Category: News & Views

Pre-K for ME and K for ME Program Overviews and Summer Training Opportunities

Since 2018, the Maine Department of Education (DOE) has adapted and piloted open-source Pre-k and Kindergarten instructional programs based on the Boston Public School’s evidence-based Focus on K1 and Focus on K2 curricula.  Pre-K for ME was launched in 2019.  K for ME was launched in 2021.  These programs focus on the whole child, are interdisciplinary, and are developmentally appropriate.  They are also aligned to Maine’s learning standards.  While Maine schools are responsible for the purchase of the materials that support use of the programs, the programs can be accessed at no cost via the Maine DOE’s website.

Informational overviews of each of program will be provided in the coming weeks.  The overview sessions will be recorded and posted for anyone unable to attend the live sessions. The overview sessions will share the basic program structure and review the materials needed to implement the program.  If unfamiliar with the programs, attending the overview (or watching the recording) is highly recommended.

Overview Session Registration Links:

Educators/schools/programs interested in utilizing Pre-K for ME and/or K for ME in the coming year may take advantage of 2-day initial trainings scheduled for this August.  These trainings are provided at no cost to promote understanding of program design and to support successful program implementation.  School administrators are strongly encouraged to attend the trainings with their Pre-K and/or Kindergarten teachers.  Special educators and education technicians who work with pre-k and kindergarten teachers are also encouraged to attend.

This year’s training opportunities will be held in person in Augusta (location to be determined) from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on August 1 and 2 for both Pre-K for ME and K for ME.  Registration for these trainings should be completed by principals/educators with one registration on behalf of their school/program.  Details about how to prepare for the trainings and the training locations will be provided via email after registrations are received. Registrations for the 2-day training should be received by June 30, 2022.

Summer Training Registration Links:

For additional information about Pre-K for ME, contact Nicole.Madore@maine.gov, and for K for ME, contact Leeann.Larsen@maine.gov.

From Hannaford to NASA, 2nd Annual Virtual Career Fair Draws in Students from Across Maine to Explore Diverse Career Options

The 2nd annual Virtual Career Fair took place on March 22nd drawing close to 10,000 students from schools across Maine for live sessions including 130 presentations focused on diverse career options.

Hosted by Maine’s Community Coordinators Collaborative (C3), a Maine organization of educators working to support students with career exploration, the event was a collaborative effort between the Maine Department of Education (DOE) and ACTEM (Association of Computer Technology Educators of Maine).

This is the second time that C3 has hosted a successful state-wide virtual career fair that is accessible to schools and students throughout the state.

“The virtual career fair has allowed us to expand access and to expose students to the many diverse professions in Maine,” said Sheree Inman, co-chair of the ME Virtual Career Fair.

This year’s event spanned the course of a week and featured keynote messages from Commissioner of Education Pender Makin, Mark McInerney of the Center for Workforce Research and Information, Cary Olson Cartwright, Unum’s Assistant Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility, and David Herring, Executive Director of the Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture & the Environment, in addition a vast array of businesses and organizations from different industries gave students the opportunity to choose to attend the sessions that interested them.

Participant feedback following the event showed that more than 80% of participants rated the quality of the career sessions a 4 or a 5 on a 5-point scale, and 76% of participants rated their overall experience as very good or excellent.

“Our students thoroughly enjoyed the career fair,” said a Middle School Educator from East Grant School. “They learned many new things. They were very engaged and very pleasantly surprised by how much they enjoyed themselves. We let the students choose up to 4 sessions each day and structured our assignments around their sessions. It was busy but productive and valuable.”

Some of the student participants also had the opportunity to comment on specific sessions they attended. Here is what they had to say:

“This was so interesting! I loved hearing about her [Jessica Meir, NASA] journey that got her to achieve her goal of going to space.”

“I really liked learning about Hannaford and how to get a job there.”

“Going into the medicine field has always been my dream and the presenter gave helpful tips and information about the journey out of high school to be in the medicine field.”

“I absolutely love animals and I’ve always wanted to be a vet, the presenter taught me so much in just 30 minutes.”

“They were very enthusiastic about their career [in small business/fashion] and gave us very interesting things to learn about. The overall presentation was so, so good and aesthetically pleasing! Love it!”

