Registration for Student Learning Objectives Training Now Open

The Maine Department of Education is once again proud to offer Student Learning Objective (SLO) training to school administrative units (SAUs) to help support the development and refinement of Performance Evaluation and Professional Growth (PEPG) systems.

For the 2018-2019 school year, Maine DOE has continued its partnership with the Northeast Comprehensive Center to offer training and support to effectively implement these important measures of student learning and growth. This training will take place at the Burton M. Cross Building in Rooms 103A and 103B on September 10, 2018 from 10:00AM to 3:00PM.

SAU teams and other key staff who lead and support SLO work as a part of PEPG systems can expect to receive:

Research-based approaches to SLO implementation
Turn-key activities to facilitate with your SAU
Electronic resources to support districts in their SLO implementation

Topics to be addressed at the event include:

Determining SLO Quality
Navigating an SLO Process
Deciding on Learning Content
Setting Growth Targets
Developing Quality Assessments

Register for the Student Learning Objectives Training

Please note, additional trainings for the 2018-2019 school year are currently under development. As these trainings are added, information will be distributed to districts.

For more information, please contact Emily Gribben, Educator Effectiveness Coordinator at emily.gribben@maine.gov.

Professional Standards for School Nutrition Professionals and Training Opportunities

As a reminder, the Federal School Food Service Professional Standards took effect July 1, 2015 and impacts the hiring process for new School Food Service Directors or staff members that are responsible for food service director duties and were hired after July 1, 2015.

School districts are asked to notify Maine Department of Education’s Child Nutrition staff of any School Food Service Directors leaving. Directors in place on or before June 30, 2015 are grandfathered in their position. Districts only need to meet the updated requirements for hiring a new director.

The professional standards require a combination of education and experience, and necessitate school food service employees stay current by requiring education credits be met each year. The amount of education credits varies with position and hours worked. View the Professional Standards for School Food Service.

Training offered by Maine DOE Child Nutrition team includes the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) training and Summer Food Service Program trainings, monthly webinars, regional meetings and workshops.

Take advantage of these trainings to acquire your continuing education hours. All trainings offered by Maine DOE Child Nutrition team will be posted on the Child Nutrition Resources web page and on the Maine DOE Professional Development and Training Calendar.

For more information contact Maine DOE’s Child Nutrition Director Walter Beesley at walter.beesley@maine.gov or call 624-6875.

New Video Available to Assist with English Learner Identification

A new video is now available to help train staff who assist families in enrolling in school. As part of the English learner identification process, the parent/guardian of every student enrolling in an SAU for the first time completes a Language Use Survey.

To support all Maine schools in administering this required form, the Maine Department of Education has produced a short video that explains the purpose of the Language Use Survey, how to access translation/interpretation services, and when further screening is needed to determine whether a student is an English learner.

Below please find a link to the video and the Language Use Survey:

If you have any questions about this video, please contact Maine DOE Director of ESOL/Bilingual Programs & Title III, April Perkins at (207)624-6627 or april.perkins@maine.gov.

School Bus Refurbishment Update

Maine Military Authority (MMA) has completed its work for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority contract. As part of the process of winding down operations, MMA will no longer be able to contract for school bus refurbishment and has reached out to school districts to inform them of the changes in their operations.

For school bus refurbishment contracts that have been completed, the Maine Department of Education will make subsidy payments.

Further guidance will be available to districts as soon as possible.

The Maine DOE thanks the field for their patience as we work through this change. Our mutual goal is to ensure safe transportation operations for Maine students. We will collaborate at all levels to achieve this critical goal.

Districts that were considering refurbishment services may be eligible for the Maine school bus purchase program. An overview of the program is available on the Department website (PDF).

If you have questions about the school bus purchase program or refurbishment, please contact Pat Hinckley, Transportation and Facilities Administrator, at pat.hinckley@maine.gov or 207-624-6886.

PRIORITY NOTICE: Graduation Reporting Due by September 15, 2018

The Graduation Module has opened in NEO so that School Administrative Unit staff can start entering graduation data. This module is used to calculate the graduation rates for the 2017/18 school year. It will also be used, in part, to determine supports for Maine public schools as part of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).

