It has been a great honor to serve students and schools as the Commissioner of the Maine Department of Education for the past two and a half years. In that time, we’ve made incredible progress in moving from plan to practice our Education Evolving strategic plan to restructure Maine’s education system around our students. Continue reading “A letter from Commissioner Bowen: A new opportunity”
Category: News & Views
Bowen tapped to lead nationwide education innovation
AUGUSTA – The success of the LePage Administration’s school reforms have been recognized across the country, and now its Education Commissioner is being tapped to take that transformation nationwide.
Commissioner Stephen Bowen has been recruited by the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) to become their Strategic Initiative Director of Innovation, which includes oversight of their Innovation Lab Network.
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What does approved ESEA waiver mean for your school?
On Monday, we announced that the U.S. Department of Education has approved Maine’s Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) waiver.
Maine earned the waiver – which can be viewed at www.maine.gov/doe/accountability – because we developed an ambitious yet achievable plan to improve educational outcomes for all students, close achievement gaps and increase the quality of instruction. As a result, Maine will cut in half the percentage of non-proficient students at each school over the next six years. Continue reading “What does approved ESEA waiver mean for your school?”
Maine receives ESEA waiver
The Elementary and Secondary Education Act waiver will allow Maine to move forward on local and State reforms that will cut in half the percentage of non-proficient students at each Title I school by 2018
AUGUSTA – Maine will have flexibility in meeting federal education requirements and be allowed to implement its own statewide system to hold schools accountable and help them improve student outcomes.
Notice of annual audit requirements
Maine DOE is providing notice of several changes to requirements and procedures as well as reminders about the annual audit requirements for audits for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2012, and subsequent years. Continue reading “Notice of annual audit requirements”
Educators encouraged to attend Common Core and IEP goal-writing training
The Maine DOE Office of Special Services is offering regional professional development sessions in evidence-based practices this fall. In addition to ongoing technical assistance, the Department will be providing professional development to each of the nine superintendent regions regarding the instructional usage and Individualized Education Program (IEP) goal alignment of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) in English language arts and mathematics for children with disabilities. General and special educators are invited to attend.
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Request funding for National Board Certified Teacher Scholarship
A school administrative unit or a publicly-supported secondary school may request funding from the National Board Certification Scholarship Fund on behalf of teachers who meet the requirements. This fund encourages teachers to apply to and enroll in the certification program offered by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards or its successor organization.
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Changes to National Board Certified Teacher Salary Supplement
Recent legislative changes to the Salary Supplement for Teachers who have attained National Board for Professional Teaching Standards Certification are now in effect. Eligible teachers now include a public school teacher or a teacher in a publicly-supported secondary school who has attained certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards or its successor organization. The amount of the salary supplement for fiscal year 2013-14 is $2,750, unless proration is necessary.
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New changes start in September to DOE reimbursement system
The GEM reimbursement system has undergone several recent changes to help strengthen monitoring procedures designed to ensure compliance with federal sub-recipient monitoring requirements.
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Rule Change Adoption: Chapter 13, Qualifying Examinations for Teachers, Educational Specialists and Administrators
The revised Rule for Qualifying Examinations for Teachers, Educational Specialists and Administrators, Chapter 13, is now effective.
The changes to Chapter 13 stem from the regular regeneration (revision) process employed by the Educational Testing Service (ETS). Each Praxis exam undergoes regeneration every five years. ETS conducts a multi-state standard setting study designed to assemble two separate groups of current practitioners who work for two to three days to review the validity and reliability of the test being regenerated. Continue reading “Rule Change Adoption: Chapter 13, Qualifying Examinations for Teachers, Educational Specialists and Administrators”
Maine DOE Newsroom 