Nov. 12, 2008
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Save the date
Nov. 18
Board Governance Training
Veteran's Memorial - Columbus, OH
Nov. 16-17, 2009
2nd OAPCS Annual Conference
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USDOE Web Broadcast
On behalf of the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Innovation and Improvement, Nova Southeastern University’s Fischler School of Education and Human Services, the Florida Public School Choice Consortium and WestEd would like to invite you to attend the upcoming Public School Choice: From Research to Practice web broadcast.
Please join us for a conversation on the conditions that research has shown are needed to make school choice successful and the ways in which state and district practitioners are implementing replicable practices to improve their school choice programs based on this research and the four tenets of the Voluntary Public School Choice Program.
Speakers
- Dr. Mark Berends, Director of the USDOE/Institute for Education Sciences-funded National Center on School Choice
- Dr. Judith Stein, Executive Director of the National Institute for Educational Options at NSU-FSEHS
- Superintendent Maryellen Elia and Dr. Pansy Houghton, Director of Student Planning and Placement, Hillsborough County Public Schools
- Robert Canelli, Supervisor of Magnet Schools, New Haven Public Schools
- David Kikoler, Evaluator for New Haven Public Schools VPSC grant, American Education Solutions, Inc.
Registration
This event is a live web broadcast from the Florida Public School Choice Consortium's 4th Annual Conference. Please register for this event by visiting BuildingChoice.org and click on the event in the "What's New" box.
Sponsors
This event is sponsored by The Office of Innovation and Improvement's Voluntary Public School Choice Program, in collaboration with Nova Southeastern University’s Fischler School of Education and Human Services.
For more information please contact:
Natasha Lavine
WestEd, Innovation Studies
415-615-3371
nlavine@wested.org
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Contact Us
Ohio Alliance for Public Charter Schools
33 N. Third Street,
Suite 600
Office: (614) 744-2266
Fax: (614) 744-2255
www.oapcs.org
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Reflections on Elections
Put simply, we have a President Elect who has indicated support for charter schools; hence, at the national-leadership level, there are hopeful signs of bi-partisan support for charter schools, and a new financial investment in start-up programs. The proof is in the pudding. We’ll be looking for indications that campaign promises are coming to fruition.
At the state level, we now have a General Assembly where the House is controlled by the Democrats and the Senate by the Republicans. Is there hope for bi-partisan support for charter schools in Ohio? That may depend on the pudding recipe. And that recipe is very much in the making, starting with the Governor’s budget, what the House leaves in, the Senate takes out, and the conference committee resolves to be their contribution to bi-partisanship on school choice.
Several post-election proceedings are worth noting. First was ImpactOhio’s “2008 Post-Election Conference” at the Columbus Convention Center. Most notable was the following statement from Senate President Bill Harris in his speech to the group of about 800 participants. He said emphatically, “We in the Senate are not interested in limiting education choice for families in any way. Anything that would dismantle education choice in Ohio, I can assure you, will be dead on arrival.”
Second, both the Columbus Dispatch and the Cleveland Plain Dealer wrote short editorial notes of support for the sentiments expressed by Senator Harris, with the Dispatch saying, “Successful charter schools and private-school vouchers provide options for families whose children are stuck in failing public schools but who can’t afford private schools. Perhaps most important, given that the majority of Ohio's children remain in public schools, is that persistent reform efforts and the availability of other options have driven public schools to strive for improvement as never before. That's positive change that Ohio lawmakers should continue to support.”
Third, Governor Strickland, speaking to the annual meeting of the Ohio School Boards Association's Delegate Assembly on Tuesday, said the legislature made "some strides" in increasing the transparency and accountability of charter schools last year. But, he said, “I will guarantee you that we will continue (the) effort to see that public resources used by non-public institutions are done so in a way that is transparent and holds those who are using those resources accountable."
The Governor went on to say, "I continue to be very troubled about for-profit charter schools and I continued to be concerned about the significant numbers of charter schools that were, in effect, grandfathered in and not under the authority or the supervision or the oversight of the board of education. In those ways I would like to see some tightening up. We have some good charter schools. I acknowledge that. They are well run, they are achieving desired goals and they're very transparent. But there are others that are much less so."
