Maine DOE Update – November 9, 2017

From the Maine Department of Education


Reporting Items

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News & Updates

New survey for identifying English learners

The Maine Department of Education (DOE) has developed a new survey called, Language Use Survey (formerly Home Language Survey) to be used in the identification of English learners. The Language Use Survey is to be administered to the parent/guardian of every student enrolling in a School Administrative Unit (SAU) for the first time and must be included in the SAU’s enrollment packet. | More

Webinars planned for districts over 1% for alternate assessment

All districts above the 1% for alternate assessments will receive an Action Plan document to provide justifications on November 20th. Action Plans will be submitted to the State by December 10th.. Maine will provide an opportunity for Public Comment before the December 19th submission of a state waiver. | More

Maine’s 2017 Presidential Awards State Finalists for grades 7-12th Mathematics and Science Teachers

The Maine Department of Education is pleased to announce the Maine state selection committees for the 2017 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) program has selected as the state-level finalists for 7-12th grade teachers of mathematics Ellen Payne from Nokomis Regional High School and Priya Natarajan from Casco Bay High for Expeditionary Learning School. | More

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Professional Development Opportunities

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Latest DOE Career/Project Opportunities

Maine DOE Update – November 2, 2017

From the Maine Department of Education


Priority Notices


Reporting Items

New feature added to assist Helpdesk communicate known issues and system updates

The Department has added a new knowledgebase feature designed to communicate known issues and updates pertaining to our data systems (NEO/Synergy).  We hope this will provide those in need of help with a quick way to search and filter by issue or topic to find more information and possible resolutions. | More

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News & Updates

Waterville High School nurse named Maine School Nurse of the Year

The Maine Association of School Nurses has named Ann Bouchard, Maine’s 2017-2018 School Nurse of the Year. | More

Federal Funds and Teacher Qualifications

As a direct result of the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) of 2015 (2015) teacher certification language was revised and amended. Current education law, requires educators to achieve full State certification and licensure. | More

School Bus Purchase Program Applications Open November 1, 2017

The Department is accepting applications for the Maine School Bus Purchase Program beginning November 1, 2017.  Program applications will close on November 25, 2017 with no extension. | More

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Professional Development Opportunities

Register for Alternate Assessment Workshops by Nov. 6

Teachers may register for PAAP (MEA Alternate Science ) and MSAA (MEA Alternate Mathematics and ELA/Literacy teacher administration through November 6th | More

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Latest DOE Career/Project Opportunities

Maine DOE Update – October 27, 2017

From the Maine Department of Education


Priority Notices


Reporting Items

EPS Student Enrollment and Special Education Child Count data certification deadline extended to November 7

Due to the continued data access and quality issues integrating the student data from Synergy to the EPS reports in NEO, the Maine Department of Education is extending the certification deadline from October 31st to November 7th for Essential Programs And Services (EPS) Student Enrollment and Special Education Child Count (EF-S-05 Part 1). | More

MaineCare Q417 Seed report review delayed

Due to the continued data access and quality issues integrating the student data from Infinite Campus to NEO, the Maine Department of Education is delaying the MaineCare report review for Q417. | More

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News & Updates

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Professional Development Opportunities

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Latest DOE Career/Project Opportunities

Maine DOE Update – October 19, 2017

From the Maine Department of Education


Priority Notices


Reporting Items

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News & Updates

Synergy updates and resolved issues

The Maine Department of Education is continuing to assist School Administrative Units (SAU) as October 1st student enrollment counts are being uploaded into the new Synergy State Edition Student System. | More

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Professional Development Opportunities

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Latest DOE Career/Project Opportunities

Maine DOE Update – October 12, 2017

From the Maine Department of Education


Priority Notices


Reporting Items

National Board Certified Teacher Salary Supplement Request due November 10

Superintendents of a school administrative unit or the director of a publicly-supported secondary school or CTE region, with eligible staff who have attained National Board for Professional Teaching Standards Certification prior to July 1, 2017, must submit to the Maine DOE the list of those eligible to receive the salary supplement for the 2017-18 school year by November 10, 2017. | More

