Cohort 2 Striving Readers Comprehensive Literacy (SRCL) Subgrant Application

The District Support Toolbox has updates on potential federal grant opportunities, including the SRCL Cohort 2 subgrant. The application, with guidelines and timeline, can be found here beginning Wednesday March 20. This grant will directly support districts in their literacy efforts to benefit children from birth through twelfth grade. The second of two cohorts will begin the program in June 2013.

Compass Guidance for Teachers of Students with Significant Disabilities

All students can achieve rigorous learning goals - including students with significant disabilities. The purpose of Compass is to ensure that each teacher receives high-quality feedback and professional development to support him or her in improving his or her practice and helping students achieve such goals. The significant disabilities tool, which can be found under the Observation + Feedback section in the Classroom Support Toolbox, is intended to support the evaluator in this work by providing guidance to help him or her with the following:

1. Work with teachers to set rigorous, meaningful goals for students with significant disabilities
2. Develop a common understanding of the evidence reflective of Highly Effective performance
3. Discuss specific, actionable feedback that is informed by students' special needs

This document is not intended to replace the Compass Teacher Rubric or other Compass resources; it is an optional tool for evaluators to use in supporting the development of teachers of students with significant disabilities. Please share any questions or feedback related to this tool at Compass@la.gov.

2014 Teacher of the Year Selection Rubric Released

A rubric for the initial portion of the 2014 Teacher of the Year selection process is now available and will provide teachers and districts with guidance on application expectations. State selectors will use this rubric to identify semi-finalists from the pool of district-level nominees.  LEAs may, but are not required to, use this rubric to identify nominees.

Applications from LEA nominees are due to excellenteducators@la.gov by 5:00 PM CST on Wednesday, April 24, 2013. 

Updates to the Compass Information System

Observations for teachers and counselors are no longer distinguished in the Compass Information System as "Formal" or "Informal."  This update aligns with recent improvements to Compass. 

• To conduct an observation on a teacher or counselor that will count toward the final evaluation in the Compass Information System, select Observation in the observation-type drop-down menu.
• To conduct an observation on a teacher or counselor for developmental purposes only, select Supplemental Observation in the observation-type drop-down menu.

Act 1 Compensation Plans - Submission and Reporting Update

The Louisiana Department of Education has received compensation plans from over half of the districts. Please remember that all plans must be submitted to Act1@la.gov by April 1, 2013 and will be reviewed against the criteria outlined in this rubric. Later this spring, the Department will report publicly on districts' progress  and will highlight districts with exemplar compensation plans.

The Department has received a number of questions regarding IEPs for students taking alternate assessments.  In response, the Office of Student Programs provided technical assistance to districts regarding LAA 1 participation and received very positive feedback from the field.  Therefore, the Office of Student Programs is offering similar technical assistance for LAA 2 IEPs, as is helpful to your district.  Please contact Angela Randall at (225) 342-3668 with any questions. 

Course Choice Professional School Counselors Informational Webinar Series

Please forward to all high school principals, counselors and teachers.

Course Choice will provide students and their families access to rigorous college and career course offerings that best match students' abilities and needs beginning SY 13-14. The Louisiana Department of Education will offer online training to all school-based professional school counselors on their roles and responsibilities in the Course Choice approval process on the date below.

March 21, 2013 from 4:00-5:30 p.m. 

• Click here to log on / Meeting Key (if prompted): IRBRM450
• Toll Free: 1-888-621-7121 / Event Number: 266969

The Course Choice Program is an integral component of Louisiana Believes, the state's plan to empower students and teachers. For more information go to  www.louisianacoursechoice.net or email coursechoice@la.gov. 

International Baccalaureate® Diploma Program Information

The International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program is a two year academically challenging and balanced program of education with final examinations that prepare students for success at university and life beyond.

IB Organization representatives will host informational sessions to discuss the IB Program and how to become an IB World School. To register or find out more information about this program, please email your request to Nan Ryan at nan.ryan@ihsnola.org.

March 21, 2013:  1:00-3:00 p.m.

International High School of New Orleans

727 Carondelet Street  

New Orleans, LA  70130

March 22, 2013:  1:00-3:00 p.m.

