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Senate Bill 359 History
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Senate Bill No. 359
(By Senators Kessler (Mr. President) and M. Hall,
By Request of the Executive)
____________
[Introduced February 25, 2013; referred to the Committee on
Education; and then to the Committee on Finance .]
____________
A BILL to repeal
§18-2-23a
and §18-2-32 of the Code of West
Virginia, 1931, as amended; to repeal §18-2E-5c of said code;
to repeal
§18-2I-6
and §18-2I-7 of said code; to repeal
§18A-3A-2a and §18A-3A-6 of said code; to amend and reenact
§18-2-24 of said code; to amend said code by adding thereto a
new section, designated §18-2-39; to amend and reenact
§18-2E-5 of said code; to amend and reenact §18-2I-1,
§18-2I-2, §18-2I-3, §18-2I-4 and §18-2I-5 of said code; to
amend and reenact §18-3-1 and §18-3-12 of said code; to amend
and reenact §18-5-18, §18-5-44 and §18-5-45 of said code; to
amend and reenact §18-5A-5 of said code; to amend and reenact
§18A-2-7 of said code; to amend said code by adding thereto
two new sections, designated §18A-3-1d and §18A-3-1e; to amend and reenact §18A-3-2a of said code; to amend and reenact §18A-
3A-1, §18A-3A-2 and §18A-3A-3 of said code; to amend and
reenact §18A-4-2a, §18A-4-7a, §18A-4-8 and §18A-4-14 of said
code; to amend and reenact §18A-5-2 of said code; to amend and
reenact §18C-4-1, §18C-4-2 and §18C-4-4 of said code; and to
amend said code by adding thereto three new sections,
designated §18C-4-2a, §18C-4-3a and §18C-4-6, all relating to
transforming and improving public education; removing outdated
language;
requiring the State Board of Education, the Higher
Education Policy Commission and the Council for Community and
Technical College Education to collaborate in formally
adopting uniform and specific college- and career-readiness
standards for English/language arts and math; providing
methods for determining whether students have met the college-
and career-readiness standards; requiring that an explicit
focus be embedded in each course on the development of
English/language arts and math skills; requiring a
twelfth-grade transitional course for both English/language
arts and math for students not on track to be college ready;
requiring professional development on teaching the college-
and career-readiness standards to be included in the State
Board's Master Plan for Professional Staff Development; requiring the State Board to require all teacher preparation
programs to include appropriate training for teaching adopted
standards in at least grades eight through twelve; requiring
the use of certain assessments, exams or tests for determining
whether a student is eligible for a remedial course; requiring
accountability for increasing the percentage of students who
meet the standards and for increasing the percentage of
students who are making adequate progress toward meeting the
standards; deleting requirement that a school or school system
that achieves adequate yearly progress is eligible for no less
than full accreditation or approval status as applicable;
eliminating obsolete Process for Improving Education Council
;
establishing new criteria for state accreditation of public
schools; removing obsolete language; allowing for college and
career readiness standards to be included in student
assessment measures; removing language that restricts writing
assessments to certain grade levels; removing language that
restricts appropriate measures of student performance to be
used in an assessment of a school; requiring the board to
promulgate a new rule for a revised set of annual measures for
the accountability and accreditation system to meet the needs
of a federal waiver from No Child Left Behind; removing prescriptive language preventing the accreditation system to
adequately measure student performance; requiring the State
Board to promulgate a new rule for state accreditation of
schools and school systems; mandating a report due to Governor
and Legislative Oversight Committee on Education
Accountability on or before December 1, 2013; requiring annual
reports; setting forth potential measures for the
accreditation system; professional development; establishing
clear state-level leadership of professional development;
providing findings on the importance of professional
development; requiring State Board of Education to develop a
master plan for professional development; manner in which
coordination, development and evaluation of professional
development programs by the State Board shall be done;
establishing a rule that shall include measurable standards;
requiring State Board approval of plans from Department of
Education, the Center for Professional Development, state
institutions of higher education and regional education
service agencies; annual report of professional development;
requirements for State Superintendent of Schools; increasing
the number of schools to be included in a special community
development pilot program; allowing the pilot program to consult the Center for Professional Development for
professional development resources; requiring kindergarten and
early childhood aides to be licensed; exempting those eligible
for retirement before July 1, 2016; requiring early childhood
programs to be offered five days a week for the full day;
providing for local control of the school calendar; defining
terms and establishing findings about a schools calendar; 200-
day employment term for teachers; one hundred eighty separate
days of actual instruction are to be provided for students;
county policy for adding minutes or days to school calendar
for time lost to the instructional term; one hundred eighty
days must be within a 365-day calendar set by the county
board; limiting noninstructional interruptions to
instructional day; requiring State Board or State
Superintendent approval of proposed county calendar; public
meetings for discussions of a school system's calendar; waiver
from code sections that prevent a school system from meeting
one hundred eighty instructional days; board rule to implement
the calendar section provisions; faculty senate procedure for
making employment recommendations; removing language about
faculty senates on instructional support and enhancement days;
assignment of teachers when a vacancy was not foreseen before March 1 based on pupil-teacher ratio; allowing participants in
Teach for America to become classroom teachers; creating a
critical need alternative teacher certificate; two-year
certificate and a one-year renewal of the critical need
alternative teacher certificate; minimum requirements to
receive a critical need alternative teacher certificate;
creating a professional support team for these new teachers;
recommendation for certification of teachers on the critical
need alternative teaching certificate by support team and
State Superintendent; amending requirements for professional
teaching certificates through alternative certifications;
further defining "critical need alternative teaching
certificates"; removing language that limits the number of
board-certified teachers who can receive reimbursement per
year; clarifying that teachers can receive reimbursement for
recertification; adding seniority to the list of factors to be
considered for hiring of filling vacancies in professional
positions of employment; eliminating restrictive hiring
language for classroom teaching positions; allowing county
boards to give consideration to recommendations made by the
principal and the faculty senate; allowing released employees
to be hired for specific vacancies prior to the job being posted; limiting bumping to within a school; allowing for
multiple postings within a thirty-day period; removing
language that limits internal school bumping to elementary
school; reassigning a teacher within their school upon consent
of teacher and county board; eliminating the 43-week
restriction of service personnel contracts; defining the three
different types of early childhood classroom assistant teacher
certificates; clarifying the length of a teacher's duty-free
planning period; duties of other school employees and
substitute teachers during a teacher's planning period;
clarifying that not all holidays will be counted toward as a
day of the employment term; snow days not counted as days of
employment or days of instruction; calculation of pay for
professional and service personnel on snow days; loan
assistance for teachers in critical need areas; awarding loan
assistance; determining eligibility for loan assistance;
criteria for teacher compliance with terms of loan assistance
agreement; payments made directly to a lending entity; model
contract agreements for loan assistance; amount, limits and
duration of loan assistance; and repayment if loan assistance
conditions are not met by applicant.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That
§18-2-23a
and §18-2-32 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, be repealed; that §18-2E-5c of said code be
repealed;
that §18-2I-6
and §18-2I-7 of said code be repealed; that
§18A-3A-2a and §18A-3A-6 of said code be repealed; that §18-2-24 of
said code be amended and reenacted;
that said code be amended by
adding thereto a new section, designated §18-2-39;
that §18-2E-5 of
said code be amended and reenacted; that §18-2I-1, §18-2I-2,
§18-2I-3, §18-2I-4 and §18-2I-5 of said code be amended and
reenacted; that §18-3-1 and §18-3-12 of said code be amended and
reenacted; that §18-5-18, §18-5-44 and §18-5-45 of said code be
amended and reenacted; that §18-5A-5 of said code be amended and
reenacted; that §18A-2-7 of said code be amended and reenacted;
that said code be amended by adding thereto two new sections,
designated §18A-3-1d and §18A-3-1e; that §18A-3-2a of said code be
amended and reenacted; that §18A-3A-1, §18A-3-A-2 and §18A-3A-3 of
said code be amended and reenacted; that §18A-4-2a, §18A-4-7a,
§18A-4-8 and §18A-4-14 of said code be amended and reenacted; that
§18A-5-2 of said code be amended and reenacted; that §18C-4-1,
§18C-4-2 and §18C-4-4 of said code be amended and reenacted; and
that said code be amended by adding thereto three new sections,
designated §18C-4-2a, §18C-4-3a and §18C-4-6, all to read as
follows:
CHAPTER 18. EDUCATION.
