Nov 5, 2015 Principals' Biweekly Message - Lynda Fuller
11/5/15 1:40 PM
Nov 5, 2015 Principals' Biweekly Message
North Carolina Public Schools <NCPublicSchools@public.govdelivery.com>
Thu 11/5/2015 1:34 PM
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To: Lynda
Fuller <Lynda.Fuller@dpi.nc.gov>;
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Nov. 5, 2015
School leadership makes a difference. As school principals, you
know the difference you make in your school’s operations and
learning environment.
Last week, a story on National Public Radio discussing the impact
of No Child Left Behind reflected on ways that principals make a
difference. The story follows the efforts of Durham Public Schools
to turn around student academic performance at George Watts
Elementary School. The story was very informative and did a good
job representing the work of turnaround – both challenges and
successes.
Dr. Nancy Barbour, the turnaround principal at Watts and now the
director of District and School Transformation at NCDPI, was interviewed among others discussing the
journey this school has taken. School leadership is so critical to the success of students, and I
appreciate any news coverage that recognizes the links between student success and school
principals.
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Nov 5, 2015 Principals' Biweekly Message - Lynda Fuller
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State Board of Education
Meeting Highlights
At today’s State Board of Education meeting, members approved
the Annual Report on Teachers Leaving the Profession, revisions to
the Healthful-Living Essential Standards, an alternative schools
accountability model, and a number of reports to the North Carolina
General Assembly.
On Wednesday, Board members received a report from the State
Advisory Council on Indian Education on the schooling experience of North Carolina’s American Indian
Students.
To view the complete list of Board actions, please visit the Board’s website.
State Board Members Recognize Schools
Global-Ready School Designation
Piedmont Middle School (Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools) today was designated as a Global-Ready
School by the State Board of Education, the first school to receive such a designation under the Board’s
Global Education Strategic Plan.
Piedmont Middle was designated for attaining the “Prepared” level of achievement in the Global
Schools initiative. Schools can receive the Global-Ready School Designation for attaining the Prepared
or Model level of achievement on the Board’s criteria and meeting student achievement goals. Schools
that are engaged in implementing global education strategies toward designation also can receive an
Acknowledgement and become part of the state networking around this initiative.
For more information about the Global Education initiative, please visit the NC Global Education
website
STEM Schools of Distinction
Congratulations to the following schools for being recognized by the North Carolina State Board of
Education for exemplary leadership and instruction in Science, Technology, Engineering and
Mathematics (STEM) education. These schools were the second set of schools to be recognized under
the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction’s STEM Recognition Program:
Three schools met the Prepared Level of Achievement:
·
James Kenan Jr. Sr. High School, Duplin County Schools
·
Riverside Middle School, Martin County Schools
·
East Cary Middle School, Wake County Schools
Four schools met the Model Level of Achievement:
·
Greene Central High School, Greene County Schools
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Nov 5, 2015 Principals' Biweekly Message - Lynda Fuller
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Wake STEM Early College High School, Wake County Schools
Brentwood Magnet Elementary School of Engineering, Wake County Schools
Atkins Academic and Technology High School, Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools
To receive this honor, schools underwent a rigorous application process that required detailed
responses covering 40 key elements: examples of strategic class documents and video; a selfassessment; identification of the school’s best practice of educational excellence; and a site visit from
reviewers.
For more information on the NCDPI STEM Recognition Program, please visit NCDPI’s STEM web page.
Seats Still Available for Principal
READY Sessions
The fall Principal READY meetings launched in the Southwest region on
Monday. There is still time for you to register for any of the remaining Principal
READY sessions. Don’t miss an opportunity to learn about 2014-15 Educator
Evaluation System data, new legislation, Analysis of Student Work, and student
surveys as well as additional interactive sessions to assist you in increasing student achievement.
Please check the NCEES wikispace to see where slots are still available.
Observation Calibration Training –
It Works!
NCDPI staff will provide school administrators with an online
platform to improve their skills as a classroom observer using the NCEES rubric. Participants will be
able to watch classroom videos, observe instruction, rate teachers and receive immediate feedback as
to the recommended ratings.
When piloted, school administrators across the state showed significant improvement in observation
skills from the beginning to the end. The more lessons observers completed, the more their scoring
improved.
For a complete description of this exciting professional opportunity for school administrators, please
visit the Observation Calibration Training website. Questions may be directed to Kimberly Simmons.
Multi-Tiered System of Support:
Administrator Bulletin
Integrated Academic and Behavior Systems staff are excited to
provide the link for the second quarterly MTSS School
Administrator Bulletin. This bulletin provides insight into building a
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Multi-Tiered System of Support from the perspective of the school leader. The November Issue
addresses the role of the principal on the School Leadership Team as well as the impact of the effective
use of implementation science and practice.
For more foundational knowledge of MTSS and informational graphics representing this school
improvement framework, review and share the July Bulletin. We welcome feedback on the bulletin as
well as suggested topics for future issues.
Watch for the next edition to come out in February. You also can find us on Facebook and follow us on
Twitter @ncmtss.
NC Global Education Update
State Board Amends Global Educator Digital Badge Policy
The State Board of Education recently amended the Global
Educator Badge Policy as it relates to the criteria and process for
educators to earn the Global Educator Digital Badge.
The recommendation builds upon the previous policy criteria for teachers and expands the opportunity
for other educators in alignment with their annual evaluation process. Educators may choose to
voluntarily complete the criteria for the Global Educator Digital Badge as part of their personal growth
goals or as a part of a school or district initiative.
Educator categories included in this policy amendment are: Teacher, Teacher Leadership Specialist,
Library Media Coordinator, Instructional Technology Facilitator, School Counselor, Career Development
Coordinator, School Social Worker, School Psychologist, Speech Language Pathologist, Instructional
Central Office Staff, Principal/Assistant Principal and Superintendent. The Memorandum of Agreement
Form to notify NCDPI staff of an educator’s intent to complete this process also is available on this
page.
For more information please visit the NC Global Education website or contact Special Assistant for
Global Education Helga Fasciano.
NC Dual Language/Immersion Administrator Seminar
NCDPI Global Education staff are offering a NC Dual Language/Immersion Administrator Seminar on
March 9-10 in Charlotte. The keynote address and breakout sessions will be held on March 9 with
school visits on March 10. Registration information will be available in December.
It’s time to Speak Up North Carolina!
More than 500,000 students, parents and teachers will share their views on technology and learning to
inform policy at the local, state and national levels as part of the 13th annual Speak Up National
Research Project.
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Nov 5, 2015 Principals' Biweekly Message - Lynda Fuller
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Between now and Dec. 18, all K-12 students, parents, teachers, administrators and community
members in North Carolina have the opportunity to participate in the online surveys. North Carolina had
two districts (Onslow and Wake) listed in the Top 5 Districts across the nation for total participation last
year. Our goal is to have more North Carolina districts recognized as Leading School Districts for 2015!
Speak Up data is a data source to inform district technology planning and budgets, assess professional
development needs, plan school reform efforts, measure the effectiveness of Digital Teaching &
Learning initiatives or substantiate grant applications.
Also, by participating in Speak Up, your district will receive free, online access to the aggregated results
with national comparisons that will provide valuable data, which can be used for your strategic planning,
professional development, and budgeting plans during the school year.
Act now by going to the Speak Up - North Carolina site for more information. Follow Speak Up on
Twitter @SpeakUpEd.
NC Virtual Public School Offers
LEAD Ed Program
How do you step away from the busy halls and classrooms that dominate your time each day and
refresh or relearn? How do you keep sharp in the face of an ever-changing landscape of online and
blended learning? Let the professional learning opportunities with the North Carolina Virtual Public
School's LEAD Ed program help!
LEAD Ed is an online professional learning program that focuses on both teaching and learning in a new
and cutting edge environment. It also is a great way to keep the tools sharp and add new blades to the
toolkit.
The LEAD Ed pathway of learning and leadership offers educators the following professional learning
courses that will help them lead in the future:
• Shattering Myths of Online and Blended Learning
• Individualized Learning
• Building a Learning Map: Assessment and Feedback
• Intellectual Property, Copyright, and Fair Use (January 2016)
And coming soon:
• Foundations of Online and Blended Learning and Teaching
• How to Support Blended Learning: An Administrator’s Field Guide
Click any of the course titles above for course information and enrollment. Click here for general LEAD
Ed and professional learning Information.
