Submit application for Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program grants

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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New early learning website reflects interagency work

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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Maine DOE and DHHS ink pledge on early childhood learning

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

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

Amended guidance on federal sequestration

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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Laura Richards School overcomes CIPS status, surpasses standards

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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Virtual learning center a success for family literacy program

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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Comments sought on Maine’s IDEA Part B application

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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