Education in the First State
September 27, 2017
Delaware R eport Card seeks feedback to help families access more meaningful education data  

   
 
The Delaware Department of Education (DDOE) is hosting Community Conversations in October to gain feedback on the elements, priorities, and common terminology it plans to include on its upcoming Report Card website. Delaware's Report Card will refine how DDOE communicates with families and the community its progress, performance, and programs in Delaware education, and replaces the state's current School Profiles site for accessing education data. 
 
Community Conversations will be held: 
  • Monday, October 9, 2017 - 6pm to 8pm
  • Thursday, October 12, 2017 - 6pm to 8pm
  • Wednesday, October 18, 2017 - 6pm to 8pm
  • Monday, October 23, 2017 - 6pm to 8pm
  • Tuesday, October 24, 2017 - 6pm to 8pm
 

Public invited to Community Conversations to review draft anti-discrimination regulation and model policy

 
Community members provide feedback on Delaware's draft anti-discrimination regulation
and model policy for schools at the September 26 Community Conversations event in Wilmington.
 
In July Governor John Carney sent a memorandum to Education Secretary Susan Bunting asking the Delaware Department of Education (DDOE) to help oversee the creation of a regulation and model policy for districts and charters to follow as they address potential discrimination in Delaware schools. 
 
To incorporate as many views as possible in the design of the regulation and policy, the DDOE first convened a development team comprised of  parents, students, local board members, superintendents, charter school leaders, school administrators and advocates. This development team drafted the first iteration of Delaware's anti-discrimination regulation and model policy.
 
Upcoming Community Conversations will be held at:
  • Thursday, September 28, 2017 - 6:30pm - 8pm
  • Tuesday, October 3, 2017 - 6:30pm - 8pm
  • Thursday, October 5, 2017 - 6:30pm - 8pm
 
Educator Spotlight: Kathy Moore honored for impact on early learning


Early educator Kathy Moore accepts a Governor's Tribute from Secretary Bunting and Delaware Early Childhood Council Chair Madeleine Bayard in honor of her retirement. 
 
For over twenty years, Kathy Moore has been a leader of change for early childhood in Delaware. As the administrator of the United Cerebral Palsy of Delaware Parents and Children Together at Tech (PACTT) child care center at Sussex Tech High School, Moore has worked closely with children and families to make certain all students receive the high-quality early education they deserve. As she now prepares to retire, Moore leaves behind an early learning culture in Delaware that she worked so tirelessly to help create.
 
Moore's dedication and passion for early childhood started more than 40 years ago in her hometown of Mohnton, PA. A director for the Wyomissing Valley Preschool, Delaware was fortunate to gain Moore in 1994. Since then, Moore's work at PACTT has shaped the way early childhood centers are currently run in Delaware. Moore was instrumental in the creation of the Delaware Stars for Early Success (Stars) program and partnering with the Delaware Department of Education in the Early Head Start Child Care partnership grants. 
           
Middle school teacher encourages student to strive for success

 
Middle school teacher Michael Williams helps Marcos prepare
for the Terp Young Scholars summer enrichment program.

Marcos first caught the attention of his Georgetown Middle School teacher Michael Williams as a sixth grader.
"He was continuously in trouble. He was a student with a lot of problems," said Williams, who began mentoring him through Connecting Generations when he was a seventh grader. "I saw him grow up in the next year."
Marcos' teachers knew he had potential but saw he wasn't applying himself. He earned Cs and Bs and had disciplinary problems. A seventh grade teacher called Williams one day asking for help, saying Marcos didn't want to do his work.
Williams entered the classroom and asked Marcos to come out and talk to him. Marcos resisted, so Williams scribbled a note in his composition book: "Don't give up on yourself. Keep going. I believe in you."
From that day on, his behavior changed, Williams said.  
Delaware Teacher of the Year: A three-act play
 

2017 Delaware Teacher of the Year Wendy Turner reflects
on the past 12 months and how this award changed her.
 
Editor's Note: The following was written by the Delaware's 2017 Teacher of the Year Wendy Turner. The 2018 Teacher of the Year will be announced at the Teacher of the Year Banquet on Tuesday, October 17, 2017 at Dover Downs.
 
As I reflect on my extraordinary experience as the 2017 Delaware Teacher of the Year, a three act play comes to mind.

Act One

The stage is set; the main character cast. Flashback to Dover Downs on October 25, 2016: I am named the Teacher of the Year in front of 500 distinguished guests. This extraordinary honor left me filled with gratitude, thrilled and excited beyond belief. To be chosen to represent our incredible profession from a group of the most passionate and dynamic teachers from around the state was like no feeling I have ever experienced. As I prepared to take the stage and make the challenging transition from classroom teacher and local leader to spokesperson and role model with a much larger platform, I immediately looked to others around me for guidance and support. My family, The Department of Education and friends and colleagues from the Brandywine School District were supporting characters at my side, guiding me in every way imaginable.

Other Good News in Delaware's Public Schools