Northern California Educational Leadership Consortium

NorCal Educators' Digest

Join the NorCal ELC Network and we’ll send you an email when each newsletter is available. Our newsletter is an information source for project activities, events, resources, school success stories, and hot topics for schools in the Shasta Region of 21CSLA.

NorCal Educator's Digest

February 2024


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NorCal ELC 2024 Winter Leadership Institute

Held January 29th & 30th

NorCal ELC hosts its 4th annual Winter Leadership Institute by featuring Dr. Adele Diamond as keynote; a neuroscience expert who specializes in Executive Functioning. Dr. Diamond encouraged participants to embed executive functioning practices throughout the day rather than setting aside a separate time to do it. Diamond focused on three core areas: 

  1. Inhibitory Control
  2. Working memory 
  3. Cognitive Flexibility

“Have kids do what they love!” was a message that resonated with participants. Dr. Diamond was the first speaker of five sessions focused on Neuroscience offered this Spring by NorCal ELC. For more information on the series, see the flyerhere. 

Following Dr. Diamond additional sessions were offered by local experts and NorCal ELC staff and coaches via ten offerings for participants to choose from. These 60 minute sessions covered Emotional Intelligence to Developing Driver Diagrams to an Anti-Bias Framework and Social Justice Standards, and more. 

Day 2 of the Winter Institute allowed for participants to network, reflect, and share their team’s Problem of Practice (PoP).  This sharing as a light “consultancy” model supports teams as they take stock of what they’ve accomplished thus far and get feedback, ideas, and encouragement from fellow Northern California colleagues.   The Summer Institute in June will provide a culminating opportunity for teams to share their learning and PoP status.

Access the keynote and content session recording playlist and materials from the 2024 Winter Leadership Institute here.(opens in new window)

For more information about NorCal ELC or the Winter Leadership Institute, contact Dr. Mike Kotar; mkotar@csuchico.edu



Upcoming NorCal ELC Professional Learning Events

Neuroscience in the North State: A Focus on Executive Function

NorCal ELC has planned and is sponsoring Spring Webinar Sessions that will feature top experts in the neuroscience of learning who will offer practical approaches to increase student’s executive function skills in schools, classrooms, and at home. These sessions are sponsored by NorCal ELC. Registration is free.

View the Neuroscience Sessions flyer.(opens in new window)



Universal Transitional Kindergaten (UTK) Module Offerings in the NorCal Shasta Geo Region

NorCal ELC is offering 21st Century California School Leadership Academy (21CSLA) UTK modules in the Shasta Geo Region virtually in March & April 2024. NorCal ELC is offering a $500 stipend to participants upon completion of each module.

Access the NorCal ELC UTK Module Offering(s) 2023–24 Calendar.(opens in new window)


NorCal UTK Community of Practice

Join our region-wide UTK Community of Practice (CoP) to talk and network with early childhood, TK and other primary teachers and administrators about educational issues and services for young children. All sessions are being held the first Thursday of every month via Zoom. The NorCal ELC UTK CoP 2023-24 Calendar is also available.

To join the CoP, register for our UTK email list by accessing this Google Form.(opens in new window)



21CSLA Events & Opportunities

Do You Want to Add UTK Leadership to Your Specialities?

The 21CSLA UTK Leadership Certificate is hosting an information session later this month on Wednesday, February 28th, 4pm-5pm PT via Zoom. The Certificate is especially designed for those enrolled in a Preliminary Administrative Services (PASC) or Clear Administrative Services Credential program (CASC), or hold a Certificate of Eligibility. 


Access the information session flyer here.

You can email 21CSLA UTK Leadership at 21csla-utk-certificate@berkeley.edu and visit their website.



Shasta Region Opportunities

Ethnic Studies Planning Symposium!

In order to support AB101, the upcoming Ethnic Studies graduation requirement, Glenn COE in partnership with Chico State School of Education and the Far North County Offices CRESC Leads, will be holding an Ethnic Studies Planning Symposium at Chico State May 10th - May 11th. This is a FREE event where you will receive a stipend for attendance and travel/lodging based on county.

Access the flyer here! 

This Symposium will feature Miguel Zavala (Cal State LA Professor and author of Rethinking Ethnic Studies) as Keynote Speaker, Dawniell Black (K-12 Curriculum and Instruction Program Specialist Elk Grove) presenting district implementation and planning support, and presentations from our 9 work groups that have written local curriculum you can use to meet the Ethnic Studies requirement ranging from Ethnic Literature, the Tulelake Incarceration Camp, African American Studies, Chicano-Latinx, Asian American, Native American, and Environmental Science. 

We ask that you register a team (consisting of teachers, administrators, counselors, superintendents, etc.) as there will be time to take a course outline and begin to build out a syllabus using resources created locally. Our region spans from Butte County to Siskiyou all the way over to Humboldt (11 counties!), so we will have time to collaborate within our counties and with others designing similar courses across the North State.

Please register after all members of your team have committed to being at the Symposium for Day 1 and 2. The May 10th agenda will run from 9am - 3pm and the May 11th agenda will run from 10am - 3:30pm.