ARTICLE 2. STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION.
§18-2-24. Collaboration of state institutions of higher education
having a teacher preparation program with the Center
for Professional Development, state board and the
regional education service agencies.
(a) For the purposes of this section, "teacher preparation
institution" means a state institution of higher education with a
teacher preparation program.
(b) The intent of this section is to establish a structure to
enhance collaboration between the teacher preparation institutions,
the Center for Professional Development, state board and the
regional education service agencies in providing professional
development.
(c) The Legislature finds that:
(1) There is insufficient collaboration of the teacher
preparation institutions with the Center for Professional
Development, state board, and each of the regional education
service agencies;
(2) More collaboration would prevent duplication of services
and result in higher quality professional development;
(3) Creating a structure and assigning responsibility would promote more effective collaboration;
(4) The state's research and doctoral degree-granting public
institutions of higher education, West Virginia University and
Marshall University, have the most capacity to be important sources
of research and expertise on professional development;
(5) West Virginia University and Marshall University are the
only institutions in the state that offer course work leading to a
doctoral degree in education administration;
(6) As the largest state institutions of higher education,
West Virginia University and Marshall University have more capacity
than any other institution in the state to handle the additional
responsibilities assigned in this section;
(7) The coordination by West Virginia University and Marshall
University of the efforts of other teacher preparation institutions
to collaborate with the Center for Professional Development, state
board and each of the regional education service agencies will
provide points of accountability for the collaboration efforts of
the other institutions; and
(8) The state board's authority over the regional education
service agencies can be used to motivate the agencies to
collaborate with the teacher preparation institutions in providing
professional development and will serve as a point of accountability for the collaboration efforts of the agencies.
(d) West Virginia University and Marshall University shall
collaborate with the Center for Professional Development in
performing the center's duties. This collaboration shall include
at least the following:
(1) Including the teacher preparation institutions in the
proposed professional staff development program plan goals required
to be submitted to the state Board by section twenty-three-a of
this article;
(2) Providing any available research-based expertise that
would be helpful in the design of the proposed professional staff
development program plan goals;
(3) Providing any available research-based expertise that
would be helpful in the implementation of professional development
programs; and
(4) Arranging for other state institutions of higher education
having a teacher preparation program to assist the center when that
assistance would be helpful.
(e) All teacher preparation institutions shall collaborate
with the regional education service agency of the service area in
which the institution is located at least to:
(1) Prevent unnecessary duplication of services;
(2) Assist in the implementation of the professional
development programs of the regional education service agency; and
(3) Assist the regional education service agency in obtaining
any available grants for professional development or to apply for
any available grant with the agency collaboratively.
(f) Since no teacher preparation institution exists in the
service area of Regional Education Service Agency IV, Marshall
University shall collaborate with that agency for the purposes set
forth in subdivision (e) of this section.
(g) In addition to the collaboration required by subsections
(e) and (f) of this section of all teacher preparation
institutions, West Virginia University and Marshall University
shall:
(1) Coordinate the collaboration of each of the other teacher
preparation institutions in their designated coordination area with
the appropriate regional education service agency. This
coordination at least includes ensuring that each of the other
institutions are collaborating with the appropriate regional
education service agency; and
(2) Collaborate with each of the other teacher preparation
institutions in their designated coordination area. This
collaboration at least includes providing assistance to the other institutions in providing professional development and in their
collaboration with the appropriate regional education service
agency.
(h) The designated coordination area of West Virginia
University includes the service areas of Regional Education Service
Agencies V, VI, VII and VIII. The designated coordination area of
Marshall University includes the service areas of Regional
Education Service Agencies I, II, III and IV.
(i) The state board shall ensure that each of the regional
education service agencies is collaborating with the teacher
preparation institution or institutions in its service area for the
purposes set forth in subsection (e) of this section. Since
Regional Education Service Agency IV does not have a teacher
preparation institution in its service area, the state board shall
ensure that it is collaborating with Marshall University for the
purposes set forth in subsection (e) of this section.
(j) Before a regional education service agency, except for
Regional Education Service Agency IV, obtains professional
development related services or expertise from any teacher
preparation institution outside of that agency's service area, the
agency shall inform the Center for Professional Development Board
state board. Before Regional Education Service Agency IV obtains professional development related services or expertise from any
teacher preparation institution other than Marshall University, the
agency shall inform the Center Board state board.
(k) The collaboration and coordination requirements of this
section include collaborating and coordinating to provide
professional development for at least teachers, principals and
paraprofessionals.
§18-2-39. College and career readiness initiative.
(a) The Legislature finds that:
(1) According to ACT, only twenty-five percent of ACT-tested
high school graduates in the nation met college readiness
benchmarks in English, reading, mathematics and science and only
seventeen percent in West Virginia met the benchmarks in all four
subjects;
(2) The postsecondary remediation rates of students entering
postsecondary institutions directly out of high school indicate
that a large percentage of students are not being adequately
prepared at the elementary and secondary levels;
(3) This high level of postsecondary remediation is causing
both students and the state to expend extra resources that would
not have to be expended if the students were adequately prepared at
the elementary and secondary levels;
(4) A strong foundation in English/language arts and math
provides a basis for learning in all other subject areas and for
on-the-job training; and
(5) A comparison of the percentages of students considered
proficient in eighth grade reading and math by the state assessment
and the National Assessment of Educational Progress indicate that
the state assessment currently does not accurately reflect national
standards.
(b) Before the 2014-2015 school year, the state board, the
Higher Education Policy Commission and the Council for Community
and Technical College Education shall collaborate in formally
adopting uniform and specific college and career readiness
standards for English/language arts and math. The standards shall
be clearly linked to state content standards and based on skills
and competencies rather than high school course titles. The
standards shall allow for a determination of whether a student
needs to enroll in a postsecondary remedial course. The state
board shall develop a plan for gradually bringing the standards for
a high school diploma and college and career readiness into
uniformity, and report this plan to the Legislative Oversight
Commission on Education Accountability not later than December 31,
2013.
(c) The results on the comprehensive statewide student
assessment program in grade eleven in English/language arts and
mathematics shall be used to determine whether a student has met
the college and career readiness standards adopted pursuant to
subsection (b) of this section. Beginning with the 2015-2016
school year, instead of using the comprehensive statewide student
assessment program, the state board may develop and implement
end-of-course exams in English/language arts and math courses it
determines appropriate. These exams are designed for determining
whether a student has met the college and career readiness
standards. In order to allow for the enrollment in transitional
courses in the twelfth grade if necessary pursuant to subsection
(e) of this section, the courses, assessments and exams, as
applicable, shall be administered before the twelfth grade.
(d) Under its authority granted in section one, article three,
chapter eighteen-a of this code, the state board shall require all
teacher preparation programs in the state to include appropriate
training for teachers seeking to teach in at least any of grades
eight through twelve with respect to teaching the adopted college
and career readiness standards. This training shall focus on
teaching the standards directly, through embedding the standards in
other courses or both, as appropriate.
(e) The state board shall develop a twelfth-grade transitional
course for both English/language arts and math for those students
who are not on track to be college ready based on the assessment or
exam, as applicable, required pursuant to subsection (c) of this
section. The transitional courses shall be aligned with the
standards adopted pursuant to subsection (b) of this section.
