DATE: June
22, 2005
TO: Administrators
of Public School Districts
AEA
Administrators
FROM: Pamela
Pfitzenmaier, Administrator
Division
of Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education
SUBJECT: HF 816 Student Achievement and Teacher
Quality Program
On Monday, June 6, 2005, Governor Vilsack signed HF 816 that
included funding for, and changes to, the Student Achievement and Teacher
Quality Program. The purpose of this memo is to provide information about
changes in the requirements for participation in the Teacher Quality Program as
well as additional funding that was provided through HF 816.
A.
Changes in requirements for participation in the
Teacher Quality Program. In order
to be eligible to receive funds appropriated for any portion of the Teacher
Quality Program (including Beginning Teacher Mentoring and Induction, basic
Teacher Quality compensation and the two new funding allocations in HF 816),
school districts must meet certain requirements. While most of these requirements have not changed since the
Teacher Quality Program was first instituted, there is one substantive
change. School districts must add the
equivalent of one additional teacher contract day for the purpose of
professional development. Iowa Code 284.4, subsection 1, paragraph c, now
states, in part:
“1. A school district is eligible
to receive moneys appropriated for purposes specified in this chapter if [the
school board]… c. Provide, beginning in the fifth year of participation, the
equivalent of one additional contract day outside of instruction
time, than was provided in the school year preceding the first year of
participation, to provide additional time for teacher career development that
aligns with student learning and teacher development needs, including the
integration of technology into curriculum development, in order to achieve
attendance center and district-wide student achievement goals outlined in the
district comprehensive school improvement plan….” (emphasis added)
Question 1: Will the school board be required to hold a
public hearing if they need to revise their 2005-06 school calendar to add the
equivalent of one additional contract day for professional development to the
school calendar?
Answer: No.
School districts intending to begin student attendance prior to the week
of September 1 (per requirements of Iowa Code 279.10) have already filed for
the Early Start Waiver Request that was due June 15, 2005. Public hearings to meet the Code
requirements of 279.10 have already been held or are in progress. As a best
practice measure, districts will complete the calendar details locally and are
strongly urged to communicate those changes with their public.
Question 2: What “counts” as an additional professional
development day?
Answer: The
equivalent of one day should provide for alignment with the Iowa Teaching
Standards; career development needs of teachers (District and Individual
Teacher Career Development Plans); research-based instructional strategies;
alignment with the Comprehensive School Improvement Plan student achievement
goals; analysis, theory, classroom demonstration and practice, technology
integration, observation, reflection, and peer coaching; and improvement in
instructional practice and effect on student learning. This would NOT include items
such as mandatory trainings, parent-teacher conference days, teachers preparing
in their classrooms, staff orientations, or time spent preparing grades/report
cards/lesson plans.
Question 3: In planning for the equivalent of one
additional contract day, does each of our attendance centers have to add the
equivalent day in the same manner?
Answer: No. The equivalent of an additional contract
day may be implemented in different ways in different buildings according to
its needs. For example, an elementary building may choose to add contract hours
every other month while the high school may add one half contract day twice
during the year. However, all teachers
must have the equivalent of an additional contract day added.
B.
Additional compensation for the equivalent of one
additional professional development day. HF 816 allocated up to $10
million to the Department for use by school districts to add the equivalent of
one additional contract day to the school calendar. The amount to be
distributed to each district may be found at http://www.state.ia.us/educate/fis/sft/alloc/index.html.
The amount listed for your district was based upon the average per diem teacher
contract salary for your district (not including extracurricular activities)
plus a per diem FICA and IPERS of 13.4 percent times 4 percent allowable
growth. The actual district figure
listed was calculated based upon the number of full-time equivalent teachers in
the district per the fall 2004 certified teacher count. The purpose of this
funding is to provide the equivalent of one additional teacher contract day to
the school calendar for professional development (see the answer to question #3
above).
Question 4: Who is eligible to receive funding under
this provision?
Answer: “Teachers” employed by school districts and
AEAs are eligible. A “teacher” is an
individual holding a practitioner’s license (per Iowa Code Chapter 272),
employed in a non-administrative position as a teacher, librarian, media
specialist, preschool teacher or counselor by a school district or AEA. These same individuals are eligible for
basic Teacher Quality compensation funds.
Question 5: How are the funds to be divided among the
teachers?
Answer: Eligible teachers should receive pay for the
added professional development day based upon their average per diem contract
salary or as specified in the district’s collective bargaining agreement (not
including extracurricular activity pay – see paragraph B above).
Question 6: Are there specific account coding numbers
that will need to be used for revenue and expenditures?
