Words from Grace
This week, I observed several of you handle positive cases of Covid. One from pooled testing - this resulted in the principal and others monitoring the medical waiting area while waiting for the student to be picked up. In another case, a a parent self reported their child testing positive and a third where the person was not in the school - therefore no close contacts. These cases are anxiety provoking. If your nurse is unsure about the protocol, reach out to me or health health services for direction. We have a defined process that involves BPHC for communication with families. Every case is a little different, so be patient!
Family Preferences: Thank you for reaching out to families to obtain their preference between five days in-person or remote, for filling out surveys on tents/furnishings... The district does not have unlimited resources for desks and furnishings. It will be challenging to set up furnishings and take it down each day. Students will need to bring a towel or mat to sit on rather than bringing in more furniture to school sites. Some tents, depending on its location, will attract unwanted night time or weekend activities - so be discerning in this regard.
During our region meeting on Tuesday, we will take time to review the resources on concurrent teaching at this website put together by the Division of Academics.
Polycams
As we move toward five days of in-person learning, we will still have students at home in most cases. This may require concurrent teaching. Using the polycam as a tool will 1) allow everyone in the classroom to clearly hear the students who are remote - the sound is amazing 2) the students at home will more clearly hear the teacher as they move around the classroom 3) your teacher will not need to stay close to the computer microphone or speak loudly into it - use of the polycam can help save your teacher's voice. Think of the polycam as a two way speaker system as well as well as video system. Here is a photo with Dr. Cassellius and Secretary Walsh speaking to a remote and in-person group at the same time. They were being "zoomed in" using the polycam.
Here are some additional photos from this week!
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| These students greeted the mayor upon his arrival at the Murphy |
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| Secretary Walsh visited the Murphy on his final day in Boston as our mayor. |
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| Hands on activities at OGPS |
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| Sorting at OGPS |
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| Building at Lee Academy |
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| Matching Letters at Lee Academy |
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| Trains at Lee Academy |
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| Writing on paper |
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| No screens in the classroom! |
Important Dates
April 2 - Good Friday - No School
April 19 - Patriot’s Day - No School
April 20 - 23 - Spring Recess - No School
May 31 - Memorial Day - No School
Division of Academics
Summer Learning Point of Contact - Please Update
In order to facilitate summer enrollment, the Summer Learning Team is compiling a list with the staff member at each school who will be, in addition to the School Leader, the point of contact for outreach and enrollment for 2021 Summer Learning. This person will be assigned additional access in Aspen to enroll students in summer programs and will be a point of contact for partner programs offering seats to your students. Linked here is the list of summer point person submissions from last year. Please update your contact by 3/31 and highlight your school row GREEN to confirm.
2021 HS Youth Risk Behavior Survey Postponed: See Memo for Details
The High School 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Survey has been moved from spring 2021 to fall 2021. The middle school survey has always been administered in the fall and will not be adjusted due to COVID. Please see the memo from the Superintendent for more details. Contact: Pamela Acero, pacero@bostonpublicschools.org
Boston Back in Motion with BPS Moves Together!
Boston Back in Motion, a month-long campaign developed by local non-profits in partnership with BPS Moves Together, is an online toolkit and fitness challenge program to get young people in grades 1-8 engaged in daily movement. Boston Back in Motion will provide a fun, motivating experience for young people to get moving and engaged in healthy choices throughout the month of April. The program is designed to encourage everyone to “show us your moves” and join in on social media as a class, with a small group of friends, or simply by themselves. Please encourage students to sign up for this program! Contact: Sravanthy Gumidyala, sgumidyala@bostonpublicschools.org
Distribution of Early Reader Texts
Full class sets of the decodable early readers that are part of the Focus on First and Focus on K2 curricula have been delivered to schools. These texts align to the scope and sequence of Fundations and build on the topics and vocabulary taught in Focus units. We know that print materials are a crucial component to early stages of learning to read. We have received overwhelmingly positive feedback from teachers who delivered these texts to children and who have thus been able to teach reading with both print and digital materials. Please read the full memo HERE.
Focus Materials List for Replenishment
If your school is using Focus on Early Learning and is planning to replenish supplies, consumables and curriculum materials, please use the Focus on K0/K1, K2, 1st & 2nd Materials List with updated pricing.
Please contact Abdifatah Sahal (asahal@bostonpublicschools.org) if you have questions regarding materials and procurement for Focus Curriculum.
K-2nd Focus Curriculum Adoptions for FY22
Schools interested in adopting the Focus on Early Learning curriculum for K - 2nd grade, please complete and submit this interest form.
Math PD Opportunity
For all participants, PROMYS is offering a 3.5-week exploration workshop called Morning Math. This online workshop runs weekdays beginning Wednesday, July 7 through Friday, July 30, 10a – 12:30p EDT. PfT Director, Professor Caleb Shor (Western New England University), facilitates the course. He is assisted by T^2s (teacher counselors, either graduate students in mathematics or PfT alumni) who will guide smaller groups in virtual breakout rooms. The curriculum is based on Park City Mathematics Institute (PCMI) Teacher Leadership Program materials designed in collaboration with PROMYS for Teachers. This summer’s course is Famous Functions in Number Theory. PDFs will be provided; purchase of the book is not required.
There is no fee to participate in the Morning Math exploration. Participants will have the opportunity to earn approximately 45 PDPs through the Education Development Center, a registered provider with the MA Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
Prospective participants are asked to fill out an application form no later than June 1: https://promys.org/pft/applications
Spring 2021 Student Feedback & Climate Surveys
The Spring 2021 Student Feedback & Climate survey will launch on March 31, and close on May 7. Students in grades 3-12 will take the Feedback survey, and students in grades 4-11 will take the Climate survey. Schools will need to administer the surveys to eligible students. For more information on the Spring 2021 student survey administration, please see here.
Students can access the survey via Clever. If the student is on a BPS Chromebook, their survey log-in will be seamless and the student will not need to enter any code. If they are on a personal computer and not signed into Chrome, Clever will prompt students to enter an access code to login. The student access codes are their SASIDs, which are available to teachers in ASPEN. If you'd like your students to receive the survey via email (instead of accessing via Clever), please reach out to: rc069@bostonpublicschools.org or support+bps@panoramaed.com.
If you have questions about this program, please reach out to Jerome Doherty (jdoherty7@bostonpublicschools.org) or Jake Stern (jstern2@bostonpublicschools.org). If you have technical questions about Panorama, please contact support+bps@panoramaed.com.
NAEP School Survey
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) School Survey is being administered to states and Trial Urban District Assessment (TUDA) districts to gather information about 4th and 8th grade students’ instructional modes and attendance rates through the end of SY20–21.
To minimize the burden on schools, the Office of Data and Accountability is responding to these monthly surveys on behalf of schools with students in grades 4 and 8. The data being provided to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is based on information from Aspen and the district’s policy regarding remote learning time. NCES is seeking to have a greater understanding of the impact of COVID-19 on the education system across the country. State, TUDA district, and national-level data are planned for release monthly and then as a final report following the last data collection at the end of the school year. For additional information, please contact Karyn Hall Redcross.
Alternate Entry to the 2022 National Merit Scholarship Program
The National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) conducts the National Merit Scholarship Program, an annual nationwide academic competition for high school students. The PSAT/NMSQT (Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test) is the route of entry into the National Merit Scholarship Program.
Due to the COVID pandemic, Boston Public Schools students were not able to participate in the 2020 PSAT/NMSQT, but they can still enter the 2022 National Merit Scholarship Program through the Alternate Entry process by using their SAT scores. See this document for further details.
Panorama Weekly Update - Two Reminders: K1 and K2 Grades and Interim Assessments
Last week’s Friday Flier included two key updates, which we are repeating this week. You can find last week’s full announcement here.
K1 and K2 Grades: Now Available in Panorama!
Report card grades are now available for Kindergarten students, in Panorama. This is the first time that BPS has offered a visualization and user-friendly interface for understanding K1 and K2 grades, outside of report cards! The purpose is to help educators quickly identify which students are progressing, and which students may most need adults to adjust their work.
We also know and affirm that course grades are just one of many important data points, and schools and classrooms may have distinct ways of applying them. The platform help site and data guide include numerous data points, showing you can put them in context together and paint a whole picture of childrens’ learning and development.
BPS Interims: Window 1 and Window 2 Interim
Results Both Available In Panorama
Results from window 1 and window 2 BPS interims are both now available in Panorama. Last week’s announcement included several key clarifying details about how the platform displays these data.
Foundations of Breakthrough Leadership Bridge Program
We are excited to share that the New Leaders’ Foundations of Breakthrough Leadership (FBL) Bridge Program is seeking applicants for Cohort 2 for SY21-22. This job-embedded approach to leadership development reflects the research that adults learn best when training is rooted in challenging, real-world work. Cohort members will be provided with coaching and professional learning to prepare them to lead in BPS. If you would like to learn more, please complete this interest form by April 6th and consider attending one of the virtual information sessions on April 8th from 5:30p to 6p, April 10th from 8:30a to 9a, or April 14th from 5:30p to 6p. The program application window will be opened between April 15th and April 30th. Please contact Monica Hall, mhall4@bostonpublicschools.org, with any questions.
Office of Leadership Development
Stipend, Growth and Leadership Opportunity!
Do you have a passion for professional learning? Do you want to contribute to the growth of your peers and our impact on students districtwide? You can earn a stipend while growing and developing others by joining the School Professional Learning Team.
This team will immediately begin work to plan ALI and the scope and sequence for All Leader Learning for SY21-22. Additionally, the team will have input on other areas of strategy in leader professional learning. To do this, the team will meet regularly, be stipended for their work and receive professional learning as a team. For more information, please review the job description and Application. Due to the urgency to launch ALI planning, applications are due April 2nd.
Pipeline And Talent Development Programs
Whose Greatness Do You See? Whose Growth Do You Want to Facilitate?
PSI/BPS Cohort, Pipeline Program
In partnership with the Perrone Sizer Institute (PSI), the BPS-PSI fellowship is now accepting applications for SY21-22! This is a pipeline designed to prepare teacher leaders to become Assistant Principals. There are upcoming information sessions.
The application deadline is April 26, 2021 and can be found here. Feel free to share this information with your networks. If you have questions about this opportunity, please contact Monica Hall, mhall4@bostonpublicschools.org
Latinos for Education/BPS Cohort
BPS is excited to be in a potential partnership with Latinos for Education to offer our Latinx district and school-based leaders an opportunity to be a part of the fellowship program. Upon confirmation of the partnership, we will seek 10-12 fellows from BPS to come together in community to deepen our ability to understand and leverage Latino identity to develop professionally and increase influence in education. You can find more information here. Please sign up for an info session here.Division of Equity, Strategy, & Opportunity Gaps
Office of Recruitment, Cultivation and Diversity Programs (RCD)
We STRONGLY encourage you to HIRE EARLY to have access to the best candidates who will only be available now!
TODAY! DIVERSITY CAREER FAIR FOR EDUCATORS, Friday, March 26, 5:00-8:00pm Want a chance to meet with talented and diverse teacher candidates via Zoom? RSVP here NOW so we can put your info in our booklet!!
Looking for Diverse Teacher candidates? Please complete this request form for leads to candidates for your open and difficult to fill positions. We will respond within 48 hours! Or search the Early Hiring Pool accessible through Talent Ed, or this spreadsheet: Early Hiring Pool.