Synergy technical issues resolved

The Department has resolved a technical issue with the upload functionality for special education data in the Synergy State Edition Student System. | More

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News & Updates

Maine DOE legislative summary available

Maine DOE has prepared a summary of major laws related to education enacted by the First Regular Session of the 128th Maine Legislature. This information may prove helpful to educators when planning for the 2017-8 school year. | More

National Board Certified Teacher Scholarship Funds available

State law, 20-A MRSA Section 13013-A subsection 5 & 6; as amended by PL 2012 c. 702, established the National Board Certification Scholarship Fund to encourage teachers to apply to and enroll in the certification program offered by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, or its successor organization. | More

Over 800 Maine students complete Read to Ride Summer Reading Challenge

Preventing summer reading slide is a goal of many Maine educators. Students can lose months of learning gains if their brains do not remain active. | More

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Professional Development Opportunities

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Latest DOE Career/Project Opportunities

Maine DOE Update – October 5, 2017

From the Maine Department of Education


Priority Notices

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Reporting Items

CTE Enrollment Requirements for EPS Subsidy calculations

With the upcoming Career and Technical Education (CTE) requirements for EPS subsidy calculations it is extremely important that all enrollments, primary and concurrent, are uploaded in Synergy State Edition prior to the certification due date of October 30. | More

Initial Audit Report to the Commissioner Due November 1st

Statements of assurance and the Maine Education Financial Systems (MEFS) Financial reconciliations, as required by Title 20-A MRSA 6051 §4, are due by November 1st.  Any adjustments identified by these reconciliations should be submitted to Maine Education Financial System by November 30th. | More

FY17 EF-S-07 Opening for Data Entry on October 18th

The EF-S-07, Special Education Out of District Placement Tuition and Board report for Fiscal year 2017 will open for data entry on October 18, 2017  and will close for submission on November 18, 2017.| More

Reminder: Public Preschool Funding 2018-19

The Maine State Legislature has provided start-up funding in FY19 state budget for public school districts to begin new or expand preschool classrooms. | More

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News & Updates

Dover-Foxcroft elementary school music teacher named Maine 2018 Teacher of the Year

In a surprise all-school assembly today at SeDoMoCha Elementary School, Maine Department of Education Commissioner Robert G. Hasson, Jr. named SeDoMoCha Elementary music teacher Kaitlin Young as Maine’s 2018 Teacher of the Year. | More

Notice of Part B 619 Committee Meeting and Invitation for Public Attendance

Child Development Services and the Maine Department of Education are convening a Part B 619 advisory committee which is tasked with identifying and addressing all issues related to the proposed transition of special education and related services for children age 3 to kindergarten age 5 to the public schools and developing recommendations to be submitted to the Department. | More

U.S. EPA 2017 School Bus Rebate Program now accepting applications

The U.S.  Environmental Protection Agency is offering an opportunity to receive up to $20,000 per vehicle to replace your older school buses, and up to $6,000 per vehicle for retrofits. Older school buses without emission reduction retrofits emit significant amounts of harmful exhaust, so participating in this program will help improve the health of students and other members of your community. | More

Schools across Maine celebrate Maine Harvest Lunch Week

Maine Baked Fish Vera Cruz, meatloaf made with locally raised beef and school garden grown rainbow carrots were “on the menu” for schools across Maine who celebrated Maine Harvest Lunch Week. Each year this Maine DOE sponsored event designates one week in September to educate students on where their food comes from by serving up Maine grown foods on the menu and promoting Farm to School in the wider school community. This year the celebrations took place the week of September 18-22, 2017, and while most schools participate on the selected week, other schools chose to highlight Maine grown foods on a week of their choice. | More

Maine DOE Partners with TransACT to provide schools with resource to promote student achievement through Family Engagement

