Maine high schools are invited to register for Poetry Out Loud, a nationwide program that encourages youth to learn about poetry through memorization and performance. Poetry Out Loud helps students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence and learn about their literary heritage.
Continue reading “National poetry contest open to Maine high schools”
The University of Maine Project Reach program invites K-12 teachers across subject areas to apply to its scholarship program, which aims to improve classroom instruction for English learners (ELs) in Maine. The project focuses efforts on current teachers of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects and provides a variety of professional and financial assistance to help teachers complete the English as a Second Language (ESL) endorsement coursework.
Continue reading “Spring training for educators of English learners”
The Sept. 30 deadline for the completion of the annual educational staff reporting to the Maine DOE has passed. If your school district has not yet completed the reporting of school staff, please do so immediately to ensure that the complete and correct staff information will be available for the upcoming Essential Programs and Services (EPS) calculation that determines school subsidy as well as required federal reporting. Staff members with old or incomplete data in the Maine Education Data Management System (MEDMS) staff system may lose their ability to access the MEDMS system.
Updated Oct. 16
Due to synchronization issues between Infinite Campus District Edition and Infinite Campus State Edition, the certification dates have been extended. Automatic refreshes of the EPS Report will continue through the end of business day on Friday, Oct. 25. Any changes you make to enrollments after Oct. 25 will not be reflected in the EPS Report. These changes must be completed manually by the Maine DOE by calling Richard Bergeron at 207-624-6799.
Certification of your Oct. 1 enrollment has also been extended. School administrative units (SAUs) cannot certify before Oct. 25 while automatic refreshing is in effect. Therefore, certification must occur starting Monday, Oct. 28 and ending Friday, Nov. 8. All EPS reports must be certified by Friday, Nov. 8.
All Essential Programs and Services (EPS) Oct. 1 Enrollment Reporting must be entered into Infinite Campus State Edition on or before Tuesday, Oct. 15 at 4 p.m. There are still many schools that have entered no student enrollments or only a portion of their enrollments.
The Maine Mathematics and Science Alliance (MMSA) has been awarded a five-year $2.4 million grant from the National Science Foundation to increase access to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) opportunities for rural youth during their out-of-school time.
The National History Day (NHD) Teacher Institutes for grade 6-12 educators who are preparing to participate in the NHD competition with their students will be held Thursday, Oct. 24 at the University of Maine and Wednesday, Nov. 20 at the Maine Historical Society in Portland.
Continue reading “Free National History Day teacher institutes”
Social studies teachers are invited to attend the 2013 Maine Council for the Social Studies Conference, “Content, Instruction and Technology: Standards-Based Approaches for 21st Century Learners.”
Continue reading “Social studies teachers invited to standards-based learning conference”
AUGUSTA – Starting today, superintendents who reject a parent’s request to send their child to school in another district will have to explain why that transfer would not be in the best interest of the student.
Under Maine law, a parent who believes it is in the best interest of their child to attend school in a different district than where the student lives can request the two superintendents agree to a transfer.
Continue reading “Transfer decisions refocused on student best interest”
AUGUSTA – Governor Paul R. LePage has appointed Jim Rier as Acting Commissioner of the Maine Department of Education, effective immediately.
Rier, a native of Machias who now lives in Topsham, has been at Maine DOE for a decade, first as Director of Finance and Operations and most recently as Deputy Commissioner since 2011.
Continue reading “Governor LePage appoints Acting Education Commissioner”
Earlier today, the Maine DOE unveiled its newly redesigned homepage. We liked our old homepage, but we are constantly looking to improve the experience people have when they interact with our Department and for so many, our website makes that important first impression.
Throughout the redesign process, we had one thing in mind: you.
The new homepage features a navigational structure organized not by sometimes ambiguous content areas but instead around the different audiences who visit our site, starting with “Students” first and as our strategic plan does, building out from there to “Teachers,” “Administrators” and “Communities.”
