OCS is hiring!
If you are passionate about school choice and want to help educators across the state, consider joining the Office of Charter Schools. With over 200 schools in the state and growing, we stay busy and engaged, providing guidance and support. As a member of our diverse and passionate team, you will have ample opportunity for personal and professional growth, as a team player committed to expanding opportunities for future generations.
Applications are being accepted now through September 1st. Read more and apply through this link.
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Premium Library / Educational Impact Webinar Aug. 31
Is your district searching to purchase Professional Development to grow impactful educators?
Join NCDPI & PowerSchool on Aug. 31, 2022 from 1:30-2:30pm EST as we demonstrate Premium Library in NCEES with a focus on Educational Impact courses. EI has over 300 courses to choose from and they will be working with districts on reduced pricing for bundled purchases
Join to learn more and ask any question!
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Premium Library allows you to easily search, purchase, assign, and track PD within the NC Educator Effectiveness System.
- Premium Library 1-pager
- Requires NCEES District Administrator to view Premium Library in System Administration > Premium Library.
- Requires Home Base Opt-In to manage PL courses in a PD Office, in the online tool.
Webinar presented by Sean Vair, PS Sr. Educational Impact Consultant; Cami Narron, NCDPI NCEES Product Manager and Educational Impact representatives. It will be recorded for future viewing and sharing.
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2022-2023SY Homeless Education Requirements
Please note the following Homeless Education (McKinney-Vento Act) requirements to ensure your Charter’s homeless liaisons are prepared for this school year.
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New Homeless Liaison Training for Charters: September 1st
- Homeless liaisons who are new to their role are required to attend.
- For more information and to register for the event, visit our registration
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Update Homeless Liaison Contact Information
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Charter School Homeless Education Website Posting (if not already in place)
If clarification or assistance is needed, please contact your program specialist. Program specialist can assist with trainings, resources, forms and questions on identification, enrollment, funding, as well as the data collection requirements of homeless students.
Check out who your program specialist for homeless education is by visiting the NCHEP Contact page.
Smart School Bus Safety Pilot Replacement PSUs
Interest Survey Due September 7, 2022
Nine (9) of the twenty-four (24) PSUs identified by the General Assembly to participate in the Smart School Bus Safety Pilot Program (SL 2021-180 Section 7.70) have elected not to participate. This is a program which allocates SFRF funds from the US Treasury to enhance the technology on school buses in two primary areas, communications and information, and student wi-fi. For each PSU that has withdrawn, the legislation allows DPI to authorize one replacement PSU with a “similar population of students”. As there are nine potential replacements Transportation Services has elected to do an initial interest survey. After the survey is complete, we will compare ADM figures of those interested with all PSUs which have declined funding. We will then present official paperwork regarding participation to those PSUs with a similar population of students to the nine which have elected not to participate.
Charter schools that operate yellow school buses are eligible to participate in this pilot.
Direct Questions to: Kevin.Harrison@dpi.nc.gov
Survey Link:
https://ncdpi.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_1M5yTR0kw3tOisS
DUE SEPTEMBER 15: 2022 School Mental Health Policy Report
Dear Charter School Leaders,
All charter schools are required to report their progress on meeting the guidelines set forth by the NC State Board of Education's SHLT-003:School-Based Mental Health (SBMH) Policy. We have included the required reporting questions in the Healthy Active Children's (HAC) policy report, and you will be able to complete your report online. In the online reporting portal, you will indicate that you are a charter school, and you will be directed to the SBMH policy questions. To make it easier for you to assemble your report information prior to going online, a Word version of the online survey is linked. Please complete the online survey to submit your report.
The information needed to complete the SBMH progress report will come from your School Mental Health Improvement Plan, which is required to upload and must include the mental health training program and suicide risk referral protocol.
Please note the deadline to complete the HAC Progress Report / School Mental Health Policy Report is September 15, 2022.
You can access the reporting portal through the link below.
If you have questions or challenges in completing this online survey, please contact Les Spell at Les.Spell@dpi.nc.gov.
We appreciate the time and energy spent in completing this report and look forward to reading each submission. The Healthy Active Children Report / School Mental Health Policy Report is a valuable tool in efforts to provide quality school health systems that will raise academic achievement and promote physical and mental health among North Carolina’s schoolchildren.
Thanks for all you do.
