SCS CSHB 465(RLS): "An Act relating to employment of teachers and school administrators and to public school collective bargaining; and providing for an effective date."
00SENATE CS FOR CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 465(RLS) 01 "An Act relating to employment of teachers and school administrators and to 02 public school collective bargaining; and providing for an effective date." 03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 * Section 1. AS 14.20.140 is amended to read: 05 Sec. 14.20.140. NOTIFICATION OF NONRETENTION. (a) If a teacher who 06 has acquired tenure rights is to be laid off under AS 14.20.177 or is not to be 07 retained for the following school year, the employer shall notify the teacher of the 08 layoff or nonretention by writing, delivered before March 16, or by registered mail 09 postmarked before March 16. 10 (b) If a teacher who has not acquired tenure rights is to be laid off under 11 AS 14.20.177 or is not to be retained for the following school year the employer shall 12 notify the teacher of the layoff or nonretention by writing delivered on or before the 13 last day of the school term or by registered mail postmarked on or before the last day 14 of the school term.
01 (c) Notwithstanding a teacher's right to continued employment under 02 AS 23.10.500 - 23.10.550, a school district may notify a teacher of layoff or 03 nonretention under this section for the following school year for a permissible reason. 04 * Sec. 2. AS 14.20.145 is amended to read: 05 Sec. 14.20.145. AUTOMATIC REEMPLOYMENT. If notification of 06 nonretention or layoff is not given according to AS 14.20.140, a teacher is entitled to 07 be reemployed in the same district for the following school year on the contract terms 08 the teacher and the employer may agree upon, or, if no terms are agreed upon, the 09 provisions of the previous contract are continued for the following school year, subject 10 to AS 14.20.158. Except as provided in AS 14.20.177(e), the [THE] right to 11 automatic reemployment under [BE REEMPLOYED ACCORDING TO] this section 12 expires if the teacher does not accept reemployment within 30 days after the date on 13 which the teacher receives a contract of reemployment. A teacher who is on family 14 leave under AS 23.10.500 - 23.10.550 must comply with the 30-day deadline in this 15 section to retain the teacher's reemployment rights under this section. 16 * Sec. 3. AS 14.20.147(b) is amended to read: 17 (b) When a school operated by a federal agency is transferred to or absorbed into 18 a new or existing school district, the teachers shall also be transferred if mutually agreed 19 by the teacher or teachers and the school board of the new or existing district. A teacher 20 transferred from a federal agency school that [, WHICH] does not have an official salary 21 schedule or teacher tenure in the same manner as a public school district in the state [,] 22 shall be placed on a position on the salary schedule of the absorbing district; the salary 23 may not be less than the teacher would have received in the federal agency school. If 24 the teacher taught three [TWO] or more years in the federal agency school and, at the 25 time of transfer, had a valid Alaska teaching certificate, that teacher shall be placed on 26 tenure in the absorbing district. 27 * Sec. 4. AS 14.20 is amended by adding a new section to read: 28 Sec. 14.20.149. EMPLOYEE EVALUATION. (a) A school board shall adopt 29 by July 1, 1997, a certificated employee evaluation system for evaluation and 30 improvement of the performance of the district's teachers and administrators. The 31 evaluation system applies to all the district's certificated employees except the district's
01 superintendent. A school board shall consider information from students, parents, 02 community members, classroom teachers, affected collective bargaining units, and 03 administrators in the design and periodic review of the district's certificated employee 04 evaluation system. An evaluation of a certificated employee under this section must be 05 based on observation of the employee in the employee's workplace. 06 (b) The certificated employee evaluation system must 07 (1) establish district performance standards for the district's teachers and 08 administrators that are based on professional performance standards adopted by the 09 department by regulation; 10 (2) require at least two observations for the evaluation of each nontenured 11 teacher in the district each school year; 12 (3) require at least an annual evaluation of each tenured teacher in the 13 district who met the district performance standards during the previous school year; 14 (4) permit the district to limit its evaluations of tenured teachers who 15 have consistently exceeded the district performance standards to one evaluation every 16 two school years; 17 (5) require the school district to perform an annual evaluation for each 18 administrator; 19 (6) require the school district to prepare and implement a plan of 20 improvement for a teacher or administrator whose performance did not meet the district 21 performance standards, except if the teacher's or administrator's performance warrants 22 immediate dismissal under AS 14.20.170(a); and 23 (7) provide an opportunity for students, parents, community members, 24 teachers, and administrators to provide information on the performance of the teacher or 25 administrator who is the subject of the evaluation to the evaluating administrator. 26 (c) A person may not conduct an evaluation under this section unless the person 27 holds a type B certificate or is a site administrator under the supervision of a person with 28 a type B certificate, is employed by the school district as an administrator, and has 29 completed training in the use of the school district's teacher evaluation system. 30 (d) Once each school year, a school district shall offer in-service training to the 31 certificated employees who are subject to the evaluation system. The training must
