Leading with Faith

8/30/24 Sign “Written Affirmation” forms for each District after Consultation

8/30/24 PDF/Copy of each Signed “Written Affirmation” form sent to C. Riso

8/30/24 Deadline to Certify End of Year (EOY) NYSED Testing Data

TBD NYSED Elementary School AIS Claims Due

Certify End of Year (EOY) Test and Graduation Data by 8/30/24: Schools are required to certify some of the information found in the reports listed here via the IDEx application on the NYSED Business Portal by 8/30/24; the reports that require certification are SIRS-301, 303, 308, 650, and 653. The IDEx is accessed via the NYSED Application Business Portal. Click here for assistance with this certification process or email datasupport@nysed.gov.

Mandated Child Abuse Reporter Training; Updated Training Required: I just wanted to give you a reminder that NYS Education Law §100.2(hh) requires our teachers, administrators, teacher aides, and bus drivers to comply with Section (8) of Chapter 363 of the Laws of 2018; they must complete two hours of coursework or training regarding the identification and reporting of child abuse and maltreatment and/or the new yearly “Child Abuse in an Educational Setting Training”. The training requirements, separated by personnel categories, can be found at Child Abuse Prevention Training | New York State Education Department (nysed.gov). We recommend that your staff do this training via the BOCES or other approved providers and then save the receipts for NPSE (Non Public Safety Equipment) reimbursement.

You have two options for the course which must be completed each year: “Child Abuse in an Educational Setting Training”: training provided by Erie 1 BOCES or training provided by the Capital Region BOCES.

1. Erie 1 BOCES online training - Erie 1 BOCES has created a 30-minute pre-recorded PowerPoint training that meets the requirements of Education Law Article 23-B and the accompanying regulations requiring “ongoing training” of various school employees on child abuse occurring in an educational setting. Once purchased, the training can be replayed as many times as you need and can even be used in future years to meet the yearly “Child Abuse in an Education Setting Training” requirement. The cost of this training is a one-time fee of $200 per school and can be shown to a group or watched by individual staff members. If new topics are required by NYS law in future years, Attorney Dermott will update the presentation and then recommend you purchase the updated version for a nominal fee ($75?). Questions about this program can go to Amanda Dermott at adermott@e1b.org. If you are ready to purchase the training, contact Ashley Sweeney at 716-821-7115 or asweeney@e1b.org.

2. Capital Region BOCES Online Training - NYSED continues its partnership with Capital Region BOCES and PowerSchool to offer an online version of the new trainings that will fulfill the requirements associated with the amendments to the reports of child abuse in an educational setting adopted by the Board of Regents at their October 2019 Board of Regents meeting. To learn more about the online course offerings, including how to easily register, complete, and access your completion certificate, please visit the website here. Each individual staff member will pay for the online course (which I think is still $10) because the school cannot pay directly with the way it is currently set up; you would then reimburse each staff member for the cost of the course and retain all the documents (proof of attendance, payment receipts, canceled checks from the school for payment to each employee) to submit with your next NPSE reimbursement request and as proof that your staff met the training requirement - there may be an option for you to pay for your staff; reach out to them and ask.

If you have anyone who still needs to take the updated once-in-a-lifetime training regarding the identification and reporting of child abuse and maltreatment, you may want to instead have them take the free online course so you don’t have to pay another $10. All certified teachers and administrators would have had to complete this course prior to becoming certified to teach in NYS.

MST & AMTS Signature Page for 2024-25: Now that NYSED has created a new teacher attestation page that can be used for both the Math, Science, & Technology (MST) Grant and Art and Music Teacher Salary (AMTS) Grant, I recommend that you print out this page and have all teachers who might qualify for the grant this year sign it at the beginning of the year. This will make it easier to claim teachers might leave your employment prior to the end of the school year. You probably should have separate forms for MST and AMTS.

Leadership and Governance: Principal Academy

We are excited to announce the enhancement of our principal support structures through the development of a new Principal Academy, which will support our New Principal Coach Program and Informal Principal Mentor Program. These initiatives are designed to foster leadership growth and strengthen our vibrant Catholic schools. The mission of the Department of Catholic Schools is rooted in supporting our school leaders, and by working together, we can build an even stronger foundation for our Catholic educational community.

Through feedback from both new and veteran principals, a shared need emerged: the desire for dedicated time to network, collaborate, and dive deeper into key tasks such as NCEA reporting, formative assessment (STAR), NYS data analysis, and reinforcing our Catholic identity.

