Priority Notice: Revisions Made to EF-M-39A and EF-M-39B Reports

The Maine Department of Education has revised the EF-M-39A due July 15^th, and the EF-M-39B report due January 15^th is now a one page report.

The EF-M-39A has been reduced to a one page form. The listing of the actual students has been eliminated, and the form has also been designed so it can be used for both the EF-M-39A and the EF-M-39B submissions. You will not need to download two separate spreadsheets. You will only be asked to provide the number of 16- to 20-year-old resident students who are enrolled in academic courses in adult education somewhere in Maine, and are no longer enrolled in “Regular Education.” Finally, the user is asked to provide the total number of adult education academic courses (not credits) that these same students were taking during this reporting period.

The reporting calendar lists all reports due to MDOE.

Find the EFM39B report here.

It is important to note that subsidy is estimated unless actual numbers are submitted. The accuracy, completeness, and timeliness of the data sent for this report has a direct correlation to the subsidy that your district may receive.

If you have any questions about the new process please contact Travis Wood at travis.wood@maine.gov or call the MEDMS helpdesk at (207) 624-6896.

Notice: MaineCare Billing For Contracted Services

School administrative units who contract with a provider to provide special education related services for MaineCare eligible students with an IEP/IFSP should be aware of certain requirements concerning billing.

First, the contracted provider must be enrolled as a MaineCare school-based provider. Second, the contracted provider must bill MaineCare according to the MaineCare school-based billing guide specifically indicating that the service was provided at a school location.

All school administrative units who contract with a provider of special education related services have responsibility for the seed portion of the claims. This is handled as a deduction from state subsidy. When contracted service providers are not correctly enrolled in MaineCare as school-based or are not correctly billing for school-based services, the “seed” is not correctly assessed and goes unpaid.

Please direct any questions regarding this matter to Denise.Towers@maine.gov.

Notice: MaineCare Seed payment adjustments made, report review by December 23, 2016

MaineCare Seed Adjustments

In consideration of the recent seed recovery issues, the Department will be changing the process of reviewing reports and the recovery of the seed for those reports.

Current Process:

Maine DOE adjusts SAU’s ED 279.
Maine DOE sends notification to SAUs that the quarterly reports are ready for review.
SAUs request corrections; those corrections (after verification) are adjusted in a future quarter.

New Process:

Maine DOE sends notification to SAUs that the quarterly reports are ready for review.
The Department allows approximately 30 days for SAU to review reports.
Any requests for corrections (after verification) will be adjusted.
Maine DOE adjusts SAU’s ED 279.

The new process will allow for a review of data and corrections to be made before the ED 279 is adjusted for seed recovery beginning with the Q416 adjustment scheduled in January.

MaineCare Seed payment adjustments made, report review by December 23, 2016

The 2016-17 subsidy checks for General Purpose Aid for local schools will reflect adjustments for MaineCare Seed payments paid by the Maine DOE on behalf of school administrative units (SAUs) for the following:

2016 Quarter 3 revised MaineCare payment adjustments

Detailed student reports for Quarter 3 are now available in Infinite Campus (State Edition). Instructions for accessing MaineCare Seed Payment Reports in Infinite Campus are available here.

Updated 2016-17 state subsidy printouts (ED279s) reflecting these adjustments are available at www.maine.gov/doe/eps/.

Reporting issues:

To ensure accurate adjustments to subsidy, SAU staff must review student-by-student reports for Quarter 3 and report any issues on these reports no later than December 23, 2016. Any questions regarding these reports should be addressed to denise.towers@maine.gov.

If you disagree that a particular student or time period should be on the report, please provide the reason that you disagree along with supporting evidence and also include the following:

Identify the type of report (Public or Private) and the quarter in which the claims are located
Student’s State Student ID
Service provided dates (to and from)
Total amount of Seed being disputed

Should this inquiry result in a change to the subsidy adjustment, the revision will be reflected in subsequent monthly subsidy checks.

