Wells Fargo Principal of the Year Candidate Portfolios due November 3rd. 

NCDPI is pleased to coordinate the 2024 Wells Fargo North Carolina Principal of the Year (POY) Program. Since 1984, Wells Fargo Bank has financially supported a program in collaboration with the Department of Public Instruction to recognize outstanding principals from the North Carolina public schools. Since the inception of the program, we have recognized 43 state Wells Fargo Principals of the Year, 290 regional award recipients, and 3,640 local Wells Fargo Principals of the Year. Charter School Principals are invited to submit the following portfolio to be considered for NC Charter School Principal of the Year 2023-2024. The top two candidates will be invited to a final round of interviews within the first two weeks of December, 2023. We are so proud of our charter school leaders and look forward to scheduling candidate interviews immediately after the first review has taken place within the Office of Charter Schools, where last year’s Principal of the Year and OCS Consultants interview the nominees for Principal of the Year for NC Charter Schools. This application is due no later than November 3rd, 2023 by 5:00 pm.

 Portfolio Submission Guidelines- A completed application includes all of the following: 

1. Board/Executive Director Nomination
2. Complete Portfolio Entry in PDF Format.
3. Two Letters of Recommendation.
4. Headshot

Governing Board/Executive Director Nomination Letter:Nomination Letter from the school verifying the nominee has the Board agreement in the nomination and to their knowledge meets all of the requirements. In addition, the Board is encouraged to supplement or support the nominee’s application with any additional words that reflect the school leader’s alignment to the core values of this award. Should be emailed after completing Form to Dr. Natasha Norins. (2 Pages Maximum)

Review the Google Form and complete, along with the attached PDF Portfolio questions and information. After completing the form, all other documents should be emailed to Dr. Natasha Norins in the Office of Charter Schools as a PDF document..Principals will submit all components via email to Dr. Natasha Norins, natasha.norins@dpi.nc.gov no later than November 3rd, 2023 by 5:00 pm. The selection committee will review and consider only the required materials, thus no additional materials shall be submitted with the email submission. 

The candidate must:

- Be a principal of a North Carolina public school.

- Have at least four years’ experience as an administrator (years may be a combination of assistant principal, principal and central office experience).

- A principal is a person designated by a local Board of Education as the head of a school with 100 or more pupils in average daily membership (ADM) and/or with seven or more full-time, state-allotted teachers.

- A principal is the executive head of the school.

- Be employed as a school administrator throughout the local and regional selection process.

- Be a practicing school administrator in order to compete for the Wells Fargo Principal of the Year state title and remain practicing principal for the entire term.

- Hold a valid principal's license.

Previous state Wells Fargo Principals of the Year are not eligible to be nominated as candidates.  If you have any questions or need further information, please contact Dr. Norins and she will be happy to assist in the collection of all of the portfolio and nomination elements. We wish you the best during this journey!

School Business – October 6, 2023

The FBS website continues to be updated with information related to School Business and our ongoing operations. Please check the FBS homepage regularly for updates.

BUDGET FY 23-24

Please refer to the FBS website for updated budget information.  We have all our materials under the What’s New section. Currently staff are working to get the allocations compiled and executed.  We continue to gather your questions for compiling comprehensive FAQs and other guidance documentation.  Please use these generic emails as we are monitoring those for these questions.

Allotments: Allotments@dpi.nc.gov

Salary: Salary@dpi.nc.gov

Student Accounting: StudentAccounting@dpi.nc.gov

Policy manuals will be updated and taken to the SBE in November.  Information about the new grants will be made available as those areas determine the policies and processes. 

If you have urgent questions that cannot wait for the FAQ documents later next week please contact Jennifer Bennett, Senior Director, School Business Services at jennifer.bennett@dpi.nc.gov.

