Category Archives: Early Childhood

Commissioner tours Portland elementaries, commends innovative ideas

Posted on March 29, 2013 by | Leave a comment

AUGUSTA – Education Commissioner Stephen Bowen praised the work of teachers and administrators at Riverton Elementary and East End Community schools in Portland following his visit Friday, part of his Promising Practices Tour.

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Posted in Cumberland County, Early Childhood, Elementary School, Instruction, Listening Tour, Press Releases, Students, Teachers

Submit application for Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program grants

Posted on March 26, 2013 by | 1 Comment

The USDA Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) is a grant to provide fruits and vegetables to students during the school day, aside from breakfast and lunch times. Maine schools have until Friday, March 30, to request applications to apply for the program. This program is only for grades PreK-8.

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Posted in Administrators, Early Childhood, Elementary School, Featured, Funding, Middle School, Nutrition

New early learning website reflects interagency work

Posted on February 27, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Commissioners Stephen Bowen and Mary Mayhew announced on Jan. 30, 2013, that they had signed a joint memorandum to form the State Agency Interdepartmental Early Learning team and to encourage the state’s entire early childhood system to take part in this effort.

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Posted in Early Childhood, Featured, Health

Child Development Services announces online referral submission

Posted on February 1, 2013 by | Leave a comment

Child Development Services announces the launch of its website, which includes the ability for agencies, providers and individuals concerned about a child’s development to make online referrals.

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Posted in Administrators, Early Childhood, Families, Featured, Special Populations

Maine DOE and DHHS ink pledge on early childhood learning

Posted on January 30, 2013 by | 3 Comments

A little over a year ago, Maine scored high, but not high enough, on its application for a Race to the Top grant to promote advances in the state’s early childhood learning systems. We and our counterparts at the Maine Department of Health and Human Services, who worked collaboratively to develop the plan, held a press conference and pledged to move forward with as much of the plan as we could, even though we would not receive any federal funding.

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Posted in Early Childhood, Featured, From the Commissioner

Advisory council meeting to discuss IDEA, Part C: programs for infants & toddlers with disabilities

Posted on November 14, 2012 by | Leave a comment

The State Interagency Coordinating Council’s initial meeting for this year is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 29, from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Cross State Office Building in Augusta. Continue reading →

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Posted in Early Childhood, Families, Featured, Public meetings, Special Populations

Amended guidance on federal sequestration

Posted on September 27, 2012 by | Leave a comment

This is an update on the current status of the anticipated sequestration of federal funds as a result of the debt limit deal enacted by Congress on August 2, 2011. The President is required to issue a sequestration order, which will have immediate effect, no later than Jan. 2, 2013.

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Posted in Career & Technical, Dispatches, Early Childhood, ESEA, Funding, Special Populations

Laura Richards School overcomes CIPS status, surpasses standards

Posted on June 28, 2012 by | Leave a comment

First grade teacher Laurie Malcolm (upper left) studies shapes with the Reiter family during Math Mania night at Laura E. Richards School.

Being identified as a Continuous Improvement Priority School in 2009 was devastating for staff at Laura E. Richards School in Gardiner.

Too few students were meeting the targets in mathematics according to the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Now, after two years of hard work by Principal Karen Moody, her staff and the entire school community, students at Laura Richards have surpassed the targets in both math and reading.

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Posted in Administrators, Assessment, Early Childhood, Elementary School, English Language Arts, Featured, Funding, Images, Kennebec County, Mathematics, Students, Teachers

Virtual learning center a success for family literacy program

Posted on June 18, 2012 by | Leave a comment
Commissioner Stephen Bowen meets Jack Wheeler, recent graduate of the SPICE Family Literacy Program.

Commissioner Stephen Bowen meets Jack Wheeler, recent graduate of the SPICE Family Literacy Program, which enabled Jack to work and spend time with his family while finishing his high school degree from home.

With the press of a button, members of more than a dozen families in RSU 3 can transport themselves to the halls of Mount View High School – the virtual halls, that is. Select families in 11 Waldo County towns can enroll in this virtual learning center, which opened in 2010 as part of the Students and Parents in Cooperative Education (SPICE) Family Literacy Program that aims to overcome issues of rural isolation.

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Posted in Adult Ed, Dispatches, Early Childhood, Families, Featured, Students, Technology, Waldo County

Comments sought on Maine’s IDEA Part B application

Posted on February 15, 2012 by | Leave a comment

The Maine Department of Education is seeking comments from the public on its application for federal funds under Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which covers services for preschool- and school-age children with disabilities.

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Posted in Administrators, Early Childhood, Featured, Funding, News & Views, Special Populations