An enormous thank you to the Maine Virtual Career Fair Planning Committee: Sheree Inman, South Portland High School (co-chair); Justine Carlisle, Yarmouth Schools (co-chair); Dede Bennell, Freeport High School; Rick Wilson, Maine Department of Education; and Diana Doiron, Maine Department of Education.

Financial assistance and support for this successful event was made available to schools through the generous support of the Maine DOE, UNUM, Bath Iron Works and many other local businesses. For a list of businesses and logos visit https://www.mevirtualcareerfair.org/.

Learn more about C3:

The Community Coordinators Collaborative (C3) was created in 2018 and is composed of education professionals working to support students with career exploration, extended learning opportunities (ELOs), internships, and job shadows. The group was developed to share resources and provide a platform for industry associations and business organizations to discuss potential workplace opportunities for students. See a listing of C3 Members.

 

NEW Online Course: Assessing Your School Site

The following opportunity is being provided by the REMS TA Center, a partner of the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Safe and Supportive Schools.

Is your school or school district looking to examine the safety, security, accessibility, and emergency preparedness of its building and grounds? Do your ongoing assessments include a site assessment? To support K-12 school safety teams in conducting site assessments, the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Safe and Supportive Schools and its REMS TA Center are pleased to provide a NEW online course: Assessing Your School Site.

This 30- to 45-minute free online course aims to help K-12 school (public and nonpublic) personnel, school district administrators and staff, state/regional education agency personnel, and their partners develop a greater understanding of site assessments and how to examine the safety, security, emergency management, and preparedness of K-12 buildings and grounds. This online course uses an engaging visual format and interactive features, such as learning activities and quizzes, to help you learn about

  • Site assessments, including their purpose and their role in the planning process, how frequently they should be conducted, by whom they should be conducted, and the process for conducting them.
  • Building design principles that guide site assessments, such as Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design and Universal Design.
  • Data from site assessments and how they can be used to inform your school emergency operations plan and safety, security, emergency management, and preparedness programs.
  • Tools that are available to support you with this important work.

Get more information and take the course here.

If you have any questions or need additional assistance, please contact the REMS TA CENTER at 1-855-781-REMS [7367] or via email at info@remstacenter.org or contact the Maine School Safety Center.

Webinar: The Role of School Facility Managers in School Safety Efforts

The U.S. Department of Education, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, Office of Safe and Supportive Schools and its Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools (REMS) Technical Assistance (TA) Center will host a Webinar on Tuesday, April 26, 2022, from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. ET. This Webinar will explore the role of school facility managers in supporting school safety efforts, including school emergency operations plan (EOP) development.

Date: 4/26/2022
Time: 12:00 p.m. ET

Find objectives for the 60-minute Webinar below

  • Highlight the importance of establishing a collaborative EOP planning team, as outlined in Step 1 of the six-step planning process detailed in the Guide for Developing High-Quality School Emergency Operations Plans;
  • Discuss the role that school facility managers at the school level play in implementing the National Preparedness System mission areas before, during, and after a potential emergency; and
  • Reinforce how school facility managers can enhance EOP development and serve as key stewards in the efforts around site assessments, physical and structural recovery, and planning for technological hazards involving chemicals and hazardous materials.

Presenters:

California Department of Education, School Facilities and Transportation Division 

  • Juan Mirales, Director

Oregon Department of Education, Office of Finance and Information Technology

  • Michael Elliott, School Facilities Program Manager

REMS TA Center

  • Alison Curtis, Director of Information & Product Management

Questions About the Event?

Contact the REMS TA Center Help Desk at 1-855-781-REMS [7367] or info@remstacenter.org from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday.

Panelist Opportunities for Maine Science Educators

The Maine Department of Education (DOE) is currently recruiting educators to participate in an upcoming standard setting for the state’s science assessment, Maine (MEA) Science.

Maine educators and the DOE play a crucial role in the development of this assessment for students. No prior experience with standard setting or standard setting methodology is required, however panelists should be a science expert that teaches the students who participate in the Maine Science assessment and have a thorough understanding of the assessed Maine Learning Results (MLRs) Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Participants must be able to differentiate between student performances at different levels of achievement. Standard setting panels consist of ten (10) educators per grade band (grade 5, 8, and 3rd year of high school).  Panelists will have the opportunity to discuss and determine application thresholds for Maine.

