In Today's Newsletter
1. Alaska FAFSA Summit
2. DEADLINE EXTENDED: NAEP Film Project
3. State-Tribal Education Compact Schools AKLeg Hearing
4. Thank you, AFN
5. Holiday Cards to our Military Members
6. Careers at DEED
7. Congrats to Anchorage School District
8. School Bus Safety Week
9. Protecting Hunting Heritage and Education Act
10. Sign up for the Alaska Reading Newsletter
11. STEM Opportunity with NASA
|
With support from the University of Alaska, the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education (ACPE) is thrilled to announce its first-ever Alaska FAFSA Summit.
With historically low rates of FAFSA completion, Alaska’s students lose access to critical funding sources to support postsecondary education and workforce needs. The impact of not completing the FAFSA is broad. Not only does it reduce access to education funding sources, but also reduces the number of Alaskans with postsecondary credentials prepared to support Alaska’s workforce needs.
Currently over 100 Alaskans are registered to attend the first Alaska FAFSA Summit, representing secondary education administrators, teachers, and counselors; postsecondary administrators (admissions, financial aid, etc.), Alaska Native Education Foundations, Alaska Native Corporations, and State of Alaska employees who work for specific state agencies connected to FAFSA/postsecondary education.
The FAFSA Summit will host highly regarded speakers and panelists from Alaska and the Lower 48, representing organizations including: State of Alaska Legislature, Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Alaska Department of Education and Early Development, the National College Attainment Network, and the Louisiana Office of Student Financial Aid.
The Alaska FAFSA Summit will be located at the Anchorage Downtown Marriott, October 26-27, 2023.
For more information about FAFSA Completion initiatives in Alaska, click here.
|
Are you interested in filming? How about acting? Are you interested in sharing the unique aspects of your school and community?
DEED is looking for students, teachers, and parents to get involved in the 2024 NAEP Video Project. The video will be an informational piece about the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). It will highlight Alaskan perspectives by involving Alaskan students and filming in one-of-a-kind Alaskan locations.
The video will help students, teachers, and parents understand the importance of NAEP as it pertains to student selection, effort, and how results are used to benefit our students.
Check out the directions in the flyer above, or email Raina.Moulian@Alaska.Gov for more information. New submission deadline is October 27th. Important links can be found below:
Appearance Release Form (child)
Appearance Release Form (adult)
Example Video from Alabama
The Script
Mobile Device Filming Guidelines
Submit to Dropbox
(password: naep2024)
And don't forget to submit your Appearance Release Forms, too!
The Alaska House of Representatives will host a Tribal Affairs Committee meeting to discuss Tribal Compacting. DEED Director of Tribal Affairs, Joel Isaak, will be presenting about the background of tribal compacting efforts through the historical context of education in Alaska and the lens of Alaska's Education Challenge. He will also provide an update to the Tribal Compacting negotiations for the report required by Senate Bill 34.
Date: November 6, 2023
Time: 10:00 AM
Place: Anchorage LIO, Denali Room
You can watch the hearing online at Alaska State Legislature (akleg.gov)
Thank you, AFN, for an incredible 2023 Convention!
Commissioner Dr. Deena Bishop and Director of Tribal Affairs Joel Isaak had the opportunity to present about state-tribal education compacting during the convention.
Pictured on the right: The Alaska State Council on the Arts (ASCA) and the Libraries, Archives, and Musuems (LAM) had booths at AFN.
Pictured on the left: Commissioner Bishop visits with Cordova artist, Raven Cunningham. Raven has been skin sewing since she was nine years old. She learned this traditional Native Alaskan art form in regional culture camps. Shortly after taking a Native Arts class at Cordova Jr./Sr. High School, she opened her own business, Made by Raven. She has recently earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of Alaska Fairbanks in Alaska Native Studies and Rural Development and teaches classes in her community on Native ways of knowing.
Students across the U.S. are encouraged to spread some holiday cheer by joining the Holiday Cards for our Military Challenge! This is a simple way to make a profound impact.
The guidelines are easy – please address the card to “Dear Warrior,” and write a holiday greeting or personal note while signing your first name and hometown. Sign the cards mutually as a group, or individually. You may write as many as you want – the sky is the limit! Cards should be no larger than an 8x11-size paper folded in half. Envelopes are not required, however, if you have one, please do not seal it or address it.
|
The deadline to send cards is Nov. 15.
They should be addressed to:
Laura Landerman-Garber
Holiday Card Challenge
PO Box 103
Hollis, NH 03049.
