MDE Weekly Superintendent Mail - 12-6-19

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Weekly Briefing for Superintendents and School Leaders

December 6, 2019

In this edition

ACTION ITEMS

0-4 Year-Old Census Counts

If your district has not submitted the 0-4 census count for fall 2019, the data was due to the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) by December 1, 2019. The 0-4 Census Online Data Submission System will be shut down in the near future.

To access the 0-4 Census Online Data Submission System, go to the MDE website to submit data. Click Districts, Schools and Educators > Business and Finance > Data Submission > 0-4 Census Data Reporting, or access directly through your approved Education Identity and Access Management (EDIAM) account.

Please forward this information to your district census administrator. If you have any questions regarding the submission of 0-4 census data, please contact Greg Sogaard at 651-582-8858.

Note that this data entry does not apply to charter schools.

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2018-19 Combined World’s Best Workforce Summary and Achievement and Integration Progress Report

The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) is pleased to provide districts and charters with a new reporting process for the World’s Best Workforce (WBWF) summary and the Achievement and Integration (A&I) Progress Report. The new process builds off last year’s combined reporting template and allows districts/charters to submit information online using a survey format. The intent of the combined report is to help districts and charter schools build connections at the local level, while the online survey submission will hopefully allow for increased efficiency.

The 2018-19 Combined WBWF Summary and Achievement and Integration Progress Report fulfills the two requirements:

  1. Under the WBWF legislation, districts and charter schools are to develop and implement a comprehensive, long-term strategic plan aligned to the five goals of the WBWF. Each year, districts develop and post an annual report to district websites and submit a short summary of that report to MDE. This report serves as the WBWF summary submission to MDE.
  2. Districts that participate in the A&I program have established goals and strategies in their approved plans, and on an annual basis, report progress toward those goals. This report serves as the A&I progress report submission to MDE.

All districts and charter schools should use the 2018-19 Combined WBWF Summary and Achievement and Integration Progress Report. Only districts that participate in the A&I program are required to complete A&I portions of the report. This report should be submitted online by December 15, 2019. We highly encourage early submissions. The survey will close at 11:59 p.m. on December 15, 2019. 

Districts/charters may find it helpful to use a Word version of the form to work collaboratively prior to entering information in the online survey. Please note that the completed report must be submitted through the survey not using the Word document.

Please contact mde.worldsbestworkforce@state.mn.us with questions about the WBWF portion of the summary, and mde.integration@state.mn.us with questions about the A&I section.

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ITEMS OF INTEREST

Race 2 Reduce: Engaging and Empowering Water Warriors – FY20 State Funding

The documentation for the Race 2 Reduce: Engaging and Empowering Water Warriors Grant Opportunity, including the instructions, application, and budget documentation, are now available on the Minnesota Department of Education’s grant opportunity site.

The Race 2 Reduce competitive grant opportunity is available to Minnesota public school districts and charter schools to implement water conservation curriculum and projects to support the learning of water conservation concepts and leadership skills for students in grades 9—12. Please see the grant instructions for the specific, allowable outcomes for this grant program. The application is due December 13.

Please contact John Olson for further information. 

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Minnesota Common Course Catalogue (MCCC) Announcements

  • Upcoming data submission due dates:
    • 2018-19 data submission is currently being collected and is due by March 13, 2020.
    • 2019-20 data submission will open for collection March 30, 2020.
    • Attention: 2019-20 data will be due December 17, 2020.
      • Improve data availability for state and federal reporting.
  • Incorporate a review of the data loaded to MCCC. Use the Completion Audit report to review submitted data. If changes are needed, remove the data submitted and load the corrected data. 
  • The contact for MCCC is Karen Millette.

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MCA-IV Reading Test Specification Committee

The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) asks you to encourage at least one teacher from your district to apply to participate on the MCA-IV Reading Test Specifications Committee.

To ensure the committee represents the state with respect to ethnicity, gender, school district type, district size, and geographical region, MDE is requesting applications from English language arts, special education, and English learner teachers, grades 3–10. Involvement in the MCA-IV reading test specifications committee is an opportunity for educators to provide advice on the new assessment, and ensure test content aligns closely with best practices in classroom instruction.

Committee members will receive an honorarium or substitute reimbursement. Travel expenses and lodging for those travelling from outside the Twin Cities metro region will be provided.

The committee will meet at MDE in Roseville for a total of eight days. Committee members must commit to attend all meetings. Meeting dates are as follows:

  • June 23–24, 2020
  • September 29–30, 2020
  • November 17–18, 2020
  • February 23–24, 2021

Interested applicants can apply for the Reading MCA–IV test specifications committee by completing the survey by Sunday, January 5, 2020.

Applicants will be notified by mid-February 2020, when the selection process will be complete.

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