What does all this mean for the Ohio Alliance for Public Charter Schools? The Alliance understands the critical nature of its advocacy role on behalf of community charter schools in Ohio and we are in fact already proactive. We are anticipating and developing strong messaging related to the charter school issues that are clearly emerging in the budget development process. The Governor has constitutional lead in this process, but parents, school leaders, teachers, sponsors, charter management organizations, House members, and Senate members will all have an opportunity to weigh in on behalf of charter schools. Our job at the Alliance is to make sure that we provide a set of powerful and consistent messages that our constituents can use in defense of our diverse charter school community. We also will identify and communicate the right communication channels to effectively transmit these messages to policy makers. Finally, nothing works better than getting legislators out to successful charters. We’ll be making sure this happens with critical lawmakers. Nothing sells like success.
It’s important for our membership to understand that we are on this in a big way and we will be sharing the work products of this enterprise in the not too distant future. Your job, in no uncertain terms, will be an equal level of pro-activity in making contact with opinion and policymakers to make sure they understand the significance of the state’s investment in community charter schools. Stay tuned. We have reason to be hopeful but we all have much hard work to do.
Differentiated Accountability Pilot: For Your Information
Ohio is one of six states that have been approved by the U.S. Department of Education to take part in a “Differentiated Accountability Pilot Program.” This pilot program specifically addresses the frequently criticized AYP weighting and measurement calculus for proficiency attainment among student populations and their sub-groups.
Currently, if any sub-group misses its proficiency target for two years in a row the school fails and is subject to improvement intervention. Under the pilot, the measurement will not be based on the potential failure of one sub-group but on an average of the aggregate of all subgroups. If the pilot is approved by the state legislature, success will not hinge on the number of consecutive years a school misses AYP because of a subgroup(s) failure to meet proficiency targets; instead, the school will be judged on how well it does annually on the aggregate percentage of students who do not meet the AYP standards in reading and math.
This is a heads up on what may be a change for school leaders to comprehend. We’ll keep our members informed as things develop. If you have further questions about this don’t hesitate to contact our Director of School Performance and Accountability, Marianne Lombardo.
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There is still time to attend the Charter School Board Governance 101 training, to be held Tuesday, Nov. 18th, 2008 at Veterans Memorial in Columbus. As a participant, you will learn the ins-and-outs of sound school governance and have ample opportunity to ask questions and glean practical information for use at your schools.
Our featured presenter is Dr. Brian Carpenter, CEO of the National Charter Schools Institute in Michigan and author of many books on charter school governance, including Charter School Board University, a comprehensive “how-to” guide for governing board members, and The Seven Outs: Strategic Planning Made Easy for Charter Schools. Dr. Carpenter will provide participants with a set of best practices for effective charter school board governance, including fiscal oversight.
Also speaking are:
Ø Chas Kidwell, partner at the legal firm Porter, Wright, Morris and Arthur, LLC, who will offer guidance on charter school law and potential legal liabilities for board members.
Ø Marianne Lombardo, director of school performance and accountability at the Ohio Alliance for Public Charter Schools (OAPCS), who will help board members interpret Ohio’s academic accountability system and the federal No Child Left Behind Act, and what both mean for the state’s charter schools.
Ø Kim Blake, from the State’s Auditor’s Office, who will be speaking on preparing for financial audits.
In addition, participants will have the opportunity to hear from charter school sponsors.
Charter School Board Governance 101 is sponsored by the Ohio Alliance for Public Charter Schools and the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation. The OAPCS is grateful for the Fordham Foundation's generous support, which allows for free attendance at the seminar; but, registration is required and limited. Included with registration are a continental breakfast, lunch and a notebook filled with valuable information. OAPCS members will also receive a free copy of “Charter School Board University: An Introductory Course to Effective Charter School Board Governance.” In addition, we will have copies of “The Seven Outs: Strategic Planning Made Easy for Charter Schools,” for purchase at a deeply discounted price.
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Through our online newsletter, Insight Online, the Ohio Alliance for Public Charter Schools will regularly feature remarkable innovations manifest in Ohio's charter schools, programs and practices sure to be of interest to other charter schools. What follows is not an idea, but a curriculum and practice that can add immediate value to a school's program...and it is FREE!
The Center for Experiential Learning Leadership and Technology is the professional development arm of The Graham Family of Schools. CELLT provides faculty development opportunities for high school and college faculty, staff and administrators. Their programs provide hands-on activities and experiential learning in: faculty enrichment, innovative teaching, research, leadership, sound governance and a broad range of advanced learning technologies. CELLT’s first professional development offering is the 21st Century Skills Curriculum and ePortfolio.
