New Solutions and UpdatesEvery Student Succeeds Act - SlidesNAFIS hosted staff from the National School Boards Association for a new webinar on implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) on Thursday, September 15.
Several webinar participants asked if the slides from the presentation would be available, and NAFIS has provided the slides at this link. FISEF - Good Idea Grants OpenBryan Jernigan announces the opening of FISEF grants through the end of December 2016. FISEF Good Idea Grants are available for teacher projects in federally impacted school districts in amounts up to $3,000 each. Bryan will explain the grants at the NAFIS fall conference. Must be a member of NAFIS to participate.
School Board Nominations to NAFIS Board of Directors - NAFIS Fall ConferenceAfter the First General Session Sunday, September 25 at 4:15 pm, school board members will meet to nominate their candidate to the NAFIS Board of Directors. To vote on the NAFIS School Board position nomination, school district NAFIS dues must be paid or an active purchase order must be on file with NAFIS. Prepare before the conference. Who from Arizona is willing to be nominated to the NAFIS Board?
Flagstaff FISEF Workshop Beginning to Fill
The Federally Impacted Schools Educational Foundation (FISEF) will hold a two-day workshop in Flagstaff on October 27-28, at the Northern Arizona Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology at 2225 N. Gemini Drive, in Flagstaff.
It will cover recent changes to the Impact Aid law on Day One and on Day Two, instructor John Forkenbrock will help attendees estimate their school districts' Impact Aid payment for the coming year. "We cap the meeting at just 20 participants, and spots are already beginning to fill," said FISEF Activities Director Bryan Jernigan, "We feel they will go quickly, so register sooner rather than later to secure your spot in the workshop." The meeting is not just for Arizona participants, so if it's a convenient location for you, and you're from a nearby state, it may be worth registering for the event. To register, use this link. Find your Members of CongressVisit the NAFIS website (www.nafisdc.org) and click the "Contact Congress" button on the homepage. Find your Members of Congress (one member of the House of Representatives and two Senators) by typing in your zip code int the "Find Officials" tab. Each Member profile contains a wealth of information including a bio, contact information, office locations, committee assignments, etc.
Trump “Penny Plan” Would Mean Large Cut in Non-Defense Spending - NDDGood Morning NDD United,
Happy Friday! Yesterday, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities released a two-page analysis of Trump’s plan to pay for his tax cuts, in part, by cutting overall nondefense discretionary spending by 1 percent. This proposal would produce a substantial cumulative cut of 29% (by the tenth year) below current levels (adjusted for inflation) for NDD spending. Below is a link to the analysis. REPORT: Trump “Penny Plan” Would Mean Large Cut in Non-Defense Spending - http://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-budget/trump-penny-plan-would-mean-large-cut-in-non-defense-spending (also attached) Please visit our website and blog at www.dc-crd.com House Passes Bill to Strengthen Career and Technical EducationRepublican and Democratic members of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce praised House passage of H.R. 5587, the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act. Introduced by Reps. Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA) and Katherine Clark (D-MA), the legislation reauthorizes and reforms the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act to help more Americans enter the workforce with the skills they need to compete for high-skilled, in-demand jobs. The members also called on their colleagues in the Senate to take up this bipartisan legislation.
Read more. Bill Advances to Improve Juvenile Justice, Support Youth OpportunityThe committee approved H.R. 5963, the Supporting Youth Opportunity and Preventing Delinquency Act. Introduced by Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-FL) and Ranking Member Bobby Scott (D-VA), the bipartisan legislation reauthorizes and reforms the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA) to help state and local leaders better serve at-risk youth and juvenile offenders. The bill passed unanimously by voice vote.
Read more. |
News and InformationFrom the Executive DirectorFrom the Executive Director
Thanks to Holbrook Unified, Coolidge Unified, Page Unified, and Sanders Unified for their paid Membership Dues this week. If you have not paid or cannot find your invoice, please contact me at lwallen@azsiaa.org. Membership invoices were mailed June 7, 2016. Notices were emailed to the primary contact in the school district. Thank you for supporting the Association. As reported in the last newsletter, ASIAA is seeking candidates to the Board of Directors. At the Arizona Small and Rural Schools Conference this September 15-17, Ms. Lynette Michalski, Superintendent of Window Rock Unified School District, was elected to the office of President-elect. Superintendent Michalski will serve until the next General Assembly scheduled for December 2017. On behalf of the Board of Directors and the membership, I welcome Superintendent Michalski to ASIAA. The Arizona Small and Rural Schools Conference was a huge success! The Arizona Impact Aid Association co-sponsored the conference this year. Approximately 200 people and over 60 exhibitors attended the conference and participated in two days of supporting, defending, and voicing the needs of rural Arizona schools and educators. Attending the conference on behalf of ASIAA was Dr. Robbie Koerperich, President and Superintendent Holbrook Unified and Mr. Jacob Boyle, Treasurer of ASIAA. Member districts attending was Doug Price, Superintendent Sacaton Elementary Schools, Lynette Michalski, Superintendent Window Rock Unified, Dr. Rea Goklish, Superintendent Whiteriver Unified and Mr. Kim Pearce Superintendent, Red Mesa Unified. Thank you for supporting this ASRSA and ASIAA! The theme “Solving the Puzzle Together” was best exemplified by the presentation of Shaun Martin, the luncheon keynote speaker. Shaun is the Athletic Director at Chile Unified School District. Shaun graduated from Northern Arizona University in 2004 and spent 9 years teaching at Chinle High School and 8 years coaching Cross-Country and Track and Field. During that time Shaun’s students had 12 state Team Titles in Cross-County, 19 individual State Champions and 49 Student