e t c e t e r a
1. A number of unspecified additional things; 2. pl. additional items, odds and ends

Bob Lehman with Dorothy Shailer and her quilt.

STATE TO REVIEW SPECIFIC SCHOOL PROGRAMS The state Department of Education will be conducting a coordinated program review of specific Nantucket school programs during the week of April 23. Nina Locario, the schools' director of special services, said the state conducts this review every seven years in every district in the Commonwealth.

"It's like an audit process," she said. "Are we following regulations? Are we following programs to reflect the intent of the law?" The site visit by the state, she said, will include parents, teachers and school administrators.

According to a release issued by the Department of Education, the areas to be focused on are Special Education, English Language Learners and Civil Rights. Locario said school staff receive training annually in civil rights principles, and that it includes areas such as harassment and equal opportunity ethics. English Language Learners is education geared towards those for whom English is not the primary language.

Text of the Department of Education release follows:

"Dr. Robert Pellicone, Superintendent of Nantucket Public Schools was recently informed by the Commissioner of Education of an upcoming Department of Education Coordinated Program Review. As part of this Coordinated Program Review, Department staff will visit the district during the week of April 23, 2007. Such visits are routinely conducted by the Department to satisfy federal and state requirements for the periodic review of specific education programs and services in schools throughout the Commonwealth. The Department is reviewing several programs during a single visit in order to use Department and school staff's time most efficiently and to encourage strong connections among the programs.

"The Department's Coordinated Program Review will address the following programs: Special Education, English Language Learners and Civil Rights. After reviewing school district procedures for these programs, a Department of Education team will make its onsite visit, during which it will review individual student records, interview administrators, teachers and parents, and observe instructional sites. After the onsite visit, it will prepare a report for the Superintendent and School Committee with detailed findings for each program and an Executive Summary.

"Using a scale of ratings ranging from "Commendable" to "Not Implemented," the report will rate the implementation of each requirement reviewed by the Department of Education. Where requirements are found less than substantially implemented, the district must propose to the Department of Education corrective action to bring those areas into compliance with statutes and regulations. Districts and schools are encouraged to incorporate the corrective action into their district and school improvement plans and professional development plan. The school district may request technical assistance from the Department of Education in developing a corrective action plan. Program Review Final Reports will be available on the Department's Internet Web site, www.doe.mass.edu

"Any member of the public may request to be interviewed by telephone by a member of the department's visiting team. Those wishing to be interviewed should call the Superintendent's office at 228-7285 ext.1150 no later than April 13 to leave their name and phone number, or they may call the Department of Education at (781) 338-3739. Amember of the DOE visiting team will contact each person desiring an interview within two weeks after the completion of the onsite visit. If an individual is not comfortable communicating in English or requires some other accommodation, the Department of Education will make arrangements to communicate appropriately with the individual."

HOMESTEAD RESIDENT'S QUILT NETS $1,600 AT AUCTION Dorothy Shailer must be feeling proud right now. At the March 24 Homestead auction the 97-year-old lady's handstitched, patchwork quilt brought a bid of $1,600 from islander Allen Renaud, who then gave the quilt to The Homestead to keep and display. Ms. Shailer, who lives at The Homestead, has made several quilts in her lifetime that have quickly become collector's items. The auction, held at the American Legion, was a fundraiser for the historic senior residence on upper Main Street,

where the quilt will be displayed as a wall hanging. I