Issue 50 | December 2023
Be sure your email address is up-to-date in the Michigan Online Educator Certification System to receive important notifications regarding YOUR certificate.
Please see the archived newsletters for other important information that affects licensure.
At the end of every year, the holiday season is the perfect occasion to make memories with the people you care about most. Connecting with friends, family, and loved ones makes our hearts full, and inspires us to give. As the holiday season is upon us, we find ourselves gathering with those we hold dear and who have moved away.
Wishing your loved one a “Welcome Home” is a great way to spread joy and support Michigan schools. For more information about renewing a Michigan teaching certificate after returning from another state, please visit the Welcome Home Proud Michigan Educator webpage.
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Governor Signs Educator Evaluation Changes into Law
On November 22, 2023, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed into law two bills (SB 395 & SB 396) reforming the teacher and school administrator evaluation processes at K-12 schools. The legislation, now Public Acts 224 and 225 of 2023, introduces changes to teacher and school administrator evaluations, shifting the focus towards more streamlined rating categories, modifying the basis for evaluations with an emphasis on teacher performance, and mandating the involvement of educators in developing evaluation tools. The changes, which are effective July 1, 2024, will focus evaluations on improving the practice of educators—particularly those who are inexperienced or otherwise struggling—and will allow for educators to spend more time focused on the needs of children, both academic and socioemotional.
District and School Growth Metrics Available
MDE has contracted with SAS Institute to provide value-added reports for Michigan districts and schools. The updated 2023 District and School reports are now available. District and School Value-Added Reports provide reliable measures of the average academic growth a district or school's students made in each tested grade and subject or course.
The Education Visualization and Analytics Solution (EVAAS) online help page provides detailed information about each report in the system, including explanations of how the reports are generated and guidance for interpreting and using the data effectively. Contact the MI-EVAAS team at SAS with questions.
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Recertification Season is Near!
Schools/Districts
‘Tis the season to review educator credentials! Schools/districts should begin the annual review of staff credentials for 2024. Remind educators with a credential expiring June 30, 2024, to log into the Michigan Online Educator Certification System (MOECS) to review and update their account information. Certificates can be renewed beginning January 1 without any loss of validity! Remember, districts can face costly state-aid deductions for employing educators without appropriate credentials.
Educators
Work with your employer to ensure you are ready for the 2024-25 academic year! Log into the Michigan Online Educator Certification System (MOECS) to check the status of your credential and review your professional learning to proactively prevent an accidental lapse in certification. While there is no state issued or legal penalty to an educator for a lapsed credential (no additional requirements!), educators are responsible for maintaining valid Michigan credentials for employment and may face district contract issues for lapses.
If you are employed by a Michigan school, attending the District Provided Professional Development (DPPD) that is legally required to be offered should provide you with the necessary hours of Education-Related Professional Learning Hours (ERPL) needed to recertify. Beginning July 1, 2020, that DPPD was required to be reported for you as State Continuing Education Clock Hours (SCECH) and will appear in your MOECS accounts once you complete the evaluation. College credit, SCECHs, and DPPD obtained prior to July 1, 2020 can all be used as ERPL.
Finally, both the Standard Teaching Certificate and Professional Teaching Certificate are renewable without educator evaluation ratings. View all the options for renewal on our Education Related Professional Learning website! Please be aware that progressing to the Professional Teaching Certificate or Advanced Teaching Certificate does require educator evaluation labels.
Teacher Exchange Programs Webinar
Looking for a Spanish, Chinese Mandarin, or STEM teacher? Learn how to employ these teachers for the 2024-25 academic year!
The Michigan Department of Education’s Office of Educator Excellence hosted a Teacher Exchange Program webinar on Friday, December 15, 2023 that was recorded and will be posted on MDE’s Teacher Exchange Programs website for those who were unable to attend. Look for it in January!
The intended audience included staff working in Michigan K-12 schools in roles such as human resources director, curriculum director, hiring teams, administrators, and individuals working directly with K-12 STEM and world language programming.
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Coming Soon!
Section 504 EXPLORE + Grow Your Own Grants for FY24
The OEE is gearing up to offer the next round of Section 504 grants, with an anticipated NexSys application window starting in mid-January 2024.
Intermediate school districts (ISDs), local education agencies (LEAs), and public school academies (PSAs) may submit applications to build and sustain EXPLORE programs, to provide tuition grants to eligible EXPLORE graduates, or both.
In order to begin the process of planning for the application, the EXPLORE grant: Section 504 website now features a downloadable Word template of the application currently being planned. This will help applicants gather necessary data, budget details, and supporting information in time for the expected opening of the application window.
For questions and inquiries, please contact us at MDE-PME@michigan.gov.
Coming Soon!
