Commissioner's Weekly Update 2 2 18 - New Commissioner Appointed, Upcoming Convening on Supportive Environments, VISTA Survey Open

A message from the
Massachusetts Department of
Elementary and Secondary Education

February 2, 2018

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News from Acting Commissioner Jeff Wulfson and the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

New Commissioner Appointed:

The state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted on January 29, 2018 to recommend Lawrence Superintendent/Receiver Jeffrey C. Riley for the position of commissioner, and Education Secretary James Peyser has accepted that recommendation and appointed Mr. Riley. (Video of the January 29 Board meeting and of the January 26 interviews with the three commissioner finalists is available at https://livestream.com/accounts/22459134.) Mr. Riley's start date is still to be determined.

"I am honored to be recommended for this position," Mr. Riley said. "Massachusetts is a national leader in education, and I look forward to narrowing achievement gaps within the state and ensuring that all of our students have the support and opportunities they need to be successful."

Mr. Riley has overseen the operation and improvement of 35 schools serving more than 14,000 students as the Lawrence Public Schools superintendent/receiver since 2012. Prior to that, he worked for Boston Public Schools as academic superintendent/chief innovation officer. Mr. Riley has worked in urban and suburban educational systems as a teacher in Baltimore, Md., administrator at High Tech Academy @ Madison Park Technical Vocational High School in Boston and principal of Tyngsboro Middle School and Boston's Edwards Middle School.

In a message to ESE staff on January 30, Acting Commissioner Wulfson said, "We all know Jeff and his record of accomplishment, both in Lawrence and in Boston… Improving the schools that serve our most disadvantaged students is the most pressing challenge in K-12 education today. Jeff knows, perhaps better than anyone, what a state agency can (and cannot) do to help in that effort. We look forward to his leadership."

Picture of the Week:

Lawrence Superintendent/Receiver Jeffrey C. Riley has been appointed the next commissioner of elementary and secondary education. In this 2012 photo, he reads to students at Lawrence's Hennessey School on Read Across America Day. (Photo courtesy of Lawrence Public Schools)

Save the Date - Statewide Convening on Safe and Supportive Learning Environments:

The Department, in collaboration with the Department of Early Education and Care, the Collaborative for Educational Services, and Massachusetts Advocates for Children's Trauma and Learning Policy Initiative, will host a gathering on March 23 in Worcester on creating safe and supportive learning environments in schools, districts, and community-based programs in order to be equitable and inclusive of all students. The conference will help participants understand the Safe and Supportive Schools Framework as set out in state law and will focus on aligning important aspects of social emotional learning, trauma sensitivity, and positive behavioral approaches. Participants will have the opportunity to learn with and from grade-span colleagues. The planning team is currently seeking breakout session leaders related to the aforementioned topics; please email stacy.cabral@doe.mass.edu for more information. The registration link will be available the week of February 12.

VISTA Survey Window is Open:

The survey window for ESE's 2018 statewide Views of Instruction, State Standards, Teaching, and Assessment (VISTA) surveys is open. Superintendents and principals should have received an individual link from Westat to their surveys. Principals who have not received a survey or who are having difficulty accessing their surveys are asked to contact the VISTA Study Help Desk at MAVISTA@westat.com. Anyone with specific questions about the survey can email Shelagh Peoples, ESE's VISTA coordinator, at by email.

Student Government Day Will Be Friday, April 6:

Over 140 schools have registered for Student Government Day, but to accommodate schools that did not get an opportunity to register, registration has been extended to Friday, February 16. Please keep in mind that students cannot participate in Student Government Day unless they are supervised by an adult who remains onsite during the event.

A speech competition will be conducted to select this year’s student governor, who will give his or her speech on April 6. Also, the Student Government Day team has selected the bills for the student debate that will be held during the simulated joint committee hearing and executive session. New this year: The Student Government Day coordinator will host several 30-minute informational webinars in February and March to provide an overview of the day and answer questions. While these webinars are designed for advisors and chaperones who are new to this event, returning advisors and chaperones are welcome to participate as well. Information about the speech competition, the bills, and the webinars is posted on the Student Government Day website. Please email any questions to studentgovday@doe.mass.edu.

School Choice Reminder:

Each year, ESE asks school districts whether they plan to accept new school choice students during the upcoming school year. For the 2018-19 school year, ESE is using a survey to collect this information. The results will be published on ESE's school choice website to guide interested families.

By law, districts are required to accept school choice students unless the school committee votes NOT to participate prior to June 1 (G.L. c. 76, s. 12B). Districts that participate in school choice are not required to hold a vote, though they may ask their school committees to vote to affirm this decision and/or to specify which grades and how many openings are available, although that information is not required and is not binding. Districts should complete the survey whether their school committees vote or not.

Please complete the survey by June 1, 2018. It should only take a few minutes to complete. Contact Rob O'Donnell if you have any questions at rodonnell@doe.mass.edu or 781-338-6512.

For your info:

Early college update: The Boards of Higher Education and Elementary and Secondary Education have given preliminary designation status to 21 early college programs and awarded more than $80,000 I grants to public colleges, universities, and high schools that are developing early college programs, the Baker-Polito Administration announced recently.
Online course for early childhood educators: Early childhood educators are encouraged to consider registering for the facilitated, online version of the introductory course on the Massachusetts Standards for Preschool and Kindergarten Social and Emotional Learning and Approaches to Play and Learning. Dotti McDevitt, an ESE-approved online course facilitator, will offer the five week course from February 12-March 16. The Department of Early Education and Care and ESE developed the course collaboratively. The fee is $100, and participants earn either 10 professional development points or one continuing education unit, and the course is limited to 20 participants. Contact course facilitator Dotti McDevitt with questions or to register. Please register no later than February 9.

Students honored at Bruins game: The Bruins hosted a "Hockey is for Everyone" night on February 1, and a few members of the speakers bureau from the state's Safe Schools Program for LGBTQ Students were honored as part of the program. Nicole Talbot, a transgender ninth grader, sang the national anthem, and Luke Dragsbaek, a transgender sixth grader who plays hockey, and his mother, Ann Dragsbaek, received the Walmart Community Playmaker award. (More information is available at https://www.nhl.com/bruins/news/bruins-to-host-hockey-is-for-everyone-night-on-february-1/c-295505664?tid=289598644.) Congratulations to all!

Copyright © 2018 Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, All rights reserved.

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