News 

TEACH Colorado seeks story contributions from current and future teachers

You have a story to tell. We want to publish it. TEACH Colorado is celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, Sept. 15 - Oct. 15, by honoring the stories of educators with Spanish, Mexican, Carribean, Central American and South American heritage who bring vision and leadership to their schools.  

TEACH Colorado seeks story contributions from current and future teachers that reflect the following themes:

• The immigrant experience is deeply American, and teachers, school leaders and curriculum should reflect that experience.
• Bilingual education and English Language Learner programs support educational equity and justice.
• Culturally responsive pedagogy supports educational equity and justice.

Compensation for articles and multimedia contributions selected for publication is available.  Email Annette Konoske-Graf, senior program manager for TEACH Colorado for details, at akonoskegraf@teachcolorado.org.

TEACH Colorado Scholarship available for partner EPP applicants

The TEACH Colorado scholarship is available to applicants of partner educator preparation programs (EPPs).  Congratulations to Jacob Smith from University of Colorado Denver’s ASPIRE program for winning the $1,000 TEACH Colorado’s summer scholarship! Partnering EPPs, apply for the next scholarship opportunity by Dec 31.

Principal Leadership Institute application deadline extended

The application deadline for the 2020-21 Principal Leadership Institute has been extended to Thursday, Oct 8. This free, one-year, completely virtual program is an opportunity for principals to work with experienced principal coaches as they navigate the 2020-21 school year. Visit the Principal Leadership Institute webpage for details regarding application submission requirements.

Educator Development

Participate in an Induction Standards Stakeholder Group

CDE seeks volunteers to serve on a stakeholder group that will advise the department on revisions to the standards for induction programs serving teachers, SSPs and principals/administrators. The group will convene virtually in late fall, with subsequent meetings occurring in the winter. Those interested can complete this form by Friday, Oct. 9, for consideration.

Please contact Jennifer Simons, educator development specialist, at simons_j@cde.state.co.us with any questions.

Educator Effectiveness

Educator Effectiveness Metrics refreshed with 2018-19 Evaluation Ratings

The Educator Effectiveness Metrics have been updated to include the most current available data at this time and now display longitudinal data, covering a minimum of three school years. Guidance regarding access and interpretation of the metrics is available on the EE Metrics website, as are links to the four publicly reported metrics for teachers and principals: Overall Effectiveness, Quality Standard Ratings, Alignment and Gap Analysis.
 
The purpose of Colorado’s Educator Effectiveness System and the accompanying metrics is to provide valid and actionable information that enables districts, schools and stakeholders to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of their educators. We are committed to supporting the continuous improvement of this system and welcome feedback on the metrics themselves and the reporting of the metrics.
 
If you have questions or would like to provide feedback, please email Educator_Effectiveness@cde.state.co.us.

Educator Effectiveness Assurances deadline extended

We understand that school districts and BOCES are incredibly busy, so we have extended the deadline for submitting Educator Effectiveness Assurances. The extended deadline to complete the online form is Wednesday, Sept 30.  Please be sure to collect all necessary information before opening the web form because you will not be able to save your work and resume the form later. Assurances directions and resources are available on the Educator Effectiveness website.

Each year, Colorado districts and BOCES are required to submit assurances that they are implementing the State Model Evaluation System or another evaluation system that is aligned with Senate Bill 10-191 and State Board Rules.

For the 2020-21 school year, assurances include:

• The educator evaluation model used to evaluate teachers, principals, and all nine categories of SSPs;

• For those educators evaluated using the state model evaluation system, the weights assigned to the four professional practices quality standards defined in rule;

• The implementation of the advisory personnel performance evaluation council (also referred to as 1338); and

• The date by which all educators will be trained on the system that will be used for their evaluation.

For more information, contact Carolyn Haug, director of research and impact, at haug_c@cde.state.co.us, or contact your Educator Effectiveness Regional Specialist.

Educator Effectiveness PLC coming soon

Our team of Educator Effectiveness Regional Specialists is available to support you and your team for side-by-side work, thought partnership and to provide support in the manner that is most helpful throughout the school year. One primary way of delivering support is by bringing professional learning communities (PLCs) together—now virtually—so that regions can connect and collaborate. We will host a new PLC in November to highlight available resources and support for providing effective observations and feedback in a variety of settings. Please check the Educator Effectiveness Regional Supports website for forthcoming details, including registration information.