01 address the procedures of the evaluation system, the standards that the district uses in 02 evaluating the performance of teachers and administrators, and other information that the 03 district considers helpful. 04 (e) A school district shall provide a tenured teacher whose performance, after 05 evaluation, did not meet the district performance standards with a plan of improvement. 06 The evaluating administrator shall consult with the tenured teacher in setting clear, 07 specific performance expectations to be included in the plan of improvement. The plan 08 of improvement must address ways in which the tenured teacher's performance can be 09 improved and shall last for not less than 90 workdays and not more than 180 workdays 10 unless the minimum time is shortened by agreement between the evaluating administrator 11 and the teacher. The plan of improvement shall be based on the professional 12 performance standards outlined in the locally adopted school district evaluation 13 procedure. The school district must observe the teacher at least twice during the course 14 of the plan. If, at the conclusion of the plan of improvement, the tenured teacher's 15 performance again does not meet the district performance standards, the district may 16 nonretain the teacher under AS 14.20.175(b)(1). 17 (f) A school district may place a tenured administrator whose performance, 18 including performance as an evaluator under the district's certificated employee 19 evaluation system, does not meet the district performance standards on a plan of 20 improvement. The plan must address ways in which the administrator's performance can 21 be improved and shall last for not less than 90 workdays and not more than 210 22 workdays unless the minimum time is shortened by agreement between the evaluating 23 administrator and the administrator being evaluated. The school district must observe 24 the administrator being evaluated at least twice during the course of the plan. If, at the 25 conclusion of the plan of improvement, the administrator's performance again does not 26 meet the district performance standards, the district may terminate its employment 27 contract with the administrator. This subsection does not restrict the right of a school 28 district to reassign an administrator to a teaching position consistent with the terms of 29 an applicable collective bargaining agreement. 30 (g) The department may request copies of each school district's certificated 31 employee evaluation systems and changes the district makes to the systems.
01 (h) Information provided to a school district under the school district's 02 certificated employee evaluation system concerning the performance of an individual 03 being evaluated under the system is not a public record and is not subject to disclosure 04 under AS 09.25. However, the individual who is the subject of the evaluation is 05 entitled to a copy of the information and may waive the confidentiality provisions of 06 this subsection concerning the information. 07 * Sec. 5. AS 14.20.150 is repealed and reenacted to read: 08 Sec. 14.20.150. ACQUISITION OF TENURE RIGHTS. (a) Except as 09 provided in (c) of this section, a teacher acquires tenure rights in a district when the 10 teacher 11 (1) possesses a valid teaching certificate that authorizes the teacher to 12 be employed as a certificated teacher or as an administrator under regulations adopted 13 by the department; 14 (2) has been employed as a teacher in the same district continuously 15 for three full school years; 16 (3) receives, in the third year of any three-year period of continuous 17 employment with the district, an evaluation under the district's evaluation system 18 stating that the teacher's performance meets the district performance standards; and 19 (4) on or before October 15 of the school year, 20 (A) accepts a contract for employment as a teacher in the 21 district for a fourth consecutive school year; and 22 (B) performs a day of teaching services in the district during 23 that school year. 24 (b) In this section, a full school year of employment means employment that 25 begins on or before the first student count day required by the department in a school 26 year or October 15, whichever occurs first, and continues through the remainder of the 27 school year. 28 (c) A superintendent may not acquire or maintain tenure in a district. 29 * Sec. 6. AS 14.20.155(a) is amended to read: 30 (a) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, a [A] teacher who has 31 acquired tenure rights has the right to employment within the district during continuous
