The Ohio Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) grant program is a two-year, federal initiative to meet the purposes of the federal No Child Left Behind legislation. The EETT initiative targets students in grades K-8 and focuses in the academic content areas of Mathematics and English Language Arts to increase student achievement. The primary goal of the federal Ed Tech Program is to improve student academic achievement through the use of technology in schools. This program is designed to assist students in crossing the digital divide by ensuring that every student is technologically literate by the end of eighth grade. The program also encourages the effective integration of technology with teacher training and curriculum development to establish successful research-based instructional methods. The list of schools eligible to participate in the next round of funding will be posted by Feb 10, along with the Request For Proposal. You can also review Project Profiles.
The contact person is Verda McCoy, EETT Grant Officer, of the eTech Ohio Commission.
SAVE YOUR SCHOOLS - YOUR ATTENTION IS REQUIRED… YOUR ACTION IS ESSENTIAL
Governor Strickland’s executive budget has the potential to end charter schools as we know them in Ohio. This is no exaggeration. Run the numbers. Can your school afford a 20-22 percent reduction in student revenues from 2009 to 2010?
In 2008, according to Ohio’s Legislative Service Committee, charter schools received $585 million in state student revenues.
In 2009, according to the ODE, charters will receive $637 million ($617 according to the executive branch’s Office of Budget and Management).
In 2010, if the governor’s new budget plan prevails, payout to charter schools will plummet to $497 million, a drop of between $120 and $140 million dollars depending on whose numbers you use.
Charter school students could wind up with just about half the funding of district school students in their backpacks as they head off to “school” next fall.
The Ohio Alliance for Public Charter Schools (OAPCS) is organizing a substantial advocacy campaign on behalf of all charter schools that includes educational materials for legislators, lobbyists, school leaders and teachers. Check out our web site for many of these resources.
To save our schools we will need a concerted and proactive effort from school leaders and parents. In the next few weeks OAPCS will be sending out “Legislative Action Alerts” that will allow school leaders, teachers and parents to communicate directly with their legislators about the governor’s budget and education plans, including core messaging. It is imperative that we get a robust response out to our policymakers, to save our schools, and to save school choice for our parents and students.
Click here for an OpEd from me that helps to tell the story.
Horizon Science Academy Cleveland Named Title 1 Distinguished School
The National Association of State Title I Directors will honor 57 Title I schools (representing 36 states) at its annual Distinguished Schools award ceremony in San Antonio, Texas on February, 19, 2009 from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the conference’s opening session.
“These academically outstanding schools have risen above obstacles of poverty with the help of the Title I program,” says NASTID president Julie McCargar.
Schools were selected for outstanding results in one of two categories: 1- Exceptional student performance for two or more consecutive years or, 2- Closing the achievement gap between student groups.
The inspiring opening session of the conference begins with a parade of all Distinguished Schools participants. A video presentation features each of the 2008 Distinguished Schools. The school principals are awarded their certificates and banners at this event. Each school principal and Title I state director will be mailed an individualized state book with detailed school information and photos, including photos from the conference award activities. This book will also include a copy of the video depicting all of the Distinguished Schools that was shown at the conference. (A contact list and description of each school is on the Title I website – www.titlei.org. )
Following the ceremony is the Distinguished Schools luncheon with speaker Zollie Stevenson, Jr., Director of Student Achievement and School Accountability (SASA) program at the US Department of Education. In addition to being responsible for the Title I, Part A and Title III State consolidated grant programs, as director of SASA, Stevenson oversees the Education of Homeless Children and Youth Program, Enhanced Assessment Grants, and Programs for Children and Youth Who are Neglected and Delinquent, or At-Risk.
Title I is the largest federal-aid program in K-12 education with more than $14 billion awarded annually through formula and discretionary grants. Schools' efforts at using Title I monies to improve the education of all students in high-poverty Title I schools are bearing much fruit. These winning schools join hundreds of other Distinguished Schools honored since the recognition program began in 1996.
These distinguished schools demonstrate strengths in the following areas:
opportunity for all children to meet proficient and advanced levels of performance,
strong professional development,
coordination with other programs,
curriculum and instruction to support achievement of high standards, and
partnerships among schools, parents and communities.
In addition to the above requirements, each school submits the last three years of achievement data and a one-page school description.
Since 1965, the Title I program has served over 150 million children in need of extra academic support in reading, writing, and math. At its core, Title I is a reading and mathematics program. But these distinguished schools go beyond that mandate. They work to improve citizenship, character, enjoyment of the arts, and community spirit. They also know the importance of making the school a hospitable hub of the community. Many students served by Title I go on to be the first in their families to graduate high school and college. Some ? whose backgrounds include migrant farm work, non-English speaking homes, and extreme poverty ? have become teachers, military officers, computer experts, and engineers.
Each Distinguished School has its own character. Examples:
Horizon Science Academy, Cleveland, Ohio
Over 80% of the students come from economically disadvantaged homes. The school offers small class sizes and fosters academic dedication through use of school uniforms, Saturday school, and tutoring and mentoring programs. Strong teachers are given creative freedom to teach rigorous courses that include zoology, journalism, robotics, economics, and personal finance, among other standard AP classes. Result: Horizon boast 100% college acceptance for the class of 2008.
