In addition to swearing in two new members, the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence’s (CCEE) governing board received updates from staff on the Statewide System of Support (SSOS) and other initiatives at its Aug. 22 convening.
Ed Manansala, superintendent of the El Dorado County Office of Education, and Nancy Portillo, chief deputy superintendent of public instruction for the California Department of Education, both took their oath of office at the top of the meeting. Portillo serves as the designee for State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond.
The governing board came together on the heels of the launch the revamped SSOS website, which includes an all-encompassing directory that local educational agency leaders can reference to find relevant contacts and information on a variety of topics and a resource hub with materials broken down by subject, student group, content areas, state performance indicators, professional development opportunities and more. The three tiers of support — universal, targeted/supplemental and intensive — are also detailed.
The upgrade is meant to make it easier for districts to access supports by creating a throughline from state initiatives to support available through COEs and lead agencies.
During the meeting, staff also gave an update on the Community Engagement Initiative (CEI) 1.0 project and progress on 2.0. According to the CCEE website, CEI aims to:
- Build capacity in communities and districts to have meaningful conversations, build trust and improve student outcomes
- Identify effective models of community engagement
- Develop effective peer-to-peer partnerships between districts and COEs to further community engagement
CEI 1.0 ran from 2019–24 and had dozens of LEA participants. Some highlights included the introduction of leadership programs in participating LEAs for parents to deepen community engagement, a slight decline in suspension rates and stable graduation rates during the time period observed and the creation of a resource guide to support other LEAs in elevating community engagement. A full report on CEI 1.0 is available here.
CEI 1.0 was co-directed by CCEE, the California Association for Bilingual Education, Families in Schools and the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools. San Bernardino County Superintendent Ted Alejandre was recognized for his work on the project.
CEI 2.0 is underway and participating LEAs are already seeing improvements.
Additionally, a report from the California Individualized Education Program (IEP) Expert Panel was presented. The panel met for two years and worked to revise the IEP template of the prior workgroup. The report provides recommendations to incorporate accessible designs, technology integration, state and cross-agency guidance, translation, training and usability testing.
In other recent CCEE developments:
- The agency is seeking applicants for its Data Literacy & Leadership Academy pilot which will kick off in October. Only district and charter staff can apply at this time. Applications are due by 4 p.m. on Aug. 30. Learn more »
- The CCEE and Marin COE are seeking proposals from qualified organizations interested in helping to develop and deliver CCEE-related communication resources and services. Proposals are due by 4 p.m. on Jan. 13, 2025, and should fall into one of the following areas: digital presence and content, outreach and engagement, events and workshops, reporting and analysis or support and feedback. Learn more »
The CCEE’s board is scheduled to meet next on Dec. 12.
