The State Board of Education on Thursday approved a recommendation to grant Kestrel Heights Charter School in Durham a three-year renewal for grades K-8 only, effectively closing its high school program after this year. The school has faced scrutiny for awarding diplomas to students who hadn’t met all course requirements for graduation.

Approving a set of recommendations from the state’s Charter School Advisory Board, the State Board did leave open the possibility that the school could reapply to add high school grades after the conclusion of the three-year renewal period. The school also will be subject to six-month reviews by the NC Charter Schools Advisory Board.

In other business, the State Board named Adam Levinson as the new Chief Financial Officer for the Department of Public Instruction, filling the position held by Philip Price, who retired March 1. Levinson has been a member of the Department’s senior leadership team since 2007, serving as chief of staff, director of Policy and Strategic Planning, director of the Race to the Top program, chief performance officer and interim director of NCDPI's Office of Charter Schools.

The Board also approved a change to its Third Grade Reading Bonus policy that would reallocate unspent funds to eligible third grade teachers, and heard updates on the progress of the state’s “Check Ins” assessment pilot as well as the Statewide Service Support Team, the Multi-Tiered System of Support implementation and recommended modifications to the method by which the state determines effectiveness ratings for NC educators.

The complete list of this month’s Board actions is on the Board’s website. The Board’s March agenda as well as supporting executive summaries also are available online by clicking on the SBE Meetings tab.

Draft 3 of the English Language Arts (ELA) Standard Course of Study was presented to State Board of Education (SBE) members for discussion on March 1.

NCDPI K-12 English Language Arts Section Chief Julie Joslin reviewed the standards revision process, including feedback from approximately 10,000 educators that was used to create the proposed standards. She introduced a new format for the standards along with an example showing how standards will be accompanied by a clarification section and glossary. An overview of the major changes was provided highlighting revisions by strand (Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, and Language). Board members also reviewed a tentative implementation timeline based on a 2018-19 start date. The standards will go before the State Board for action on April 6.

For additional information about the review process, including all drafts, a tentative implementation timeline and the March 1 SBE presentation, please visit the NCDPI ELA wiki. Questions regarding the ELA standards revision process may be directed to NCDPI K-12 English Language Arts Section Chief Julie Joslin.

Citing innovation as a “game changer” for public education in North Carolina, State Superintendent Mark Johnson told the more than 1,000 attendees at the Home Base Symposium that their work is key to the state’s efforts to improve outcomes for all students.

Under his leadership, he said the agency would rank innovation alongside "urgency,” “ownership” and "connection" as guiding principles in its role to better support the state’s schools, educators and students.

To read more about his address to Home Base Symposium participants, please click on the Feb. 23 Home Base Biweekly newsletter.

At its March 2 meeting, State Board of Education members passed a resolution proclaiming March 6-10 as National School Breakfast Week in North Carolina.

North Carolina has the sixth largest school breakfast program in the nation. Studies show that students who eat breakfast have improved attendance and less tardiness, pay attention longer, demonstrate better classroom behavior, perform better on tests, make fewer trips to the school nurse, have a more nutritious overall diet, and are more likely to be at a healthy weight.

Board members encouraged districts to expand school breakfast opportunities in order to provide a nutritious breakfast at school as a means of supporting a sound basic education for all students.

A copy of the proclamation is available on the State Board’s website (click on Meetings tab, March 2 meeting date, then scroll to Chairman’s Report to the Board).

NCDPI is seeking comment on its annual state application for grant funding under Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) as amended in 2004 for Federal Fiscal Year 2017. The proposed application will be available for public review March 9 – May 5.

A copy of the state application is available on the Department’s Exceptional Children website under Hot Topics. In addition, each local school district will receive a copy of the state application for public review. Comments will be accepted March 20 – April 19. 

Interested citizens may submit comments via email or by mail to: NCDPI, Exceptional Children Division, ATTN: Tracy Riddle/Carol Ann Hudgens, 6356 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-6356.

Congratulations to the following eight outstanding public school principals who have been selected as regional Wells Fargo North Carolina Principals of the Year:

* Northeast: Jason Griffin, Hertford Grammar (Perquimans County Schools);
* Southeast: Maria Johnson, Northside High (Onslow County Schools);
* North Central: Kiley Brown, Efland-Cheeks Global Elementary (Orange County Schools);
* Sandhills: Mary Hemphill, I. Ellis Johnson Elementary (Scotland County Schools);
* Piedmont-Triad: Jusmar Maness, Balfour Elementary (Asheboro City Schools);
* Southwest: Amy Rhyne, East Iredell Elementary (Iredell-Statesville Schools);
* Northwest: Jeffrey Isenhour, Bunker Hill High (Catawba County Schools); and
* Western: Doris Sellers, A.C. Reynolds High (Buncombe County Schools).

Regional winners will each receive $1,000 for personal use and $1,000 for their schools. The finalists will now compete for the state title of 2017 Wells Fargo North Carolina Principal of the Year. The winner will be named May 12 during an awards luncheon in Cary, and will succeed the 2016 recipient, Melody Chalmers principal of E.E. Smith High School (Cumberland County Schools).

The following seven North Carolina public schools will be able to install a solar power system and take advantage of training and curriculum thanks to a grant from Duke Energy:

-  East Chapel Hill High School (Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools);
-  Gaston Day School (Gaston County Schools);
-  Hickory Ridge High School (Cabarrus County Schools);
-  Lower Creek Elementary School (Caldwell County Schools);
-  Olympic High School, (Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools);
-  RS Central High School (Rutherford County Schools); and
-  South Stokes High School (Stokes County Schools). 

Working with Raleigh-based nonprofit NC GreenPower and modeled after its Solar Schools program, the initiative pays for installation costs for rooftop or top-of-pole mounted solar panels on school property. The program also provides monitoring equipment, training and curriculum to students and teachers.

Congratulations to Victoria Kosinski, a senior at Kinston High (Lenoir County Schools) for receiving the Prudential Spirit of Community Award as one of North Carolina’s top youth volunteers of 2017. North Carolina’s other recipient attends a private school.

As a state honoree, she will receive $1,000, an engraved silver medallion and an all-expenses paid trip to Washington D.C. in early May, for four days of national recognition events. She also will be competing for national recognition as America’s top youth volunteer for 2017.

Two students from each state and the District of Columbia were named state honorees by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program honoring students in grades 5-12 for outstanding youth volunteer service. You can read the names and stories of each honoree online.

In addition, the following public school students were named Distinguished Finalists:

 - William Baldwin, A.C. Reynolds High School (Buncombe County Schools);
- Hannah Scanlon, Millbrook High School (Wake County Schools);
- James Willett, Asheboro High School (Asheboro City Schools); and
- Tina Y, Myers Park High School (Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools).