All teachers and instructional aides must complete the Test Administrator Training Module 1 by Friday, February 25, 2011. Upon completion of the Module, print your certificate, and give a copy to your campus administrator or designee. You will also need to keep a copy for your own records. Modules 2 and 3 are optional, and are encouraged for those who are first-time Test Administrators or Monitors. If you choose to complete Module 2 and 3, you should print a copy for both the office and yourself.

STEPS FOR ALL TEST ADMINISTRATORS/MONITORS:

1. Go to the http://www.TexasAssessment.com/TAonlinetraining website and complete Module 1 by Friday, February 25th.

2. Print your Certificate of completion

3. Keep a copy for your own records, and turn in a copy of your Certificate.

The following page – Click Here - provides information about upcoming GT workshops for educators offered during the summer of 2011.  (pdf)

FOR MORE INFO, contact: Debbie Reese, Gifted and Talented Specialist, Advanced Academic Services, Region 7 Education Service Center, 1909 North Longview Street, Kilgore, Texas 75662
Phone: (903) 988-6714

The Department of State Health Services Zoonosis Control Branch (http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/idcu/health/zoonosis/) is conducting the spring 2011 statewide “Rabies Awareness & Prevention Poster Contest” for K-8^th grade.

There are prizes provided by the Zach Jones Memorial Fund (http://www.zachjonesmemorial.org/). There will be one prize (a Nintendo DSi) for the top-ranking kindergarten poster; there will be a first, second, and third place prize for each age group (grades 1-2, 3-5 and 6-8). First prize for groups 3-5 & 6-8 will be an Xbox 360 with Kinect; 2^nd prize will be an IPod Touch; 3^rd prize will be a $50 Visa Gift Card. First Prize for the grades 1-2 group will be a Wii; 2^nd prize will be a Nintendo DSi; 3^rd prize will be a $50 Visa Gift Card.   

Rabies is endemic in Texas. Skunks and bats are the most commonly affected species, and school grounds are the number one location in Texas for exposure to rabid bats. Bat bites are not always noticeable and many people are unaware that exposure to bats poses a risk. Most of these rabies exposures are preventable through education. Information about the contest can be downloaded from the DSHS Zoonosis Control website. You can view the winning posters submitted for the previous contests at this same site.

Posters due April 8, 2011. Please contact us if you have any questions!

 Bonny C. Mayes, MA,  Phone:  (512) 458-7111, ext. 2888
Ernest “Skip” Oertli, DVM, PhD, Phone:  (512) 458-7111, ext. 3306
Zoonosis Control Branch
Texas Department of State Health Services
Office Location T-813