November is American Indian
Heritage Month
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Nov 5, 2015 Principals' Biweekly Message - Lynda Fuller
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In support of American Indian Heritage Month, the NC State
Advisory Council on Indian Education encourages educators to
teach about American Indians to all populations of students,
including American Indian students.
To help students feel comfortable and to give accurate, respectful
information to all students, the Council offers a number of culturally
responsive resources. Culturally responsive instruction is a
philosophy and accompanying implementation of instruction that
purposefully acknowledges, embraces and uses what each student
brings culturally to the classroom is important for all students to have equitable access to the learning
content. It is built on a foundation of relationships and respect.
On this website, educators will find a wealth of information both to teach accurately about Indian tribes
in a historical context and also to bring the thriving contemporary Indian world to students, enabling
educators to present a balanced view - both historical and contemporary. It is crucial for students’ wellbeing and future education that teachers educate themselves about contemporary American Indians in
order to teach about American Indians accurately.
Council members hope educators will take advantage of these helpful resources to expand your
knowledge base, plan your instruction, and pass along to colleagues. Throughout these resources,
these collective terms may be used interchangeably to refer to the indigenous populations of the United
States: American Indian, Indian, Native American, First Nations, First People and indigenous.
2016 Fulbright-Hays Seminar
Abroad Program
Educators may want to consider participating in the Fulbright-Hays
Seminar Abroad program. The 2016 Summer Programs offered are:
- Elementary (K-8) Seminar: Exploring the Indigenous Heritage of Peru
- Secondary (9-12) Seminar: Sustainable Development and Social Change in India
Participants will receive round-trip airfare, room and board, and program-related travel within host
country. Participants are responsible for a cost share of $600. The deadline to apply is Dec. 9.
For more information, including eligibility requirements and how to apply, please visit the U.S.
Department of Education’s website.
2016 NC Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and
Science Teaching Awards Cycle Open
The 2016 awards cycle for elementary teachers (grades K-6) for the North Carolina Presidential Award
for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching is now open.
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Nov 5, 2015 Principals' Biweekly Message - Lynda Fuller
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The Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) is the highest
honor bestowed by the United States government specifically for K-12 mathematics and science
teaching.
Anyone – principals, teachers, parents, students, or members of the general public – may nominate a
teacher by completing the nomination form available on the PAEMST website. To submit a nomination,
you’ll need the teacher’s name, email address, and school contact information. If you know more than
one teacher deserving of this award, you may submit more than one nomination. Teachers also may
apply.
One mathematics teacher and one science teacher will be selected. Each will receive a $10,000 award
and a trip to Washington, D.C. to attend the National Awards Recognition Program.
Nominations will be accepted through April 1. The application deadline is May 1. Secondary school
teachers (grades 7-12) will be eligible to apply during a future cycle.
Nov 20 is Deadline to Register for NCDOT
Bridge Building Competition
As a reminder, Nov. 20 is the deadline to complete and submit a registration form online to participate in
the 17th Annual North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) Bridge Building Competition.
The NCDOT invites all middle and high school teachers and students to participate in this competition
that is designed to create a greater awareness of transportation careers and the services provided by
NCDOT.
Regional competitions will be held Friday, March 11, in Kinston, Raleigh and Morganton. Middle and
high school students will compete separately. One middle and one high school team from each region
will advance to the State Final Competition, which will be held Friday, April 15, in Raleigh.
Questions regarding the competition may be sent to NCDOT Program Coordinator Gail Herring.
BWF Offers PRISM Grant
K-12 public school teachers may want to consider submitting a Request for Proposal for the Burroughs
Wellcome Fund (BWF) Promoting Innovation in Science and Mathematics (PRISM) Grant Award.
This award supports teaching professionals in their efforts to provide quality hands-on, inquiry-based
activities for their students by providing up to $3,000 for one year to cover the cost of equipment,
materials and supplies. An additional $1,500 may be requested for professional development related to
the implementation of new equipment or use of materials in the classroom.
The Request for Proposal and additional grant details are available on the BWF website. The application
deadline is 4 p.m., Dec. 7.
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Nov 5, 2015 Principals' Biweekly Message - Lynda Fuller
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