State of Vermont

01/15/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 01/16/2025 12:34

Weekly Field Memo: Recent News and Items of Interest From the Agency

Audience : Education Professionals, General Public
President Joe Biden honored six Vermont educators with the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST), the Nation's highest distinction for teaching in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and/or computer science. The following Vermont educators were selected as part of a group of 306 teachers nationwide to receive this prestigious award:

  • Heather Morley (Champlain Valley Union, 7 - 12 Science)
  • Lara White (Lyndon Institute, 7 - 12 Math)
  • Amy Clapp (Salisbury Community School, K - 6 Science)
  • Mindi Wimett (White River Valley Middle School, K- 6 Math)
  • Ronald "Randy" Brown (U-32 High School, 7 - 12 Science)
  • Brian Schwartz (Green Mountain Technology and Career Center, 7 - 12 Math)

Congratulations to these outstanding educators!
Contact : Kathryn Rossman at [email protected]

Audience : Middle and High School Educators, CTE Educators, Adult Education Educators
20 free graduate course scholarships are available for Vermont educators for an online three-credit graduate course : Teach Financial Literacy. This opportunity is offered by Champlain College's Center for Financial Literacy from March 3 to April 25, 2025. Complete scholarship applications are due by February 20, 202 5 . Teachers who complete the training will have the confidence, skills, and curriculum tools to successfully bring financial literacy topics into their middle and high school classrooms.
Contact : Martha Deiss at [email protected]

Audience : Administrators, Curriculum Directors, K-12 Educators, CTE Educators, Adult Education Educators
Join Fort Ticonderoga and the Vermont 250th Anniversary Commission on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, at 6:30 p.m., for an exploration of resources focused on 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. Among the featured presentations are representatives from the Ethan Allen Homestead, Fort Ticonderoga, Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, New York State Archives Partnership, Saratoga National Historical Park, and the Vermont Historical Society. The webinar is free, but participants must pre-register .
Contact : Martha Deiss at [email protected]

Audience : Curriculum Directors, Middle School Administrators and Teachers
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum , in partnership with First Book , will offer a collection of books to Middle School educators this month . The goal is to enable more Title 1 and Title 1 - eligible educators to teach about the Holocaust in accurate and relevant ways . Books will be available on a first-come, first-served basis to Title 1 Middle School teachers who are members of First Book ; b ooks range between upper elementary and grade 9 . Educators can now visit First Book to activate their free membership to request the book collections .
Contact : Martha Deiss at [email protected]

Audience : Principals, CTE Counselors, School Counselors, Flexible Pathway Coordinators
AOE's Student Pathways Division is inviting school counselors and staff to an information exchange session focusing on the Dual Enrollment System. During this time, AOE will facilitate a discussion regarding: inclusion of Early College into the system, the additional account and voucher questions added to the Dual Enrollment System, updates to account and voucher questions, ways in which Dual Enrollment data is used, and ways to collaborate. Two meeting times are offered to best accommodate scheduling demands. The content for each session is the same and interested staff need only attend one of the meetings.

Contacts : Ryan Parkman (Flexible Pathways, Virtual/Blended Learning), [email protected] ; Amy Dodge (Flexible Pathways, Dual Enrollment, Early College) [email protected] ; Sigrid Olson (Curriculum and Instruction, Personalized Learning Plans) [email protected] .

Audience : WBL Coordinators, Guidance Departments, Principals
The Agency of Education is hosting the next in our ongoing series of Work-Based Learning professional webinars . The topic for this training is "Employer Engagement, " and will includ e a panel of experienced WBL e xperts presenting their guidance on how to build, maintain , and support your ongoing relationships with employers in your community . The training will be held on January 22 , at 10 a.m. and can be accessed via this MS Teams invite link . We hope to see you there.
Contact : Johannes Haensch [email protected]

Audience : Vermont Educators, PreK-5 Educators
Meet the newest character from PBS Kids on Vermont Public : Carl, a kind-hearted raccoon with a passion for collecting . Carl and his diverse group of friends can be seen in Carl the Collector , the groundbreaking PBS KIDS series featuring characters on the autism spectrum. The show highlights Carl's unique perspective and the strengths he brings to his world - including his love for gathering and keen attention to detail - and celebrates the ways we all think, explore, and solve problems. Use the provided teaching resources to introduce students to valuable lessons on forgiveness, conflict resolution, self-awareness, and other essential classroom relationship skills.
Contact : Emily Leute at [email protected]

Audience: Vermont Educators, Grades 4-12 Educators
Calling all Vermont podcast creators in grades 4-12. Vermont Public and NPR's Student Podcast Challenge has returned. The 2025 contest will close on May 2, 2025, giving students as much of the winter/spring academic term to make something they can feel proud of as possible. The rules and resources explain that students can make a podcast about any topic they'r e interest ed in, as long as they keep it between three to eight minutes. Visit the Vermont Public Educators page for more recommendations for high-quality resources.
Contact: Emily Leute at [email protected]

Audience : Vermont Educators, Grades 6-12 Educators
This captivating collection from Ken Burns' new documentary Leonardo da Vinci dives deep into the life and works of the ultimate Renaissance man and will help students understand and discover his groundbreaking contributions to art, science, and invention. Explore engaging videos, activities, lesson plans, and a 3D interactive model that together help to bring Leonardo's inventions to life in the classroom and inspire your students to think critically, push creative boundaries , and explore the intersection of art and science , from Vermont Public and PBS LearningMedia . Visit the Vermont Public Educators page for more recommendations for high-quality resources.
Contact: Emily Leute at [email protected]

Audience : superintendents, principals and guidance counselors
The Agency of Education is seeking feedback on draft Adult Diploma Program documents, which have been posted on the AOE's website under the section "Draft Adult Diploma Program Documents." Please submit feedback through the Adult Diploma Program (ADP) Pilot Feedback Form . Feedback on these drafts is due by 5:00pm on Wednesday, January 22, 2025.
Contact : Adult Education and Literacy team, [email protected]

Audience : Pathway (D) Participants, New T eachers to the S tate, Newly Licensed Teachers and Graduates, Special Education Endorsement Candidates, General Education Teachers, High School Special Education Teachers, Educational Support Teams Members, Evaluation Team Members, Related Service Providers, Interventionists
This training , which was going to be held on February 4 and February 5, has been cancelled. If and when the training is rescheduled, we will post the announcement in the Weekly Field Memo.
This training will provide an overview of "Functional Skills" as it's listed in Basic Skill Areas in Rule 2392(g). Functional skills reflect a student's current abilities, skills, strengths, and weaknesses; academically, socially, and physically. Knowing this information about a student should shape the goals of their IEP by informing how their learning differences affect their ability to learn in the general education curriculum. This training will be held on Feb. 4, 2025, from 10-11:30 a.m. and Feb. 5, 2025, from 2-3:30 p.m.
Contact : Cassie Santo at [email protected]