Author: Maine Department of Education

Press Release: Maine’s 2023 County Teachers of the Year Announced

Sixteen Maine teachers were announced as 2023 County Teachers of the Year today at a ceremony in the Hall of Flags at the Maine State Capitol during Teacher Appreciation Week. Governor Janet Mills joined Maine Department of Education Deputy Commissioner Dan Chuhta, Educate Maine Executive Director Jason Judd, State Board of Education Chair Fern Desjardins, 2023 Maine Teacher of the Year Matthew Bernstein, and Maine County and State Teachers of the Year Association Co-President Heather Whitaker to announce and honor the new class of County Teachers of the Year.

More than 500 teachers across Maine were nominated by a member of their school community and these 16 outstanding educators were selected as County Teachers of the Year by a panel of teachers, principals, and business community members within their county. They range from having taught six years to 30, include elementary, middle, high school, and adult education teachers, and teach subjects ranging from science, reading, and social studies to graphic communications, health, and physical education.

Maine County Teachers of the Year serve as ambassadors for teachers, students, and schools throughout their year of service. Throughout the summer, they will continue to participate in an intensive Maine State Teacher of the Year selection process and Maine’s Teacher of the Year will be announced in the fall.

“As the daughter of a longtime public school teacher, I have the deepest respect and admiration for the Maine educators who work tirelessly to equip our students with the knowledge and skills they need to have bright futures,” said Governor Janet Mills. “I congratulate this year’s County Teacher of the Year honorees for their commitment to excellence in education, and most importantly, for their outstanding work in teaching our children.”

“These 16 extraordinary teachers were nominated by colleagues, parents, and students for their passion, leadership, dedication, and the difference they make in the lives of their students and school community. They make each student feel seen and valued, inspire everyone around them, and engage their students in rich, meaningful learning. I want to offer my sincere appreciation for everything that you do and it’s such an honor to celebrate you as Maine’s County Teachers of the Year,” said Maine Education Commissioner Pender Makin.

“We’re excited to announce the tenth County Teacher of the Year cohort in 2023 – a group of outstanding educators who will serve as ambassadors for students, teachers, and quality education in Maine. We’re honored to work alongside them during this year of recognition and are confident that they will continue to inspire and make a positive impact on their students, schools, and communities,” said Educate Maine Executive Director Jason, Judd.

2023 County Teachers of the Year:

The Maine Department of Education’s Teacher of the Year Program is administered through a collaborative partnership with Educate Maine. To learn more about the Teacher of the Year Program visit: https://www.mainetoy.org/. The event was also broadcast live on the Maine Department of Education’s YouTube page.

Webinar McKinney-Vento Program 101 – May 30th 3:30 – 4:30 pm

Join MAIER and Maine’s Department of Education’s Amelia Lyons for a webinar on the McKinney-Vento program. This session will provide an overview of the act that allows each state to provide a program to assist students with their rights when they are experiencing unstable housing situations.  Participants will learn about student rights including the rights to immediate school enrollment even when records not present, remaining in the school of origin, if in the student’s best interest, receiving transportation to and from the school of origin, and receiving support for academic success. Amelia Lyons will go over the McKinney-Vento Act, common misconceptions of the program requirements and ways educators and family members can help youth receive these services so that every student can have an opportunity for academic success. Registration is free but required.

When/Where: Online Zoom meeting (link provided once you register). Tuesday, May 30th, 3:30 – 4:30 pm

Come to the webinar (register here) and get your questions asked, but if you miss it, this webinar will be recorded and made available on the MAIER website within a few weeks after the event.

Contact hours are available. For more information please reach out to Anica Miller Rushing anica.miller.rushing@maine.edu.

Maine DOE Announces Funding Opportunity for Maine Public Schools to Become BARR Schools

Applications are now open to all willing and qualified public schools who would like to become a BARR (Building Assets, Reducing Risks) school. Click here to apply. Using American Rescue Plan, state reservation funds, the Maine Department of Education (DOE) will cover all costs of implementing the program for schools new to BARR, and all costs of continued implementation support to existing BARR schools. Additionally, the DOE will provide travel reimbursement and educator stipends associated with participation in the program.  Applications are due by May 26, 2023. 

BARR was developed over 20 years ago by a high school counselor who felt ineffective because more than 40 percent of her 9th grade students were failing at least one core course and were at risk for not graduating on time. She learned from her school’s principal that this was not just her high school’s problem, but it reflected a troubling national trend. Using strategies from the fields of business and medicine, Executive Director Angela Jerabek created the BARR model and implemented it in the fall of 1998. By spring 1999, 9th grade student failure rate had decreased from 44% the previous year to 20%. Teachers worked together and knew each student – not just from an academic perspective, but from a personal perspective – their interests, strengths, hopes, and dreams. 

