UA/UWA Regional In-Service Center

Greetings Region Four Educators,

Happy New Year! I hope that you all experienced a time of rest, relaxation, and rejuvenation with family and friends during the holiday season. The fresh start to a new semester and a new year always brings a blank slate, a chance to begin again with our students and a chance to look at each opportunity with a fresh perspective. In the words of Dr. Seuss, "You'll never get bored when you try something new. There's truly no limit to what you can do." In 2022, I wish you limitless opportunities, a glass that is always at least half-full, and faith and persistence to tackle any task that comes your way.

As a reminder, we are here to serve you! If you need additional information or would like to discuss specific plans for support for your school or district, I am happy to assist you at 205-348-6951 or via e-mail at hgmorgan@ua.edu.

Happy learning!

Dr. Holly Morgan

Director, UA/UWA Regional In-Service Center

Thank you to all teachers and administrators who completed our state’s professional learning needs assessment last fall. Due the ongoing needs brought about by the pandemic, we have been asked to redistribute this survey for updated results. The survey will take only 3-4 minutes to complete. The link remains open! Please ask all teachers and administrators to respond via either link below.

Short link:

https://bit.ly/ARIC21-22-2

Long link:

https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=wshkT4RKykWJovt8mQ38pXS02sPM07JGrntpHvYebUdURFRDS0hGT1g4MFVGNFU2MkVIN1NHNUczTy4u

If you were unable to attend one of the fall sessions for administrators, we are offering another session of the initial training on February 2!

Title: Alabama’s Teacher Observation Tool: An Overview for Administrators

Course Description: Alabama Achieves, the strategic plan of the Alabama State Department of Education, specifically focuses on providing students with highly effective teachers. The ALSDE has partnered with Cognia in creating a teacher observation tool that provides educators with specific areas of strengths/growth and aligns with the Alabama Core Teaching Standards. The instrument also assists educators in developing professional development plans and choosing informed professional learning experiences. In this session administrators will be able to

• Understand the Teacher Observation Tool

• Utilize the Teacher Observation Tool for classroom observation

• Calibrate scores on the Teacher Observation Tool

Time: 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

Register via the following link in PowerSchool.

Join Jessica Morton, ALSDE English Language Arts Specialist, for this half-day training opportunity that provides an overview of the new Secondary ELA Course of Study. Training is offered in half-day sessions for 6-8 and 9-12 teachers. The schedule is as follows:

6-8 Teachers

February 8--8:00-11:30 am (Register via PowerSchool Section #423825)

9-12 Teachers

February 8--12:00-3:30 pm (Register via PowerSchool Section #423826)

Location:

UA/UWA Regional In-Service Center, 260 Kilgore Lane, Tuscaloosa, AL 35401

The ALSDE National Board Certification scholarship has now been released. The electronic application can be downloaded at https://docs.google.com/document/d/18GcrTxwi6xAYwYJUL-BZ7w_as1QItEEYqgC6wQ8nuuA/edit?usp=sharing. The deadline for submitting an application is March 31, 2022. All applicants will be notified of their status by May 14, 2022.

Are you interested in applying for the Alabama National Board Scholarship that can be applied to registration fees beginning in the 2023 submission year?

Consider registering for an interactive informational session hosted by Dr. Melissa Shields & Mrs. Kelly Lomax on Thursday, February 10. View the attached document for more details.

Please register for this session using the following link:

https://bit.ly/ALNBCTscholarship2022

Calling all counselors in the UA/UWA Region!

We are excited to announce that we will host our 2nd Annual West Alabama Regional School Counselors' Conference on Friday, February 11, 2022 at the Tuscaloosa Career and Technology Academy (2800 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Tuscaloosa, AL 35401). This will be a free event to support the school counselors within our region.

Register via PowerSchool with this link

When: February 11, 2022

Where: Tuscaloosa Career and Technology Academy

Session agenda will be shared soon!

Session topics include diversity/equity/inclusion, SEL, mental health, self-care, and more!

Network with colleagues in the region during our roundtable sessions!

• February 14, 2022
• 10:00 am-12:00 pm
• Virtual meeting via Zoom; link will be sent to all curriculum directors prior to February 14.
• This year, we will host 3 meetings with the curriculum directors/professional learning directors who serve as direct liaisons to the In-Service Center.
• Each of these regional meetings, beginning with September 24, will occur 2-3 weeks after the ALSDE's Curriculum and Instruction meetings. (The winter ALSDE C&I dates are listed in the newsletter above.) The purpose of this timing is so that we may discuss specific updates, data, and requests for support based upon the information shared at the ALSDE meetings. We will share ideas and network to share best practices within our region.

2022 Region 4 ELA Textbook Caravan

We are excited to announce that, in conjunction with Publisher’s Warehouse, our regional ELA Textbook Caravan will be held on February 17 and 18, 2022 at the Paul W. Bryant Conference Center. The caravan is divided into an elementary session on February 17 and a secondary session on February 18. Boxed lunches will be provided for all attendees registered through PowerSchool.

