Member News -- November 8, 2017
Remember NNSTOY on November 28, 2017
Annual Day of Giving support teacher advocacy!
 
Help us raise $1000 toward NNSTOY's teacher advocacy by contributing on the
Day of Giving November 28, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving.  
 
Since dues were eliminated, NNSTOY has increasingly counted on member contributions to fund our work. A contribution on the Day of Giving helps to support our advocacy on behalf of the profession and our students. Your gift provides time, talent and resources used for webinars, research reports, newsletters, blog writing and promotion, and a host of important projects on behalf of our members. 

Please make a donation now or on November 28.


 
Call for Teacher Leaders
2018 Conference Committee Members Needed
 
Plans are in full swing for the  2018 National Teacher Leadership Conference,  hosted by NNSTOY, "Teaching Tomorrow's Leaders."  This year's conference will be like no other. And we mean it. 
 
We will host a full day of amazing TED-style talks about four critical problems of practice: student engagement, teacher leadership, social & emotional learning, and educational equity.  On the other days, participants and speakers will drill down on these issues together, seeking and creating solutions together. 
 
Please think about your strengths and consider signing up to be on one of the 2018 Conference Committees.  
 
 
States Help NNSTOY Build the Family
Send us your Finalists!
 
A huge thank you goes to members in Maine and Connecticut who sent us the names and email addresses for their newest Finalists. They know it's tough for NNSTOY to identify everyone who has a place in our professional organization, and we appreciate them extending our reach.

 
New Ways To Engage 
Plug into teacher leadership outside of your school
 
Award Season: Seeking Nominations for Math and Science Tea chers. The Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science (PAEMST), the nation's highest honor for teachers of mathematics and science (including  computer science), has opened its 2017-2018 nomination and application cycle for K-6th grade teachers. Read on to see if you have the qualifications and apply or nominate  by April 1, 2018. 

Join the Winsight™ Assessment team.  ETS is developing a research tool to provide the field insights into "where students are, where they need to be" and how to support educators as they work to get them there. You can sign up to be a team member, giving your input via surveys over the next two years. Each time you participate, you earn a $25 gift card, and you can opt out at any time. Sign up. 
 
Calling all STEM Teachers.  Applications are now open for the U.S. Department of Energy's Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship. Fellows spend eleven months working in Federal agencies or in U.S. Congressional offices, applying their extensive knowledge and classroom experiences to national education program and/or education policy efforts. Learn more and apply by November 16.   

Check out the Self-Efficacy Toolkit from Transforming Education.  The kit includes videos that can be used with students. 
 
Join the NNSTOY Facebook Group. If you haven't yet joined our Facebook Group, now is a terrific time to connect with colleagues. As the 2018 State Teachers of the Year and Finalists have begun to weigh in with messages, you can welcome them to the family!

What We Are Reading
Interesting and emerging ideas about education


"Schools are segregated because white people want them that way"
Nicole Hannah-Jones, Vox

To Ban a Mockingbird? Andrew J. Rotherham, US News

 Teachers can impact bullying more than they realize Amelia Harper, Education Dive

 5 PBL Pitfalls to Avoid Frank McKay, Edutopia

 When Body Meets Mind in Learning Claudia Wallis,  Hechinger Report

 Jonathon Kozol: The savage inequities of public school Alex Granados, EdNC

 Almost all students with disabilities are capable of graduating on time. Here's why they're not. Sarah Butrymowicz and Jackie Mader,  Hechinger Report

Washington Update
Jane West
 
The big news in DC of course is tax reform. A number of education provisions are on the table. With an ambitious timeline, Congress has plunged into a morass that is traditionally one of the most challenging.
Tax Reform Overhaul Bill Unveiled in the House of Representatives.
With a sense of urgency, House Republicans--supported by President Trump--have released their tax reform bill. The Committee on Ways and Means plans to mark up the bill next week with a goal of passing it on the House floor by Thanksgiving. As analysis continues to unfold, education advocates are united in opposing the bill as it looks to drive funds away from both K-12 education and higher education.

Status of Trump Appointees Stagnates at the Department of Education.
After nine months in office, of the 15 positions that require confirmation by the Senate, President Trump has moved to pursue eight nominees. Only two nominees have actually been confirmed by the Senate and are in place - Secretary DeVos and Peter Oppenheim, Assistant Secretary for Legislation and Congressional Affairs and former senior staffer for Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN). A third nominee, Carlos G. Muñiz, has been approved by Committee to be General Counsel, and awaits a floor vote.

New Education Civil Rights Alliance Created.
This week a new alliance intended to protect the civil rights of students was created with funding from the Ford Foundation. Called the Education Civil Rights Alliance, the group will offer an antidote to many of the Trump Administration's proposals, focusing on safeguarding the rights of students with disabilities, immigrant students and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students. 
 
Read the full Washington Update on our website.
 
Resources to Support Higher State Standards
NNSTOY tools, videos, articles & research
 
NNSTOY recently published a new webpage that serves as a resource for educators seeking to support higher state standards.  
 
Produced with funds from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, this page houses NNSTOY's advocacy on behalf of the Common Core and other high state standards. 
 
