This week’s Commissioner’s Update is landing in inboxes as many of you are hopefully enjoying a well-deserved April vacation.
The days between now and when the school year ends in June will likely be your busiest, and include a flurry of budget preparations, the administration of the SAT and/or Smarter Balanced field tests, the release of the State school report cards, all of the preparations that go into graduation and so much more.
Continue reading “As we enter the home stretch, a thank you”
A webinar training provided by the Maine DOE’s Office of Special Services earlier this month is now available online as a tool for districts.
The training, led by the Department’s Director of Special Services Jan Breton and Fiscal Analyst Tyler Backus, focused on the Local Entitlement Application for Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) funds for the 2014-15 school year.
Continue reading “Maine DOE offers webinar on maintenance of effort and excess cost”
Arts teachers from across the state met at the University of Maine at Orono for a Maine Arts Assessment Initiative (MAAI) regional workshop earlier this month. The workshop focused on articulating proficiency in arts learning and developing proficiency models for different grade levels.
Continue reading “Maine arts teachers focus on standards, assessment”
The National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) has awarded $15,000 to the Maine State Board of Education to advance the state’s education reform work on Common Core State Standards (CCSS), Deeper Learning Principles and school leadership. Maine is one of only six boards to receive a stipend award. Kentucky, West Virginia, Guam, Washington D.C. and Delaware were also selected.
Continue reading “Maine’s State Board of Education receives national grant”
The Maine DOE is reminding district leaders that the comprehensive online self-assessment developed in collaboration with Great Schools Partnership is available in its electronic form through June 30.
Continue reading “Online district self-assessment available through June 30”
The Maine DOE is offering two webinars next month to provide guidance on current Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)/No Child Left Behind (NCLB) requirements.
Continue reading “Maine DOE to host webinars on ESEA requirements in May”
Dear Superintendents and Business Managers,
The Department is pleased to let you know that we have just posted updated FY 2015 (2014-15 school year) State subsidy printouts, known as ED 279s, here on our website.
Continue reading “Message to districts: Updated ED 279s posted”
Next week, I have the honor of speaking about school security at the Maine Partners in Emergency Preparedness Conference. I am excited to share all the advancements we’ve made here in recent years to strengthen the safety and security of our schools, especially since the shootings at Sandy Hook.
Most notably, thanks to two security reports commissioned by the Legislature and our Department and produced by Safe Havens International and PDT Architects, Maine schools now better understand their vulnerabilities and opportunities to better ensure student and staff safety.
Knowing how important this work is can often make it daunting for districts and schools boards to figure out where to best begin. That’s why as a follow-up to those assessments and in partnership with Safe Havens International, we are pleased to provide a free school security guide entitled 20 Simple Strategies to Safer and More Effective Schools.
Continue reading “Simple strategies for safer, more effective schools”
As part of the major collaborative project funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Maine Historical Society and the Maine Humanities Council will host a Civil War Symposium focusing on Maine after the war. The half-day event will be held at the Morgan Hill Event Center in Hermon from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 10.
Continue reading “Statewide symposium to focus on Civil War legacies in Maine”
Traveling from as far south as York and from as far north as Caribou, 135 educators attended the Maine Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) Spring Conference in Brewer this week to network and learn from the efforts of their colleagues as they transition to proficiency-based education and proficiency-based diplomas.
Continue reading “Maine ASCD hosts Pathways to Proficiency Spring Conference”
Maine DOE Newsroom 