Careful implementation and evaluation continued for over 20 years, all with the same findings – students passed more classes, pursued more advanced courses, and graduated on time. The focus of BARR is not just for some students, but all students. Teachers reported increased collaboration, satisfaction, and their ability to use data effectively. School culture and climate was improved. Today, BARR operates in over 250 schools throughout the nation and works in all grade levels, K-12, including in dozens of schools here in Maine.   

“There is no question that BARR has had a positive impact on the students and staff at Sacopee Valley Middle School. We are intervening with students earlier, our meetings are more efficient, and most importantly, our relationships are stronger. Honestly, I couldn’t imagine our school without BARR. It is not a flavor of the month intervention — it is now part of our fabric and is here to stay,” said Amy Vacchiano, counselor and BARR Coordinator at Sacopee Valley Middle School. 

The BARR system uses eight interlocking strategies that build intentional relationships (staff to staff, staff to student, and student to student) and utilizes real-time data to enable schools to achieve concrete academic, social, and emotional outcomes for each and every student. To learn more about BARR visit: https://barrcenter.org/about-barr/barr-model/. 

To be eligible, a school must meet one of the following: 

Sign up for an informational session on: 

Wednesday, May 17, 2023 | 4:00 ET | REGISTER 

or  

Thursday, May 18, 2023 | 4:00 ET | REGISTER 

Join Beth Lambert, Acting Chief Innovation Officer and Director of Innovative Teaching and Learning at the Maine DOE to learn more about this opportunity to implement the BARR system in your school(s). We’ll also be joined by Rob Metz and Jennifer Fox from the BARR Center who will provide an overview of BARR and other Maine educators who are excited to share their experiences and the impact it has had on their schools: 

  • Jennifer Mull-Brooks, Principal, Congin Elementary School 
  • Greg Henderson, School Counselor and BARR Coordinator, Mt. Blue High School 
  • Shelly Lajoie, Counselor and BARR Coordinator, Noble High School 
  • Josh Tripp, Principal, Bucksport High School 

Learn more about BARR at http://www.barrcenter.org. 

Teachers Appreciating Teachers: Jonesboro Elementary Teachers Flip Beloved Coworker’s Classroom

(Pictured: The team who helped with the classroom flip)

When Patty Wallace walked into her classroom, at Jonesboro Elementary, on the evening of Tuesday, April 18th, she thought she was coming in to check on a water leak. Several of her co-workers were quietly waiting for her! For the previous 3 days, the group had been working on a complete classroom makeover to surprise Patty.

Mrs. Wallace is the kind of person who will jump in and help anyone whenever they need it. So when fellow teacher, Sheena Frazier, came up with the room redo idea, plenty of people wanted to jump in and help return the favor!

“She is the most humble person I’ve ever met,” says Sheena. “I’ve always loved decorating my room and I’ve always loved sharing ideas with Patty. Last summer when I was sharing some ideas about my room with her, I told her I wanted to make all of my bookshelves black. Patty mentioned that when I decided to paint them to let her know because she wanted to paint hers black too. I was always encouraging her to paint her room! I even told her that I was going to paint her room for her when she wasn’t there! As you know, summers fly and your time seems limited on prepping for the next year. The time just never seemed to be there.”

Fast forward to 4 weeks ago, the idea occurred to Sheena again. “I was going to tackle her room, unbeknownst to her, because I felt she deserved it. Patty’s year has been a pretty rough one. She deserved a little pick me up!”

Sheena began talking to other coworkers and sharing her ideas. Without hesitation, one friend wanted to help. It trickled into a domino effect because then another friend wanted to be in on it. Finally, the group shared the idea with the principal, Marjorie Hicks, who is Patty’s best friend and knows her the best.

“I wanted to make sure this was something Patty would like before going and making such a drastic change to someone else’s room,” said Sheena. Marjorie was definitely on board and thought it was a great idea and also thought it was very well deserving. So, with more people on board, colors decided, and items being ordered for the room, the project was planned to be done during April Break. With Patty having such a crazy year, everyone agreed that this classroom revamp would be the boost to carry Patty through the rest of the year in a beautiful new classroom.

Sunday, April 16th was demo day!

