Is your school administrative unit (SAU) and/or school interested in implementing Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)?
PBIS is “an evidence-based, tiered framework for supporting students’ behavioral, academic, social, emotional, and mental health that creates safe, positive, equitable schools, where every student can feel valued, connected to the school community and supported by caring adults.” (Center on PBIS, 2024).
Maine PBIS offers a 3-year intensive training and coaching model to support districts and schools in implementing Tier 1 PBIS with fidelity. To learn more about Maine PBIS and the training model please join the Listen and Learn Session and explore the resources below.
PBIS Listen and Learn Session February 1, 2024, 1-2 PM Register here
Nestled in the woods off a back road in western Maine you will find Cape Cod Community School. Part of the Regional School Unit (RSU) 9 of the Mount Blue area, Cape Cod Hill takes a different approach to serving its community. It is one of just a handful of Community Schools located in Maine.
A community school model, as defined by the Coalition for Community Schools, is both a place and a set of partnerships between the school and other community resources. Community schools exist in all regions of the United States and their numbers are growing fast.
In Maine, the community school model was first recognized by Maine Legislative Action of the First Regular Session of the 127th Legislature (2015-2016), in the budget bill Public Law 2015, chapter 267. At that time, the Maine DOE was authorized to fund a limited number of community schools, established under 20-A MRSA Chapter 333. Currently, three schools in Maine receive funding from the Maine Department of Education (DOE) to support their community school strategies: the Gerald E. Talbot School in Portland, Old Town Elementary School in Old Town, and the Cape Cod Hill Community School in New Sharon.
In its second year of implementation, Cape Cod Hill Community School has already put a lot of resources and strategies into place with big plans for many more to follow. Principal Carol Kiesman along with Social Worker Amanda Clark and School Nurse Jesstine Meader are the force behind these big changes and they work as a team to tackle the role of Community School Coordinator. An essential part of the success of a community school.
To accomplish a community school model, the team at Cape Cod Hill has garnered countless resources through ongoing partnerships throughout the Franklin County region and beyond to offer students and their families support beyond academics. Resources like behavioral health by way of counseling services for families and children through an outpatient counselor who comes to the school to see children in addition to case management through Maine Behavioral Health Organization. Also now available are dental health services offered to every child right at school, food and nutrition resources available through the school’s food pantry, and many more partnerships that bring in community members, resources, and services that benefit students and families.
“In the past things were more academic-centered, this is more community-centered,” explains Kiesman. “This is looking at the whole child and what can we offer to the children and the families besides academics. Yes, academics are huge, they are important, but we know that there is more to children’s lives than just academics.”
One of the most successful and new programs started by the school is its no-cost before and after-care program which runs from 7:00 am to 4:30 pm on school days. The program allows parents to work without having to find care for their children for those couple of hours before and after school that never seem to line up just right with the average workday. This program has been a game-changer for many of their families and the fact that there is no income threshold makes it that much more accessible for everyone. The Community Schools grant funding provided by the Maine DOE made this program possible.
Pictures from the Before and After-Care Program:
One of the ongoing programs the team has up and running is its food pantry, which also serves as a clothing and book pantry as well as bringing much-needed resources to the community. The pantry has been around for a while but the team at Cape Cod Hill has gotten innovative in maximizing its impact in recent years by creating discrete access to the pantry via a side door to the school, giving community members a way to grab what they need without having to make a grand entrance. They’ve also been able to utilize the help of community partners like Good Shephard Food Bank who help with food donations and have welcomed help from community members who come in regularly to keep the pantry organized and stocked with foods and other resources that families need and want.
Other ongoing partnerships include Franklin County Adult Ed providing monthly classes at Cape Codd Hill Community School on things like cyber security, social-emotional learning topics, and multi-tiered systems of support/response to intervention components that can be implemented at home. They have also invited the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department over for monthly “lunch and jokes” in which members of the Sheriff’s Office get to dine with the students at lunchtime and exchange good-humored stories and jokes.
“We are going beyond our four walls,” said Clark. “Maine schools are providing a lot of these things and they are doing amazing work. I think, for us, the community school initiative and model gave us that extra layer of support to be able to provide the things we felt like we were missing.”
Community schools foster a shared vision for student success and thoughtfully engage the community in making the vision a reality. Over time, community schools become the center a of community where everyone belongs, works together and thrives. They become the hub of their neighborhoods and communities, uniting families, educators and community partners toward student success.
To hear directly from the team at Cape Cod Hill Community School, check out this 5-minute video interview where Kiesman and Clark talk about their journey to becoming a community school and their plans for the future:
Maine DOE has welcomed Community Schools Consultant Ann Hanna, who has joined the Maine DOE Office of School and Student Supports. Hanna proudly served as the principal of the Gerald E. Talbot Community School in Portland where she led the school through a transformative process to become a Community School. Hanna will be working on advancing Community School strategies in interested schools across Maine by providing technical assistance and support as needed. The Maine DOE is also working on the next application for funding for SY 24-25, and information on that will be shared via Newsroom in the coming days.