OAPCS has been in regular communications with the Ohio Department of Education about the many changes in EMIS data reporting, particularly as it relates to charter school funding. We know this past reporting period – October 2008 – proved very challenging for many schools, with dozens of charter schools facing possible financial sanctions. Many more upcoming changes – such as the EMIS input screens going away and the folding of SOES into EMIS, will continue to add to the burdensome, but necessary system of school academic and financial accounting.
OAPCS is gathering information to determine the capacity of charter schools to absorb these changes. Kelly Buskirk and Marianne Lombardo are attempting to contact all schools and inventory what Student Information Systems (SIS) is in place and how satisfied you are with them, along with your current system of EMIS staffing. Armed with information from our schools, we can work in partnership with ODE to represent charter school needs in EMIS.
If there is enough need for an easy-to-use Student Information System that will meet the state reporting requirements, we hope we can negotiate a volume discount with an agreed upon vendor. If this is a key need of your school, please contact Marianne Lombardo at (614) 744-2266, ext. 201, so that your school is represented in the discussions!
There are resources that will increase your school’s EMIS success:
1). Be sure that your school is on the EMIS distribution list managed by your ITC. This distribution list provides invaluable updates on changes, information and professional development opportunities, via the EMIS Newsflash.
2). Assure that contact information on the Ohio Educational Directory System (OEDS-R) for your school is up-to-date. The Superintendent, Treasurer and EMIS contact should have correct email addresses so that correspondences, such as out of compliance notices from the Ohio Department of Education, can be received.
3). Take advantage of all trainings offered by your ITC. This coming March, the ITC’s will be offering sessions on the EMIS redesign, which will be very important for your school to understand. A good working relationship with your ITC’s EMIS staff will serve you well when end-of-year data – including Assessment and Graduation Test Score Data that appears on your Local Report Card – is submitted throughout the summer months.
4). The Ohio Association of EMIS Professionals(OAEP), will be having their spring conference May 3, 4, and 5th, in Columbus. This is an excellent opportunity for you and your staff to increase knowledge in this area.
5). When you are seeking EMIS services, consider that OAEP has an EMIS Professional Certification Program. Someone with this Certification has demonstrated their knowledge and skill. Further, OAEP will post EMIS openings on their website.
Most importantly, use the EMIS Helpline and never be afraid to ask questions of your ITC.
Please forward your concerns, issues, needs, regarding EMIS/SOES and the use of Student Information Systems in your school. OAPCS members can request a personalized EMIS evaluation – how to read your error reports, how to correct data, how to prevent errors, and how to align your time and resources for a successful EMIS experience.
The deadline for filing FY 2009 Form 471 applications is quickly approaching. If you are filing last minute, please see the following suggestions.
Form 471 Filing Suggestions
The deadline for filing Form 471 applications for FY 2009, the next funding year, is Thursday, February 12, at 11:59 p.m. EST. Applications completed online or postmarked after this time and date will be treated as received outside the filing window and may not be funded.
1.For online filers. If last minute problems are experienced with the SLD’s online data entry system — a real possibility if the system becomes overloaded with last minute filers — it is critically important to document that the filing had been in process when problems developed. In particular:
a.Perform periodic screen printouts — particularly of the screen that appears early in the filing process displaying the Form 471 number and security code. It is also important to call the SLD’s help line (888-203-8100) to report problems. The help line will remain open up to the 11:59 p.m. EST deadline on Thursday. If you call with a filing problem, make sure you retain the assigned Case Number.
b.To avoid problems from the outset, be sure to use Internet Explorer, not an alternative browser. The SLD has updated the more informal guidance it had provided last year for dealing with a variety of possible online filing problems. This information is available on the SLD Web site.
Remember that all Form 471s should also be certified by the deadline. If you are not certifying online using your assigned PIN, the certification should be printed out, signed and dated, and mailed by the deadline. If the application is submitted online and on time, but not certified, the SLD will provide a reminder and a second chance to do so. If at all possible, please do not rely on this second chance.
2. When mailing either a complete paper Form 471 or a paper certification to the SLD, we recommend that the postmark date be documented. If using an express mailing service (e.g., FedEx), the electronic pickup date in the tracking system serves as the “postmark.” Make sure you know the time of the latest express mail pickup in your area.
If using the U.S. Postal Service, similar advice applies. Use certified mail and make sure the certification is time-stamped before the 11:59 p.m. EST deadline. Some post offices have later closing times than others. Check the USPS Web site to find offices near you and check their closing times.
3.Remember that any Form 470 referenced in a Form 471 must also be signed and certified to be valid. Any applicant who filed a Form 470 online a month or two ago, but who did not electronically certify it online, should make sure that their paper certification pages have been submitted. The deadline for submitting a Form 470 certification is the same as the Form 471 deadline.
The easiest way to confirm that a specific Form 470 has been certified is to use the Form 470 Search Posted feature in the Apply Online section of the SLD Web site. The first section of a posted Form 470 should show a Certification Received Date. If this field is blank, and you just mailed the certification, make sure you can document the postmark date. If you mailed the certification a while ago, and the field is still blank, we suggest resubmitting the certification before the deadline.
E-Rate Updates and Reminders
Extended CSB Hours:
In order to provide additional assistance during the critical final week of the FY 2009 application window, the SLD’s Client Service Bureau (888-203-8100) will be operating with extended hours next week. CSB’s scheduled hours of operation are:
