Words from Grace
I'll keep this short (ha-ha, April Fools Day!)
As you know, the Tynan represented BPS by hosting US Secretary Cardona for the launch of his "Help Is Here" listening tour. Here is a two-minute clip of the session featuring our fearless colleague Leslie Gant! The roundtable included her school team: custodian, nurse, food service manager, and teacher, Dr. Cassellius, Mayor Janey, and SC Chair Alexandra Davila-Oliver. The entire session is on YouTube here.
I also want to thank Leslie for sharing a presentation on Covid protocols with several of you who needed to review procedures with staff after a positive case(s). With increased testing, schools will experience and uptick in cases; the positive side is that's what the testing is for - the negative is the anxiety and making sure there is coverage. Keep following the protocols - even though the communication is slower than the grapevine, health services has been responsive. If you haven't had a case yet, you should review the protocol with your nurse and team just to be prepared - we all tend to put these things in the back of our brains until it's needed. Remind your nurses that it's crucial for them to be a leader and partner in this work.
Eisenhower Matrix Review
During our region meeting last week, we connected using this matrix - as you think about the work you are doing, try to stay in the upper two quadrants and away from the bottom! This is particularly important as you and your staff prepare for five day reopening. Be ready on Friday, April 16 so you can have a much needed break.
Important Dates
April 7 - Boston School Committee Remote Meeting @ 5p
April 19 - Patriot’s Day - No School
April 20 - 23 - Spring Recess - No School
May 31 - Memorial Day - No School
June 18 - Last Day of School
Division of Academics
Connect & Share Math Spotlight: April 7, 4:30-6:00PM
Join us for panel discussions on how to bring joy and deep understanding to hybrid math instruction in the hybrid learning classroom. Hear from your colleagues about what’s working in their own classrooms and schools. Connect with peers from across BPS, get new ideas, and earn PD hours as well.
FERPA Training for Central Office Staff
This spring ODA will provide mandatory FERPA training for Central Office staff. You will learn FERPA, State, and BPS regulations about Protecting Student Privacy and Education Records. If you have not attended a previous FERPA training in the fall, register for one of the spring sessions.
Spring 2021 FERPA Training for Central Office Employees - Registration form
Panorama Weekly Update - Office Hours Available!
ODA is relaunching Office Hours for Panorama Student Success, focusing on kindergarten grades (K1 & K2) and evaluating plan effectiveness. K1 & K2 grades are newly available in Panorama, and this session is especially designed for early childhood educators. Sessions on evaluating plan effectiveness are designed for all educators; now that there are 12,000 student plans in the platform, our focus is ensuring that the plans are impactful – and making adjustments when needed. Learn more and sign up here.
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.
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!
Latinx Educators’ Recruitment Event Looking for Latinx candidates for your dual language, foreign language, or ESL classrooms? Join us via Zoom on Tuesday, 4/13, 5:00-6:30pm. RSVP here. Here is a link to candidate RSVPs which will be updated continuously.
Signing Bonuses for Latinx (new to BPS) Teachers: 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.
Multilingual/ High Needs Educators’ Recruitment Event: In need of candidates who are multilingual or have Special Needs/ Moderate Disabilities/ SEI Endorsement/ Severe Disabilities licenses? Join us via Zoom on Tuesday, 4/27, 5:00-6:30pm. RSVP here. Here is a link to candidate RSVPs which will be updated continuously.
- 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.
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!
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.
Landed Down Payment Program
We are pleased to share information about our continued partnership with Landed (landed.com), a company that helps employees in education purchase homes by providing a down payment program and connecting employees to home buying resources. Landed's shared-equity down payment program invests alongside homebuyers to help them reach a 20% down payment. Landed’s funds (up to $120,000 per household) come in the form of an equity investment, meaning homebuyers share in a portion of the gain (or loss, if any) of the home’s value once the partnership is ended—typically by sale or refinance. The down payment program is one piece of holistic homebuying support that Landed offers, including in-depth homebuyer education, access to a vetted real estate network, and comprehensive reviews of property reports to help homebuyers make informed home buying decisions. Landed also offers an experienced home buying team to help navigate the homebuying process, from financing to search to close. Landed’s down payment program is open to all BPS employees who work a minimum of 20 hours per week. Participants do not need to be first-time homebuyers and there are no income or asset limits needed to qualify. Employees interested in purchasing a home or learning more about the homebuying process are encouraged to attend one of the upcoming virtual information sessions hosted by Landed:
Tuesday, April 13, 2021 | 5:30pm ET→ RSVP for the info session here
Wednesday, April 14, 2021 | 12:30pm ET → RSVP for the info session here
BPS employees who are unable to attend an info session can learn more and schedule a 1:1 consultation with Landed here.
Northeastern’s MacFarland Fellows Scholarships Becoming an elementary or secondary school teacher requires passion, energy, and drive to positively impact Boston schools. We see those qualities in teachers across the Boston Public School system, especially as educators step up to the challenges of today’s ever-changing educational landscape. Dedicated educators are invaluable, and Northeastern wants to help you achieve your educational goals. If you want to earn your initial teaching license—and are committed to teaching in urban areas—you may be eligible for Northeastern’s MacFarland Fellows Scholarship and receive up to $20,000 to help you earn your graduate degree and endorsement for a Massachusetts' Initial Teaching license. For more information, click here.
Division of Student, Family, and Community Advancement
The BPS Office of English Learners is engaging in a series of community dialogues as we work to reimagine multilingual learning (SEI, ESL, Dual Language, SLIFE) for English Learners in BPS. You are welcomed to join our conversation by registering here.
If you are not able to attend a meeting, please use this survey to give us your input on what kind of changes you would like to see. For more information on the work please read our charter for this work.
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