Weekly Message - State Superintendent June Atkinson
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9/9/15 7:46 AM
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Weekly Message - State Superintendent June
Atkinson
North Carolina Public Schools sent this bulletin at 09/08/2015 05:22 PM EDT
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Sept. 8, 2015
Congratulations to you and to your schools on North Carolina’s
high school graduation rate, which jumped to another historic high
of 85.4 percent in 2015. This good news was shared by all
subgroups, which is another cause for celebration.
Last week’s accountability results revealed those facts as well as
other highlights of your students’ and teachers’ hard work during
the last school year. Results also showed that 72.2 percent of
traditional public schools received performance grades of C or
better while charter schools came in at 70.4 percent receiving
grades of C or better. Science proficiency moved up for fifth and
eighth graders, and more students were proficient in mathematics.
On top of this, 2015 Advanced Placement results released by the
College Board found that more North Carolina high school
students are taking Advanced Placement courses and tests and succeeding in these college-level
courses. The number of tests taken increased 19.1 percent, and the number of scores of 3 to 5
increased 9 percent, according to the College Board.
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Weekly Message - State Superintendent June Atkinson
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While every measure in our recent accountability results release did not show improvement over the
prior year, there are bright spots to celebrate.
Last week’s accountability results also underlined the continued need for early childhood education,
more flexibility in school calendars and targeted support for schools that need it. We continue to watch
for signs of a budget agreement and will alert you as soon as any movement occurs in that regard.
State Board of Education Meeting
Highlights
At their September State Board of Education meeting, members
received reports on 2014-15 Accountability Data, School
Performance Grades, Cohort Graduation Rates, and Career and
Technical Education Credentials earned during the previous school
year. Members approved the Digital Learning Report, funded
Average Daily Membership for charter schools with approved
dropout prevention and recovery programs, and Read to Achieve local alternative assessments.
Board members also discussed Global Educator Digital Badge requirements, revisions to CTE
Essential Standards and guidelines for Academically or Intellectually Gifted programs.
A complete list of Board actions is available on the State Board of Education website.
Breakout Session to Help Local Board Members Understand
Educator Growth Ratings
In late October, NCDPI will be releasing individual teacher and principal growth ratings, and staff
expects many teachers and principals will receive their first status rating under the North Carolina
Educator Effectiveness System. The status rating classifies teachers and principals in one of three
performance categories – Highly Effective, Effective or In Need of Improvement.
In preparation of this release, NCDPI Director of Educator Human Capital Policy and Research Tom
Tomberlin will be conducting a breakout session at each of the eight North Carolina School Board
Association District meetings. The goal of the session is to help local board members understand the
evaluation process and the role of student growth in that process as well as the method of calculation of
these ratings and any implications the ratings might have for teachers and principals.
We encourage you and your local school board members to attend these sessions on student growth so
that we can all work together in promoting continuous improvement for our state’s educators.
Webinars Scheduled to Address State Board Policies/Budget
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Weekly Message - State Superintendent June Atkinson
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High School Accreditation Webinar. As legislatively mandated,
the State Board of Education is providing accreditation reviews for
high schools in North Carolina. Schools and districts interested in
participating in the accreditation review process should visit the
high school accreditation website.
An informational webinar will be held this Thursday, Sept. 10, at
10:30 a.m. You may participate online or call 914.614.3221
(Access Code: 929-094-871). Questions regarding this webinar
may be sent to Debora Williams.
Dropout Exit Conference and Referral Process Webinar. At last week’s State Board of Education
meeting, members approved a revision to their Dropout Exit Conference and Referral Process policy
(GCS-Q-000). Superintendents and district administrators will receive an update outlining the changes
to this policy.
To help districts better understand these changes, DPI staff will hold a webinar this Thursday, Sept.
10, at 1:30 p.m. The informational webinar will address specifics of this policy revision, process
requirements and how those change may effect a school's cohort graduation and dropout rates.
You may register for the webinar online or participate via telephone by calling 646.749.3122 (Access
Code: 627-605-213). The Audio PIN will be shown after joining the meeting. Questions regarding this
webinar may be sent to Debora Williams.
Legislative Webinar Scheduled. The next legislative webinar will be held Monday, Sept. 14, at 1 p.m.
We will send you the link to register for this webinar later this week.
If you have any questions regarding legislative activities, please email Rachel Beaulieu, NCDPI
Legislative and Community Affairs director.
NC Teacher Working Conditions Survey
to Launch in 2016
Have you explored the North Carolina Teacher Working Conditions
website? There are a wealth of resources and planning templates on this site free of charge and
available for your use. During Principal READY 2015, principals had the opportunity to discuss, review
and talk with peers about promoting positive school culture and strong learning communities. If you
were unable to attend, please preview this video. Instructional materials and contact information also
are available online. Get ready for the launch of the survey in spring of 2016!