Summer services:

The Department has found that a number of students are provided services during the summer. If the student was a resident of your SAU during those months, your SAU is still fiscally responsible for the MaineCare Seed as this is considered an extended school year for these students. Students in extended school years must be enrolled during these periods to ensure accurate adjustments.

For more information on MaineCare Seed payments, including links to prior communications, accounting instructions and instructions for accessing MaineCare Seed Payment Reports in Infinite Campus, please click here. For more information or technical assistance related to MaineCare Seed, please contact Denise Towers at Denise.towers@maine.gov.

New version of NEO Transportation to launch Oct. 28

A new version of the NEO Transportation application will launch Friday, Oct. 28. This release includes new features intended to make bus data management easier, a clean-up of features rolled out in the initial release, and an edit of features available to districts.

A ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ (FAQs) link has been added to the home page of the transportation application. The FAQs provide instructions to guide people through correct steps and buttons to complete a function. These FAQ instructions also describe some of the codes and statuses used in the new application.

The new transportation features include:

Only one way to add a vehicle into inventory (EFT-20 school bus purchase report)
- In the past a purchase report could get down the wrong path and be marked in service before it was realized that the purchase information needed to be added. This potential error and submittal problem has been eliminated.

Vehicle information all on one screen (EFT-20 school bus purchase report)
- One screen will contain the mileage and equipment data previously entered by the transportation manager and the purchasing information previously entered by the finance manager. This makes data entry easier.

Additional vehicle and purchase statuses (EFT-17 school bus replacement request and vehicle inventory)
- Several new statuses have been included to help indicate the exact status of a vehicle in inventory, a bus purchase request, or both. District users can now see the status of each bus request as it moves through the School Bus Purchase Program process and see the status of a bus as it moves to disposal, transfer, or both. This makes the process easier for districts to implement.

Data entry edits
- Several new edit buttons have been added to NEO Transportation screens. Now districts will be able to correct their data entry errors and no longer need to request edits from Maine DOE.

Reports and downloads
- Many district screens now have the ability to download and/or print data on the screen and new state reports can be found on the reports tab. Data downloads and reports provide information for districts to plan budgets and inform school boards about transportation.

Improved navigation
- The old version of the application seemed to experience navigation blocks. This has been resolved making it easier for district users to complete and edit entries.

Automated e-mail notifications
- The application will now send out e-mails when certain events occur, e.g.: the superintendent will receive an email when a bus request is approved, the superintendent will receive an e-mail to confirm intent of the district to purchase a bus after the purchase has been approved by Maine DOE, the district finance manager will receive e-mails if EFT-20 school bus purchase reports are not entered on time during the purchase fiscal year, and Maine DOE will receive an e-mail when an emergency bus request is placed.

Automated removal of subsidy allocation if purchases are not completed
- Bus purchases must be completed within the fiscal year for which the purchase was approved so that vehicle subsidy allocation can begin the fiscal year after a new bus is purchased. If an approved bus purchase is not completed by submitting timely reports, the subsidy allocation will automatically be deleted. This process will begin in fiscal year 2018.

Before you begin using the new version of NEO Transportation it is important that you consult the FAQ section in the transportation section on the NEO dashboard. Instructions are included with answers to the FAQs.

If you have questions about transportation policy, please contact Maine DOE’s Transportation and Facilities Administrator, Pat Hinckley, at pat.hinckley@maine.gov.

Maine DOE 2016 Survey for SAUs to report proficiency-based implementation progress

The following Priority Notice was sent on October 11, 2016

During the period of transition to proficiency-based learning and proficiency-based diplomas, SAUs are asked to report implementation progress annually. The window for completing this year’s progress report is from October 11, 2016 through November 30, 2016. To preview this progress report, click here for a printable version of the 2015-2016 Progress Report: Implementing Proficiency-Based Learning and Proficiency-Based Diplomas. The online version of this progress report is available for SAUs to complete.