New and Noteworthy
Tools and Opportunities for #TeachersLeading

Kudos, Shout-outs & Accolades
Within the NNSTOY family

Allison Riddle (Utah 2014) has a great new article out this week on EdWeek called, "Stop Making Teaching Harder Thank It Has To Be!" Here, Riddle gives insights into ways teachers can reduce negativity and focus on their craft. She says, " Just as we teach our students to analyze their mistakes and use the results to solve problems, teachers with an intention to improve their practice consider observational feedback a worthy piece of evidence and use it to make necessary adjustments to their practice." Read further on the NNSTOY blog. 

Congratulations to Chris Poulos (Connecticut 2007), shown below, who yesterday won his bid to be on the Southington (Connecticut) Town Council. Also, congratulations to Michael Dunlea (New Jersey 2012 Finalist) who ran a good race for the Stafford Township (New Jersey)  School Board. 

"If You're Thinking About Becoming A Principal, You Should Read This Letter,"  is  Anna Baldwin's  (Montana 2014) latest piece on  EdPost . Here, Baldwin offers reflections on what she needs from her principals, and it resonates. She writes, "I rely on you to follow through on every commitment you make. While my teacher friend and I respect and enjoy each other, we shouldn't have to be accountability partners simply because you won't hold us accountable."

Menchi Veray (DoDEA 2017) reports that materials are coming in for classrooms in Puerto Rico! Thank you, members, for helping our colleagues in need.

James Ford (North Carolina 2014) met with civil rights pioneer Harvey Gantt to host a community wide conversation on civil rights in Charlotte, NC. The community conversation brought together  5,000 Mecklenburg County residents to talk about ways to make the community more connected, dynamic and opportunity-rich. 
Students at Arlee High School (Montana) participated in their first Diversity Conference with considerable help from  Anna Baldwin (2014), who organized the event and arranged for John King to appear via video. Here's an excerpt from one of her preparatory posts: " 300 labeled bottles of water, check!  120+ individual student schedules, check!  33 separate rosters, check!  9 committee gifts, check!  2 clipboards, one for Monday and one for Tuesday, check!   One John King video ready to roll, CHECK! T-12 hours.  #DivConf17"
 
Over the last few weeks, STOYs have been prolific on the topic of LGBT rights and awareness. 
  • First up: Rich Ognibene's (New York 2014) "Here's Everything You Should Do for LGBT History Month in your Classroom," in EdPost.  He suggests, " ... use LGBT History month as a way to observe history in the making. While great strides have been made in the last decade for LGBT rights, clearly the fight for acceptance is not over." 
  • On National Coming Out Day, EdPost introduced Becky Tapley's (Maine 2017) "How Two Students' Warmth and Support Helped Me Come Out at School."  Here, Tapley shares her story of hope in an open letter to some of her students, "Thank you. About five years ago, you came up to me in my middle-school classroom and asked me a question that changed my life. Marriage equality had just been passed in Maine the night before. You asked me, "Ms. Turner, is there a beautiful, magical day in your future?'"
  • Finally, Brett Bigham (Oregon 2014) shares his personal story: "You Can Be Teacher of the Year and Still Be Fired For Being Gay." Bigham describes the conditions laid out by his school district during his year of service, "I was ordered not to say I was gay, I was told I could not write or speak anything unless the district approved of my words in advance and I was told I would bring all personal mail from home for them to open and read. I was told if I said I was gay someone was going to shoot me in the head." Read his important story on EdPost.
Jemelleh Coes (Georgia 2014) is a teacher-educator at the University of Georgia, and for her, it's all about equity. Read up on her experiences in her EdWeek Article: "What We've Learned Teaching Teacher Candidates about Equity." One lesson: "The future educator misunderstands that the role of the teacher is, in fact, to celebrate and embrace various cultural perspectives so that students do not feel alienated or pressured to conform to the norms around them." Read more on the NNSTOY blog.

Angie Miller (New Hampshire 2011) issues a call to action in her latest EdWeek post:  "Librarians: It's Time to Get On The Front Lines." Miller's engaging piece reminds librarians of their important role, "Librarians have long embraced tolerance and equity. But embracing is no longer enough--we must safeguard those persecuted and promote benevolence with unapologetic ferocity, reminding everybody: We will not watch hate from the sidelines."  Keep reading on the NNSTOY blog.  

Daniele Massey (DoDEA 2013) gave an outstanding TED-style talk and participated on a panel about global competencies Monday at the U.S. Department of Education. 

"Want Students to See Themselves as Thinkers? Get Them Writing," is Gary Abud's (Michigan 2014) latest on EdWeek now. He writes, "By not teaching writing to my students, I deprived them of strategies to understand chemistry, and I denied them a chance to see themselves as writers and thinkers."  Read it at NNSTOY.

Have you had a chance to read Tom Rademacher's (Minnesota 2014) latest on EdPost? Be sure to check out, "I Shouldn't Have to go to a Conference of Black Male Educators to Realize How Essential They Are For Our School." Rademacher reflects, " From the challenges as a K-12 student of succeeding-or even being seen, or supported, or loved-to the questioning and policing of Black male bodies as adults in schools, each one of the teachers I met spends too much energy and time simply existing in schools."
 

Mairi Cooper (Pennsylvania 2015), Matinga Ragatz (Michigan 2011), Carol Strickland (Kansas STOY 1999), Anthony Grisillo (Pennsylvania STOY 2014), and Dr. Steve Sroka  (National Teacher Hall of Fame 1996) after their panel of award-winning teachers at Kappa Delta Pi Convo in Pittsburgh, October 28. They answered questions and offered advice to the teacher candidates in attendance.

Do you have news to share about your work? Let us know at [email protected].