(f) For all West Virginia public high school graduates who
graduate during or after the 2016-2017 school year, all state
institutions of higher education may use no factor other than the
assessment, exam or test, as applicable, required pursuant to
subsections (c) of this section to determine whether a student is
to enroll in a remedial course or is to be placed in a
college-level introductory course. Nothing in this subsection
prohibits an institution from administering a diagnostic test to
determine specific areas of weakness so that the specific
weaknesses can be remediated rather than requiring a student to
take an entire remedial course.
(g) The state board shall:
(1) Hold high schools and districts accountable for increasing
the percentages of students who meet the college and career
readiness standards as indicated by the assessments, exams or
tests, as applicable, required pursuant to subsections (c) and (e) of this section. This accountability shall be achieved through the
school and school system accreditation provisions set forth in
section five, article two-e of this chapter;
(2) Align the comprehensive statewide student assessment for
all grade levels in which the test is given with the college and
career readiness standards adopted pursuant to subsection (b) of
this section or develop other aligned tests at each grade level so
that progress toward college and career readiness in
English/language arts and math can be measured; and
(3) Hold all schools and districts accountable for helping
students in earlier grade levels achieve scores on math and
English/language arts tests that predict success in subsequent
levels of related coursework. This accountability shall be
achieved through the school and school system accreditation
provisions set forth in section five, article two-e of this
chapter;
(h) Except as otherwise specified, all provisions of this
section become effective with the 2014-2015 school year.
ARTICLE 2E. HIGH QUALITY EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS.
§18-2E-5. Process for improving education; education standards;
statewide assessment program; accountability
measures; Office of Education Performance Audits; school accreditation and school system approval;
intervention to correct low performance.
(a) Legislative findings, purpose and intent. -- The
Legislature makes the following findings with respect to the
process for improving education and its purpose and intent in the
enactment of this section:
(1) The process for improving education includes four primary
elements, these being:
(A) Standards which set forth the knowledge and skills that
students should know and be able to do perform as the result of a
thorough and efficient education that prepares them for the
twenty-first century, including measurable criteria to evaluate
student performance and progress;
(B) Assessments of student performance and progress toward
meeting the standards;
(C) A system of accountability for continuous improvement
defined by high quality standards for schools and school systems
articulated by a rule promulgated by the state board and outlined
in subsection (c) of this section that will build capacity in
schools and districts to meet rigorous outcomes that assure student
performance and progress toward obtaining the knowledge and skills
intrinsic to a high quality education rather than monitoring for compliance with specific laws and regulations; and
(D) A method for building the capacity and improving the
efficiency of schools and school systems to improve student
performance and progress.
(2) As the Constitutional body charged with the general
supervision of schools as provided by general law, the state board
has the authority and the responsibility to establish the
standards, assess the performance and progress of students against
the standards, hold schools and school systems accountable and
assist schools and school systems to build capacity and improve
efficiency so that the standards are met, including, when
necessary, seeking additional resources in consultation with the
Legislature and the Governor.
(3) As the constitutional body charged with providing for a
thorough and efficient system of schools, the Legislature has the
authority and the responsibility to establish and be engaged
constructively in the determination of the knowledge and skills
that students should know and be able to do as the result of a
thorough and efficient education. This determination is made by
using the process for improving education to determine when school
improvement is needed, by evaluating the results and the efficiency
of the system of schools, by ensuring accountability and by providing for the necessary capacity and its efficient use.
(4) In consideration of these findings, the purpose of this
section is to establish a process for improving education that
includes the four primary elements as set forth in subdivision (1)
of this subsection to provide assurances that the high quality
standards are, at a minimum, being met and that a thorough and
efficient system of schools is being provided for all West Virginia
public school students on an equal education opportunity basis.
(5) The intent of the Legislature in enacting this section and
section five-c of this article is to establish a process through
which the Legislature, the Governor and the state board can work in
the spirit of cooperation and collaboration intended in the process
for improving education to consult and examine the performance and
progress of students, schools and school systems and, when
necessary, to consider alternative measures to ensure that all
students continue to receive the thorough and efficient education
to which they are entitled. However, nothing in this section
requires any specific level of funding by the Legislature.
(b) Electronic county and school strategic improvement plans.
-- The state board shall promulgate a rule consistent with the
provisions of this section and in accordance with article three-b,
chapter twenty-nine-a of this code establishing an electronic county strategic improvement plan for each county board and an
electronic school strategic improvement plan for each public school
in this state. Each respective plan shall be a five-year plan that
includes the mission and goals of the school or school system to
improve student, school or school system performance and progress,
as applicable. The strategic plan shall be revised annually in
each area in which the school or system is below the standard on
the annual performance measures. The revised annual plan also
shall identify any deficiency which is reported on the check lists
identified in paragraph (G), subdivision (5), subsection (l) of
this section including any deficit more than a casual deficit by
the county board. The plan shall be revised when required pursuant
to this section to include each annual performance measure upon
which the school or school system fails to meet the standard for
performance and progress, the action to be taken to meet each
measure, a separate time line and a date certain for meeting each
measure, a cost estimate and, when applicable, the assistance to be
provided by the department and other education agencies to improve
student, school or school system performance and progress to meet
the annual performance measure.
The department shall make available to all public schools
through its website or the West Virginia Education Information System an electronic school strategic improvement plan boilerplate
designed for use by all schools to develop an electronic school
strategic improvement plan which incorporates all required aspects
and satisfies all improvement plan requirements of the No Child
Left Behind Act.
(c) High quality education standards and efficiency standards.
-- In accordance with the provisions of article three-b, chapter
twenty-nine-a of this code, the state board shall adopt and
periodically review and update high quality education standards for
student, school and school system performance and processes in the
following areas:
(1) Curriculum;
(2) Workplace readiness skills;
(3) Finance;
(4) Transportation;
(5) Special education;
(6) Facilities;
(7) Administrative practices;
(8) Training of county board members and administrators;
(9) Personnel qualifications;
(10) Professional development and evaluation;
(11) Student performance, and progress and attendance;
(12) School and school system performance and progress;
(13) A code of conduct for students and employees;
(14) Indicators of efficiency; and
(15) Any other areas determined by the state board.
The standards, as applicable, shall incorporate the state's
21st Century Skills Initiative and shall assure that graduates are
prepared for continuing post-secondary education, training and work
and that schools and school systems are making progress toward
achieving the education goals of the state.
(d) Comprehensive statewide student assessment program. -- The
state board shall promulgate a rule in accordance with the
provisions of article three-b, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code
establishing a comprehensive statewide student assessment program
to assess student performance and progress in grades three through
twelve. Prior to the 2014-2015 school year, the state board shall
align the comprehensive statewide student assessment for all grade
levels in which the test is given with the college readiness
standards adopted pursuant to section thirty-nine, article two of
this chapter or develop other aligned tests to be required at each
grade level so that progress toward college readiness in
English/language arts and math can be measured. The state board
may require that student proficiencies be measured through the ACT EXPLORE and the ACT PLAN assessments or other comparable
assessments, which are approved by the state board and provided by
future vendors. The state board may require that student
proficiencies be measured through the West Virginia writing
assessment at any of the grade levels four, seven and ten
determined by the state board to be appropriate. Provided, That,
effective July 1, 2008, the state board may require that student
proficiencies be measured through the West Virginia writing
assessment at any of the grade levels four, seven and eleven
determined by the state board to be appropriate. The state board
may provide through the statewide assessment program other optional
testing or assessment instruments applicable to grade levels
kindergarten through grade twelve which may be used by each school
to promote student achievement. upon approval by the school
curriculum team or the process for teacher collaboration to improve
instruction and learning established by the faculty senate as
provided in section six, article five-a of this chapter The state
board annually shall annually publish and make available,
electronically or otherwise, to school curriculum teams and teacher
collaborative processes the optional testing and assessment
instruments. The failure of a school to use any optional testing
and assessment may not be cited as a deficiency in any accreditation review of the school; nor may the exercise of its
discretion, as provided in section six, article five-a of this
chapter, in using the assessments and implementing the
instructional strategies and programs that it determines best to
promote student achievement at the school be cited as a deficiency
in any accreditation review of the school or in the personnel
evaluation of the principal. The use of assessment results are
subject to the following:
(1) The assessment results for grade levels three through
eight and eleven are the only assessment results which may be used
for determining whether any school or school system has made
adequate yearly progress (AYP);
(2) Only the assessment results in the subject areas of
reading/language arts and mathematics may be used for determining
whether a school or school system has made adequate yearly progress
(AYP);
(3) The results of the West Virginia writing assessment, the
ACT EXPLORE assessments and the ACT PLAN assessments may not be
used for determining whether a school or school system has made
adequate yearly progress (AYP);
(4) The results of testing or assessment instruments provided
by the state board for optional use by schools and school systems to promote student achievement may not be used for determining
whether a school or school system has made adequate yearly progress
(AYP); and
(5) All assessment provisions of the comprehensive statewide
student assessment program in effect for the school year 2006-2007
shall remain in effect until replaced by the state board rule.