To learn more about community schools in Maine, please contact Ann Hanna, at ann.c.hanna@maine.gov.
For the 9th consecutive year, the Maine Department of Education (DOE) will collaborate with community organizations and schools to promote the Read to ME Challenge, a month-long public awareness campaign held during February across Maine.
The Read to ME Challenge is intended to bolster enjoyment in reading and to support children’s literacy growth by challenging adults to read to and/or with children for at least 15 minutes during the month of February. Challenge readers are invited to capture the moment via a photo or a video and post it on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and X/Twitter with the hashtag #ReadtoME. They are also encouraged to continue the impact by challenging social media friends to read to children and spread the impact across the state. Maine DOE encourages you to tag us on social media posts by including a X/Twitter tag at @mdoenews, a Facebook tag @MaineDepartmentofEducation1, and/or an Instagram tag @mainedepted.
While anyone can participate in the Read to ME Challenge, this initiative offers a wonderful opportunity for schools, child cares, libraries, and many other community organizations to plan engaging strategies for completing the challenge and demonstrating commitment to reading to children. In the past there have been a variety of student and adult groups that have organized impactful reading events. These include college and high school sports teams, civic organizations, library programs, recreation departments, and educational organizations.
The Read to ME Challenge will run for the month of February, leading up to Read Across America Day on March 2, 2024. Learn more about the Read to ME Challengeon the Maine DOE Website and be looking for more details about the kick-off soon.
For questions about the Read to ME Challenge, contact Leeann.Larsen@maine.gov, Maine DOE Director of Early Learning. To share your reading photos and videos with the Maine DOE tag us on social media and we will share your post!
On an abnormally warm December day at Nokomis Middle School in Newport, the 8th-grade class is having a fundraiser called “The Maine Sampler.” This fundraiser is more than students asking for money; it is an interdisciplinary unit that spans multiple disciplines and allows students to practice their communication skills, perseverance, creativity, and reflection.
Every year before the winter holidays, students work with their Social Studies and ELA teachers to develop a creative Maine-made product they will mass produce and sell to the public. Social Studies teachers Dan Decker and Lucas Jewett work with students for five weeks to apply their knowledge of economics to an authentic entrepreneurship experience. They start by picking partners and developing ideas. Dan explained, “Students tend to focus on baked goods, but we encourage them to reach out to family and friends with unique skills.” Lucas added, “We encourage them to be mindful of their partners, too. Going into business as an adult requires you to be mindful of who you pick as a business partner.” Students take this advice to heart because all the money they make will be used for field trips, their 8th-grade trip, and the 8th-grade recognition event. Once the teams decide on an idea, they calculate the cost of materials and set their prices. Parents provide all the supplies, but there is also financial assistance for any family that needs it. Students’ “homework” is to mass produce their products.
As they develop their business plans in social studies, they are working on advertising and marketing in ELA. Their teachers, Sarah Murray and Mariah McGuire support advertising through student-created web pages that describe their products and create aesthetically pleasing and informative posters for their tables. Each website includes images and descriptions of the product, a mission statement, and important background information.
On the day of the event, students gather in the gym to set up their tables, decorate them with handmade posters and accessories, and lay out their products. Members of the public and students in the 5th, 6th, and 7th grades will wander around purchasing the student-made products with tickets that they purchase at the ticket table. With the support of math teachers Makenzie Wheeler and Sue Orcutt, students at the ticket table convert every dollar into a ticket that can be used to purchase items or enter raffles. During the two and a half hours, students will communicate with adults and peers to explain and sell their products.
“This is a way to promote a business I already have,” Bentley Lane explained. “When my grandfather and I go hunting, we find deer antlers. He taught me how to process and mount them, and I have built a business selling them.”
Naomi Millet expressed similar feelings about learning about business and economics work. “Learning the economics of selling things is interesting.” Naomi also added she liked being creative, seeing her ideas become products, and working with her friends.
After the event, students will focus on reflection and application. Dan and Lucas will work with students to reflect on the event through the social and financial lens. They will also create opportunities for students to look at applications of their learning beyond the Maine Sampler event. Bentley has already started applying what he has learned. “I like this type of learning because I am applying what I learn to my current business.”
The Maine Department of Education (DOE) and the Maine Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) jointly released the 2023 Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey (MIYHS) results on Friday, December 15, 2023. The MIYHS data provides schools with up-to-date trends around health behaviors and experiences for Maine middle school and high school students. Results of the survey also give educators an important snapshot of adolescent well-being connected to key health topics.
