H. B. 2510
(By Delegates Stalnaker, Williams,
Mezzatesta, Ennis and Manchin)
[Introduced January 22, 2003; referred to the
Committee on Pensions and Retirement then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section two, article two, chapter
eighteen-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to the teachers
retirement system; including service personnel eligibility for
five hundred dollar early retirement notification bonus.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section two, article two, chapter eighteen-a of the code
of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. SCHOOL PERSONNEL.
§18A-2-2. Employment of teachers; contracts; continuing contract
status; how terminated; dismissal for lack of need;
released time; failure of teacher to perform contract
or violation thereof.
(a) Before entering upon their duties, all teachers shall execute a contract with their boards of education, which contract
shall state the salary to be paid and shall be in the form
prescribed by the state superintendent of schools. Every such
contract shall be signed by the teacher and by the president and
secretary of the board of education and when so signed shall be
is filed, together with the certificate of the teacher, by the
secretary of the office of the board.
(b) A teacher's contract, under this section, shall be for a
term of not less than one nor more than three years, one of which
shall be for completion of a beginning teacher internship pursuant
to the provisions of section two-b, article three of this chapter,
if applicable; and if, after three years of such any employment,
the teacher who holds a professional certificate, based on at least
a bachelor's degree, has met the qualifications for the same and
the board of education enter into a new contract of employment, it
shall be is a continuing contract: Provided, That any teacher
holding a valid certificate with less than a bachelor's degree who
is employed in a county beyond the said three-year probationary
period shall upon qualifying for said professional certificate
based upon a bachelor's degree, if reemployed, be granted
continuing contract status: Provided, however, That a teacher
holding continuing contract status with one county shall be is
granted continuing contract status with any other county upon
completion of one year of acceptable employment if such the employment is during the next succeeding school year or immediately
following an approved leave of absence extending no more than one
year.
(c) The continuing contract of any teacher shall remain in
full force and effect except as modified by mutual consent of the
school board and the teacher, unless and until terminated: (1) By
a majority vote of the full membership of the board on or before
the first Monday of April of the then current year, after written
notice, served upon the teacher, return receipt requested, stating
cause or causes and an opportunity to be heard at a meeting of the
board prior to the board's action thereon; or (2) by written
resignation of the teacher before that date, to initiate
termination of a continuing contract. Such The termination shall
take effect at the close of the school year in which the contract
is so terminated: Provided, That the contract may be terminated at
any time by mutual consent of the school board and the teacher and
that this section shall may not affect the powers of the school
board to suspend or dismiss a principal or teacher pursuant to
section eight of this article: Provided, however, That a
continuing contract for any teacher holding a certificate valid for
more than one year and in full force and effect during the school
year one thousand nine hundred eighty-four and one thousand nine
hundred eighty-five shall remain in full force and effect:
Provided further, That a continuing contract shall may not operate to prevent a teacher's dismissal based upon the lack of need for
the teacher's services pursuant to the provisions of law relating
to the allocation to teachers and pupil-teacher ratios. The
written notification of teachers being considered for dismissal for
lack of need shall be is limited to only those teachers whose
consideration for dismissal is based upon known or expected
circumstances which will require dismissal for lack of need. An
employee who was not provided notice and an opportunity for a
hearing pursuant to subsection (a) of this section may not be
included on the list. In case of such a dismissal, the teachers so
dismissed shall be are placed upon a preferred list in the order of
their length of service with that board, and no teacher shall will
be employed by the board until each qualified teacher upon the
preferred list, in order, shall have been offered the opportunity
for reemployment in a position for which they are qualified: And
provided further, That he or she has not accepted a teaching
position elsewhere. Such The reemployment shall be upon a
teacher's preexisting continuing contract and shall have the same
effect as though the contract had been suspended during the time
the teacher was not employed.
(d) In the assignment of position or duties of a teacher under
said a continuing contract, the board may provide for released time
of a teacher for any special professional or governmental
assignment without jeopardizing the contractual rights of such any teacher or any other rights, privileges or benefits under the
provisions of this chapter. Released time shall be provided for
any professional educator while serving as a member of the
Legislature during any duly constituted session of that body and
its interim and statutory committees and commissions without
jeopardizing his or her contractual rights or any other rights,
privileges, benefits or accrual of experience for placement on the
state minimum salary schedule in the following school year under
the provisions of this chapter, board policy and law.
(e) Any teacher who fails to fulfill his or her contract with
the board, unless prevented from so doing by personal illness or
other just cause or unless released from such the contract by the
board, or who violates any lawful provision thereof, shall be is
disqualified to teach in any other public school in the state for
a period of the next ensuing school year and the state department
of education or board may hold all papers and credentials of such
the teacher on file for a period of one year for such the
violation: Provided, That marriage of a teacher shall may not be
considered a failure to fulfill, or violation of, the contract.
(f) Any classroom teacher, as defined in section one, article
one of this chapter, who desires to resign employment with a board
of education or request a leave of absence, such the resignation or
leave of absence to become effective on or before the fifteenth day
of July of the same year and after completion of the employment term, may do so at any time during the school year by written
notification thereof and any such notification received by a board
of education shall automatically extend such the teacher's public
employee insurance coverage until the thirty-first day of August of
the same year.
(g) Any classroom teacher or service personnel employee who
gives written notice to the county board of education on or before
the first day of February of the school year of their resignation
or retirement from employment with the board at the conclusion of
the school year shall be is paid five hundred dollars from the
"Early Notification of Retirement" line item established for the
department of education for this purpose, subject to appropriation
by the Legislature. If the appropriations to the department of
education for this purpose are insufficient to compensate all
applicable teachers and service personnel, the department of
education shall request a supplemental appropriation in an amount
sufficient to compensate all such teachers. Additionally, if funds
are still insufficient to compensate all applicable teachers, the
priority of payment is for teachers who give written notice the
earliest. This payment shall is not be counted as part of the
final average salary for the purpose of calculating retirement.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to
include service
personnel for eligibility for the five hundred dollar early
retirement notification bonus under the teachers retirement system.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.