Integrated Academic and Behavior
Systems
The MTSS vision cast by NCDPI division directors is that “Every
NC Pre K-12 public education system implements and sustains all
components of a Multi-Tiered System of Support to ensure college
and career readiness for all students.” How will this occur? The key
is to implement slowly and systematically. Successful implementation and sustainability of this work is
directly linked to the extent the state, district and school leaders start slow and intentionally build a
system of support for all staff and all students. MTSS professional development will introduce teams to
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Weekly Message - State Superintendent June Atkinson
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the concept of R= MC2, which translates to: Readiness=Motivation x General Capacity x InterventionSpecific Capacity.
The MTSS team is strategically developing supports for all districts, charter schools, and stateoperated programs based on research around readiness, implementation capacity, and sustainability
so this MTSS vision can be achieved.
To learn more about implementation capacity visit the National Implementation Research Network
website and read the article on this topic.
What's New With the Instructional
Improvement System (Schoolnet)
New Classroom Assessment Items Available in Schoolnet. This week as you log in to Schoolnet
you may notice that there are more assessment items available in Math and English Language Arts.
Staff recently purchased an additional 55,000 assessment items for classroom level use in grades K12. The new items include multiple choice and open response items. You can find these items under
the publisher name “FAIB from Certica Solutions, Inc.” when doing an advanced search in Item
Central.
In addition, the Northwest Evaluation Association items for Science and Social Studies also were
refreshed and have been assigned a new publisher name. The new publisher name is “FAIB from
Certica Solutions, Inc.” As a reminder these items (and the new items noted above) are available to ALL
users in Schoolnet so they are intended for Classroom Assessments (not Benchmark Assessments).
Benchmarking Soon? Let Us Know When. NCDPI staff are pleased to report that Schoolnet
continues to provide a stable system for instructional improvement with no known system-wide issues.
We are continuing to improve and monitor Schoolnet, especially during peak usage times like when
many districts administer their benchmark tests.
In order for us to have the most up-to-date information in one place and to be able to anticipate peak
testing time, we ask that you fill out a quick and simple form to let us know about your plans for
administering benchmark assessments.
We look forward to hearing from you about your benchmark plans for 2015-16 and working with you as
we plan for updates and improvements to the system. Questions may be directed to Instructional
Improvement System Consultant Kayla Siler.
Global Ready Update
A Global-Ready District Designation Webinar will be held Sept.
17 at 11 am. The webinar is designed for districts interested in
applying for this State Board of Education designation and will
focus on understanding the levels of achievement requirements
and the application process for 2015-16. Dr. Kathy Spencer will participate and provide tips to consider
when writing the application narrative and selecting the evidences. Go online to register.
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Weekly Message - State Superintendent June Atkinson
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For additional information on Global-Ready District and Global-Ready Schools designations’
information is available here or contact Special Assistant for Global Education Helga Fasciano.
Global-Ready District Intent to Apply for 2015-16 School Year. Districts/LEAs interested in applying
for the designation need a Word version of the application form to complete and submit. Complete the
Intent to Apply form and the contact person listed will receive a Word version of the current year
application, along with direct updates regarding the application, resources and webinars. Receiving the
Word version of the application does not obligate the district to apply. District applications are due the
first Friday in December.
American Indian Education
Summit Scheduled for October
The 2015 American Indian Education Summit, "A New Vision for
Native Students," will be held Oct. 9, from 8 a.m. – 2:30 p.m., in
Room 150 of the Education Building, Raleigh.
The State Advisory Council on Indian Education and NCDPI are cosponsoring the event. Additional information is available on the
American Indian Education website.
Registration Open for the 65th Conference on Exceptional
Children
Registration is now open for the 65th Conference on Exceptional Children, “Graduation: The Measure of
Tomorrow.” The conference will be held Nov. 19-20 at the Koury Convention Center/Sheraton
Greensboro Hotel at Four Seasons, Greensboro. Pre-conference institutes will be held Nov. 18.
The conference is North Carolina’s largest gathering of educational professionals and parents of
children with disabilities. The Exceptional Children Division is pleased to invite colleagues from across
the state to participate in this annual event to share and learn about innovations and exciting practices
to help exceptional children achieve.
Conference details, including registration, are available on the Exceptional Children Division website.
Latest Messages Online
Sept. 3, 2015 Principals’ Biweekly Message
Sept. 3, 2105 Home Base Biweekly Update
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Weekly Message - State Superintendent June Atkinson
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