Office of Charter Schools Weekly Newsletter for August 31, 2018

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Office of Charter Schools

6307 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-6307  •  919.807.3491


WEEKLY NEWSLETTER  –  AUGUST 31, 2018


Upcoming Events


September 5 - 6, 2018

State Board of Education Meeting

 

September 5, 2018

AIG Program Development for Charter School Leaders


September 10, 2018

Charter Schools Advisory Board Meeting

 

October 18 -19, 2018

Charter School Leadership Institute

 

Action Items Due

 

November 1, 2018

Immunization and Health Assessment Compliance

 

Future Action Items

 

September 13, 2018

New Homeless Liaison Compliance Training (for Charter Schools)

 

September 18 -19, 2018

EL Coordinators Meeting

 

October 2, 2018

EC Directors' Webinar -  10:00 - 11:00am

 

October 28 -30, 2018

2018 North Carolina Elementary School Conference

 

November 14 - 16, 2018

EC Conference

 

December 4, 2018

EC Directors' Webinar - 10:00 - 11:00am

 

 

 


NCDPI Office of Charter Schools (OCS) Updates


The 2018 Charter School Leadership Institute is coming!

 

 What is it?   

The Charter School Leadership Institute is an annual gathering of charter leaders, staff, and board members from across the state. Join us for informational sessions, hands on workshops, and panel discussions on a wide range of topics including specific tracks for finance and serving special populations. Sign me up!

 

When is it? 

Great question! Thursday, October 18 (8am-4:30pm) and Friday, October 19 (8am-1pm)

 

Where is it? 

Even better question! This year’s Institute will be at Pine Springs Preparatory Academy at 220 Rosewood Centre Drive, Holly Springs, NC 27540. Huge thanks to Pine Springs for hosting!

 

How much does it cost? 

Less fun, but extremely relevant question. The registration fee is $55 per participant.

 

Where should I stay? 

There are a few options in the immediate vicinity. Here are some recommendations: Hampton Inn and Suites Holly Springs (3.3mi); Comfort Inn Apex (2.7mi); Holiday Inn Express Apex-Raleigh (3.2mi)

 

What else should I know? 

Lunch will be provided both days. Agendas, speakers, logistics, and more coming soon!

 


 

EPICENTER

 

 

 

To ALL Charter School Leaders and Staff

 

The Office of Charter Schools is very excited to announce that we are implementing a "software tool" called  

 

EPICENTER

 

which will assist with automating and streamlining our compliance and performance processes. 

 

More exciting information to follow! Stay tuned!

 

Charter School check mark

 

Charter School Leaders and Board Members

 

Board members from charter schools that are opening in 2019 are required to attend 5 face-to-face Planning Year Sessions from September to January. 


The school leader and some of the board members are also required to attend the New Charter School Leaders Institute in June. 


As a customer service, the Office of Charter Schools continues to open up these sessions to all charter schools. 


If you have a new school leader and/or a new board member interested in attending any of the sessions, he or she must register to attend.  Please note the schedule below:

 

Date    

Time    

Location

Topic


September 26, 2018 

8:00 - 4:15

DPI: Room 150

Charter School Governance


October 31, 2018

8:00 - 4:15

DPI: Room 150

Charter School Finance


November 14, 2018

8:00 - 4:15

DPI: Room 150

Charter School Operations & Accountability


December 12, 2018

8:00 - 4:30

DPI: Room 150

Meeting the Needs of All Students


January 30, 2019

8:00 - 4:15

DPI: Room 150

Our School Opens in 7 Months!  Now What?


June 11 - 12, 2019

8:00 - 5:00

DPI: Rooms 150, 224, 564

New Charter School Leaders Institute


 

Registration is now open for the September session.  Registration ends on Sunday, September 16th.  Please use this link to register:  https://goo.gl/forms/XxEYWeciq3V8SfAp2

 

For questions, please contact Shaunda Cooper at shaunda.cooper@dpi.nc.gov and Stephenie Clark at stephenie.clark@dpi.nc.gov.

  

Don't Miss This

 SAVE the DATE!