The Department’s goal is 100 percent participation on this survey. The information collected helps the Department chart progress toward implementation of proficiency-based diplomas and informs the development of additional resources and supports for districts. The aggregate of the information is shared with lawmakers and with the public

The 2016 progress report reflects the recently adopted timeline for phasing-in the proficiency-based diploma requirements and is a way for Maine districts to report vital data to the Maine DOE regarding the progress made from July 1, 2015-July 31, 2016. As such, this report generates a brief but important source of data for both districts and the State.

For more information please contact the Department’s Proficiency-Based Education Specialist, Diana Doiron at diana.doiron@maine.gov or 624-6823.

NEO Transportation Upgrade and EFT-24 Vehicle Mileage and Operations Report due date extension

The due date for the year-end EFT-24 Vehicle Mileage and Operations Report has been extended to December 31, 2016. MRSA 20-A section 6801-A provides statutory authority to withhold subsidy until reports are received.

NEO Transportation data system upgrades are scheduled to launch mid-October and early-December. The upgrades are designed to make the system easier to use and provide transportation reports. Districts that have not been able to enter new vehicle inventory data, EFT-24 report data, or both should enter vehicle inventory and EFT-24 data as soon as possible to avoid the end of year rush. Districts that have successfully entered new vehicle inventory data and completed year-end FY16 data in the EFT-24 report do not need to do anything.

For further information about transportation reports and instructions to enter data visit the Maine DOE Reporting Calendar at http://www.maine.gov/doe/reporting/calendar.shtml. Information about school transportation is located on the Maine DOE School Transportation website at http://maine.gov/doe/transportation/.

For policy questions regarding school transportation, contact the Maine DOE’s Transportation and Facilities Administrator Pat Hinckley at pat.hinckley@maine.gov.

For assistance with access to the NEO data system, contact the Maine DOE helpdesk atmedms.helpdesk@maine.gov.

District Assessment Coordinators Confirmation

The following Priority Notice was sent to district administrators.

Dear Superintendents,

The Maine Department of Education is ready to start sending out information about the Maine Educational Assessments, and the primary audiences include District Assessment Coordinators (DAC). They will receive information in preparation for the 2016-17 test administration, and they will receive information regarding the results from the 2015-16 test administration.
Continue reading “District Assessment Coordinators Confirmation” →

Individual student economic status information required by October 1 count for subsidy calculation

The following Priority Notice was sent to superintendents on Monday, September 12.

School Administrative Units (SAUs) that do not collect school lunch information because they have chosen to implement the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) for the federal school nutrition funds purposes, or for some other reason, are still required to report individual student information for the purpose of State funding (for Economically Disadvantaged students*) through the Essential Programs & Services Funding Act (EPS) and other federal and State individual student information requirements.

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Districts asked to designate assessment coordinator

The following Priority Notice was distributed on Wednesday, Sept. 7 to superintendents requesting they identify a district assessment coordinator to coordinator and ensure a successful administration of the 2016-17 State assessments.

Dear Superintendents,

As we begin another school year, your district will again identify individuals in key roles in the NEO Staff System. On behalf of the assessment team, I am asking you to consider carefully your choice of the individual designated as the District Assessment Coordinator (DAC). While the DAC may not be directly responsible for all the details associated with the various assessments, the Maine DOE will count on this individual to be familiar with all State assessments in order to help address any issues that may occur.

Continue reading “Districts asked to designate assessment coordinator” →

Revised model bullying and cyberbullying prevention policy and procedures

The model bullying and cyberbullying prevention policy, first adopted in 2013 as a result of An Act to Prohibit Bullying and Cyberbullying in Schools (PL 659), has been revised to include comprehensive, detailed, and user-friendly procedural forms as well as an administrative procedure.

Continue reading “Revised model bullying and cyberbullying prevention policy and procedures” →