- Act 189 CTE Pilot Proposal Deadline Extended
- Modern Band 101 Training by Little Kids Rock
- Launch of the Vermont Arts Learning Target Bank
- New Resources: ESSA, Title IV, and the Arts
- 2019 Kindergarten Conference: Registration Closes March 20
- BEST/MTSS Summer Institute
- World Language Standards Update
- What-If Wednesday: School Emergency Preparedness
- Regional Licensing Training
- Courtesy Posts
Act 189 CTE Pilot Proposal Deadline Extended
Audience: Principals, Superintendents
Act 189 authorizes the Agency of Education to establish guidelines, submission requirements and a review process for approving up to four CTE Pilot Projects. The purpose of the Pilot Projects is to encourage CTE centers and partner high schools to propose and study new ways of funding and/or governing CTE centers and programs in Vermont. In an effort to fulfill the Legislative requirement of “up to four” pilot projects, the agency is extending the deadline for additional submissions to 4 p.m. on May 1, 2019.
Contact: Jay Ramsey at jay.ramsey@vermont.gov
Modern Band 101 Training by Little Kids Rock
Audience: Music Educators, Educators
Register for Modern Band 101 Training, a free, full-day professional learning opportunity for music educators on March 27, 2019, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Mount Mansfield Union High School in Jericho. Little Kids Rock will provide you with tools and resources to bring student-centered, culturally responsive and inclusive music education to your students. Modern Band workshops are designed to provide you with the skills, curriculum and network to successfully run a Modern Band program. Modern Band is a new, school-based music program that utilizes popular music as its central repertoire. Styles that are studied include Rock, Pop, Reggae, Hip-Hop, Rhythm and Blues, Electronic Production and other contemporary styles as they emerge. This opportunity is brought to you in cooperation with the Vermont Agency of Education and the Vermont Music Educators Association.
Contact: Greg Young at greg.young@vermont.gov or (802) 479-1448
Launch of the Vermont Arts Learning Target Bank
Audience: Arts Educators, Community Arts Organizations, Curriculum Directors, Administrators
The Vermont Arts Learning Target Bank is a collection of learning targets aligned to the National Core Arts Standards (NCAS). The NCAS performance standards for Kindergarten to Advanced High School have been “unpacked” into learning targets. Educators can use them to clarify learning expectations for students, develop proficiency scales and construct rubrics. The learning targets were created and vetted by Vermont educators. Targets are included for all five NCAS arts disciplines: Dance, Music, Media Arts, Theater and Visual Art. Additional grade levels will be added as they become available. To learn more about the Vermont Arts Learning Target Bank read the Introduction and How to Use this Resource Guide. To access the Vermont Arts Learning Target Bank visit the resources section of the Agency of Education Arts website.
Contact: Emily Titterton at emily.titterton@vermont.gov or (802) 479-1378
New Resource: ESSA, Title IV and the Arts
Audience: Arts educators, Community Arts Organizations, Curriculum Directors, Administrators
This new resource consists of three components: An Introduction to ESSA and the Arts, The Arts and Title IV, Part A: Frequently Asked Questions, and The Arts and Level of Evidence. The goal of these resources is to provide arts educators and supporters of the arts with information about funding opportunities that exist in ESSA for the arts and a well-rounded education. Additionally, administrators can use this guide to inform their Continuous Improvement Plans and applications for federal funds. This guide focuses specifically on arts funding opportunities through Title IV, Part A. To access the ESSA and the Arts suite of resources visit the Agency of Education Arts website.
Contact: Emily Titterton at emily.titterton@vermont.gov or (802) 479-1378
2019 Kindergarten Conference: Registration Closes March 20
Audience: Curriculum Directors, Principals, Instructional Coaches, and PreK, Kindergarten, First Grade Teachers
The Vermont Agency of Education, the UVM Early Childhood Birth-Grade 3 Program, and the Vermont Association for the Education of Young Children (VTAEYC) invite you to participate in the 27th Annual Kindergarten Conference, Little Hands, Big Work: Sustainable Development Goals in Early Childhood Education. This year’s focus on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will help early educators and educational leaders to understand how to integrate these goals into everyday work with young children. The conference will take place on Thursday, March 28, 2019 at the Hilton in Burlington, VT. Learn more about workshops and register online. You can learn more about the conference through Facebook.
Contact: Pat Fitzsimmons at pat.fitzsimmons@vermont.gov or (802) 479-1425
BEST/MTSS Summer Institute
Audience: School teams of educators, family members, and community stakeholders who are looking to strengthening systems, data, and practices within a multi-tiered system of supports
Registration is open for the 2019 BEST/MTSS Summer Institute: Vermont Education at its Peak: Forging the Trails of Academic and Social Success. This year’s Summer Institute will take place from June 24-27, 2019 at the Killington Grand Resort Hotel, Killington, VT. Registration is now open and is done on an individual, first-come, first-served basis; the Institute will fill up quickly. The Summer Institute provides opportunities for school teams of educators, family members and community stakeholders to share and learn strategies for improving and strengthening the systems, data, and practices within a multi-tiered system of supports. Expect to learn about new programs, curricula, practices and activities that emphasize positive, research-based strategies to support all of our students. Individual or team-attended strands and workshops are intentionally designed to complement afternoon school team planning for building an effective multi-tiered system of supports.
