ESU Strong – PDO September 13 and 14

September PDO Highlights

We will have sessions on HQMI and Hope Science, along with work group time for Educator Effectiveness, MTSS, School Mental Health, Curricula/Materials, Continuous Improvement, Leadership Capacity and Customized Services.

  • September 13th – 8:30am -11:30am, HQIM Fellowship 2.0 Session 1
    • Selection Process and Timeline, Capacity Building & Vision of Instruction
    • The purpose of the fellowship is to provide resources and processes to ESU staff in order to support districts during the selection and implementation of high-quality instructional materials. Flyer
    • If you plan to attend the HQIM Fellowship Day 1, please complete this form.
  • September 13th – 11:30am – 3:30pm
    • AFTERNOON ONLY – If you do not plan to attend the morning session and can still join us at 11:30am for lunch with continuing PDO work from 12:30pm – 3:30pm, please register for lunch and the afternoon. Registration
  • September 14th – Special Guest Speaker, Scott Butler, will be sharing Hope Science with us from 8:45am – 9:45am. Invite your LMHP’s to join us!
  • September 15th – Affiliates Meetings
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2022 Nebraska School Mental Health Conference

Join in promoting strong mental health services in our schools by attending the 2022 Nebraska School Mental Health Conference! Attendees will have the opportunity to connect with professionals, gain valuable resources and training, and receive up to 7.5 CEUs.

This year, the Nebraska School Mental Health Conference is excited to host keynote speakers Michael Bonner, Emma Benoit, Ryan Sallans, and Samantha Reaves! 

Conference Details:

June 1-2, 2022
Embassy Suites La Vista Conference Center
12520 Westport Parkway
La Vista, Nebraska, 68128

More information and registration link: https://thekimfoundation.org/nebraska-school-mental-health/

Nebraska Digital Citizenship Symposium 2021-22

Nebraska Education Service Units are hosting the Nebraska ESU Digital Citizenship Symposium online again this year!  We have updated our website to include new content for grades 7-12 and have added content for grades K-4 and 5-6.

Special thanks to Bobby Truhe from KSB Law and Lincoln Public Schools for the new videos.

We have also added access to professional learning modules for teachers that were created by Nebraska ESU educators. Teachers can earn a certificate upon completion.

This content will be available all year.

The Nebraska ESUs are excited to announce our Digital Citizenship Contest: Be CyberSmart!

Students have the option to create a poster or PSA (public service announcement) that showcases how to be a CyberSmart citizen based on their learning. All entries must be original creations and must be compliant with the established guidelines below. Submission will be accepted all year until the deadline will be March 15, 2022. Entries will be judged in March and winners announced in April.


2020-21 Success

The team of ESU leaders who facilitated the event were very pleased with the participation. The Nebraska Digital Citizenship Symposium website was visited over 6,000 times from January through March by people from all over Nebraska and 14 other states! Students in grades 7-12 had the opportunity to earn a certificate of completion for three separate units addressing Cyberbullying, Sexting, and Consequences of Negative Behaviors. Over 1,950 certificates were awarded!


Additional information is available at the NE Digital Citizenship Symposium website. If you have any questions, please contact your ESU or Peg Coover from ESU 10.

SDA Training: November 2-3, 2021


November 2 — Educator Effectiveness

Where: ESU #10 (Kearney, NE)

Time: 9:00 am – 3:00 pm

Facilitators: S.E.E.D. Team (Dr. Kim Snyder, Dr. Julie Downing, & Ryan Ricenbaw)

Topics include:

  • Direction and Vision of the S.E.E.D. Instructional System
  • NTPPS Updates
  • Support with the NTPPS Rubrics
  • Connecting to Work Being Completed in Districts/ESUs
  • Collaboration and Planning


November 3 — Content Area Standards Support: ELA Standards Rollout

Where: ESU #10 (Kearney, NE)

Time: 9:00 am – 3:00 pm

Facilitators: Nebraska Dept. of Education – Dr. Cory Epler and Marissa Payzant

The purpose of the training is to provide ESU staff with tools and resources relating to the rollout of the 2021 Nebraska ELA Standards so that they can facilitate work with districts within their service areas.

For additional information and logistics for each day, please visit: Smore Link


Register here: ESUPDO November 2 – 3 Training

Please register by October 15th and indicate whether you plan to participate onsite or via Zoom.


Basic Threat Assessment Training 2021-2022

NDE School Safety and Security Image

Threat assessment and management evolved from practices used to assess and manage potential risk of violence. This K-12 school team training will help your school form or enhance the team that will focus on identifying, assessing and managing the risk/threat of violence posed by students, staff, and community members toward the school community.

Schools are encouraged to participate in the virtual training with a team of 4 or more members.

Cost savings option – a team can attends for FREE when all four of these professional roles are represented and attend together. Otherwise, cost is $100 per person.