(e) Annual performance measures for Public Law 107-110, the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (No
Child Left Behind Act of 2001). -- The state board shall promulgate
a rule in accordance with the provisions of article three-b,
chapter twenty-nine-a of this code establishing the annual measures
of student, school and school system performance in accordance with
the state's revised accountability and accreditation system. The
standards shall include annual measures of student, school and
school system performance and progress for the grade levels and the
content areas defined by the act. The following annual measures of
student, school and school system performance and progress shall be
the only measures for determining whether adequately yearly
progress under the No Child Left Behind Act has been achieved,
shall include, but are not limited to the following:
(1) The acquisition of student proficiencies as indicated by
student performance and progress on the required accountability assessments at the grade levels and content areas as required by
the act. subject to the limitations set forth in subsection (d) of
this section
(2) The student participation rate in the uniform statewide
assessment must shall be at least ninety-five percent or the
average of the participation rate for the current and the preceding
two years is ninety-five percent for the school, county and state;
(3) Only for schools that do not include grade twelve, the
school attendance rate which shall may be no less than ninety
percent in attendance for the school, county and state. The
following absences are excluded:
(A) Student absences excused in accordance with the state
board rule promulgated pursuant to section four, article eight of
this chapter;
(B) Students not in attendance due to disciplinary measures;
and
(C) Absent students for whom the attendance director has
pursued judicial remedies compelling attendance to the extent of
his or her authority; and
(4) The high school graduation rate which shall may be no less
than eighty percent for the school, county and state; or if the
high school graduation rate is less than eighty percent, the high school graduation rate shall be higher than the high school
graduation rate of the preceding year as determined from
information on the West Virginia Education Information System on
August 15.
(f) State annual performance measures for school and school
system accreditation. -- The state board shall establish a system
to assess and weigh annual performance measures for state
accreditation of schools and school systems in a manner that gives
credit or points such as an index to prevent any one measure alone
from causing a school to achieve less than full accreditation
status or a school system from achieving less than full approval
status: Provided, That a school or school system that achieves
adequate yearly progress is eligible for no less than full
accreditation or approval status, as applicable, and the system
established pursuant to this subsection applies only to schools and
school systems that do not achieve adequate yearly progress.
The following types of measures, as may be appropriate at the
various programmatic levels, may be approved by the state board for
the school and school system accreditation:
(1) The acquisition of student proficiencies as indicated by
student performance and progress on the uniform statewide
assessment program at the grade levels as provided in subsection (d) of this section. The state board may approve providing bonus
points or credits for students scoring at or above mastery and
distinguished levels;
(2) Writing assessment results in grades tested;
(3) School attendance rates;
(4) Percentage of courses taught by highly qualified teachers;
(5) Percentage of students scoring at benchmarks on the
currently tested ACT EXPLORE and ACT PLAN assessments or other
comparable assessments, which are approved by the state board and
provided by future vendors;
(6) Graduation rates;
(7) Job placement rates for vocational programs;
(8) Percent of students passing end-of-course career/technical
tests;
(9) Percent of students not requiring college remediation
classes; and
(10) Bonus points or credits for subgroup improvement,
advanced placement percentages, dual credit completers and
international baccalaureate completers.
The state board shall promulgate a rule in accordance with the
provisions of article three-b, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code
that establishes a system to assess and weigh annual performance measures for state accreditation of schools and school systems. The
state board shall also establish performance incentives for schools
and school systems as part of the state accreditation system. On or
before December 1, 2013, the board shall report to the Governor and
to the Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability
the proposed rule for establishing the measures and incentives of
accreditation. Thereafter, the board shall provide an annual report
to the Governor and to the Legislative Oversight Commission on
Education Accountability on the impact and effectiveness of the
accreditation system. The rule for school and school system
accreditation proposed by the board may include, but not be limited
to the following measures:
_____(1) Percentage of students proficient in English and language
arts, math, science and other subjects determined by the board;
_____(2) Graduation or attendance rate;
_____(3) Students taking and passing AP tests;
_____(4) Students completing a career and technical education
class;
_____(5) Closing achievement gaps within subgroups of a school's
student population; and
_____(6) Students scoring at or above average attainment on SAT or
ACT tests.
(g) Indicators of exemplary performance and progress. -- The
standards shall include indicators of exemplary student, school and
school system performance and progress. The indicators of
exemplary student, school and school system performance and
progress shall may be used only as indicators for determining
whether accredited and approved schools and school systems should
be granted exemplary status. These indicators shall include, but
are not limited to, the following:
(1) The percentage of graduates who declare their intent to
enroll in college and other post-secondary education and training
following high school graduation;
(2) The percentage of graduates who receive additional
certification of their skills, competence and readiness for
college, other post-secondary education or employment above the
level required for graduation; and
(3) The percentage of students who successfully complete
advanced placement, dual credit and honors classes.
(h) Indicators of efficiency. -- In accordance with the
provisions of article three-b, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code,
the state board shall adopt by rule and periodically review and
update indicators of efficiency for use by the appropriate
divisions within the department to ensure efficient management and use of resources in the public schools in the following areas:
(1) Curriculum delivery including, but not limited to, the use
of distance learning;
(2) Transportation;
(3) Facilities;
(4) Administrative practices;
(5) Personnel;
(6) Use of regional educational service agency programs and
services, including programs and services that may be established
by their assigned regional educational service agency or other
regional services that may be initiated between and among
participating county boards; and
(7) Any other indicators as determined by the state board.
(i) Assessment and accountability of school and school system
performance and processes. -- In accordance with the provisions of
article three-b, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, the state
board shall establish by rule a system of education performance
audits which measures the quality of education and the preparation
of students based on the annual measures of student, school and
school system performance and progress. The system of education
performance audits shall provide information to the state board,
the Legislature and the Governor, individually and collectively as the Process for Improving Education Council, upon which they may
determine whether a thorough and efficient system of schools is
being provided. The system of education performance audits shall
include:
(1) The assessment of student, school and school system
performance and progress based on the annual measures set forth in
subsection (d) of this section;
(2) The evaluation of records, reports and other information
collected by the department upon which the quality of education and
compliance with statutes, policies and standards may be determined;
(3) The review of school and school system electronic
strategic improvement plans; and
(4) The on-site review of the processes in place in schools
and school systems to enable school and school system performance
and progress and compliance with the standards.
(j) Uses of school and school system assessment information.
