In the past week the Maine Charter School Commission held hearings on three applications for public charter schools to open this fall. It’s a tight time schedule, but Commission members are putting in many hours to give each application a thorough review. They are striking a balance between the need to provide students and families with choices, and the imperative that they closely follow the criteria laid out for them.
We anticipate hearing from the Commission by the end of the month on the status of these applications. We hope that, come September, more students in Maine will have more pathways available to them.
Charter schools will not solve all of the needs facing Maine students today, but they are part of the solution: a web of choices for students: choice of school and choice of pathways foremost among them. Another part of the solution is to share the great work that is happening around the state.. We at the Maine DOE don’t have a monopoly on good ideas. In fact, our best ones come from the schools already trying them. We look forward to sharing many of those ideas with you next week at the Superintendents Conference.
— Stephen Bowen
ACTION ITEMS
Administrative Letters
- No administrative letters this week.
Notices
- FEDES applications delayed
- End-of-year financial data reporting due in MEDMS
- Year end staff/student reporting requirements
- Funding available for building renovations
Reporting
Please note: We generally provide notice of requirements only once. Please check the Reporting Calendar (link below) regularly for a list of ALL upcoming items.
- Leased Space Application, September 17
- School Revolving Renovation Fund Application, September 28
NEWS & VIEWS
Virtual learning center a success for family literacy program
Select families in RSU 3 in Waldo County have enrolled in a virtual learning center, which opened in 2010 through Mount View High School as part of the Students and Parents in Cooperative Education (SPICE) Family Literacy Program. Commissioner Stephen Bowen had a chance to explore the adult education program’s web-based learning environment when he visited last week. | More
Teachers as students
I had the opportunity to speak with future teachers at the University of Maine Wednesday. It was great to witness their passion for education and the student-centered direction the profession is moving in. By Stephen Bowen | More
Maine grad rate improves again
AUGUSTA – For the second year in a row, the graduation rate in Maine has improved by a statistically significant amount. The percentage of students graduating within four year of entering high school for 2010-11 was 83.79 percent, up nearly a full percentage point compared to the previous year. | More
Maine now certified for migrant ed data
Maine’s Migrant Education Program became fully certified with the Migrant Student Information Exchange initiative in May, after two years of hard work. | More
Deering grad makes major league baseball
Ryan Flaherty, a 2005 graduate and standout athlete of Deering High School in Portland, completed his journey to the major leagues this year when he made the Baltimore Orioles’ opening day roster. | More
Committees forming for assessment system development
As a governing member of SBAC, Maine is afforded the opportunity to invite educators to participate in the process of reviewing test items and performance tasks for the 2013 Pilot Test. | More
Updated: Summer professional development opportunities
Don’t forget there are still summer development opportunities for which you can sign-up. | More