If using FedEx or UPS, please address to:
Holiday Card Challenge
5 Hutchings Drive
Suite 100 Unit 103
Hollis, NH 03049
Please visit Holiday Cards for our Military Challenge for more information, or email holidaycardsnh@gmail.com. Thank you for taking the time to bring smiles to our soldiers this holiday season.
Executive Secretary 3
The Department of Education and Early Development (DEED) is seeking an Executive Secretary 3 in the Anchorage Commissioner’s Office. This position provides essential administrative and clerical support to the Commissioner and the State Board of Education in the areas of travel coordination, meeting logistics coordination, and creation and tracking of correspondence on a daily basis. The incumbent will post proposed changes to regulations for public comment, collect all public comment, and organize comments for State Board of Education review. Additionally, the selected candidate will be responsible for preparation of meeting packets for State Board of Education meetings and for taking and transcribing minutes from said meetings, either personally or through the Administrative Assistant under their supervision.
The application deadline is October 27th.
Education Specialist 2 – On-Call Non-Permanent, Alyeska Reading Institute (ARI)
DEED is seeking experienced, committed education professionals to provide direct reading instruction, response to intervention, and tutoring services to at-risk students. In addition to working with students, teachers may be called upon to provide adult learning opportunities including lesson demonstrations, coaching, and professional development, depending on their skill sets in those areas.
Teacher, Alyeska Reading Institute (ARI)
Do you want to help struggling readers to have that “Aha!” moment? Do you have a passion for literacy for all students? Become a teacher at ARI! In addition to direct reading instruction to at-risk students, the chosen education professional may also provide adult learning opportunities based on their skill set. Full-time and part-time positions are available. The positions are located in Anchorage.
Additional positions at DEED can be found online at: Workplace Alaska
The U.S. Department of Education (DOE) has provided $14 million in awards to help support local- and state-driven voluntary efforts to foster more diverse school communities through its first-ever Fostering Diverse Schools Demonstration Program. These grants support districts as they work to enrich educational experiences by providing every student with a well-rounded education and improved school conditions for student learning, inclusive of a broader perspective on the world.
Anchorage School District was awarded the grant! Grant recipients have committed to working closely with families, students, communities, and school diversity plans through a variety of activities. For example, grantees will engage with students, families, community leaders and staff to better understand the needs of their school communities and how to best address them. Other grantees will provide professional development to support educators who work in under resourced schools and communities. Across the board, grantees will implement well-rounded learning opportunities to expand access to high-quality instruction and enrichment.
Did you know? Last week was National School Bus Safety Week!
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) launched a new resource to help school systems and school transportation departments develop safer school bus stops and routes: Planning Safer School Bus Stops and Routes | NHTSA
The toolkit can help with the following:
- Identifying key considerations for school bus stops, routes, and travel paths
- Selecting safer school bus stop locations
- Developing safer school bus routes
- Evaluating existing stops or responding to parental requests for a stop review
- Overcoming common barriers and challenges
- Considering how to effectively exchange information with other groups and organizations
Clarification of Prohibition on Use of Federal Education Funds for Certain Weapons and Related Training
On Friday, October 6, 2023, the President signed into law: H.R. 5110, the “Protecting Hunting Heritage and Education Act,” which clarifies that Federal funds may be used to provide certain weapons or training in the use of weapons within educational instruction or enrichment activities. View the language here. This supersedes previous guidance that the U.S. Department of Education issued related to the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA). Districts will be allowed to amend their FY2024 ESEA Consolidated Applications to include such activities where allowable.
Check out this month's Alaska Reading Newsletter! You will be able to read about an Alaska School Spotlight, sign up for a webinar series starting on Thursday, and save the date for the 2024 Science of Reading Symposium!
October 2023 Alaska Reading Newsletter (govdelivery.com)
If you want to subscribe, click on the link above (or the button below) and enter your email address in the subscription box on the right.
NASA is calling on middle and high school student teams of four or more across the country to submit experiment ideas that, if selected as one of 60 winning designs, will be built out to take a high-altitude balloon or rocket-powered lander test next summer. Winners will get $1,500 to build out their experiment, a flight box in which to build it, an assigned spot on a balloon or rocket-powered lander flight to test it, and technical support from Future Engineers advisors.
Steps to enter: 1. Form a team; 2. Review proposal template and guide; 3. Choose a rocket-powered lander or high-altitude balloon; 4. Plan your experiment; 5. Submit your proposal.
Find more resources and details in the links below:
|
|