Les
Les Spell
Data & Policy Consultant
Division of Academic Standards
NC Department of Public Instruction
(W) 984-236-2815
Les.Spell@dpi.nc.gov
School Business – August Updates
Indirect Cost System Update
The updates to the BAAS system to allow for the use of the applicable Restricted vs. Unrestricted Indirect Costs rates has been uploaded and is now available. Please coordinate with your financial software vendors to confirm they have uploaded the necessary files for your individual systems. The rates are controlled through the PRC (Program Report Code) table within BAAS. This system is operational for the current FY2023 and moving forward. The current year indirect costs can all be coded to the normal "392" indirect cost rate object code.
To recapture Prior Years indirect costs on the ESSER grant funds you will need to manually calculate that adjustment. You must apply the rate appropriate for that fiscal year to that calculation and those expenditures. You will do a manual check to the "394" object code to record that recapture of applicable indirect costs. We will update that definition in the COA to reflect that the 394 code is to be used for recapturing Prior Year indirect costs.
Attached is an excel workbook that has the applicable Indirect Cost rates for your PSU since FY2020.
If you have any questions or need assistance, please contact Roxane Bernard (roxane.bernard@dpi.nc.gov) or Tina Boyce (tina.boyce@dpi.nc.gov).
2022-2023 PMR Update – Coming Soon
PMR Certification Statement
This is a new addition to the PMR approval process in PowerSchool. Before approval PMRs are to be reviewed and signed by the school principal. The new certification will serve as acknowledgement and certification by the school principal or the principal’s designee. The statement is attached below and is expected to be in PowerSchool by the close of the Month 1 PMR.
Please note that per General Statute, any school employee of the public schools who knowingly and willfully makes or procures another to make any false report or records, requisitions, or payrolls, respecting daily attendance of pupils in the public schools, payroll data sheets, or other reports required to be made to any board or officer in the performance of his duties, shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor and the certificate of such person to teach in the public schools of North Carolina shall be revoked by the Superintendent of Public Instruction.
Please contact Student Accounting at studentaccounting@dpi.nc.gov for questions.
PRC 071 Supplement Funds for Teacher Compensation
These funds will be allocated by Wednesday, August 31, 2023. Attached is the summary by LEA of the total allocation and maximum per teacher. Eligible charter schools will receive their portion of the supplemental funds for teacher compensation through PRC 036. Please refer to the attached FAQ should you have any questions, however, there are no changes in how to operationalize these funds from last year so follow those same guidelines. If you have any questions as to how to use these funds please contact Corey Terry (corey.terry@dpi.nc.us). If you have questions related to the allotment please contact Kristie Weber (kristie.weber@dpi.nc.us).
School Business Data Stored Off-Site Sign-Off – ALL PSUs
NCDPI School Business Modernization (SBSM) asks all PSU CFOs to please complete this Sign-Off form prior to the end of August.
Per updated Session Law 2021-180 Section 7.79.(b) all public school units "...shall store their school business data at an off-site premises by June 30, 2023". It is anticipated that fewer than 17 public school units are potentially impacted by the above language in Section 7.79(b) and fewer than 35 public school units by 7.79(b) as a whole.
Contact: Barry Pace, Director
IDEA Funds and Overtime Pay
Overtime pay for classified employees is an allowable expense in federal grants, under certain conditions. For a classified employee to receive overtime pay out of federal funds the employee is required to be serving students with disabilities 100% of the time. If the employee is serving non-disabled students in any capacity, then the overtime cannot be paid out of federal funds. Further questions regarding this should be directed to Nicole.Sinclair@dpi.nc.gov .
Updated School Attendance Guidelines
Please see the attached excerpt from the SASA Manual (Student Accounting and Student Attendance). This is a draft until it is approved by the SBE in October, however, please use this guidance as you begin school this year.
Of special note is the appropriate use of the 1-R code related to remote instruction vs. your normal attendance codes for schools. Please also see section related to the use of the 1-D code.
This is posted under the What’s New section.
Have questions about student health requirements? Counseling? Healthy schools in general? The NC Healthy Schools staff can help …
Sarah Blanton, Healthy Schools Consultant
Kisha Bryant, School Counseling Consultant
Ellen Essick, Section Chief
Burt Jenkins, Healthful Living / Athletics Consultant
Pachovia Lovett, School Social Work Consultant
Lillian Pinto, Reproductive Health Consultant
Susanne Schmal, School Health Partnerships & Policy Consultant
Les Spell, Data and Policy Consultant
Another EL Data Training
Join NCDPI's Multilingual Learner (ML)/Title III Team as they explore the ins and out of English Learner Identification, EL Data in PowerSchool, Screening students for language services, and federal compliance around EL Data. The training will be held on Monday, September 12th from 9 - 11:30 am. The Registration link is here.
Discipline, Dropout, and ALPS data coordinator contact information
DISCIPLINE DATA
With the start of the 2022-2023 school year, NCDPI would like to make sure that we have the most accurate contact information for your PSU’s discipline data coordinator.
