Number 10

Back-to-School Bus Safety News Clip

Heads up, phones down!

Hear more about bus safety as we begin the 2023-24 school year here.

Number 9

Quarterly PIO Call September 8

Public Information Officers and Charter School Communication Leaders are invited to join the Quarterly PIO Call Friday, September 8. The Zoom link and agenda were shared this week.

Please reach out to communications@dpi.nc.gov with any questions or if you did not receive the meeting information.

Number 8

Trading Backpacks for Lab Coats: High School Students Become Neuroscientists at Duke

"Len White, associate professor of neurology at Duke University, stands at the front of the neuroanatomy lab with a large white bucket. Bobbing inside is a human brain.

A group of six high school students gather around the table as White holds the brain aloft, their eyes transfixed on the pink specimen. After a neuroanatomy lesson on brain basics from White, it's their turn to hold the organ.

Iris Cisneros Gasga, a rising high school senior from Wake County, cradles the brain with gloved hands, assessing it with a gentle squish.

'Is it lighter or heavier than you thought a human brain would be?' White asks.

'I don’t know if this is weird, but it feels like, it feels like when you boil chicken,' Cisneros Gasga says.

Cisneros Gasga and her peers are participating in the Duke University Neuroscience Experience, or DUNE, program run by the Duke Institute for Brain Sciences. Curious local high school students are invited to Duke each summer since 2021 for an eight-week session where they lead neuroscience research projects."

Read the full story here.

Number 7

How Schools Can Recover Fully: 10 Insights into Pandemic Aftermath in U.S. Education

This article provides a curated roundup of headlines about how the pandemic is shaping schools and education policy throughout the country. Topics include chronic absenteeism, artificial intelligence (AI) in education, K-12 cybersecurity resilience efforts, workforce preparedness and more. 

Read more here.

Number 6

Coffee with Catherine: Superintendent Truitt's Parent Newsletter

The third edition of Superintendent Truitt's parent newsletter, Coffee with Catherine, went out last week! In this edition, get caught up on big things that have happened since the last newsletter in June, and read about some of the most recent and significant school safety topics as we head into the new school year.

Read the newsletter here. Sign up to receive Coffee with Catherine here by entering your email and selecting "Superintendent Truitt's Parent Newsletter."

Number 5

Portrait of a Graduate Durable Skill Office Hours

NCDPI's Portrait of a Graduate team will host a series of office hours to help educators and administrators gain a deeper understanding of the Portrait's seven durable skills and how the rubrics and supporting documents work with them. 

The office hours will provide participants with a quick review of the Portrait process, a deep dive into the durable skill rubric and "I Can" statements by grade band, an interactive experience and time for Q&A with the experts at Battelle for Kids.

The seven office hours, one for each durable skill, will be hosted August 29-31. Find more details and registration links here.

Number 4

School Districts Vary on ChatGPT, from Embracing it to Suspension

"It can write essays, explain complex equations and craft seemingly well-thought-out answers in seconds. We're talking about AI tools like ChatGPT.

After the technology was released in fall 2022, some school districts took swift action by banning the use of AI. Nearly a year later, some districts have changed their approach.

As part of WRAL's Back to School coverage, WRAL 5 On Your Side asked every school district in the viewing area about their policies regarding AI use in the classroom. The team found that policies from district to district vary greatly, with some embracing the technology and others banning it from school servers."

Read the full story and watch the accompanying news clip here.

Number 3

District Highlight: Pitt County Schools - All PCS Students Will Eat Free: Board Pushed for Universal Meal Service

"Pitt County Schools will provide free meals to all students for the upcoming school year, the district announced this week.

School officials said Monday that the system plans to spend about $70,000 to make free breakfasts and lunches available at D.H. Conley High School, the only school in the district that did not meet qualifications for the Community Eligibility Provision, a federal program that provides meals for schools in low-income areas.

'We’ll across the board do breakfast, lunch for all of our students,' Superintendent Ethan Lenker said. 'It will make life a whole lot easier at the school level.'"

Read the full story here.

Number 2

Superintendents' Quarterly Meeting October 11

As a reminder, DPI's Superintendents' Quarterly meeting will be held at the 2023 AIM Conference in Raleigh on Wednesday, October 11, from noon-4:30 p.m.

Registration will close one week prior to the meeting. Agenda items will be solicited closer to the meeting date. Register here.

Number 1

Superintendent Truitt Welcomes Staff and Students to 2023-24 School Year

"I hope everyone had a chance to fully enjoy their summer of excitement, adventure, rest and relaxation. I am so happy to welcome you all back to school for a year full of learning, health, fun and new experiences. I can’t wait to see and hear about all that you accomplish!"

Watch Superintendent Truitt's welcomes back to school video here.