Michigan Teachers and National Board Certification Grants
The Michigan Department of Education (MDE) is excited to announce two upcoming grant opportunities related to National Board Teacher Certification, pursuant to Section 27m of the School Aid budget for fiscal year 2023-24. These grants will be awarded to local education agencies (LEAs), both traditional public school districts and public school academies (PSAs), and intermediate school districts (ISDs) to support the following:
- National Board: Recognized Achievement Grant – awards money for teachers who currently hold National Board Certification.
- National Board: First Time Candidate Grant – awards money for teachers in Title I schools pursuing National Board Certification for the first time.
These grants are currently being developed. Applications are tentatively scheduled to open in mid-January 2024. Please visit MDE's National Board Certification Grant Opportunities webpage for information.
Coming Soon!
Student Loan Repayment Program
As a continuation of our effort to reward and retain the educator workforce, the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) is pleased to announce the $225 million Student Loan Repayment Program grant opportunity, with an application being planned for opening on the GEMS/MARS system in late February 2024.
This money has been allocated for grants to Michigan’s local education agencies (LEAs), intermediate school districts (ISDs), and public school academies (PSAs) for the purposes of implementing a student loan repayment program for their employees in accordance with Michigan Compiled Law (MCL) Section 388.1627k.
This program will provide eligible candidates with payments of $200 each month for the purpose of offsetting their existing student loans, or $400 each month if the applying LEA, ISD, or PSA is assigned to band 6 in the opportunity index as defined in MCL 388.1631a (typically areas with a high proportion of students who are economically disadvantaged).
Information about the program, including updates and eligibility requirements, is available on the Student Loan Repayment Program website. For questions and inquiries, please contact us at MDE-PME@michigan.gov.
Future Proud Michigan Educator Military Veterans Grant
Michigan’s local education agencies (LEAs), intermediate school districts (ISDs), and public school academies (PSAs) are all eligible to apply for grant funds for offer paid mentorships and salary for eligible military veterans seeking educator certification, as well as costs of the Michigan Tests for Teacher Certification (MTTCs). This is a great way to support military veterans with an on-ramp to the classroom!
Candidates for the grant program must possess a bachelor’s degree or higher from a public or private university, be veterans as defined by Section 1 of 1965 PA 160, MCL 35.61, and be enrolled in an approved Michigan teacher preparation program in order to complete student teaching requirements.
Announcements for 27b Round 2 GYO School Staff Grants Coming Soon
While the original anticipated timeline for award notifications had been delayed with the timing of the federal holidays in November as well as other factors, we are pleased to announce that the State Superintendent of Instruction has approved all applications meeting the threshold for award consideration.
Round 2 grantees will be notified via email of their award status and an official public award announcement will likely come before the end of the month. Please continue to check our Grow Your Own School Staff Grant website for updates!
PAEMST (Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching)
The 2023-24 PAEMST application cycle is NOW OPEN! Outstanding K-6th grade educators working in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics can be nominated/apply on the PAEMST webpage. Nominations close on January 8, 2024. Applications must be completed by February 6, 2024.
Established by Congress in 1983, the PAEMST award is the highest honor bestowed by the United States government specifically for K-12 science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and/or computer science teaching. Learn more by visiting the PAEMST webpage.
Six Michigan educators were named as finalists for the 2022-23 PAESMT award! Winners will be announced in early 2024.
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Please take a minute to check out the latest Meemic Foundation blog by the 2023-2024 Michigan Teacher of the Year, Ms. Candice Jackson. Open Letter to the Introverted Teacher: You're a Natural Leader
Making Sense of Educational Assessment: Bridging Research and Practice Webinar
On December 11, 2023, REL Northeast & Islands offered a webinar to deepen understanding of educational assessment in the context of innovative practices. Together with its accompanying fact sheet, the webinar explored the different purposes, types, and uses of educational assessment, including considerations for assessing learning while implementing innovative educational approaches.
Presenters shared examples of educational assessment, including formative assessments that measure student engagement and assessments of educational innovations. Webinar participants had the opportunity to pose questions and listen to a moderated panel discussion in which national assessment experts and district leaders shared their experience.
Please contact REL Northeast & Islands at relneiinfo@edc.org for more information or to request a recording of the webinar.
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Recent EPIC Research Examines Michigan Student Progress Amidst Pandemic Recovery Efforts
MDE’s research partner, the Education Policy Innovation Collaborative (EPIC), recently released two new reports to assess student growth and achievement during the 2022-23 academic year. Both build on previous research and are designed to help our research partners and other agencies gain insight into how student learning and test scores were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and assist in monitoring recovery.
The first report examines the rates and characteristics of students who are considered to be more than one year behind grade level in reading based on their ELA M-STEP scores at the end of 2022-23. This is the last cohort of 3rd grade students who are eligible for retention under Michigan’s Read by Grade Three Law, which was amended to remove retention beginning with the current group of third graders.
The second report is the fifth installment in a series designed to help interpret and contextualize assessment results and students’ progress toward learning goals in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The report uses scores from benchmark assessments like NWEA-MAP and iReady which were essential for progress monitoring throughout the country from the 2020-21 to 2022-23 academic years.
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