March 17, 2016 Principals' Biweekly Message - Lynda Fuller
3/17/16 4:47 PM
March 17, 2016 Principals' Biweekly Message
North Carolina Public Schools <NCPublicSchools@public.govdelivery.com>
Thu 3/17/2016 3:06 PM
To: Lynda
Fuller <Lynda.Fuller@dpi.nc.gov>;
Biweekly message to North Carolina public school principals from State Superintendent June Atkinson
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March 17, 2016
When will I use this? Why am I learning this? I’m sure that many
middle and high school teachers have heard this question from their
students. This week, middle school students had a chance to learn
more about how their academic learning will connect with careers in
North Carolina by participating in Students@Work℠ Week.
This year, 23,000 students and more than 100 businesses
participated in this joint initiative of the North Carolina Business
Committee for Education and the North Carolina Department of
Public Instruction. I participated in one event today at Lenovo with
students from Wake Young Men's Leadership Academy in Wake
County and Gravelly Hill Middle School, A.L. Stanback Middle
School, C.W. Stanford Middle School in Orange County. This was
an outstanding time for the middle school students to see first-hand
what work looks like in the 21st century and how their academic
skills could be put to use in the future.
I appreciate Biogen and GSK for the grants that made this year’s Students@Work℠ event possible,
and I encourage middle school principals to consider future participation. Helping students connect the
dots between their schoolwork and their future work is very motivating for young people. For more
information about Students@Work℠ Week, visit the North Carolina Business Committee for Education
website.
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March 17, 2016 Principals' Biweekly Message - Lynda Fuller
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Multi-Tiered System of Support:
Problem-Solving
Over the past four weeks, over 150 educators attended one of the
Problem-Solving Within an MTSS Framework sessions. A “problem” is
not attached to a negative connotation – it is defined as a difference
between what we want and what is happening. MTSS teams problem solving around district, school,
grade level, group, classroom or student data will consider questions such as
- Is there a problem?
- Is this the right problem to solve?
- What is the magnitude of the problem?
Big ideas to consider before beginning problem solving include:
- the systematic problem-solving process that will be utilized;
- the implementation and student data that will be utilized; and
- the connection between this data and the health of our Core (at various level).
To further assist in developing critical components around MTSS, please review the MTSS Principal’s
Quarterly. If you have additional questions, please contact Amy Jablonski.
Implementation Science:
MTSS to Present at National Conference
NCDPI’s MTSS team is presenting at the Association for Positive
Behavior Support’s 13th Annual Conference in San Francisco, Calif. on
March 24. The team’s session, Using Implementation Science to
Integrate Academic and Behavior Systems Across North Carolina, aligns
with the theme of the conference.
The MTSS team will share the story of how NCDPI used Implementation Science to develop supports
for all districts, charter schools and state-operated programs to implement Multi-Tiered Systems of
Support. Participants also will understand how the department utilized research around concepts of
readiness, capacity, and sustainability to develop a statewide strategic plan, as well as how the state
team calibrated evaluation and implementation tools from exemplar states and agencies to support the
work of the state team, districts and charter schools.
Pitre-Martin Named Chief Academic and Digital Learning Officer
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The State Board of Education this month approved the hiring of
Thomasville City Schools’ Superintendent Dr. Maria Pitre-Martin as the
new Chief Academic and Digital Learning Officer for the NC Department
of Public Instruction.
Pitre-Martin brings a great deal of expertise to this role from her current
position and from her prior role at NCDPI as the director of K-12
Curriculum and Instruction. Past experience also includes chief
academic officer for the Philadelphia School District, an assistant
superintendent for the East Baton Rouge Parish School System in
Louisiana, director of research and staff development for the Fort Bend
Independent School District in Sugar Land, Texas, and principal of
Oakwood Intermediate School in College Station, Texas.
She begins her new role at NCDPI in May.
NC Advanced Manufacturing and STEM Careers Awareness
Week is April 3-9
April 3-9 is NC Advanced Manufacturing and STEM Careers Awareness Week in North Carolina.
Advanced Manufacturing and STEM careers are modern, sophisticated and use cutting-edge
technology to create products and services in fields such as aviation, communication, biotechnology
and healthcare. Students are encouraged to visit their local community college or meet with business
and industry representatives to learn more about education opportunities in this career field.
NC Requesting Waiver from Assessing Speaking and Listening
in Reading/English Language Arts Assessments
The U.S. Department of Education (USED) is allowing states to request a waiver from assessing
speaking and listening as part of its Reading/English language arts assessments. In June 2010, the
North Carolina State Board of Education adopted Reading/English language arts content standards,
which include standards for speaking and listening. Federal law requires assessments include all
adopted content standards; however, measuring speaking and listening skills in a large-scale
summative assessment is not practical at this time.
As a result, North Carolina is seeking a waiver from this requirement pursuant to section 8401(b) of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act.
Specifically, North Carolina is requesting a limited waiver of section 1111(b)(3)(C)(ii) of the ESEA, as
amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, so that the state’s assessment system need not
measure speaking and listening standards at this time.