Required Annual Reporting Due October 31, 2023

The SS200 and SS300 reports are due by October 31, 2023 and are available on the Financial and Business Services website under “What’s New” or by accessing https://schools.nc.gov/ss200 and https://schools.nc.gov/ss300 directly. An annual subscription (request to access) is required to access the reports. The individual submitting the report will also need an active North Carolina Identity Management identification (NCID) login. If you (or your staff) need an NCID, you must contact your own NCID administrator to set up an account for you. A directory of the local NCID administrators is available here at: NCID Local Education Agency Administrators | NCDIT  DPI cannot assign an NCID or reset NCID passwords. If you have questions related to the SS200 or SS300, please contact student accounting at studentaccounting@dpi.nc.gov.

Reminders

PSUs Required to Liquidate and Closeout Federal Grants are expiring on September 30, 2023 with a liquidation period of December 29, 2023 Details are in the September 15, 2023 newsletter *

 The SS200 (All PSUs) and SS300 (LEAs only) reports are due by October 31, 2023 Details are in the September 22, 2023 newsletter*

FINANCIAL STATEMENT AUDITS – All PSUs must submit the audit by October 31^st Details are in the September 15, 2023 newsletter *

School Nutrition Annual Financial Report (FC1-A) are due October 31, 2023

Details are in the September 29, 2023 newsletter *

*View prior newsletters online: Newsletters and Guidance | NC DPI.

Reminder: Rank is required to display on the NC Official Transcript

This is covered in Policy GRAD-009: High School Transcript Standards. All public high schools in North Carolina are required to follow this policy, charter schools are not exempt.

GRAD-009: High school transcript standards

1. The Department of Public Instruction shall maintain a transcript system, and the local school administrative units shall use that system to produce standardized transcripts in an automated format. The standardized transcript shall include:

. grade point average (GPA),
. class rank,
. end-of-course test scores, and
. uniform course information including course code, course name, credits earned toward graduation, and credits earned for admission to an institution of higher education.

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 30^th calendar day from the school’s official first day. A combined compliance report must be complete, by school name and ID number on-line at this link: https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/7475444/2023-2024-NC-HA-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, 2023, but may be completed at any time prior to that date.

Homeless Education Programs

Charter School Compliance Forums

All homeless liaisons are required to attend a Compliance Forum annually. Homeless liaisons should attend one of the four Charter School Compliance Forums listed below. Participation in the forum is for the homeless liaison only unless approval for another staff member is provided by the State Coordinator. Registration is required and will close once capacity is reached at each location. A laptop is suggested for full participation.

If you have questions about registration or this meeting, please contact the Charter School Program Specialist, Savannah Gay.

From the Center for Safer Schools

Unity Day

As part of National Bullying Prevention Month, Center for Safer Schools staff members will wear orange on Unity Day, which this year is Wednesday, Oct. 18. Unity Day promotes kindness, acceptance and inclusion. Orange is worn because it’s a warm color associated with safety. We invite everyone at the N.C. Department of Public Instruction, school districts and charter schools to wear orange in solidarity. We’ll share our photos and your photos on CFSS social media. Please email your photos of students, teachers, administrators and support staff wearing orange on Unity Day to cfss@dpi.nc.gov.

Annual Census of School Resource Officers

N.C. General Statute 115C-105.57 requires the Center for Safer Schools to conduct an annual census of school resource officers located in each public-school unit. The 2023-2024 Census contains 31 multiple choice questions and two open-ended questions.

The question categories include General Background and Demographic Information, Agency and Funding Information, Training and Continuing Education, SRO Placements and Extra-Curricular Activities, School Safety Practices, Crimes on Campus and SRO Perspectives.

This survey is designed to be completed in one sitting. It should take only a few minutes to complete the survey, and all responses are confidential. Your answers will help identify the support and resources you might need.

The survey can be accessed here and will close Dec. 1, 2023, at 11:59 p.m.

Thank you for all that you do to help keep our schools and the children of North Carolina safer and secure.

Executive Director Tours

During the fall semester, Center for Safer Schools Executive Director Karen W. Fairley will continue her tours of North Carolina school districts and charter schools. She would like to see anything public school units want to showcase regarding school safety. For school districts, include stops at an elementary school, a middle school and a high school. Fairley also would like to take time to talk with a small group of students. To request a tour, send an email to cfss@dpi.nc.gov.