-- The state board and the Process for Improving Education Council
established pursuant to section five-c of this article shall use
information from the system of education performance audits to
assist them it in ensuring that a thorough and efficient system of
schools is being provided and to improve student, school and school
system performance and progress. Information from the system of education performance audits further shall be used by the state
board for these purposes, including, but not limited to, the
following:
(1) Determining school accreditation and school system
approval status;
(2) Holding schools and school systems accountable for the
efficient use of existing resources to meet or exceed the
standards; and
(3) Targeting additional resources when necessary to improve
performance and progress.
The state board shall make accreditation information available
to the Legislature, the Governor, the general public and to any
individual who requests the information, subject to the provisions
of any act or rule restricting the release of information.
(k) Early detection and intervention programs. -- Based on the
assessment of student, school and school system performance and
progress, the state board shall establish early detection and
intervention programs using the available resources of the
Department of Education, the regional educational service agencies,
the Center for Professional Development and the Principals Academy,
as appropriate, to assist underachieving schools and school systems
to improve performance before conditions become so grave as to warrant more substantive state intervention. Assistance shall
include, but is not limited to, providing additional technical
assistance and programmatic, professional staff development,
providing monetary, staffing and other resources where appropriate.
and, if necessary, making appropriate recommendations to the
Process for Improving Education Council
(l) Office of Education Performance Audits. --
(1) To assist the state board and the Process for Improving
Education Council in the operation of a system of education
performance audits, the state board shall establish an Office of
Education Performance Audits consistent with the provisions of this
section. The Office of Education Performance Audits shall be
operated under the direction of the state board independently of
the functions and supervision of the State Department of Education
and state superintendent. The Office of Education Performance
Audits shall report directly to and be responsible to the state
board and the Process for Improving Education Council created in
section five-c of this article in carrying out its duties under the
provisions of this section.
(2) The office shall be headed by a director who shall be
appointed by the state board and who shall serve serves at the will
and pleasure of the state board. The annual salary of the director shall be set by the state board and may not exceed eighty percent
of the salary cap of the State Superintendent of Schools.
(3) The state board shall organize and sufficiently staff the
office to fulfill the duties assigned to it by law and by the state
board. Employees of the State Department of Education who are
transferred to the Office of Education Performance Audits shall
retain their benefits and seniority status with the Department of
Education.
(4) Under the direction of the state board, the Office of
Education Performance Audits shall receive from the West Virginia
education information system staff research and analysis data on
the performance and progress of students, schools and school
systems, and shall receive assistance, as determined by the state
board, from staff at the State Department of Education, the
regional education service agencies, the Center for Professional
Development, the Principals Academy and the School Building
Authority to carry out the duties assigned to the office.
(5) In addition to other duties which may be assigned to it by
the state board or by statute, the Office of Education Performance
Audits also shall:
(A) Assure that all statewide assessments of student
performance used as annual performance measures are secure as required in section one-a of this article;
(B) Administer all accountability measures as assigned by the
state board, including, but not limited to, the following:
(i) Processes for the accreditation of schools and the
approval of school systems; and
(ii) Recommendations to the state board on appropriate action,
including, but not limited to, accreditation and approval action;
(C) Determine, in conjunction with the assessment and
accountability processes, what capacity may be needed by schools
and school systems to meet the standards established by the state
board and recommend to the state board and the Process for
Improving Education Council plans to establish those needed
capacities;
(D) Determine, in conjunction with the assessment and
accountability processes, whether statewide system deficiencies
exist in the capacity of schools and school systems to meet the
standards established by the state board, including the
identification of trends and the need for continuing improvements
in education, and report those deficiencies and trends to the state
board; and the Process for Improving Education Council
(E) Determine, in conjunction with the assessment and
accountability processes, staff development needs of schools and school systems to meet the standards established by the state board
and make recommendations to the state board, the Process for
Improving Education Council, the Center for Professional
Development, the regional educational service agencies, the Higher
Education Policy Commission and the county boards;
(F) Identify, in conjunction with the assessment and
accountability processes, exemplary schools and school systems and
best practices that improve student, school and school system
performance and make recommendations to the state board and the
Process for Improving Education Council for recognizing and
rewarding exemplary schools and school systems and promoting the
use of best practices. The state board shall provide information
on best practices to county school systems and shall use
information identified through the assessment and accountability
processes to select schools of excellence; and
(G) Develop reporting formats, such as check lists, which
shall be used by the appropriate administrative personnel in
schools and school systems to document compliance with various of
the applicable laws, policies and process standards as considered
appropriate and approved by the state board, including, but not
limited to, the following:
(i) The use of a policy for the evaluation of all school personnel that meets the requirements of sections twelve and
twelve-a, article two, chapter eighteen-a of this code;
(ii) The participation of students in appropriate physical
assessments as determined by the state board, which assessment may
not be used as a part of the assessment and accountability system;
(iii) The appropriate licensure of school personnel; and
(iv) The school provides multicultural activities.
Information contained in the reporting formats is subject to
examination during an on-site review to determine compliance with
laws, policies and standards. Intentional and grossly negligent
reporting of false information are grounds for dismissal.
(m) On-site reviews. --
(1) The system of education performance audits shall include
on-site reviews of schools and school systems which shall be
conducted only at the specific direction of the state board upon
its determination that the performance and progress of the school
or school system are persistently below standard or that other
circumstances exist that warrant an on-site review. Any discussion
by the state board of schools to be subject to an on-site review or
dates for which on-site reviews will be conducted may be held in
executive session and is not subject to the provisions of article
nine-a, chapter six of this code relating to open governmental proceedings. An on-site review shall be conducted by the Office of
Education Performance Audits of a school or school system for the
purpose of investigating the reasons for performance and progress
that are persistently below standard and making recommendations to
the school and school system, as appropriate, and to the state
board on such measures as it considers necessary to improve
performance and progress to meet the standard. The investigation
may include, but is not limited to, the following:
(A) Verifying data reported by the school or county board;
(B) Examining compliance with the laws and policies affecting
student, school and school system performance and progress;
(C) Evaluating the effectiveness and implementation status of
school and school system electronic strategic improvement plans;
(D) Investigating official complaints submitted to the state
board that allege serious impairments in the quality of education
in schools or school systems;
(E) Investigating official complaints submitted to the state
board that allege that a school or county board is in violation of
policies or laws under which schools and county boards operate; and
(F) Determining and reporting whether required reviews and
inspections have been conducted by the appropriate agencies,
including, but not limited to, the State Fire Marshal, the Health Department, the School Building Authority and the responsible
divisions within the Department of Education, and whether noted
deficiencies have been or are in the process of being corrected.
The Office of Education Performance Audits may not conduct a
duplicate review or inspection of any compliance reviews or
inspections conducted by the department or its agents or other duly
authorized agencies of the state, nor may it mandate more stringent
compliance measures.
(2) The Director of the Office of Education Performance Audits
shall notify the county superintendent of schools five school days
prior to commencing an on-site review of the county school system
and shall notify both the county superintendent and the principal
five school days before commencing an on-site review of an
individual school: Provided, That the state board may direct the
Office of Education Performance Audits to conduct an unannounced
on-site review of a school or school system if the state board
believes circumstances warrant an unannounced on-site review.
(3) The Office of Education Performance Audits shall conduct
on-site reviews which are limited in scope to specific areas in
which performance and progress are persistently below standard as
determined by the state board unless specifically directed by the
state board to conduct a review which covers additional areas.
(4) An on-site review of a school or school system shall
include a person or persons from the Department of Education or a
public education agency in the state who has expert knowledge and
experience in the area or areas to be reviewed and who has been
trained and designated by the state board to perform such
functions. If the size of the school or school system and issues
being reviewed necessitate the use of an on-site review team or
teams, the person or persons designated by the state board shall
advise and assist the director to appoint the team or teams. The
person or persons designated by the state board shall be the team
leaders.
The persons designated by the state board shall be are
responsible for completing the report on the findings and
recommendations of the on-site review in their area of expertise.
