For Schools and Districts

The High Desert Education Service District (HDESD) has entered into a long term lease agreement with the Forest Service for Skyliner Lodge which is 8 miles west of Bend.  HDESD Superintendent, Dr. Dennis Dempsey, said HDESD was asked by local school district superintendents to look into leasing the lodge for educational purposes several years ago.  He noted that the lodge offers great instructional possibilities for our districts.

The building is on the National Historical Registry and will hold 60-70 students.  It is intended for day use only.  The goal is to use the facility for conservation, outdoor and natural resource education in addition to educational meetings. 

There is no cost to schools requesting to use the facility. The Lodge is also available for community and family events.  The fees will vary depending upon the date and the type of event.

The Oregon DATA Project (Direct Access to Achievement)
is a collaborative initiative of the Oregon Department of Education and the statewide Education Enterprise Steering Committee.

Over the past 4 years, the Oregon Data Project has provided opportunities for staff development in Districts throughout Oregon. Locally, HDESD has coordinated trainings to staff from Bend La Pine, Redmond, Sisters, Crook County, Culver and Jefferson 509J .

The High Desert Education Service District provides Educational Technology training and support to school districts, teachers and HDESD staff. Classrooms use educational technology -- including computer equipment, software, curriculum and Internet resources to locate, process, and present information. Educational Technology includes computers, computer software, cameras, CD players, calculators and other electronic tools to help enhance student learning.

The Goals of the Educational Technology Department are to

• Assist all teachers in the integration of technology into instruction by providing grade level/subject area appropriate training on the use of technology in the classroom as identified through research and best practices.

• Assist  in establishing a District-wide vision for use of technology to support teaching and learning and to assist in the creation of site-based plans to support the integration of technology to support instruction.

• Assist in the implementation of National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) for Students, Teachers, and Administrators and the Oregon State Educational Technology Standards.

The High Desert Education Service District can provide teachers with hands-on science-teaching kits developed by the National Science Resources Center. Kits can be checked out for classroom use. Many students learn better by doing and this is especially true in the sciences. That's why Science and Technology for Children ® was developed. With these science kits teachers can engage students in investigation and discovery activities using everyday materials along with basic science equipment.

This hands-on, motivational approach captures children's natural curiosity and stimulates their interest.

The kits are housed at the High Desert ESD/Redmond School District. Teachers are able to check out the materials as needed using the online request system.

The High Desert Education Service District's School Improvement Department offers a number of opportunities for teachers to enhance their professional skills and improve student learning, from Career and Technical Education (CTE) to Migrant Education to Plaza for parents children in our constituent districts who need Spanish literacy support.

HDESD has several grants through the Oregon Department of Education to support local districts efforts in programs as well a US Department of Education Teaching American History grant providing content staff development for teachers of US History grades 3rd through 12th.

We also have a great variety of programs/services designed to increase student achievement, support local districts’ school improvement efforts through Data Teams, Positive Behavior Intervention Supports (PBIS) and Standards work using data from Common Formative Assessments to adjust teaching strategies thereby improving all students’ growth and academic achievement. A variety of staff development opportunities are available through HDESD. See our calendar of events and trainings here.

The High Desert Education Service District's Human Resources Department provides staffing and personnel support to schools and districts as well as the HDESD offices. Assistance includes staffing, compensation, evaluation, personnel record keeping, labor relations, employee benefits training and substitute employee programs.

The High Desert Education Service District currently employs three staff attorneys who provide legal services, consulting and representation to school districts in Central and Eastern Oregon as well as the HDESD offices and board of directors.

The legal team works with closely with school boards, superintendents, personnel directors, building administrators and other supervisors to support labor and employment issues. Services include representation in the collective bargaining process, labor contract administration and assistance in various aspects of "personnel" or "human resource" management. Assistance is also available for student rights and discipline, parental custodial issues, subpoena of witness employees and special education law.
 

The High Desert Education Service District provides technology services to Central Oregon schools, school districts, HDESD staff and the community.  These services enhance and enable learning, create and maintain a safe environment, drive improved efficiencies and productivity, aid in better decision making, and facilitate communication.

Technology services include Desktop Support, Educational Technology, and Network Operations Center (NOC).

The Technology Services department also partners with Central Oregon Community College, Central Oregon libraries, the City of Bend, the Oregon Department of Education and school districts outside of Central Oregon.

The Network Operation Center provides network connectivity, security, webfiltering, linux and windows system administration, email filtering and archiving for the districts in the high desert service area.

If you need help with a NOC service please use Big Web Desk to create a ticket http://help.hdesd.org, if your issue is urgent please create a ticket and then call the NOC @ 541.693.5640.

The High Desert Education Service District is part of a Tri-County School Response Team that prepares for and responds to crisis situations in our schools. The response team is a cooperative, volunteer effort involving specially-trained teachers, counselors, educational assistants, administrators, human service agency staff, and community members from Crook, Deschutes and Jefferson counties. Read more...