 

Wednesday, September 5th 3:30 – 4:30

Please register for AIG Program Development for Charter School Leaders on Sep 5, 2018 3:30 PM EDT at:


https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2721709485959999233


This webinar is designed to support charter school leaders who are interested in offering gifted programming at the local charter school(s).


We will focus our time on the benefits of charter school AIG programs, the development of the program - according to state guidelines and legislation, and ensuring that programming offered meets the needs of gifted learners.


There will be an opportunity for questions and answers during the session.


After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.


Brought to you by GoToWebinar®

Webinars Made Easy®

 

AIG

 All districts need to update their information on EDDIE

 

The Educational Directory and Demographical Information Exchange (EDDIE) is an online application containing LEA and school information.The English Language Coordinator position is available for districts and charter schools to complete in EDDIE. 

 

These are the steps that districts and charter schools need to take to update their staff listing.

  

System Update

 NewSchools Venture Fund grants

 

NewSchools Invent

 

  • The application is now live for teams planning to launch a new, innovative school (district or charter) that will open in Fall 2020.

  • Selected teams will receive a planning grant of $200,000 (with opportunity to apply for an investment that would support the first three years of operation) with additional support provided through our Communities of Practice and our management assistance. To learn more about our eligibility requirements and our investment criteria, please go hereApplications are due on November 26, 2018.

 

 Diverse Leaders


  • The application is now live for teams planning to advance Black and Latino leadership in education. Selected teams will receive a one-year grant of $100,000 - $200,000 (depending on the stage of organization or idea) with additional support provided through our Communities of Practice and our management assistant. To learn more about our eligibility requirements and our investment criteria, please go hereApplications are due on September 7, 2018.

 


 OCS Monthly Webinar Series


September 27, 2018 | 10:00-11:00am EDT | Register Here

 

Join us for the September edition of the OCS Monthly Webinar Series. Rebecca Belcastro, DPI K-3 Literacy Consultant, will lead a conversation and answer questions about Read to Achieve and what it means for charters including legislative updates, implementation, and training.



  

NCStar Regional Trainings


Federal Program Monitoring & Support will be conducting regional NCStar Trainings. These regional opportunities will contain both beginner trainings and Q&A sessions for experienced users. From 8:30am – 1:00pm at each location, beginner training will be conducted and then from 2pm-4pm Q&A sessions for experienced users will be held.

 

Registration is open at www.ncstar.weebly.com. Space is limited and registration for each site will close once site capacity is reached. Please remember that any school identified in a federal or state list will be required to use NCStar to create and manage their school improvement plan. Any school that wishes to use the tool, must attend a beginner training at least once. These are the eight dates and sites:

  • September 26th – Sampson County Schools Boardroom

at 437 Rowan Road in Clinton

  • September 28th – Olive Hill Resource Center

at 509 West Concord Street in Morganton

  • October 2nd   – Asheville City Schools

at 85 Mountain Street in Asheville

  • October 3rd – Linda Rader Staff Development Center

at 240 Eighth Avenue in Cramerton

at 110 Corning Road in Cary

  • October 11th  – New Hanover County Schools Board of Education Center

at 1805 South 13th Street in Wilmington

  • October 19th  – Sadie Saulter Educational Center

at 400 Spruce Street in Greenville

  • October 23rd  – Workforce Development & Continuing Education Building

at 629 Industrial Park Avenue in Asheboro

 


2018 Performance Framework: Final Review

 

The deadline for charter schools to resubmit documents was Thursday, August 30, 2018. All evidence(s) properly uploaded into SharePoint will be reviewed again for a final rating of either compliant or not compliant.

 

OCS Consultants will review resubmitted documents on an on-going basis during the month of September. After the closing of reviews on September 30, 2018, there will be one final correspondence shared with the school leader and board chair listed in EDDIE noting any measures that will be marked as Not Compliant.

 

Thank you for your hard work and diligence in making necessary corrections to evidence documents and policies.

 

If there are any further questions regarding the 2018 Performance Framework collection and timeline, please contact Stephenie Clark at stephenie.clark@dpi.nc.gov or (919) 807-3492.

 


Professional Development

NC Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) Updates

 

FLANC Scholarships and Mini-Grants for 2018

 

Let FLANC fund your professional growth with a scholarship or mini-grant!

