Announcement
Unified Improvement Plan Template and Trainings
Attn: Superintendents, Principals, District Accountability Contacts, Federal Programs Contacts, Tracker Contacts
District and School Unified Improvement Plan (UIP) templates for 2011-12 are now available on the department’s website. All districts and schools are required to complete the UIP template in 2011-12.
To support the planning process, the department is offering two-day trainings for district-level UIPs, facilitated by the Center for Transforming Learning and Teaching. Sites for the district training are Pueblo (Aug. 25, Sept. 1), North Metro (Aug. 26, Sept. 2) and Glenwood Springs (Aug. 31, Sept. 8). Content to be addressed includes data analysis, root cause analysis, target setting and action planning, as well as program requirements. An additional day of data analysis for schools has also been added in the Denver metro area for Aug. 29.
Templates, training registration, updated UIP resources, including a companion UIP Handbook and a summary of changes to the 2011-12 template, are available at the link below.
Please note that UIP resources will no longer be updated on the SchoolView Learning Center. For the latest information, please visit the above link.
Click Here for Additional Information
For More Information, Contact:
Erin Loften
Unified Improvement Planning
Phone: 303-866-6642
Email: loften_e@cde.state.co.us
Amended Procedural Safeguards Notice Posted on the CDE Website
Attn: Special Ed Directors/Staff
The Procedural Safeguards Notice provides a full explanation of the procedural safeguards available to parents of a child with a disability under the IDEA and the U.S. Department of Education regulations. The Procedural Safeguards Notice has been amended to reflect Colorado’s move to a one-tier due process hearing system effective July 1, 2011. (Previously, Colorado followed a minority of states adhering to a two-tier due process hearing system). You can access the new Procedural Safeguards Notice, amended July 1, 2011, at the link below.
In addition, the website also contains recently revised brochures and a new table: Dispute Resolution; Mediation Services; and Dispute Resolution Options Table. Please destroy copies of any Procedural Safeguards Notices or brochures which predate the documents on the Special Education Law website.
Spanish language versions of the amended Procedural Safeguards Notice, the brochures and table will be posted on the website in the near future.
Consistent with Colorado’s move to a one-tier system, the relevant Exceptional Children’s Educational Act (ECEA) rules have also been amended, effective July 1, 2011. The amended rules can be accessed by clicking on “ECEA Emergency Rules” at: http://www.cde.state.co.us/spedlaw/rules.htm.
Click Here for Additional Information
For More Information, Contact:
Jeanine Pow
Dispute Resolution Supervisor/State Complaints Officer
Phone: 303-866-6685
Email: pow_j@cde.state.co.us
Highly Effective School Library Programs: Power Libraries for All
Attn: Superintendents; Principals; School Library Coordinators
• Would you like to see brief videos of teachers and librarians working together to demonstrate 21st century skills best practices for students?
• Would you like a set of competencies that encourage meaningful instructional collaboration with the librarian in your building?
• Would you like to know about strategies on effectively aligning your school library program to the Colorado Academic Standards?
If so, ask your school librarian to participate in the “Highly Effective School Library Program” at http://www.coloradostatelibrary.org/powerlib
This site provides:
• A description of what a highly effective school library program looks like
• Competencies and rubrics that can serve as planning and evaluation tools for 21st century practices that support CDE initiatives.
• Video vignettes of 21st century skills such as teacher collaboration (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-Kaz6LXu30), differentiation strategies (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03RRmRPlixg), instructional leadership (instructional leadership), and more.
• Directions for participation by ANY Colorado School Library
For more information, contact Judy Barnett, Power Library Coach, at barnejm@comcast.net or Becky Russell, CDE School Library Consultant at russell_b@cde.state.co.us
Click Here for Additional Information
For More Information, Contact:
Becky Russell
Colorado State Library
Phone: 303.866.6772
Email: russell_b@cde.state.co.us
Draft District and School Performance Framework Reports Available on CEDAR on Aug. 15; Updated Accountability Resources Available
Attn: Superintendents, District Accountability Contacts, Principals
Draft District and School Performance Framework (DPF/SPF) Reports will be posted to CEDAR on Monday, Aug. 15. The reports will be available to all district-level CEDAR users first, then to school-level CEDAR users on Monday, Aug. 22, unless the district has indicated otherwise. To access the reports, please log in to https://cedar2.cde.state.co.us/ and follow these detailed instructions: \\harpo\cdedev$\Accountability\Downloads\DPFSPFDownloadingInstructions.pdf.