The data is due to the Maine Department of Education on or before Saturday, September 15, 2018. As the final step in the new streamlined process, the Department will look over submissions and send an email response to the Superintendent and the person who sent the report to inform them that the data is ready for certification. As in the past, the data needs to be certified by the Superintendent within two working days from the receipt of the email from the Department. More detailed instructions are available below.

For further questions regarding accessing the module, please call the Helpdesk at 207-624-6896. For further questions about how to complete the Graduation Module, please contact Richard Bergeron 207-624-6840.

To further assist districts as they manage required reporting, the Department will be releasing a comprehensive beginning of the school year checklist for completing required reports.

Reminder of 2019 Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey (MIYHS)

This notice is a reminder that the sixth cycle for the Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey (MIYHS) will be administered in February, 2019.

In 2017 over 62,000 students from 350 schools participated in the Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey (MIYHS), providing insight into childhood and adolescent health. MIYHS data is used daily at the school, county, public-health district, state and even national level to make informed health decisions.

Find MIYHS data below:

State Level Health Snapshots for K/3, 5/6, Middle School, and High School
School and SAU level snapshots of the 2017 MIYHS data are available to Superintendents by contacting Reid.Plimpton@maine.gov.

Online school registration for the 2019 MIYHS cycle is available for the first time. Our survey partner, Pan Atlantic will contact schools in early September with registration information and other survey details.

For further questions contact Jean Zimmerman at jean.zimmerman@maine.gov.

Certification Updates

Please help share the following notice with all Maine educators.

The Maine Department of Education has now received 10,000 renewal applications since releasing the new online certification system, Maine Educator Information System (MEIS), to educators in June. There are currently 3,000 of those applications in queue, with an approximate eight-week processing time.

Approximately 70% of all Maine educators needing renewal have now applied. For those that have applied for renewal, it is important to note the following renewal procedure as outlined in Chapter 115 Part 1:

In the case of a complete application for the renewal of a credential that has not lapsed, the existing credential shall remain in effect until the application is approved or denied, and a renewal subsequently issued shall be deemed effective as of the expiration date of the previous certificate.

More than 50% of all certification related calls to the Department are applicants requesting updates of their application status. To decrease these calls and consequently process applications at a faster rate, please note the following:

Current processing times can be found on the Certification webpage.
Processing times begin on the date the complete application is received.
Applicants – Please do not call unless you applied more than eight weeks ago.

To increase support, a concerted effort has and will continue to be made to keep the Certification webpages up to date with current information, support documentation, and answers to frequently asked questions. If educators have additional questions not answered on the website, they can call 207-324-6603 or can email the certification department at cert.doe@maine.gov.

Further communications and updates are available on the Maine Department of Education Certification Webpage, Maine DOE’s official Facebook and Twitter pages, and the DOE newsroom.

Student Health Data Needed for Nationwide Initiative

This notice is to inform all school administrators, school nurses and related staff of a new effort to collect and submit de-identified student health data to a nationwide initiative of National Association of School Nurses (NASN) entitled Every Student Counts™. The goals of Every Student Counts™ are to develop a robust national school health data set that will influence local, state, and national student health policy, as well as identify best practices in school health. By creating data driven policies to advocate for the needs of students, we can increase evidence-based school nursing practice, and improve youth health outcomes.

In order for this to be successful at a statewide and national level, we are asking school administrators to commit to this ongoing effort and;

Select one point person in the school unit to be responsible for compiling and submitting the data from all schools to submit one report in June for each school administrative unit.
Share this notice with their school nurses and other health staff.

This data collection will be included with the School Health Annual Report that is submitted at the end of each school year. Although these added questions are not required, we strongly recommend every school unit participate. The data points, not covered in any other state or national survey, are:

Staffing levels for health services (direct services, supplemental staff, special assignments, supervisory position provided by RN, LPN, and health aides)
Number of students with a diagnosis (from a health care provider) of asthma, type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, seizure disorder, life threatening allergy
Health office visits & disposition (number of students seen face to face by RN, LPN, health aide and resulting disposition: return to class, sent home, or 911 call)

The Department is in full support of the NASN Every Student Counts™ initiative. The Maine Association of School Nurses will be working with the Maine DOE School Nurse Consultant to promote the collection of this data statewide.

