ALERT: November 6, 2017
Dear School Nurse, The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) is working with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) to heighten awareness of the importance of reducing and preventing exposure to lead and high levels of copper, particularly by pregnant women, infants, and young children. In support of this effort we wanted to let […]
November 3, 2017
Job Description Posted for Next Commissioner: The job description and other documents related to the search for a new commissioner are now posted online on ESE’s Board of Elementary and Secondary Education webpage. The description says in part that “The next commissioner will be a thoughtful leader, a skilled communicator, and a change agent with deep […]
Northeast Region – October 29th
Dear Colleagues, I am sending along some resources from Friday’s Northeast Regional School Nurse Meeting. I am so glad that so many of you could join us. I’m looking forward to continuing our work together this year… Mary Ann’s Updates/Discussion: SBIRT discussion…folks continue to request the SBIRT Introductory training here in the Northeast. If your staff need SBIRT please respond to me (Shanyn) with which district/school and how […]
October 27, 2017
Board of Elementary and Secondary Education Meetings: The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education met October 23 and 24, 2017 and discussed assessment and accountability results, transitioning the high school MCAS graduation requirement when the high school version of the next-generation MCAS begins, an update on Level 5 schools, and a report on action taken against educator licenses. The Board also heard an update on […]
October 26, 2017
Dear Colleagues, I apologize for the delay in sending these current Updates. We know that your office has been as busy as our offices because we have been to a few! But hopefully, help is on the way, because this week, SHIELD hosted over 115 nurses new to school nursing at our Foundations of School […]
October 20, 2017
Assessment and Accountability Results: The Department publicly released 2017 assessment and accountability results this week, including results from the first administration of the next-generation MCAS. In the assessment press release, Education Secretary Jim Peyser said, “With the help of hundreds of educators, we revised our curriculum standards to boost student achievement and revamped the assessments to ensure we have […]
October 16, 2017
Dear Colleagues, On November 7th, Boston University School Health Institute for Education and Leadership Development (SHIELD), along with the MDPH, is sponsoring a program to establish an understanding of how race-based structural inequities impact school health access and outcomes. This foundation will provide school nurses and ALL other school staff with a basic understanding of […]
October 13, 2017
Embargoed Release of Assessment and Accountability Data: On Monday, October 16, 2017, ESE will provide districts and schools with embargoed access to their official 2017 MCAS data via Drop Box Central and Edwin Analytics in the Security Portal. Official embargoed district and school accountability data will also be available via the Accountability Data application in the […]
October 2, 2017
Colleagues, It was wonderful to see so many school nurse leaders gathered together for our first statewide meeting of the 2017-2018 school year! Thank you to all who presented – and thank you to those who took the time to attend (even those whose attendance was not mandatory!). We look forward to seeing many more […]
September 22, 2017
State ESSA Plan Approved: The U.S. Department of Education approved Massachusetts’ ESSA plan on Thursday, September 21, 2017. In a press release announcing USED’s approval, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said, “I want to thank Acting Commissioner Jeff Wulfson, Governor Charlie Baker and all the stakeholders that contributed to Massachusetts’ plan. This plan also serves as a testament […]