The New Year transition brings with it predictions for the year ahead, and this year, WRAL news asked me for my thoughts on the year ahead. In case you are not a viewer of WRAL here in Raleigh or a regular visitor to the station’s website, here is what I see ahead in 2016. 

1.  The General Assembly will give teachers the largest salary increase in a decade. Rationale: this is an election year plus teachers deserve a raise in order for education to be competitive with other professions.

2.  A new state testing pilot will be expanded so that teachers, students and parents will receive immediate feedback after assessments with a reduction in test taking time. Rationale: preliminary findings reported by teachers in the pilot show very positive results.

3.  Enrollment in university teacher preparation programs will decrease for the sixth year in a row. Rationale: young people and second career adults must be attracted to the teaching field by better salaries and necessary resources.

4.  The high school graduation rate will reach another all time high surpassing 86 percent while the State Board of Education continues to have higher standards for meeting graduation requirements.

5.  Investments in early reading will begin to pay off with more students able to read well by third grade. Rationale: investments in summer camps for 1st and 2nd graders will have a positive impact.

6.  Quality preschool programs will continue to be an issue even though research clearly shows that quality early learning programs have financial benefit to society and to individuals.

I also predict that your colleagues and you will continue to provide strong educational services to students in North Carolina, but that prediction is not unique to 2016! I hope your new year is off to a good start, and I look forward to our continued work together.

State Board of Education
Meeting Highlights

At last week’s State Board of Education meeting, members approved new Cooperative Innovative High School program applications and changes to the charter school policy and revocation processes. Board members also approved reports to the General Assembly on a pilot program to raise the dropout age to 18 and school connectivity. The complete list of Board actions is available online.

Jan. 15 is Deadline to Participate in Instructional Materials Survey

Tomorrow is the deadline to participate in a survey about your use of instructional materials within Schoolnet, the Instructional Improvement System.

There are currently over 130,000 materials available for educators to use within Schoolnet. We would like some detail on which materials are being used, as well as information about the quality of the materials available. It is important as we move forward with the Instructional Improvement System that we get feedback from North Carolina teachers and district/school curriculum leaders to ensure the materials and resources provided are of a high quality and high value-add in terms of improving instruction and student performance.

Regional Teachers of the Year Announced

Congratulations to the following nine teachers who were selected to represent their education districts and charter schools as the state’s regional Teachers of the Year and will compete for the title of 2016 Burroughs Wellcome Fund North Carolina Teacher of the Year:

-  Northeast: Marie Smith, Conway Middle (Northampton County Schools);

-  Southeast: Katie Snyder, Hoggard High (New Hanover County Schools);

-  North Central: Margaret McNeill, Dunn Middle (Harnett County Schools);

-  Sandhills: Olivia Hall, Roseboro-Salemburg Middle (Sampson County Schools);

-  Piedmont-Triad: Kevin Scharen, Graham High (Alamance-Burlington Schools);

-  Southwest: Bobbie Cavnar, South Point High (Gaston County Schools);

-  Northwest: Leah Hayes, South Newton Elementary (Newton-Conover City Schools);

-  Western: Angel Ledbetter, Rutherford Early College High (Rutherford County Schools); and

-  Charter Schools: Brandon Brown, Lake Norman Charter (Mecklenburg County).

The 2016 North Carolina Teacher of the Year will be announced April 7 at an awards ceremony in Cary. The winner succeeds 2015 Burroughs Wellcome Fund North Carolina Teacher of the Year Keana Triplett, a high school English teacher at Ashe County High (Ashe County Schools).

Franklin County Teacher’s Design Selected for 2016 NC TWCS Logo

Congratulations to Valerie Hawthorne, a 6th grade social studies teacher at Cedar Creek Middle School (Franklin County Schools), for designing the new logo and theme for the 2016 NC Teacher Working Conditions Survey (NC TWCS).

Valerie’s design will be featured on all publications and social media sites advertising the survey. The NC TWCS’ goal, as always, is 100 percent participation from all schools. Valerie says, “We stress 100 participation in the NC TWCS because we know that data begins with understanding but ends with action. Your collective voice on this survey results in change at both the district and state level. It is well worth your time!”

The NC TWCS survey window is March 1-March 25. Thanks to all educators who participated in the branding contest for this year’s survey theme. For more information, please visit the NC TWCS website or contact Yvette Stewart, with NCDPI Educator Effectiveness.

STEM Innovation: Opportunities for Teachers and Students

STEM Design Challenge for Students Grades 8-12.

Design proposals are now being accepted through a joint educational program of NASA - the International Space Station and Portland State University (PSU). Students are invited to participate in microgravity research on capillary action similar to that which was conducted on the space station. Sound interesting? Teams will create their own experiment using Computer-Aided Design CAD software and NASA and/or PSU staff will aid teams in their interpretation of their results. Teams may be comprised of an entire class or informal science clubs of any size. Selection of at least one qualifying entry from each state and listed territory is guaranteed. Submission deadlines are Feb. 1, March 1 and April 1. Contact the Capillary Effects on Liquids Exploratory Research Experiments Team for more information.

NC Space Grant Public Outreach Grant

The NC Space Grant Informal Education and Public Outreach Program is now open for proposals. The overall goal of the NC Space Grant Informal Education and Public Outreach Program is to increase interest in and understanding of STEM disciplines by inspiring and engaging individuals of all ages throughout North Carolina. Visit the Public Outreach Grant web page for more information. Proposals will be accepted through Feb. 27.

STEM-related Summer Workshop

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta invites you to register for its 2016 Science Ambassador Workshop to be held July 18-22.

Middle and high school teachers will hear presentations and collaborate with CDC scientists, work in teams to develop lessons plans that will be published on CDC's website, and tour CDC's state-of-the-art headquarters. In addition, teachers can earn four continuing education units.

There is no registration fee; however, participants will need to cover their transportation, lodging and meals. The deadline to register is April 15.