  • school administrator
  • staff member 
  • law enforcement
  • mental health professional (school psychologist, social worker, or LMHP)

Register your team for the next virtual training here:

It’s All About the Money . . . Or Is It?

by Priscilla Quintana, ESUCC Business Manager

What’s your budget?

Our World’s current situation has many schools questioning the future, implementing spending freezes, and trying to predict the financial future. This is not the first time that school budgets have been in danger. It seems like we are always trying to provide our kids with quality education while pinching pennies.

This concerns me, not just as an employee of ESUCC, but also as a parent. I want my kids to have the best education that we can possibly provide. Whether kids are learning in the classroom or learning remotely from home, supplies and equipment are essential. A decrease in funding, especially with these uncertain times, can make it very difficult for schools to obtain needed products and supplies.

What are your needs?

ESUCC has many resources available to support schools, educators and students. Continually working with ESUs, NDE, vendors, and other State agencies, we can provide cost saving solutions to meet all of your needs. By working together and sharing resources we all benefit, saving time and money.  ESUCC works to prepare strategic plans that assure cost-efficient and equitable delivery of services across the state, administration of statewide initiatives and provision of statewide services, and coordination of distance education.

Our Cooperative bid processes, leveraging bulk buying power, provide you with nationally and locally awarded contracts that give you low cost quality products and services. I have been doing this job for over 25 years and I have seen the cost savings and benefits of cooperative purchasing. It is amazing!  Schools can save up to 35% on classroom supplies & software, technology products, custodial supplies, food, building/roofing needs and so much more!

Did you know?

ESUCC Cooperative Purchasing saved Nebraska schools just over $5,000,000 last year!

Will things ever get back to normal?

Some days it is hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. And most likely, we will never be the “same”. The technology has always been there, we have now been forced to use it on a daily basis to work, teach, communicate, and learn. And unfortunately, we will most likely always face financial concerns and budget issues. But thanks to the hardworking professionals, exceptional teachers, and the many educational support agencies working together in Nebraska, we will continue to achieve great results!

If money was not an issue, what would your world look like? What do you need help with?  ESUCC is always looking for new ways to serve Nebraska schools. 

If there is anything you need, please contact us!

Omaha office:  402-597-4843 or Ainsworth office:  402-387-1245

ESUCC Coop Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ESUCC.Coop

TLT – It’s Dynamite!

In the world of ESUs and education, you may notice the practice of using acronyms. They’re used in naming groups, projects, processes and products. So several years ago, when a couple of the affiliates under the professional development organization (PDO) merged to form one group “Teaching and Learning with Technology”, the shortened form, TLT,  became a new recognized “word” for ESUs. 

When we first decided to call the affiliate TLT, I couldn’t help but think of TNT, then dynamite, which by the way are not the same thing, but are similar. However, while checking on this, because I was curious if those words meant the same thing, I was reminded by Google that the informal definition of dynamite is “an extremely impressive or exciting person or thing.” This definition perfectly defines TLT. My word associations of TLT to dynamite lends itself to the perfect adjective of this extremely impressive group doing exciting things!

The exciting and challenging mission of TLT is to connect Nebraska educators with resources, best practices, and emerging technologies that will transform teaching and learning within the classroom. All of the ESUs employ experts in the areas of digital and blended learning, distance education, instructional materials, and technology. These experts collaborate and coordinate statewide in efforts to support districts. TLT also partners with the Nebraska Department of Education and other stakeholders on many of these endeavors. 

Recently, ESUCC in partnership with Nebraska Rural Community School Association (NRCSA) launched two websites that support remote learning, one for teachers and one for administrators. Much of the work was coordinated by TLT and includes resources that were curated or created by this dynamite affiliate. Some of those resources reside in the Nebraska OER Commons hub and were created as open educational resources (OER) by Nebraska teachers for Nebraska teachers under a joint project funded by the ESUs and NDE. The Nebraska OER hub, where these and many other great resources are hosted, is another great project that is a coordinated effort by NDE, ESUs and district teachers brought forward by TLT. Check out these dynamite tools and resources for Nebraska educators!

These are just a couple of examples of the impressive work by TLT. When our world was hit by the pandemic in 2020, TLT worked together along with other stakeholders to support districts in remote learning and much has been learned along the way!  TLT continues the mission to connect educators to resources and technologies for use in the classroom and welcomes input from our Nebraska educators.

Do you have remote learning resources to share or lessons learned that have helped you during the pandemic?

Student Mental Health in Nebraska

ESUs Providing Social and Emotional Support

Nebraska News Service, a student news website at the University of Nebraska, recently highlighted the mental health services available to Nebraska students. Featured in the podcast is McKayla LaBorde, Director of Student Services at Educational Service Unit 3, and Sarah Hamilton, one of ESU 3’s clinical social workers. Listen to the episode to hear how ESUs are meeting students’ needs for social and emotional support and services.