The Assessment Team is currently recruiting educators with a general science background, however preference will be given to high school teachers with the following areas of science expertise to ensure broad representation of all science domains:

  • Chemistry
  • Physics
  • Life Science
  • Earth & Space

The standard setting is scheduled to take place from July 26th – 28th 2022 in Augusta. Travel, accommodations, and expenses will be covered with a daily stipend provided to selected panelists.

Please consider applying or sharing the upcoming opportunities with colleagues. The expertise and contributions of Maine educators are a critical element of the continued development cycle for these assessments.

 

Interested? Complete the panelist registration survey or use the QR code provided below.

Want more information? Please reach out to Janette Kirk, Director of Federal Programs, at Janette.Kirk@maine.gov.

MEDIA RELEASE: Mills Administration Announces Pooled Testing for COVID-19 in Maine Schools to Conclude in May 

The Mills Administration announced today that pooled testing for COVID-19 in Maine schools will conclude in May, given its reduced effectiveness in limiting the spread of the highly contagious BA.2 variant and the widespread availability of free and convenient at-home tests for students and school staff.

The BA.2 variant is significantly more contagious than previous strains of the virus, lowering the likelihood of detecting, identifying, and isolating an individual with COVID-19 through pooled testing before that individual has spread the virus to others. In this new phase of the pandemic, frequent use of over-the-counter rapid antigen tests has become a more effective way to protect the health of school communities. The Maine Departments of Education and Health and Human Services are supporting this strategy by making 1.1 million at-home test kits available to all K-12 schools in the state. This is enough for schools to supply every school student and staff member with a free rapid antigen test kit containing five to six tests.

The final week for schools to conduct pooled testing will be May 9-13, with the last set of results reported to schools by May 15.

During previous stages of the pandemic, when the virus was less transmissible, pooled testing effectively limited the spread of COVID-19 in Maine schools. Since the program’s launch in May 2021 through April 1, 2022, 488 schools across Maine have tested 128,990 pools, with 11,679 pools identifying positive individuals. The positivity rate has averaged 9.1 percent, reaching as high as 28 percent in January 2022.

Participation in pooled testing peaked in December 2021, with 40 percent of the population in 416 schools using the program. As of this week, 34 percent of the population in 440 schools are participating in pooled testing.

“As the COVID-19 virus changes, so must Maine’s testing strategy,” said Health and Human Services Commissioner Jeanne Lambrew and Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention Director Nirav D. Shah. “Pooled testing successfully protected the health of our school communities during earlier stages of the pandemic, and frequent use of free and convenient at-home tests will continue to protect students and staff as we confront the BA.2 variant. We thank Maine schools for partnering with us in this important effort.”

“Maine schools have done a heroic job throughout the pandemic keeping schools open and ensuring the safety of students and staff. That has meant transitioning to new strategies to address new variants and phases of the pandemic,” said Maine Education Commissioner Pender Makin. “While pooled testing was an important tool for schools in an earlier phase of the pandemic, regular home testing is a more effective strategy given how contagious the BA.2 variant is. By providing schools and families with access to free tests, we can continue to ensure the health and safety of students and school staff.”

“The Maine School Superintendent Association appreciates the thoughtfulness with which we are moving forward, adapting as needed to ensure our schools can remain open and safe,” said MSSA Executive Director Eileen King. “We have been grateful with the DOE’s and Dr. Shah’s commitment to meeting with superintendents to gain insight and hear feedback on operationalizing the important and evolving safety protocols and protections.”

“School boards across Maine have been tasked with ensuring that safety protocols and resources have been provided to keep schools open and students and staff safe,” said Maine School Boards Association Executive Director Steve Bailey. “While pooled testing has been a welcome tool in the prevention of the spread of COVID-19, our schools now have the opportunity to provide additional resources in the form of at-home test kits directly to all staff and students. With the BA.2 variant, these home tests will be a more efficient and effective method of detecting and preventing the spread of COVID-19.”

“Throughout the pandemic, the Maine Education Association has urged districts to follow the guidance of the Maine CDC and decisions based on science,” said MEA President Grace Leavitt. “At-home tests for all staff and students will help to detect the virus and minimize its spread so staff and students can be as safe as possible while keeping schools open as we enter these last months of the academic year.”

