Seniors Moving On: A Parent’s Perspective
As we move into the final quarter of the school year, our Seniors continue to experience their ‘lasts’; the last concert, the last game, the last school dance, the last day of high school. After 24 years of sending off other people’s kids, this year my daughter is one of our graduating Seniors at Traverse City West. I’ve taken a lot of mental notes over the years of what adults say and…
MI HS Esports Grows & Will Hold Four Finals at Oakland University – Spring ’24
The Michigan High School Esports League became free to compete in this spring season and made record breaking numbers; 164 schools with more than 700 teams competing and engaging 3,000+ high school students in the state. MHSEL continues to be the largest high school esports league in the state. MHSEL offers ten game titles; one regional title (teams compete regionally with teams from different states) and the nine remaining game titles are…
LegalEase | Can I Block that Person Who’s Questioning Me?
The Supreme Court of the United States in Lindke v Freed, outlined a standard for how, and when, public officials can regulate their own social media. In Lindke, a Michigan city manager converted their personal Facebook page to a public page, meaning that anyone could see and comment on his posts. The city manager continued to operate the Facebook page himself and regularly posted about his personal life. The city manager also posted…
May Holidays & Recognition Days
National Asian American and South Pacific Islander Heritage MonthNational Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month takes place in May and is dedicated to recognizing the contributions, culture and achievements of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States. This observance is celebrated by various organizations, including the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution, and the National Park Service, through events such as cultural performances, art exhibits and educational programs. The…
The Support Principals Need to Succeed
Strengthening Leaders – Coaching/Mentoring Educator pipeline issues do not just impact teachers in the classroom, we are also seeing a shortage of those interested in being school leaders. Not only is the applicant pool shallow for Assistant Principal and Principal positions but those stepping into the roles tend to have less experience than ever before. Under-resourced mentoring programs and coaching services have contributed to our state's struggle to attract, train and retain…
NEW Legislative Requirement: Rater-Reliability Training
In 2013 Michigan passed its Teacher Evaluation Law to ensure that all districts were implementing a rigorous, transparent and fair evaluation system. It is hard to believe it has been more than 10 years since many administrators participated in 5D+ framework training. Studies show that without regular professional learning and calibration, "drift happens" within the evaluation system. Developing reliable evaluators of teachers is a key component to the success of any school…
This Week in Politics in 5 Sentences (or Fewer)
The last week of legislative session before the House and Senate took their two week spring recess saw action in both chambers. The Senate Education Committee voted out legislations on two different issues: SB 285 would make Kindergarten attendance mandatory beginning in the 2025-26 school year as well as require all districts who offer first grade to offer Kindergarten and SB 744 would adjust teacher tenure requirements and fix some unintended errors created when educator…
Powerful Messages: Student PSA Winners Added to Anti-Vaping Toolkit
Last summer, at EDCON, MASSP introduced the Anti-Vaping Toolkit. A member-driven curation of resources to help principals combat the vaping epidemic in their schools. This fall, MASSP, in partnership with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) announced the winners of a statewide contest encouraging high school students to create public service announcements that discourage tobacco use through vaping. The effort was a collaboration with the Michigan Association of Broadcasters…
Principal Dr. Janelle Bross = Shorian Pride
This week I visited the Macomb ISD and provided the principals in the Macomb Area Conference with a legislative update. For me, this area always feels like home. I grew up in Sterling Heights and my first job in education was teaching at Warren, Fitzgerald High School. Following the MAC meeting I headed to Lake Shore High School to tour the building with Principal Dr. Janelle Bross, and to learn about the…
ADA Reasonable Accommodations Refresher
An employee says, “I’m having trouble getting to work at my scheduled starting time because of medical treatments I’m undergoing.” Setting sympathy aside, you may not realize that the employee just requested a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act. When is the Act triggered and what steps must school officials take once it is triggered? Familiarizing yourself with the answers to these questions will help minimize potential legal exposure. Article:The…