Commissioner's Update
June 5, 2007

Dear Superintendents, and Leaders of Charter Schools and Collaboratives:

In this Update I have two announcements and three items for your review.

Spaces Still Available for the 2007 Summer Professional Development Institutes

Seats are still available for many of the 31 graduate-level professional development institutes being offered this summer by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. These institutes are available across the state at no cost to educators. Participants are eligible for more than 60 PDPs, and graduate credits are offered for an additional cost. To register, please review the brochure online at: http://www.doe.mass.edu/frameworks/cinstitute/.

Global Education and International Studies Survey

The Board of Education's Global Education Advisory Council (GEAC) has created an online survey of global education and international studies for the Commonwealth's schools. The survey is comprised of 22 total questions: http://www.zoomerang.com/survey.zgi?p=WEB226F3RGUSEN.

Please have your school principals complete this survey by June 30, 2007. Results will be compiled by GEAC and will be made public through a future Commissioner's Update.

Items Posted at www.doe.mass.edu:

1. NCLB/Highly Qualified Teacher Requirements Update
2. Voluntary Algebra II Test: General Information and Field Testing Recruitment
3. Annual Technology Plan Data Collection Tech Plan Implementation Report Memo

Sincerely,

David P. Driscoll
Commissioner of Education