Weekly Field Memo

March 15, 2023

Agency of Education, State of Vermont and Federal Updates
Courtesy Posts

Agency of Education, State of Vermont and Federal Updates

This section of the Weekly Field Memo contains posts from the Agency of Education (AOE), other State of Vermont agencies, federal agencies or Vermont's congressional delegation.

Department of State’s Exchange Visitor Secondary School Program

Audience: School Administrators
Please find a joint letter from Secretary Blinken and Secretary Cardona regarding hosting international students this school year and in the future through the Department of State’s Exchange Visitor Secondary School Program. In July 2021, the Departments of State and Education committed to work together and with other federal agencies to promote international education and exchange in a Joint Statement of Principles in Support of International Education.
Contact: Ted Fisher at ted.fisher@vermont.gov

Request for Public Comments on Proposed Change to Vermont’s State Perkins Plan

Audience: Superintendents, CTE Directors, Principals, CTE Educators
The Vermont Agency of Education seeks public comments on proposed changes to Vermont’s State Perkins Plan. The period for public comment is from Friday, February 17, 2023, through Monday, March 20, 2023, at 4:30 p.m. You can read the existing language and the proposed new language and access the public comment on the AOE's Perkins V webpage.
Contact: Ruth Durkee at ruth.durkee@vermont.gov or (518) 321-6238

Award Opportunity: Vermont Lottery Educate Innovate Initiative

Audience: Superintendents, Principals, Technology Directors, Curriculum Directors, Educators, Librarians
Through a partnership with the Vermont Lottery, AOE announces the 2023 round of a competitive award program that seeks to further school education technology programs. Proposals should showcase a practical and deliberate use of technology for increasing student engagement and support student-centered learning. This program aims to support educators from all content areas to create connections between students and curriculum content using technology. Two schools will receive awards of $15,000 each. The deadline to apply is April 19, 2023. Obtain an award application on the Education Technology webpage.
Contact: Lisa Helme at lisa.helme@vermont.gov

Congratulations to STEAM Challenge Grant Recipients

Audience: Superintendents, Principals, School Safety Stakeholders
Nine Vermont schools and their SU/SDs were recently awarded an AOE STEAM Challenge Grant. AOE launched this new competitive grant opportunity in December 2022. The purpose of the grant is to support the development of a coherent system of STEAM education and to provide structures to develop and sustain STEAM programs that are aligned with state-adopted standards, including those standards that may be currently under-addressed (e.g., arts, engineering, computer science, etc.). A total of $128,935 was awarded to nine SU/SDs.
Contact: Lisa Bresler at lisa.bresler@vermont.gov

School Safety Training: Emergency Operations Plan Development

Audience: Superintendents, Principals, School Safety Stakeholders
The Vermont School Safety Center is pleased to announce an important school safety training: Emergency Operations Plan Development. The training will be on April 5, 2023, from 8 a.m. - 12 p.m., in Waterbury, Vermont. This training is free and we strongly encourage each school district to have representation at this important training initiative. Register on the School Safety Center's webpage.
Contact: Robert L. Evans at revans@margolishealy.com or (802) 839-0448

Teachers Who Write Conference

Audience: PreK-12 English Language Arts Teachers
Join the Vermont Council of Teachers of English and Language Arts, the Vermont Agency of Education and the Ruth Stone House for the Teachers Who Write Conference at the Willowell Foundation on May 3, 2023. Develop your own writing practice and create a literary community for young people. This immersive day-long retreat will include conversations with fellow educators on writing and literature, opportunities for writing alongside professional writers and an exploration of effective writing instruction that engages all learners. Featured writers include Ben Pease, Bianca Stone and Angela Patten. The cost is $115, meals provided. Register by March 30, 2023.
Contact: Emily Leute at emily.leute@vermont.gov

New Restorative Approaches Resources

Audience: Superintendents, Principals, Educators, Students
The long-term ‘Restorative Approaches Implementation for School Equity in Vermont’ (RISE) project aimed to improve school-wide restorative approaches (SWRA) in four Vermont schools. As a result, three new SWRA resources can be found on the Equity section of the VTmtss webpage, which includes an online learning module for anyone interested in learning more about SWRA, a video library demonstrating SWRA in Vermont schools and an updated directory with access to local experts for additional support.
Contact: Caitlin Chisholm at caitlin.chisholm@vermont.gov  

