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 Public: December Resources to Celebrate Persons with Disabilities and Enjoy Family Trips
Audience: Curriculum Directors, Principals, PreK-12 Teachers
Celebrate International Persons with Disabilities Day with resources from the Vermont Agency of Education and Vermont Public Partnership, including books that celebrate Disability Pride Month, Sesame Street in Communities and amazing resources for inclusive education from the STEM Innovation for Inclusion in Early Education Center (STEMIE). For co-viewing with students in grades PreK-2, access digital and downloadable content for family celebrations and trips. For number fun in grades K-3, check out Incorporating Odd Squad into Your Classroom, Odd Squad Resources and Episode-Specific Activities, Incorporating Peg + Cat into Your Classroom and Pet + Cat Resources with Episode-Specific Activities. Or, spend time with STEM heroes using Incorporating Hero Elementary into Your Classroom, Hero Elementary Resources with Episode-Specific Activities and the PBSLM Hero Elementary Collection. For older students, check out Becoming Helen Keller Collection (American Sign Language available). For a local connection, But Why has created standards-aligned learning guides to complement recent episodes. Visit the Vermont Public Kids and Education page for more information.
Contacts: Emily Leute at emily.leute@vermont.gov or Heather Duhamel at hduhamel@vermontpbs.org
What if Wednesday, Volume 5
Audience: Superintendents, Principals and School Safety Stakeholders
The Vermont School Safety Center is pleased to announce the What if Wednesday, Volume 5, 2022 school safety training initiative. The “What if Wednesday” training program is designed to be shared with all school safety stakeholders and should be used to stimulate a conversation about school emergency preparedness.
Contact: Robert L. Evans at revans@margolishealy.com or (802) 839-0448
Arts Teachers Mentor Mini-Pilot Program
Audience: Visual and Performing Arts Educators
Any visual or performing arts teacher new to the profession (i.e., with 0-3 years of experience) or new to a Vermont SU/SD can volunteer to participate in the Arts Teachers Mentor Mini-Pilot Program and work with an Arts Teacher Mentor. School or SU/SD mentor/onboarding program leads can request an Arts Teacher Mentor for their new arts teacher. Program information can be found in the document Arts Teacher Mentor Program: Structure and Guidelines. Once registered, the Arts Specialist will collaborate with the teachers identified as mentors and pair with the new teacher. Please register on the Mentee Sign-Up form.
Contact: Contact: Lisa Bresler at lisa.bresler@vermont.gov
School Year 2022-2023 Child Count Collection
Audience: Special Education Administrators, Special Education Data Personnel
The School Year 2022-2023 Child Count Data Collection is now open. Submitted data must be accurate as of Dec. 1, 2022, and you may submit your SU/SD's data from Dec. 1, 2022, until the end of the day on Dec. 15, 2022. SU/SD personnel in charge of special education data reporting can find collection materials and updated 2022-2023 Child Count Reporting Instructions by logging into the secure AOE file transfer website. If you have questions or are having difficulty accessing collection materials, please contact the AOE Child Count team.
Contact: Cassidy Canzani at AOE.ChildCountInfo@vermont.gov
Peer Review Panelists Wanted
Audience: Currently Licensed Vermont Educators
The Agency of Education’s Peer Review program needs licensed educators to serve as panelists. Panelists receive $175 per interview. The work of a panelist involves evaluating a candidate’s portfolio (approximately 2 - 4 hours) and participating in the interview process (approximately 1 - 2 hours). Interviews are online and scheduled based on your convenience. If you are interested, complete the online Small Scale Education Contract Survey by Dec. 15, 2022. The areas of greatest need for panelists are theatre arts and driver education, but all are welcome to submit if interested.
Contact: Ryan McCormick at ryan.mccormick@vermont.gov
Agency of Education Open Positions
Audience: All
The Vermont Agency of Education has open positions that are available to both state employees and external applicants. Positions are Director of Education Finance - Contact: Bill Bates at bill.bates@vermont.gov, Early Education Programs Manager - Contact: Chris Case at chris.case@vermont.gov and State Director of Special Education - Contact: Chris Case at chris.case@vermont.gov.
Contact: AOE Info at aoe.edinfo@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.
All Learners Network Math Professional Development
K-4 Math Intervention is a six-hour workshop offered virtually, on Zoom, on Dec. 9, 2022, from 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. All Learners Network Founder, John Tapper, will facilitate an engaging virtual learning experience aimed at K-4 intervention. This workshop provides a complete process for assessing intervention need and providing services, templates for using the High Leverage Concepts (HLCs) and HLC Progressions to get at core content and guide intervention goals, and a variety of student-friendly, effective activities for intervention at each grade level.
Contact: TJ Jemison at communicationsdirector@alllearnersnetwork.com
Joy Write: Time, Choice, and Response for Developing Writers - Partnerships for Literacy and Learning
Partnerships for Literacy and Learning presents the three-credit course, Joy Write: Time, Choice, and Response for Developing Writers, through Saint Michael’s College, from Jan. 25 - May 10, 2023, for K-8 teachers. This course is designed to take an in-depth look at writing instruction in the K-8 elementary classroom. Participants will read and reflect upon the required text while examining their own practices and the practices of other influential teachers of literacy. Registration and details can be found on the Joy Write Course page.
Contact: Mary Grace at info@pllvt.org or (802) 828-0521
Professional Learning: Summer Writing Course
Join Beth Moore the last week of June 2023 and become a better writer and writing teacher. Practice What You Teach: Become A Stronger Teacher Through Writing Your Own Stories is a three-credit course in our air-conditioned classroom in South Burlington, with an outdoor park writing retreat during the week. Participants will be writing their own original stories, conferring and learning multiple strategies for successful writing classrooms. You will create your own conferring toolkit and there are two texts included.
Contact: Lauren Wooden at lauren@cvedcvt.org or (802) 497-1642
Comprehensive Reading Course for Educators Available for Free Through Boon Scholarship
Learn to use the science of reading to teach the foundational literacy skills that help students become skilled, confident, efficient decoders and readers. The online course, Comprehensive Reading Course for Educators, produced by Mindplay and offered through the Stern Center, is designed for teachers, special educators and anyone who wants to expand their knowledge of effective reading and spelling instruction. Grounded in neuroscience and based on a deep understanding of how our language works, the Comprehensive Reading Course for Educators includes presentations by leading literacy experts, videos, teaching demonstrations, sample lessons, instructional activities, supplemental materials, and pre-and-post-tests that assess understanding.
Contact: Julia Caminiti at proflearning@sterncenter.org