Day 1 was packing day, moving things out, and painting walls. Her bookshelves went to the gym to be painted black, and books were boxed up and moved to the library and other rooms. Keeping things sorted and separated would make putting things back so much easier. On Day two furniture was placed, shelves hung, and curriculum books placed back in order. On day three the group finished up by organizing her items, color coding her books in a rainbow pattern, matching the main mason jars of colored pencils to the books, making her desk area personal with family photos, putting together her brand new chair and hanging curtains and plants to add the final touches.

“We couldn’t believe we had finished in such a short amount of time. We were so excited to do the reveal. We couldn’t wait another day.”  Mrs. Hicks called Patty in a “panic” saying there was a leak at the school and she needed her help asap! Patty rushed over and walked in completely shocked. It was definitely a happy, tearful event watching her walk around and looking at all of the little things that had been done specially for her.

It was the perfect transformation Tuesday! There were so many helpers! Along with, Sheena Frazier, Laurel Hoppe, Stacy Gardner, Hailey Jordan, Ann Grange, Tracy Smith, Jeanne Whitney, and principal Marjorie Hicks all worked as a team to make the change. On day one the room could never have been dismantled nearly as quickly without some very helpful and kind-hearted young men! They finished within an hour! Thank you so much Ethan, Tristan, Derek Jyus, and Kauai!

Patty’s room is absolutely beautiful. Check out this amazing transformation! Thank you Mrs. Wallace for everything you always do for others. This is just one way for everyone to show you how much you are appreciated!

Patty Wallace, 7th/8th grade elementary teacher

Two Maine Students Named 2023 U.S. Presidential Scholars

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona announced the 59th class of U.S. Presidential Scholars, recognizing 161 high school seniors for their accomplishments in academics, the arts, and career and technical education fields.

The Maine scholars include (hometown, scholar, school, location):

  • ME – Falmouth – Patrick Michael Wahlig, Falmouth High School, Falmouth, Maine.
  • ME – Falmouth – Coco Leqi Xu, Falmouth High School, Falmouth, Maine.

“U.S. Presidential Scholars have always represented the future of our country and the bright promise it holds. I want each of these remarkable students to know: your passion and intellect, pursuit of excellence, and spirit of service are exactly what our country needs,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. “On behalf of President Biden, I am delighted to join your family, friends, and communities in celebrating your accomplishments. Aim high, share your talents, and continue embracing opportunities to lead as your exciting future unfolds.”

The White House Commission on Presidential Scholars selects scholars annually based on their academic success, artistic and technical excellence, essays, school evaluations and transcripts, as well as a demonstrated commitment to community service and leadership.

Of the 3.7 million students expected to graduate from high school this year, more than 5,000 candidates qualified for the 2023 awards determined by outstanding performance on the College Board SAT or ACT exams or through nominations made by chief state school officers, other partner recognition organizations and YoungArts, the National Foundation for the Advancement of Artists.

As directed by Presidential Executive Order, the 2023 U.S. Presidential Scholars are comprised of one young man and one young woman from each state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and U.S. families living abroad, as well as 15 chosen at-large, 20 scholars in the arts and 20 scholars in career and technical education.

Created in 1964, the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program has honored over 8,000 of the nation’s top-performing students. The program was expanded in 1979 to recognize students who demonstrate exceptional talent in the visual, literary and performing arts. In 2015, the program was again extended to recognize students who demonstrate ability and accomplishment in career and technical education fields.

The Presidential Scholars Class of 2023 will be recognized for their outstanding achievement this summer with an online recognition program.

A complete list of 2023 U.S. Presidential Scholars is available at http://www.ed.gov/psp.

Co-Teaching Community of Practice Last Chance to Register- Starts May 10th 3:30 pm

Learn and develop an enhanced understanding of what it means to co-teach, plan, and assess with your colleagues. Join as a solo practitioner or with team members. By joining this Community of Practice; facilitated and supported by MAIER‘s Research Associate, Dr. Anica Miller Rushing, and 2Teach’s talented Dr. Melissa Jenkins, you will increase your ability to use these practical, innovative, and research-based strategies to improve Universally Designed Instruction in today’s inclusive classrooms and organizations. Meetings start May 10th, get more info and register HERE. Don’t miss out!

Contact hours are available. For more information please reach out to Anica Miller Rushing anica.miller.rushing@maine.edu.