If you have questions about Every Student Counts™, please contact Emily Poland, RN, School Nurse Consultant at Emily.Poland@Maine.gov or 207-624-6688, or visit the Every Student Counts™ Website.

Child Sexual Abuse Implementation Support Materials Now Available

As part of a collaborative effort of the Maine Department of Education and the Maine Coalition Against Sexual Assault (MECASA), resources have been developed to support school systems in the implementation of the child sexual abuse prevention and response law, L.D. 1180 – An Act To Require Education in Public Preschool Programs and Elementary. The Maine Department of Education has developed a Model Policy for Child Sexual Abuse Prevention and Response and more resources are available as part of an initiative called The Children’s Safety Partnership: Ending Child Abuse Together.

An important resource to the support these materials is The Children’s Safety Partnership Website dedicated to providing information and resources for schools and communities on child sexual abuse (CSA) prevention and response. Available on the home page of the new website is a link to a newly developed tool, A Guide to Implementing Maine’s CSA Prevention & Response Model Policy. Also available on the new website will be training opportunities focused on understanding the policy, personnel awareness and education, and curriculum lessons for students on child sexual abuse prevention. These trainings will include direct education as well as training of trainers and teachers. Get further details about scheduled regional trainings.

In addition, MECASA has a network of educators across the state available to support school districts with the implementation of the law. Visit the contact page of The Children’s Safety Partnership Website or the MECASA website to locate an educator at the sexual assault support center nearest you.

For more information contact Susan Berry, Health Education and Health Promotion Coordinator at Maine DOE at susan.berry@maine.gov.

Integrated Pest Management Requirements

Encounters with rodents, hornets, bats, poisonous plants and other pests can threaten the health and safety of students, staff and visitors on school properties. However, pesticides can also pose a risk and the use of these chemicals in Maine is strictly regulated. All public and private schools serving any grades kindergarten through 12 are required under state law to adopt and implement an integrated pest management (IPM) policy to reduce potential risks of exposure to pests and pesticides.

Specific requirements include:

Appointment of IPM Coordinator
Appoint a staff member to serve as and annually report their name and contact information (e-mail address and phone number) by September 1^st via the Department of Education NEO system. If unable to use NEO, report via email to pesticides@maine.gov or by calling 207-287-2731. This information is required to provide necessary educational information and training and ensure compliance with regulations.

Training
The IPM Coordinator must complete two trainings: 1) Initial Training Module must be completed within one month of appointment (available online at www.maine.gov/schoolipm click on ‘Trainings and Events’) and 2) Comprehensive IPM Training Training must be completed within one year of appointment (free workshop offered in numerous locations throughout the year. See schedule at www.maine.gov/schoolipm). In addition, the IPM Coordinator must earn 1-hr of Continuing Education credit per year.

Notification, Signage and Authorization
A notice describing your school’s IPM program must be included in the school policy manual or student and staff handbooks. Specific information is required. A sample notice is available at http://www.maine.gov/schoolipm. This information must be kept up to date, but an annual notice to parents and staff is no longer required. A notice about the schools’ IPM Policy must be published in your policy manuals, such as the student and staff handbooks. Before any pesticide application on school properties (including non-school properties used primarily for official school functions) the IPM Coordinator must authorize it. Parents and staff must be notified five days in advance and signs must be posted two days in advance. Some types of applications are exempted. More information and sample notices are available at maine.gov/schoolipm or by contacting the Maine Board of Pesticides Control at pesticides@maine.gov or 207-287-2731.

Licensing
A commercial Pesticide Applicators License is required for all pesticide applications except for the control of stinging insects and for routine use of disinfectants.

Record-Keeping
A Pest Management Activity Log must be kept current and on file for at least two years. Specific records about IPM steps taken and pesticide use must be kept. Sample logbook pages are available at maine.gov/schoolipm.

The School IPM Program, Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, is available to help with pest problem-solving advice, training resources and more (www.maine.gov/schoolipm, e-mail: kathy.murray@maine.gov, phone: 207-287-7616). For more information contact the Maine Board of Pesticides Control (pesticides@maine.gov or 207-287-2731) or Pat Hinckley at the Department of Education (pat.hinckley@maine.gov, 207-624-6886 ).