An Update From the Indiana Department of Education for January 25, 2019

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Did you know 93/615 (15%) of bills in the House and 107/585 (18.3%) of bills in the Senate could impact K-12 students during this 2019 legislative session? The Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) is dedicated to advocating on behalf of what is best for kids!  Visit our Government Affairs webpage for more information. #KidsFirstIN

Dr. Mac

Question and Answer Document Offered on Proposal to Increase Teacher Salaries Through Pension Liability Payoff

Attention Superintendents and Central Office Staff

The Indiana Public Retirement System posted a Q & A document on its website regarding the Governor’s proposal to pay off a pension liability in an effort to help increase teacher pay. View the Q & A document here.

 

Office of Assessment

Additional I AM Trainings Added to the I AM Portal

American Institutes for Research added two additional training opportunities for the live I AM Regional Training. These will be offered on Monday, March 4, in Indianapolis from 1-4 p.m. ET and Monday, March 18, in Crown Point from 1-4 p.m. CT. To register for one of these events, please visit the I AM portal here.

Share with Parents and Educators! Assessment Videos

Our office is developing several videos this spring to share with parents and educators. These videos highlight the development of Indiana’s assessment system and topics specific to our assessments. Please share these valuable resources via newsletters or parent messages.

  • How is Indiana considering building a system of assessments? Watch this 3-minute video to find out more about how Indiana assessments work together.

  • How is Indiana integrating technology with assessment? Watch this 3-minute video to find out more about Assessing with Technology.

 

Office of School Improvement

New Resources Added to the Social-Emotional Website

IDOE's Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Wellness website is now live. This week you will find the Social-Emotional Learning Toolkit, supporting video, the Universal Screening Toolkit, and Social-Emotional Learning Lesson plans. Next week will be the final resources which include Educational Neuroscience Toolkit, educational video, and Neuroscience Lesson plans. Please contact Christy Berger, Assistant Director of Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Wellness, with further questions.

Indiana Literacy Early Intervention Grant (EIG) Part II

Help improve early literacy through the use of EIG funds! To participate in part II of the EIG, please complete this form by Friday, February 8. More information is available on IDOE's EIG webpage found here.

Educators Needed to Help Develop Phase II of Math Framework

Last call! Educators teaching kindergarten through calculus are still needed as contributors to developing phase II of the math framework. Elementary (January 30), middle (February 6), and high school (February 4) educators are encouraged to join IDOE math specialists at the Indiana Association of School Principals headquarters in Indianapolis. The group will share their content expertise through the development of practical examples and digital resources for each Indiana Academic Standard. Click here to sign up.

Literacy Framework Phase II – Input Needed

IDOE’s literacy team invites passionate educators to participate in the developing Phase II of the Literacy Framework.

Please note that specific grade spans are requested for the upcoming dates:

  • 6-8 grade educators are needed for Thursday, January 31; and

  • 9-12 grade educators are needed for Friday, February 1.

If interested, please complete this form. Additional information will be sent to those signing up.

Dyslexia Intervention Guidance

Senate Enrolled Act (SEA) 217 does not endorse a single product or approach for dyslexia intervention. While there is not a specific intervention program schools must use, SEA 217 does have recommended instructional approaches. IDOE has created two documents to aid schools in selecting an intervention program. The “Dyslexia Intervention Program Check” can be used to investigate the fidelity of a dyslexia intervention program. The second document lists the recommended instructional approaches from SEA 217 and provides example approaches that satisfy the recommended approaches from the law. This is not an exhaustive list. IDOE does not  endorse any of these products, but they are offered as examples. These documents can be found on IDOE's dyslexia page.

Diploma Seal Ordering Instructions Available

Diploma seal ordering is live! Click here to read the instructional ordering memo and access the order form online.

High Ability and Advanced Placement Monthly Newsletter

Please read this month's ASPIRE HIGHER newsletter. This month, you will find information about the competitive grant opportunity, Mentorship Program, free tuition reimbursement, the grant amendment process, incredible free professional development opportunities, and more.