It is the intent of the Legislature that the persons designated by
the state board participate in all on-site reviews that involve
their area of expertise, to the extent practicable, so that the
on-site review process will evaluate compliance with the standards
in a uniform, consistent and expert manner.
(5) The Office of Education Performance Audits shall reimburse
a county board for the costs of substitutes required to replace
county board employees while they are serving on a review team.
(6) At the conclusion of an on-site review of a school system,
the director and team leaders shall hold an exit conference with
the superintendent and shall provide an opportunity for principals
to be present for at least the portion of the conference pertaining
to their respective schools. In the case of an on-site review of
a school, the exit conference shall be held with the principal and
curriculum team of the school and the superintendent shall be
provided the opportunity to be present. The purpose of the exit
conference is to review the initial findings of the on-site review,
clarify and correct any inaccuracies and allow the opportunity for
dialogue between the reviewers and the school or school system to
promote a better understanding of the findings.
(7) The Office of Education Performance Audits shall report
the findings of an on-site review to the county superintendent and
the principals whose schools were reviewed within thirty days
following the conclusion of the on-site review. The Office of
Education Performance Audits shall report the findings of the
on-site review to the state board within forty-five days after the
conclusion of the on-site review. A copy of the report shall be
provided to the Process for Improving Education Council at its
request. A school or county that believes one or more findings of
a review are clearly inaccurate, incomplete or misleading, misrepresent or fail to reflect the true quality of education in
the school or county or address issues unrelated to the health,
safety and welfare of students and the quality of education, may
appeal to the state board for removal of the findings. The state
board shall establish a process for it to receive, review and act
upon the appeals. The state board shall report to the Legislative
Oversight Commission on Education Accountability during its July
interim meetings, or as soon thereafter as practical, on each
appeal during the preceding school year.
(8) The Legislature finds that the accountability and
oversight of the following activities and programmatic areas in the
public schools is controlled through other mechanisms and that
additional accountability and oversight are not only unnecessary
but counterproductive in distracting necessary resources from
teaching and learning. Therefore, notwithstanding any other
provision of this section to the contrary, the following activities
and programmatic areas are not subject to review by the Office of
Education Performance Audits:
(A) Work-based learning;
(B) Use of advisory councils;
(C) Program accreditation and student credentials;
(D) Student transition plans;
(E) Graduate assessment form;
(F) Casual deficit;
(G) Accounting practices;
(H) Transportation services;
(I) Special education services;
(J) Safe, healthy and accessible facilities;
(K) Health services;
(L) Attendance director;
(M) Business/community partnerships;
(N) Pupil-teacher ratio/split grade classes;
(O) Local school improvement council, faculty senate, student
assistance team and curriculum team;
(P) Planning and lunch periods;
(Q) Skill improvement program;
(R) Certificate of proficiency;
(S) Training of county board members;
(T) Excellence in job performance;
(U) Staff development; and
(V) Preventive discipline, character education and student and
parental involvement.
(n) School accreditation. -- The state board annually shall
review the information from the system of education performance audits submitted for each school and shall issue to every school
one of the following approval levels: Exemplary accreditation
status, distinction accreditation status, full accreditation
status, temporary accreditation status, conditional accreditation
status or low performing accreditation status.
(1) Full accreditation status shall be given to a school when
the school's performance and progress meet or exceed the standards
adopted by the state board pursuant to subsection (e) or (f), as
applicable, of this section and it does not have any deficiencies
which would endanger student health or safety or other
extraordinary circumstances as defined by the state board. A
school that meets or exceeds the performance and progress standards
but has the other deficiencies shall remain on full accreditation
status for the remainder of the accreditation period and shall have
an opportunity to correct those deficiencies, notwithstanding other
provisions of this subsection.
(2) Temporary accreditation status shall be given to a school
when the school's performance and progress are below the level
required for full accreditation status. Whenever a school is given
temporary accreditation status, the county board shall ensure that
the school's electronic strategic improvement plan is revised in
accordance with subsection (b) of this section to increase the performance and progress of the school to a full accreditation
status level. The revised plan shall be submitted to the state
board for approval.
(3) Conditional accreditation status shall be given to a
school when the school's performance and progress are below the
level required for full accreditation, but the school's electronic
strategic improvement plan meets the following criteria:
(A) The plan has been revised to improve performance and
progress on the standard or standards by a date or dates certain;
(B) The plan has been approved by the state board; and
(C) The school is meeting the objectives and time line
specified in the revised plan.
(4) Exemplary accreditation status shall be given to a school
when the school's performance and progress substantially exceed the
standards adopted by the state board pursuant to subsections (f)
and (g) of this section. The state board shall promulgate
legislative rules in accordance with the provisions of article
three-b, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code designated to establish
standards of performance and progress to identify exemplary
schools.
(5) Distinction accreditation status shall be given to a
school when the school's performance and progress exceed the standards adopted by the state board. The state board shall
promulgate legislative rules in accordance with the provisions of
article three-b, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code establishing
standards of performance and progress to identify schools of
distinction.
(6) Low-performing accreditation status shall be given to a
school whenever extraordinary circumstances exist as defined by the
state board.
(A) These circumstances shall include, but are not limited to,
any one or more of the following:
(i) The failure of a school on temporary accreditation status
to obtain approval of its revised electronic school strategic
improvement plan within a reasonable time period as defined by the
state board;
(ii) The failure of a school on conditional accreditation
status to meet the objectives and time line of its revised
electronic school strategic improvement plan;
(iii) The failure of a school to meet a standard by the date
specified in the revised plan; and
(iv) The results of the most recent statewide assessment in
reading and math or other multiple measures as determined by the
state board that identify the school as low performing at its programmatic level in three of the last five years.
(B) Whenever the state board determines that the quality of
education in a school is low performing, the state board shall
appoint a team of improvement consultants from the West Virginia
Department of Education State System of Support to make
recommendations for correction of the low performance. These
recommendations shall be communicated to the county board and a
process shall be established in conjunction with the State System
of Support to correct the identified deficiencies. If progress in
correcting the low performance as determined by the state board is
not made within one year following the implementation of the
measures adopted to correct the identified deficiencies or by a
date certain established by the state board after at least one year
of implementation, the state board shall place the county board on
temporary approval status and provide consultation and assistance
to the county board to assist it in the following areas:
(i) Improving personnel management;
(ii) Establishing more efficient financial management
practices;
(iii) Improving instructional programs and rules; or
(iv) Making any other improvements that are necessary to
correct the low performance.
(C) If the low performance is not corrected by a date certain
as set by the state board:
(i) The state board shall appoint a monitor who shall be paid
at county expense to cause improvements to be made at the school to
bring it to full accreditation status within a reasonable time
period as determined by the state board. The monitor's work
location shall be at the school and the monitor shall work
collaboratively with the principal. The monitor shall, at a
minimum, report monthly to the state board on the measures being
taken to improve the school's performance and the progress being
made. The reports may include requests for additional assistance
and recommendations required in the judgment of the monitor to
improve the school's performance, including, but not limited to,
the need for targeting resources strategically to eliminate
deficiencies;
(ii) The state board may make a determination, in its sole
judgment, that the improvements necessary to provide a thorough and
efficient education to the students at the school cannot be made
without additional targeted resources, in which case it shall
establish a plan in consultation with the county board that
includes targeted resources from sources under the control of the
state board and the county board to accomplish the needed improvements. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to
allow allows a change in personnel at the school to improve school
performance and progress, except as provided by law;
(iii) If the low performance is not corrected within one year
after the appointment of a monitor, the state board may make a
determination, in its sole judgment, that continuing a monitor
arrangement is not sufficient to correct the low performance and
may intervene in the operation of the school to cause improvements
to be made that will provide assurances that a thorough and
efficient system of schools will be provided. This intervention
may include, but is not limited to, establishing instructional
programs, taking such direct action as may be necessary to correct
the low performance, declaring the position of principal is vacant
and assigning a principal for the school who shall serve at the
will and pleasure of and, under the sole supervision of, the state
board: Provided, That prior to declaring that the position of the
principal is vacant, the state board must make a determination that
all other resources needed to correct the low performance are
present at the school. If the principal who was removed elects not
to remain an employee of the county board, then the principal
assigned by the state board shall be paid by the county board. If
the principal who was removed elects to remain an employee of the county board, then the following procedure applies:
(I) The principal assigned by the state board shall be paid by
the state board until the next school term, at which time the
principal assigned by the state board shall be paid by the county
board;
(II) The principal who was removed is eligible for all
positions in the county, including teaching positions, for which
the principal is certified, by either being placed on the transfer
list in accordance with section seven, article two, chapter
eighteen-a of this code, or by being placed on the preferred recall
list in accordance with section seven-a, article four, chapter
eighteen-a of this code; and
(III) The principal who was removed shall be paid by the
county board and may be assigned to administrative duties, without
the county board being required to post that position until the end
of the school term.
