Author Archives: Commissioner Stephen Bowen

MLTI conference celebrates evolution of learning

Posted on May 16, 2013 | Leave a comment

As you receive this, 1,000 students and 200 educators along with their Apple MacBooks are at the University of Maine showcasing how State-supplied technology is transforming learning and better preparing them for success in their classroom, career and civic life as part of the 10th Annual Maine Learning Technology Initiative Student Conference.

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Posted in From the Commissioner, Professional Development, Students, Teachers, Technology

Update on status of teacher/principal evaluation rules

Posted on May 10, 2013 | Leave a comment

Dear Superintendents:

The Department provisionally adopted Chapter 180, the rules for implementing required teacher and principal evaluation systems, seven weeks ago today. A number of you have been asking me and other Department staff when you can expect the new rules on teacher effectiveness evaluations to go into effect. This is to update you on where that stands and why we have not been able to help you move forward with that work.

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Posted in Administrators, Featured, From the Commissioner, Instruction, Teachers

Empowering Educators with A-F: A Conversation on Where We Can Go From Here

Posted on May 9, 2013 | 4 Comments

Teachers invited to participate in webinar

Last week, the Maine Department of Education rolled out A-F report cards for each school in the state as part of our new Maine School Performance Grading System.

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Posted in Administrators, From the Commissioner, Governor LePage, Teachers

Maine schools have Department support

Posted on May 8, 2013 | Leave a comment

It’s been over a week since Governor LePage and I released Maine’s School Performance Grading System. I continue to tour schools that are exemplifying promising practices, including several that have received grades on the lower end of the spectrum. Based on what I’ve seen, these schools are doing many of the right things to get their students invested in learning. It’s important that the Department be engaged with these schools to let them know they have support. That is why we’ll be hosting a webinar next Thursday to start a series of informative sessions for Maine educators. Continue reading →

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Posted in From the Commissioner, Governor LePage, Listening Tour, Teachers

Hands-on learning a success in Oxford County

Posted on May 3, 2013 | Leave a comment
Eighth grader Ken Stump shows Commissioner Bowen a solar panel they created to heat the indoor greenhouse at Roberts Farm in Norway.

Eighth grader Ken Stump shows Commissioner Bowen a solar panel Oxford Hills Middle School students created to heat the indoor greenhouse at Roberts Farm in Norway.

I had the chance visit three Oxford County schools yesterday as part of my Promising Practices Tour, just a day after releasing the new A-F school grading system designed to improve transparency. As a state, we need to move beyond the one-size-fits-all models of teaching and embrace student-centered models like the ones many Maine schools, like the ones I visited in Oxford County, are doing. Governor LePage and I made reference to that Wednesday when we unveiled the new school report cards, which showed a majority of Maine’s elementary and high schools earned an A, B or C.

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Posted in Career & Technical, From the Commissioner, Governor LePage, High School, Listening Tour, Middle School, Oxford County, Science & Technology, Students

School report cards set benchmark

Posted on May 1, 2013 | 1 Comment

It’s been a busy week at Maine DOE as we released the first A-F report cards for each of the state’s schools as part of the new Maine School Performance Grading System. Now that we have a usable and understandable benchmark of where schools are, the real work begins!

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Posted in Accountability, From the Commissioner, Governor LePage

More info on school grading system

Posted on April 18, 2013 | 11 Comments

Over the next few days you will start to receive information about the A-F school grading system, which will be released soon. I will be sharing some of the data with you, and more explanation of how the grading system works. We’ll also be scheduling webinars with superintendents to explain the system and how we plan to unveil it.

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Posted in Accountability, From the Commissioner, Governor LePage

Commissioner’s Update – April 11, 2013

Posted on April 11, 2013 | Leave a comment

From the Commissioner

Away from the headlines, some amazing work is going on in Maine schools and I’ve had the good fortune to visit several schools –most recently Lake Region High School and the career and technical education center.

I also got to meet six talented teachers last Thursday at a ceremony recognizing them as 2014 Maine Teacher of the Year semi-finalists. Yes, Shannon Shanning, our 2013 Teacher of the Year has barely begun her term, but we are already busy reviewing, scoring, and celebrating more great teachers. I was also glad to announce that the Department has entered into a partnership with Educate Maine, a business-led education group, to manage the program. We are excited about this partnership and confident in their ability to further raise the profile of this program, which showcases and highlights exceptional teachers.

Notices and Reporting

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Posted in Commissioner's Updates

Portland schools establish promising practices for all students

Posted on April 3, 2013 | Leave a comment
East End kindergartner Antonio Hernandez explains his math journal to Commissioner Bowen.

East End kindergartner Antonio Hernandez explains his math journal to Commissioner Bowen.

When I visited East End Community School and Riverton Elementary in Portland last week as part of my Promising Practices Tour, I was blown away by the measures they’re taking to ensure all students are engaged in learning—not an easy feat in such a multilingual district.

East End and Riverton were both identified as underperforming—one in 2009-10 and one in 2010-11—and applied for and received School Improvement Grants. With the help of those grants and technical assistance from the Department, the schools have initiated a number of promising practices. Last week, these schools showed me they’re doing what it takes to get things done.

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Posted in Administrators, Cumberland County, Elementary School, From the Commissioner, Funding, Instruction, Listening Tour, Students

Preparing for A-F grading system

Posted on April 3, 2013 | 15 Comments

Headshot of Commissioner Stephen Bowen

During his State of the State address in February, Governor LePage announced that Maine will introduce a school performance grading system to simplify for parents, taxpayers and others how their schools are doing. Many of you have expressed interest in and concern about how we will generate the grades, and what we will do to support schools that receive low grades.

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Posted in Accountability, From the Commissioner