Answer: Source
and project numbers have been assigned and can be found in the Uniform
Financial Accounting Manual on the Department’s website at http://www.state.ia.us/educate/fis/sft/ufa/index.html
C. Additional compensation for teacher salaries
and/or professional development. HF 816 allocated up to $6.625 million
to the Department for use by school districts for either salaries, professional
development, or both, as determined by the school district. The amount to be
distributed to your district may be found at http://www.state.ia.us/educate/fis/sft/alloc/index.html.
The amount listed for your district is based upon the same allocation formula
as the existing basic Teacher Quality compensation funding in Iowa Code 284.13
paragraph f: (1) Fifty percent of the
allocation is based upon basic enrollment of the district; (2) Fifty percent of
the allocation is based upon the number of FTE teachers employed in the
district.
Question 7: What are the allowable expenditures for
these funds?
Answer: These funds are to be used only for either teacher salaries (see the
answer in #4 for definition of “teacher”) or teacher professional development,
or both, as determined by the school district. (See the answer in #2 for the
definition of what constitutes “professional development.”)
Question 8: Who determines whether the funds allocated
are used for salaries, professional development or both?
Answer: The decision is made locally. If the
employees of a district/AEA eligible for these funds are organized under Iowa
Administrative Code Chapter 20 (collective bargaining), the board and certified
bargaining representatives shall mutually agree upon the use and
distribution of the funds (see the answer in #7 for allowable expenditures of
the funds). If the board and bargaining representatives do not reach agreement
by July 15 (or by another mutually agreed upon date), then the board shall
divide the funds among the eligible teachers for salaries. Teachers employed on a less than full-time
basis shall receive a prorated amount.
Question 9: May the funds in paragraph C be used to
supplement the funding for the equivalent of one additional professional
development day if the allocation of funds provided through paragraph B is
insufficient?
Answer: Yes, by mutual agreement.
Question 10: Are these funds considered to be in addition
to the existing basic Teacher Quality compensation funds?
Answer: Yes. These funds are in addition to the
existing basic Teacher Quality compensation funds. They will be reported separately from existing funds.
Question 11: Are “teachers” employed by an AEA eligible
for these funds?
Answer: “Classroom teachers” employed by an AEA are
eligible for funding.
Question 12: What about the minimum salary requirements?
Answer: This allocation is in addition to the
existing basic Teacher Quality compensation funds. A district should use its basic Teacher Quality compensation
allocation to provide for the requirements for minimum salaries.
Question 13: Are there specific
account coding numbers we will need to use for revenue and expenditures?
Answer: See the answer to question #6.
D. Reporting requirements. HF 816
adds new reporting requirements for local districts. We anticipate that the reporting will be accomplished in two
separate time periods:
1. Fall 2005
a. Fall BEDS: Districts will provide information about the number of teacher contract days for the 2005-06 school year. Additional guidance will be provided in the fall BEDS instructions.
b. Fall
Web-based report: In a separate
Web-based report, districts will be asked for the following information about
professional development:
(1) Evidence that the district will meet the requirement to add the equivalent of one additional teacher contract day in the 2005-06 school year for professional development meeting the following definition: “…teacher career development that aligns with student learning and teacher development needs, including the integration of technology into curriculum development, in order to achieve attendance center and district-wide student achievement goals outlined in the district Comprehensive School Improvement Plan…” (Iowa Code 284.4, subsection 1, paragraph c). Districts will be asked for information about the teacher contract days devoted to this definition of professional development in the “baseline year” as well as in 2004-05 and 2005-06. (Note: The following district/AEAs had a baseline year of 2001-02: Cardinal, Forest City, Glidden-Ralston, Jesup, Morning Sun, North Mahaska, Paton-Churdan, Winterset, AEA 6, AEA10, AEA16. All other districts/AEAs had a baseline year of 2000-01.)
(2) Professional
development areas of emphasis the district plans to address with the
equivalent of one additional professional development day during the 2005-06 school
year (per your district and/or building career development plan). The district
will select as many as are applicable for the district:
(a) Reading/language
arts
(b) Math
(c) Science
(d) Other (there will be a text box to enable a
description)
(3) Description
of how the district budgeted the funds described in paragraph C.
2. Fall 2006:
Information on the areas of emphasis the district actually addressed
with the equivalent of one additional professional development day during the
2005-06 school year will be included in the district’s annual progress report
(APR). The amounts expended for
professional development and salaries will be reported in the certified annual
report (CAR).
E.
The following dollars were appropriated in HF 816:
§
$4.2 million for Mentoring and Induction
§
$2 million for National Board Certification
§
Up to an additional $10 million for the equivalent of one
additional day of professional development (see paragraph B above)
§
An additional $6.625 million for professional development
and/or teacher salaries (see paragraph C above)
§
Approximately $46.3 million for basic Teacher Quality
compensation (the per district allocations will be available soon)
If your district has more
questions, contact Dianne Chadwick (515-281-3718) or dianne.chadwick@iowa.gov.