For a list of who in your district has district-wide access to CEDAR, or to modify access levels, please contact your district’s Local Access Manager (LAM). If you do not know who your district’s LAM is, please contact Bill Bonk at 303-866-6763.
The DPF and SPF reports released by CDE on Aug. 15 are draft versions for district review. By Oct. 17, districts may submit additional evidence through the Request to Reconsider process for the department to consider in the final determination of the district’s accreditation rating or the school’s plan type assignment. If the district chooses not to submit a Request to Reconsider, then the district may consider its DPF and SPF results to be final for planning purposes. The final 2011 DPF and SPF reports will be published on SchoolView for the public in December.
For updated accountability resources, including updated policy guidance on the Request to Reconsider process, updated accountability FAQs and a revised District Accountability Handbook, please visit: http://www.cde.state.co.us/Accountability/StateAccountabilityPolicyGuidance.asp.
For a timeline of state accountability activities in 2011-12, please review Commissioner Hammond’s memo from Aug. 2: http://www.cde.state.co.us/Accountability/Downloads/AccountabilityMemo.pdf.
Click Here for Additional Information
For More Information, Contact:
Somoh Supharukchinda
State Accountability
Phone: 303-866-6778
Email: supharukchinda_s@cde.state.co.us
Event
Graduation Guidelines – Join a Focus Group
Attn: Colorado Educators, Administrators, Parents, Students, and Local School Board members
The Colorado State Board of Education will adopt, on or before December 15, 2011 a comprehensive set of guidelines for the establishment of high school graduation requirements to be used by each school district board of education in developing local high school graduation requirements. In order to carry out this task, CDE is asking for your input by attending one of the various statewide focus groups this August to review several proposed graduation guidelines.
The department will host a series of focus groups across the state for you to review the components of the proposed graduation guidelines and provide your feedback. This valuable public input will be used to inform the state board’s decision. Please consider attending!
The focus groups will take place on the following dates and locations. More details will follow. All meetings will take place from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Light refreshments will be provided.
1. Tuesday, Aug. 16 – Alamosa - Alamosa family Rec. Center, 8666 Road 109 South Alamosa
2. Wednesday, Aug. 17 – Northeast BOCES (Akron, Holyoke)
3. Thursday, Aug. 18 – Eads (Southeast)
4. Monday, Aug. 22 – Colorado Springs
5. Tuesday, Aug. 23 - Grand Junction
6. Monday, Aug. 29 – Denver Metro
7. Tuesday, Aug. 30 – Glenwood Springs
The purpose of the focus groups is to receive feedback from small groups of Coloradans about the direction and content of proposed state-wide graduation guidelines (which will be shared during the focus groups). In addition we seek to better understand how the proposed guidelines will inform the establishment of local requirements, the extent to which there is consensus across the state and the extent to which districts are willing to update and adopt new requirements that meet or exceed the state guidelines.
Input from your community is critical to this process and we hope you will join us. To RSVP, please contact Emmy Glancy.
For More Information, Contact:
Emmy Glancy, Program Manager CAP4K
Assessment, Research, and Evaluation
Phone: 303-866-6118
Email: glancy_e@cde.state.co.us
Registration Now Available for the CELP Tour
Attn: Attn: Superintendents, District administrators, Principals, ELA and Curriculum Directors/Coordinators, Coaches, Professional Developers, Teachers, and Teacher Leaders
Registration is now available for the 10-city tour of the Colorado English Language Proficiency (CELP) Standards. Registration is available at the link below. Space is limited to five people per district.