ALTERNATIVE LEARNING PROGRAMS & SCHOOLS (ALPS)
With the start of the 2022-2023 school year, NCDPI would like to make sure that we have the most accurate contact information for your PSU’s ALPS data coordinator.
With the start of the 2022-2023 school year, NCDPI would like to make sure that we have the most accurate contact information for your PSU’s dropout data coordinator.
The NC Digital Learning & Media Inventory (DLMI) is due Sep 30, 2022.
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All PSUs (LEA, Charter, Lab, Regional) must complete the DLMI annually.
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Remember that this data feeds into the NC School Report Card, the Office of Civil Rights Report, and the new Digital Dashboard required by legislation.
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For your data to be on this year’s School Report Card, it MUST be input into the DLMI system by the Sept 30 deadline because we must submit the SRC data the following week.
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Charter, Regional, Lab schools must complete the PSU level as well as the School level, therefore need to request PSU admin access.
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Please see the 2022 NCDLMI Training Deck for directions and links.
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Contact your regional consultant for further assistance.
Register for Fall Literacy Instruction Standards (LIS) PD!
To assist districts and schools in implementing the Literacy Instruction Standards (LIS), the NCDPI ELA Team will provide regional train-the-trainer sessions for instructional leaders that include:
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Building a deeper understanding of the LIS and practices
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Utilizing the "Literacy Look-Fors" tool to observe and coach
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Planning next steps for improving literacy in their PSU
We are inviting up to 3-5 leaders per charter to attend. Suggested participants:
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K-12 representation; Vertical representation
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Content area representation
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Instructional leaders who will support/provide PD locally
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Literacy and/or Instructional Coaches
The charter session will take place October 5th from 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM.
The NCDPI ELA Team encourages charter teams to work with their school leadership to ensure registration accurately reflects needed charter representation. While each team member should register separately, charter leaders should follow up with their team members to ensure individual registrations are completed.
Register for your session!
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To learn more about the support the ELA Team will provide for the 22-23 school year, view our public-facing timeline. If you have any questions, please let us know!
Thanks,
Stacy Daniel, Ed.D. Section Chief for ELA & Languages English Language Arts and Languages Office of Academic Standards NC Department of Public Instruction P: (984) 236-2829 stacy.daniel@dpi.nc.gov
Important MEMOs:
MEMO: 2022–23 Annual Testing Program and Accountability Requirements
Thoroughly read the linked memo, 2022–23 Annual Testing Program and Accountability Requirements, from Dr. Michael Maher and Dr. Tammy Howard.
Some important resources from our DPI partners working in School Mental Health and Counseling. 988 Is Now Live!
988 offers 24/7 access to trained crisis counselors who can help people experiencing mental health-related distress. That could be:
- Thoughts of suicide
- Mental health or substance use crisis, or
- Any other kind of emotion distress
People can call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org for themselves or if they are worried about a loved one who may need crisis support.
988 serves as a universal entry point so that no matter where you live in the United States, you can reach a trained crisis counselor who can help.
Printable PDF handouts in English and Spanish explain the basics about 988.
More about 988
School Mental Health Plan
Year Two PSU Q&A
Will we need to submit our SMH plan this year?
- Yes, you will be required to report to DPI by September 15th, 2022. The reporting portal is now open, and only one contact per PSU will have access to the reporting portal. You will answer the reporting questions as part of the Healthy Active Children's Report, the same as last year (charters bypass the HAC portions and only complete the SMH report). You will also upload a copy of your SMH plan.
- New charter schools opening this school year will need to report to DPI and submit their plan.
Has anything changed about what we are required to do?
- There are no major changes. You will notice on the reporting page that we have added questions about prior years' compliance. These are based on the 2021-2022 school year.
- Your plans do not have to change. You can upload the same plan as long as it is still what you plan to use. You also can make any adjustment and changes to your plan prior to submitting. You must include your detailed training plan and suicide risk protocol and ensure it is up-to-date.
- You will see the requirements for abuse and neglect resources that are now included in the School Mental Health Policy. These materials must be distributed at the beginning of each school year.
What does the 2-hour subsequent training have to include?
- The 2-hr refresher addresses at least 2 of 6 MH training program areas, and on even-numbered years, 2 hours of sex trafficking and child sex abuse content must be provided.
- The 6-hr initial training (for new employees) must address all 6 areas, regardless of year.
Where do I find all the SMH Policy materials?
Questions can be sent to pachovia.lovett@dpi.nc.gov
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EC ANNOUNCEMENTS |
Please review the attached EC Division communication updates and Guidance.