This year, one of our primary goals is to cultivate servant leadership while embracing change and fostering a visionary approach to Catholic education. Our focus is on developing the whole student—mind, body, and spirit. Traditionally, we have hosted five principal meetings each year to share important updates, review Diocesan initiatives, and come together in prayer and fellowship. This year, we are reimagining these meetings to include dedicated time for networking, a stronger emphasis on Catholic Identity, and professional development on key initiatives like micro schools, MTSS, and science curriculum alignment. At the request of our principals, we will also incorporate regional collaboration on the strategic planning process.

In addition to these exciting updates, we are redesigning our weekly virtual principal meetings to be more topic-driven, allowing for focused discussions on issues that matter most. We will provide a schedule of topics in advance and create space for principals to bring forward additional concerns and questions. To best support our busy principals and maximize their time in classrooms and hallways, we value your input on the most convenient time for these weekly virtual meetings.

Please take a moment to complete the survey by Friday, September 6, to help us better serve your needs.

Weekly Virtual Principal Meetings Survey

Below are the Google Form links for use with the Strategic Planning Guidebook handed out at the Principal’s Meeting on August 21. These must be completed by September 27th.

Catholic Identity

Academic Excellence

Student Enrichment

Marketing & Enrollment

Great Place to Work

Leadership & Governance

Financial Viability

Community Focus and Agility

Draft Your Roadmap

eSchool is now ready for the 2024-2025 school year. The following are the majority of errors that I find in level 0, so please make sure that:

1. All PK students are excluded from state reporting and state enrollment.

2. Any transfers that happen use code 170.

3. All students have their home district added with a date at least one day before registration in your school.

STAR is also ready for the 2024-2025 school year. It is syncing with your information in eSchool, so please make sure your rosters and teachers are updated in eSchool to be correct in STAR. Once your classes are set in eSchool they will transfer to STAR. Please have your STAR Champion check the classes and rosters and make sure the products for this year have been assigned to each class. They will want to also ensure that team teachers have been adjusted if necessary so everyone can see the data for students they pertain to.

Happy last week of August!!

I hope you’re all feeling on top of your school opening plans and your upcoming teacher meetings! Rest assured that your days will go smoothly because you’ve all been working and preparing so diligently!

We’re getting ready to launch our monthly New Principals’ Teams meetings (all are welcome!) toward the middle of September. Topics over the next 11 months will include:

September - Meet the ZOOM Group; Catch up/share issues for first weeks of school; STAR testing; Roadmap Work; Catholic Identity; NCEA Reminder (based upon Sept 13 enrollment)

October - School Environment; Discipline; Discipline Documentation; Code of Conduct; Policies and Procedures Resources (handbook and online); BEDS Reminder (based upon Oct 2 enrollment)

November - Classroom Observations and Follow-Up – Forms, Process, and Best Practices; Determining Substantial Equivalency Pathway

December - Preparing for Open House for New/Continued Enrollment; Enrollment Process; Retention and Recruitment

January - RTI and MTSS; Developing a Framework for Data Teams

February - Collaborating with School Boards; Preparing for Upcoming Evaluation

March - School Budget for 25-26; Begin Calendaring for the Year Ahead; Identifying Staffing Needs; Staff Scheduling

April - Self-Assessment: Preparing for Teacher Appreciation in May

May - Goal Setting for Upcoming Year; Testing Schedules; IESP Parent/School Requests due 6/1

June - Wrap Up; End of Year Celebrations; Graduation

July - MST Grant; Liturgical Seasons and Planning

…..and ANY other topics that are of interest to you!

Please take a moment to email me to tell me your preference for a Teams meeting day and time(before school/after school), and I’ll do my best to accommodate to the majority.

I’ll also be initiating my site visits toward the end of September, to be of service to you in any way that I can. In the meantime, don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or could use a special pat on the back for all you’ve already done and all you’ll be accomplishing in these next 2-3 weeks!

Bowling Registration - It’s that wonderful time of year again to register your students for bowling. There are just a few changes from last year. For this Fall the league fee has increased a dollar per student to $36.00 for the season. I am asking each school to collect the league fees from your student bowlers. I will then invoice the schools after the season has begun. The allies have requested that each school submit an official roster. This form will be coming at the beginning of September.

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8th Grade Mass Registration & 12th Grade Mass Registration

For both the 8th Grade and 12th Grade Masses we need volunteers to step-up as readers, gift bearers and altar servers. All altar servers will be participating in the Mas need to bring robes to wear.

Please fill out this 2024-2025 Contact People form so we will be able to contact the correct person in a very timely manner for our various needs during the school year. We ask that this form be filled out no later than September 1. This is being requested of Diocesan Elementary Schools, Private Elementary Schools and High Schools. If you do not have a person in one of the roles please mark as N/A.