• Districts may send teams of up to 12 participants per day.
• Register via PowerSchool using the following links:

Elementary (February 17)

Secondary (February 18)

The UA/UWA In-Service Center is offering a free, virtual ACLD-PLU opportunity based upon the text, Leading Schools in Disruptive Times. The PLU is limited to 30 participants; books will be provided for educators from the UA/UWA In-Service Center region. The PLU begins in March and ends in May.

Register via PowerSchool Section #425397. Registration closes on February 23!

Receive support from an assigned candidate support provider as you work on your selected component(s) in a small group setting. CSPs will facilitate discussion and sessions specific to your needs.

When: February 24 from 5:00-7:30 pm

Where: UA/UWA Regional In-Service Center and Fayette County High School

Register in PowerSchool via Section #404468.

The following session is open statewide and hosted by Auburn University.

We are very excited to host the first Double Talk Workshop February 26th, 2022! This seminar for music educators emphasizes the “how-to” of teaching double reed fundamentals, strives to provide hands-on time playing the oboe and bassoon, and discusses important double reed resources necessary for student success. Educators of all musical backgrounds (including music education majors) are welcome to attend!

Contact us for more information! oboe@auburn.edu and bassoon@auburn.edu

Register by Feb. 21st. Register for the conference here! We can also award professional learning credit! Register in PowerSchool with section # 419657. Participants must register for the conference to receive professional learning credit.

Join us on Tuesday, March 8 as we learn from attorney Erika Tatum. Erika serves in the law practice of Hill, Hill, and Carter in Montgomery, Alabama. You can read more about Erika at https://www.hillhillcarter.com/attorneys/erika-perrone-tatum/.

During this session, Erika will share information regarding specific case studies and strategies related to IEP eligibility, defensible IEPs, and disability criteria.

The session will be held from 8:30 am to 2:30 pm at the UA/UWA Regional In-Service Center, 260 Kilgore Lane, Tuscaloosa, AL 35401.

Register via PowerSchool Section #426240 or by using the following link: https://alsde.truenorthlogic.com/ia/empari/learning2/registration/presentRegistrationDetails/426240

Administrators in our region who recently attended the Teacher Observation Tool training were re-introduced to ATLAS. ATLAS is used as a resource for with our National Board Support Cohort due to its video repository and commentaries created by NBCTs. It can also be used for personal professional development, district new teacher support and induction, and more. This resource is open to full-time, public school educators in Alabama. Please contact Dr. Holly Morgan (hgmorgan@ua.edu) to request an account and free access to the resource.

ACAP Checklist & Presentation

• OSI has developed an ACAP checklist and presentation to assist educators with various tools and resources developed by ALSDE & DRC.
• Access checklist here.
• Access presentation here.

Follow the ALSDE Office of Student Learning Wakelet for information on AMSTI, ARI, ATIM, Regional Inservice Centers, and more!

https://wakelet.com/@Student_Learning

Please contact Sara McGee (smcgee@ua.edu) with requests for professional learning needs.

• ASIM Biology Training and Support (Lisa Clark, lclark@ua.edu)

• ASIM Chemistry Training and Support (Brooks Moss, moss020@ua.edu)
• ASIM Physics Training and Support (Julie Covin, jcovin@ua.edu)

Contact our specialists today to request on-site instructional support! We are here for you!

Training

If you are a new teacher needing ASIM training, please reach out to us directly via email, phone, and/or text.

Lab Safety

We are unable to provide printed safety contracts, but you will be required to have one on file for your students. You may use the Flinn Safety Contract (also available in Spanish) or a personal/district plan. Try paperless! Use your LMS platform and ask students and parents to sign digitally.

ASIM Biology

Please contact Lisa Clark at lclark@ua.edu to schedule classroom coaching sessions.

ASIM Chemistry

Chemistry and Physical Science trainings will be scheduled and information sent out to teachers. If you have questions or would like to schedule classroom coaching, contact Brooks Moss at moss020@ua.edu

ASIM Physics

ASIM Physics for High School Physical Science Training Monday January 17, 2022. Contact Julie Covin jcovin@ua.edu to register.

ASIM Physics Training on Rotational Motion Monday February 21, 2022. Contact Julie Covin jcovin@ua.edu to register.

ARI Quick Links to Support the ALA Implementation

• Use the following link OR QR code for a current list of links: Quick Links to Support the Alabama Literacy Act Implementation

Click on the following link for regional opportunities from Dr. Robert Mayben, UA/UWA ATIM Specialist:

UA/UWA ATIM Spring Opportunities

Contact Dr. Robert Mayben at rmayben@ua.edu to support your school or district's technology professional learning needs. PLU opportunities and other training opportunities are posted in this newsletter above!

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Dr. Holly Morgan, Director

Mrs. Tami Barron, Administrative Assistant

Ms. Angela Lewis, Office Associate for In-Service Center and AMSTI

Mrs. Banks Gordy, UWA Assistant

Email: hgmorgan@ua.edu
Website: www.inservice.ua.edu
Location: 260 Kilgore Lane, Tuscaloosa, AL, USA
Phone: 205-348-3319
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/uainservice/
Twitter: @UofARIC