What's New at Dubuque Community Schools

The Dubuque Community School District will host a second informational meeting on the district’s middle school consolidation study on Tuesday, November 1, from 5:30-6:30 p.m. at the Forum, 2300 Chaney Road.

At the meeting, the team from INVISION Architecture leading the study will provide an update on the process, share potential consolidation site locations, discuss considerations for each option, and allow those in attendance to provide feedback.

The INVISION team plans to complete its research gathering, analysis and community feedback in time to provide a recommendation by the end of the calendar year.

In April, the School Board voted to approve a goal of moving to a two middle school model by fall 2026, with a focus on creating feeder schools to the district’s two high schools. The study includes baseline data collection and analysis of the district’s current middle schools, benchmarking against best practices, and analysis of potential consolidation locations.

VIEW PRESENTATION MATERIALS FROM THE FIRST COMMUNITY MEETING

For those unable to attend, the presentation content will be shared on the district website at www.dbqschools.org following the meeting.

In April, the School Board voted to approve a goal of moving to a two middle school model by fall 2026, with a focus on creating feeder schools to the district’s two high schools.

The study, led by Iowa-based INVISION Architecture, includes baseline data collection and analysis of the district’s current middle schools, benchmarking against best practices, and analysis of potential consolidation locations.

PRESENATION FROM THE NOVEMBER 1, 2022 COMMUNITY INFORMATIONAL MEETING

View the latest presentation below, which includes information about potential site locations.

After watching the video of the November 1 meeting below, GIVE YOUR FEEDBACK ON A SHORT SURVEY.

PRESENATION FROM THE SEPTMEBER 22, 2022 COMMUNITY INFORMATIONAL MEETING

The Dubuque Community School District will host an informational meeting on the district’s middle school consolidation study on Thursday, Sept. 22, from 5:30-6:30 p.m. at the Forum, 2300 Chaney Road.

In April, the School Board voted to approve a goal of moving to a two middle school model by fall 2026, with a focus on creating feeder schools to the district’s two high schools. The district is currently working with INVISION Architecture, an Iowa-based firm, on conducting a study and plan development to meet that goal.

The study includes feedback from a variety of constituent groups throughout the process, including a series of community informational meetings. The first half of the meeting will feature a presentation, followed by the opportunity for attendees to ask questions at a variety of topic-based stations during the meeting’s second half. The planning team from INVISION, the firm conducting the study, as well as district staff will be on hand to present and answer questions.

This first community meeting, with another to be held in October, will discuss the middle school planning process and intent, the state of the three current district middle schools, and a review data and benchmarking information. It will also include an early update on the consolidation study progress to date and a chance for attendees to provide feedback to inform the study moving forward.

For those unable to attend, the presentation content will be shared on the district website at www.dbqschools.org following the meeting.

A short time ago, the City of Dubuque issued a precautionary boil water advisory for a large portion of the city. (Read the City’s full release, including a map, about the boil water advisory.)

This boil water advisory includes the following district buildings:

Alta Vista Campus
Bryant Elementary School
Dubuque Senior High School
Forum Campus
Hempstead High School
Hoover Elementary School
Irving Elementary School
Lincoln Elementary School
Table Mound Elementary School
Transportation Office
Washington Middle School

The district will operate on its normal Friday one-hour late start schedule tomorrow, and is taking a number of steps to prepare for tomorrow’s school day:

• Breakfast and lunch tomorrow will include menu items that do not require tap water to be used in preparation.
• Bottled water is being procured and will be delivered to affected buildings. While we anticipate having at least one bottle of water for each student, WE ASK THAT STUDENTS AND STAFF CONSIDER BRINGING BOTTLED WATER FROM HOME FOR USE DURING THE DAY.

