APRIL 2016
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Public asked to consider five questions
The first round
of regional public comment sessions regarding the Every Student Succeeds Act and North Carolina’s plan that is under
development begins tomorrow, April
13, at Ashley High
School, 555 Halyburton Memorial Parkway, Wilmington. The session lasts from 4 - 6 p.m.
Other dates and
locations are:
* April
21, Green Hope High School/Cary; * April
26, Mallard Creek High School/Charlotte; * April
27, North Pitt High School/Bethel; * May 17,
East Forsyth High School/Kernersville; and * May 18,
Charles D. Owen High School/Black Mountain.
All sessions will
be held from 4-6 p.m. People who wish to speak during the session are asked to
sign in by 4:15 p.m. Each speaker will have up to three minutes to provide
comments, and written copies of comments also are welcomed.
Individuals
interested in speaking may want to consider the following questions when
formulating their comments: - What do you expect from our schools? - What school characteristics are most
important? - How should we measure school success? - How do we ensure that all schools are
successful? - How should we celebrate school success?
As we develop our
state’s plan, it is important to hear from educators, parents, business people,
students and other community members.
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State Board of Education Planning Session and Meeting Highlights
State Board members meet at UNC-Wilmington Watson College of Education
The State Board
of Education held a planning session last Tuesday and Wednesday prior to its
Thursday regular monthly meeting. Issues discussed at the planning session
included the Every Student Succeeds Act,
standards review and revisions, the state’s assessment system, criminal
background checks for teachers and the Board’s legislative agenda for the
General Assembly’s short session.
At Thursday’s
regular Board meeting, in addition to a number of consent agenda items, members
approved policies on general licensure requirements, the beginning teacher
support program, standards and criteria for evaluation of professional school
employees and the teacher performance appraisal process; applications to apply
school reform models to low-performing schools; and technical changes to the
recurring low-performing schools’ policy.
Board members
also discussed the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee Dropout
Prevention Pilot Report; Annual Measurable Objectives/Annual Measurable
Achievement Objectives policy revisions; and an update on the teacher licensure
system.
The
complete list of this month’s Board actions is available on the Board’s website. In addition, if you would like further
information on any of the Board’s discussion or action items, supporting executive summaries and
appropriate attachments are available for each by clicking on the Meetings tab
on the State Board’s web page.
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April 22 is deadline to share your thoughts
As a reminder, April 22 is the deadline to submit
comments on NCDPI’s annual State Application for receiving a grant award under
Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) as amended in
2004 for Federal Fiscal Year 2016.
A copy of the State Application is available for public
review on the NCDPI Exceptional Children website under Hot Topics.
Also, each local school district’s central office received a copy for public
review.
Interested citizens may submit comments via email
or by U.S. mail to North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, Exceptional
Children Division, ATTN: Tracy Riddle/Carol Ann Hudgens, 6356 Mail Service
Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-6356.
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Program runs through the end of May
On March 23, State Superintendent June
Atkinson kicked off the fourth annual statewide Give Five – Read Five campaign
at Winding Springs Elementary School in Charlotte.
As a part of this
initiative, first launched in 2013, districts, schools, businesses, nonprofits,
churches and other community partners conduct book drives through the end of
May. Books from these local drives are then distributed to students to provide
them with quality reading material over the summer to help reduce summer
learning loss.
Since the
campaign’s beginning, more than 946,000 new and gently-used books have been
sent home with students as a part of Give Five – Read Five and similar local
efforts. Once again in 2016, the four schools that collect the most books will
receive a free one-year schoolwide license to online literacy tools provided by
Achieve3000, Reading Horizons and myON.
As a part of
this year’s campaign and thanks to a new partnership with myON, a division of
Capstone, DPI is offering every school district in the state access to the
personalized literacy tool myON Reader. Students at every grade level in
participating schools will be able to use this tool during the summer months to
select from thousands of titles and download free books well-matched to their
reading levels and personal interests. As an added bonus, parents may use the
tool to track how many pages and hours students spend reading and even measure
their literacy growth while they are away from the classroom.
If you would like to assist your local school with its Give Five – Read Five campaign, contact the school's principal to find out how you may donate books and/or support
other local Give Five – Read Five
efforts. Your support will help students across our state return to school this
fall better prepared to learn.
For more information about this campaign, please visit the
NCDPI Give Five – Read Five web page.
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Bobbie Cavnar teaches high school English and Journalism
Congratulations
to South Point High School English and Journalism teacher Bobbie Cavnar
who today was named the 2016 Burroughs Wellcome Fund North Carolina Teacher of
the Year.
Cavnar is a
great example of the outstanding teachers who work across North Carolina to
help our students advance. Cavnar has taught for 16 years, the last 12 at South
Point High School. He currently participates in the Gaston County Teacher
Induction Program for Success where he trains incoming teachers in model
classroom best practices. He has presented at a number of workshops and has
received several awards including South Point High School’s Most Influential
Educator for 2013, 2011, 2009, 2006 and 2004.This award has special meaning
because it is voted on by students.
In announcing this year’s recipient, State Superintendent
June Atkinson said Cavnar is a champion of public education and the
opportunities it provides students. “Bobbie sees public education as the one
thing that is equal and fair in a child’s life, and he sees teachers as the
equalizers, the keeper’s of America’s promise of equal opportunity.”
As Burroughs Wellcome Fund North Carolina Teacher of the
Year, Cavnar will spend the next school year traveling the state as an
ambassador for the teaching profession. He
also will serve as an advisor to the State Board of Education for two years and
as a board member for the NC Public School Forum for one year.
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Educators advocate for public school excellence
The NC Department
of Public of Instruction (NCDPI) Champion for the Excellence in Teaching and
Learning Award was presented to the following six outstanding
educators during the Collaborative Conference for Student Achievement held in
Greensboro on March 23:
* Kiera
Stricklen, Instructional Support, Media/Technology Assistant, Wellcome
Middle School, Pitt County Schools * James
Johnson, Principal, Randleman Elementary School, Randolph County Schools * Susan
Brigman, Principal, Ashley Chapel Education Center, Richmond County Schools * Janet
Delery, Math Teacher, Piedmont Middle School, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools * Ashley
White, Kindergarten Teacher, Aberdeen Primary School, Moore County Schools * Jennifer
James, Business Education Teacher, Northeastern High School, Elizabeth
City-Pasquotank Schools
The purpose of
the Champion Award is to celebrate the power of public education and the
educators who advocate for excellence.
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