Vermont Public: Celebrate World Poetry Day

Audience: Curriculum Directors, Principals, 6-12 Teachers
The Vermont Agency of Education and Vermont Public invites you to celebrate World Poetry Day with Amanda Gorman’s poetry, presented by PBS, or the Poetry in America Collection. Learn more about the Young Writer’s Project contest winners at the Vermont Public webpage. Visit the Vermont Public Kids and Education page for more recommendations for high-quality media and resource collections. Also, don’t forget to visit the Education Ambassadors page to learn more about how Vermont educators are involved in our partnership.
Contacts: Emily Leute at emily.leute@vermont.gov or Heather Duhamel at hduhamel@vermontpublic.org

Content Area Portrait of a Graduate

Independent School Workshop: Rights and Responsibilities of Independent schools receiving ESSA Equitable Services

Audience: Independent School Administrators
Vermont’s Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Equitable Services Ombudsman, Deborah Bloom, will meet with independent school leaders to provide information on the rights and responsibilities of Independent Schools receiving Equitable Services under ESSA (Title I, II, III and IV). We are offering two sessions via Teams, April 4 and April 6, 2023, to provide an overview of equitable services rights and responsibilities of independent schools within ESSA and leave ample time for Q&A.
Contact: Deborah Bloom at deborah.bloom@vermont.gov

Special Education Monitoring: Revised Special Education Program Monitoring Guide and Targeted Monitoring Protocol

Audience: Special Education Directors, Special Educators, District Leaders
The Vermont Agency of Education Special Education Program Monitoring Team published revisions to the Special Education Program Monitoring System Guide and the Targeted Monitoring Protocol, with both documents now containing additional information and clarification around common questions that come up during monitoring activities.
Contact: Tristan McNamara at AOE.SpecialEdMonitoringGroup@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. The open positions are: Education Programs Coordinator I - VTmtss Team - Contact: Tracy Watterson at tracy.watterson@vermont.gov and Digital Communications Specialist - Contact: Ted Fisher at ted.fisher@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.

Call for Nominations: Science / Engineering Teacher of the Year

The Vermont Academy of Science and Engineering (VASE) is inviting nominations for excellence in teaching in the fields of science and engineering. Educators teaching in grades K-8 and/or in grades 9-12 are eligible. Nomination criteria can be found on the Vermont Academy of Science and Engineering website and are due by April 15, 2023.
Contact: Mary Braun at VTscieng@gmail.com

Champlain Research Experience for Secondary Teachers (CREST) Professional Learning Program

CREST is a week-long program, June 26 - June 30, 2023, for grade 7-12 teachers conducted at the University of Vermont’s (UVM) Ecosystem Labs and aboard UVM’s new Marelle Melosira Research Vessel. 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 and complete the survey by March 25, 2023. CREST 3.0 Application. CREST 3.0 Survey.
Contact: Regina Toolin rtoolin@uvm.edu

College and Career Pathways is This Weekend

It's not too late for high school families to sign up for College and Career Pathways, taking place this Saturday, March 18, 2023, in person, at the University of Vermont and online via Zoom. Online registration closes this Thursday, March 16, 2023, but walk-ins are welcome day of event. Find all the details and the link to register on the event webpage.
Contact: Anna Telensky at telensky@vsac.org

Creativity and Innovation - Professional Development Course for Educators and Workforce

Secondary educators in any discipline and workforce or pathway professionals can join Creativity and Innovation. This is a fun, interactive, retreat-style program on Oct. 16-17, 2023, at the Lake Morey Resort (with follow-ups). Leave with an inspiring action plan to integrate (without making more work for yourself) innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship, along with some personal and business financial literacy into your curriculum or program. Earn either three graduate or undergrad credits through Castleton University or 15 to 30 professional development hours.
Contact: Laurel Butler at lbutler@vtsbdc.org or (802) 922-3692

The 802 Ed Publication

Join 1,800+ readers of the 802 Ed, a biweekly roundup of what's going on in Vermont's education policy and practice. Sections include School Leadership, Update on the Education Market, Colleagues on the Move and Grants & Opportunities.
Contact: Steven Berbeco at editor@802ed.com