 

Here is what's available:

  • Beginning Teacher Scholarship - Apply by September 15
    Up to 20 beginning teachers in their first, second or third year of K-12 teaching can be awarded a scholarship to cover the cost of the FLANC Fall Conference registration plus one Saturday afternoon workshop on October 19 - 20 in Durham.  Details are posted on FLANC's Scholarships page, including the online application

 

  • Future Teacher Scholarship - Apply by September 15
    This $1000 scholarship honors Jane Mitchell and Manolita Buck, two language educators who were instrumental in shaping a vision for World Language Education in our state.  It is awarded to one student entering his or her final year of study in a program leading to teacher licensure in a World Language in North Carolina.  This scholarship is open to all students of any North Carolina institute of higher learning. Additional details are posted on FLANC's Scholarships page, along with the online application that includes information about submitting a resume and transcripts, as well as scheduling an interview.           

 

  • FLANC Mini-Grant - Apply by November 15
    Any FLANC member, K-20, can apply for a mini-grant of up to $500 toward their project to promote World Language education.  The grants are available on a competitive basis, and applicants are urged to use these grants to leverage additional funding from their schools or other sources for the development of their grant project.  Details are posted on FLANC's Mini-Grants page, including the downloadable application form.

Please see the flyer below and direct questions to Laura Sexton, FLANC Scholarship and Mini-Grant Chair, at scholarship.minigrant@flanc.org

 

FLANC+Scholarship+and+Mini-Grant+Ad.pdf

 


 Letter from the State Superintendent

 

 

Educators:


I hope your start to the school year has been great. We have visited schools and seen the photos you have shared. (Thanks for tagging us.) The excitement of educators and students across the state has been fantastic.


As the State Superintendent and father of a public school student, I want to personally thank you for everything you do and for your service to our state.

As you know, one of my top priorities is to reduce the time you must spend assessing and testing students.


Thank you for the valuable feedback you gave us through the assessment survey we sent out in May. Three-quarters of you said your students are tested too much, and your input guides our work. We want to give you time back to do what you entered the profession to do: teach.

I will keep you updated this school year on our efforts to change past guidance that has intensified high-stakes testing.


The tests are too long, the testing environment is too high-stress, and the rules placed on students, teachers, and volunteer proctors are unreasonably strict. Last year, I saw it for myself when I proctored a test in a fourth grade classroom.


We will be revising the testing protocols to remove as many of these guidelines as possible to alleviate at least some of the stress and disruption that testing causes.


K-3 educators are noticing these efforts first. For the start of this school year, we changed how teachers can use the mCLASS reading diagnostic tool. Past guidance from DPI resulted in strict requirements for how often K-3 teachers had to assess students, but the new guidance for this school year allows for more teacher discretion.


For all K-5 educators, I am urging the State Board of Education to eliminate certain tests in grades K-5 caused by board policies rather than federal law.


As the school year continues, we will have more updates for all K-12 educators and parents on our work to reduce high-stakes testing. We hope these changes help reduce the time you must spend assessing students as well as how much your students feel like they are being tested.


Have a great holiday weekend. North Carolina is fortunate to have you.

Sincerely,


Mark Johnson

State Superintendent


@MarkRJohnsonNC

 


Testing and Accountability Updates 2018-19

  

Superintendents and Charter School Administrators,

 

Please see the attached memo: Testing and Accountability Updates 2018-19, from Deputy Superintendent Eric Hall and Accountability Director Tammy Howard.

 

 Testing+Updates+Fall+2018-19_EH_TH_082918%5B1%5D.pdf

 

Policy and Procedures

 2018-2019 World Language Webinar Series

 

The 2018-2019 World Language Webinar Series details are below and posted on the Webinar Series Information page on the World Languages wiki.


As in the past, all of the broadcasts will be on Wednesdays from 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. and the materials from each webinar (slides, handouts, links, etc.), along with a recording of the broadcast, will be posted approximately 1 week later so that they can be used in local professional development.

 

Educators who participate in a live broadcast of a World Language webinar from this series will receive an email receipt with 1 contact hour or 0.1 CEU, which could be used for licensure renewal.  Note: Local Education Agencies (LEAs) or districts and charter schools must approve professional development offerings.

