CAS is hosting its annual spring membership reception on May 15th from 4:00-6:00 p.m. Please join us for a casual cocktail reception to celebrate the end of another successful school year and to honor those individuals who have contributed so generously to our work. This year, five administrators will be recognized for their extraordinary service to the association. Congratulations to Lisa Eells, Ralph Mayo, Deane Renda, Neil Rinaldi and Margie Williamson!

Back to Contents

CAS-CIAC is proud to announce the establishment of the J. Robert Ford Athletic Grant Program. The program, made possible through the generosity of our sponsors, is designed to support schools demonstrating significant need in their efforts to provide basic athletic programs and services. The grant is named in honor of J. Robert Ford, founding father of the CAS-CIAC Foundation. Applications are now being accepted!

Back to Contents

Have you finally reached that seemingly elusive milestone? If so, please let us know! All retiring principals and assistant principals receive life memberships in CAS. If you plan to retire this year, or if you know of any principal or assistant principal who is so planning, please go to www.casciac.org/retiringadmins and fill in the requested fields. This task should take no more than a minute of your time.

Back to Contents

In case you missed it…earlier this month, we released our latest podcast featuring CAS’ 2018 Assistant Principals of the Year – Joe Masi, Northwestern Regional High School in Winsted; Darlene Wallin, John Read Middle School in Redding; and, Joseph Macrino, Lewin Joel School in Clinton! Meet these award-winning administrators and hear their strategies for relationship-building, empowering teachers, building positive school climate, and maintaining the critical balance between work and home. Don’t miss this dynamic conversation with these extraordinary educators!

Back to Contents

Our very own Dave Maloney, CAS Director of Student Activities, will be honored by Arts for Learning Connecticut (AFLCT) for his outstanding contributions to arts in education. Dave will receive the 2018 Arts in Education Advocate Award which will mark the first time in its almost 40 year history that AFLCT will present a Connecticut educator with a special award. Dave will be recognized during the AFLCT’s “Spring into the Arts” benefit auction on May 3rd.

Back to Contents

On Friday, May 4th, Pullman & Comley’s School Law Practice will host a Special Education Legal Issues Forum at the CAS Office in Cheshire. Attorneys Michael McKeon, Mark Sommaruga and Melinda Kaufmann will provide an update on the 2018 legislative session and lead an interactive discussion on other key developments affecting special education. Please RSVP by calling 860.424.4343 or sending an email to forum@pullcom.com with your school district and the names and emails of all who wish to attend.

Back to Contents

The Connecticut Science Center invites teams to participate in the NGSS District Transition Planning Workshop on June 11th. This full-day professional learning event provides awareness of specific considerations of transitioning to the Next Generation Science Standards along with an adaptable framework that can be used for long-term roll-out of efforts around any set of standards. At the end of the workshop, vertical district teams will leave with the foundation of a new plan or an enhancement to a plan they have already begun. These plans will be based on each district's unique goals, strengths and challenges. Thanks to a state grant, the Mandell Academy for Teachers at the Connecticut Science Center is able to offer these workshops free to participants for a limited time. There is still space available, so take advantage and sign up today!

Back to Contents

The CT Arts Administrators Association is hosting its annual summer arts institute July 16-19 at Central Connecticut State University. The 2018 institute, Designing Standards-Based Teaching and Learning, is an opportunity for art educators and program leaders to design district curriculum; create standards-based units and strands of instruction; analyze and assess student learning; and, share best practices with arts educators from around the state.

Back to Contents

The largest middle school debate event to date - and the last event of the year - took place on Saturday, April 21, at Eastern Middle School in Greenwich.  Two hundred twenty-four debaters from twenty-three schools combined into eighty-one teams to debate the motion: This House believes that Artificial Intelligence will do more good than harm. Four schools debated for the first time! 

Back to Contents

On March 27, 2018, the Connecticut State Department of Education issued the long-awaited and much-anticipated Guidelines Regarding Independent Educational Evaluations at Public Expense and In-School Observations. These Guidelines - the result of months of study, review and participation by a task force and then an advisory work group - clarify the existing obligations of school districts with respect to independent educational evaluations (IEEs) pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

Back to Contents

Last Friday, April 20, marked the 19th anniversary of the Columbine shooting. Two months ago, we witnessed another one of the deadliest school shootings in American history at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School; and, there have been countless shooting events in between. The political issues surrounding school shootings are complex and multifaceted; and, there is no single solution. There are, however, many proven policies that state and federal lawmakers can enact, fund, and support that will protect our schools, increase support services for mental health and crisis intervention, and keep dangerous weapons out of the hands of those who shouldn’t have them. Just as school leaders and educators have a shared responsibility to ensure the safety of their students, Congress, too, has a responsibility to enact policy that will help prevent these tragedies. The NASSP Policy and Advocacy Center portal makes it easy for administrators to raise their voices and tell their representatives that keeping schools and students safe must be a top legislative priority.

Back to Contents

Please take a few minutes and complete a 10-15 minute online survey about principals’ perceptions of mastery-based learning implementation in their schools. Participants will be entered into a drawing for a $50 Amazon gift card. The survey ends on May 25th. FMI or questions, email Dr. Carla Evans, National Center for the Improvement of Educational Assessment, at cevans@nciea.org.

Back to Contents