Professional Learning: Adolescent Literacy Intervention Teams

Registration is open for Developing a System for School-wide Adolescent Literacy Intervention and Supports. Dr. Sarah Lupo will present to leadership teams, educational support teams, data teams, intervention/coaching and teaching teams at the Hampton in Colchester on May 9, 2023. Learn about using assessment data to create learner profiles, build a school-wide system for literacy intervention, as well as inter-disciplinary supports, what data to collect and exit/entrance criteria for intervention. Teams will each have their own thirty-minute virtual consultation with Dr. Lupo in late May or early June.
Contact: Lauren Wooden at lauren@cvedcvt.org or (802) 497-1642

Partnerships for Literacy and Learning Presents the 2023 Vermont Literacy Conference

Registration is now open for the Vermont Literacy Conference on July 31- Aug. 2, 2023. Enjoy renowned speakers Timothy Rasinski and Penny Kittle, and Author Talk with Jo Knowles. There will be seven strands and eight hot topics from which to choose. The theme will be Joy and Urgency: Addressing Equity while Inspiring Learners K-12. We believe this will be pertinent as we prepare for the 2023-24 school year. Details on the Vermont Literacy Conference webpage.
Contact: Mary Grace at info@pllvt.org or (802) 828-0521

Seeking Vermont Educator Research Participants

Are you a Vermont educator who holds a teaching endorsement for special education but are not currently working in that role? Dr. Colby Kervick from the University of Vermont would love to speak with you as part of a research study exploring the factors of why Vermont teachers choose to not work in special education.
Contact: Colby Kervick at colby.kervick@uvm.edu

Governor’s Institutes of Vermont Presents the Health and Medicine Institute this Summer

The Governor’s Institutes of Vermont will be hosting a series of Institutes for Vermont high school students this summer, including our Institute of Health and Medicine, happening July 9 - July 15, 2023, at Vermont State University at Lyndon. In the Health and Medicine Institute, students experience hands-on immersions in emergency and sports medicine, neuroscience psychology, biomedical engineering and lab science. Students lead their own lab work, participate in crisis simulations and sample a huge array of healthcare occupations with practicing health professionals. Students can attend for as little as $10.
Contact: Matthew Binginot at hello@giv.org

Umatter Training of Trainers

Join the Center for Health and Learning for a Umatter Training of Trainers on May 3, 2023, at the Capitol Plaza in Montpelier, VT. Participants engage in a full day of training to develop their skills and confidence to bring Umatter Suicide Prevention Awareness workshops to one's community or workplace. Register online no later than one week before the program start date.
Contact: Karen Carreira at karen@healthandlearning.org

Vermont Family Network Free Workshop: Transition Mapping

In the workshop, Transition Mapping, we will explore how mapping helps with navigating transitions. We will go over features of maps and transitions in general and then apply mapping to the context of transitions. There are many types of maps and many types of transitions. Let’s explore how to develop and use maps as tools for our transitions.
Contact: Sienna Tuinei at sienna.tuinei@vtfn.org

Vermont Student Anti-Racism Network Book Project

The Vermont Student Anti-Racism Network is a group of high school and college students from all counties in Vermont working to build anti-racist schools. Our biggest project is the book project, where we donate anti-racist books to elementary school classrooms and lead lessons with students. We wanted to let you know that our 2023 book project is getting ramped up with four new book selections, and we are almost ready to head into classrooms. Please fill out the School Survey form if you are interested in getting books or lessons (in person or virtual) this semester.
Contact: Addie Lentzner at amlentzner@gmail.com

Professional Learning: Fundations Level 3 Workshop

Registration is now open for Fundations Level 3 Workshop which begins April 18, 2023. This professional learning workshop is offered through the Stern Center for Language and Learning. Fundations® makes learning to read fun while laying the groundwork for lifelong literacy. The program’s research-based approach and extensive materials allow K–3 teachers to confidently present a carefully structured reading, spelling, and handwriting curriculum using engaging, multisensory techniques. Visit the course page to register. Grant funding is available through the application for grant funding form.
Contact: Julia Caminiti at new@sterncenter.org

Weekly Field Memo - Volume 17, Issue 11