The City of Dubuque recommends the following for any locations impacted by the advisory:

• Do not drink tap water without boiling it first. Boiling kills bacteria and other organisms in the water.
• Until the advisory is lifted, boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking, making ice, brushing teeth, and food preparation.
• Bring water to a boil, let boil for one minute, and let it cool before drinking/using.
• Unboiled tap water may be used for bathing and other non-drinking purposes.

Residents seeking additional information may call the city at 563/690-6210.

Thank you for your flexibility as we prepare for the school day tomorrow!

The Dubuque Community School District Board of Directors will conduct public hearings on the sale of two properties as outlined below:

• On MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, at 5:30 p.m. at the Forum, 2300 Chaney Road, Dubuque, Iowa, concerning the proposed sale of District property located at 3355 John F. Kennedy Road, Dubuque, Iowa (known as the Dubuque Soccer Complex).
• On WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, at 4:30 p.m. at the Forum, 2300 Chaney Road, Dubuque, Iowa, concerning the proposed sale of District property located at 2540 Central Avenue, Dubuque, Iowa (known as the Fulton Elementary School Building).

Need help registering your student?
Looking for a job in an amazing school district?
We are hitting the road and bringing the district to you!

Visit our registration and human resources teams at one of our Mobile Registration and Employment Fair stops throughout the community next week.

At each stop:

• Our registration team will be on hand to assist families in completing online registration for the upcoming 2022-2023 school year.
• Our human resources team will take applications and conduct on-the-spot interviews for a variety of district jobs, including paraprofessional, transportation and food/nutrition positions.
• Computers with internet access will be provided – and we even have a few treats in store!

Join us at one of the following times:

Saturday, Aug. 6, 11 a.m.- 2p.m.
BACK-TO-SCHOOL BASH: Audubon Elementary School

Monday, Aug. 8, 1-3 p.m.
Flora Park
NOTE: Spanish and Marshallese interpreters will be available at this stop.

Tuesday, Aug. 9, from 9-11 a.m.
Hempstead High School
NOTE: Spanish and Marshallese interpreters will be available at this stop.

Wednesday, Aug. 10, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
Murphy Park
NOTE: Spanish and Marshallese interpreters will be available at this stop.

Thursday, Aug. 11, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
Roosevelt Middle School
NOTE: Spanish and Marshallese interpreters will be available at this stop.

We look forward to seeing you!

Don’t miss this year’s Back-to-School Bash, themed ‘Build a Healthier Community!’

Saturday, Aug. 6
11 a.m.-2 p.m.
Audubon Elementary School
605 Lincoln Ave.

BACK-TO-SCHOOL BASH FEATURES:

• sign-up for school supplies from the St. Mark’s Apples For Students program (Learn how to contribute supplies to the program)
• Dubuque Community School District registration assistance
• vaccinations and school physicals
• free Back-to-School Bash t-shirt
• booths by a variety of community organizations
• and more!

NEED A RIDE? WE’VE GOT YOU COVERED!
Hop on or off a school bus shuttle at one of the following locations/times:

Thank you to the AMAZING community organizations that make the Back-to-School Bash possible:

• Black Men Coalition
• City of Dubuque
• Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque
• Dubuque Community Schools
• Kendall Hunt Publishing Company
• Multicultural Family Center
• RH Prints Co.
• Resources Unite!
• St. Mark Youth Enrichment
• Women United | United Way of Dubuque Area Tri-States
• and many more!

QUESTIONS?
Contact Anderson Sainci!
563/589-4326 or
asainci@cityofdubuque.org

On Monday, July 18, the Dubuque Community School District Board of Education adopted resolutions approving a motion to begin accepting proposals for the sale and development of two district properties beginning at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, July 19, and accepted until close of business at 5 p.m. on Thursday, August 18.

• The Dubuque Soccer Complex
• The Fulton Elementary School Building

THE BID SUBMISSION WINDOW FOR THESE PROPERTIES IS NOW CLOSED.

