and outdoor learning spaces. The replacement of Crutchfield Elementary and Fairview Elementary, as well as one brand new elementary school, will open for the start of the 2025-26 school year.

The 2023 Kinder Bearcat Camp has been a great success! We loved meeting some of our newest Bearcats and look forward to seeing them on August 14. Please encourage your friends and family to register any new students entering kindergarten, Pre-K or Head Start as soon as possible at www.shermanisd.net/register.

When checking out from Books-A-Million at the Sherman Town Center, you can opt to purchase a book for the Summer Book Drive through August 20! The focus this year is Pre-K - 1st.

Let’s Pancake Denison!

Friday, August 25

7 a.m. - 7 p.m.

Sherman Municipal Ballroom

All-You-Can-Eat Pancakes, Sausage,

Coffee & Juice

We would love the opportunity to feature honors and recognitions received by SISD employees. Please send accomplishments and news to Todd Kleiboer at tkleiboer@shermanisd.net.