Office of Digital Learning
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
75 Pleasant Street
Malden, MA 02148-5023
odl@doe.mass.edu
www.doe.mass.edu/odl
@MASchoolsK12
Digital Learning Advisory Council : Meeting Minutes
Date:
Thursday, February 25, 2016
Time:
10:00 AM – Noon
Location:
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Rooms 137A and 137B
75 Pleasant Street
Malden, MA 02148-5023
Attendee
Information:
Kevin Bauman, Gina Flanagan, Julia Freeland Fisher, Amy Michalowski, Justin Reich,
Peter Sanchioni, Annamaria Schrimpf, Kyle Shachmut, Barbara Treacy, Elizabeth
Tripathi,Andrea Kupps, Jennifer Gwatkin, Kenneth Klau (ESE), Adam Goldberg,
Carl Tillona, Crystal Fairman, Richard Tisei, Dee Kamejiya, Pierce Haley
Agenda and
Minutes
1. Review and approval of Minutes from DLAC meeting, January 6, 2016 Motion made, seconded and approved to approve minutes.
2. MCAS 2.0 Technology Readiness
○ Update on districts' progress toward technological readiness for
computer-based testing and state assistance efforts
i.
Ken Klau presented an update on state
efforts to ensure technology readiness for teaching, learning, and
assessment by spring 2019. There is partnership with Education
Superhighway to provide boots-on-ground assistance to districts
that step forward to ask for help with readiness; Ed Superhighway,
MassIT, and ODL will use a set of tools to allow districts to do needs
assessments that will allow for an expanded conversation around
needs – financial, technical support, etc.
ii.
There is a meeting scheduled for March 31,
2016 at Hudson High School that is open to superintendents,
teachers, school business managers. This two-hour long “drive in
session” will feature a panel of practitioners who will share their
experiences with this work.
iii.
The Massachusetts School Building
Authority (MSBA) conducts needs analyses every five years; they
Office of Digital Learning
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
75 Pleasant Street
Malden, MA 02148-5023
odl@doe.mass.edu
www.doe.mass.edu/odl
@MASchoolsK12
send assessors into every traditional public school facility in the
state to look at everything – space utilization, provisioning from an
operational state. They also look at Wi-Fi and devices. Traditionally
the MSBA’s questions have been limited, so ODL, MSBA, and
MassIT are scheduled to meet to discuss how the MSBA can beef
up that portion of their site survey so that in about a year from now
we will have that big picture and enough data points to reasonably
estimate what the costs will be to bring a school up to par.
iv.
There will be two additional DLAC meetings
on April and May which will continue to address MACS 2.0.
v.
ODL has procured an assessment tool
(Metiri) to collect information about district and school technology
readiness and will pilot it with 15 or so districts. We will work
closely with these districts and in collaboration with Ed
Superhighway to gain a sense of where gaps will be and pressure
test the tool itself.
vi.
ODL is working with MassIT on a RFQ for a
hardware bundled solution and will be meeting with a group of
practitioners between now and March 31, 2016 to get a sense of
the kinds of services they want.
vii.
On March 18, 2016 there is a digital equity
summit with Comcast, hosted by EDC, at UMass-Boston, with the
goal of bringing together school leaders and organizations
interested in digital equity (providing residential broadband at
reduced rate).
○ Questions and comments from the public
i.
The participants did not provide feedback
during this meeting.
3. CMVS Updates
○ TECCA - Adam Goldberg (TECCA), provided his 3rd DLAC
presentation related to TECCA’s request to increase student PPE
from $6,700 to $9,000, and for SPED from $8,700 to $12,500, over
two years, and shared that TECCA was recognized by Connections
as a small school for its growth. Discussion ensued about various
Office of Digital Learning
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
75 Pleasant Street
Malden, MA 02148-5023
odl@doe.mass.edu
www.doe.mass.edu/odl
@MASchoolsK12
line item costs and where there might be flexibility to dedicate
additional funds towards more direct teacher/student line items,
and whether they can articulate how increased funding will lead to
economies of scale over time. As a next step, ODL will form a
subcommittee to address CMVS funding issues, and work on a
presentation to the state board.
○
GCVS/MAVA - Carl Tillona (GCVS) presented a similar proposal to
TECCA’s re: increasing PPE. Their original proposal had requested
$8518, and that still makes sense to them, so they are looking to
increase PPE from the current $6,700 to $8,518. The additional
staffing planned with increased funding includes hiring a director of
technology, director of digital learning, director of student services,
and an additional high school guidance counselor. They are in an
RFP stage for a new course provider, and it is the intent of the
board to bring the teachers over to the MAVA school side. Other
highlights from the presentation included an overview to the
student population, which is similar to an urban school’s student
population; information about the MAVA writing program and the
additional PD the school provides teachers beyond what K12
provides.
4. Committee Reports
○ Digital/Blended Learning - This committee is hold for now, as
discussed at a prior meeting.
○ District Technology Budgets This committee will schedule a
meeting before the next DLAC meeting.
○ UDL/Accessibility - This committee met prior to the full DLAC
meeting and will be updating the earlier DESE accessibility guide.
○ Credentialing committee - This committee is on hold but will
continue as a DLAC agenda item.
5. Next meeting - April 28, 10:00 - 12:00 @ DESE
6. Adjourn - Motion to adjourn was made, seconded and approved.