To help with new Parent and Family Engagement requirements under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) and to meet the civil rights obligations of schools in working with English Learners’ (EL) families across the state of Maine, the Maine Department of Education (DOE) is partnering with TransACT® Parent Notices to provide unlimited remote access to parent friendly notifications that meet legal requirements, guidance on required audiences, a compliance tracking system, and recommended timelines. | More

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Professional Development Opportunities

Upcoming DOE sponsored assessment workshops

The Maine DOE is sponsoring a series of four workshops for the MEA Alternate Mathematics and ELA/Literacy (MSAA) and the MEA Alternate Science (PAAP) assessments. | More

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Latest DOE Career/Project Opportunities

Maine DOE Update – September 28, 2017

From the Maine Department of Education


Notices and Reporting Items

Professional Development Opportunities

More Notices | Administrative Letters | Reporting Calendar


News & Views

Additional support for regionalization now available

Earlier this week seven retired educators participated in the Maine DOE’s orientation and training session to become approved facilitators and consultants for the Department’s EMBRACE regionalization initiatives. The Department is providing regional groups of school administrative units (SAUs) with up to $7,500 in funding for facilitation services delivered by individuals who have met these training expectations. | More

Information regarding special education teachers in NEO and certification

The Maine Department of Education’s Office of Special Services would like to request Directors of Special Education and other school personnel to check the information in the Department’s data system, NEO, to ensure that special education teachers are correctly coded in the system. Please check to see that: | More

Initial Audit Report to the Commissioner Due November 1st

Statements of assurance and the Maine Education Financial Systems (MEFS) Financial reconciliations, as required by Title 20-A MRSA 6051 §4, are due by November 1st.  Any adjustments identified by these reconciliations should be submitted to Maine Education Financial System by November 30th. | More

Maine students improve on state assessments

The Maine Department of Education is pleased to release the 2016-17 Maine Education Assessment (MEA) results in the content areas of mathematics, English language arts (ELA)/literacy, and science.  In all content areas, performance has improved or remained stable. | More

Fostering Artful Early Childhood Classrooms

The Maine Department of Education invites you to be part of an exciting professional development opportunity, “Fostering Artful Early Childhood Classrooms”. Early Childhood Specialist, Sue Reed and Visual and Performing Arts Specialist, Beth Lambert are looking for teachers who want to energize their teaching and learning through focusing on art in the public preschool classroom.  Applicants must apply in teams of two: one Public Preschool teacher and one Visual Art teacher from the same district. The Visual Arts teacher must currently teach at the elementary level.| More

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Latest DOE Career/Project Opportunities

Maine DOE Update – September 21, 2017

From the Maine Department of Education


Notices and Reporting Items

Professional Development Opportunities

More Notices | Administrative Letters | Reporting Calendar


News & Views

FEDES regional grant opportunity info session on 9/26

The Maine DOE is seeking proposals to fund eligible projects through the Fund for the Efficient Delivery of Educational Services (FEDES) – RFP # 201708145 and is reminding school district administrators and other interested stakeholders of an online/telephone Informational Session next Tuesday, September 26 at 3 p.m. The session will begin with a brief introduction and overview of the FEDES grant opportunity and then be opened up to questions and answers. Those planning to participate in the Informational Session are encouraged to review the RFP in advance and have questions prepared. The RFP can be downloaded from the Division of Purchases website. | More

Update about revisions to Rule Chapter 232, expansion of CTE to middle school

Public Law Chapter 171, “An Act To Enable Earlier Introduction of Career and Technical Education in Maine Schools,” was enacted in June to expand career and technical education opportunities by requiring Maine schools to provide access to developmentally-appropriate career and technical education for middle school students (grades 6-8). The expansion of Career and Technical Education (CTE) to middle school builds on a long history of providing high-quality and industry-relevant CTE to students in high school grades 9-12. | More