“School nurses continue to work in our schools, promoting health and safety on behalf of families in Maine,” said Melinda Nadeau, President of the Maine Association of School Nurses. “This change will support families and allow school nurses to focus on the continuation of point-of-care testing of symptomatic students. We look forward to returning to a focus on the whole student and traditional school health program activities that are necessary for students to be safe, healthy, and in school, ready to learn. Collaboration between our public health system and our school nurses is vital to anticipating and implementing future pandemic response needs.”

The Mills Administration has supported schools in limiting the spread of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic, with most Maine schools remaining open since the fall of 2020. The Maine Department of Health and Human Services has provided all K-12 public and private schools with access to pooled testing using federal funds from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Pooled testing involves collecting swabs from small groups of consenting students and staff, such as from one classroom, combining the test samples into a “batch” or “pool,” and then testing the single pooled sample using a PCR test, with results taking several days. If pool results are positive, the individuals in that pool are retested using a BinaxNOW rapid antigen test.

As the pooled testing program concludes, the Department has transitioned to other federally funded initiatives to limit the spread of COVID-19 in schools and Maine communities by expanding access to at-home tests. Since DHHS launched the free at-home testing program for schools on April 7, 2022, 125 Maine schools have placed orders for 528,040 tests. DHHS and DOE continue to encourage schools to place their orders now through April 15, 2022. Test kits will be shipped to schools beginning the week of April 25. Participating schools and SAUs may distribute the at-home tests during this spring, summer, or fall, at their discretion.

In addition to this distribution of at-home COVID-19 antigen test kits to schools, DHHS encourages school staff and families to request free tests through the Federal Free COVID Tests Program and Project Access COVID tests (ACT). Through the successful Project ACT pilot, DHHS has made free tests available directly to Maine people by mail order. As of April 12, Maine households have ordered 266,140 tests through Project ACT. For more information, visit Maine’s COVID-19 Testing website.

This spring, summer, and fall, DHHS will continue to distribute point-of-care COVID-19 tests to PreK-12 schools. School nurses and health staff in school settings have used these tests for screening and diagnostic purposes. Since November 2020, DHHS has distributed 396,100 BinaxNOW point-of-care tests to schools.

DHHS has additionally distributed nearly 120,000 federally funded tests to child care facilities across the state to help limit the spread of COVID-19 while minimizing job disruptions for parents and employers.

Notifying the DOE on Changes to School Configurations

The Maine Department of Education (DOE) is asking that School Administrative Units (SAUs) who anticipate changes to school configurations for school year 2022-2023 to notify the DOE by May 1, 2022, or within 3 days of a School Board’s final approval of the change.  The Superintendent of the SAU can email MEDMS.Helpdesk@maine.gov to notify the Maine Department of Education of the circumstances that may warrant a new school ID.

Reasons to notify the DOE include, but are not limited to:

  • Lack of need school closure
  • Change in grade configuration
  • Split of school
  • Merging of schools
  • New Schools

When emailing, please include the school(s) that displaced students will attend in the next school year, if applicable.  The Data Reporting Coordinator and the Education Data Manager will analyze the data and documentation, and coordinate with the Superintendent of the SAU on next steps and if new school ID(s) will need to be created.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the Helpdesk at MEDMS.Helpdesk@Maine.gov or 207-624-6896.

Experiential Maine! – Summer Coastal Ecology Collaborative  

The Maine Department of Education (DOE) will soon be releasing a Request for Applications (RFA) from community organizations that provide (or plan to provide) high quality, coastal ecology education and experiences for students in grades 6-12 as part of Experiential Maine! – a statewide initiative to increase access to hands on, outdoor education for all students in Maine.

This exciting initiative will help increase student access to experiential learning along the Maine coast during Summer 2022.  Fund awards must be used to expand student capacity in existing program opportunities or to design and implement an entirely new program during summer 2022. These will be two separate applications (one to expand existing programs, one to design and implement a program that did not previously exist). The Maine DOE will prioritize applications that prioritize access for students from low-income families and students with infrequent access to the coast based on geographic location.  

Here is a link to the Intent to Apply form which must be completed by April 21, 2022 at 5:00pm in order for your organization to be eligible for funding. 

