The United States Environmental Protection Agency will again make funds available for the School Bus Replacements Rebate Program beginning this fall. This is the second time the EPA will open the Diesel Emission Reduction Act School Bus Replacement Funding opportunity.
Continue reading “Federal School Bus Replacement Rebate Program announced”
The Maine DOE is proposing changes this fall to the rules regarding the provision of child find, early intervention services, and special education and related services to eligible children with disabilities age birth to 20.
As originally noted in a dispatch dated June 4, changes to the MEDMS Educator Quality and Effectiveness (EQE) Survey are still in progress. The changes discussed in June have since evolved.
Continue reading “Update on new school staff evaluation survey”
School administrative units (SAUs) and private schools approved for tuition purposes are expected to establish regional school calendars in coordination with their local secondary career and technical education school by April 14.
The Maine Public Broadcasting Network recently announced the formation of the MPBN Junior Broadcaster Board to be made up of Maine high school sophomore and junior students. Slated to launch in February, MPBN is accepting applications to join the board through Nov. 15.
Continue reading “MPBN seeks students for Junior Broadcaster Board”
The following Priority Notice requesting participation in a survey on the use of instructional coaches was distributed to all Maine superintendents on Wednesday, Oct. 8.
Dear Superintendents,
As you know, the Maine DOE is committed to ensuring that every learner has the opportunity to be successful. Part of that is ensuring our schools have the resources they need to best support all of their students, including those who are economically disadvantaged. Continue reading “Superintendents surveyed on use of instructional coaches”
The following guidance on Enterovirus D68 from the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention was distributed by the Maine DOE to all Maine school nurses on Friday, Oct. 3.
Each year, millions of people become ill due to respiratory illnesses. Some of the more common respiratory illnesses in schools may include influenza, pertussis and the common cold. The common cold can be caused by many viruses including enteroviruses, one strain of which (EV-D68) is responsible for several outbreaks in the United States in 2014, including one recent case here in Maine. Schools should be aware of these illnesses, how to prevent them and what is reportable. Continue reading “Guidance to Maine schools on EV-D68”
In a surprise all-school assembly today, Maine Education Commissioner Jim Rier announced Skowhegan Area Middle School’s Jennifer Dorman was selected from nearly 400 nominees as Maine’s top teacher
SKOWHEGAN – A 20-year veteran special educator in Somerset County schools committed to supporting her students succeed despite their challenges has been selected as the 2015 Teacher of the Year.
In a surprise assembly at MSAD 54’s Skowhegan Area Middle School (SAMS) on Thursday, Education Commissioner Jim Rier announced Jennifer Dorman had been chosen from a field of 376 nominees as Maine’s top teacher. Continue reading “Longtime Skowhegan special educator Maine’s 2015 Teacher of the Year”
As Maine moves toward a proficiency-based education system that will ensure students graduate from our high schools having mastered State learning standards, I am often asked what this expectation means for our nearly 30,000 students with disabilities.
A free appropriate public education must include support to allow students with disabilities to achieve the same high standards as other students.
I – like all of my colleagues at the Department and so many of you – believe that Maine students with disabilities deserve to graduate knowing that they have the knowledge and skills needed for future success. And I am confident that they can, even if their path toward proficiency sometimes looks different than that of their classmates. After all, in the true learner-centered system envisioned in Maine’s Education Evolving strategic plan, all students are active participants in and directors of their own learning, taking a meaningful role in planning learning activities and being allowed to choose the manner by which they display proficiency, whether it be a final exam, paper, project or other demonstration.
More Notices | Administrative Letters | Reporting Calendar
Janette Kirk, David Fisk and Chelsey Fortin have joined Maine DOE as members of the No Child Left Behind Federal Programs Team. | More
The Department is hosting a second series of workshops to support principals as instructional leaders. | More
Casco Bay High School Principal Derek Pierce has won the Nellie Mae Education Foundation’s 3rd Annual Larry O’Toole Award. | More
The Maine DOE will be again offering free regional workshops for world language teachers statewide. | More
All Maine principals and headmasters are encouraged to nominate one student for the United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP). | More
The Maine DOE has recently published guidance on what constitutes proficiency in a world language. | More
The Department is encouraging all superintendents to attend NEO bomb threat report training. | More
The daily education rates for special purpose private schools have been set for the 2014-15 school year. | More
The Maine DOE is proposing changes this fall to the rules regarding major capital school construction projects. | More
The Maine DOE is pleased to announce the Smarter Balanced Digital Library currently contains more than 2,000 resources. | More
The reporting requirement for school administrative units to complete the MEDMS Staff Data Collection for 2014-15 has been extended to Oct. 15. | More
The Maine DOE is reminding superintendents, Infinite Campus (IC) data managers, building administrators and school office personnel of the expectation to identify English learners. | More
The Maine DOE is seeking recommendations to fill vacancies on the Title I Committee of Practitioners. | More
More Dispatches | Press Releases | From the Commissioner
As Maine moves toward a proficiency-based education system that will ensure students graduate from our high schools having mastered State learning standards, I am often asked what this expectation means for our nearly 30,000 students with disabilities.
Continue reading “All students, all standards but different demonstrations of proficiency”
