PRINCIPALS' MESSAGES 2013
PRINCIPALS' MESSAGES 2013JULY 18, 2013 - Principals' Biweekly Message
Earlier this month, the NCDPI and its partners successfully completed NC WISE year end transition in record time, made the transition from NC WISE to PowerSchool and began Home Base for the first time. Year-round schools were the first to have Home Base available to them as they started the 2013-14 school year, and all others will be accessing the new technology suite as their schools open. This marks an opportunity for our state to better personalize learning for students and to open up communication between students, teachers and parents. I am especially excited about having a standard parent portal for parents to receive vital information from their students' teachers and to better partner with teachers and with their students. I encourage your school to consider ways to engage parents with this new tool. I think this has strong implications for improving the way we focus on students and what they need to be successful in the classroom.
Regards,
June Atkinson
In this Biweekly Principals' Message:
State Board Meeting Highlights
At this month's State Board of Education meeting, members heard presentations on the Common Core State Standards for English language arts in grades K-3 and discussed the Department's Instructional Technology Plan, Home Base and Measures of Student Learning. Board members approved NCVPS non-public pricing for in-state students so that it is equivalent to pricing for public school students. Members also approved revisions to policies governing services for children with disabilities, revisions to the Science Safety Checklist schools must follow for maintaining science labs, and the State Board of Education meeting schedule for 2014. A summary of all Board action items is available online at http://stateboard.ncpublicschools.gov/highlights/2013.
Principals' Blog Focuses Primarily on Educator Evaluation System
NCDPI's Educator Evaluation System Consultant Kimberly Simmons has created a Principals' Blog to further support principals in regard to educator evaluation. Blog categories and entries will include updates and resources. The blog is available online at http://ncprincipals.blogspot.com
Elementary Students Benefit from "Give Five - Read Five" Campaign
North Carolina's elementary school students are reading new books at home this summer thanks to State Superintendent June Atkinson's "Give Five - Read Five" campaign and the generosity of people across the state. Atkinson launched the initiative in the spring to help promote summer reading by encouraging parents, business leaders and community members to drop off new or gently-used books at their local elementary schools. Over the next few months, donations poured in and by mid-June, 74 elementary schools had collected 123,152 books. In addition, the following three schools will receive one-year licenses to online literacy programs for collecting the most books in their size categories: West Hoke Elementary (Hoke County Schools), Whitnel Elementary (Caldwell County Schools), and Winterfield Elementary (Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools). To read more about the campaign and to see the list of participating schools and book donation totals, visit www.ncpublicschools.org and select the appropriate link under "News."
LEARN NC's Fall PD Schedule Online
LEARN NC's fall schedule of online professional development courses is available online at www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/7698 and open for enrollment. Whether educators are interested in picking up credit hours in cultural awareness, co-teaching, literacy, ESL, or American history, there is something for everyone. In addition, LEARN NC is offering multiple sections in Moodle Training and Teaching Online Courses. LEARN NC's online courses, which are aligned to North Carolina's Professional Teaching Standards, eliminate travel expenses and substitute-teacher costs normally associated with staff development. Online professional development allows teachers to participate at a time and place most convenient to them, and collaborate with colleagues via a variety of easy-to-use electronic forums.
Military Child Education Coalition Offers Training Opportunity
The Military Child Education Coalition (MCEC) is offering a training opportunity, "Living in the New Normal," on Aug. 5-6 at Southern Middle School, 717 Johnson Street, Aberdeen. The "Living in the New Normal" Institute encourages families to ensure their children have tools to bounce back from life's storms and "stressors," fosters community support efforts, and provides concerned adults with information to help support children during times of uncertainty, trauma, and loss. Institute information, including registration, is available on MCEC's website at www.militarychild.org. There is no charge to attend. MCEC is accredited to issue CEUs through the International Association of Continuing Education Training and the National Board of Certified Counselors. Participants may apply for CEUs and one-hour graduate credit upon completion of the training. MCEC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, world-wide organization. It performs research, develops resources, conducts professional institutes and conferences, and develops and publishes resources for all constituencies. The organization is focused on ensuring quality educational opportunities for all military children affected by mobility, family separation and transition.