PRINCIPALS' MESSAGES 2004

APRIL 15, 2004

For those of us in education, spring brings the usual anticipation of the end of the school year - and, yes, end-of-grade and end-of-course testing. I encourage you, if you have not already, to make your students and their parents aware of the scheduled testing dates so that they do not schedule activities that would pull them out of school during those important days. Although test make-up days are incorporated into all schedules, it helps everyone when most students are available to take their end-of-year tests on time. From the news I have been hearing around the state, our students should be well positioned to do well again this year. I know you and your staffs have been working hard to improve learning and student engagement, and those efforts always pay off in many ways - including test scores.

Regards,
Mike Ward

In this Biweekly Principals' Message:

1. SBE Chairman Helps Kick-Off Childhood Overweight Prevention Project
2. Teleconference Scheduled on Revised Mathematics SCS
3. Care for School Children with Diabetes
4. June 1 is the Deadline to Apply for 2004 SERVE Senior Project Institutes
5. Teacher SpeakUp Day
6. NCLB Sample Letters, Forms, Fact Sheets, and PowerPoint Designed to Help Communication Efforts
7. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Finalist for National Award
8. Two LEAs Receive Magna Award
9. Two Students Named Outstanding Young Scientific Leaders
10. Supplemental Retirement Plan Can Serve as Retention Tool
11. IDEA Symposium Scheduled
12. Arts Education Literacy Institute Scheduled
13. Proposals Being Accepted for National Smart Start Conference

SBE Chairman Helps Kick-Off Childhood Overweight Prevention Project

State Board Chairman Howard Lee kicked off a three-year partnership between NC DPI (Child Nutrition Services and Healthy Schools), NC Prevention Partners and GlaxoSmithKline that will address the childhood overweight epidemic in North Carolina. At a press conference held earlier this month at Apex Elementary School (Wake County Schools), Chairman Lee joined other agency representatives to publicly launch the pilot project that will create "toolkits" that target elementary, middle, and high school children and teens, their parents, and the communities in which they live. Each toolkit includes assessment tools, model policies, classroom teaching materials, and proven programs for education leaders, teachers, staff, parents and students. An important part of the project is identifying children at risk for health problems, and communicating with parents in order to link families to community health care providers for early intervention and prevention. The program will be piloted in Cumberland, Mecklenburg, and Warren counties. For more information, please contact Lynn Hoggard, Child Nutrition Services, DPI, 919.807.3507, or by email, lhoggard@dpi.state.nc.us.

Teleconference Scheduled on Revised Mathematics SCS

In order to facilitate the understanding and implementation of the revised Mathematics Standard Course of Study, DPI's mathematics' staff has scheduled a 90-minute interactive teleconference for principals, supervisors and teachers. The teleconference will be on Monday, May 3, from 4-5:30 p.m. It is hoped that school personnel will attend or send representatives to learn more about the changes in the K-8 Mathematics Standard Course of Study. The locations are posted at http://www.learnnc.org/. Click on Announcements and Calendar and select K-8 Mathematics teleconference. For more information, please contact Toni Meyer, Mathematics and Science Section, NC DPI, 919.807.3839, or by email, tmeyer@dpi.state.nc.us.

Care For School Children with Diabetes

The resource guide, "Helping the Student With Diabetes Succeed: A Guide For Schools," was recently sent to local central offices for distribution to individual schools. This guide was provided through the efforts of the Diabetes, Awareness and Action (DATA) Program, which assisted schools and school systems in complying with SB 911 relating to the care of school children with diabetes. Please make sure that these resource guides are in your schools. Also, superintendents are reminded that to assure continuing compliance with SB 911, all faculty and staff in schools where a child(ren) with diabetes is enrolled must receive the general training related to the care of school children with diabetes. In addition, at least two individuals need to receive the intensive training for emergency purposes. In order to assist with this requirement, you may continue to use the DATA manual materials that were developed last year. School Nurses, 504 Coordinators or your Diabetes Care Teams may be of additional assistance in this effort. If you have additional questions or concerns, please contact Paula Hudson Collins, DPI's Healthy Schools Section, at pcollins@dpi.state.nc.us, or by phone, 919.807.3859.

June 1 is the Deadline to Apply for 2004 SERVE Senior Project Institutes

High school principals are reminded that June 1 is the deadline to apply to attend the 2004 SERVE Senior Project Institutes. This year's training will be held on three separate dates in three separate locations:

• June 23-25 - Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
• July 21-23 - San Diego, Calif.
• Aug. 11-13 - Williamsburg, Va.

The SBE Scholarship will cover the cost of the registration fee for Day 1, Senior Project Training (teams of two - $575 and teams of three - $675 plus $85 for any additional team members), as well for the Conference registration, Day 2 and 3 ($875 for teams of three, plus $235 for each additional team member). Local school systems will be responsible for supporting any travel and subsistence for the team members attending the training. Additional information (conference brochure, registration forms, etc.) can be obtained by contacting Jane Worsham, Executive Director of the State Board of Education, 919.807.3400 or by email, jworsham@dpi.state.nc.us. The scholarships will be awarded on a first come, first served basis with priority given to schools and school systems that have not previously been awarded scholarships.

Teacher SpeakUp Day

The national NetDay organization is following up its successful Student SpeakUp Day with a Teacher SpeakUp Day on April 29. The event is being held to gather data on how teachers feel about technology in school and at home, and to show why teachers need to be consulted as major stakeholders in school technology decisions. Educators can get more details and register to participate by going online to http://www.netday.org/speakup_forteachers.htm and clicking on the appropriate link. NetDay is a national education non-profit dedicated to the study and promotion of the effective use of technology in the classroom.