Invitation to Review & Provide Feedback on Our New Mental Health Care Toolkit for Schools

Rural Opportunity Institute (ROI) is partnering with the NC DPI and an expert named Sarah Broome to create a toolkit aimed at helping schools provide mental health care services and bill Medicaid for the cost. Our aim is for this toolkit to help schools greatly expand the availability of mental health care to their students at little to no additional cost.

To ensure this toolkit is as useful as possible, we are hoping to have one or more charter schools vet a draft and provide feedback. We would use the feedback to ensure the Toolkit is as useful as possible for schools like yours once it is finalized. If you would be interested in this opportunity, please email Graham Palmer, ROI's Director of Systems Innovation & Policy, at graham@ruralopportunity.org. Graham is happy to answer any questions you may have, and your initial email is not a commitment to provide feedback.

In-person Regional Training for the 2023 K-12 Science Standards

Center for Safer Schools

National Preparedness Month

September is National Preparedness Month. This yearly observance raises awareness about the importance of preparing for disasters and emergencies that could happen at any time.

This year’s theme is “Take Control in 1, 2, 3,” which empowers everyone, especially older adults, to 1) assess their needs, 2) make a plan and 3) engage their support network to stay safe when disaster strikes.

Older adults can face greater risks in extreme weather events and emergencies, especially if they are living alone, are low-income, have a disability or live in rural areas. By 2035, the U.S. Census Bureau projects that there will be more Americans over 65 than under 18. Over the next decade, it is imperative that the growing older adult population becomes more aware of their risks and better prepared for them.

For more information about National Preparedness Month, visit Ready.gov.

Great Southeast ShakeOut

The Center for Safer Schools and N.C. Emergency Management invite school districts and charter schools across the state to participate in the 2023 Great Southeast ShakeOut on Thursday, Oct. 19 at 10:19 a.m.

The ShakeOut is an annual public earthquake drill where millions of people in schools, organizations and homes simultaneously practice “Drop, Cover and Hold On,” which is the recommended action for people to take during an earthquake to reduce the risk of injury.

Although Oct. 19 is the official ShakeOut date this year, school districts and individual schools can choose their own date (or multiple dates) to accommodate as many people and schedules as possible. The drill can be completed together in person or at home via videoconferencing and offers your schools and community an opportunity to consider how they would respond to an earthquake while identifying potential refinements to your district’s emergency response plan.

Visit https://www.shakeout.org/southeast/register/ to register and perform a “Drop, Cover and Hold On” drill on Oct. 19 at 10:19 a.m. (or a date and time that works best for you). Once registered you will:

• Learn how your schools can be more prepared for earthquakes.
• Be counted in the world’s largest earthquake drill.
• Receive ShakeOut news and other information about earthquakes and preparedness.
• Make a difference by motivating others to participate and be prepared.

The ShakeOut website includes drill planning resources, general preparedness information, mitigation guidance and educational activities including lesson plans. The Great Southeast ShakeOut is organized by the Central U.S. Earthquake Consortium and its member and associate state emergency management agencies. While infrequent, damaging earthquakes can occur at any time across the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions.

If you have questions, contact Laura Silver with N.C. Emergency Management at laura.silver@ncdps.gov or 984-272-7002.

Executive Director Tours

During the fall semester, Center for Safer Schools Executive Director Karen W. Fairley will continue her tours of North Carolina school districts and charter schools. She would like to see anything public school units want to showcase regarding school safety. For school districts, include stops at an elementary school, a middle school and a high school. Fairley also would like to take time to talk with a small group of students. To request a tour, send an email to cfss@dpi.nc.gov.

Career and Technical Education (CTE) Trainings

Are you new to offering Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs or do you want to know more about CTE? Check out our Charter Schools: Getting Started with CTE guide (https://bit.ly/CTEcharter) to connect with CTE resources, including course standards, required CTE proofs of learning, credentials, and reporting requirements. 