Maine schools play a critical role in shaping mental, physical, and social growth among our youth. The MIYHS results highlight an increasing need for quality, comprehensive health education and the implementation of proven strategies to educate the whole child. Questions on the survey address behaviors connected to substance use, nutrition, physical activity, sexual behavior, health status, and protective factors, to name a few. The MIYHS highlights trending topics in the areas of mental health, suicide ideation, depression, specific health conditions (diabetes, asthma, obesity), housing stability, and school connectedness.
Building on our understanding of young people’s environments can only expand our opportunities to improve the world around them. The MIYHS results serve as a mechanism to help guide our work in education, to provide resources for students around healthy decision-making, and to deliver tools to young people for the navigation of their pre-teen and teenage years. In 2023, 77% of high schoolers reported having a connection to a teacher who cares about them and supports them (up from 73% in 2021). Maine high schools can utilize this data to make connections with their students and provide programming to connect with a higher percentage of students. Additionally, vaping use decreased significantly with students who indicated they had vaped at least one time (29% in 2021 to 16% in 2023). The messaging being shared around the dangers of vaping is growing and could impact strategies for the reduction of other harmful behaviors.
Findings from the MIYHS data continue to expose concern for marginalized populations (gender, race, ethnicity, and sexual identity). Students continue to experience varying levels of trauma and distress with substance use and abuse, mental health, access to essential services, and protective factors. An understanding of what Maine students encounter in their daily lives can assist adults in furnishing the resources necessary to improve all areas of health and wellness for young people.
Sources of Strength A student-led school culture program that brings together trained adult advisors and peer leaders to create campaigns for the school community that focus on positive, uplifting and hopeful messaging.
Mental Health Promotion Toolkit These materials provide information on mental health promotion, tips for addressing health disparities, and roadmaps for implementing innovative strategies to improve mental health and substance use prevention efforts in schools. For more information about the Maine Pediatric and Behavioral Health Partnership Program, please call 1-833-MPBHP11 (1-833-672-4711) or contact Melissa Maurais at Maurais@maine.gov
Is your school or district interested in learning about how schools can partner with families and community-based organizations to provide supports so that every child has access to what they need to reach their full potential? Have you considered becoming a Community School? In many communities throughout Maine, not all families have access to healthy food, stable housing, vision care, or dental health services their children need. The impact of these challenges doesn’t stop when students step into the classroom. Community Schools work with families and community-based organizations as partners to provide comprehensive supports and opportunities to meet the needs and interests of students and families.
Join the Maine Department of Education for a Community Schools informational session to learn more about Community Schools – the benefits and the steps toward implementation.
The session will be recorded and shared if you are unable to attend the live presentation.
Community Schools: Background
The Community School model was first recognized by Maine Legislative Action of the First Regular Session of the 127th Legislature, in Public Law 2015, chapter 267, which authorized the Department of Education to fund a limited number of community schools.
According to the National Coalition of Community Schools, community schools create the conditions necessary for students to thrive by focusing attention, time, and resources on a shared vision for student, school, and community success. Its integrated focus on academics, health and social services, youth and community development and community engagement lead to improved student learning, stronger families, and healthier communities. The community school strategy transforms a school into a place where educators, local community members, families, and students work together to strengthen conditions for student learning and healthy development. As partners, they organize in- and out-of-school resources, supports, and opportunities so that young people thrive.
Community schools vary in the programs they offer and the way they operate, depending on their local context. What makes community schools unique is the combination of four key features – or pillars- that together create the conditions necessary for students to thrive. The pillars are as follows:
Please join the Maine Department of Education (DOE) and Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Office of MaineCare Services for MaineCare in Education Bootcamp. This one day workshop is presented in a hybrid format with in-person and virtual opportunities on February 9th and 16th from 10 – 2 pm at the DHHS Building located at 109 Capital Street in Augusta. In person attendance is limited to 40. Light refreshments and coffee will be served. Lunch will be on your own.
Topics covered will include:
MaineCare basics
MaineCare covered service
reimbursement opportunities
IEP documentation
day treatment support
transportation
interpreter services
nursing services
how to start billing
MaineCare SEED
EPS School health-related services
technical assistance opportunities
Intended Audience: SAUs, SPPS, anyone accessing Maine CARE in schools
Gretchen Kimball has been working on getting a new ELO program up and running at Buckfield Jr/Sr High School this school year. Serving the communities of Hartford, Sumner, and Buckfield, Kimball has her plate full working with all interested students to coordinate extended learning experiences that enrich their learning.
“I sincerely enjoy when students drop by to tell me their first meeting with their community mentor (game warden, child psychologist, athletic trainer, etc.) went well and they’re excited to get on with the learning,” said Kimball.
