NCDPI
UPDATE
SUPERINTENDENTS’ QUARTERLY
JULY 2010
STANDARDS AND ASSESSMENTS
Common Core
The Accountability and Curriculum Reform Effort is nearing completion of the revision of the entire
North Carolina Standard Course of Study to focus on what is most important for students to learn in
the 21st century.
In K-12 Mathematics and K-12 English Language Arts, the new standards will be the Common Core.
On June 2, 2010, North Carolina adopted the Common Core State Standards in K-12 Mathematics
and K-12 English Language Arts released by the National Governors Association Center for Best
Practices and the Council of Chief State School Officers. With the adoption of these state-led
education standards, North Carolina is in the first group of states to embrace clear and consistent
goals for learning to prepare children for success in college and work. View the full Common Core
standards at www.corestandards.org.
In Science, Social Studies and all other subject areas, the NC Essential Standards will become the
new Standard Course of Study. North Carolina plans to implement new standards fully in 2012-13.
Governor Perdue’s Diagnostic Pilot Program in Elementary Schools
The Diagnostic Pilot Program involves 27 schools in reading using the Reading 3-D assessments from
Wireless Generation and 13 schools in mathematics using Kathy Richarson’s assessments with Math
Perspectives, a teacher development center. Teachers were trained in November 2009, and middleof-year benchmarks began in January, with end-of-year benchmarks conducted in May. Students
were formatively assessed between January and May to identify key concept and skill areas for
focused lesson planning and instructional implementation. Currently, Reading First schools have been
given the option to become part of the pilot cohort and convert from TPRI to Reading 3-D. Consultants
at the Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) have been trained in Reading 3-D and will continue
to provide instructional support to these schools since the Reading First consultant cadre has been
RIFed due to elimination of federal funding.
The 2010 Budget Act provides recurring funding for a technology-based diagnostic assessment
for additional schools. NCDPI has issued an RFP for the purpose of identifying a vendor to provide
a diagnostic reading assessment system to additional schools. Superintendents can expect
communication regarding selection of schools for Cohort I. The selected new schools will use a
diagnostic reading system in Grades K-3 and with at-risk students in grades 4 and 5.
PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF NORTH CAROLINA State Board of Education | Department of Public Instruction
NCDPI UPDATE
July 2010
EDUCATION EVALUATION AND GROWTH SYSTEM
Online Evaluation System Tool
NCDPI recently completed the contract with McREL to provide an Online Evaluation System for
completion of principal and teacher evaluations. Every teacher and school-based administrator will have
access to the tool as designated by superintendents, and the system will be available for use in August.
The Professional Development Department is conducting training sessions across the state this
summer for implementation of the tool for the 2010-11 school year. Professional Development
contacts in every district have received registration information and current sessions are targeted for
LEA personnel designated as district trainers. For more information, please contact Yvette Stewart at
919-807-3278 or ystewart@dpi.state.nc.us.
SCHOOL AND DISTRICT SUPPORT
District and School Transformation
District and School Transformation will focus this year on customized support to all LEAs through
the new regional lead/regional roundtable structure and specialized support to targeted districts
including: Halifax County Schools under the consent order; partner districts (Bertie, Columbus,
Hertford, Lexington City and Richmond); LEAs in corrective action; Turnaround high schools and
middle schools; 20 identified elementary schools and all low-performing schools by state definition.
District and School Transformation staff help districts and schools improve student achievement
and graduation rates through conducting comprehensive needs assessments. Staff also provide
professional development and/or coaching to develop both leadership and instructional capacity.
School Improvement Grants
Over $65 million in School Improvement Grants (SIG) were allotted on a competitive basis for the
2010-11 school year. SIG funds will provide additional resources to 25 schools identified as the state’s
“persistently lowest-achieving.” Each of the 19 LEAs receiving SIG funds must implement one of four
rigorous intervention models in their schools. Models as described in the approved LEA proposals
indicate that one school will implement a “restart,” six will implement a “turnaround” and 18 will
implement a “transformation.” The three-year total school awards range from $980,000 to $6,000,000.
Statewide System of Support
North Carolina’s statewide system of support is coordinated and monitored through a roundtable
structure. Roundtables, comprised of cross-agency staff, are facilitated by seven NCDPI Regional
Leads and a Regional Lead Coordinator. In 2009-10, the roundtables met monthly to provide a forum
for continuous communication and collaboration within the agency in order to most effectively
customize support for schools. These efforts resulted in the delivery of high-quality professional
development tailored to the needs of 519 schools in Title I School Improvement across the state.
