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January 20, 2023
Paraprofessional Recognition Week January 23-29
Governor Tim Walz has proclaimed the week of January 23–29, 2023, as Paraprofessional Recognition Week.
Paraprofessionals have stepped up in many ways over the past few years—supporting school-age care, assisting with virtual learning, helping deliver meals for students and more. We are grateful for their commitment to meeting the needs of students.
Read the full memo from Commissioner Jett, including ideas for how to recognize and celebrate paraprofessionals next week. Use this signed certificate from Commissioner Jett to honor each of the paraprofessionals in your school community.
Free Check & Connect Online Modules
Ready for Check & Connect? The Institute on Community Integration at the University of Minnesota has recently launched a free online module for schools considering starting Check & Connect programs to improve student engagement and reduce dropout rates. Designed for district and school leaders to learn more about the evidence-based intervention for K-12 students, the module is part of an online series that also includes content for schools already implementing Check & Connect. For example, six school districts and a tribal school participating in the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) State Personnel Development Grant (SPDG) are implementing Check & Connect as a strategy for improving graduation rates of American Indian and Black students with disabilities.
“During and after the pandemic, we have seen a wave of schools looking for proven ways to re-engage students,” said Eileem Klemm, program manager. “Launching this module is exciting because it streamlines the information a school in the exploratory phase would want to know and offers concrete steps to make an implementation decision.”
The module helps users understand what Check & Connect is, and also how to assess whether the program may or may not be a good fit for them, she said, including whether a school has the resources to implement it. The other six modules in the series are:
- The Mentor Practice Profile (MPP)
- ”Check” Data
- The weekly “Connect“ meeting
- Collaborating with Families
- Planning Mentor Professional Development
- The Student Engagement Instrument
For more information, contact Tom Delaney, MDE, SPDG Director.
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