Signing Bonuses: Through a grant with DESE, there are 50 $1000 Hiring Bonuses available for the hiring of new to BPS Latinx teacher candidates and BPS MTEL prep program completers. Complete this referral form for candidates you want to recommend to receive the bonus. Priority given to Latinx candidates (to close our largest teacher/student diversity gap), and our BPS MTEL prep completers.
Emergency Licenses: DESE has extended Emergency licenses validity from June 30, 2021 to June 30, 2022. Any teachers you currently would like to retain on Emergency Licenses should apply in the Educator Licensure and Renewal (ELAR) system. Additionally teachers who do not have a current license, may apply for the Emergency License. See: Update on DESE Emergency Licensure - February 12, 2021 for additional information.
Affinity Recruitment Advisories: The RCD team is excited to launch the development of Affinity Recruitment Advisories to increase recruitment in diverse populations including from HBCU’s and Latinx, Asian and Deaf & Hard of Hearing teachers. If you would like to join an advisory to support this work, we will be meeting monthly...please see flyer for more info.
Pipeline Programs
Accelerated Community to Teacher (ACTT): seeking a provisional license in Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary in 2022? RCD’s Teacher Pipeline Programs will soon open applications for the 2022 ACTT Cohort. ACTT is BPS’s community-based program and it is open to paraprofessionals, Bolling staff and career-changers who have a passion for teaching our students in our schools. This is a great, no-cost opportunity to be mentored by expert BPS teachers and receive MTEL support. In 2022, BE ACTT, our bilingual educators’ program will be launched. BE ACTT has been awarded a DESE grant to launch in July 2021. Our students’ need culturally and linguistically diverse teachers. Bachelor’s degree required; see flyer and apply now. Deadline for ACTT is May 10, 2021.
Teacher Cadet Program: Congratulations to our Teacher Cadets, Assistant Director of Pipeline Programs, Wensess Raphael, veteran math teacher, Quinn Soto, and our George B. Cox Equity in Urban Education Fellow, Jakai Nelson (Morehouse College)! The Young People's Project has received a Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation's Balance the Equation Grand Challenge grant to partner with BPS Teacher Cadet Program and Broward County - the first two districts in the nation to begin piloting the Math Literacy Workers (MLW) certification program for high school students. In the near future, certified MLWs will work with middle school students to prepare them for Algebra 1 courses. RCD's Pipeline Programs is proud to partner with the Young People's Project. Please share the attached flyer with your networks (see page 7).
Retention Updates
The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is currently accepting applications for the 2021-22 cohort of Ed Prep reviewers. The Ed Prep Formal Review process was designed to elevate educators’ diverse perspectives and make evaluations about preparation program effectiveness in partnership with PK-12 and higher education professionals. Ed Prep reviewers serve an integral role in evaluating the impact of educator preparation providers across the state. After careful selection and practice-based training, DESE relies on reviewers to analyze evidence of program effectiveness and support evidence-based decisions. All upcoming reviews will be conducted fully virtually. Reviewers will conduct a document review, observe virtual focus groups and interviews, and work in partnership with a team of education professionals in making judgements regarding program performance relative to Program Approval criteria. Please visit DESE’s website to learn more about the opportunity via FAQs and access the application and nomination form (https://www.doe.mass.edu/edprep/review/reviewers/) or reach out to EducatorPreparation@mass.gov with questions. Make sure to apply by the May 2nd deadline!