Athletes who received scholarships to attend college. Shaun was the 2012 Arizona Rural Teacher of the Year and the 2013 National Rural Teacher of the Year. Shaun used the theme “Solving the Puzzle Together” and his experience as the 2006 cross country coach at Chinle High School to solve the puzzle. He spoke about his first year as coach and the young ladies who became Arizona state champions that year. He pulled the puzzle together by summarizing the successes of each of those students and their varied backgrounds. All his students as state champions, achieved college degrees and success in their work. Solving the puzzle together is about building relationships, supporting each other, believing in a goal that challenges to the next level. Great job Shaun! Friday evening was the awards banquet. The Magnolia award was passed on and the Hall of Fame inductee was announced. The Grand Canyon University County Rural Teachers of the Year were honored and the Northern Arizona Rural Teacher of the Year was revealed. Faith Caffey, Navajo County, Holbrook High School was one of the eleven County Teachers of the Year recognized. Congratulations Ms. Caffey! Ms. Lelah Schober, Coconino County, Williams Elementary Middle School, Williams Unified School District was named as the Northern Arizona Rural Teacher of the Year. Ms. Schober will continue to the national competition. Congratulations Ms. Schober! Recognition of the eleven County teachers of the year was a tribute to all educators in the state of Arizona. Wes Brownfield did an excellent job reading a personal note from each teacher’s principal. This made me proud to be an educator in the state of Arizona. Mark your calendar! ASIAA as a co-sponsor will be more involved in the September 2017 Arizona Rural Schools Association/Arizona State Impact Aid Association conference. I challenge member districts to send teachers and administrators to represent their districts. I challenge member districts to submit for the breakout sessions to showcase the innovative and successful programs happening in Impact Aid districts. Let’s pledge to send 60 individuals to attend, present, and be a teacher of the year candidate from each county with federally connected students. Yes, 60 individuals. Support ASIAA! Now for Washington, DC. I have the following scheduled for Tuesday, September 27: Congressman Gallego 11:00 am 1218 Longworth Congressman Franks 12:00 pm 2435 Rayburn Congressman Grijalva 12:00 pm 1511 Longworth Congressman Schweikert 1:30 pm 409 Cannon Congresswoman Kirkpatrick 2:00 pm 201 Cannon Congressman Gosar 2:00 pm 504 Cannon Senator Flake 3:30 pm 368 Russell Waiting for a response: Congresswoman McSally 1029 Longworth Congressman Salmon 2349 Rayburn Senator McCain 241 Russell Monday, September 26, 2016 - Arizona State Meeting 4:45 - 5:30 pm See you in Washington! Larry E. Wallen | Executive Director Arizona State Impact Aid Association AZMerit Scores Show Progress amid some gaps in Flagstaff Charter and Public Schools. AZDaily SunThe second year of AzMERIT results shows a persistent and yawning gap between the top and bottom scores at schools in the Flagstaff Unified School District and local charter schools. Students in third grade through high school took the test in April and May of the 2015-2016 school year.
Elementary schoolIn the elementary grades, four of the five charter schools that include elementary grades consistently passed the test at a higher rate than most FUSD schools, and four FUSD schools scored lowest of all area schools…. Middle schoolAt Mount Elden and Sinagua, sixth and seventh graders improved on both tests. Eighth-grade scores decreased from last year’s except for Sinagua’s English test scores, which had a one percent increase. Similar trends occurred with the eighth-grade passing scores at Pine Forest, Flagstaff Junior Academy and Flagstaff Arts and Leadership Academy going down from last year. However, Northland Preparatory Academy’s English scores saw an increase. High schoolMost of the Flagstaff charters increased their scores for the AzMERIT English test in all grades. The passing rate of ninth and 11th graders at Basis decreased, as well as FALA’s 11th-grade English scores. NPA’s passing rate for high school students increased more compared to the other charters. Scores for both the 11th and 10th-grade tests, as well as ninth-grade English were higher than last year. On the other end of the scale, Basis scores fell for ninth and 11th-grade English, and 10th-grade geometry. Read more. Arizona Department of Education Releases Final 2015-2016 AzMERIT Results(Phoenix, Ariz., Sept. 15, 2016) – The Arizona Department of Education today released final combined performance results from the Fall 2015 and Spring 2016 administrations of the AzMERIT statewide assessment and the Multi-State Alternate Assessment (MSAA) alternate statewide assessment. An Excel file containing the results and additional details about the assessments have been posted at www.azed.gov/research-evaluation/assessment-results/.
The results include the total percentage of Arizona public school students who passed the assessments and the percentage at each performance level. In addition to the statewide results, proficiency rates are available for schools, districts/charter holders and counties. Breakdowns by grade level, subgroup (e.g., students with disabilities, English language learners, economically disadvantaged students) and ethnicity are also provided. Arizona public school students in third grade through high school take AzMERIT. Students in grades 3 through 8 take an assessment in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics at their grade level. Students taking high school level English and math take End-of-Course assessments that test their proficiency in those subjects. MSAA is Arizona’s alternate statewide achievement test for eligible students with significant cognitive disabilities. The MSAA alternate assessment is based on alternate achievement standards (AA-AAS) for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities. Eligible Arizona public school students take the MSAA Alternate Assessments for ELA and Mathematics in Grades 3 through 8 and Grade 11. For more information on AzMERIT, please visit www.azed.gov/azmerit. For additional details about MSAA, visit www.azed.gov/assessment/ncsc/. |
Post to Your Calendar
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NAFIS Fall Conference
FISEF Impact Aid Application Workshop 2016 ASBA/AASBO/ASA Legislative Workshop 2016 New Board Member Orientation |
September 25-27, 2016 Washington, DC
October 27-28, 2016, Flagstaff, Az November 18, 2016 December 14, 2016 |