OCS Weekly Newsletter for December 6, 2022

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Office of Charter Schools

December 6, 2022

Some upcoming dates of note:

  • 2022 NC Healthful Living Coordinators Meeting 12/9/22 9 am - 4 pm
  • RTO Session 4 - 12/14/22
  • OLR Acceleration webinar 12/14/22 10am
  • 12/15/22 OLR Charter Session
  • K-12 Science Standards survey closes Sunday December 18th, 2022.

Please forward

School leaders, we encourage you to forward this newsletter on to your staff so they can subscribe to DPI bulletins directly through this link. They will enter their email and then it will bring them to another page where they can select “Charter School Comms Contacts” and any other public listserv to sign up for.


Charter Leadership Invite

As you are likely aware, NCDPI is in the process of redesigning School Performance Grades.  As part of this process, your input as a charter school leader is valued and important to the model.  To ensure you have the opportunity to learn about the process and provide input on the model, we are holding three optional informational /feedback sessions in the month of December.  If you are able, we would love to have you attend a session, provide feedback, and learn more about the process.  Virtual meeting links were sent to school leaders on November 30th.  

 

December 15, 2022 – 3:00PM-4:00PM

December 20, 2022 – 9:00AM-10:00AM

 

*Each session is repeated, so you would only need to attend one session.  

 

Thank you for considering, 

 

Andrew Smith, Ed.D.

Assistant State Superintendent, Office of Innovation


School Business

Grant Award Notices for PRC 141

Under the Uniform Guidance, DPI is required to provide a grant award notification containing certain information for all Federal grant funds sub-awarded to PSUs by the Department, which includes the State Fiscal Recovery Funds (SFRF) such as for PRC 141 – Employee Premium Pay Bonuses that were issued in FY 2022. Because PRC 141 was a guaranteed allotment, DPI was not able to provide grant award notices during FY 2022. However, School Business will be emailing all Finance Officers a copy of a GAN for PRC 141 this week for your records in the event of an audit of those funds. These notices do not communicate new funding; these are just records of the funding previously provided in PRC 141 along with other information related to the funds required to be provided to PSUs by DPI.  These are for your audit trail and paperwork.  We will be sending these this week.  If you have questions, please contact John Keefer (john.keefer@dpi.nc.gov).


Federal EC Grants

The Allotment Section received on Monday, Nov 28th, the listing from the EC Department on the federal EC grants that have been approved to-date (Oct-Nov).  They will be working to get this allocated by Mid-December.  Please allow a 2-week turn-around from point of notification to our Allotment section for the allotment to be uploaded and processed.  We will work with the EC Department to gain more timely information.  If you have any questions as to if you are on that approved list they provided, etc. please contact the EC Department.

Did you know? You can find all School Business newsletters on the website, organized by year. 


NEW! Upcoming OLR Charter Session

Please mark your calendars and click the link to register for the BOY Data Analysis Session for Charter School leaders, on December 15, 2022 at 2PM EST. Join us for a data session for charter school leaders to dig into your data, learn more about the Reporting and Analysis suite as well as view mCLASS state-wide data for the beginning of the year. 


AUDIT INFORMATION – IMPORTANT

Our office is aware that many auditors are running behind on audits for various reasons. We have reached out to School Business to communicate concerns. School Business plans to prioritize the review of the audit reports for the  schools that are up for renewals. OCS has communicated the urgency for these schools to auditors that have contacted the office. While the renewal process will continue as communicated to those schools, School Business cannot give its opinion of the finances for renewal until it has been received. The financial renewal presentation is scheduled for January 9 or 10th.

As you know, audits are due October 31st, per the normal submission date. There is a 30 day grace period following 10/31. After December 1 School Business will ask any school which hasn’t submitted to get a letter from the auditor explaining the reason for the delay. The letter will need to be addressed to the State Board and DPI should be copied. And the letter should indicate the expected time to complete the audits. Depending on the reason, School Business will consider whether or not to put the school on a cautionary status which gives them an additional 30 days. If your school’s audit is not received by December 1st, School Business will reach out with more detailed information and instructions, but OCS wanted to give you an update so you know what to expect in the coming months.

Charter schools and AGPIP

School leaders,

As you may be aware, the statutory investment authority for NC’s charter schools was recently expanded. In particular, charter schools can now participate in the Department of State Treasurer’s investment program for non-pension governmental entities, referred to as the Ancillary Governmental Participant Investment Program (AGPIP). To assist charter schools, we have drafted some FAQs regarding AGPIP (linked).

