An Update From the Indiana Department of Education for October 4, 2019

indiana department of education - doctor jennifer mccormick - superintendent of public instruction
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Required Trainings Survey

Dr. Mac

The Indiana Department of Education (IDOE), at the request of the Interim Study Committee on Education, has been charged with surveying Indiana educators regarding how to do the following:

 

1)  Eliminate, reduce, or streamline the number of training mandates placed on schools.

 

2)  Streamline fiscal and compliance reporting to the General Assembly on a sustainable and systematic basis.

 

IDOE worked in collaboration with the Indiana Association of Public School Superintendents, the Indiana Association of School Principals, the Indiana State Teachers Association, the American Federation of Teachers - Indiana, and the Indiana School Board Association to create this survey. All school employees are encouraged to take this survey before October 11. The survey can be found here.


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Thank you to those schools who have reached out to the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) confirming their support of the Holiday Cards for our Military Challenge. This initiative sends holiday greeting cards to active military. Among the participating schools joining IDOE: Bradie Shrum Elementary in Salem, Hickory Center Elementary in Fort Wayne, Wabash High School in Wabash, Tayor High School in Kokomo, Sunman-Dearborn Middle School in Brookville, MSD Warren Township in Indianapolis, Western Wayne Elementary School in Cambridge City, and South Whitley Elementary School in Whitley. Schools and related organizations wanting to participate can learn more in this letter from Dr. McCormick.

 

Office of Assessment

2020-2021 Testing Windows

The Indiana State Board of Education approved these test windows for the 2020-2021 school year on October 2. Please review these windows ahead of the 2020-2021 school year so your corporation may effectively prepare. 

I AM Program Milestones for 2019-2020

The updated I AM Program Milestones document is available. Please note the two optional Q&A sessions occurring before the operational window. These half hour webinars will be available to I AM Test Administrators (TAs), School Test Coordinators (STCs), Corporation Test Coordinators (CTCs), and Special Education Directors providing answers to questions regarding the administration of I AM. Registration will be available via the I AM Portal in the spring.

ILEARN 3-8 Lexile® & Quantile® Measures by Performance Level

The compiled Lexile® and Quantile® measures at each proficiency level per grade level are now available for schools. This new resource is posted with our other Lexile® and Quantile® resources on the ILEARN Sample Items and Scoring page of our website. Please contact the Office of Assessment if you have any questions.

Updated 2019-2020 ISTEP+ Resources are Available

Updated resources and supports for ISTEP+ are now available!

  • Experience forms provide examples of test features and content. To locate the form, navigate to the “ISTEP+ Experience Forms” button on the right side of the screen.

  • Blank open-ended forms support the practice of item functionality with classroom-specific tasks. To locate the form, navigate to the “ISTEP+ Experience Forms” button on the right side of the screen.

  • The Calculator Policy allows using a handheld calculator OR the online Desmos graphing calculator during calculator-allowed portions of the online assessment.

  • Online Practice Tests

 

Office of School Improvement

Registration for IDOE’s The Science of Happiness Course Now Open

More than 600 educators have enrolled in IDOE's The Science of Happiness course since registration opened October 1. In partnership with Butler University, IDOE created the course, designed for educators to promote their own social-emotional wellness. Participants in this optional course will earn 45 professional growth plan points after successfully completing the course. Please promote The Science of Happiness with educators in your district by sharing this short promotional video

Find details about the technical requirements of the course for administrators and technology directors here. Visit this link to enroll. 

Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Wellness Whole Child Summit

IDOE is excited to again co-host The Indiana School Mental Health Initiative the Whole Child Summit on February 19 and 20 at the Indianapolis Marriott East. Please see the save the date information.

Multi-Tiered System of Supports

Please join IDOE’s MTSS team at the MTSS Leadership Academy conference on April 1, 2020, at Purdue University. Additional information is available here.

Early Learning Newsletter Now Available

The October edition of #INspirEDearly, IDOE’s Early Learning Newsletter, is now available here! To get future editions emailed to you, subscribe on IDOE’s Early Learning website.

 

Office of School Finance

Common School Loan Application Due TODAY

The Office of School Finance is accepting applications for construction and technology loans from public school corporations and school corporation career and technical education schools through October 4. Petitions must be received by October 4 to be considered. Information may be found in the Public School Finance Community of Moodle under Common School Loans/ Fall. If you have questions concerning this process, please send questions here. The submission deadline is due TODAY, October 4.

Fall Submission of Membership (ME) Deadline is TODAY

All school corporation and charter school students who were enrolled and expected in attendance on September 13 must be reported in membership. The submission period for this data collection ends on September 25. The counts will be used to determine Basic Grant distributions for qualifying school corporations and charter schools. Please read the Membership (DOE-ME) layout which can be found in Data Layouts. For questions regarding membership, please email Melissa Ambre. The cleanup deadline is TODAY, October 4.

Fall Submission of Membership (MA) Adult Learners Deadline is TODAY

All Adult Learner charter students who were enrolled and expected in attendance on September 13 must be reported in membership. The submission period for this data collection ends on September 25. The counts will be used to determine Adult Learner distributions to qualifying charter schools. Please read the Membership (DOE-MA) layout which can be found in Data Layouts. For questions regarding the FTE count, please email Melissa Ambre. The cleanup deadline is TODAY, October 4.

