Volume 15, Issue 17

May 5, 2021

COVID-19 Updates and Guidance for Schools
Other Agency of Education and State of Vermont Updates
Courtesy Posts

COVID-19 Updates and Guidance for Schools

This section of the Weekly Field Memo contains updates to COVID-19 guidance from the Vermont Agency of Education released since the last Weekly Field Memo and other COVID-19-related updates. For a complete list of AOE-issued guidance, please visit our COVID-19 Guidance for Vermont Schools and Continuity of Learning websites. For the most comprehensive and up-to-date information on the COVID-19 response in Vermont, visit the Health Department's Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) website.

Vermont PBS: Resources for Spring and Summer Learning

Audience: Curriculum Directors, Principals, PreK-12 Teachers
In addition to the newly formatted schedule of Vermont PBS programs for the months of April and May, the AOE/PBS partnership would like to highlight some online and printable resources for spring and summer learning. The Summer of Possibilities provides children with opportunities to play and learn through hands-on activities, games, and tips that support literacy, math, science, and life skills. Both the Summer Learning Collection and the Science of Summer invite students in grades 6-12 to learn while exploring everyday summer activities. For more information about the partnership between the Vermont Agency of Education and Vermont PBS, visit the AOE’s Vermont PBS webpage or the Vermont PBS Distance Learning page.
Contacts: Emily Leute at emily.leute@vermont.gov or Heather Duhamel at hduhamel@vermontpbs.org

COVID-19 in Schools Data on Health Department Website

Audience: All
The Health Department has been posting data on COVID-19 in K-12 schools since mid-September. The table counts people with laboratory confirmed (by PCR test) COVID-19 who were at the school, attended a school-sanctioned event, or otherwise interacted with the school community during their infectious period. The counts represent cases by school, not individual person. So, if someone interacts with multiple school communities during their infectious period, they will appear in the table multiple times. Please read more about what information is presented in the table.
Contact: COVID19.DataEntryTeam@vermont.gov

Other Agency of Education and State of Vermont Updates

This section of the Weekly Field Memo contains posts from the Agency of Education and other State of Vermont agencies that are not specifically related to the COVID-19 response.

Student Member Sought for State Board of Education

Audience: Vermont Secondary Students Graduating in 2023 or later
The Governor’s Office is seeking a candidate to serve on the State Board of Education as one of its two student representatives. The State Board of Education usually meets on the third Wednesday of every month and establishes policies, regulations and rules related to education in Vermont and in keeping with statutes passed by the Legislature. During the pandemic, the Board has continued to meet virtually each month via MS Teams. Candidates may apply using the Application for Gubernatorial Appointment. The deadline for applications is May 28, 2021. Questions about the application or the nomination process itself can be emailed to EXE.Appointments@vermont.gov.
Contact: Suzanne Sprague at (802) 828-1130

What-if Wednesday for May 5, 2021

Audience: Superintendents, Principals, School Crisis Planning Team Members
The What-if Wednesday for May 5, 2021 is designed 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 L. Evans at revans@margolishealy.com or (802) 839-0448

Provisional Licensing Reports

Audience: Superintendents and Designees
Please submit your Provisional Progress Reports to Lisa Pierson by Friday, May 14, 2021. More detailed directions on how to create and complete the report using the ALiS online licensing system are posted on our website. Creating the Provisional Licensing Report includes a link to our video tutorial which demonstrates how to complete the report using your online ALiS account.
Contact: Amy Scalabrini at amy.scalabrini@vermont.gov

Annual Licensing Spring Road Show Goes Remote

Audience: Superintendents, Designees, HR Directors
The AOE Licensing Team will be hosting its annual road show remotely this spring. These sessions are provided to help superintendents, their designees and HR directors with the latest licensing updates as well as allowing for able opportunities to ask specific questions. We will be hosting these hour-long sessions on four consecutive Wednesdays from 1 - 2 p.m. beginning on May 12, 2021. Each session will have a specific focus. May 12, 2021: Initial, Renewal and Retired Licenses; May 19, 2021: Temporary Licenses, Transcript Review and Peer Review; May 26, 2021: Criminal Record Checks and Fingerprints; June 2, 2021: R/LSBs, Rule Changes and Waiver Requests. You can register online for any sessions relevant to your needs.
Contact: Amy Scalabrini at amy.scalabrini@vermont.gov