Important updates regarding Educator Effectiveness for the 2020-21 school year

Keeping in mind that the primary goal of Educator Effectiveness is to provide meaningful feedback that enables educators (teachers, SSPs, and principals) to continually grow as professionals, and in an effort to support districts and BOCES in planning for educator evaluation with so many unknown and continuously changing variables, CDE will not monitor or collect the measures of student learning/outcomes (MSL/MSO) portion of the Educator Effectiveness requirements for educator evaluation for the 2020-21 school year due to the extraordinary circumstances of this year. Educators can keep building and fortifying their skills for delivering effective instructional practices in remote/online learning environments, and the sole focus of Educator Effectiveness this year on professional practices will reinforce these efforts.

More information regarding Educator Effectiveness for the 2020-21 school year can be found on our webpage, Modifications to the 2020-21 Evaluation Cycle, as well as by contacting your Educator Effectiveness Regional Specialist or by emailing educator_effectiveness@cde.state.co.us.

COVID-19 Policy Implications Stakeholder Group underway

In the 2020 legislative session, the Colorado General Assembly included in the School Finance Act (House Bill 20-1418) the creation of a stakeholder group to address issues presented by the COVID-19 crisis. The purpose of the group is to review the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting disruption of the 2019-20 school year, including student transition to remote learning and the cancellation of the state assessments, accountability, accreditation and educator effectiveness systems. The invitation to apply to be a member of the group garnered robust interest from across the state. Selected members represent diverse viewpoints about assessments, accountability and educator effectiveness; including individuals impacted by these systems, individuals with expertise in these systems and individuals engaged in advocacy around these systems from across the state. The group’s first meeting was in August, and monthly meetings are scheduled through October, with the group’s work wrapping up in December.

Progress updates can be found on the COVID-19 Policy Implications Stakeholder Group webpage. On this page you can also find the full list of the group members, scheduled meetings and links for live stream viewing as well as past meeting documentation. 

The Educator Effectiveness team will continue to keep you updated on any information specific to educator evaluations for the 2020-21 school year in future Educator Talent Newsletters as well as from our Educator Effectiveness Regional Specialists. 

COPMS (RANDA) Guidance for 2020-21 now available

Guidance for 2020-21 is available for districts/BOCES using the Colorado Performance Management System (COPMS) in RANDA, which includes details on how to complete educator evaluations within the system given the modifications to measures of student learning/outcomes (MSL/MSO) monitoring for the 2020-21 evaluation cycle. 

More information regarding the requirements, guidance, and considerations associated with CDE not monitoring the MSL/MSO portion of the Educator Effectiveness requirements can be found on our webpage Modifications to the 2020-21 Evaluation Cycle webpage.

Please contact copms@cde.state.co.us or your Educator Effectiveness Regional Specialist for clarification and support.

Educator Licensing

Fingerprinting for Field Experience Educators (Student Teacher) 

This is a reminder that, pursuant to C.R.S. 22-2-119.3, CDE does NOT conduct a full background investigation on student teachers. The background history is provided as a pass-through of criminal history information to educator preparation programs and/or the school districts/BOCES via eLicensing Verification Access. This allows the educator preparation program and/or the school district/BOCES to make an informed decision when placing a field experience student. Information on licensure disqualifiers can be found on the Enforcement Details webpage. Additional information regarding fingerprinting for field experience educators, including eLicensing Verification Access details, can be found on the Student Teachers webpage.

Educator Preparation

Guidance for Clinical Hours and Field Experiences

With a new school year started and educator candidates enrolled in new coursework for the semester, please remember that CRS 23-1-121(2)(d) requires teacher preparation candidates to complete a minimum of 800 hours of clinical practice and principal and administrator candidates to complete 300 hours. We recognize our K-12 partner schools and districts are returning to school in a variety of formats (online, remote, hybrid, in-person) this fall. The expectation is that teaching candidates will adjust and use the same format their mentor teachers are using throughout their practicum to meet these hours. 

Seeing a need to support preparation programs, candidates and districts around clinical placements, a newly formed Denver Area Clinical Practice Collaborative (DACPC) met to discuss ways to support candidates and mentor teachers in clinical placements. The DACPC offers the following resources to support this critical shared work: Resources for Collaborating on Clinical Experiences and Summary of DACPC Summer Work.

Balancing each program’s guidelines along with meeting district guidelines can become a challenge. Please assist candidates in finding appropriate placements for their clinical hours. As a reminder, they must be under direct supervision of a mentor teacher. Your efforts in supporting candidates is greatly appreciated to ensure candidates have access to their clinical practice placements. 

Please contact Jennifer Kral, educator preparation specialist, at kral_j@cde.state.co.us for clarification and support.