All districts above the 1% for alternate assessments will receive an Action Plan document to provide justifications on November 20th. Action Plans will be submitted to the State by December 10th.. Maine will provide an opportunity for Public Comment before the December 19th submission of a state waiver.
Two webinars will be available to aid districts over the 1% for alternate assessments in development of their action plan. Districts will be given the opportunity to choose a webinar on November 27th at 2:00 pm or November 30th at 3:00 pm.
As a reminder, Maine’s percentage of students that participate in the alternate assessments is currently above the 1% federal regulation. If data is not entered into the Synergy State Edition Student System by November 17th to allow the Department to determine anticipated participation for the 2018 test administration, the MAARS reporting information for the spring 2017 tests will be used to capture the information.
For more information contact Sue Nay at sue.nay@maine.gov or 624-6774.
The Maine Department of Education (DOE) has developed a new survey called, Language Use Survey (formerly Home Language Survey) to be used in the identification of English learners. The Language Use Survey is to be administered to the parent/guardian of every student enrolling in a School Administrative Unit (SAU) for the first time and must be included in the SAU’s enrollment packet. | More
All districts above the 1% for alternate assessments will receive an Action Plan document to provide justifications on November 20th. Action Plans will be submitted to the State by December 10th.. Maine will provide an opportunity for Public Comment before the December 19th submission of a state waiver. | More
The Maine Department of Education is pleased to announce the Maine state selection committees for the 2017 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) program has selected as the state-level finalists for 7-12th grade teachers of mathematics Ellen Payne from Nokomis Regional High School and Priya Natarajan from Casco Bay High for Expeditionary Learning School. | More
The Maine Department of Education (DOE) has developed a new survey called, Language Use Survey (formerly Home Language Survey) to be used in the identification of English learners. The Language Use Survey is to be administered to the parent/guardian of every student enrolling in a School Administrative Unit (SAU) for the first time and must be included in the SAU’s enrollment packet.
The Language Use Survey is available to download in English and 25 of Maine’s most commonly spoken languages from the Department website. It is also available via TransACT, a service provided through the Maine DOE to give districts access to ESSA-compliant parent notifications in English and other languages.
If you have additional questions regarding the Language Use Survey, please contact April Perkins, ESOL Specialist at april.perkins@maine.gov or office: (207)624-6627 cell: (207) 441-9043.
The Maine Department of Education is pleased to announce the Maine state selection committees for the 2017 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) program has selected as the state-level finalists for 7-12th grade teachers of mathematics Ellen Payne from Nokomis Regional High School and Priya Natarajan from Casco Bay High for Expeditionary Learning School.
The state-level finalists for 7-12th grade teachers of science are Sharon Gallant from Gardiner Area High School, Sara McQuarrie from Hodgdon Middle/High School, Bill McWeeny from Adams School, and Alyson Saunders from Dexter Regional High School.
All State-level finalists will be honored at state ceremonies this year.
Up to five state-level finalists for each content area are forwarded to a national selection committee composed of mathematics and/or science educators, researchers, district officials, and past awardees who will meet to select the PAEMST awardees at the national level. The teachers chosen to be Presidential Awardees will be notified by the White House, honored at various ceremonies in Washington, D.C., and will receive $10,000 from the National Science Foundation.
Join us in congratulating the 2017 PAEMST State Finalist and wishing them luck in the national selection process.
Nominations are now open for the 2018 PAEMST Awards. This year’s awards will honor mathematics and science (including computer science) teachers working in grades K-6. Nominations close on April 1, 2018 and applications are due by May 1, 2018. Nominate a teacher today!
If you have any questions about the PAEMST program feel free to contact:
The Department has added a new knowledgebase feature designed to communicate known issues and updates pertaining to our data systems (NEO/Synergy). We hope this will provide those in need of help with a quick way to search and filter by issue or topic to find more information and possible resolutions. | More
As a direct result of the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) of 2015 (2015) teacher certification language was revised and amended. Current education law, requires educators to achieve full State certification and licensure. | More
The Department is accepting applications for the Maine School Bus Purchase Program beginning November 1, 2017. Program applications will close on November 25, 2017 with no extension. | More
Teachers may register for PAAP (MEA Alternate Science ) and MSAA (MEA Alternate Mathematics and ELA/Literacy teacher administration through November 6th | More
The Department has added a new knowledgebase feature designed to communicate known issues and updates pertaining to our data systems (NEO/Synergy). We hope this will provide those in need of help with a quick way to search and filter by issue or topic to find more information and possible resolutions.
Updates/Issues: Is this a known issue that has been reported or is it a system updates such as a code change, etc.