Maine DOE to release 2016/17 ESEA Report Cards on 9/25

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requires all states to provide an annual report card to inform stakeholders about the progress of students and schools on indicators of student achievement, graduation rates, status of ESEA accountability and information on fully certified teachers – information that is related to student success. | More

Maine DOE to release 2016-17 Maine Educational Assessment (MEA) results on 9/25

The Maine Department of Education will release the 2016-17 MEA results on Monday, September 25, 2017, within the Maine Assessment and Accountability Reporting System (MAARS) Public Portal | More

Repeal and replacement of Chapter 81: Uniform School Bus Standards for Pupil Transportation in Maine

The enacted new regulations that replaced Chapter 81: Uniform School Bus Standards for Pupil Transportation in Maine and became effective on 9/16/17 can be found on the following link:  | More

Arts Education Participation and Access Data Needed

The Maine Department of Education is committed to supporting access to and participation in the arts as part of Maine students’ well-rounded education. In order to provide a view of trends, challenges, and successes in PreK-12th grade arts education, the department is asking school district to submit student participation and access data for the 2016-2017 school year. School level data that includes courses and enrollment numbers forms the basis of the data collection. Student names, personal information, and unique student identities are not included in this collection. | More

Proposal of a new model for Child Development Services (CDS)

Child Development Services (CDS) is currently responsible for the state-wide administration of special education services for children with disabilities who are ages 3 to 5 years (or in the school age range) under Part C and Part B 619 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Recently, the Department of Education has developed a new model for providing these services, the intent of which is to move the provision of children with disabilities ages 3 years to school age range (Part B 619) from current State run programming to the public schools systems. Under this model, all aspects of special education services for this age group would become the responsibility of the local district. This includes case management, child find, evaluation, eligibility determination, IEP development, and the provision of special education and related services. | More

Update on launch of Synergy State Edition Student System and access for school administrative units

Progress is continuing toward the full release of Synergy as Department staff have successfully uploaded and created thousands of student IDs. The next phase in the process will begin on Friday morning, September 22, when the Department will begin a “soft roll out”.  | More

Health update: mosquito-borne illnesses and schools

Maine Department of Education in collaboration with Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Maine CDC) is sharing this important guidance with schools regarding mosquito-borne illnesses. Maine CDC developed the information and guidance in this letter. Two mosquito-borne illnesses are considered a local risk in Maine: Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) and West Nile virus (WNV).  Both are potentially serious viral infections transmitted to people from the bite of an infected mosquito.  The disease is especially severe in children (as well as adults over 50).  There is no vaccine or effective treatment for humans.  Therefore, prevention strategies are critical. | More

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Maine DOE Update – September 14, 2017

From the Maine Department of Education


Notices and Reporting Items

Professional Development Opportunities

More Notices | Administrative Letters | Reporting Calendar


News & Views

Maine DOE announces $5 million available for regional grant opportunities

The State of Maine has announced a competitive grant opportunity for the Fund for Efficient Delivery of Educational Services (FEDES) to assist in financing the cost of local and regional initiatives to improve educational opportunity and student achievement through more efficient delivery of education programs and services. The FEDES grant opportunity is part of the Maine DOE’s ongoing opportunities for regionalization. | More

Maine’s Every Student Succeeds Act approved by U.S. Dept. of Education

In a letter from the United States Department of Education last week, the Maine Department of Education was notified of the approval of Maine’s consolidated state plan under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). | More

Maine’s Comprehensive Needs Assessment and SAU Consolidated Plan Template announced – regional training sessions available

The Maine Department of Education now has available a template for School Administrative Units (SAU) and schools to utilize when completing a Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) and School Administrative Unit (SAU) Consolidated Plan as required under the recently reauthorized Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). | More