The CTE Regional Services team is implementing a charter school user group during the 2023-2024 school year to provide training and support for charter schools who offer CTE programs or have student enrollments in CTE courses through NCVPS. Our charter school user group will meet quarterly to provide CTE updates, information about CTE programs, and training for administering and reporting student results for CTE proofs of learning, credentials, and CTE concentrator status for WorkKeys participation. We invite you to mark your calendar for the following dates and plan to join us online to learn more about CTE.

• February 2, 2024, 9:00-11:00 a.m.  (Meeting link)

• April 26, 2024, 9:00-11:30 a.m.  (Meeting link)  

*This session will include a CTE State Assessment training refresher and full training required for schools administering spring administrations of CTE State Assessments who did not attend fall training           

Questions may be directed to Misty Wolfe (misty.wolfe@dpi.nc.gov) or your CTE Regional Coordinator.

• North Central: Bob Gantt (bob.gantt@dpi.nc.gov)
• Northeast: Pam Taylor (pam.taylor@dpi.nc.gov)
• Northwest: Karen Boyles (karen.boyles@dpi.nc.gov)
• Piedmont-Triad: Lynn Hartley (lynn.hartley@dpi.nc.gov)
• Sandhills: Suzanne Lujan (suzanne.lujan@dpi.nc.gov)
• Southeast: Amanda Dixon (amanda.dixon@dpi.nc.gov)
• Southwest: Robert Filter (robert.filter@dpi.nc.gov)
• Western: Anna Hair (anna.hair@dpi.nc.gov)

New Charter Amendment Process

As of August 1, 2023, OCS has implemented an updated charter application amendment request process via epicenter.  Please refer to the "Epicenter Steps for Charter Application Amendment Request 0723" document linked here for instructions. Any material change to the charter application must be approved pursuant to State Board of Education policy CHTR-014,  North Carolina Administrative Code 16 NCAC 06g.0510 and 16 NCAC 06g.0511. Questions? Contact Nicky Niewinski, OCS Consultant, at nicole.niewinski@dpi.nc.gov

Arts Education Standard Course of Study Review - Draft 1

We are excited to announce the Standards Writing Teams have released their first draft of the new Standard Course of Study for K-12 Dance, K-12 Music, K-12 Theatre Arts, and K-12 Visual Arts. Now, they need your feedback! You will notice some significant structural changes to the standards, which are reviewed below. District Arts and Chief Academic Officers will receive separate instructions on how to complete the PSU survey. 

Structural Changes

ALL four arts disciplines are now aligned to the National Arts Standards strands of Connect, Create, Present, and Respond. It is our sincere hope that aligning these strands across arts disciplines will provide the opportunity for higher quality professional development and cross-curricular support. 

To remove confusion about the “Proficient” level of our proficiency-based standards, we have aligned with the National Standards by renaming this level “Accomplished.”

In Theatre Arts, Technical Theatre Courses have been added in both non-honors and honors levels.

Music has had significant changes, with K-8 General Music standards being extended into high school in both non-honors and honors levels. These standards will support courses like general music, music appreciation, songwriting, digital music production, and other non-instrument-based explorations of music. 

Five proficiency levels of Vocal and Instrumental Music have been created for students exploring band, choir, orchestra, piano, ukulele, guitar, or other instruments and ensembles. These have been created to meet the needs of students wherever they are - even if they are beginning the trumpet as a junior in high school. 

Survey Guidance

This is the stakeholder survey, separate from the Public School Unit Survey. All North Carolinians are encouraged to provide feedback on the first draft of the revised Arts Standards through this survey. 