Two tracks have been created--one for administrators/decision-makers and the other for all other participants. Administrators only need to attend half the day, leaving after lunch. All others attend the full-day training. The training is from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at all sites.
Tour Locations and Dates:
Wednesday, Sept. 14 in Ridgway
Thursday, Sept. 15 in Grand Junction
Wednesday, Sept. 21 in Limon
Thursday, Sept. 22 in Greeley
Wednesday, Sept. 28 in Durango
Thursday, Sept. 29 in Alamosa
Wednesday, Oct. 5 in Boulder
Thursday, Oct. 6 in Aurora
Wednesday, Oct. 19 in La Junta
Thursday, Oct. 20 in Colorado Springs
Click Here for Additional Information
For More Information, Contact:
Genevieve Hale
Office of Federal Program Administration
Phone: 303-866-6618
Email: hale_g@cde.state.co.us
Federal Programs
NCLB State Committee of Practitioners
Attn: Superintendents, Principals, Teachers, and Federal Program Contacts
The NCLB State Committee of Practitioners is accepting applications for new members. The Committee of Practitioners serves as an advisory group to CDE's Office of Federal Program Administration and performs the duties as designated in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). The primary purpose of the committee is to review, before publication, any proposed or final state rule or regulation pursuant to Title I, Title IIA, Title III and Title IVB. Committee members serve for three years. Members are expected to attend four meetings per year and take part in the remote review of documents as needed.
The Committee is looking for members who represent either the southeastern quadrant or the west central region of Colorado. Additionally, the committee will accept applications from private school administrators and teachers, LEA school board members and school level administrators and teachers. Documents describing the work of the CoP can be found at the weblink below. Applications will be reviewed by the current members and membership invitations issued in time for the first meeting of the school year on Wednesday, Sept. 7.
Click Here for Additional Information
For More Information, Contact:
Kathryn Smukler
Office of Federal Program Administration
Phone: 303-866-6842
Email: smukler_k@cde.state.co.us
Consolidated Application Updates
Attn: Consolidated Application Contacts
CDE staff has finished the process of reviewing Consolidated Applications. Emails have been sent notifying district/BOCES that their application has been granted substantial approval. The email included the link to access the application comment logs. The comment log provides the information needed to revise the application and budget to receive final approval. District/BOCES should respond to all comments by Wednesday, Aug. 31 in order to receive timely final approval. If you have any questions about the comments, contact the staff member who reviewed that section of your application.
Be advised that the Title I school designation table will lock down on September 1 regardless of where you are in the revision process. No changes to Title I school designations may be made after that point.
Note: final allocations have been posted and those numbers should be used when submitting budget revisions (http://www.cde.state.co.us/cdefisgrant/NCLB_download.htm).
Click Here for Additional Information
For More Information, Contact:
Cheryl Miller
Federal Program Administration
Phone: 303-866-6214
Email: miller_c@cde.state.co.us
Important Due Date
ADE open for 2011 AYP
Attn: AYP Respondents, Title I Contacts, District Assessment Coordinators, Superintendents
2011 school and district AYP data and determinations are now available through the ADE at https://edx.cde.state.co.us/AYP/. Your district has designated one person to be your AYP ADE contact and have access to this system. If you do not know who that person is, you need to update the contact, or you need your password information, call Donna Morganstern.
Any district-level appeals must be submitted to CDE with all documentation and data by Friday, Aug. 19. The AYP ADE system will remain open until Friday, Sept. 2 at 5 p.m., when it will close and all school and district AYP data and determinations will be final.
Click Here for Additional Information
For More Information, Contact:
Donna Morganstern
Federal Programs
Phone: 303-866-6209
Email: morganstern_d@cde.state.co.us
Colorado Department of Education
201 East Colfax Avenue
Denver, Colorado
80203-1799
Phone: 303-866-6822 or 303-866-2334
Do you know somebody in your school district who needs to read The Scoop each week? Send an e-mail to: CDE_Communications_Office@cde.state.co.us with "Sign Me Up For The Scoop" in the subject line. If you are having trouble signing up, please call the communications office at the telephone numbers above.
|