Some of the latest successes she is celebrating are helping several special needs students begin their internships at a local convenience store, in addition to coordinating three honors students internships with the school’s athletic trainer. She has also been working with the Buckfield Jr/Sr High School Alternative Education program where students are working with a race car fabricator, a dentist, and a Maine game warden. Most recently, Kimball has helped a few more students begin an EMS internship with the local Rescue/Fire Station.
“It’s just a smattering of what’s happening but the kids are engaged in their learning, and it gives me hope for future success,” said Kimball.
In addition to the internship opportunities, Kimball says she has a lot of students taking advantage of JMG’s Maine Career Badge this trimester. “I have career presentations lined up every other Friday through March at the middle school level, and we’re exploring the opportunity for a mini-career fair put on by high school students for an audience of middle school students,” she explained.
Looking even further ahead, in conjunction with the Guidance Department, Kimball is working with Central Maine Community College (CMCC) Department Chair of Public Service & Social Sciences Matt Tifft. She’s exploring ways in which she can build ELOs around their sociology, psychology, and conservation law classes at CMCC.
“There’s student interest, but there are no social sciences offered at our school,” explains Kimball. “I’m hoping this will fill a niche!”
Kimball would like to thank the following people and organizations for contributing to the success of students and the Buckfield Jr/Sr High School ELO Program: Korah Soll- Rural Aspirations, Sandra Fickett- Tilton’s Market, Tom McKenney- Maine State Game Warden, Dr. Convey- Oxford Hills Dental, TJ Brackett- Brackett Racecar Fabrication, and JMG (Jobs for Maine Grads).
Extended Learning Opportunities (ELOs) are hands-on, credit-bearing courses outside of the traditional classroom with an emphasis on community-based career exploration. These opportunities are personalized for students and help them explore options for their professional lives. They help students engage in learning through instruction, assignments, and experiential learning. The Maine Department of Education (DOE), along with state-wide partner Jobs for Maine Graduates (JMG), have made a concerted effort to provide working models, support, and funding opportunities for Maine schools to set up ELO programs within their school communities. To learn more about Maine’s initiatives with extended learning opportunities, visit: https://www.maine.gov/doe/index.php/learning/elo or reach out to Maine DOE ELO Coordinator Rick Wilson at rick.wilson@maine.gov.
As a result of Public Law 2023, Chapter 457 which enacts 20-A MRSA §6664, the Maine Department of Education is proposing a new rule to guide the administration of the School Meal Equipment and Program Improvement Fund.
As required by law, a period of public comment opens January 17 through February 16, 2024. Written comments may be submitted to DOE Rulemaking Liaison Laura Cyr, State House Station #23, Augusta, Maine 04333; 207-446-8791 or laura.cyr@maine.gov until 5:00 pm February 12. For documentation purposes, written comments are preferred.
Timeline for Rulemaking for Rule Chapter 52 – New Rule – Routine Technical
The Maine Department of Education (DOE) is pleased to announce the release of a request for proposals (RFP) seeking bids from organizations interested in implementing comprehensive afterschool and summer learning programs in 2024-2025. It is anticipated that roughly $3.5 million will be available to issue grant awards this spring.
Authorized under Title IV, Part B of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Act of 2015, the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC) program provides competitive grant funding to support before-school, after school, and summer learning programs that focus on improving the academic performance of students in Pre-Kindergarten through grade 12.
The primary purpose of the 21st CCLC program is to provide funding for school and community partnerships that establish or expand community learning center programs. These programs provide students in high-need, economically disadvantaged communities with academic tutoring and enrichment opportunities designed to complement their school-day academic program. In addition, these programs can provide a broad array of additional support services related to overall student health and well-being.
Local 21st CCLC programs – which can be located in elementary schools, secondary schools or similarly accessible community facilities – provide high-quality support services to students during non-school hours. As such, these programs also support working parents and families by providing safe, supportive learning environments for students at times when school is not normally in session.
The request for proposal (RFP), which includes information regarding eligibility, program requirements, and more, is available here. An informational webinar for this RFP will also be posted to the Department’s application website on January 24, 2024. It is strongly recommended that interested organizations view this presentation, in its entirety, before submitting a proposal for 21st CCLC program funding.
Below is the anticipated timeline for the Department’s current 21st CCLC grant competition:
January 9, 2024—RFP Released to Public
January 24, 2024—Informational Webinar Posted Online
February 7, 2024—Deadline for Submission of Questions in Response to RFP
February 21, 2024—Interested Organizations Submit Intent to Apply Form
April 10, 2024—Proposal Deadline
April 2024—Formal Peer Review of Proposals
May 2024—Grant Award Notifications
July 1, 2024—Grant Award Start Date
Please be advised that the dates above are subject to change. Interested organizations must consult the RFP document for the most accurate dates and deadlines regarding this opportunity.
For more information on the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC) Program, contact State Coordinator, Travis Doughty, at travis.w.doughty@maine.gov.
Maine DOE Newsroom 