Contact: Sherry Schoenberg at sherry.schoenberg@uvm.edu or (802) 656-9656
World Language Standards Update
Audience: Superintendents, Principals, Curriculum Directors, Teachers
In February 2019, the State Board of Education adopted the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Language (ACTFL) World Readiness Standards for Learning Languages to replace the Grade Expectations for Vermont’s Framework of Standards and Learning Opportunities, Standards for Non-Native Learners. The State Board of Education recognized that the ACTFL standards would provide common, rigorous learning goals for Vermont students within a proficiency-based system and access to national resources while allowing for an emphasis on both content and skills for informed and engaged cultural appreciation and interaction. The Agency of Education will be consulting with elementary, middle and high school teachers to write sample indicators and proficiency-based graduation requirements aligned with the ACTFL standards.
Contact: Global Citizenship Specialist, Martha Deiss at martha.deiss@vermont.gov
What-If Wednesday: School Emergency Preparedness
Audience: Superintendent’s, Principals and School Crisis Planning Team Members
The What-if Wednesday for March 6, 2019 is designed to for Superintendents, Principals and School Crisis Planning Team Members to facilitate a conversation about school emergency preparedness. Please complete the exercise and share with your faculty and staff as appropriate.
Contact: Robert Evans at revans@margolishealy.com or (802) 839-0448
Regional Licensing Training
Audience: Superintendents and Superintendent Designees for Licensing
Back by popular demand, the Agency of Education Education Quality Division will be offering regional licensing training sessions for superintendents and their designees. Northeast and Winooski Valley SU/SDs on March 26, 2019 in Lake Morey; Champlain Valley SU/SDs on March 29, 2019 in Burlington; and Southeast and Southwest SU/SDs on April 2, 2019 in Castleton. Email invitations and registration information will be sent the week of March 4, 2019. Online registration is now open.
Contact: Amy Scalabrini at amy.scalabrini@vermont.gov or (802) 479-1052
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.
Educational Resources on Marijuana and Electronic Cigarettes
The Northern New England Poison Center has added a new webinar to their educational training for health care professionals and educators on marijuana. The NNEPC has also developed a high school lesson plan on electronic cigarettes and vaping that can be incorporated into a health or science curriculum. The program is free and focuses on electronic cigarettes and the use of electronic nicotine delivery systems. Students will brainstorm prevention strategies, evaluate the influence of media on behavior and perceptions of social norms, and recognize the importance of accessing valid and reliable health information. Health skills assessments are included along with a jeopardy game.
Contact: Gayle Finkelstein, MS, RN at gayle.finkelstein@uvmhealth.org or (802) 338-2762
Nominations for Vermont School Nurse of the Year
Do you think your school nurse is fabulous? Do you ever think I couldn't imagine our school without our school nurse? The Vermont State School Nurses' Association is now accepting nominations for school nurse of the year. Please submit a nomination letter describing why your school nurse should be school nurse of the year to president@vssna.org by Friday, March 8, 2019.
Contact: Sophia Boyle Hall at president@vssna.org
Ongoing Assessment Project for Additive Reasoning
The Ongoing Assessment Project (OGAP) for Additive Reasoning is a systematic and intentional formative assessment system in mathematics based on mathematics education research on how students learn additive concepts, common errors students make and preconceptions or misconceptions that may interfere with learning new concepts or solving related problems. July 8 - 11, 2019 plus two follow up days TBD, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. to be held at the River Tech Center, Springfield, VT for $900, including materials.
Contact: Susan Leuchter at susan@learningcollaborative.org or (802) 257-8600
Applications Now Open: Social Entrepreneurship and Businesses for Good
Applications for the Governor's Institutes of Vermont Social Entrepreneurship – Businesses for Good are now open. The residential program will be held July 6 - 12, 2019 at Vermont Technical College, Randolph Center Campus for rising 10th-12th graders. Students will have a fun-filled, empowering, “hands on” learning experience in how to create a future job for themselves and others by starting their own business or having a chance to learn some entrepreneurial skills that are great for any career pathway/profession. Sliding scale tuition – some pay as little as $10 for the entire week. Plus, 11th/12th graders can earn three college credits (transferable) using their free VT Dual Enrollment Vouchers.
Contact: Laurel Butler at lbutler@vtsbdc.org or (802) 922-3692
Free Sensory-Friendly Drumming Workshop
VSA Vermont and the Flynn Center present a fun, free and inclusive drumming workshop for children or adults on the autism spectrum on Sunday, March 10, 2019 from 1 to 2 p.m. Class uses sensory-friendly drums and percussion instruments and relaxed expectations; no experience necessary. More information and pre-registration online.
Contact: Sarah Caliendo at flynnarts@flynncenter.org or (802) 652-4537
Save the Date: Summer of Science Programs
VTeen 4-H Science Pathways Cafe is excited to continue to offer a variety of hands-on science learning over the summer months. Registration will be available soon. And, please join us for our next cafe "All in the Genes" on March 30, 2019 to learn about how individual patient genome information is being used in health care for cancer and for children and adults with inherited diseases.
Contact: Lauren Traister at lauren.traister@uvm.edu or (802) 4972 x402
College and Career Pathways Events in March
“I learned that a lot of job opportunities exist in Vermont. More than I expected.” This is just one comment from VSAC’s College & Career Pathways evenings for students, parents and adult learners to find out about Vermont career training options, how to pay for college and training and the college admissions process. Coming up: March 7 at Southern Vermont College and March 21 at Saint Michael’s College. Both events run from 5 to 8 p.m. and feature a resource fair of more than 20 exhibitors and workshops.
Contact: Anna Telensky at events@vsac.org
Webinar: Computer Science Training
Are you interested in getting more Computer Science for your students? Have you heard of Code.org but don't know what they offer? Join the Vermont Computer Science Alliance for an informational webinar on March 14, 2019 at 3:30 p.m. The webinar will look at what Code.org can offer your school, what's available locally and quickly review what's happening in the state around Computer Science.
Contact: Jennifer Fribush at info@vermontcsa.org or (802) 885 8331