North Country Brilliant Pathways Program

Audience: Superintendents, Principals, K-12 Administrators, CTE and AEL Directors
College for Every Student (CFES) is launching their new initiative, North Country Brilliant Pathways Program, to increase college and career readiness among 20 rural schools in Vermont. The North Country Brilliant Pathways program will give students an opportunity to forge their own routes to a bright future through college and career readiness training that incorporates the three core practices and cutting-edge strategies shared in Rural America’s Pathways to College and Career: Mentoring, the Essential Skills, and Pathways to College and Career. The North Country Brilliant Pathways Program will serve students at 20 elementary, middle and high schools in rural Vermont and northeastern New York by providing them with a multi-faceted, comprehensive college readiness program. This opportunity is competitive, in order to be considered please apply by the May 14 deadline. The application and program details can be found on the CFES website.
Contact: Veronica Newton at veronica.newton@vermont.gov

May is Mental Health Awareness Month

Audience: All
The Vermont Department of Mental Health is releasing newsletters on various mental health topics each week throughout May. The Week One newsletter focuses on child, youth and family mental health. Please share with families in your districts as feasible.
Contact: Laurel Omland at laurel.omland@vermont.gov

Youth Summit Event for Youth and Young Adults: Education, Empowerment, Equity

Audience: Principals, Superintendents, Curriculum Coordinators, All School Staff and Community Partners who work with youth ages 14-25 years
The "Education, Empowernment, Equity" Summit will be held May 20, 2021, from 9 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. This event is specifically created for youth and young adults between the ages of 14 and 25. The entire agenda for the day was determined by the Youth Advocacy Council, driven by youth for youth. The Youth Advocacy Council are comprised of youth and young adults with disabilities, ages 14 to 25, who connect with other students in Vermont, advocate for youth resources and lead while providing community service. Keynote presenter Nick Vujicic (“voo-yi-chich”) is an Australian-American born without arms or legs who has become a world-renowned speaker, New York Times best-selling author, coach and entrepreneur. Workshop presenters include Christina Irene, who discusses invisible disabilities, and Sarah Vazquez, whose message expresses a commitment to high expectations and her unwavering belief that people with disabilities are an important part of the fabric of society. Please register by May 18, 2021.
For more information, please contact Tara Howe at tara.howe@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.

Until further notice, the Courtesy Posts will only include posts related to in-person training, events or meetings that affirmatively comply with the Vermont Forward Plan.

Summer Coder Camps Registration Now Open

Coder Camp for Boys: July 12-16, 2021, and Coder Camp for Girls: July 26-30, 2021, for rising 7-12 graders are designed to give students the opportunity to bring their creativity to an active software coding environment. Lots of hands-on activities and a chance to practice coding using SCRATCH, a friendly and robust programming language tool developed by MIT. Campers work with Vermont Technical College, Williston Campus faculty and student counselors. Camps include a strong education component with labs each day and physical activity that will reinforce the labs with logic, team building and some good old fashioned fun. Camps will comply with state, local, and VTC COVID-19 guidelines, and masks will be required. $175 includes all activities, lunches and snacks. Partial scholarship assistance is available. Non-binary and gender non-conforming youth are encouraged to sign up with the camp they will feel most comfortable attending. Visit the VTC website for more information and to register.
Contact: Bridgett Taylor at bridgett.taylor@vtc.edu or (802) 728-1246

Castleton University Center for Schools: Summer 2021 Course Registration is Open

Summer registration is now open for close to 70 graduate level courses that have been designed specifically for practicing educators. Some courses are back by popular demand, plus many new courses have been added in response to requests. Courses will be offered outdoors and online and cover a wide variety of topics, including online teaching and learning, technology integration, student engagement, early childhood education, middle grades education, digital storytelling, outdoor education, and more. View course descriptions and register today.
Contact: Tara Lidstone at tara.lidstone@castleton.edu

Registration is still open for the 2021 Transition and Career Planning Conference

The 16th annual conference, “A Time for Gratitude and Appreciation”, continues next week on Thursday, May 13, 2021 at 1 p.m. Luis Ortega from Storytellers for Change returns for a brief check-in with participants before the breakout workshop sessions begin. The conference is structured to strengthen the transferable skills of empathy, inclusion and equity. There are a variety of workshop choices available in a wide range of career and education topics. There are also some offerings for personal rejuvenation. Visit the conference event page for full details and to reserve your spot.
Contact: Cathy Printon at printon@vsac.org