• Rearrangement: Because the Standards Writing Team realigned many of the former objects if you feel that an objective is clear but perhaps more appropriate under a different strand, please provide that feedback by marking "change" and use the comment box to provide a recommendation to where the objective best aligns with the strand or standard
• Consolidation: If there are two or more objectives that could be combined into a more succinct objective, please mark "change" for both of the objectives and note the numbers to be combined in the comment box
• Measurable Objectives: Should objectives appear to be immeasurable, please mark "change" and provide suggestions for more measurable verbs in the comment box
• Remove:  If an objective is redundant or unnecessary, please mark "remove" and leave a comment

To facilitate your ability to provide feedback preview the standards through the following links:

• New Dance Standards
• New Music Standards (both General and VIM)
• New Theatre Standards (Including Technical Theatre)
• New Visual Arts Standards

Access the survey HERE

------

English Language Arts Review Phase

 

All-Stakeholder Surveys: Standard-by-Standard and General

State Board of Education policy specifies that the NC Department of Public Instruction will formally collect feedback on the current standards from educators, administrators, parents, students, institutions of higher education, business/industry representatives, national organizations, and other education agencies. The purpose of these surveys is to obtain input from educators and stakeholders familiar with the English Language Arts Standard Course of Study in order to inform revision decisions, which may include changes, clarifications, additions, deletions, or replacements to the current standards. 

The English Language Arts team in the Office of Academic Standards requests your thoughtful input and comments on the current academic standards for English Language Arts to inform the review and revision process.

Any individual who wishes to provide input on the English Language Arts SCOS may complete these surveys.  The surveys are estimated to take about 10-20 minutes to complete, depending on the survey and/or grade-band you choose. If you would like to give feedback on more than one grade-level, you can return and submit another survey.

All-Stakeholder Survey for K-5

All-Stakeholder Survey for 6-12

All-Stakeholder General Survey

Holocaust Elective Writers Wanted! - PDF Flyer

Important MEMOs:

• MEMO.HB11.Reporting.9.14.23.pdf
• MEMO - 2023–24 Annual Testing Program and Accountability Requirements 7/18/23
• MEMO: Key Dates for 2022–23 Reporting 5/2/23
• MEMO: Every Student Succeeds Act State Plan Amendment 4/18/23
  
• MEMO: 2023–24 Alternative Schools’ Modified Accountability System Options 4/4/23
  
• MEMO: 2023–24 Accountability and Testing Training
  
• MEMO: Justification Required for Exceeding 1.0 Percent Participation in the Alternate Assessment
• MEMO: 2022–23 Annual Testing Program and Accountability Requirements
• MEMO: Alternative Accountability Model Options 4/5/22
• MEMO - ACT Minimum Composite Score Update 12/13/21
• MEMO: Lawful Student Absence 11/8/2021
• MEMO: Legal Restrictions for Cancelling School Days for Students and Staff 10/29/2021
• Important Notice from Karl Logan: Senate Bill 654 and Drivers Ed
• Economically-Disadvantaged-Student Count Guidance from Karl Pond 12/9/21

NC Students Make Gains on AP Exams, Outpacing the Nation on Several Indicators

OEL Friday Memo for Charters 10/6/23

Office of Charter Schools (OCS) Updates

RTO 2024 Cohort- Planning Year Session II

The Office of Charter Schools will host the second of five planning year sessions required for all Ready to Open schools (boards and school leaders) on October 25, 2023, in person at NC DPI. Please Register Here for Session II: Fiscal & Student Accountability.  These Sessions are geared to support approved applicants from the 2022-23 cycle. A select few of current charter school leaders requesting to attend may be considered and must contact Dr. Norins to share interest. Dr. Natasha Norins natasha.norins@dpi.nc.gov.

The North Carolina Advancing Charter Collaboration and Excellence for Student Success (NC ACCESS) Program and Teach like a Champion have partnered to provide a series of workshops for NC Charter Schools to help improve the academic achievement of students and support the leadership and professional development school leaders and teachers. One of the trainings that is being offered will be held in-person on January 18 -19, 2024, 8:00am – 4:40pm at the McKimmon Conference and Training Center at NC State University in Raleigh, NC.

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.