01 service. 02 * Sec. 7. AS 14.20.160 is amended to read: 03 Sec. 14.20.160. LOSS OF TENURE RIGHTS. Tenure rights are lost when the 04 teacher's employment in the district is interrupted or terminated. However, a teacher 05 on layoff status does not lose tenure rights during the period of layoff except as 06 provided under AS 14.20.177. 07 * Sec. 8. AS 14.20.170 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 08 (c) A teacher who is dismissed under this section is not entitled to a plan of 09 improvement under AS 14.20.149. 10 * Sec. 9. AS 14.20.175(b) is amended to read: 11 (b) A teacher who has acquired tenure rights is subject to nonretention for the 12 following school year only for the following causes: 13 (1) the school district demonstrates that 14 (A) the district has fully complied with the requirements of 15 AS 14.20.149 with respect to the tenured teacher; 16 (B) the teacher's performance, after completion of the plan 17 of improvement, failed to meet the performance objectives set out in the 18 plan; and 19 (C) the evaluation of the teacher established that the teacher 20 does not meet the district performance standards [INCOMPETENCY, 21 WHICH IS DEFINED AS THE INABILITY OR THE UNINTENTIONAL OR 22 INTENTIONAL FAILURE TO PERFORM THE TEACHER'S CUSTOMARY 23 TEACHING DUTIES IN A SATISFACTORY MANNER]; 24 (2) immorality, which is defined as the commission of an act that, 25 under the laws of the state, constitutes a crime involving moral turpitude; or 26 (3) substantial noncompliance with the school laws of the state, the 27 regulations or bylaws of the department, the bylaws of the district, or the written rules 28 of the superintendent [; OR 29 (4) A NECESSARY REDUCTION OF STAFF OCCASIONED BY A 30 DECREASE IN SCHOOL ATTENDANCE]. 31 * Sec. 10. AS 14.20 is amended by adding a new section to read:
01 Sec. 14.20.177. REDUCTIONS IN FORCE. (a) A school district may 02 implement a layoff plan under this section if it is necessary for the district to reduce 03 the number of tenured teachers because 04 (1) school attendance in the district has decreased; or 05 (2) the basic need of the school district determined under 06 AS 14.17.021(b) and adjusted under AS 14.17.225(b) decreases by three percent or 07 more from the previous year. 08 (b) Before a school district lays off any tenured teacher, the school board shall 09 adopt a layoff plan. The plan must identify academic and other programs that the 10 district intends to maintain in implementing the layoff plan. The plan must also 11 include procedures for layoff and recall of tenured teachers consistent with this section. 12 (c) Except as provided in this subsection, a school district may place a tenured 13 teacher on layoff status only after the district has given notice of nonretention to all 14 nontenured teachers. However, a school district may retain a nontenured teacher and 15 place on layoff status a tenured teacher if there is no tenured teacher in the district 16 who is qualified to replace the nontenured teacher. The school district shall comply 17 with the notice requirements set out in AS 14.20.140 in placing a tenured or 18 nontenured teacher on layoff status. 19 (d) For purposes of this section, a tenured teacher is considered qualified for a 20 position if the position is in 21 (1) grades K - 8 and the teacher has an elementary endorsement; 22 (2) an established middle school and the teacher has 23 (A) an elementary endorsement; 24 (B) a middle school endorsement; or 25 (C) a secondary certificate with a subject area endorsement in the 26 area of assignment in which the teacher filling the position will spend at least 40 27 percent of the teacher's time or the teacher has, within the five years immediately 28 preceding the last date on which the teacher performed teaching services in the 29 district before being laid off, received an evaluation stating that the teacher's 30 performance in the subject or subjects meets the district performance standards; 31 or
01 (3) grades 9 - 12 and the teacher has an endorsement for each subject 02 area in which the teacher filling the position will spend at least 40 percent of the 03 teacher's time or the teacher has, within the five years immediately preceding the last 04 date on which the teacher performed teaching services in the district before being laid 05 off, received an evaluation stating that the teacher's performance in the subject or 06 subjects meets the district performance standards. 07 (e) For a period of three years after layoff, a teacher is on layoff status and is 08 entitled to a hiring preference in the district where the teacher had been employed. The 09 hiring preference applies only to vacant teaching positions for which the teacher is 10 qualified. If a teacher is offered a teaching position under this subsection and the teacher 11 declines the offer or fails to accept it within 30 days, the teacher is no longer considered 12 to be on layoff status and is no longer entitled to a hiring preference under this section 13 unless the teacher declines the offer because the teacher is contractually obligated to 14 provide professional services to another private or public educational program. 15 (f) Notwithstanding any provision of AS 23.40, the terms of a collective 16 bargaining agreement entered into between a school district and a bargaining organization 17 representing teachers on or after the effective date of this section may not be in conflict 18 with the provisions of this section. 19 (g) A teacher on layoff status is not entitled to be reemployed under 20 AS 14.20.145 and does not accrue leave. However, layoff status does not constitute a 21 break in service for retaining tenure rights and accrued sick leave. 22 (h) In this section, "school district" or "district" means a city or borough school 23 district or a regional educational attendance area. 24 * Sec. 11. AS 14.20.180 is repealed and reenacted to read: 25 Sec. 14.20.180. PROCEDURES UPON NOTICE OF DISMISSAL OR 26 NONRETENTION. (a) Before a teacher is dismissed, the employer shall give the 27 teacher written notice of the proposed dismissal and a pretermination hearing. A 28 pretermination hearing under this section must comport with the minimum requirements 29 of due process, including an explanation of the employer's evidence and basis for the 30 proposed dismissal and an opportunity for the teacher to respond. If, following a 31 pretermination hearing, an employer determines that dismissal is appropriate, the
