OPERATIONS INFO
Better Beginnings
Awards
If you know of an elementary school teacher (K-6) who
you think deserves to be recognized, you can nominate him or her for the Better Beginnings Award. The award is sponsored by the Board of Regents and
it celebrates the life and career of Helen Bach Moss, a local NYS educator who passed away in 1988. Mrs. Moss touched the lives of many people, and her career was distinguished by a
genuine respect for and love of children. Nominees must be teachers
currently teaching at the elementary level (N-6) and appropriately credentialed in New York State. Also they need to be skilled at engaging young
minds and developing nurturing relationships with elementary school students. Nominations are due June 2,
2008. For more information, please visit the Better Beginnings Awards' Web
site.
Cohort of the Emerging Leader Fellowship
2008
The Center is thrilled to welcome ten new fellows
to the second Cohort of the Emerging Leader Fellowship. The application process this year was extremely competitive - 25 applications were submitted
for 10 spots. Each candidate was subject to an intensive round of interviews, including video analysis, classroom observations, and case studies,
before they were ultimately selected. Cohort II will begin in July, 2008, with a General
Leadership Seminar led by Nancy Euske and continue throughout the year learning more specific leadership skills from expert practitioners in the
charter world. Congratulations to Explore, Renaissance, Harbor, Hyde, Girls Prep, Ross, Community Partnership, Harlem Day, and Harlem Link; all of
whom have a fellow beginning with us this summer. We are very happy with the progress Cohort I has made and are confident they will have a very
successful year.
Special Education Training
Session
May 20, 2008
9:00 am – 12:00
p.m.
Location: Charter Center
Contact Information: Arthur Sadoff
The regularly scheduled special education training
session with Interactive Therapy Group will take place on May 10. The topic for this
training session is “Conflict Resolution/Working with Parents.” Immediately following the discussion (approx.10:30a.m.)
participants will meet in their respective groups to do the following:
Brooklyn Co-op Meeting - Officers will be elected and a calendar will be set to advance the co-op forward through the
summer.
Manhattan Co-op Meeting - Officers will be elected and a calendar will be set to advance the co-op forward through the
summer.
Bronx Meeting - Candidates will be nominated to write the bylaws for the Bronx Co-op.
These meetings are for the CSE representatives
and those schools who have committed to join the co-op in their respective boroughs. Schools who have not signed up may still attend if they have
verbally committed to the project.
To Join or Not to Join: Understanding the NYC
Teachers’ Retirement System and Other Retirement/Retention Tools
May 21, 2008
4:00pm – 6:00pm
Location: Charter
Center
Deadline: May 19, 2008
Contact Information, RSVP to: Caryl Cohen
Teacher recruitment and retention are two of the biggest
challenges for charter schools. One economic incentive for keeping and attracting teachers is a retirement plan. This session will provide the nuts
and bolts (not to mention the dollars involved) of the NYC Teachers Retirement System (TRS). In addition to explaining the TRS, the session will also
explore the feasibility of other pension options, including a defined contribution pooled pension plan. To provide schools with expert overview and
advice on these issues the panel will include:
-
Dorothea Dowling, Project Manager of Stakeholder Relations for the NYC
TRS.
-
A representative of the Beginning with Children Foundation (Beginning with
Children Charter School has been part of they system since its inception)
-
A representative of KIPP NYC (which has schools that are both long term and new
members)
-
Ted Gillman, board member of Explore Charter School
This session will be particularly useful to school leaders and
school operations directors (as well as board members) who are struggling with trying to determine the appropriate retirement package their school
should offer and who want to understand the costs and administrative burdens that these options provide.
Roles & Responsibilities of an Effective Board
Chair
May 21, 2008
6:00 p.m. –
8:00p.m.
Location: Charter
Center
Deadline: May 20, 2008 at 4:00
pm
Contact Information, RSVP to:
Aretha Miller, 212-437-8307.
The Center, in partnership with Volunteer Consulting Group,
will host a training Wednesday, May 21st on the roles and responsibilities of an effective board chair. The training will address issues such as
developing the agenda & preparing for the board meeting; managing & facilitating the meeting; overseeing the budget; etc. The training is open to all
trustees and school leaders.
NYSESLAT Turnkey Training
May 22, 2008
9:00a.m. – 1:00p.m.
Location: Charter
Center
Deadline: May 20, 2008 at 4:00
pm
Contact Information, RSVP to:
Aretha Miller, 212-437-8307.
The Center will be hosting a NYSESLAT Turnkey Training on the
scoring of the writing portion of test on Thursday, May 22nd for all schools that administered the tests to its
students. The training for high school staff will go from 9:00 am-12 noon while the elementary and middle school training will be combined and go
from 9:00 am-1:00 pm.
Beyond Standardized Testing: Assessment Best
Practices Conference
May 30, 2008
9:00am – 4:00pm
Location: Charter
Center
Deadline: May 23, 2008
Contact Information, RSVP to: Jodie Newbery, 212-437-8360.
Creating a culture of data-driven assessment is essential to accelerating student performance. Once the school community has bought in, it
is vital to lay a solid foundation of curriculum and instruction on which to base assessments. Assessment takes place every day in many ways, and is
far broader than the multiple choice and open-response sections of the New York State exams.
Keynote Speaker: Allison Keil, Founder and
Co-Director of Community Roots
Allison will speak about her experiences integrating
multiple forms of assessment that drive instruction throughout the curriculum.
Guest Speaker: Marilyn Calo, Principal of Family
Life Academy
Learn how Marilyn successfully established a culture of
data in her school community.
Charter School Presentations, Assessment
Cohort
Find out how schools in the Center’s Assessment
Cohort are benchmarking their curriculum, creating interim assessments and disaggregating sub-group data.
This session will be particularly useful to
instructional leaders, assessment deans and curriculum developers who are working on building and refining their interim assessment
systems.
Making the transition from a planning board to a
governing board
June 18, 2008
6:00 p.m. –
8:00p.m.
Location: Charter
Center
Deadline: June 17, 2008 at 4:00
pm
Contact Information, RSVP to:
Aretha Miller, 212-437-8307.
The Center, in partnership with Volunteer Consulting Group,
will host a training Wednesday, June 18th on how to make the transition from a planning board to a governing board. Participants will learn the
fundamental differences between a planning board and governing board; steps they should make to start and support the transition from being a planning
board to governing board. Trustees and leaders of planning teams and start ups are all invited to attend this workshop.
