DESE Update: May 29th, 2019

1. Board Meeting Recap:

The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education met on May 21 and discussed educator diversity and heard an update from educators and DESE staff about DESE’s support for history, social science, and civics education. A video of the meeting is available at https://livestream.com/accounts/22459134.

2. Pictures of the Week

3. U.S. Green Ribbon Schools: 

On May 22, the U.S. Department of Education announced that two Massachusetts schools and one school district are among 53 schools, school districts, and/or institutions of higher education that are being honored as 2019 U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools. The award recognizes innovative efforts to reduce environmental impact and utility costs, improve health and wellness, and ensure effective sustainability education. The three Massachusetts winners are Boston Green Academy, Ipswich Middle-High School, and Wellesley Public Schools. Congratulations to all!

4. Accountability and Assistance Advisory Council to Meet:

The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education’s Accountability and Assistance Advisory Council will meet from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on May 29 at the Best Western Royal Plaza Hotel, 181 Boston Post Road West, Marlborough. Topics for discussion include DESE’s assistance for schools with low performing subgroups and proposed changes to the accountability system for 2019 reporting.

5. Reminder: Comments Sought on Proposed Changes to Accountability System:

As a reminder, the deadline to submit public comment on proposed changes to DESE’s district and school accountability system is 5:00 p.m. on May 31. A summary of the accountability system and the proposed changes is posted online, along with instructions for submitting comments. Notice of the opportunity to submit public comment was originally shared in the April 12, 2019 Commissioner’s Weekly Update.

6. Dissemination Fair:

The Department has begun planning for a dissemination fair in fall of 2019 similar to the fair held in fall 2016. To celebrate the excellent work of all types of schools across Massachusetts, the fair will provide a platform for people to share their best practices and learn from what schools are doing to serve their students and communities.In order to design an event that serves educators’ needs, DESE is asking superintendents and school leaders to take a brief survey about what best practices they would like to either share or learn more about. The conference will be designed for school leaders and administrators, and superintendents are asked to share the survey with other administrators in their district. Please complete the survey by June 3.7. Drinking Water Guidance from MassDEP: In a continuing effort to work with school districts to ensure that all water supplied within Massachusetts schools remains clean, fresh, and safe to consume, MassDEP’s Drinking Water Program recently issued new guidance to schools and early education and childcare facilities that want to take voluntary action on lead in drinking water. Updated guidance from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sets a goal that water from taps and fixtures used for drinking, food preparation, and medical uses contains no measurable level of lead, a goal that replaces the existing action level for lead in school drinking water of 15 parts per billion.MassDEP is offering support and technical assistance to schools to implement the guidance. Publicly owned schools may contact MassDEP’s partner, UMass Amherst, at lccadep@umass.edu or 413-545-0840 to obtain technical assistance, including the type of remediation actions that may be taken in response to detectable lead results and the order in which remediation actions should be taken.  Privately owned schools may contact MassDEP’s Drinking Water Program for assistance at: program.director-dwp@mass.gov or 617-292-5770.

8. Civic Engagement Champions:

Massachusetts is partnering with the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) to honor the contributions of middle school educators who encourage their students to be active and responsible citizens. To be eligible for recognition as a 2019 Civic Engagement Champion, teachers must teach young adolescents in grades 5 through 8 in any discipline. Interested teachers should submit a PDF copy of the application, not to exceed 10 pages, to cec@nasbe.org no later than June 10. For details, see the NASBE website.

9. Influence 100 Pilot District Application Is Open:

The Department is launching Influence 100, an initiative to increase the racial and ethnic diversity of superintendents in Massachusetts, create more culturally responsive districts and leaders across the state, and promote better outcomes for students. Influence 100 includes a fellowship program for qualified educators who desire to move into the superintendent role in the next five years and support for school districts to become more culturally responsive and diversify their educator workforce.  The application deadline is June 14, and DESE will announce the pilot districts by June 30. The application takes between 45 and 90 minutes to complete. For more information, please go to: http://www.doe.mass.edu/amazingeducators/diversity.html

For your info:

• RESPECTfully: The Baker-Polito Administration recently launched “RESPECTfully,” a statewide public awareness and prevention campaign to promote healthy relationships among middle and high school students. More information is available at www.mass.gov/RESPECTfully.