All schools will receive a letter grade for the 25-26 school year based on the new accountability model. At this session, school leaders will gain valuable information regarding how their schools will be graded and what practical strategies can be implemented now to prepare schools for their grades. School leaders will learn how the accountability model will impact their schools and how they can best prepare their staff and community for the changes that the new grading system will bring.

Our presenter, Steve Baker, brings great insight into this process. He has taken part in several committees through the IDOE and the Indiana State Board of Education such as Indiana Teacher Evaluation, High School Diplomas, & Pathway Implementation. He has been involved in ongoing discussions with state and federal legislators about educational issues in addition to providing input and public comment about bills, and was a member of the Governor's Indiana Educational Roundtable for three years. During his 16 years on the IASP board, he was an important connection with IDOE.

*Webinar will take place at 4:30 EST/3:30 CST to accommodate both time zones.

*Free for IMLEA Members; $20 for nonmembers; you will be invoiced after the event.

*Anyone is welcome to attend, although the primary focus will be grades 6-8.

*Complete the Google Form below to receive the Zoom link the day before the event.

*The presentation will include time for questions; there will be questions!

Additional Accountability Resources

The new accountability formula was one of the most important topics at the recent IASP conferences, including IMLEA's session. You can find links below for a sample spreadsheet that was shared. (Make a copy, plug in your numbers, but don't change the "Total Points" columns and rows to retain the calculations.) The second button is for Student Accountability Conferences, the third is the actual presentation from Dr. Todd Bess, Executive Director of IASP; Dr. Bret Bailey, principal of Hamilton Heights Middle School; and Andy Allen, principal of Batesville HS and incoming superintendent at Plainfield.

Over 250 people from Indiana attended AMLE's annual conference in Indianapolis last month, three schools performed musical numbers, one school hosted a supterintendent group, and forty-nine Hoosiers presented in one format or another in twenty-nine different sessions.

The spreadsheet below includes all of the Indiana presenters. We are sharing this in case you would be interested in connecting with them to learn more about their work.

Indianapolis schools that participated included, pictured above:

*The orchestra from Eastwood Middle school

*The choir from Harshman Middle School

*The Bluettes from Westlane Middle School

*The students and staff at William Penn Middle School, who hosted a superintendent site visit. They were also recently featured in a television story, "Middle Schoolers Design, Construct Doghouses in Architecture Course."

Wilbur Wright Middle School principal Bojan Jovanovic placed third in the Snapshot poster contest. You can click on the graphic below to view his video, or use the bit.ly below for the pdf version.

Thank you to EDvise Solutions, the sponsor of our Indiana gathering. You can read more about their efforts to support literacy and partner with schools here.

Thomas Hakim of Northview Middle School in Indianapolis was the state winner as Middle School Principal of the Year at the IASP Fall Professionals Conference, and he also presented.

IMLEA board members who presented included Dr. Lori Katz, Jessica Tubbs, Bill Pitcock (both conferences), Kale Blickenstaff, and Dr. Daryl Werner, the latter two also a part of IMLEA's presentation, which is linked below, updated with notes from the session participants.

CONGRATULATIONS TO MORE MIDDLE SCHOOL AWARD WINNERS

Creekside Middle School of Carmel was the only middle school named in Indiana's 2025 list of Blue RIbbon Schools. Formerly a domain of the federal government, Creekside had completed the lengthy application previously required. They received their award at the Education Excellence Awards Gala in Indianapolis. Congratulations, Creekside!

And congratulations to Amy Sturgeon of Battle Ground Middle School, who was honored at the Big Ten Football Championship's Extra Yard for Teachers!

Do you know any other schools or educators who have been honored? Please let us know!

TEACHER PD OPPS WITH UPCOMING DEADLINES

*Teachers' First Book Study on Personalized Reading: Digital Strategies and Tools to Support All Learners; Apply by December 19 for this gamified, asynchronous study with two meetings. Will receive $30 reimbursement upon completion.

*Smithsonian Air & Space Museum Teacher Innovator Institute (across two summers) All expenses paid. Apply by January 19

*Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources, July, 2026. Free but expenses not covered.

Find Your Grind is an all-in-one career and future ready learning solution for modern day students. They help students discover who they are, explore career paths, and develop real-world skills to succeed in life and work. This blends well with DOE's emphasis on college and career readiness and graduation pathways. We will have more in future newsletters, including opportunities to learn more about it in person or via webinar.

TIMES ARE EST; FREE UNLESS NOTED

Many are available via recording, especially if you pre-register.

December 15 -January 11- Ditch That Textbook Virtual Summit

December 19- Deadline to Apply for an Engineer Visit During National Engineering Week (Feb. 22-28)

December 19- Deadline to Apply for Teachers First Book Study

January 8- Accountability Webinar with Steve Baker, 4:30 pm EST $

January 23- Deadline to Apply for Library of Congress Summer PD

January 23- Deadline to Apply for the Smithsonian Air & Space Teacher Innovator Institute

January 26-February 1- Crayola Creativity Week, Sponsored by Horace Mann

February 9- Speaker Proposals Due for KINLCon26

February 11-13- NCTM Spring Conference in Indianapolis, $

February 20-22- HASTI Annual Conference at Noblesville HS $

June 9-10-KINLCon at Plainfield Community High School $

ONGOING EVENTS

Indiana Learning Lab Workshops (Requires Sign in for Registration, Also Access to Archived Events)

Teachers First OK2Ask Online Workshops ; (Past on-demand sessions)

Keep Indiana Learning (KINL); Live Events (some $) Past Recordings/Digital Content

edWeb.net Webinars (Can watch at later date; if sponsored, "commercials" are at the end)

Leslie Fisher Webinars

AMLE Podcasts: Walk and Talk & Research to Practice

AMLE Events (some free, some paid)

Corwin Webinars, Additional Free Corwin Resources, Including Past Webinars

Please note: Webinars and events mentioned in this space are not an endorsement of commercial products; on the contrary, we try to avoid listing events that appear to be commercial in nature. Every effort is made to strip social media/tracking data from provided URLs. In many cases, you can register and receive a recording later.

ABOUT IMLEA

The only organization in Indiana devoted to promoting, improving, and supporting middle level education. We are the Indiana affiliate of the national organization AMLE, and administer the Schools to Watch program for the National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform.

Join us! Membership Benefits and Application

Joint Membership, AMLE/IMLEA

Susie Highley, Executive Director

FIND US:

11025 E. 25th Street, Indianapolis, IN. 46229 (Inside IASP)

(317) 759-4344

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Our partner, Horace Mann, is a proud sponsor of Crayola Creativity Week — a free, fun-filled program that inspires students, educators and families through imagination and creativity.

Sign up for free and enjoy:

Free creative learning resources and activity videos
Giveaways and sweepstakes with celebrity creators and virtual classroom visits
Year-round access to digital resources that support cross-curricular learning

Horace Mann and Crayola are also hosting an exclusive sweepstakes just for educators where you could win:

A four-day creative getaway to southern California
$500 in Crayola art supplies

Don’t miss your chance to get inspired and win some amazing prizes!

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