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The Department has moved to 135 Santilli Highway in Everett. The Department's office and Licensure Welcome Center are open. The new location has free parking and is a short walk from the Wellington station on the MBTA's Orange Line.
Student and Family Support (SFS)

Educational Stability Office Hours and Training Resources


Office Hours

This forum is hosted by the Educational Stability Team for homeless liaisons, foster care points of contact, and DCF, district, provider staff to ask questions, discuss current issues and share best practices for supporting highly mobile students and their access to a public education. Offices Hours are encouraged. Registration Is Now Required to Receive Log-in.

Most office hour sessions will include a one-hour informational/best practices series webinar and a half hour for follow-up Q&A. Please see table below for training topics and registration.

TopicDate
(third Wednesday of every month unless specified)
TimeRegistration Link for Log-in
Welcome Back and Intro to Office HoursSeptember 19, 202310:00 to 11:30 amRegistration
Foster Care OverviewNovember 15, 2023
Best Practices Series: TransportationDecember 20, 2023
Family EngagementJanuary 17, 2024
Connections to Resources in CommunitiesFebruary 14, 2024
Best Practices for Best Interest Determinations (BIDs)March 20, 2024
Removing Barriers for Families — Promoting School AttendanceApril 10, 2024
Special Education Updates (LEA Assignments, new IEP form)May 15, 2024

Training Resources

Educational Stability Training Modules

Developed in-house by the Team these modules are each 30 to 60 minutes long, topic focused and Massachusetts specific. Feel free to use them for your own reference or as part of staff training. The Team will be adding modules on an ongoing basis to cover the Nuts and Bolts as well as Hot Topics. We hope you find these helpful. If you have any questions, join us for Office Hours (see above) or contact us at achievement@mass.gov .

Orientations to Educational Stability

These full-day in-person training sessions go over the nuts and bolts of ensuring access to a public-school education for students who are homeless, in foster care, or in migratory or military connected families. Federal and state educational rights, student needs and best practices for providing support will be covered. Orientations are for homeless education liaisons, foster care points of contact, and district staff and administrators who support our highly mobile students. State and local service providers and DCF social workers and staff are all welcome.

Dates and locations:

  • October 18, 2023, Springfield, SPS Professional Development Ctr.
  • October 23, 2023, New Bedford, Fort Tabor
  • October 31, 2023, Malden, DESE Conference Room

All dates/locations follow the same agenda and run from 9:00am to 3:00pm The agenda includes a break for lunch-on-your-own. Register: Educational Stability Orientation Sessions 2023-24

Additional DESE Resources and Events that Support Educational Stability

National and Other Resources

Last Updated: February 7, 2024

 
Contact Us

Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
135 Santilli Highway, Everett, MA 02149

Voice: (781) 338-3000
TTY: (800) 439-2370

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Disclaimer: A reference in this website to any specific commercial products, processes, or services, or the use of any trade, firm, or corporation name is for the information and convenience of the public and does not constitute endorsement or recommendation by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.