Curricular Material Reimbursement 2019 - 2020

Public school corporations and charter schools may apply for curricular material reimbursement for the 2019-2020 school year by submitting both student-level and claim data between October 1 and October 31. Prior to submitting data, officials should review the curricular material data layout (DOE-TB). Reimbursement Claim Form Instructions are located on Moodle in the Public School Finance Community. Please email questions regarding curricular material reimbursement here. The submission deadline is October 31.

Updates to Form 9 Financial Data Submission 

As part of the July to December 2019 Form 9 financial data submission process, IDOE will implement additional steps in order to comply with federal reporting and documentation requirements as well as transparency reporting in association with state transparency requirements. Click on this memo to read more about steps five to eight of the reporting process. Please email all questions hereThe deadline is January 31, 2020.

 

Office of Innovation

HEA 1008 Career Ladders – Update

As a result of State Board of Education action on Wednesday, October 2, in which a resolution was adopted which recommends substantial changes to IDOE's process and rubric by which Career Ladder grants are determined and distributed, IDOE is “pausing” on any further action regarding HEA 1008. Those districts/schools that attended one of the regional meetings with Dr. Melin regarding HEA 1008 Career Ladders have been contacted directly regarding the temporary pause in the application process.

Announcing STEM Acceleration Grant

IDOE has launched the STEM Acceleration Grant - Cohort 3. The grant will provide funding for programs impacting the 2020-2021 school year. Funds may be used for stipends, professional development/training, and the acquisition of instructional materials necessary to implement selected STEM curriculum. Additionally, funds may be used to increase school/community partnerships to provide early STEM career exposure for students. Click on this link to review the STEM Acceleration Grant memo. Contact Dr. Christy Hilton with questions.

STEM and Computer Science Curriculum Showcase

IDOE is hosting a STEM and Computer Science Curriculum Showcase at Conner Prairie on Monday, October 21, from 9:00 a.m.-2:30 p.m. EST. Join us to learn from various STEM and computer science curriculum providers about what you can do to provide your students with high-quality STEM and computer science experiences at ALL grade levels. Attendance at this event is required of all schools/districts planning to apply for an IDOE STEM Acceleration Grant, but the event is open to all that are interested. This opportunity may also help you to plan how your school/district will comply with the requirements of IC 20-30-5-23. Register here. Contact Jake Koressel with questions.

Girls Who Code

IDOE has partnered with Girls Who Code this year to bring free computer science learning opportunities to Indiana communities. Girls Who Code Clubs are FREE after-school programs for third-12th grade girls. When you start a Girls Who Code Club, you’ll gain access to free resources, flexible plug and play curriculum, funding opportunities, ongoing support, and more! No computer science experience is needed to get started since Girls Who Code is there for you every step of the way. Apply now with the quick, 15-minute Clubs Application through our partnership, or learn more by joining the next live, 30-minute webinar! Contact Jake Koressel with questions.

2020 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program

Do you have students interested in becoming a U.S. Presidential Scholar? The U.S. Presidential Scholars Program was established in 1964, by executive order of the President, to recognize and honor some of our nation's most distinguished graduating high school seniors. The memo and application process can be found here. Please contact Ben Carter with questions. 

Phishing and Cybersecurity Awareness for Staff

IDOE is offering a second opportunity for districts to participate in an initiative to improve cybersecurity awareness among staff. District IT leadership must commit to managing phishing campaigns and delivering an hour of awareness training via learning management system. Full details and application can be found here.

SCRIPT Workshops

The SCRIPT - the Strategic CSforALL Resource and Implementation Planning Tool - is an initiative of the CSforALL Consortium that serves as a framework and platform to guide district staff in the creation of K-12 Computer Science implementation plans that reflect the unique goals and needs of any school district. The following SCRIPT workshops are now available for teams from Indiana schools/districts:

Indiana Academy of Science STEM Partnership

IDOE has entered into an exciting STEM partnership with the Indiana Academy of Science (IAS) designed to connect high school science and math educators to IAS members. The goal of the partnership is to build a collaborative network focused on shared research, shared resources, and enhanced instructional practices leading to improved student achievement.

We want to identify 50 teachers, preferably a science and math teacher from the same high school, and match them with an Indiana scientist. There will be four meetings per year (October 29, 2019, December 3, 2019, February 4, 2020, and March 21, 2020) led by IAS members and facilitated by IDOE representatives. Interested teachers can register here.

TechPoint Foundation for Youth K-8 STEM Teacher Grants

Since 2013, the IN STEM teacher grant program has been helping to eliminate financial barriers that prevent teachers from bringing their amazing STEM ideas to the classroom. The IN STEM Teacher grants allow K-8 teachers in Indiana to apply for up to $500 to spend on classroom innovation, enhancement of existing curricula, and implementation of hands-on, inquiry-based STEM classroom activities. The application closes on October 31. More information can be found here

 

Office of Title Grants and Support

State Payment of 2020 Advanced Placement Exams

Please see the attached memo regarding the state payment of 2020 Advanced Placement (AP) exams. Questions may be sent to Nathan Williamson.

 

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An Update from the Indiana Department of Education is created by the Office of Communications, and  is distributed every Friday.