Agency of Education, State of Vermont and Federal Updates
This section of the Weekly Field Memo contains posts from the Agency of Education, other State of Vermont agencies, federal agencies or Vermont's congressional delegation.
Vermont PBS: April Resources to Celebrate the Earth
Audience: Curriculum Directors, Principals, PreK-12 Teachers
The Vermont Agency of Education has updated our Vermont PBS webpage for April 2022. Celebrate Earth Day and being outside with resources from PBS Learning Media and VPR. Other topics of interest include supporting conversations about Ukraine, upcycled art and helping kids become “citizen scientists.” We will continue to update this webpage monthly, so check back often to find new featured resources related to monthly themes and organized by grade band and subject area. Also, visit the Vermont PBS Kids and Education page to find more online and printable resources. To share resources and network with colleagues, join the Vermont PBS Educational Resources group on Edmodo. Activate your Edmodo account and join the VTED Learns community by filling out the VTEd Learns form.
Contacts: Emily Leute at emily.leute@vermont.gov or Heather Duhamel at hduhamel@vermontpbs.org
BEST/Act 230 Grant Applications Open April 15, 2022
Audience: Superintendents, Directors of Special Education, Curriculum Coordinators, Principals, Early Education Coordinators, Business Managers
Applications for FY23 BEST/Act 230 grants will open on April 15, 2022, and be reviewed on a rolling basis until June 30, 2022. Applicants will need to login into their GMS account to apply. Act 230 funds are intended for the training of teachers, administrators and other personnel in the provision of education services to children who require educational support for academics and/or behavior in each tier of the multi-tiered system of supports. BEST funds are intended for training and professional learning to support teachers, administrators and other personnel in creating equitable, rigorous learning environments for students with emotional and behavioral needs.
Contact: Laura Greenwood at laura.greenwood@vermont.gov
Courtesy Posts
The views, opinions and resources shared in this section of the WFM are solely those of the original contributors. The Agency of Education does not endorse the views expressed by these contributors and reserves the right to refuse submissions. Questions related to any of these resources should be directed to the organizations, people and opportunities as shared. Please refer to the Weekly Field Memo submission guidelines for additional information.
Project Design Lab Registration is Open
The Community Engagement Lab is now accepting registration for the 2022 Project Design Lab, which will take place July 11-14, 2022, at the University of Vermont. The Project Design Lab is a professional development intensive that helps educators strengthen the well-being of their students, school community and their personal well-being. Educators will collaborate with a teaching artist to design a project for their classroom that uses creative engagement as a tool to bridge differences, build collective agency, imagine new approaches, inspire joyfulness and reflect individual and community identity—all vital components of individual and collective well-being. Educators can attend individually or in teams of two or more from their school or district. For more information visit the Project Design Lab event webpage.
Contact: Paul Gambill at paul@communityengagementlab.org
The Courage to Remember: Holocaust Exhibit Open Through May 1, 2022
The Courage to Remember is a traveling 40-panel educational exhibit, created by the Simon Wiesenthal Center and on loan from the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center of Nassau County, which is on display at Burlington's Fletcher Free Library through May 1, 2022. Classes are invited to tour the exhibit and may request to meet with a speaker from Vermont Holocaust Memorial (VTHM) who would share their family’s story of Holocaust survival. Visit the library’s exhibit webpage for exhibit and accompanying program information. If you would like to contact the library, please email Barbara Shatara at BShatara@burlingtonvt.gov.
Contact: Debora Steinerman at info@holocaustmemorial-vt.org
Virtual Event with Vermont Reads Author on April 13, 2022
Don’t miss your chance to register your class for a special free, virtual event with author Sarah Henstra on Wednesday, April 13, 2022, at 10:30 a.m. Henstra will discuss her novel in letters, We Contain Multitudes, the Vermont Read 2021 choice. You can register once for an entire class and then project the event during class time; the students do not need to register individually. Visit the webinar registration page to register.
Contact: Ryan Newswanger at info@vermonthumanities.org
Bring Destination Imagination To Your School or Community!
This summer and fall, Vermont Destination Imagination is offering new creative STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) activities in workshop and event formats for ages 5-18. We also welcome you to join our comprehensive team Challenge Experience, with new challenges for 2022-23. Please contact Jane Youngbaer, director of Vermont Destination Imagination, if you would like us to bring creative construction, improvisation or a STEAM combination to you anywhere in Vermont.
Contact: Jane Youngbaer at vtdicreativity@gmail.com or (802) 272-2766
All Learners Network Middle School Workshop
The All Learners Network Middle School Workshop will take place on June 28-29, 2022, from 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m., in-person, at the All Learning Center in Burlington. This workshop will spend time unpacking the learning progressions of the High Leverage Concepts, diving into hands-on techniques to engage middle school students and practicing techniques to encourage your students to do the heavy lifting of making sense of the math they are learning.
Contact: TJ Jemison at communicationsdirector@alllearnersnetwork.com
2022 Transition and Career Planning Conference – Register Today
The 17th Annual Transition and Career Professional Development Opportunity “Deliberately Developmental” features Dr. Mandy Savitz-Romer as the keynote speaker. Dr. Savitz-Romer, author and Harvard University lecturer, will present live, via Zoom, on May 12, 2022, from 10-11 a.m. Facilitated break-out discussions will follow the keynote from 11 a.m.-noon. Visit the conference event page for additional information.
Contact: Cathy Printon at printon@vsac.org
Champlain Research Experience for Secondary Teachers (CREST) Professional Learning Program
CREST is a week-long professional development program (June 27-June 30, 2022) for grade 7-12 teachers conducted at the University of Vermont’s Ecosystem Labs. Teachers will engage in place-based research about Lake Champlain led by scientists, STEM educators and graduate students. Teachers will gain access to STEM resources, project templates and data applicable to your curriculum and will create place-based projects that integrate diversity and equity principles and proficiencies. Apply online through the CREST 3.0 application and complete the CREST 3.0 survey by April 18, 2022.
Contact: Regina Toolin at rtoolin@uvm.edu
Vermont Council of Special Education Administrators Award Nominations
The Vermont Council of Special Education Administrators is currently accepting nominations for their Golden Apple and Gail Lynk awards. Nominations are due by April 15, 2022, and can be completed using the following links: 2022 Golden Apple Nomination Form and the 2022 Gail Lynk Nomination Form.
Contact: Darren McIntyre at dmcintyre@vcsea.net
Youth Lobby's Rally for the Planet
Youth Lobby is excited to announce that they are bringing back their annual Rally for the Planet on Friday, April 29, 2022, on the Statehouse Lawn! The Youth Lobby members are hoping to bring students together from across Vermont to discuss political issues that matter most to them with their legislators. This year there will also be a Green Jobs Fair so students can learn more about sustainable careers within Vermont. Youth Lobby hopes to see your students there, for more information or to register a field trip group please visit Youth Lobby's event page.
Contact: Erika Faulkner at Erika@Veep.org or YouthLobbyVT@gmail.com
Elementary School Book Project
The Vermont Student Anti-Racism Network is a statewide group of students working to promote anti-racism in our schools. One of our current projects is the elementary school book project, where we are donating anti-racist picture books to elementary schools and designing lesson plans to lead in classrooms. Our book choices include: All because You Matter by Tami Charles, The Youngest Marcher by Cynthia Levinson, Something Happened in our Town by Ann Hazzard and Let’s Talk About Race by Julius Lester. We have designed lesson plans around the four books and are Zooming into classrooms to teach lessons with K-5 graders. If you are interested, please fill out the VSARN Elementary School Survey google form.
Contact: Addie Lentzner at amlentzner@gmail.com