 

Maine DOE Update – May 5, 2023

From the Maine Department of Education

Reporting Items & Webinars

| Visit the DC&R Reporting Calendar |

News & Updates

Additional Support for 2023 Summer Learning and Enrichment Programming

The Maine Department of Education (DOE) is excited to announce that 2 million dollars of the American Rescue Plan (ARP) funding will support additional summer learning and enrichment programming for PreK – grade 12 students this summer. This follows the recent award of $2.1 million to 63 school administrative units (SAUs) to support summer enrichment programming through the Title I Summer Reallocation Grant. |  More

Regional School Calendars Due June 1, 2023

This notification is a reminder that Regional School Calendars are due by June 1, 2023, for school administrative units (SAU) and private schools, approved for tuition purposes, in coordination with their local secondary career and technical education (CTE) school. This requirement is part of Public Law 2011, Chapter 686 to promote collaboration among local school administrative units that may benefit from inter-administrative unit collaboration beyond CTE.  |  More

First 10 Community Schools Request for Applications (RFA)

The Maine Department of Education (DOE) is accepting applications from school administrative units (SAUs) and Education in the Unorganized Territory (EUT) to be part of a 3-year First 10 Community School pilot project funded through Maine’s Preschool Development Grant. Developed by Education Development Center, First 10 Community Schools bring together school systems, early childhood programs, and community partners/agencies to improve care and education for young children and their families throughout the first 10 years of children’s lives.  This model works to improve teaching and learning, deepen partnerships with families, and provide comprehensive services for children and families.  |  More

Maine Schools Sharing Success Stories

| Submit your Maine School Success Story |

Professional Development, Training, and Events

| Visit the Professional Development Calendar |

Latest DOE Career/Project Opportunities:

View current Maine Department of Education employment opportunities here

 

Riot Refurb: A Device Repair Lab

(Pictured: Intro to Computer Science students repair broken equipment with the purpose of donating them to people in need.  Photo credit: Julie York) 

What is the best way to learn about computer hardware? Look inside!  That is exactly what Julie York’s students did in their Intro to Computer Science course while also contributing to their community.  During their Device Repair Lab, these students gained valuable computer science and career knowledge and skills while rebuilding devices, like iPads, Chromebooks, and MacBooks. While some devices are sold at a discounted price, others are donated to organizations and people in need.  Any funds from the sales go back into the program to purchase chargers and materials.  To date, students have repaired over 200 devices. 

As anyone with device problems could attest to, students needed patience and persistence, as well as concentration as they performed the challenging and delicate work of device repair.  Students learned valuable computer science skills, such as disassembling devices, reassembling them, and diagnosing problems.  They also had to use computational thinking to identify the problem and how to fix it, develop efficient procedures for cleaning devices, and deduce patterns in computer issues to streamline their work.  As one student said, “I found the whole process very interesting.”  Another one said, “This is something I could do in the future.”   

Julie York Classroom Computer Science
Photo Credit: Julie York

Beyond the computer science skills they developed, students also learned valuable career skills like leadership and collaboration.  As one student put it, “I think that teamwork was the most important skill for the success of this lab because I think that everything is better when it’s done as a team.”  This student went on to say that without leadership “the group I was helping would’ve been in a mess.”  Students also incorporated art and communication skills as they designed flyers, made video ads, and wrote repair reports.    

Many students in Julie’s class are multilingual learners.  She scaffolded their language development by providing instructions in their primary language and opportunities to read, speak, and listen in English.  While they were developing their English skills, students were also able to learn the computer science material, and develop important career and leadership skills.  

The Riot Refurb program has gotten positive feedback from community members.  One person who received refurbished equipment shared, “Thank you so much for doing this. I have 4 kiddos, so this is a big help for my family!”  Another student, who got a laptop, talked about how he would use his new device to edit videos.  Through this project-based program, students can themselves as changemakers in both their school community and beyond.  

While the class is now learning about coding, they are still looking to connect with people and organizations in need of devices.  Click here for more information about this program. 

The Maine DOE encourages all schools and districts across the State of Maine to learn more about interdisciplinary instruction on our website or by contacting our Interdisciplinary Instruction Team Coordinator at Kathy.bertini@maine.gov 

Webinar: Maine Schools Application – May 9, 2023

The Maine Schools and Maine School Approval report has opened as of May 1st. In order to support the completion of this report the Maine Department of Education (DOE) Data team will be hosting a webinar on May 9th specific to reporting requirements for this collection. No registration is required to join. The Join Live event link below will be active on the date and time indicated by the webinar. 

Maine Schools Application Webinar:

The webinar will be recorded and posted to the webinar page on the Helpdesk Website. It may take a few days to get the recording posted, however, they will be available as soon as possible. If this webinar is canceled, there will be a notice posted on the Helpdesk Website at the top of the page.

For questions about data reporting webinars please contact Alexandra.Cookson@maine.gov