Even though the
2016-17 budget has only recently been finalized, it is time to think about the
State Board of Education’s request for the 2017-2019 biennium, and Board
members began that discussion this month.
Local
superintendents, finance officers, local board members, legislators and
legislative staff have listed needs in three main categories for consideration:
classroom support, school building support and district operations. Some of the
key items identified as needs include: funding to address the impact of new
legislated changes that will require class sizes to match class size
allotments; professional development for teachers; more digital content;
master’s degree pay; more competitive salaries for assistant principals and
principals; more assistant principals; resources to handle social and emotional
issues related to students; more adults to support teachers and students
(teacher assistants and instructional facilitators); funding for students with
special needs; funds to address the impact of losing “lower cost” students to
charter schools; reducing allotment categories; removing restrictions on
flexibility with teacher assistants, children with special needs and CTE; and a
desire to return to school-based awards versus individual pay differentials.
The General Assembly
will return to Raleigh for its long session in January, so we will
continue to involve and keep you updated about budget priorities that will have a direct
affect on your work and ours.
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State Board of Education
Meeting Highlights
The State
Board of Education yesterday approved eight new charter schools to open in
2017, opened interscholastic sports to sixth graders (see item below), adjusted
state policy for issuing continuing licenses to teaching applicants from out of
state, and approved five applications for Reform Models: two schools in the
Chatham County, two in Edgecombe County and one in Winston-Salem/Forsyth.
The board
also heard updates on the state’s planning for the federal Every Student
Succeeds Act (ESSA) and development of the Achievement School District set by
the legislature to improve five of the lowest-performing schools in the state.
The
complete list of this month’s Board actions is available on the Board’s website. The
Board’s August agenda as well as supporting executive summaries are available online by
clicking on the SBE Meetings tab.
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Interscholastic Athletics Policy Updated
At
Thursday’s State
Board of Education meeting, members revised the interscholastic athletics
policy (HRS-D-001
click on NCSBE Policy Manual Table of Contents link). The new
policy changes the grade level at which students may participate in
interscholastic competition from grades 7 - 12 to grades 6 - 12. As part of
this change, 6th grade students may participate in all
interscholastic sports with the exception of football.
The
policy allows each LEA or charter school to determine whether or not 6th
graders may participate in interscholastic athletics, with the exception of
football.
If you have any questions, please contact NCDPI
Healthful Living Consultant Burt
Jenkins.
Resources to Support
Implementation of
Revised Math Standards Online
Beginning
with the 2016-17 school year, the revised high school math courses – NC Math 1,
NC Math 2 and NC Math 3 – will be implemented as approved by the State Board of
Education at its June meeting. The first set of resources – Math Resource for
Instruction (MRI) for NC Math 1, 2 and 3 – to support the implementation of
the revised standards are now available online.
These are living
(continuously growing) resources that should be accessed electronically due to
the many active links to curricular resources that are embedded in the overall guide.
Included
in the Math Resource for Instruction (MRI) for high school courses are
links to feedback and contribution folders. NCDPI Mathematics Section staff are
very interested in all comments, feedback and additions of local
tasks/curricula to share and include in the Math Resource for Instruction
(MRI).
Please
share these with all teachers in your middle and high school buildings
including those who teach grades 7-8 and those teaching beyond NC Math 3 to
ensure vertical alignment.
Included
in the Math Resource for Instruction (MRI) for the high school courses
are links to feedback and contribution folders. The Mathematics Section staff
are very interested in all comments, feedback and additions of local
tasks/curricula to share and include in the Math Resource for Instruction
(MRI).
The
presentation materials from the 2016 Summer Information Sessions held in 10
locations across the state also may be accessed online.
Your district most likely sent representatives and this information will be
shared district-wide, however, you may be interested in viewing the information
yourself as well.
Links
to additional resources such as OPTIONAL pacing guides will be sent to teachers
and leaders later this week and as they become available. Should you have any
questions about the resources, please contact NCDPI Secondary Math Consultants Joseph Reaper or Lisa Ashe or
K-12 Mathematics Section Chief Jennifer Curtis.
 Updated Guidance on
Section 504
On July 26, the U.S.
Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights
(OCR) issued guidance clarifying the
obligation of schools to provide students with attention-deficit/hyperactivity
disorder (ADHD) with equal educational opportunity under Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
Among other things,
the guidance discusses the obligation to provide services based on students’ specific
needs and not on generalizations about disabilities, or ADHD, in particular.
The guidance also clarifies that students who experience behavioral challenges
could have ADHD and may need an evaluation to determine their educational
needs.
In addition to the
guidance, the Department also released a Know Your Rights document that provides a
brief overview of schools’ obligations to students with ADHD.
For questions
regarding Section 504, please contact NCDPI Federal Program Monitoring and
Support Division Title I Program Administrator Kenneth Kitch.
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Multi-Tiered System of Support:
Implementation Readiness
The principal and the school
leadership team are key in establishing readiness for implementation, as well
as for facilitating the difficult work involved in installation and
sustainability of a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS).
This graphic linked here suggests this team be made up of
five-seven members who have academic and behavior knowledge, as well as the
skills to share and examine data for the purpose of problem solving with the
ultimate goal of improving outcomes for all students. Ultimately, it is this
team that addresses barriers to school-wide implementation of MTSS. They will
model a problem-solving process for school improvement. Your current school
improvement team may be a great fit. For details of the district role in
implementation of an MTSS, visit the MTSS wiki.
For questions about NC's Multi-Tiered System of Support, please contact Amy
Jablonski.
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September
is Attendance Awareness Month
Missing
as little as two-three days every month is considered chronic absence and can
translate into third graders unable to master reading, sixth graders failing
courses and ultimately, teens dropping out of high school.
Join
the Attendance Awareness Campaign. A toolkit and other free resources are
available online.
 Recognizing Outstanding STEM Schools and Programs: Intent to Apply
Schools around the
state are being recognized and honored as STEM Schools of Distinction for their
outstanding and effective STEM strategies in teaching and learning. Are you a
school employing the 11 essential STEM Attributes and 21st century
skills for students to be globally prepared? If so, we need to hear from you!
Schools planning to
apply for potential STEM recognition for the 2016-17 school year need to fill
out the following intent to apply to ensure you
receive information about the application, timeline, and resources that will
provide assistance in this process. The intent to apply request is due no later
than Oct. 14.
For more information
on the application process and timeline, please contact NCDPI STEM Project Manager Tina Marcus.
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 ARTS R4 Life Professional Development Opportunity
NCDPI
staff are partnering with Meredith College to host the second annual ARTS R4
Life professional development conference for NC K-12 Arts Educators in Dance,
Music, Theatre Arts and Visual Arts. Pre-service arts educators and faculty
from Institutes of Higher Education interested in K-12 arts education also are
encouraged to attend.
The
conference will be held Saturday, Sept. 10, and will be preceded by Arts
Education Think Tank, Arts Education Coordinators, and Arts Education
Leadership Coalition meetings on Friday, Sept. 9.
Additional
information is available online,
including registration. Conference questions may be directed
to Christie Lynch Ebert or Slater Mapp.
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