 

Laptop

Adherence to the 10/20 Day Rule

State Board of Education policy TEST-003 states that, "public school students may drop a course with a required end-of-course (EOC) assessment within the first 10 days of enrollment in a semester schedule or within the first 20 days of enrollment in a year-long schedule. Students who are enrolled for a credit after the 10/20 days, regardless of course delivery, shall not drop a course with a required EOC assessment and shall participate in the appropriate EOC assessment at the completion of the course."

 

Please click here to view the memo on the Adherence to the 10/20 Day Rule from Deputy Superintendent Eric Hall and Accountability Director Tammy Howard.

 


 2018-2019 Class Size/Caseload Waivers

 

Please see the attached Memorandum regarding Class Size/Caseload waivers. For technical assistance or questions please contact your assigned monitoring consultant for related services. https://ec.ncpublicsthools.gove/report-data/cipp-monitoring/find-monitor-2018-19.pdf

  

 


 K-3 Literacy: Read to Achieve

 

The K-3 Literacy Division welcomes you back to school and wishes you a great start to the 2018-2019 school year.

 

Information and updates regarding Read to Achieve can be found on the Read to Achieve LiveBinder. This includes updates to mClass:Reading 3D.

 

NC Read to Achieve LiveBinder: http://www.livebinders.com/play/play/850102

 

NEW!!!  Enrollment and Classing (mClass:Reading 3D)

 

In an effort to better support LEAs with mCLASS Reading 3D enrollment responsibilities, Amplify and NC DPI have created classes in mCLASS for this school year.

 

We recognize there have been a variety of enrollment challenges due to this new process and hope to resolve all open items before BOY starts on Tuesday, September 4th.

 

Please make sure that your students are placed in appropriate courses in Powerschool in order to ensure seamless information transfer (1050, 1051,1052, and 1053). DPI has submitted a ‘student to class’ file on Tuesday August 28th, which should populate students into the empty classes in mCLASS. It is DPI’s goal to provide a daily refresh of classes for the first 15 days of school and then weekly throughout the school year.

 

If you have missing student information or students who are not in classes, please work with your Data Manager to ensure that the students are scheduled in the appropriate course codes under the correct teacher in PowerSchool. If the student data is not coded correctly, please fix it in your Student Information System. The updated data will be pulled during the next file transfer from DPI to mCLASS.

 

If you are still experiencing issues with classes, student and staff rosters, please contact Amplify Help at help@amplify.com.

 

We do not recommend that you create groups to replace classes in order to see mCLASS student data. Our suggestion is to wait until NC DPI submits the ‘student to class file’ in order for those classes to populate and see student data. If students are in mCLASS and you don’t see them in classes, it may be that they are not assigned to classes yet in Powerschool.   

 

In addition, if teachers have multiples ELA sections and are not seeing all of their classes, we ask that you remain patient as we work through the details in the file in order to support multiple classes.

 

If you have purchased licenses for grades 4 and 5, please be sure that your PowerSchool course codes are up to date for the daily refresh.

 

 

Rebecca Belcastro

K-3 Literacy Consultant, Piedmont-Triad

North Carolina Department of Public Instruction

919-789-1036

rebecca.belcastro@dpi.nc.gov

 


 2018 Exceptional Children Educator of Excellence Recognition

 

The Exceptional Children Division will recognize educators of excellence at the 68th Conference on Exceptional Children

 

Local schools systems are asked to identify one teacher or related service provider of exceptional from the school under its oversight. 

 

Please see the attached Memorandum for details.  You may direct questions to Melissa Towery, Melissa.towery@dpi.nc.gov, Jenny Stroupe, jenny.stroupe@dpi.nc.gov, or Tish Bynum, tish.bynum@dpi.nc.gov.

 

 

 Memo-Educator+of+Excellence+2018.pdf

 

Exceptional Children

Southern Conference on Language Teaching (SCOLT)

  

This message is being shared on behalf of the Southern Conference on Language Teaching (SCOLT), the World Language education professional organization serving over a dozen southeastern states, including North Carolina.