Online Professional Learning Experience: CREST 2.0 - Champlain Research Experience for Secondary Teachers

Includes free registration and three graduate credits. Applications are due May 14, 2021. We are currently recruiting grade 7-12 teachers (any subject area) for the CREST 2.0 Online Professional Learning Program from June 21 – to July 1, 2021 (synchronous and asynchronous). Most experiences are offline with synchronous meetings scheduled every other day (5 days total) for 1.5 hours. Teachers interested in learning about project and place-based education within the context of the Lake Champlain Basin are encouraged to apply. This program is fully funded by VSAC GEAR-UP Grant and is led by UVM scientists, STEM educators and STEM graduate students. Participation gives you access to a variety of STEM resources, project templates, and data applicable to your curriculum and teaching. For more information, see the CREST 2.0 website. If interested, apply online.
Contact: Regina Toolin at Rtoolin@uvm.edu

Chinese Language Classes for Summer Matters 2021

SPIRAL International of Burlington is excited to offer an introductory Chinese language program for Summer 2021. This online language course is perfect for summer programming for schools. Programs are designed for beginners, but students with some prior Chinese language skills can be accommodated as well. The Have Fun with Chinese program is twelve 40-minute classes and is intended as an enrichment course or after-school program. SPIRAL International also offers full-semester, credit-bearing Chinese language and culture classes for schools wanting to add to their world language offerings.
Contact: Sydney Estey-Dedell at programs@spiralinternational.org

Professional Development: Lindamood Phoneme Sequencing® (LiPS®) Course

Registration is open for Lindamood Phoneme Sequencing® (LiPS®) Course, a professional development course from Commonwealth Learning Center, hosted by the Stern Center for Language and Learning. This course prepares teachers to help students develop phonemic awareness for reading and spelling using the LiPS® Program for Reading, Spelling, and Speech methodology and materials. Participants will gain knowledge of current research in phonemic awareness and reading development and become familiar with assessment instruments, including the Lindamood® Auditory Conceptualization (LAC-3) Test. This virtual course takes place July 26-29, 2021.
Contact: SJ Larkspur at slarkspur@sterncenter.org

Professional Learning: Culturally Responsive Education

Registration is open for the virtual session: Gholdy Muhammad: Culturally & Historically Responsive Education for Equity and Excellence - Introduction to the Theory & Model. This session includes her book Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy. Participants will be introduced to the model of culturally and historically responsive education as well as a five-layered equity model for teaching and learning. The virtual session ends with practical considerations for writing equitable lessons and unit plans. Sept. 30, 2021, from 1 - 2:30 p.m.
Contact: Lauren Wooden at lauren@cvedcvt.org or (802) 497-1642

Introduction to Digital Tools: Leverage PBS LearningMedia Resources, Free One-hour Webinar for Grades K-5

Join Vermont PBS on Tuesday, May 11, 2021, 7 p.m. EST. for a session with GBH Education, PBS LearningMedia and PBS Wisconsin. Digital tools ranging from Edpuzzle to Nearpod to Jamboard have become ubiquitous during the COVID-19 crisis while teachers and students have relied on them to enhance instruction and student attention. This session, the first in a series, will feature tech-savvy educators leading interactive introductory demonstrations of Flipgrid and Nearpod, and showcasing how you can integrate these apps with free resources on PBS LearningMedia from GBH and PBS Wisconsin. There will be ample time for hands-on practice and Q & A. Register online.
Contact Heather Duhamel at hduhamel@vermontpbs.org

Reading Instruction: A Vital Balancing Act

Partnerships for Literacy and Learning presents: Reading Instruction: A Vital Balancing Act, K-8, a 3 credit course through Saint Michael’s College from July 12 - August 25, 2021. This will be a 60+ online hours course for teachers of grades K-8 taught by Ellen A. Thompson, Ed. D. This course will help bring sensibility to all that is needed in our literacy instruction to encourage and produce readers who really are engaged in their reading. As teachers we balance what is needed to make each reader successful. View details on the PLL Courses list.
Contact: Mary Grace at info@pllvt.org or (802) 828-0521