For questions, please contact Page Nichols, Maine DOE Innovation Officer at page.nichols@maine.gov 

Winterport Teacher Hillary Hoyt Receives Milken Educator Award at Surprise School Assembly

In a surprise assembly earlier today, Hillary Hoyt, a third grade teacher at Leroy H. Smith School, received a $25,000 Milken Educator Award for her commitment to creativity in the classroom, focus on prioritizing children’s individual needs to improve learning outcomes, and leadership both at her school and in her community.

Milken Educator Awards Vice President Stephanie Bishop and Maine Deputy Commissioner of Education Dan Chuhta surprised Hoyt with the honor before cheering students, colleagues, state and local officials, and the media. Hoyt is one of only two educators in Maine and among more than 60 nationwide to receive the recognition during the 2021-2022 school year. She is the first recipient awarded in the RSU 22 School District.

Hailed as the “Oscars of Teaching,” the Milken Educator Awards celebrate, elevate and activate the American teaching profession and inspire young, capable people to join it.

“Hillary Hoyt is a leader, both in her classroom and in her community, and she exemplifies the qualities of a Milken Educator: innovation, creativity and inspirational leadership,” said Bishop, who herself is a 2001 Milken Educator from Virginia. “Her innovative approach to education is creating a pathway to success for each student in her classroom, and for that, we celebrate her here today.”

The Milken Educator Award is not a lifetime achievement honor. Recipients are heralded while early to mid-career for what they have achieved — and for the promise of what they will accomplish given the resources and opportunities inherent in the Award.

“Hillary Hoyt’s passion and dedication to her students, school, and community is truly awe inspiring,” said Maine Education Commissioner Pender Makin. “Her interdisciplinary teaching approach engages and excites her students and fosters a love of learning. Hillary is a trusted mentor and a leader in sharing her innovation and creativity with other educators. She also finds ways to support students and families beyond her classroom, whether as a dance instructor or providing free books to children over the summer. The Maine Department of Education is so proud to join the Milken Family Foundation and the entire RSU 22 community in honoring Hillary with this well-deserved recognition.”

Oprah, a longtime education advocate, shared her congratulations to this year’s winners in a video message shared earlier this year thanking “the most incredible educators around the country” and acknowledging her deep appreciation for the “tireless work” they do.

Hoyt said she was honored and humbled to receive the award. Asked why she went into teaching, Hoyt said, “I wanted to be a teacher because I had some wonderful teachers who showed me what it means to have someone looking out for you every day and showing that I belonged and mattered. I wanted to do the same.”

More about Hillary Hoyt:

Commitment to Creativity: Hoyt’s unique lessons help her third graders build skills for their future success. During the “Million-Dollar Project,” students learned about financing and interest rates as they took out “loans” to buy a house and car, save for college, and fund their day-to-day expenses. Hoyt set up a section of her classroom as a winter wonderland where students could earn time in the ice rink, ice shack and snow mountain by demonstrating good citizenship, according to expectations the children developed together. Hoyt goes to great lengths to hold students’ interest, whether by dressing as a dinosaur when leading a unit on prehistoric life or transforming her room into the sea, with students as jellyfish.

Prioritizes Children’s Individual Needs: Hoyt’s lessons stress innovation, collaboration and independent thinking, encouraging students to tap their imaginations even as they learn important executive functioning skills. She does whatever is necessary to prioritize children’s learning needs. Hoyt digs through data to track student progress, making quick plans to differentiate and reteach those who need extra help, and adding enrichment for those who are ready for more. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Hoyt has flipped her classroom and incorporated new technology, including Flipgrid, Jamboard, Google Classroom and video production. Her students continuously demonstrate growth on state assessments and learn to love education.

Serves as Mentor, Leader: Hoyt is the district’s elementary science teacher leader and has served on district and school committees for math, writing and reading, as well as a state committee writing ELA standards. She mentors student teachers and worked with colleagues to make a series of math videos in preparation for the start of the 2020-21 school year. Hoyt has attended the summer teacher academy at Schoodic Institute, worked on science curriculum with the University of Maine’s RISE Center, and published lessons on the Maine Department of Education’s MOOSE platform, which offers asynchronous learning modules for educators, students and families. She delivered a lesson on weather and natural disasters for The Learning Space, a collaboration between educators and Maine Public Television aimed at students who lack internet access.

