Education Matters

The Indiana Legislative Session for 2018 adjourned on Wednesday, March 14th late into the night.   There were several bills focused around education, including a replacement test for the ISTEP 10+ , new Indiana diploma (including an option for the state board to find alternatives for Algebra II (yeah!)), and more!  The legislative process is very important to understand as we move forward.  Below is a link to all of the bills that passed pertaining to education.  The School Safety bill was one bill that did not pass due to the legislative body running out of time.  Link to Legislation: HERE

 I also thought the information below about the timeline for the new ECA test and accountability was interesting.  Starting with the current 7th grade class, students will wait and take their federal accountability test when they are juniors instead of sophomores.  

House Bill 1426: Education Matters.  This bill establishes one “Indiana Diploma” with 4 designations (General, Core 40, AHD, THD) with the State Board to consider math courses that could be used in place of Alg II in the Core 40 curriculum.  Establishes the waiver process for students under our new pathways designation.  The SBOE is to create an alternative diploma for students with significant cognitive disabilities.

This bill also takes us away from the ECA test for accountability and we will implement a nationally recognized college entrance exam.  The discussion yesterday was to use this timeline:

18-19    ISTEP 10 (current 9^th grade class)           GQE and A-F

19-20    ISTEP 10 (current 8^th grade class)           GQE and A-F

20-21    No Test (current 7^th grade class in 10^th grade)

21-22    ACT/SAT (current 7^th grade class in 11^th grade)    A-F.  This cohort of 2023 will be under the Graduation Pathways established by the SBOE.

This would clearly impact our High School A-F grades and this rule making is still in progress.  This timeline does, however, not double test a grade level or force 2 tests in one school year. 

Enjoy your Spring Break!!!  


School Notes: 

* Commissioner's Meeting - Students in regular Econ & US Government classes (not on-line) along with juniors will be participating in the Commissioner's Meeting on Monday, March 19th.  We will hold the meeting in the high school library from 9:00 - 10:00 a.m.  

*  Faculty Meeting - We will have a faculty meeting on Tuesday, March 20th.  We will move the start time back to 7:30 a.m.   Come and join us for breakfast and important information!  

* Safety Meeting - Please remember to attend our safety meeting on Thursday, March 22 at 9:00 a.m.  in the cafeteria.  Many representatives from many law enforcement departments will be here to teach us ALICE training (Active Shooter Training).  The meeting will last from 9:00 - 12:00 with lunch included.  

* No Virtual Day - Thanks to earning a waiver from the DOE, we will not have to conduct a Virtual Day for students on March 22nd!  

* Grading Period - Reminder the grading period actually ended on March 16th, but grade books will remain open until Wednesday, April 4th at midnight.  Report cards will be handed out on Friday, April 6th.  

* ISTEP Celebration - Students in grades 7,8 and 10 will have a small celebration on Wednesday, March 21st during the last part of the day.  Details will be coming soon!


Important Dates: 

Spring Break:   Friday, March 23 - Sunday, April 1

Wednesday, March 21 - Grandparent's Day

Friday, March 30- Varsity Softball @ Orleans  5:00 p.m./ Varsity Baseball @ home vs. South Spencer 5:00 p.m.

Monday, April 2 - School Board Meeting 6:30 p.m. 

Wednesday, April 4 - Grades need to be finalized 

Friday, April 6th - Career Day for grades 7,8,9 during 3rd and 4th periods/ Report Cards handed out

April 23 - May 4th - ISTEP Window