The requested waiver would be effective through the 2016-17 school year. North Carolina will continue
to develop best practices with respect to assessing speaking and listening on large-scale assessments,
though it may request an extension of the waiver for subsequent years.
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The public may submit input/feedback on this potential waiver online by clicking on the Let’s Talk icon
on the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction website then selecting the USED Waiver as the
dialogue topic to provide feedback. The feedback window is open until 5 p.m., Monday, April 4.
Submit Comments on Annual State Application for Grant Award
Under Part B of IDEA
NCDPI is making available its annual State Application for receiving grant award under Part B of the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) as amended in 2004 for Federal Fiscal Year 2016.
A copy of the State Application is available for public review on the NCDPI Exceptional Children website
under Hot Topics. Also, each local school district’s central office will receive a copy for public review.
Comments will be accepted through April 22. The review period ends May 6.
Interested citizens may submit comments via email or by U.S. mail to: North Carolina Department of
Public Instruction, Exceptional Children Division, ATTN: Tracy Riddle/Carol Ann Hudgens, 6356 Mail
Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-6356.
2016 Teacher of the Year Summit
NCDPI is currently planning to host its fourth annual Teacher of the Year Summit, Managing Change,
Social Media, and Developing Leadership, at the Durham Hilton Hotel in Durham on Friday, April 29. In
order for this to be a reality, DPI staff have asked districts to support their Teachers of the Year for
2014-15 and 2015-16 by paying their travel costs (mileage and hotel) and substitute pay.
The current year’s North Carolina Teacher of the Year Keana Triplett and this past year’s recipient
James Ford have agreed to co-chair this summit. IBM has provided a grant and will be facilitating the
day’s training.
Principals are being informed of this so that if your school has a district-wide Teacher of the Year for the
current year or last year, your teacher will be receiving an email invitation to attend the Teacher of the
Year Summit.
Virtual Academies
A growing number of districts are creating virtual academies to not only manage their online student
populations, but also to bring back students into the system who have dropped out or are home
schooling.
NCVPS is excited to be a key part of the virtual academies. Read more about the virtual academies
online, and contact NCVPS staff if you would like help setting up your virtual academy.
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#TaketheSurvey2016 … Before It’s
Too Late
We have reached the mid-point in the North Carolina
Teacher Working Conditions (NC TWC) Survey window. As of today, a little over 53.32 percent of our
education workforce has participated. We need your help to ensure that the remaining 46.68 percent
gets their results in as soon as possible.
The NC TWC Survey, which remains open through March 25, gathers feedback from teachers,
counselors, principals and other administrators about every aspect of the school. The web-based
survey is voluntary, anonymous and confidential.
If you have any concerns or questions about the survey, please consult your designated school-based
representative. If you need additional assistance or technical support, please contact Amy Laughter,
western regional education facilitator and lead NC TWC contact.
Registration Opens March 21 for Free
Online Courses
The NCDPI Educator Effectiveness Division will open registration for
the following nine instructor-led courses on Monday, March 21:
- Building and Sustaining Professional Development: 6 weeks, 1 CEU
- Connecting with our 21st Century Learners: 5 weeks, 1 CEU
- Digital Literacies in the K-12 Classroom: 7 weeks, 1.5 CEUs
- Introduction to Data Literacy: 5 weeks, 1 CEU
- Universal Design for Learning 1: UDL in the Everyday Classroom: 5 weeks, 1 CEU
- North Carolina Teacher Standards and Evaluation Process: 6 weeks, 2 CEUs
- Responsibilities of the 21st-Century Educator: 7 weeks, 1 CEU
- Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science and Technical Subjects, Part 1: 5 weeks, 0.5 CEU
- Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science and Technical Subjects, Part 2: 7 weeks, 1.5 CEUs
Registration for these free online courses is limited to 35 participants per section. For a full description
of courses or information about the Home Base Professional Development System, please visit the
online PD catalog. Classes start April 4.
Questions may be directed to Geetanjali Soni.
Spring Holocaust Teacher Workshops
Principals, please share this information with appropriate teachers.
These one-day, multi-county workshops are for middle and high school social studies and
English/language arts teachers. Workshop presenter Dr. Peter Stein (UNC-CH, emeritus, Holocaust
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March 17, 2016 Principals' Biweekly Message - Lynda Fuller
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scholar and child survivor) will be joined by either Esther Lederman, a Holocaust survivor who will
recount her experiences in hiding for 22 months, or Abe Piasek, who will recount his Holocaust
experiences surviving the Aushwitz concentration camp.
Participants will receive a copy of The Holocaust: a North Carolina Teacher’s Resource, a guide for
teaching about the Holocaust at middle and high school levels. There is no cost to attend the workshop,
and substitute pay is provided. Teachers also will receive .6 CEUs. Space is limited so prompt
registration is encouraged.
The workshop will be held from 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Dates and locations are as follows:
- April 5, Cullowhee (Jackson County)
- April 12, Chapel Hill-Carrboro (Orange County)
- April 19, Rocky Mount (Nash County).
Registration details are available online. For more information, please email Director of Teacher
Workshops Audrey Krakovitz.
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