Schoolwide Programs and Consolidation of Funds

To facilitate the inclusion of students with disabilities in schoolwide programs, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and its implementing regulations  allow school administrative units (SAUs) to use a portion of the funds they receive under Part B of IDEA to fund schoolwide programs. In accordance with Title I, Part A, as amended by ESSA, schoolwide programs are comprehensive reform strategies aimed at raising the achievement levels of all students. | More

Update about participation in the Multi-State Alternate Assessment (MSAA)

Using the October 1, 2017 enrollment counts, the Maine Department of Education will calculate the percentage of students in each district that have been identified as students eligible to take Multi-State Alternate Assessment (MSAA), Maine’s MEA Alternate Mathematics and English language arts/literacy assessment. | More

MaineCare Q417 Seed report review delayed

The MaineCare Q417 Seed reports that are regularly scheduled for School Administrative Units (SAU) to review claims for accuracy will be delayed. | More

U.S. Senate Youth Program Application Deadline is Oct. 6

The United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP), established in 1962, is a unique educational experience for outstanding high school students. Each year, two student leaders from each state, the District of Columbia and the Department of Defense Education Activity spend a week in Washington, D.C., experiencing their national government in action. Student delegates hear major policy addresses by senators, cabinet members, officials from the Departments of State and Defense and directors of other federal agencies. Delegates also participate in a meeting with a justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. In addition, each delegate will be awarded a $10,000 college scholarship. All transportation, hotel and meal expenses are provided by the Hearst Foundations. | More

Free research-based curriculum regarding transition services to students with emotional disabilities

For those interested, there is a unique opportunity for schools to receive a free research-based curriculum regarding transition services to students with emotional disabilities.  This curriculum is being offered by the National Technical Assistance Center on Transition and UMass Medical School. Participating schools will receive a stipend for utilizing and evaluating the program.  | More

New Resource for Discussions about Special Education Services

The Maine Department of Education is notifying educators, parents and others about a new resource, Five Questions Parents and Educators Can Ask to Start Conversations About Using Terms like Learning Disabilities, Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, and Dysgraphia that might be especially useful for those who talk with parents about children with specific learning disabilities. | More

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Maine DOE Update – September 7, 2017

From the Maine Department of Education


Notices and Reporting Items

Professional Development Opportunities

More Notices | Administrative Letters | Reporting Calendar


News & Views

Opportunities for Regionalization

As part of Maine’s plan for putting students first, the Maine Department of Education is focused on improving educational services and increasing student achievement through innovative regional partnerships. | More

Educational programing on Constitution Day

On September 17, the nation celebrates Constitution Day. Per Constitution and Citizenship Day legislation passed by the United States Congress in 2005, “Each educational institution that receives Federal funds for a fiscal year shall hold an educational program on the United States Constitution on September 17 of such year for the students served by the educational institution.” | More

Schoolwide Programs and Consolidation of Funds

To facilitate the inclusion of students with disabilities in schoolwide programs, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and its implementing regulations  allow school administrative units (SAUs) to use a portion of the funds they receive under Part B of IDEA to fund schoolwide programs. In accordance with Title I, Part A, as amended by ESSA, schoolwide programs are comprehensive reform strategies aimed at raising the achievement levels of all students. |More

Fostering Music and Movement in Early Childhood Classrooms

The Maine Department of Education invites you to be part of a brand new professional development opportunity, “Fostering Music and Movement in Early Childhood Classrooms”. Early Childhood Specialist, Sue Reed, and Visual and Performing Arts Specialist, Beth Lambert, are looking for teachers who want to energize their teaching and learning through focusing on music and movement in the public preschool classroom.  Applicants must apply in teams of two: one Public Preschool teacher and one music or performing arts teacher from the same district. The music/performing arts teacher must currently teach at the elementary level. |More

Learning Through Technology Update

The Learning Through Technology Team at the Maine Department of Education is committed to helping teachers integrate technology into their classrooms in a way that improves student learning outcomes and achievement. We have three new ways to engage with educators this year that are designed to gather input and build capacity. |More

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Latest DOE Career/Project Opportunities