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.NAPT MEMBER NEWS
U.S. Department of Education to Collect New Data Regarding Education During the Pandemic
U.S. Department of Education
The U.S. Department of Education announced last Friday (2/5/21) a new federal data collection project that will provide monthly updates on a variety of factors that affect education during the COVID-19 pandemic. The USDOE will gather "high-quality data from a nationally and state-representative sample" of 3,500 schools that enroll 4th-graders, and 3,500 schools that enroll 8th-graders, the agency explained, and will report once a month. The survey will look at factors such as whether schools are open with full-time in-person instruction, with a hybrid of online and in-person instruction, or fully remote; enrollment by instructional mode by race and ethnicity, socioeconomic status, English-learner status, and disability status; the frequency of in-person learning for students in a given school; and the average number of hours of synchronous instruction for students in remote instruction.
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Number of K-12 Students Attending "Virtual-only" Schools Hits New Low
NAPT
According to our friend Dennis Roche, President of Burbio, just over 35% of US K-12 students are attending "virtual-only” schools, the lowest point since Burbio began tracking this statistic late last summer. At the same time, summer school offerings and the continuation of virtual-only options in the 2021/22 school year have gone from an "early sighting, maybe it's a trend" in Burbio's district level audits a few weeks ago to "a flood that indicates a big change in the landscape is coming next school year". The way students are educated, how long they attend school, and where they are located while they take classes are all clearly in transition.
This week, Burbio introduced a new feature of its School Opening Tracker — a new national map to illustrate the progress of each state in providing all students access to traditional in-person education. Check it our below:
Finally, Roche notes that K-5 students continue to be more likely to be in-person than older children and more likely in a traditional format. He expects this trend to continue as the "Always Virtual" areas that are returning students often start with younger children first, as do the conversions from hybrid to traditional learning we are seeing.
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The Safety Vision IR Thermometer is used to measure passengers’ temperature quickly and easily as they board the bus or enter the building. Scanning any part of the face or hand, temperature readings are displayed on the LED screen, in addition to an audible voice that states if the person’s temperature is within range.
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Thank you to our 2021 Business Partners!
NAPT
The companies that provide valuable products and services to student transportation operations are critical to the success of the industry and critical to the success of NAPT.
We'd like to thank these companies for continuing to support NAPT as Business Partners for 2021: 247Security, ALC Schools, AMF-Bruns of America, BITZER US, Blue Bird, Bus Bulletin, busHive, BusPlanner, CI Solutions, CJM Solutions, Easy Way Safety Services, Gatekeeper Systems, HSM Transportation Solutions, Hydro-Chem Systems, Hydrotex, IC Bus, IEE Sensing, Premier Wireless, Q'Straint/Sure-Lok, ReaXium, REI, Rosco Vision Systems, Safe Fleet/Seon, SafeGuard/IMMI, Smart Horizons/School Training Solutions, SOBRSafe, Transfinder, Tyler Technologies, United Safety Corporation, Valeo Thermal Commercial Vehicles North America, Zonar.
Please visit our website for a full list of our Business Partners that includes website and contact information.
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Now on Demand on NAPT® ACTS!:
- How the Challenges of 2020 May Shape Your Future: A Personal Story About Human Resilience
- Connecting the Boundary Between Science and Operations: Mitigations May Help Reduce the Spread of COVID-19 on the School Bus: Face Masks and Open Windows: Mitigations May Help Reduce the Spread of COVID-19 on the School Bus
- What School Superintendents Are Paying Attention to Right Now
- Push 2 Talk
- Overcoming the Darkness: Shining Light on Mental Illness
Coming Up on NAPT® ACTS!:
- Tuesday, February 16, 2021: A New, Monthly NAPT® ACTS! Series Premieres: Electric School Buses: From Zero to Sixty
- Tuesday, February 23, 2021: Push 2 Talk, the NAPT® ACTS! Series Continues
- Tuesday, March 2, 2021 Webinar: Bridging the Gap Between the Bus and the Classroom: A Continuous Focus on Student's Mental Health
- Tuesday, March 16, 2021: From Zero to Sixty, the NAPT® ACTS! Series Continues
- Tuesday, March 23, 2021 Webinar: Federal Policy Changes Under the Biden Administration: What That Means for K12 Education
- Tuesday, March 30, 2021: Push 2 Talk, the NAPT® ACTS! Series Continues
All webinars and series are offered exclusively to NAPT® ACTS! subscribers, subscribe today!
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Keep Your NAPT® Member Profile Up-to-Date
NAPT
Now is a great time to log in to the NAPT® website and update your member profile!
Once you're logged in:
- View and update your personal information — it's quick and simple. As soon as you log in, you'll see all of your information and have the ability to make edits as necessary.
- Upload a professional photo to display in your profile that will be visible in the Online Member Directory.
- Provide a brief professional biography in the space provided so we can learn a little more about you.
- Select your Directory Category by clicking on "My Directory Options" and selecting the appropriate organization type.
Log in today! Please contact headquarters at 800.989.6278 if you need assistance logging in to the system.
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Connect with NAPT
NAPT
Let NAPT help you stay in touch with colleagues and up-to-date on industry news and interesting stories from around the nation.
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Thousands of industry professionals subscribe to association news briefs, which allows your company to push messaging directly to their inboxes and take advantage of the association's brand affinity.
Connect with Highly Defined Buyers and Maximize Your Brand Exposure
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Wash a School Bus in less than 5 minutes! Using only 5 gallons of water and 1 ounce of soap per minute, walk around the bus applying soap and the second time using fresh water, all automated. We are the world’s most economical, ecological and efficient bus wash system!
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.INDUSTRY NEWS
How districts can operate COVID-19 vaccine sites
Education Week
As pressure builds to reopen schools safely for students and staff, a growing number of districts are no longer content to wait on the sidelines for vaccines. Education Week looks at how the Anchorage school district has set up a large-scale community vaccination program that's responsible for a significant share of all the doses administered in Alaska.
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A year into COVID-19, school leaders are still adapting as uncertainty persists
K-12 DIVE
Nearly a year out from when the coronavirus pandemic initially disrupted K-12, school leaders are still grappling with daily decisions centered around how to best educate students — and how to do so safely. In a year like no other, there is no playbook, no historical references and no hard data on best practices. To assess the state of the situation, the National Association of Elementary School Principals surveyed principals in March, July and December to ask about coronavirus safety protocols, attendance issues, learning loss and more.
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5 ways to overcome compassion fatigue in K-12 education
District Administration Magazine
As the world continues to experience rising levels of COVID cases, healthcare workers, teachers, parents, administrators and others are feeling the heavy weight of burnout and compassion fatigue. While we don't normally think of K-12 educators as the most susceptible to compassion fatigue, the demands of the field often lead to similar outcomes as those in healthcare.
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A free year of college and year-round school? New ideas for a new administration
EdSurge
It is with great enthusiasm, and relief, that so many educators looked forward to the arrival of the Biden Administration and the new U.S. Secretary of Education, Miguel Cardona. With their leadership, the department will finally provide programs and funding for reopening schools across the country. And while the new administration has no bigger challenge than fighting COVID-19, we should also take a moment to consider the other critical challenges that American education faces.
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Educators, environmentalists push for more state funding for electric school buses
KXAN-TV
A Texas school district is blazing a trail as the first in the state to add zero-emission buses to its fleet. Now education and environmental leaders are encouraging state leaders to find ways for other districts to follow suit. The Everman Independent School District, which serves more than 6,000 students in a Fort Worth suburb, now boasts three fully-electric buses.
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How school districts are providing safety measures for kids on school buses
KVEO-TV
Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, school districts have put safety protocols in place to protect teachers and students but that doesn't mean that's where the safety measures end. One school official says it starts on buses. Mission Consolidated Independent School District's Craig Verley says the school bus is where many students make contact before school begins, the district knew from day one it was important to make sure they have all safety measures in place because of the pandemic.