All Ohio school districts are invited to inquire about this technology enhanced curriculum that establishes, supports, and enlivens programs for internships, service learning, school to work, and experiential education. The Center for Experiential Learning, Leadership and Technology (CELLT) recognizes that the talents students need to be successful in the future are not the same as they were at the beginning of the 20th century. This unique curriculum that can be integrated into existing high school offerings is designed to prepare students for learning, work, and living in the 21st century by assisting students to become:
- Effective team members;
- Citizens of their community;
- Efficient researchers;
- Successful with communication processes and technology;
- Adaptable to change in an ever-expanding world.
- Self-directed life-long learners;
Elements of the curriculum can be used within current school structures, demographics and course offerings. The program can be adapted as a full-year, 36-week curriculum; condensed into quarter, semester, or summer school programs; or sampled for special learning opportunities.
The curriculum, including teacher lesson plans, readings and demonstrations, student assignments, teacher grade book, and electronic student portfolios, is developed in SAKAI, an open source learning environment that includes access for students, mentors, teachers, and parents.
The Graham Family of Schools' Center for Experiential Learning Leadership and Technology will host the content, train teachers and provide technical support for schools during the 2008-2009 school year under the auspices of a Ohio Department of Education Office of Community Schools dissemination grant and is funded by the U.S. Department of Education.
If you would like to share your success with other OAPCS members, please contact Kelly Buskirk.
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How Will Your School Celebrate International Education Week?
International Education Week will be celebrated from November 17-21, 2008. It is a joint initiative of the U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of State to highlight the importance of international education and international exchange. In Ohio, Governor Strickland will be issuing a proclamation for International Education Week to highlight the importance of global experience for today’s students. The official Web site for International Education Week provides ideas for activities and offers the opportunity to post information about your school’s events. Other ideas are contained in the articles below. Please forward information about your school’s International Education Week events to Donna.Nesbitt@ode.state.oh.us
Ohio Performance Assessment
In 2007, ODE received funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the William Hewlett Foundation to pilot performance-based assessments for students in 11th- and 12th-grade English, mathematics and science classes. Envisioned as part of Ohio’s new generation of assessments, they will provide measures of 21st Century skills and content mastery, and be directly related to the college-ready expectations articulated by the Ohio Board of Regents.
The framework for using performance-based assessments is founded on the belief that if Ohio is to create a system that meets world-class standards, it will require assessments that both call for higher-order performances of understanding and support teaching and learning methods which enable students to meet these new standards. The multiple-measures approach to assessing student learning made available through the use of performance-based assessments allows for the testing of a greater array of standards than traditional, standardized tests and potentially could provide the means to signal the attainment of the knowledge and skills necessary to be successful beyond high school.
For information on the Performance-based Assessment, contact Chris Downey at (614) 387-2201.
Deadline for Entry-Year Teachers and Praxis III is Nov. 15
Beginning teachers holding two-year provisional licenses who plan to transition to a five-year professional license have until Nov. 15 to register for Ohio’s Entry-Year Teacher Program and participate in the state performance assessment, currently Praxis III.
Ohio Administrative Code requires schools and districts to provide their beginning teachers with an entry-year program and a mentor. The structure of the entry-year program, including mentor selection requirements, is determined by the local school or district. ODE provides guidelines and a rubric for entry year programs that can be used as a framework for schools to design their entry year program and mentor requirements. These guidelines are available at www.ode.state.oh.us and searching Entry Year Teacher Overview.
For more assistance, please contact Sue Rieger, state consultant for the Entry Year Teacher Program, at (614) 728-7727 (desk), 1-877-644-6338 (toll-free)
Important FY 2009 Dates
The Community School Operations FY 2009 Annual Timeline is now available by searching for Community School Timeline on the ODE Web site. The following dates and events are a sample of the type of timeline date reminders available:
November 2008:
· CSADM/SOES: Monthly reporting on the 15th of every month.
· Sponsor’s Annual Report: (Due Nov. 30)
· Entry Year Licensure (Deadline Nov. 15)
If you have questions regarding the timeline, please contact LeeAuna Taylor in the Office of Community Schools at (614) 466-7058.
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