 

Details about upcoming deadlines for the SCOLT Conference are listed below with links, and all information can be found on the SCOLT website.

 

 

This information, along with other reminders, contests, grants, and scholarships are also posted on the K-20 Opportunities for Teachers & Students page of the NC World Languages wiki.

  

World Language wiki

 August 31, 2018

School Financial Reporting

SCHOOL BUSINESS DIVISION

FINANCIAL AND BUSINESS SERVICES

 

 

This is a reminder that August 2018 (FY2018) Financial and MFR data files need to be built and available to DPI no later than 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, September 5, 2018

 

For LEAs using the LINQ software, once the month is closed your data will be created and sent to LINQ for submission to DPI. Should any LINQ LEA encounter problems with the monthly closing, please contact the LINQ HELP Desk.

 

DPI will begin processing data files first thing on September 6 , 2018. Please make every effort to create the data files on the due date. We also ask that you please make certain there is someone on site September 6, 2018 to answer any data-related questions DPI may have.

 

If this reminder needs to be sent to others at your district, please forward this message to them and amanda.cruz@dpi.nc.gov.

 


Other News

 

2018/2019SY New Homeless Liaison Compliance Training


NCHEP will be conducting annual New Homeless Liaison Compliance Training sessions during September 2018. This year separate training sessions will be held for new liaisons from regular LEAs and charter schools as noted below.


Those who are new homeless liaison with 2 years or less experience for their LEA or charter school and who did not attend the new homeless liaison training held for LEAs or charter schools during the 2017-18SY should participate in this all-day professional development.

 

Local Educational Agencies 

September 6, 2018

The SERVE Center at UNCG

5900 Summit Ave., Dixon Bldg.

Browns Summit, NC 27214

Register for the LEA NHLCT

 

 

Charter Schools

September 13, 2018

The SERVE Center at UNCG

5900 Summit Ave., Dixon Bldg.

Browns Summit, NC 27214

Register for the Charter Schools NHLCT

 

The topics for training will include:

  • Compliance with the McKinney-Vento Act
  • Transportation
  • Early Education
  • Higher Education (RDS)

 

Mark your Calendar

Immunization and Health Assessment Compliance Reporting

 

Each year, all schools are required to report the immunization status of their kindergarten and 7th grade students, according to G.S. 130A-155(c) and G.S. 130A-440. The purpose of these reports is to ensure that all children enrolled in North Carolina schools are protected against vaccine-preventable diseases and to determine the number of children who meet state immunization requirements. 


Additionally, all North Carolina public and public charter schools are required annually to report on the status of Health Assessments for those students who are enrolling for the first time in a North Carolina public or public charter school (G.S. 130A-441(c)).


Report submission can take place after the 30th calendar day from the school’s official first day.  A combined compliance report is available this year, by school name, and must be completed on-line at this link: Annual Health Assessment and Immunization Report.  You may use the link to access instructions as well as worksheets to gather your responses prior to entering the online report.  


Compliance reports are due no later than November 1, 2018 but may be completed at any time prior to that date. 

 

Communication From The Consultant

The Technical Assistance Summary provides valuable school health information.  School Health Coordinators and/or School Nurses are encouraged to review this quarterly circular so you can stay up-to-date with news and announcements from the Charter School Health Nurse Consultant.

 

Do You Have a School Nurse or School Health Coordinator?

In order to ensure proper delivery of School Health Services information, please use this link to provide contact information.  The contact information provided will be used to ensure receipt of important school health requirements and continuing education opportunities.  Please have your school nurse or school health coordinator fill out this quick survey so they may be included on our distribution list.

 

 

Kristin Wike, MSN, RN, NCSN

Charter School Health Nurse Consultant

NC Division of Public Health - Children and Youth Branch

NC Department of Health and Human Services

 

828 230 7148    office

828 230 7148    mobile

kristin.wike@dhhs.nc.gov

 

 

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News Links (OCS)

 

 Aug. 30, 2018 - Home Base Bulletin

 

 

News Links ( DPI)

 

 August 2018 ECATS Newsletter



 Superintendent Johnson Announces Changes to Help Reduce Testing For North Carolina’s Youngest Students

 

 

Character Education News & Updates: August 2018