Please do not register individually, you'll need all contact information for your high school team before registering your school. 

High School Team Registration can be found here.

If you have any questions contact Kendra Tyler, Ed Services Coordinator at ktyler@glenncoe.org. Phone number available at 530.635.7650.


Chico State's REACH Student Success Center

The REACH Student Success Center (RSSC), formerly known as the Chico Student Success Center (CSSC), seeks to serve and support first generation college students here at Chico State. We are an award-winning program that devotes ourselves to uphold our students' academic goals by providing professional advising, as well as guidance and support, throughout their entire college experience. The RSSC strives to provide an inclusive and welcoming environment for all our students, and offers students opportunities to be involved within our campus community.

Benefits of the program include:

  • peer and faculty mentor support in first-year
  • enrollment into a college success class in first-year
  • social connections and free events
  • access to our study space, kitchen area, and our lobby/lounge area
  • personalized advising for their entire college experience
  • career readiness and preparation for graduation

If you know any students interested in receiving this free resource at Chico State, please have them complete our free and easy application.

Get started with the REACH Application here.

For questions about the program or application, reach out to Ricky Galvan at egalvan3@csuchico.edu or phone (530-898-5599) for assistance!


Climate Change and Environmental Justice Program Field Test

Are you a teacher responsible for teaching about science or environmental justice? Join the Climate Change and Environmental Justice Program (CCEJP) Field Test Study and receive a stipend for participating! The evaluation of the CCEJP Field Test serves to determine the degree to which the Unit Storyline curriculum meets the CCEJP criteria and the degree to which teachers felt adequately prepared to facilitate the unit. It will provide important information to Ten Strands and the curriculum writing teams about the effectiveness of the curriculum, supporting materials, and teacher training.

For more information, access the flyer. (Google Doc)



California Center for School Climate Event Offerings

Virtual Statewide School Climate Conference

Join the California Center for School Climate on Tuesday, February 29, 2024 for a FREE full-day virtual event, Transforming School Climate Mindsets and Ecosystems. This event will feature practitioners from California schools, districts, and county offices of education as well as nonprofit education partners.

Registration is now open for all sessions!

Use the registration link for access to the event and to create your event itinerary.


Safe and Supportive Learning Environments (SSLE) Deep Dive Virtual Professional Learning Series

The California Center for School Climate offers virtual professional learning courses for K–12 educators and education leaders that are Deep Dives into aspects of Safe and Supportive Learning Environments (SSLE). The upcoming Deep Dive, Cultivating Compassionate Classrooms: Heart-Centered Teaching and Learning, weaves together concepts from Restorative Practices, Culturally Responsive Pedagogy, Healing-Centered Engagement, and Social-Emotional Learning and brings them down to the classroom level.

Six synchronous sessions will take place in April and May 2024. For a limited time, course fees are covered by the CCSC. There is no cost for participants to attend.

Applications are due March 1, 2024. Space is limited.

Apply now!



Resource Spotlights

Engagement Matters!

Check out this Comprehensive Resource Guide (CRG) developed as part of the Community Engagement Initiative, which is part of California’s State System of Support. This resource includes “a dynamic collection of facilitator protocols crafted to enhance authentic and meaningful engagement” as well as interactive training modules.

Resource protocols include activities like:

  • Circle Keeping
  • Five Whys Root Cause Analysis
  • Group Voting with Electronic Polling
  • Charting Outcome using a Timeline and more.

Explore the CRG resources here.


Want to learn more about Root Cause Analysis?

Join a free, virtual 90-minute Introduction to Root Cause Analysis training offered by System Improvement Leads (SIL) on two different dates in March. Or, take a deeper dive into Root Cause Analysis with a 4 hour, free, virtual training to be held March 14, 2024.

Access the Root Cause Analysis Training flyer. (PDF)


The CCEE Connection

Accessthemonthly newsletter of the California Coalition for Educational Excellence that spotlights the work of CCEE and its partner agencies, providing immediate resources, tools, and strategies to support the changing needs of LEAs.

This month's newsletter focuses on the projects and initiatives led by the Innovation, Instruction, and Impact (I3) Center. It highlights the peer-to-peer learning experiences from our first Cross-Network Convening, delves deeper into the connections being made in our African American Student Success Network, and shares innovative practices from the field in our three newly published Spotlights and recent Open Door session.

Subscribe to the CCEE Connection.


Social and Emotional Learning & Wellness Summit

Registration for the SEL & Wellness Summit is now open to ALL California Educators! Join the inaugural SEL & Wellness Summit May 2-3, 2024 in Sacramento, hosted by Sacramento County Office of Education and funded through the California Department of Healthcare Services’ CalHOPE Student Support project.

This will be a transformative event for educators across California. With the theme of Thriving Together through Connection, Belonging, and Healing, the Summit will address recent and ongoing challenges for educators, and embrace our collective capacity to bring a brighter future into being for our state’s students.

Space is limited!

Register now!