In Today's Newsletter
1. Amplify Professional Development
2. NWEA Professional Learning
3. Alaska's Early Education Program Standards
4. National Indian Education Association Regional Meeting
5. Professional Teaching Practices Commission Update
6. Career and Technical Education Grant Opportunity
7. Farm to School Grant
8. CDC Science Ambassador Fellowship
9. Coffee and Content
10. Alaska Library Association Scholarship
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DEED is committed to ensuring that Alaska educators have the tools and knowledge necessary to make the most of the mCLASS DIBELS 8 literacy screener, and is offering a variety of professional development opportunities that will support teachers in the Alaska Reads Act requirements. Check out the January and February professional development options by clicking on the flyer below:
Comfortable with the basics of administering MAP Growth? Now get hands on with your reports. Learn to access, interpret, and apply MAP Growth data. Then plan how to use your data to inform ongoing work, with a particular focus on goal setting with students.
Essential Reports for Leaders
Wednesday, January 24, 10:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
- Use MAP Growth and other assessment data to identify school- or grade-level trends in growth and achievement data.
- Learn how to monitor testing and completion rates through operational reports to identify next steps for implementation.
Essential Reports for Teachers
Monday, January 29, 4:00–6:00 p.m.
- Explore student-centered decisions that are informed by MAP Growth data.
- Apply to classroom practices and instructional plans
Learn more and register here: Alaska Statewide Professional Learning (nwea.org)
Intended Audience
- Administrators from all districts with an Early Education Program.
Purpose:
- Dive into Alaska’s Early Education Program Standards.
- Plan for documentation of high-quality early education programming.
- Familiarize the requirements of the 2024-2025 District-Wide Early Education Program Approval (.5 ADM Funding) application.
Schedule:
- Registration is required for all live webinars. Follow the links to register.
All webinars will be recorded and posted on The Alaska Reads Act Early Education Programs page following the live presentations.
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Link
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Date & Time
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Topic
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Session 4
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Thursday, January 11, 10:00-11:30 a.m.
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Standard IV: Screening and Developmental Evaluation
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Session 5
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Thursday, February 8, 10:000-11:30 a.m.
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Standard I: Teaching and the Learning Environment
Standard VI: Family Engagement
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Save the Date: RSVP by January 15, 2024
National Indian Education Association (NIEA) is hosting their Alaska Regional Meeting on January 23rd and 24th in Juneau, AK.
All stakeholders are invited to join NIEA's efforts to enhance and promote the cultural, economic, and political voice of the entire Native community. The meeting will focus on advancing educational opportunities for Alaska Native communities and building the educational capacity within tribal nations.
Date: January 23-24, 2024 8:00am t0 4:00 pm
Location: Elizabeth Peratrovich Hall, 320 W. Willoughby Avenue
If you have any questions, or need any additional information, please contact Teresa Sarabia at (907) 463-7325, tsarabia@tlingitandhaida.gov.
Helpful Reminders
The beginning of the semester is a good time to review the Code of Ethics of the Education Profession. It's also a good time to check the expiration date of your teaching certificate!
Upcoming Meetings
The Commission will meet on February 1-2, 2024 and April 11-12, 2024 to consider disciplinary actions against certificate holders, to conduct administrative reviews, and to discuss other Commission business.
The public is welcome. The meetings may be in person, but will also be held virtually by Zoom. More information, including a Zoom link, can be found online: PTPC
Learn More!
Have additional questions, concerns, or just want to learn more? Melody Mann, PTPC's Executive Director, is available to present information about PTPC to educators around the state. Send her an email to schedule an informational presentation.
$500,000 in state funds are available to Alaska school districts for strengthening existing and developing new Career and Technical Education Programs of Study (CTEPS).
- This grant is for five months only. Funds must be spent by June 30, 2024.
- Access the Request for Applications.
- An informational webinar for this grant program will be held Friday December 15th at 8:00AM. Join with the following TEAMS link: Click here to join the meeting.
- Applications must be submitted by January 12, 2024.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will award up to $12 million in competitive grants to eligible entities this fiscal year. Each grant will help implement farm to school programming that increases access to local food in eligible schools, connects children with agriculture for better health, and inspires youth to consider careers in agriculture.
There are multiple grant tracks, and eligibility varies by track.
- The track for implementation grant awards range from $50,000 - $500,000 and is a great option for eligible entities with prior farm to school experience that want to further develop their existing farm to school programming. Some examples could include training and technical assistance, creating promotional materials or campaigns, and forming networks or coalitions.
- Turnkey grants offer the choice between three tracks: 1) action plan development for entities that have never received a farm to school grant before; 2) agricultural education curriculum development and delivery; and 3) edible gardening. These tracks can be awarded up to $50,000.
The Grant RFA can be found online here, and applications must be submitted to Grants.gov by January 12, 2024.
Alaska Middle and High School STEM Teachers - become a CDC Science Ambassador Fellow!
The fellowship is a one-year distance-based professional development program with an in-person five-day summer course in Atlanta, GA on July 15-19, 2024.
Fellows learn basic epidemiology and public health, write and practice using lesson plans on emerging public health topics, meet CDC public health professionals and hear their career stories, and build a network of educators from across the country who are interested in teaching public health in the classroom. Learn more online here.
Applications close January 15, 2024.
Alaska teachers are also eligible for the Sarah Luna Memorial Scholarship, and will be automatically considered for the scholarship when you apply to the fellowship. Attendance at the Summer Course is free and travel is paid for by CDC or the scholarship.
Each month, DEED hosts an event that highlights a Science of Reading speaker. The series, titled Coffee and Content, shares classroom techniques and strategies to add to your Science of Reading toolkit, followed by some casual educator chat.
Have questions about reading or choosing interventions? Perhaps you are a single teacher in a village school needing a collaboration partner, or maybe a student just has you stuck and you want a brainstorming partner? This will be an open time for conversation, sharing, and problem solving!
This month's speaker is Keys to Literacy author Joan Sedita. On January 15th at 4pm, she will discuss comprehension.
AkLA has established a scholarship program to provide financial assistance to worthy students pursuing graduate studies leading to a Master’s degree in Library and Information Studies and to encourage graduates to return to Alaska to work in professional library positions. Scholarships may be awarded for both on-campus and/or distance education programs. Preference will be given to an individual meeting the federal definition of Alaska Native ethnicity.
Eligibility
An applicant must be an Alaskan resident who:
- is eligible for acceptance, is currently enrolled, or will be a student in a graduate school program during the academic year, semester, or academic quarter for which the scholarship is received.
- makes a commitment to work in an Alaska library for a minimum of one year after graduation as a paid employee or a volunteer, or for two semesters for one semester’s financial assistance. A scholarship recipient who fails to fulfill this commitment will be expected to repay the money received. Candidates awarded the scholarship must supply proof of admission to an accredited program before the scholarship is disbursed.
Amount
Amount for the next academic year will be $4,000.
Criteria for Selection
An individual will be selected by a Scholarship Committee of AkLA based on the following criteria:
- Financial need
- Demonstrated scholastic ability and writing skills
- Applicant’s response to an essay question regarding their professional goals and objectives in pursuing a library career
- Strength of references. Three Applicant Reference Evaluation Forms are required, at least one of which must be from a librarian. References may include additional comments or letters.
- For more information visit https://akla.org/scholarships/
A complete application packet must be postmarked by January 15, 2024. The scholarship recipient will be announced in the spring.
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