We also included a few questions regarding the Supplemental Retirement Plans (NC 401(k) Plan and NC 457 Plan) because similar eligibility questions may arise for SRP and AGPIP.

The link to the Department’s AGPIP page is here: AGPIP and Investment Management Programs | NC Treasurer.

You can find more information on SRP at www.myNCPlans.com and the Board of Trustees page (Supplemental Retirement Board of Trustees | My NC Retirement).


2022 NC Healthful Living Coordinators Meeting

Friday December 9th

Koury Convention Center

Greensboro NC

9 am - 4 pm

The NC Healthy Schools team is pleased to announce the 2022 Healthful Living Coordinators Meeting on Friday, December 9th at the Koury Center in Greensboro.

As we continue to adjust and move forward from the impact of COVID-19, we recognize an influx of new staff and shifts in responsibilities. The 2022 meeting will provide a “back to the basics” look at the role and responsibilities of a Healthful Living Coordinator. The day will include intentional networking and collaboration opportunities to explore the challenges and barriers faced across the state as well as hot topic issues in small group sessions. Topics may include: Healthful Living Standards, Graduation Requirements, the Healthy Active Children Policy, Strategies for Impact, Virtual Programs, School Health Advisory Councils, and other relevant issues. 

Those encouraged to attend include district and charter Healthful Living Coordinators, those who oversee Health and/or Physical Education teachers at any level, as well as roles that include oversight of the implementation of the Healthful Living standards and objectives.

To register:

https://ncdpi.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0cUFiBOm2hv2ebk


Center for Safer Schools resource and training

Dec. 1: Hunt Institute webinar on school violence featuring Center for Safer Schools Executive Director Karen W. Fairley: http://ow.ly/Yj9850Lrf7i

Threat Assessment Training (tentative dates): Jan. 11, 18 and 25; Feb. 8, 15 and 22; March 8, 15, 22 and 29


Exceptional Children Logo

Please review the attached Exceptional Children communication updates and Guidance. 

The NC State Board of Education Standard Course of Study Manual specifies that the NC Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) will formally collect feedback from educators, administrators, parents, students, institutions of higher education, business/industry representatives, national organizations, and other education agencies on each draft of the revised K-12 Science Standards. 

This process began with a review phase, conducted through the Spring, Summer, and early Fall of 2022. The review phase included gathering relevant research and analyzing data obtained through surveys, interviews, and focus groups. The data obtained was analyzed by the NCDPI Office of Learning Recovery and provided to the K-12 Science Standards Data Review Committee (DRC) for further review. The DRC completed a formal report summarizing the data, trends within the feedback, and any resulting recommendations. The report was provided to the Standards Writing Team (SWT) as the basis to start the revision process. 

This first draft of the proposed 2023 K-12 Science Standards is based on the analysis in the DRC Report which identified several themes received during the review phase:

  • In both the Public School Unit (PSU) and All Stakeholder Surveys, approximately 70% of the responses indicated a preference to keep the current 2009 standards.  
  • An analysis of the qualitative findings from focus groups and interviews indicated a desire to clarify the language in the standards/objectives and to embed the Scientific and Engineering Practices to support real world applications. 
  • Feedback demonstrated a need to align the strands (the categories under which the standards and objectives are organized) to current research and frameworks related to K-12 Science Education, specifically those strands within A Framework for K-12 Science Education (e.g., Matter and its Interactions, From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes, Earth’s Place in the Universe).
  • The report also indicated the need to focus on the vertical alignment of the standards.

The purpose of this survey is to obtain input regarding the proposed K-12 Science Standards and to inform any additional revisions, which may include changes, clarifications, additions, deletions, or replacements to the draft standards. Your feedback is extremely valuable to the K-12 Science Standards revision process.

The survey will close Sunday December 18th, 2022.

 2023 Draft #1 K-12 Science Standards All Stakeholder Survey


Medicaid in Education office hours and resources

Please see all options listed below to receive support for your PSU’s Medicaid program.

If you are just beginning or considering participation in a Medicaid program, we suggest you start with the NC DPI OEC Medicaid in Education On-demand Course.