 

Office of eLearning

February is Digital Learning Month

Indiana Digital Learning Month 2019 offers many opportunities throughout February for educators to learn more about utilizing technology to offer increased opportunities and access for students. From webinars and social media-based professional development, to an opportunity to tell your digital learning story, there are so many ways to connect with other educators and learn more about educational technology.

 

Office of Information Technology

State Matching Funds Program Announced for Special E-rate Eligible Construction Projects

IDOE is announcing its participation in the E-rate match program for special construction projects. This is available to any public school in Indiana and is a pilot program for FY2019 (July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020) which may then be reviewed and modified as needed. Learn more here.

 

Office of Workforce and STEM Alliances

Computer Science for School Counselors Webinar

Attention school counselors! The Office of Workforce and STEM Alliances will be hosting two informative webinars about computer science and what schools need to do to comply with Senate Enrolled Act 172. Topics will include an overview of CS in Indiana, course options, standards, assessment, resources, and more! To register for January 28, from 9:30-10:30 a.m., click here.

Going Beyond the Hour of Code

CSforIN is an initiative to empower all Hoosier students from kindergarten through high school to learn computer science and be equipped with the computational thinking skills they need to thrive in a digitally powered economy. Benefits of joining the community include access to a network of CS education stakeholders in Indiana, monthly newsletters, monthly community calls, and more! Join the CSforIN community by visiting CSforIN.org.

Elementary CS Fundamentals Workshops

These one- or two-day Computer Science Fundamentals workshops provide participants with an intro to computer science and pedagogy, an overview of quality elementary CS curriculum, and strategies for teaching “unplugged” classroom activities. This is a free opportunity, and sub reimbursement is available. See this informational page for dates, locations, and to sign up. Contact Jake Koressel with questions.

Middle School Integrating CS Workshops

Designed for middle school educators teaching across all subjects, the Integrating Computer Science professional development workshop is designed to equip teachers with the knowledge and instructional strategies to integrate computer science into existing coursework. This is a FREE opportunity, and sub reimbursement is available. See this informational page for dates, locations, and to sign up. Contact Jake Koressel with questions.

 

State Equitable Services Ombudsman

New Resources Added to Webpage

The goal of reaching agreement on key issues that are relevant to the equitable participation of eligible non-public school students, teachers, other educational personnel, and families in federal programs is grounded in timely and meaningful consultation between the LEA and the non-public school official. The Ombudsman webpage now has seven additional resources to support effective non-public school consultation. 

 

Office of School Finance

Curricular Material Reimbursement

The Office of School Finance has calculated the 2018-2019 curricular material reimbursement payment to qualifying schools and charter schools. Click here for the memo. The per-student funding amount is approximately $79.58.  An electronic funds transfer for reimbursement will be made on February 6. Questions should be emailed to this address.

Form 9 Financial Report Reminder

The Form 9 Financial Report data submission for the period of July to December 2018 must be uploaded through DOE Online no later than January 31, 2019. The submission process opened January 1, 2019. Please note that this will be the first Form 9 data submission to require two additional fields: School Building ID and Subcategory. As part of the upload of Form 9 data, school corporations may test their files using the “Test a File” error review button on the main dashboard of DOE Online -> Form 9.  Please see additional guidance, a list of School IDs, and other information in the ESSA and Form 9 folders in the Learning Connection School Finance Community under “Files and Bookmarks." Additional information and all questions should be directed here.

February 1 Membership Count

The second membership count date is February 1. Although this is a required membership count for all public school corporations and charter schools, the data will NOT be used in the FY2019 State Tuition Support formula. Specific information related to opening and closing times can be found in the DOE-ME layout in the Data Reporting Community of the Learning Connection. If you have questions, please contact either Melissa Ambre or Amy Pattison.

 

Office of Title Grants

2018-2019 NESP Reallocations

The Office of Title Grants and Support has released allocations of 2018-2019 NESP funds to participating LEAs with an EL population percentage of five percent or greater and additional reallocated funds for LEAs with an EL population of 18 percent or greater. All participating LEAs who wish to use their additional allocated funding must submit a budget amendment form by February 15 to request their reallocated funds.  

 

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Weekly Updates

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