(6) The county board shall may take no action nor refuse any
action if the effect would be to impair further the school in which
the state board has intervened.
(7) The state board may appoint a monitor pursuant to the
provisions of this subsection to assist the school principal after
intervention in the operation of a school is completed.
(o) Transfers from low-performing schools. -- Whenever a
school is determined to be low performing and fails to improve its
status within one year, following state intervention in the
operation of the school to correct the low performance, any student
attending the school may transfer once to the nearest fully
accredited school in the county, subject to approval of the fully
accredited school and at the expense of the school from which the
student transferred.
(p) School system approval. -- The state board annually shall
review the information submitted for each school system from the
system of education performance audits and issue one of the
following approval levels to each county board: Full approval,
temporary approval, conditional approval or nonapproval.
(1) Full approval shall be given to a county board whose
schools have all been given full, temporary or conditional
accreditation status and which does not have any deficiencies which
would endanger student health or safety or other extraordinary
circumstances as defined by the state board. A fully approved
school system in which other deficiencies are discovered shall
remain on full accreditation status for the remainder of the
approval period and shall have an opportunity to correct those
deficiencies, notwithstanding other provisions of this subsection.
(2) Temporary approval shall be given to a county board whose
education system is below the level required for full approval.
Whenever a county board is given temporary approval status, the
county board shall revise its electronic county strategic
improvement plan in accordance with subsection (b) of this section
to increase the performance and progress of the school system to a
full approval status level. The revised plan shall be submitted to
the state board for approval.
(3) Conditional approval shall be given to a county board
whose education system is below the level required for full
approval, but whose electronic county strategic improvement plan
meets the following criteria:
(i) The plan has been revised in accordance with subsection
(b) of this section;
(ii) The plan has been approved by the state board; and
(iii) The county board is meeting the objectives and time line
specified in the revised plan.
(4) Nonapproval status shall be given to a county board which
fails to submit and gain approval for its electronic county
strategic improvement plan or revised electronic county strategic
improvement plan within a reasonable time period as defined by the
state board or which fails to meet the objectives and time line of its revised electronic county strategic improvement plan or fails
to achieve full approval by the date specified in the revised plan.
(A) The state board shall establish and adopt additional
standards to identify school systems in which the program may be
nonapproved and the state board may issue nonapproval status
whenever extraordinary circumstances exist as defined by the state
board.
(B) Whenever a county board has more than a casual deficit, as
defined in section one, article one of this chapter, the county
board shall submit a plan to the state board specifying the county
board's strategy for eliminating the casual deficit. The state
board either shall approve or reject the plan. If the plan is
rejected, the state board shall communicate to the county board the
reason or reasons for the rejection of the plan. The county board
may resubmit the plan any number of times. However, any county
board that fails to submit a plan and gain approval for the plan
from the state board before the end of the fiscal year after a
deficit greater than a casual deficit occurred or any county board
which, in the opinion of the state board, fails to comply with an
approved plan may be designated as having nonapproval status.
(C) Whenever nonapproval status is given to a school system,
the state board shall declare a state of emergency in the school system and shall appoint a team of improvement consultants to make
recommendations within sixty days of appointment for correcting the
emergency. When the state board approves the recommendations, they
shall be communicated to the county board. If progress in
correcting the emergency, as determined by the state board, is not
made within six months from the time the county board receives the
recommendations, the state board shall intervene in the operation
of the school system to cause improvements to be made that will
provide assurances that a thorough and efficient system of schools
will be provided. This intervention may include, but is not
limited to, the following:
(i) Limiting the authority of the county superintendent and
county board as to the expenditure of funds, the employment and
dismissal of personnel, the establishment and operation of the
school calendar, the establishment of instructional programs and
rules and any other areas designated by the state board by rule,
which may include delegating decision-making authority regarding
these matters to the state superintendent;
(ii) Declaring that the office of the county superintendent is
vacant;
(iii) Delegating to the state superintendent both the
authority to conduct hearings on personnel matters and school closure or consolidation matters and, subsequently, to render the
resulting decisions and the authority to appoint a designee for the
limited purpose of conducting hearings while reserving to the state
superintendent the authority to render the resulting decisions;
(iv) Functioning in lieu of the county board of education in
a transfer, sale, purchase or other transaction regarding real
property; and
(v) Taking any direct action necessary to correct the
emergency including, but not limited to, the following:
(I) Delegating to the state superintendent the authority to
replace administrators and principals in low performing schools and
to transfer them into alternate professional positions within the
county at his or her discretion; and
(II) Delegating to the state superintendent the authority to
fill positions of administrators and principals with individuals
determined by the state superintendent to be the most qualified for
the positions. Any authority related to intervention in the
operation of a county board granted under this paragraph is not
subject to the provisions of article four, chapter eighteen-a of
this code;
(q) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the
state board may intervene immediately in the operation of the county school system with all the powers, duties and
responsibilities contained in subsection (p) of this section, if
the state board finds the following:
(1) That the conditions precedent to intervention exist as
provided in this section; and that delaying intervention for any
period of time would not be in the best interests of the students
of the county school system; or
(2) That the conditions precedent to intervention exist as
provided in this section and that the state board had previously
intervened in the operation of the same school system and had
concluded that intervention within the preceding five years.
(r) Capacity. -- The process for improving education includes
a process for targeting resources strategically to improve the
teaching and learning process. Development of electronic school
and school system strategic improvement plans, pursuant to
subsection (b) of this section, is intended, in part, to provide
mechanisms to target resources strategically to the teaching and
learning process to improve student, school and school system
performance. When deficiencies are detected through the assessment
and accountability processes, the revision and approval of school
and school system electronic strategic improvement plans shall
ensure that schools and school systems are efficiently using existing resources to correct the deficiencies. When the state
board determines that schools and school systems do not have the
capacity to correct deficiencies, the state board shall work with
the county board to develop or secure the resources necessary to
increase the capacity of schools and school systems to meet the
standards and, when necessary, seek additional resources in
consultation with the Legislature and the Governor.