All sessions are 10:30-11:30AM

 

Link to Join:

Kim Evans' Personal Room

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

Meet virtually with Cisco Webex. Anytime, anywhere, on any device. Simple, modern video meetings for everyone on the world's most popular and trusted collaboration platform. ncgov.webex.com

 

Other Resources from DPI and beyond

• All Stakeholders Standard-by-Standard Survey for Draft 1
• Weekly Top Ten - September 28, 2023
• School Business – Website
• NC SIS Weekly Email Bulletin 9/27/23
• Economical disadvantaged student calculation information and instructions
• Updated SASA-Manual-Nov2022
• E-rate and School Connectivity Updates
• K-12 Education Legislative and Community Affairs Update - Friday, October 6, 2023
• ELA Standards Update: Surveys & Focus Groups (K-12)
• Registration for WIDA Workshops for ML/Title III Stakeholders!
• Call for Visual And Performing Student Artists for NCDPI's Spotlight on Arts Education
• Arts Education #SettingTheStandard Update
• NC Students to Gain Computer Science Skills with Passage of House Bill 8
• Protect Our Students Act Prioritizes Student Safety Against Sexual Misconduct
• Superintendent Truitt’s Statement on Budget
• October Science Update
• New Resource Alert: Standards-Based Sentence Stems!
• Safer Schools October Newsletter
• ELA Standards Update: Reminders & DRC Applications (K-12)
• October 2023 K-12 Monthly Mathematics Update
• North Carolina Public Schools - School Social Work October Update

NCAPCS Huddles: Free to all charter schools. Registration is requested through this link. 10/17 in Asheboro 10/19 in Angier 10/25 in Asheville

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. 

• Alamance Community School - Multiple Opportunities

• Aspire Trade High School is currently accepting applications for Math teachers (7-12) for the 2023-2024 school year.
• Aspire Trade High School - CTE Teacher
• Brevard Academy - Multiple opportunities!
• Cape Fear Center for Inquiry - 7th & 8th Grade Science Teacher  Academic Intervention Specialist  EC Teacher Assistant  Teacher Assistant

• Carolina Charter Academy - K-4 teacher, MS ELA, MS Math

• Carter G. Woodson - Principal/School Administrator
• Casa Esperanza Montessori Charter School - Multiple opportunities
• Charlotte Lab School - Multiple Opportunities
• Doral Academy - Multiple Opportunities

• Evergreen Community Charter School - Executive Director,  and Middle School Math Teacher

• FernLeaf Community Charter School - Multiple Opportunities
• Global Scholars Academy - School Nutrition Director
• Henderson Collegiate - Multiple Opportunities

• KIPP North Carolina Public Schools – Multiple Opportunities!

• Lakeside Charter Academy - Principal
• Mountain Island Charter School (Mt. Holly, NC) - Human Resources and Payroll/Benefits Administrator

• Next Generation Academy - Exceptional Children's Teacher

• Northeast Academy for Aerospace and Advanced Technologies (NEAAAT)-multiple opportunities
• Roxboro Community School - Managing Executive Director

• Sugar Creek Charter School - Finance Officer 

• Triad Math and Science Academies - Multiple Opportunities!

• Union Academy - CFO and COO

• United Community School - Multiple opportunities!
• Uwharrie Charter Academy -- Multiple Opportunities
• Voyager Academy - Muliple opportunities
• Charter One Opportunities
• Charter Schools USA has several openings in North Carolina. Applicants must send completed linked forms to cporter1@charterschoolsusa.com and ppennthomas@charterschoolsusa.com; Principal, Assistant Principal, CSUSA Senior Financial Analyst  Grant writer Instructional Support Specialist
• Lab School Opportunity - 
  Academy at Middle Fork (App State lab school)

  • Assistant Principal
  • Speech Language Pathologist
  • EC Resource Teacher
    

Whom Should I Contact at the Office of Charter Schools?

OCS Main Number: (984) 236-2700 / Email: ocs@dpi.nc.gov

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.

IMPORTANT REMINDER – EDDIE is the authoritative source for NC public school numbers and demographic information, is used by multiple NCDPI technology systems including: Accountability, PowerSchool, NC School Report Cards, and is used to meet federal reporting requirements. LEAs and charter schools are responsible for ensuring their data in EDDIE are complete, accurate, and current. EDDIE is located at: http://apps.schools.nc.gov/eddie