Intention- Share ideas, procedures & policies, answer questions, clarify issues, network, brainstorm together

(Details for many virtual meetings/office hours, including Medicaid Office Hours, can be found here)

  • NC DPI OEC Medicaid in Education On-demand Course
    • These on-demand modules provide background on why public schools recover costs for health services from Medicaid, the three programs available for Public School Unit (PSU) participation, how each program works, helpful practices and considerations for all who participate (and much more…).
    • This course includes 4 modules; and will provide .3 CEUs (3 hours). Module 1 provides the context for Medicaid cost recovery. Modules 2-4, intended for school administrators, personnel and contractors cover Medicaid programs, documentation, and additional relevant information. We hope you find this course helpful.
    • If you have trouble with accessing the NCEES Medicaid in Education course Complete this form- Canvas/NCEES Access Request to troubleshoot you issue with accessing NCEES system for the Medicaid in Education on-line modules.

Important Communication- Diabetes Care Law and Epinephrine

Important Resources for Charter Schools: (Please Read)

Please click on each link.

Charter School Diabetes Memo

Charter School Epinephrine Memo


Student Accounting Manual Update (SASA)

The SBE approved the attached updated draft of the SASA Manual at their meeting on November 3, 2022. We have linked the full SBE packet so you can see the changes that were made. Most are technical corrections for legislative changes such as the Student Code of Conduct and those applicable items now applies to ALL PSUs and not just LEAs. We also have provided the update to the PMR Attestation statement as well as updated coding that is no longer applicable post-pandemic. If you have any questions, please contact LaShon Creech at lashon.creech@dpi.nc.gov. Please make sure your LEA Data Managers are aware the manual has been updated.


Important MEMOs:


OCS

Office of Charter Schools (OCS) Updates

RTO Planning Year Session 4

 

The Office of Charter Schools will host session four of five planning year sessions required for all schools (boards and school leaders) in the Ready to Open process on December 14, 2022 via WebEX from 8:30AM - 4:00PM. Please Register Here for Session 3: Charter School Accountability and Operations. 

OLR Acceleration webinar 12/14/22

The Office of Learning Recovery is hosting a webinar on acceleration December 14th 10AM and among other speakers will be a charter school educator from Florida. All are welcome to register through the link below.

Continued Conversations Around Triage, Transition, & Transformation Session #2 December 14th, 2022 ~ 10:00 am - 11:30 am

HR Webinar Information - Licensure requirements, resources, and more for Charter School leaders

Once a month, Dr. Tom Tomberlin and his team provide State Board of Education and legislative updates to the human resources contacts in Public School Units (PSUs) across the state.

 

January 6

February 3

March 3

April 7

May 5

June 2

July 10 (Monday)

August 7 (Monday)

September 8

October 6

November 3

December 8

 

Link to Join:

Kim Evans' Personal Room

https://ncgov.webex.com/meet/kimberly.evans

 | 619435814 

Join by phone

+1-415-655-0003 US Toll

Access code: 619 435 814

Kim EvansProgram Coordinator, PEPSCOffice of Educator Preparation and LicensureDivision of Educator and Student AdvancementNC Department of Public InstructionP: (984) 236-2116M: (240) 498-5111kimberly.evans@dpi.nc.gov

ACCESS

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Other Resources from DPI and beyond


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

Name

Email

Phone

Workflow

Ashley Baquero

Ashley.Baquero@dpi.nc.gov

984.236.2708

Director; 

SBE/CSAB/Amendments/Risk Assess.

 

Anita Holbrook

anita.holbrook@dpi.nc.gov

984-236-2753

Executive Assistant/Communications

Joseph Letterio M.

Joseph.Letterio@dpi.nc.gov

984.236.2703

Performance Framework/ Epicenter/ Comms&Data

Natasha Norins

natasha.norins@dpi.nc.gov

(984) 236-2702

RTO/Planning Year

Lakisha Robbins

Lakisha.robbins@dpi.nc.gov

984.236.2704

NC ACCESS Finance

Davida Robinson

Davida.robinson@dpi.nc.gov

984.236.2878

NC ACCESS Program Manager

Barbara O’Neal

Barbara.ONeal@dpi.nc.gov

984.236.2706

NC ACCESS Program Coordinator

Jay Whalen

Jay.Whalen@dpi.nc.gov

984.236.2711

NC ACCESS Program Administrator

Jenna Cook

Jenna.Cook@dpi.nc.gov

984.236.2707

Renewals

Darian Jones

darian.jones@dpi.nc.gov

984.236.2705

Prof. Dev./Stakeholder Support

Melanie Rackley

Melanie.Rackley@dpi.nc.gov

984.236.2712

Applications