01 employer shall provide written notice, including a statement of cause and a complete bill 02 of particulars, of the decision. The dismissal is effective when the notice is delivered 03 to the teacher. 04 (b) An employer that has decided to nonretain a tenured teacher shall provide 05 the teacher with written notice, including a statement of cause and a complete bill of 06 particulars. The notice must comply with AS 14.20.140(a). 07 (c) Within 15 days after receipt of a decision of dismissal under (a) of this 08 section or nonretention under (b) of this section, a teacher may notify the employer in 09 writing that the teacher is requesting a hearing before the school board under (d) of this 10 section or that the teacher is invoking the grievance procedures under (e) of this section. 11 (d) Upon receipt of a request for a hearing, the employer shall immediately 12 schedule a hearing and notify the teacher in writing of the date, time, and place of the 13 hearing. The teacher may elect to have either a public or a private hearing, and to have 14 the hearing under oath or affirmation. The parties have a right to be represented by 15 counsel and to cross-examine witnesses. The teacher has the right to subpoena a person 16 who has made statements that are used as a basis for the employer's decision to dismiss 17 or nonretain. A written transcript, tape, or similar recording of the proceedings shall be 18 kept. A copy of the recording shall be furnished to the teacher, for cost, upon request 19 of the teacher. A decision of the school board requires a majority vote of the 20 membership, by roll call. The board's decision shall be in writing and must contain 21 specific findings of fact and conclusions of law. A copy of the decision shall be 22 furnished to the teacher within 10 days after the date of the decision. If the school board 23 sustains the dismissal or nonretention, the teacher may appeal the decision to the superior 24 court for judicial review based on the administrative record. 25 (e) Upon receipt of a notice invoking the grievance procedures, the school 26 board shall immediately schedule an informal hearing and notify the teacher in writing 27 of the date, time, and place of the hearing. The hearing is for the purpose of 28 reviewing the statement of cause and bill of particulars and not for the purpose of 29 taking evidence. The teacher may choose whether the informal hearing is held in 30 public or in private. A decision of the school board requires a majority vote of the 31 membership, by roll call. The board's decision shall be in writing. The board shall
01 promptly furnish a copy of the decision to the teacher. If the board sustains the 02 dismissal or nonretention, the teacher may, within 15 days after receipt of the decision, 03 give written notice to the school board and submit the matter to arbitration under the 04 rules of the American Arbitration Association. The decision of the arbitrator is final 05 and binding on the school board, the teacher, and the bargaining organization 06 representing the teacher, if any. If the school board and the teacher agree, they may 07 waive the informal hearing under this subsection and submit the matter directly to 08 arbitration. 09 * Sec. 12. AS 14.20.215 is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 10 (8) "district performance standards" means evaluation criteria for the 11 district's teachers and administrators that are adopted by a school district under 12 AS 14.20.149 and that are based on the professional performance standards adopted 13 by the department. 14 * Sec. 13. AS 23.40 is amended by adding a new section to read: 15 Sec. 23.40.235. PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT IN SCHOOL DISTRICT 16 NEGOTIATIONS. Before beginning bargaining, the school board of a city or borough 17 school district or a regional educational attendance area shall provide opportunities for 18 public comment on the issues to be addressed in the collective bargaining process. 19 Initial proposals, last-best-offer proposals, tentative agreements before ratification, and 20 final agreements reached by the parties are public documents and are subject to 21 inspection and copying under AS 09.25.110 - 09.25.140. 22 * Sec. 14. AS 14.20.205 is repealed. 23 * Sec. 15. APPLICABILITY TO INDIVIDUALS. The amendments to AS 14.20.147(b) 24 and 14.20.150, made by secs. 3 and 5 of this Act, apply only to an individual 25 (1) first hired as a teacher by a school district or regional educational 26 attendance area, including Mt. Edgecumbe High School, on or after the effective date of this 27 Act; or 28 (2) rehired as a teacher by a school district or regional educational attendance 29 area, including Mt. Edgecumbe High School, on or after the effective date of this Act and 30 following an interruption in continuous service that resulted in 31 (A) a loss of tenure rights under AS 14.20.160; or
01 (B) failure to acquire tenure rights under AS 14.20.150. 02 * Sec. 16. APPLICABILITY TO CONTRACTS. Nothing in this Act affects a collective 03 bargaining agreement in effect on the effective date of this Act. 04 * Sec. 17. EFFECTIVE DATE FOR EMPLOYEE EVALUATIONS. Section 4 of this Act 05 takes effect July 1, 1997.