Maine DOE team member Valerie Seaman is being highlighted this week as part of the Get to Know the Maine DOE Team Campaign. Learn a little more about Valerie in the question and answer below.

What are your roles with DOE?

I am an Office Associate II with the Office of Higher Education and Educator Support Services team.  I handle postsecondary closed school transcript requests and initial and renewal licensure applications for proprietary schools.

What do you like best about your job?

The people I work with in my group.  They are awesome!  They make me want to do the very best at my job.

How or why did you decide on this career?

After almost seven years working at the BMV registering vehicles, issuing driving licenses, etc., I was ready for something new and different.  The DOE seemed like the perfect fit since I still have the public interaction piece which I really do enjoy.

What do you like to do outside of work for fun?

Anything that involves the outdoors!

The EF-S-05 Part 2 Special Education Staff FTE Certification Report is open for verification and certification from September 1, 2021 through November 15, 2021.

The report is used to verify the full-time equivalency (FTE) and qualification status of special education teachers, paraprofessionals (educational technicians), and related services personnel who were employed or contracted to provide special education services to students with disabilities ages 3 through 21.

The verification and certification process for the EF-S-05 Part 2 has changed.  Modifications will no longer be made to the aggregate numbers of staff FTEs within the report.  All modifications will need to be made to individual staff member records within NEO Staff.  These modifications in NEO staff will automatically update the aggregate counts within the report and update the detail reports.

The EF-S-05 Part 2 Special Education Staff Report will need to be certified by the Special Education Director prior to the Superintendent’s certification of NEO staff. 

The Maine Department of Education’s Special Services and Data teams will be holding a webinar regarding the EF-S-05 Part 2 on Tuesday, September 7^th at 11AM. No registration is required for this webinar, simply follow the Join Live link at the time of the webinar to join. Instructions for completing the report can be found at https://www.maine.gov/doe/data-reporting/collection/helpdesk/resources/data-reporting-instructions .

If you have trouble logging into NEO or have other technical issues, contact the help desk at 207-624-6896 or MEDMS.Helpdesk@maine.gov .

For questions about the EF-S-05 Part 2, contact Brandi Giguere at 207-446-6526 or brandi.a.giguere@maine.gov.

WHAT IS SCHOOL-BASED BEHAVIORAL THREAT ASSESSMENT?

• Violence prevention strategy recommended by the U.S. Department of Education, U.S. Secret Service, and FBI.
• Multidisciplinary team approach to identify behaviors of concern, assess the level of risk, and provide appropriate interventions.

COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL THREAT ASSESSMENT GUIDELINES (CSTAG TRAINING)

• Consists of 2 levels of training.
• Level 1: 8 eLearning modules, taking approximately 6 hours, to be completed at your convenience asynchronously online. Training window opens on September 13, 2021.
• Level 2: 4-hour Synchronous training to work through practice cases applying the methodology learned in the Level 1 training. September 29^th via Zoom from 9:00-1:00.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?

• School Resource Officers
• School Administrators
• Law Enforcement Responding to Schools
• School Mental Health Providers/Social Workers/Psychologists
• School Safety Teams
• Juvenile Community Corrections Officers

HOW TO REGISTER?

• Contact Karen Barnes, Threat Assessment/Mental Health Officer at the Maine School Safety Center karen.a.barnes@maine.gov for more information or to be added to the training roster.
• Additional training dates TBA.

The United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP) is pleased to announce that the state departments of education nationwide have begun their annual selection processes. Two Maine students will be selected to attend the Washington Week program March 5-12, 2022 and each will receive a $10,000 undergraduate college scholarship. Each high school principal can nominate one student from their high school to be considered.

Students in Maine must submit their application and signed nomination via email to Joe Schmidt (joe.schmidt@maine.gov) no later than 11:59pm on October 15, 2021. All form, requirements, and additional information can be found at on the Maine Social Studies DOE Website. More about the program can be found on the National USSYP website.

The USSYP was created by Senate Resolution 324 in 1962 as stated in supporting Senate testimony from that year, “to increase young Americans’ understanding of the interrelationship of the three branches of government, the caliber and responsibilities of federally elected and appointed officials, and the vital importance of democratic decision making not only for America but for people around the world.”

Each year, this extremely competitive merit-based program brings 104 of America’s brightest high school juniors and seniors from every state, the District of Columbia, and the Department of Defense Education Activity, to Washington, D.C. for an intensive week-long study of the federal government and its leaders. The state departments of education throughout the country select the students through a rigorous nomination and selection process. Each of the 104 student delegates will also receive a $10,000 undergraduate college scholarship, with encouragement to continue coursework in history, government and public affairs. The Hearst Foundations have fully funded and administered the program since inception; as stipulated in S. Res. 324, no government funds are utilized.