Central Intermediate School

12636 Sullivan Road 

Central, LA  70818

In addition, to encourage the growth of Louisiana's International Baccalaureate Program, the Louisiana Department of Education is accepting applications for school leaders to participate in the 2013 IB Conference of the Americas. This conference will be held at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside July 18 - 21, 2013.  Interested school leaders should submit an application packet for registration fee reimbursement, via email, to Tristen Guillory at Tristen.guillory@la.gov on or before April 15, 2013.  For additional information, please contact Tristen via email, at 225-219-0454, or by calling the Department's toll-free number, (877) 453-2721. 

Attachment: 

APPLICATION - 2013 IB Conference Reimbursement Packet

Mid-year Minimum Foundation Program Adjustments 

Please forward to city/parish superintendents and business managers, and type 2 and type 5 charter school board presidents and business managers.

Per SCR 99, the MFP Resolution, the FY 2012-13 MFP Formula for March 2013 has been updated to include the October and February mid-year adjustments for students and the final local per pupil amount for charter schools. If you have any questions or need additional information, you may contact Christel Fulton at christel.fulton@la.gov. Please see the attachments below.

Attachments:

Circular 1148-E - Transmittal Memo for March 2013 MFP Budget Letter

FY2012-13 MFP BUDGET LETTER - MARCH 2013

October 1, 2012 Mid-Year Adjustement_Detail

February 1, 2013 Mid-Year Adjustment_Detail

FY2012-13 Final Charter Per Pupil Funding 

Please forward to SIS coordinators, business managers and administrators of charter schools and selected organization sponsors.

The Louisiana Department of Education will begin conducting the 2013-2014 MFP audits. The attached memo provides guidance on the plans for the upcoming MFP Audits. 

The MFP audit cycle for 2013 will be conducted beginning March 2013 and continuing through January 2014.  The adjustments as a result of these audits will be included in the FY 2014-2015 MFP formula. The audit staff will make every effort to establish an audit schedule that is workable for both the audit staff and the LEA. To facilitate the completion of the MFP audits, timely responses to requests for documentation is necessary. LEAs will receive approximately four weeks to respond to requests for documentation. For more details, see the attached audit notification memo.

The following information is subject to be audited during the 2013 audit cycle:

• February 1, 2013 MFP Student Count
• October 1, 2013 Mid-Year Adjustment Student Count
• February 1, 2013 Special Education Exceptionalities and Gifted/Talented Weighted Student Counts
• February 1, 2013 At-Risk Weighted Student Count
• October 1, 2012 Career and Technical Education Unit Count

• FY 2012-2013 local tax revenue for districts where RSD operates schools or Type 5 charters

• FY 2011-2012 local tax revenue data for all other LEAs
• FY 2012-2013 Annual Financial Report (AFR)

For further information or questions, contact Jameka Henderson at Jameka.Henderson@la.gov or 225.342.8848

Attachment: 

2013 State Audit Notification Memo

FY 2012-2013 IDEA Part B Maintenance of Effort (MOE) Reviews

Please forward to business managers and financial officials of public school districts, charter schools, lab schools, and other entities and state agencies defined as an LEA for these purposes.

The IDEA MOE Confirmation remains open in eGMS for completion by LEAs. This process confirms that the FY10-11 actual expenditures met the MOE requirements for IDEA funding. The initial due date for completion of the MOE Confirmation was November 2012. The final extension of the confirmation data collection is Friday, March 29, 2013. Attached is the list of LEAs that have not yet submitted or have not completed the review. A failure to meet this due date may result in possible repayment of federal funds.

The IDEA MOE Verification was launched February 6, 2012. Due to spring break, the deadline for completion has been extended to April 10, 2013. This process identifies whether LEAs are on track to meet the MOE requirements for IDEA funding based on budgeted FY12-13 data. In order to complete the IDEA MOE Verification, the IDEA MOE Confirmation review must be marked "Final". Data from the confirmation is extracted to prepopulate fields for the verification review. If your FY10-11 data is not prepopulated, please contact Nakia Jason at the contact information below.

For further information and questions regarding the review, contact Nakia Jason, Federal Audit Supervisor at Nakia.Jason@la.gov or 1-877-453-2721 or Jason Berard at Jason.Berard@la.gov for eGMS technical inquiries or support.

Attachment: 

IDEA MOE Confirmation Outstanding Reviews

Louisiana Youth Seminar (LYS)

The Louisiana Youth Seminar, a high school leadership program in its 43rd year, will once again be held on the campus of LSU, July 21-26, 2013.  LYS is a unique and progressive leadership camp specifically designed for incoming high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors who demonstrate leadership abilities in their schools.  Young men and women from all backgrounds are encouraged to attend.