Enthusiasm for Extracurriculars: A leader in the Leroy H. Smith community, Hoyt provides free books to students each summer through a partnership with Literacy Volunteers of Maine and Darling’s Ice Cream for a Cause. Her class designs a table based on an author they are studying for the annual Literacy Tea of Bangor. Hoyt played an integral part in WinterKids, which promoted winter outdoor activities for families, and chaired the school’s Family Fun Night. Outside of school, she teaches cheer and dance to college students and children, including Girl Scouts working on their dance badges.

Education: Hoyt earned a bachelor’s in elementary education from the University of Maine Orono in 2013 and earned National Board Certification in 2018.

More information about Hoyt, plus links to photos and video from today’s assembly, can be found on the Milken Educator Awards website at: https://www.milkeneducatorawards.org/educators/view/hillary-hoyt.

More about the Milken Educator Awards: “The future belongs to the educated.”

Along with the financial prize, Milken Educator Award recipients join the national Milken Educator Network, a group of more than 2,800 top teachers, principals and specialists. The network serves as a rich resource for fellow educators, legislators, school boards and others dedicated to excellence in education.

  • In June, the honorees will also attend an all-expenses-paid Milken Educator Awards Forum in Los Angeles, where they will network with their new colleagues as well as veteran Milken Educators and other education leaders about how to increase their impact on K-12 education. In addition, they will learn about how to become involved in the Milken Friends Forever (MFFs) mentoring program, in which freshman Milken Educators receive personalized coaching and support from a Milken Educator veteran on ways to elevate their instructional practice and take an active role in educational leadership, policy and practice.
  • Over the years, more than $140 million in funding, including $70 million for the individual cash awards, has been devoted to the overall Milken Awards initiative, which includes powerful professional development opportunities throughout recipients’ careers.
  • Veteran Milken Educators frequently go on to serve in leadership roles at state, national and international levels.
  • “We find you. You don’t find us!” Unlike most teacher recognition programs, the Milken Educator Awards initiative has no formal nomination or application process. Candidates are sourced through a confidential selection process and then reviewed by blue ribbon panels in each state. The most exceptional candidates are recommended for the award, with final selection made by the Milken Family Foundation.
  • The $25,000 cash award is unrestricted. Recipients have used the money in diverse ways. For instance, some have spent the funds on their children’s or their own continuing education, financing dream field trips, establishing scholarships, and even adopting children.

Eighth Grade Social Studies Teacher Jamie Karaffa Surprised with Milken Educator Award

In a surprise assembly today, Jamie Karaffa, an eighth grade social studies teacher at Bruce M. Whittier Middle School in Poland, received a $25,000 Milken Educator Award for her service as a classroom and community leader, innovative approach to creating classroom-to-life connections that make history come alive for her students, and ability to challenge and inspire students to think critically about important historical issues and current events.

Milken Educator Awards Vice President Stephanie Bishop and Maine Deputy Commissioner of Education Dan Chuhta surprised Karaffa with the honor before cheering students, colleagues, state and local officials, and the media. Karaffa is one of only two educators in Maine and among more than 60 nationwide to be recognized with the Award during the 2021-2022 school year. She is the first recipient awarded in the RSU 16 School District. Earlier today, third grade teacher Hillary Hoyt received the Award at a surprise assembly at Leroy H. Smith School in Winterport.

Hailed as the “Oscars of Teaching,” the Milken Educator Awards celebrate, elevate and activate the American teaching profession and inspire young, capable people to join it.

“Jamie makes ancient history feel just as relevant to her students as today’s current affairs, and both come alive in her classroom,” said Bishop, who herself is a 2001 Milken Educator from Virginia. “She challenges her students to think critically and become engaged citizens of their community – and that is a learning outcome that can truly last a lifetime. For her excellent work in and out of the classroom, we are thrilled to present her with this Award today.”

The Milken Educator Award is not a lifetime achievement honor. Recipients are heralded while early to mid-career for what they have achieved — and for the promise of what they will accomplish given the resources and opportunities inherent in the Award.

“Jamie Karaffa makes history come alive for her students by creating immersive, project-based opportunities that build connections between the past and present day while also fostering the critical thinking and leadership skills needed to be engaged and empowered citizens,” said Maine Education Commissioner Pender Makin. “Her passion, creativity, and leadership extend to her role as soccer coach and as a curriculum leader in her district and beyond. The Maine Department of Education is so proud to join the Milken Family Foundation and the entire RSU 16 community in honoring Jamie with this well-deserved recognition.”

Oprah, a longtime education advocate, shared her congratulations to this year’s winners in a video message shared earlier this year thanking “the most incredible educators around the country” and acknowledging her deep appreciation for the “tireless work” they do.

Following the surprise announcement, Karaffa said she was shocked and stunned and she told the school audience, “This isn’t my award alone–this is because all of you as well.”

More about Jamie Karaffa:

Making Classroom Connections to Life: Karaffa helps students understand the connections between history and their own lives. She and her colleagues at Whittier Middle School organize Whittier History Day, when the entire school comes together to share long-term research projects for National History Day. Students learn the essentials of research, including locating sources and evaluating their reliability, forming thesis statements, finding evidence to support their ideas, and structuring their arguments in a clear, compelling way. Pupils learn to write with purpose, format citations, edit their work, and formally present their projects. Many of Karaffa’s eighth-graders have been recognized for their work at the state level, and one student’s project was displayed at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.

Challenges Students’ Critical Thinking: Throughout the year, Karaffa engages students in units that encourage them to examine the past and think about how it relates to current events. Her curriculum integrates essential reading, writing and research skills into foundational elements of U.S. and world history, including Reconstruction, segregation, the civil rights movement, World War II and the Holocaust. Karaffa emphasizes working with primary documents as students learn through document-based questions, gallery walks, talk shows, historical sing-alongs and mock elections. She challenges students to become engaged citizens. During election seasons, the class debates local and state legislation, analyzes propaganda tools and candidates’ speeches, and writes essays supporting their chosen candidates, always providing evidence to support their choices. Students understand what is expected of them and regularly exceed those expectations, finding their own voices along the way.

Classroom and Community Leader: A leader in the building, district and beyond, Karaffa has helped develop district and state social studies curriculum, including remote learning units that proved essential during the pandemic. She is a James Madison Fellow, has led professional development at the district level, and has presented at the Maine Council for the Social Studies conference. In addition to her academic work, Karaffa coaches Whittier’s eight-grade girls’ soccer team.

Education: Karaffa earned a bachelor’s in elementary education from Elizabethtown College in 2005 and a master’s in American history and government from Ashland University in 2021.

More information about Karaffa, plus links to photos and video from today’s assembly, can be found on the Milken Educator Awards website at: https://www.milkeneducatorawards.org/educators/view/jamie-karaffa.

More about the Milken Educator Awards: “The future belongs to the educated.”
Along with the financial prize, Milken Educator Award recipients join the national Milken Educator Network, a group of more than 2,800 top teachers, principals and specialists. The network serves as a rich resource for fellow educators, legislators, school boards and others dedicated to excellence in education.

  • In June, the honorees will also attend an all-expenses-paid Milken Educator Awards Forum in Los Angeles, where they will network with their new colleagues as well as veteran Milken Educators and other education leaders about how to increase their impact on K-12 education. In addition, they will learn about how to become involved in the Milken Friends Forever (MFFs) mentoring program, in which freshman Milken Educators receive personalized coaching and support from a Milken Educator veteran on ways to elevate their instructional practice and take an active role in educational leadership, policy and practice.
  • Over the years, more than $140 million in funding, including $70 million for the individual cash awards, has been devoted to the overall Milken Awards initiative, which includes powerful professional development opportunities throughout recipients’ careers.
  • Veteran Milken Educators frequently go on to serve in leadership roles at state, national and international levels.
  • “We find you. You don’t find us!” Unlike most teacher recognition programs, the Milken Educator Awards initiative has no formal nomination or application process. Candidates are sourced through a confidential selection process and then reviewed by blue ribbon panels in each state. The most exceptional candidates are recommended for the award, with final selection made by the Milken Family Foundation.
  • The $25,000 cash award is unrestricted. Recipients have used the money in diverse ways. For instance, some have spent the funds on their children’s or their own continuing education, financing dream field trips, establishing scholarships, and even adopting children.