NCLB Sample Letters, Forms, Fact Sheets, and PowerPoint Designed to Help Communication Efforts

Sample letters, forms and fact sheets are on the Web at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/nclb/ to help Title I School Improvement schools and school districts notify and explain to parents NCLB sanctions at the school level. Another document with parent letters and forms concerning "Highly Qualified" teachers is for use in all schools and districts. These documents will be available in Spanish at this site in the near future. In addition, a PowerPoint presentation is included to help district decision-makers come together to consider issues that must be dealt with for Title I School Improvement schools.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Finalist for National Award

Congratulations to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School System for being named a finalist for the 2004 Broad Prize for Urban Education. The winner, to be announced in the fall, will be awarded $500,000 for college scholarships. Each of the four finalists will receive $125,000 for college scholarships. The Board Prize is awarded to urban school districts "making the greatest overall improvement in student achievement while reducing achievement gaps across ethnic and income groups." To read more, please go to http://www.broadfoundation.org and click on the Board Prize for Urban Education.

Two LEAs Receive Magna Award

Congratulations to Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools and Gates County Schools for recently being named American School Board Journal's Magna Award 2004 winners. The Magna Awards recognize districts across the country for outstanding programs that advance student learning and encourage community involvement in schools. Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools was recognized for its Blue Ribbon Mentor-Advocate program for African American and Latino students. Gates County Schools was recognized for its Miss Sandra's Super Story Time, which promotes recreational reading among elementary school students, particularly during the summer months. Both schools will be featured in a special supplement to the April issue of American School Board Journal.

Two Students Named Outstanding Young Scientific Leaders

Congratulations to Jennifer Ricks, a senior at Fike High School (Wilson County Schools), and Peter Hamilton, a senior at Green Hope High School (Wake County Schools), for recently being named outstanding young scientific leaders from North Carolina's 2004 high school graduating class. At the invitation of Governor Bob Wise of West Virginia, they will participate as delegates in the 40th session of the National Youth Science Camp® held near the National Radio Astronomy Observatory at Green Bank, West Virginia. To read more, please go to DPI's Web site and look under "In the News."

Supplemental Retirement Plan Can Serve as Retention Tool

The State of North Carolina offers a supplemental retirement savings plan to educators, which can be used as a tool to help retain valuable employees. The NC 401(k) Plan, which is sponsored by the state and administrated by Prudential Retirement, is the largest governmental 401(k) Plan in the country. This Plan offers a way for faculty and staff to save for their retirement on a pre-tax basis while reducing their taxable earnings each year. It is important for educators and staff to start planning for their retirement today. Twelve Education and Enrollment Regional Managers across the state are available to discuss the benefits of saving for retirement. For more information, or to locate your Regional Manager, please call 919.664.7101.

IDEA Symposium Scheduled

A two-day IDEA Symposium for parents, professionals and policymakers has been scheduled for April 30-May 1 at the Friday Center, Chapel Hill. This workshop is presented by the North Carolina Council on Developmental Disabilities, the Special Needs Federation, the Exceptional Children's Assistance Center and Carolina Legal Assistance. Day one will feature renowned experts Kathleen Boundy and Robert Silverstein who will explain IDEA principles, changes in special education laws, and the impact of "No Child Left Behind" on students with disabilities. Day two will provide interactive workshops, which will focus on positive behavioral supports, parent/student advocacy, testing, transitions, IEP components, and more. There is no cost to attend the IDEA Symposium. However, due to limited seating, pre-registration is required. The registration deadline is April 16. For more information or to register, please contact Carolina Legal Assistance at 919.856.2195, or by email, snf@minspring.com.

Arts Education Literacy Institute Scheduled

The NC DPI Arts Education Literacy Institute will be held June 14-16 at the Radisson Governor's Inn, RTP. K-12 Arts educators (Dance, Music, Theatre Arts, Visual Arts) will have the opportunity to recognize and identify reading and writing strategies that are an integral part of arts education programs and to explore ways to implement these strategies in their classrooms. All educators will have opportunities to work within their individual grade spans and disciplines and will receive a wealth of information and resources to support reading and writing methods and literacy across the curriculum. Upon completion, certificates will be provided worth 2.0 CEU credits with prior approval from the local school system, with an optional follow-up activity toward 1.0 additional CEU credit (all credit received may be applied toward the State Reading Methods Requirements for K-8 Teachers). The registration deadline is May 19. For more information and to register, please go online to http://www.learnnc.org/ or call Christie Howell, Arts Education, NC DPI, at 919.807.3856 or 919.807.3855.

Proposals Being Accepted for National Smart Start Conference

Proposals are currently being accepted for presentations at the 2005 National Smart Start Conference. The conference will be held Jan. 23-27, 2005, at the Koury Convention Center, Greensboro. If you are interested in presenting at the conference, please submit a proposal via the Web at http://www.ncsmartstart.org/conference/proposalsinstr.htm by clicking on the appropriate link. Detailed information also can be found at this site regarding particular needs and interests for presentations at the conference. The deadline for online submission of proposals is May 9. Notifications will be made in late June as to whether your proposal has been accepted. For additional assistance, please call Marsha Munn, Early Childhood Education Consultant, 919/847-7721.