TEACHERS' MESSAGES 2008

MAY 22, 2008 - Teachers' Biweekly Messages

The 2007-08 school year will end in less than a month, and a new group of graduates will move into adulthood. In the fall, another group of kindergartners will begin school and the cycle will continue. We all feel pride and joy at the accomplishments of our students and a tug of sadness when they move to the next phase in their lives. As this school year ends, I hope you will celebrate with your students and their families and know that you have made a tremendous difference in their lives. Thank you for your commitment to your students.

Regards,
June Atkinson

In this Biweekly Teachers' Message:

1. Biweekly Message to Begin Summer Distribution Schedule
2. Farewell Message from 2007-08 NC Teacher of the Year
3. Teacher Working Conditions Survey Results Online
4. Gov. Easley Presents Budget
5. General Assembly Convenes Short Session
6. Testing and Accountability Feedback Sought
7. Professional Development Opportunity for eCommerce I Teachers
8. NCSU Sponsors High School Science Teachers Workshop
9. Professional Development Opportunities for Social Studies Teachers

Biweekly Message to Begin Summer Distribution Schedule

The Teachers' Biweekly Email Message will begin its summer distribution schedule in June but will resume its regular biweekly distribution schedule in September. Messages will be sent on the second Thursday of June, July and August to provide summer updates. In the meantime, please remember that if your email address changes over the summer, you will need to email this information to us so that we can update our file (send your old and new email address). Out-of-date and undeliverable email addresses are automatically deleted from the list.

Farewell Message from 2007-08 NC Teacher of the Year

It's hard to believe that the year and my tenure as North Carolina's Teacher of the Year are coming to an end. My Teacher of the Year "tour" has been an amazing adventure. I have had so much fun these past 13 months. Now don't get me wrong, I also worked hard. This year has been incredibly difficult and remarkably rewarding at the same time. As exhausted as I am as the year comes to an end, I would not have traded this experience for anything.

I would be remiss if I didn't take a minute to thank all of the teachers and students I had the opportunity to work with this year. Nothing was as fulfilling as the young people of this state who still had all of the energy and all of the passion that a teacher certainly needs to succeed. All of you will be amazing.

And the teachers of this state, so many amazing teachers in this state, thank you for giving me the support and fire that I would need to get from one county to another. If it wasn't for both the teachers and students from Manteo to Murphy, I would have never made it back and forth across the state. And it is a long, long, long state.

Even though this year has been hard work, I had a lot of fun. From the keynotes at the many conferences, the motivational speeches at colleges, to the workshops in the schools, this has been fun. From the basketball courts in Charlotte to the ice in Raleigh, this has been fun. From the Pacific Ocean of Hawaii to the Atlantic Ocean of Ocracoke Island this has been fun. And I have everyone that I met in North Carolina to thank for that.

You are so special. There are fantastic things happening in our great state and I am proud to be a part of it. I am proud to be a North Carolinian. And I am proud to have represented so many great teachers this year.

Before I leave I need to thank my family and my closest friends. You were my anchors when I needed to be grounded or when my head just got too big. But especially my wife, Lesley and my daughter Addison, you were so amazingly strong this year.

As I say farewell I want to say thank you again. I have had a unique and gratifying opportunity to meet people that I never would have met, do things that I never would have done, see places that I never would have seen, and of course, eat things that I never would have eaten (a "whoopee pie" in Mount Airy).

To say goodbye I would like to end with a quote from the great Vince Lombardi (I'm a football coach). "I firmly believe that any man's finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle - victorious."

I am exhausted. - James Bell, 2007-08 NC Teacher of the Year

Teacher Working Conditions Survey Results Online

Results of the 2008 Teacher Working Conditions survey are now available online at www.ncteachingconditions.org. Thank you all for taking the time to go online and complete the survey. Statewide, a total of 87 percent of teachers and administrators took the survey. Feedback from the survey will be used to shape local and statewide education policy and improve the quality of instruction delivered in schools across the state.

Gov. Easley Presents Budget

Gov. Mike Easley last week released his recommended budget adjustments for the 2008-09 fiscal year that provide $12.5 billion for education and a number of other state priorities, such as job growth, mental health services, oversight of prison parolees and drought planning. The budget also better prepares the state to deal with the uncertain economy by expanding the Rainy Day Fund to $848 million. Unlike most states that are facing shortfalls, North Carolina will end the current fiscal year with a $152 million surplus. The budget also includes $396 million in general fund budget cuts, nearly 2 percent of the total operating budget. The education budget includes funds to move teacher salaries closer to the national average, funds to support More at Four and Learn and Earn/Learn and Earn Online, School Connectivity and the Graduation Project, among other education priorities. Additional details about the budget will be sent as they become available.

General Assembly Convenes Short Session

The General Assembly also convened its short session last week and will take up primarily budgetary issues. Updates from the General Assembly will be sent to teachers on Friday afternoons as has been done in the past. We encourage you to keep in close touch with your legislators and provide feedback as to how their budgetary choices will affect your classrooms.

Testing and Accountability Feedback Sought

Teachers are reminded that the State Board of Education's Framework for Change: The Next Generation of Assessments and Accountability is posted online at www.ncpublicschools.org under Highlights. Visitors to this site also can reach the email address for providing feedback to the Board's framework. That address is testingfeedback@dpi.state.nc.us. Please submit your ideas by May 28, and share this email feedback opportunity with others in your school community.

Professional Development Opportunity for eCommerce I Teachers

Teaching e-Commerce I for the first time next year? Virtual Mentoring: e-Commerce I will take you through the entire course. Teachers will participate in discussions and activities designed to explore how best to teach this exciting new curriculum, with guidance from the original online course developer. This eight-week online course from LEARN NC begins June 9 and is worth 3 CEUs. For a full course description or to register, please go online to www.learnnc.org/courses/current/ExploringeCommerceI_6_9_08.

NCSU Sponsors High School Science Teachers Workshop

North Carolina State University is offering a Science Teachers Workshop in Nuclear Science Applications on June 17 & 18. The first day will be held at NC State's Nuclear Engineering Department and the second day will be held at the Shearon Harris Nuclear Power Plant. The $25 registration fee covers instructional materials, lunch and transport between Shearon Harris Nuclear Power Plant and Burlington Engineering Labs at NC State University. This workshop is suited for high school chemistry, physics, biology and environmental science teachers and will count for 1.0 CEUs. Giveaways and lunches/refreshments will be provided. Pre-approved hotel (double occupancy) and mileage, if outside RTP & surrounding area, also will be provided. For more information, including registration, please visit http://www.ne.ncsu.edu/outreach/STW2008/index2.html

Professional Development Opportunity for Social Studies Teachers

The NC Bar Association Foundation's Law-Related Education Advisory Committee and the Center for Civic Education are sponsoring "We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution N.C. Summer Institute" on July 19-25 at Peace College, Raleigh. The NC Bar Association Foundation's Law-Related Education Advisory Committee, the Center for Civic Education and James Madison's Montpelier are sponsoring "We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution N.C. Teacher Institute" on Aug. 4-7 at James Madison's Montpelier. Twenty teachers will be accepted to attend this institute with preference given to those teaching in Forsyth, Davidson, Davie, Yadkin, Stokes, Surry, Rockingham and Guilford Counties. Additional information for both programs can be accessed online at http://lre.ncbar.org. If you have any questions, please contact the NCBA LRE Department at 919.677.0561, or by email, lre@ncbar.org.

 

If you'd like to review past Teachers' Biweekly Messages sent to the listserv group, just go online to http://www.ncpublicschools.org/teachersarchive/.