On the Road

On October 23, State Superintendent Elizabeth Burmaster welcomed members of the Professional Standards Council for Teachers to a meeting in Madison. Burmaster’s opening remarks framed the issues to be addressed at the meeting, including updates on the Master Educator Program; a discussion about the pilot program approval process for Institutes of Higher Education; new mentor and initial educator grants; developmental license level assignments; and Professional Development Plan team training pilots. The group also discussed preliminary data on the goal approval process for initial educators, including support for educators and school districts.

“Your participation helps the department refine and improve the implementation of the Quality Educator Initiative,” Burmaster told the group. “Our goal is effective and high quality teachers in every Wisconsin classroom. Quality teachers are key in eliminating the achievement gap.”

Burmaster, along with First Lady Jessica Doyle, presented Wisconsin’s second Milken Educator Award for 2006 to Andrea Payan, a fifth-grade teacher from Morgandale Elementary School in Milwaukee on October 24 (see separate story in this issue).

On October 25, the state superintendent awarded a $150,000 Title I continuous improvement grant to the La Crosse School District. Eighteen Wisconsin school districts will receive a total of $6.5 million in grants to help them meet their goals for improving student achievement. Districts may use the funds for a number of activities including tutoring, expanding summer school programming, providing professional staff development, purchasing supplemental instructional materials, developing early intervention programs with students, teachers, parents, and the community, and strengthening student reading and math skills through community and parent involvement.

“The efforts of these districts to partner with their communities to improve student achievement serve as models for the rest of the state,” said Burmaster. “These grants will help public schools lift achievement for all students and close the achievement gap.”

The state superintendent spoke to the annual convention of the Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC) on October 26. “As educators and education support professionals, we must be the grassroots activists who inform policymakers at the state and federal levels that education is our best investment,” said Burmaster. “Our schools need the resources to accomplish our educational mission, and nothing happens without great teachers and education support professionals. Thank you for the tremendous contributions you make to our communities.”

Last updated on 10/30/2006