TO:
NC Public School Principals
FROM: State Superintendent June Atkinson
DATE: Nov. 21, 2013
The November State Board of Education meeting agenda included so many important
items that one piece of new business may not have received the attention it should have
received. Board members unanimously approved a resolution seeking to collaborate
with the Governor, the General Assembly, professional organizations, citizens and me
to develop a compensation system for public school educators to attract and retain high
quality teachers and other education professionals. The resolution also references the
need for compensation that “incentivizes skill-set improvement and performance
outcomes at the highest levels.” I am pleased at this beginning step to overcome the
result of the pay freeze and other actions taken since the Great Recession began in
2008-09. North Carolina cannot build a bright future if we don’t invest in quality teachers
and other education professionals.
Regards,
June Atkinson
In this Biweekly Principals’ Message:
1. Responsiveness to Instruction Survey
2. Virtual Charter Schools’ Survey Reminder
3. Home Base Twitter Feed
4. Professional Development Opportunities Focus on New STEM Curriculum
5. Summer Institutes 2014: Save the Dates
6. NC PAEMST Finalists Named
7. Martin Luther King Jr. Art Contest
8. 2014 International Aviation Art Contest
1. Responsiveness to Instruction (RtI) Survey - The Responsiveness to Instruction
(RtI) State Leadership Team is in the process of collecting data at the school level
regarding RtI implementation. We are aware implementation varies across the state and
within building levels in each district. The purpose of this survey is to gather information
only. Please complete the survey, regardless of the stage of implementation at your
school, and even if you are not implementing RtI. The survey is available online at
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/19gn0GukH7a4XzYxziI33A9veFYe35UXGRhyj67KTK
Sk/edit . The survey must be completed by Monday, Dec. 2. Please contact Shelby
Taylor, RtI/MTSS administrative assistant, at shelby.taylor@dpi.nc.gov with any
questions.
2. Virtual Charter Schools’ Survey Reminder - Principals are reminded that the last
day to complete the virtual charter schools’ survey is Saturday, Nov. 30. North Carolina
State Board of Education staff developed the survey to gather feedback on the
authorization and oversight of virtual charter schools across the state. The information
will be used to inform a report that will be presented to the General Assembly. The
survey, available online at
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/NCVirtualCharterSchoolsSurvey, should take only a
few minutes to complete and all information collected will be kept confidential. If you
have any questions, please e-mail Audrey Martin-McCoy at
audrey.martinmccoy@dpi.nc.gov.
3. Home Base Twitter Feed - The NCDPI has established a Twitter feed —
@NCHomeBase — to provide you with instant outage and maintenance notifications,
along with other time-sensitive announcements. This is another means of
communication that has been requested from the field. We will use it to provide Support
Center quick-turnaround announcements. Feel free to encourage your teams and staffs
to follow us @NCHomeBase. If you see too much, not enough or the wrong kind of info
there, please let us know; if there's something you think we should have included, let us
know that, as well. The goal is to meet your communications needs, so we appreciate
your feedback.
4. Professional Development Opportunities Focus on New STEM Curriculum Educators will want to grab their calendars and circle two dates for a professional
development opportunity focused on the new STEM curriculum. The new curriculum
focuses on Energy and Sustainability; Agriscience and Biotechnology; Health and Life
Sciences; and Aviation, Security and Advanced Manufacturing. School leaders and
teachers are encouraged to develop a team of teacher leaders of Science,
Mathematics, Technology, and Career and Technical Education to participate in these
professional development sessions. Course developers will provide guidance on how to
deliver and integrate STEM course content, advance knowledge/understanding,
discover creative approaches, and uncover optimal answers to potential challenges.
Professional development dates and locations are:
- Feb. 17-18: Scaling STEM Conference, Sheraton Imperial, RTP; and
- July 14-17: Career and Technical Education Summer Conference, Greensboro.
Registration information for the February dates is available online at
www.scalingstem.org. Registration information for the July dates will be forthcoming.
For more information, please contact Tina Marcus at tina.marcus@dpi.nc.gov.
5. Summer Institutes 2014: Save the Dates - NCDPI Educator Effectiveness staff are
pleased to announce that Summer Institutes 2014 will take place in all eight regions of
the state during the month of July. Regions 1, 2, 5 and 7 will simultaneously meet July
7-8, while Regions 3, 4, 6 and 8 will simultaneously meet July 9-10. Grab your
calendars and place a hold on the appropriate dates! Locations, times and other event
details will be forthcoming. If you have any questions, please contact Cynthia Martin at
cynthia.martin@dpi.nc.gov.
6. NC PAEMST Finalists Named - Congratulations to the following 7-12 grades
mathematics and science teachers for recently being named North Carolina’s 2013
Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching finalists: 7-12
Mathematics: Brian Frees, Hendersonville Middle (Henderson County Schools), Julie
Riggins, East Forsyth High (Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools), and Katie Salter,
West Carteret High (Carteret County Schools); 7-12 Science: Jeffrey Milbourne, NC
School of Science and Mathematics (Durham), and Mark Townley, Holly Springs High
(Wake County Schools). The PAEMST are the nation’s highest honor for mathematics
and science teachers. The national award is administered for the White House by the
National Science Foundation and allows outstanding mathematics and science teachers
to be recognized for their subject area content knowledge and their ability to motivate
students.
7. Martin Luther King Jr. Art Contest - The Governor’s Office and the North Carolina
MLK Commission are sponsoring an art contest for all K-12 students. Students are
invited to submit drawings conveying the theme “content of character” for use in the
2014 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday and State Employee Celebration. The winning
drawing will be used as the cover for the event’s brochure. Submissions will be
accepted through Dec. 2. Details are available online at
http://governor.nc.gov/sites/default/files/StateEmployees2014MLKArt.pdf.
8. 2014 International Aviation Art Contest - The North Carolina Department of
Transportation recently announced a call for entries for the 2014 International Aviation
Art Contest. Whether surveying disaster zones, dropping off relief supplies, flying crash
victims to hospitals or aiding in the search for a lost hiker, airplanes are critical tools for
helping those in need. Young artists between the ages of 6-17 are invited to submit their
interpretations of these scenes and others that depict this year’s contest theme, “Flying
Saves Lives.” The entry deadline is Jan. 17. The top three entries in various age groups
will represent North Carolina in the national contest. The national winners will then be in
line for international competition. Entries should be mailed to: NCDOT Aviation Art
Contest, Attn: Corbi Bullock, 1560 Mail Service Center, Raleigh NC 27699-1560.
Previous Principals’ Biweekly Messages are posted online at
www.ncpublicschools.org/principalsarchive/