NCDPI UPDATE
July 2010
TECHNOLOGY SUPPORT
NCDPI Performance Navigator
NCDPI’s Performance Navigator (www.ncpublicschools.org/performance/) is a strategic planning
and performance management tool that provides a window into what the agency is doing to move the
state toward achieving State Board of Education (SBE) goals.
The Navigator includes:
• The SBE’s priority goals, measures and targets
• Each NCDPI division’s priority goals, activities and measures of progress.
By August 15, 2010, NCDPI will update the Navigator to reflect 2009-10 performance and 2010-11
goals, targets and measurable activities. Please email Mike Martin, NCDPI Policy and Strategic
Planning, at mmartin@dpi.state.nc.us with any questions or comments regarding the Navigator.
CEDARS Update
NCDPI continues to make progress toward launching the complete NC Common Education Data
Analysis & Reporting System (CEDARS; http://www.ncpublicschools.org/cedars/), a PreK-13 State
Longitudinal Data System (SLDS) that will provide state and local policy makers and service providers
with access to high-quality longitudinal data about students, staff, programs and finances. The
cornerstone of CEDARS, the Unique Student and Staff Identification System (UID), is already fully
operational (http://www.ncpublicschools.org/cedars/uniqueid/), and LEAs are using it to increase
data quality. The CEDARS Data Warehouse, complete with web-based user-friendly reporting and
analysis tools, is on track for launch in October 2010. In coming months, NCDPI will reach out to LEAs
and charter schools to get input for the design of statewide standard reports and dashboards, and to
establish a schedule for training LEA and charter school personnel in how to use the data warehouse
(including how to customize views to fit information needs). Please email cedars-info@dpi.state.nc.us
with any questions or comments regarding CEDARS.
Data Submissions Calendar
To make the reporting of data more manageable for LEAs, NCDPI publishes an Annual Data
Submissions Calendar (www.ncpublicschools.org/data/calendar/) that serves as the official record
and master schedule of all annual data submissions required by NCDPI. The 2010-11 calendar is
available for download at the above link.
NCDPI strives to improve data quality while minimizing the reporting burden on school districts and
schools. We welcome your suggestions regarding ways to improve our processes (e.g., eliminate
duplication, streamline forms) and communications concerning data and collections. Please email Karl
Pond, NCDPI Policy and Strategic Planning, at kpond@dpi.state.nc.us with any questions or comments.
NCDPI UPDATE
July 2010
NCDPI Websites to Bookmark
• www.ncpublicschools.org/ – News and new resources posted weekly.
• www.ncpublicschools.org/acre – Updates on the Accountability and Curriculum Reform
Effort, including new curriculum and accountability timelines.
• www.ncpublicschools.org/fbs/ – NCDPI’s Financial and Business Services Division
manages nearly $10 billion in state and federal funds and provides technical support
services to LEAs, their schools, their employees and the Department of Public Instruction.
• www.ncpublicschools.org/fbs/accounting/eddie/ – The Educational Directory and
Demographical Information Exchange (EDDIE) replaced the School Name and Address
(SNA) file. It contains district and school information such as LEA numbers, school numbers,
administrative contacts, school types, grade levels, calendar types, program types,
addresses and much more.
• www.ncpublicschools.org/nceddirectory/ – Find the phone number and address of every
North Carolina public, federal or charter school and public school system; the phone number
of every NCDPI employee and members of the State Board of Education; contact information
for educational associations and organizations, advisory councils, educational material
suppliers and sellers; and a list of all the state and territorial superintendents in the U.S.
• www.ncpublicschools.org/organization/help/ – Need help? Use this NCDPI who-to-call list.
• www.ncpublicschools.org/stateboard/meetings/ – State Board of Education meeting
schedule, meeting agendas and executive materials.
• www.ncpublicschools.org/superintendents – Superintendents’ webpage, which includes
archives of all email messages sent to local school superintendents.
• www.ncpublicschools.org/work4ncschools/ – Advertising and information about working
for North Carolina’s public schools.
• abcs.ncpublicschools.org/abcs/ – Official ABCs of Public Schools website.
• www.ncreportcards.org – Local school report cards for all public schools, districts and the state.