As you are in the early weeks of the 2022-23 school year, or are gearing up for the first days of school, please know our Office of Exceptional Children is here to support you. We know your struggles with staffing are real and extremely difficult. We also know you are doing everything you can to meet the needs of the students you serve. We’re here to help problem-solve, talk through options or just be that listening ear that you might need as you deal with the burdens you’re under.
May the year ahead be one filled with celebrations of learning and advancement, and may you, your staff, teachers and students remain healthy and engaged.
Sherry Thomas and the entire Office of Exceptional Children
Calling ALL EL Data Stakeholders!
Are you relatively new to English Learner (EL) identification, EL Data in PowerSchool, the Home Language Survey process, and other critical elements for EL data? In that case, register now for the upcoming session. We recommend this for anyone with less than three years of working with multilingual learners, EL data, and PowerSchool.
September 12th from 9:00 - 11:30 am - Registration
New DOE Guidance:
Office of Charter Schools (OCS) Updates
We are excited to share that the 2022 AIM Conference registration is now OPEN!
What to Expect: Assemble your team and prepare for an exciting opportunity to learn about current policy and legislation and glean insights into best practices through a variety of concurrent sessions. All breakout sessions are aligned to Operation Polaris and details will be posted on the AIM Conference site by early September. Regional Lunch and Learn events will provide you and your teams a chance to dig into district and regional problems of practice. District team work time is also provided in the agenda. Participants will also enjoy time to network during special unstructured events throughout the conference.
Schedule: Check out our Schedule-At-A-Glance!
Pricing and Perks: Early-Bird pricing is $100 per participant until September 30, 2022. Registration includes continental breakfast, boxed lunch, and a heavy hors d’oeuvres reception on October 27 as well as a continental breakfast and boxed lunch on October 28. Internet will also be provided for multiple devices.
District Team Registration (Administrators and Non-Teaching Staff): Register now, Early Bird Registration ends September 30 when fees will increase from $100 to $150 per participant. PSUs may register at bit.ly/AIM22Registration.
Teacher Registration: We also encourage PSUs to bring teacher leaders to the main conference on October 27 & 28, 2022 as a part of their PSU team! All teacher registration fees have been provided by our sponsors, but space is limited! Teachers may register at bit.ly/AIM22TeacherRegistration.
FREE AIMazing Teacher Conference: Please encourage teachers to register for the FREE AIMazing Teacher Conference beginning the evening of October 28 with breakout sessions on October 29. All teacher registration fees have been provided by our sponsors, but space is limited! Teachers may register at bit.ly/AIM22TeacherRegistration.
We are recommending that charters schools bring teams of 3.
 The NC ACCESS Program is offering two amazing (and FREE) development opportunities for charter school leaders and teachers during the 2022-23 school year. Visit ncaccessprogram.com/learn for more information.
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Science of Reading (LETRS) Training for 200 teachers and 100 administrators. NC ACCESS is partnering with Lexia Learning to provide the same LETRS training that the state is offering to traditional public schools.
- The ACCESS Fellowship for 100 charter school leaders. To-date, this intensive development institute has only been available to NC ACCESS subgrantees. This year, it is open to all. Apply today!
Sharing a message from the Jewish Federation of Charlotte
Greetings Charter School Leaders,
The Jewish Federation Community Relations Council (JCRC) builds relationships throughout communities in North Carolina, and advocates on issues of concern to the Jewish community. Over the years, we have worked diligently with public, private, and charter schools to promote diversity and sensitize staff and school leadership to our unique needs. School systems throughout North Carolina have been very responsive and we are grateful for all of the support. Attached is a five year calendar of Major Jewish Holidays and Religious Observances that can be used in planning and support for Jewish families, students, and staff. If you have any questions feel free to reach out to your local Jewish Federation.
Greensboro Jewish Federation 5509-C West Friendly Avenue Greensboro, NC 27410
336.852.5433 info@shalomgreensboro.org
Jewish Federation of Greater Charlotte 5007 Providence Rd Suite 101 Charlotte, NC 28226
704.944.6757 info@jewishcharlotte.org
Jewish Federation of Raleigh-Cary
8210 Creedmoor Road, Suite 104
Raleigh, NC 27613
919.676.2200
info@shalomraleigh.org
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Other Resources from DPI
Charter School Job Postings
If you have current teaching/leadership positions open and wish to share them in this newsletter, reach out to Joseph.Letterio@dpi.nc.gov and provide a link to the posting/s.
Whom Should I Contact at the Office of Charter Schools?
OCS Main Number: (984) 236-2700 / Email: ocs@dpi.nc.gov
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