Human Potential Transformed: Social Justice and Equity in the Early Years
Wednesday, March 31, 3–6 pm and Thursday, April 1, 8:45 am–1:30 pm
Join BU Wheelock and the BU Center for the Ecology of Early Childhood Development (CEED) for an exploration of the impact of social justice and equity on young children’s early learning and healthy development. Researchers, advocates, policy makers, practitioners, alumni, students, community partners, and others interested in early education are welcome. Together, we will explore the impact of social justice and equity on young children’s learning and development in the Greater Boston area, Massachusetts, and beyond. Register here! A Zoom link will be sent to you upon registration
Our featured speakers include:
Dr. Brenda Cassellius, Superintendent, Boston Public Schools
Tanya Nixon-Silberg, Founder, Little Uprisings
Amy O'Leary, Director, Early Education for All, Strategies for Children
Michelle Wu, City Councilor At-Large, City of Boston
Seeking Representatives for the Kaleidoscope Community Council
The Kaleidoscope Collective for Learning, a pilot program out of DESE, is seeking applications from Massachusetts public school students, family members, educators, and interested community members to serve on its new Community Council. The Community Council will meet on four Wednesdays this spring starting on April 7 and will advise Kaleidoscope on its developing work around Deeper Learning by examining the tools, resources, and strategies being developed by the pilot. Kaleidoscope is specifically seeking to center the voices of applicants from historically marginalized communities. Please apply online, and email kaleidoscope@mass.gov with any questions.
NSF Noyce Master Teaching Fellowship Program
Boston College seeks to support secondary mathematics teachers in content, equity and leadership. The program is organized by Boston College faculty in Education and Mathematics, and in partnership with the Education Development Center.
This 5-year program offers teachers a chance to participate in a unique professional learning community to support development as a teacher and a leader, with explicit focus on content and equity pedagogy. Benefits include $13,500/year stipend and no-cost coursework at Boston College. The attached file contains information about the application process, a description of program benefits and a brief description of the program components. The website bc.edu/noyce has complete details. We are especially interested in working with Boston Public Schools secondary mathematics teachers, given the fruitful partnerships in the past and the wide reach of the district! NOTE: Teachers with initial licensures will be considered provided that they plan to obtain their professional license by the end of the program. Furthermore, this may be earned using graduate credit obtained through the no-cost one course/year provided by the program. Applications are due March 31st, 2021 and should be sent to Prof. Albert at albertli@bc.edu
Division of Human Capital
Performance Evaluations & Management Update
TeachPoint is getting a new name and will now be called Vector Evaluations+ and PD Tracking. Aside from a new logo and name, nothing else will change (functionalities, bookmarked pages, support pages, login processes, training, etc.). See the memo announcement here.
Paraprofessional Transfer Process
The district-wide Paraprofessional Transfer Process will run from Friday, March 26th - Friday, April 30th. During this period, eligible paraprofessionals will apply to vacant paraprofessional jobs for SY21-22. If your school has any vacancies included in this process, OHC will have already sent you an email last week to confirm. For more information, review this Transfer Process one-pager and this overview of the entire paraprofessional seniority staffing process.
The exact timeline is as follows:
Friday, March 26th - Vacancies are posted to TalentEd. If two or more eligible paraprofessionals apply to a posting, schools are required to choose one to hire.
Friday, April 9th - Vacancies close to applicants.
Monday, April 12th - OHC finishes removing all ineligible TalentEd applications, leaving only valid applications for school leaders to consider.
Friday, April 30th - School leaders must submit one applicant for hire (provided there are 2 or more eligible applicants applied).
Emergency Licensure Update
If a position was posted for your school because a provisional teacher was unlicensed, but the educator has since become licensed and you would like to rehire the educator, the position can be removed from TalentEd, and the educator can be returned to the position without having to reapply.
The license must be granted by May 1, 2021.
The agreement ends on May 15, 2021.
Please reach out to your HC Manager if you would like to retain a provisional teacher who has an emergency license.
Division of Finance
Spending Deadlines for Schools
Please review your FY21 budgets and enter any final budget transfers by next Friday, April 2nd, at the latest. The school spending deadline memo for FY21 can be found HERE.
Key dates:
Division of Student, Family, and Community Advancement
Before and After-School Programming Survey
BPS is working cross departmentally to make decisions regarding before and after school programming. To help make these decisions informed by data, we would like all School Leaders to complete this survey, sharing your before and after school program needs.
We understand your needs and responses may change, please answer with the information you currently have.