March 20, 2017 Superintendents' Weekly Message

Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.

Superintendents' Weekly Message

March 20, 2017

Please see this week’s information items from across NCDPI’s departments and divisions of interest to local superintendents.

 


Calendar

March 22 is Deadline to Register for Superintendents’ Quarterly

 

Superintendents are reminded that Wednesday, March 22, is the deadline to RSVP for the March 29 Superintendents’ Quarterly meeting. The meeting is being held in conjunction with the 2017 NCASA Conference on Educational Leadership at the Grandover Resort in Greensboro.


If you can’t find your registration form, don’t forget that all emails to superintendents are archived online (scroll to Feb. 24). 


State Board Approves Hall to Lead
NC Achievement School District

 

In a conference call meeting held Thursday, State Board of Education members approved the hiring of Dr. Eric Hall, president and CEO of Communities In Schools of North Carolina, to lead the new NC Achievement School District.

 

Hall has more than 20 years of experience in education, most recently with Communities In Schools, a statewide non-profit network that provides integrated student supports – also called wraparound services – to support student success in more than 300 schools statewide. The organization is known for its ability to reduce dropout rates in at risk students.


State Superintendent Hires Senior Legislative Director/
Chief Budget Advisor

 

State Superintendent Mark Johnson on Wednesday announced the hire of Chloe Gossage as senior legislative director and chief budget advisor.

 

Gossage joins the Office of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction with more than a decade of state government experience, the bulk of which has been in nonpartisan positions - six years in the General Assembly’s Fiscal Research Division and two years at the Administrative Office of the Courts. She comes to the Office from the Office of State Budget and Management, where she was the chief operating officer for the past two years. Prior to that, Gossage spent two years as the Governor’s policy director.


Students at Work

NCDPI Joins NC Business Community for
Students@Work Week

 

State Superintendent Mark Johnson joins North Carolina’s business community in recognizing March 22-31 as Students@Work℠ Week. The Students@Work initiative’s goal is to expose students to possible job opportunities available to them in the workplace through job shadowing and mentoring opportunities.

 

Students@Work is a joint initiative between the North Carolina Business Committee for Education (NCBCE) and the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. This year’s program involves more than 150 businesses throughout the state and is expected to impact more than 24,000 students.

 

While Students@Work involves some high school students, it centers its efforts around middle school because middle school is a crucial time for dropout prevention and also when students prepare for success in high school. The program helps to emphasize future career options, as well as the importance of staying in school, before students enter the ninth grade.


Multi-Tiered System of Support

Multi-Tiered System of Support:
Presentations to State Board of Education


At December’s State Board of Education meeting, Alexander County Schools Associate Superintendent Elizabeth Curry presented on MTSS implementation from a district perspective. For Alexander County Schools, three drivers prompted initial implementation:

-  MTSS made sense to its system.

-  State support was available.

-  Interdepartmental approach allowed for capacity building.

 

Curry shared that the first steps were intended to develop the common language of a MTSS as well as establish effective teaming structures for sustainable implementation. The presentation emphasized the importance of starting slow. It also demonstrated how a district team was able to develop a district strategic plan that supports a MTSS through alignment of the following components:

-  comprehensive needs assessment;

-  principal evaluation;

-  school improvement plan; and

-  district budget.

 

We appreciate district leaders like Curry whose sense of urgency and innovation enable multi-tiered systems of support to be established in every North Carolina school. For further assistance, please contact NCDPI Director of Integrated Academic and Behavior Systems Amy Jablonski.


Superintendent Job Openings

Superintendent Vacancy Announced: Washington County Schools

 

The Washington County Board of Education is seeking a superintendent to lead the school system in its continuing pursuit of excellence. Candidates must have or be qualified to hold a North Carolina superintendent license. Central office and building-level experience are preferred. A doctorate degree or progress toward a doctorate degree is preferred but not required. The individual chosen will be required to live in Washington County. The application deadline is April 24.

 

An electronic version of the application is available by going to the N.C. School Board Association's website and clicking on the appropriate link. Inquiries and requests for applications also can be directed to Allison Schafer, Legal Counsel/Director of Policy, North Carolina School Boards Association, PO Box 97877, Raleigh NC 27624-7877, telephone 919/841-4040, fax 919/841-4020, email. All inquiries will be kept confidential.


Professional Development

Professional Development Courses

 

Mark your calendars! Our spring session of facilitated online courses opens today (March 20). Below is the list of instructor–facilitated online courses offered by Educator Effectiveness. Facilitated courses provide participants the opportunity to interact with peers and an instructor along with high-quality professional development. The courses also combine the flexibility of working from anywhere at any time.

 

-  Building and Sustaining Professional Development (6 weeks, 1.0 CEU)

-  Connecting with our 21st Century Learners (5 weeks, 1.0 CEU)

-  Digital Literacies in the K-12 Classroom (7 weeks, 1.5 CEUs)

-  Effective Digital Strategies for Teaching and Learning in the K-12 Classroom: A PD MOOClet (6 weeks, 2.0 CEUs)

-  Introduction to Data Literacy (5 weeks, 1.0 CEU)

-  Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science and Technical Subjects, Part 1 (5 weeks, 0.5 CEU)

-  Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science and Technical Subjects, Part 2 (7 weeks, 1.0 CEU)

-  North Carolina Teacher Standards and Evaluation Process (6 weeks, 2.0 CEUs)

-  Responsibilities of the 21st-Century Educator (7 weeks, 1.0 CEU)

-  Seize the Data Part 1 (7 weeks, 2.0 CEUs)

-  Universal Design for Learning 1: UDL in the Everyday Classroom (6 weeks, 1.5 CEUs)

-  Universal Design for Learning 2: UDL in the Everyday Classroom (5 weeks, 1.0 CEU)

 

All courses start Monday, April 3. Visit NCDPI’s Online Professional Development website for more detailed information.


PowerSchool logo

PowerTeacher Pro Implementation Plan

 

Over the past two months, a group of representatives from various parts of the state worked together to develop an implementation plan for the release of PowerTeacher Pro. You may access the full plan here.  

 

In addition to the development of the implementation plan, staff recently administered a statewide survey regarding participation in Cohort I of the PowerTeacher Pro release. This first cohort will be rolling out PowerTeacher Pro at the start of the 2017-18 school year, and will soon begin receiving targeted professional development and technical assistance.

 

If you have any questions about the implementation plan or the rollout of PowerTeacher Pro, please contact Hunter Huffman or 919.807.3633. 


Digital Learning Competencies

Digital Learning Competencies District Leadership Calendar Changes

 

The NCDPI Digital Teaching and Learning Division wants to make you aware of some upcoming changes to its professional development calendar.

 

The Digital Learning Competencies District Leadership Cohorts will not meet in April. We have changed the target audience and focus for the previously scheduled April event and instead will be offering regional professional development opportunities on the same dates for School Library Media Coordinators, Instructional Technology Facilitators, and Instructional Coaches. This will not be a repeat of the Digital Learning Competencies for Teachers taking place this month and into early April but instead will cover topics relevant to the roles of the new target audience.

 

Emails are being sent to District Leadership Cohort leads to register School Library Media Coordinators, Instructional Technology Facilitators, and Instructional Coaches for this interactive and engaging professional learning opportunity. Please direct any questions to Digital Teaching and Learning consultant Jill Darrough. 


CCSA: Collaborative Conference for Student Achievement

Welcome to Greensboro for #CCSA17

 

To help you plan your week while at the 2017 Collaborative Conference for Student Achievement, staff would like for you to peruse the 2017 Conference Booklet and 2017 Session Description Guide. These two publications will assist you in navigating the conference.

 

The resources are companions to the 2017 App. Directions for downloading the app are located in the 2017 Conference Booklet. Please download the app before your arrive at the conference. The app will be used to share all updates about CCSA 2017.


Don't Miss This

Latest Messages Online

 

March 15, 2017  Principals’ Biweekly Message

 

March 17, 2017  Finance Officers’ Newsletter