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Push to reopen schools could leave out millions of students
The Associated Press
President Joe Biden says he wants most schools serving kindergarten through eighth grade to reopen by late April, but even if that happens, it is likely to leave out millions of students, many of them minorities in urban areas. "We're going to see kids fall further and further behind, particularly low-income students of color," said Shavar Jeffries, president of Democrats for Education Reform. "There's potentially a generational level of harm that students have suffered from being out of school for so long."
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Here are our recommended cleaning protocols for the new year
We Are Teachers
2020 was a tough year, but even as we remain hopeful for better in 2021, we must continue to be vigilant in keeping our classrooms sanitized and safe. Hopefully, like mine, your school has a strong custodial team to take the lead. But for now, it's all hands on deck. To help prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus, we'll all be pitching in. Many school plans require mask-wearing, frequent hand washing, social distancing and daily cleaning, but there is a lot of information out there and it changes daily.
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Report: How PA utility companies can creatively invest in electric school buses
MyChesCo
To protect our children's health and environment, PennPIRG Education Fund and PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center have released a new report to identify new, cutting-edge ways that utility companies can assist school districts in paying for zero-emission buses and how schools can reap the long-term benefits.
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State superintendent: Extend the Michigan school year to combat pandemic learning loss
Chalkbeat
Michigan's top school official wants state lawmakers to increase the minimum number of days children are required to attend school. Michael Rice, state superintendent, said that the pandemic has exacerbated students' learning needs. With schools closed to slow the spread of COVID-19, thousands of students statewide spent much of the last 10 months learning online.
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Valuable lessons for K-12 learned during the pandemic
EdTech Magazine
As part of the virtual TCEA 2021 conference that kicked off this week, three experts in educational technology discussed the biggest challenges for K–12 schools during the pandemic, the lessons they hope schools will remember and what advice they would share with district leaders.
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6 leadership best practices to empower your workforce
Entrepreneur
Leadership is an active, continual process. While certain people may be innately better at empowering and motivating others, leadership is a skill that can be developed — and one that needs thoughtful practice. At its most fundamental level, leadership is the ability to make situations and people better. The best leaders nurture and inspire their team to perform better and reach their greatest potential.
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When to switch strategy in a crisis
Harvard Business Review
The universal managerial imperative is clear: When something happens, you must do something. Still, while operational adjustments are relatively straightforward, even if potentially painful, it is hard to know whether you should you change your competitive strategy. It would help, of course, if we could run experiments. Unfortunately, there's no such thing as a double-blind randomized controlled trial for competitive strategy. Even if there were, it would be too slow. Do something, after all, means now, especially in an urgent, widespread crisis, like a pandemic.
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Inclusive leadership: Making the parts more whole
Forbes
To unleash the power of all, it is critical to rise above our limiting mindsets, and even more importantly, to transcend constricted heart-sets. The human spirit, our deepest, most authentic humanity, cannot be denied or minimized by judgements that tend to restrict our collective worth. In the end, synergy supersedes separateness and eventually prevails; inclusion is the soul of synergy.
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How the race between vaccinations and COVID variants affects school reopening
EdSurge
President Biden has made reopening K-12 schools as one of his top priorities for the first 100 days of his administration, or by the end of April. With COVID-19 vaccinations rolling out across the country, there's hope that that will happen. But there is also a sense of added urgency. New strains of the coronavirus are emerging, and vaccine distributions and administrations have run into hiccups.
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How the best leaders rethink and unlearn what they know
Inc.
Many first-time entrepreneurs share a similar narrative: They stumbled upon a problem in need of solving and, against all kinds of odds, worked like crazy to come up with the best solution to it. "I just had to figure it out!" they often say. "I felt like such an imposter!"
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4 key strategies for becoming a more powerful and trusted leader
The Lead Change Group
Power. The word itself evokes a reaction. What thoughts or feelings do you have when you think of power? Perhaps you picture an organizational chart where the boxes at the top are imbued with more power than those below. Maybe you imagine an iron fist, representative of a person who rules over others with absolute authority. Or perhaps the word power conjures up feelings of nervousness, anxiety or fear, based on negative experiences you've had in the past.
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