System: The Data System the issue is pertaining to such as NEO or Synergy.
Report/Upload: The name of the specific report or upload within the system.
Issue: Brief description of the actual issue reported or actual work done during the system update. Note: This field is hyperlinked and will display more information, including possible resolution, when clicked.
Description: This is a detailed description of the issue reported or work done during the system update.
Priority: Rating of Low, Medium, High or Completed.
Report to Helpdesk: If the issue is marked with a Yes in this column, please contact the Helpdesk to provide more information specific to your school or situation.
Last Updated: This is either the initial date the issue/update was entered or the last time information was updated for this specific record.
Left- Deborah Braxton, Maine Association of School Nurses, SNOY Chair Center- Ann Bouchard, Maine School Nurse of the Year 2017-18 Right-Patricia Endsley, SNOY 2016-17
The Maine Association of School Nurses has named Ann Bouchard Maine’s 2017-2018 School Nurse of the Year. A registered nurse for 40 years, the last 17 of them as a school nurse at Waterville Senior High School in AOS 92, Bouchard received her Bachelor’s of Science in 1977 from Boston College where she majored in nursing and sociology. She was commissioned as a Captain in the United States Air Force in 1978 and completed trainings in USAF Air Command and Staff College, USAF Squadron Officers School, the Flight Nurse course, and the Nurse Oncologist Certification course. Ann worked concomitantly as a flight nurse for the NY Air National Guard, nurse consultant for Albany Medical Center, and adjunct faculty lecturer for Russell Sage College. She earned a Master’s of Science in Nursing in 1983 from Russell Sage College and a Master’s degree in Leadership Studies from the University of Southern Maine in 2010. In addition to working full time, Bouchard is an active volunteer in her community, an experienced lecturer and has published some of her written work. She serves on several school committees, in addition to the Kennebec Valley Community Action, Hardy Girls, Healthy Women, Alfond Youth Center Board of Directors, docent for Colby College museum and has been a clinical supervisor for University of Maine Orono nursing students.
Bouchard has received numerous awards including awards from the Waterville Board of Education, Faculty Renaissance Award, Outstanding Educator, United States Air Force Air National Guard Nurse of the Year, Air Force Commendation Medals with Oak Leaf Cluster, as well as a Yearbook dedication from the Waterville HS Class of 2005.
Her colleagues frequently describe her as “dedicated, unselfish, committed to the needs of all students, and willing to help with anything at a moment’s notice.” According to the nurses who nominated her, “Her leadership style is transformational and defined by deep and authentic connections.”
As School Nurse of the Year, Bouchard receives a cash award of $500 and will be acknowledged as the Maine School Nurse of the Year at the National Association of School Nurses annual meeting in Baltimore, MD in June 2018. The program is administered by the Maine Association of School Nurses. Nominations for School Nurse of the Year are accepted each year beginning in March.
School Administrative Units (SAU) that canceled school days due to circumstances surrounding the recent storm should treat those cancelations the same as any other weather related school cancelation.
The state of emergency issued by the State of Maine was expressly to provide utility work crews relief from federal highway regulations in order to restore power to those who have been impacted – it does not result in an automatic excusal of missed school days.
As part of the standard procedure for meeting requirements for instructional days, written requests for waivers for storm days may be submitted by the district school board in the Spring when districts have a better sense of storm days used.
The Department is accepting applications for the Maine School Bus Purchase Program beginning November 1, 2017. Program applications will close on November 25, 2017 with no extension.
The program application is available on the NEO Transportation data system. Instructions to submit a request are located on the NEO Dashboard. Refer to pages 20-23 of the PowerPoint entitled School Bus Purchase Program – How It Works. School Bus Purchase Program subsidy can be used towards the purchase of new school buses.
If you have questions about the School Bus Purchase Program, contact Pat Hinckley at Pat.Hinckley@maine.gov .
Teachers may register for PAAP (MEA Alternate Science ) and MSAA (MEA Alternate Mathematics and ELA/Literacy teacher administration through November 6th at https://iregister.measuredprogress.org/client/
Training locations include:
Location
Date
Meeting Venue
Address
Presque Isle
11/14/2017
Hampton Inn
768 Main Street Presque Isle, ME 04769
Orono
11/15/2017
Black Bear Inn
4 Godfrey Drive Orono, ME 04473
Auburn
11/16/2017
Hilton Garden Inn
14 Great Falls Plaza Auburn, ME 04210
Portland
11/17/2017
Clarion Hotel
1230 Congress Street Portland, ME 04102
Please contact Sue Nay for more information at sue.nay@maine.gov, or 624-6774.
Maine DOE Newsroom 