For those having problems registering with the Multifactor Authentication (MFA) process or logging into the new Employee Access portal, there will be three (3) open sessions offered in the Board Room at the Forum where Innovation Technology (IT) and Business Office personnel will be available to assist staff with common issues.

The following is a list of dates and times for the three (3) open sessions offered. Drop in anytime during one of these sessions to receive assistance.

• Tuesday, July 12, 2022, from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m.
• Wednesday, July 13, 2022, from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
• Tuesday, July 19, 2022, from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m.

The message below was sent to all staff via district email on Thursday, June 30. 

Greetings,

As previously communicated, yesterday, June 29, 2022, the Innovation Technology (IT) implemented multifactor authentication (MFA) required by the district’s cyber liability insurance carrier for all staff.

The one-time MFA registration is necessary for staff to participate in especially IF you want to access district services (e.g., Outlook mail, OneDrive file access, Tyler Employee Access, etc.) that rely on Microsoft authentication from a personal device.

The following is some additional information that we want to share with you since the implementation of MFA.

I USED THE WRONG PHONE NUMBER WHEN REGISTERING FOR MFA, CAN I CHANGE THIS?

You will need to contact the IT department to have the MFA information you initially entered reset so that you can register the correct secondary verification method again.

I SELECTED THE WRONG AUTHENICATION PREFERNCE WHEN REGISTERING FOR MFA, CAN I CHANGE THIS?

You can change your MFA details by browsing to https://aka.ms/MFAsetup and walk through the MFA registration again to make the appropriate changes.

SINCE MFA HAS BEEN IMPLEMENTED, ACCESING DISTRICT EMAIL ON MY PERSONAL DEVICE (e.g., cell phone) IS NO LONGER IS WORKING?

Due to the aggressive timeframe for implementation, coupled with enforcement security requirements by Microsoft, it has been discovered that the native mail Apps on Apple iPhones/iPads and Google Android phones/tablets do not work correctly with MFA.

To continue to receive your district email on your personal device after you have been enrolled in MFA, you will NEED to download and use the Microsoft Outlook Mobile App.

IS THERE A COST FOR THE MICROSOFT OUTLOOK MOBILE APP?

The Microsoft Outlook Mobile App for iOS and Android is FREE to use on either on Apple iPhones/iPads and Google Android phones/tablets.

HOW DO I GET THE MICROSOFT OUTLOOK MOBILE APP?

Depending on the device you are using, you will need to search for the Microsoft Outlook Mobile App in either the Apple App Store or Google Play to download and install it on your personal device. For more information on how to download and install the Microsoft Outlook Mobile App for iOS and Android, you can visit https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/outlook-mobile-for-android-and-ios

HOW DO I ADD MY DISTRICT EMAIL ACCOUNT IN THE MICROSOFT OUTLOOK MOBILE APP?

Depending on the device you are using, select one of the links below for help on adding your account:

Set up email in the Microsoft Outlook Mobile App for Android

Set up email in Microsoft Outlook Mobile App for iOS

I STILL WANT TO USE THE NATIVE MAIL APP ON IOS AND ANDROID DEVICES TO ACCESS MY DISTRICT EMAIL, WILL THE IT DEPARTMENT HELP ME?

The district’s IT department will attempt to aid you ONLY if you are using the Microsoft Outlook Mobile App. The native mail Apps on either Apple iPhones/iPads and Google Android phones/tablets are not supported and you will be directed to download and install the Microsoft Outlook Mobile App.

NOTE: Please be advised that the district’s IT department will provide a best effort to support the Microsoft Outlook Mobile App on personal devices. This means the support provided will be limited in scope to the Microsoft Outlook Mobile App and depending on various circumstances/configurations of the personal device, the IT department may not be able to assist.

Please feel free to share this information with those you deem appropriate. The district will also be sending out a message through ParentSquare with this same information.

Thank you for your attention, cooperation, and understanding with this important matter.

Coby Culbertson
Chief Technology Officer