The state board shall recommend to the appropriate body
including, but not limited to, the Process for Improving Education
Council, the Legislature, county boards, schools and communities
methods for targeting resources strategically to eliminate
deficiencies identified in the assessment and accountability
processes. When making determinations on recommendations, the
state board shall include, but is not limited to, the following
methods:
(1) Examining reports and electronic strategic improvement
plans regarding the performance and progress of students, schools
and school systems relative to the standards and identifying the
areas in which improvement is needed;
(2) Determining the areas of weakness and of ineffectiveness
that appear to have contributed to the substandard performance and
progress of students or the deficiencies of the school or school system and requiring the school or school system to work
collaboratively with the West Virginia Department of Education
State System of Support to correct the deficiencies;
(3) Determining the areas of strength that appear to have
contributed to exceptional student, school and school system
performance and progress and promoting their emulation throughout
the system;
(4) Requesting technical assistance from the School Building
Authority in assessing or designing comprehensive educational
facilities plans;
(5) Recommending priority funding from the School Building
Authority based on identified needs;
(6) Requesting special staff development programs from the
Center for Professional Development, the Principals Academy, higher
education, regional educational service agencies and county boards
based on identified needs;
(7) Submitting requests to the Legislature for appropriations
to meet the identified needs for improving education;
(8) Directing county boards to target their funds
strategically toward alleviating deficiencies;
(9) Ensuring that the need for facilities in counties with
increased enrollment are appropriately reflected and recommended for funding;
(10) Ensuring that the appropriate person or entity is held
accountable for eliminating deficiencies; and
(11) Ensuring that the needed capacity is available from the
state and local level to assist the school or school system in
achieving the standards and alleviating the deficiencies.
ARTICLE 2I. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.
§18-2I-1. Legislative purpose.
The purpose of this article is to establish clear state-level
leadership for professional development for all West Virginia
public school educators and administrators. As the state
institution charged with the general supervision of the state
school system, the state board shall institute a system for the
coordination and delivery of high quality professional development.
Such system shall clearly define the goals for professional
development and delineate roles and responsibilities among the
various state and regional professional development providers.
§18-2I-2. Legislative findings.
The Legislature finds:
(1) That high quality professional development is critical in
supporting improved practice, assuring teacher quality and raising
student achievement;
(2) That professional development is vital in the state's
overall school improvement efforts;
(3) That the state board should assure the efficient delivery
of high quality professional development programs and assure that
duplication of efforts be minimized and that all stakeholders are
appropriately involved in the planning and implementing of programs
to meet requisite needs and that high quality professional
development programs be provided to public school educators of West
Virginia in the most efficient and cost effective manner; and
(4) It should be the goal that professional development occur
outside of scheduled instructional time so student learning is not
interrupted by the absence of their classroom teacher.
§18-2I-3. Annual professional development master plan established
by state board.
(a) The state board shall annually establish a master plan for
professional development in the public schools of the state, in
accordance with section twenty-three-a, article two of this
chapter. As a first priority, the state board shall require
adequate and appropriate professional development to ensure high
quality teaching that will support improved student achievement,
enable students to meet the content standards established for the
required curriculum in the public schools and to be prepared for college and careers.
(b) The state board shall annually submit the master plan to
the State Department of Education, the Center for Professional
Development, the regional educational service agencies, the Higher
Education Policy Commission and the Legislative Oversight
Commission on Education Accountability.
(c) In establishing the goals, the state board shall review
reports that may indicate a need for professional staff development
including, but not limited to, the report of the Center for
Professional Development created in article three-a, chapter
eighteen-a of this code, student test scores on the statewide
student assessment program, the measures of student and school
performance for accreditation purposes, school and school district
report cards and the state board's plans for the use of funds in
the Strategic Staff Development Fund pursuant to section five of
this article
(d) Pursuant to section thirty-nine, article two of this
chapter the state board shall include in its Master Plan for
Professional Staff Development:
(1) Professional development for teachers teaching the
transitional courses on how to teach the adopted college and career
readiness standards for English/language arts and math; and
(2) Appropriate professional development for other teachers in
at least grades eight through twelve on how to teach the adopted
college and career readiness standards in English/language arts and
math directly, as embedded in other subject areas or both, as
appropriate.
§18-2I-4. Coordination, development and evaluation of professional
development programs.
(a) The state board shall promulgate a rule to ensure the
coordination, development and evaluation of high quality
professional development programs. The rule shall include, but is
not limited to, the following:
(1) Standards for quality professional development that all
professional development providers shall use in designing,
implementing and evaluating professional development that shall
become part of the statewide professional development plan;
(2) Processes for assuring professional development resources
are appropriately allocated to identified areas of need;
(3) Processes for approval by state board of all professional
development plans/offerings;
(4) Processes for evaluating the effectiveness, efficiency,
and impact of the professional development;
(5) Processes for ensuring all stakeholders have a voice in the identification of needed professional development and various
delivery models;
(6) Processes for collaboration among West Virginia Department
of Education, Center for Professional Development, RESAs and county
boards of education;
(7) Processes for ensuring that the expertise and experience
of state institutions of higher education with teacher preparation
programs are included in developing and implementing professional
development programs; and
(8) Evaluation of the provided professional development.
(b) The state board approval of the proposed professional
development programs shall establish a Master Plan for Professional
Development which shall be submitted by the state board to the
affected agencies and to the Legislative Oversight Commission on
Education Accountability. The Master Plan shall include the state
board-approved plans for professional development by the State
Department of Education, the Center for Professional Development,
the state institutions of higher education and the regional
educational service agencies to meet the professional development
goals of the state board.
(c) The state board shall annually submit a report on the
effectiveness, efficiency and impact of the statewide professional development plan to the Legislative Oversight Commission on
Education Accountability.
§18-2I-5. Strategic Staff Development Fund.
(a) There is created an account within the state board titled
the Strategic Staff Development Fund. The allocation of balances
which accrue in the General School Fund shall be transferred to the
Strategic Staff Development Fund each year when the balances become
available. Any remaining funds transferred to the Strategic Staff
Development Fund during the fiscal year shall be carried over for
use in the same manner the next fiscal year and shall be separate
and apart from, and in addition to, the transfer of funds from the
General School Fund for the next fiscal year.
(b) The money in the Strategic Staff Development Fund shall be
used by the state board to provide staff development in schools,
counties or both that the state board determines need additional
resources. The state board is required to report to the Legislative
Oversight Commission on Education Accountability before December
1, annually on the effectiveness of the staff development resulting
from expenditures in this fund.
ARTICLE 3. STATE SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS.
§18-3-1. Appointment; qualifications; compensation; traveling
expenses; office and residence; evaluation.
There shall be appointed by the state board a State
Superintendent of Schools who shall serve serves at the will and
pleasure of the state board. He or she shall be a person of good
moral character, of recognized ability as a school administrator,
holding at least a master's degree in educational administration,
and shall have who has had not less than five years of experience
in public school work. He or she shall receive an annual salary
set by the state board, to be paid monthly: Provided, That the
annual salary may not exceed $146,100: Provided, however, That
after June 30, 2006, the annual salary may not exceed $175,000
$175,000. The state superintendent also shall receive necessary
traveling expenses incident to the performance of his or her duties
to be paid out of the General School Fund upon warrants of the
State Auditor. The state superintendent shall have his or her
office at the State Capitol. The state board shall report to the
Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability upon
request concerning its progress during any hiring process for a
state superintendent.
The state board annually shall evaluate the performance of the
state superintendent and publicly announce the results of the
evaluation.
§18-3-12. Special Community Development School Pilot Program.
(a) The state superintendent shall establish a Special
Community Development School Pilot Program to be implemented in one
a neighborhood of at least five public school schools, which shall
include at least one elementary and middle school, for the duration
of five years. The public school neighborhood of public schools
designated by the state superintendent for the pilot shall have
significant enrollments of disadvantaged, minority and
underachieving students. The designated public school neighborhood
of public schools under the direction of the county board and
county superintendent shall work in collaboration with higher
education, community organizations, Center for Professional
Development, local business leaders and the state board to develop
and implement strategies that could be replicated in other public
schools with significant enrollments of disadvantaged, minority and
underachieving students to improve academic achievement. For
purposes of this section neighborhood means an area of no more than
seven square miles.
(b) Beginning in January, 2011 2014, on or before the first
day of the regular session of the Legislature, and each year
thereafter, the state superintendent, county superintendent for the
county in which the schools are located and lead community based
organizations shall make a status report to the Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability and to the state
board. The report may include any recommendations based on the
progress of the demonstration project that he or she considers
either necessary for improving the operations of the demonstration
project or prudent for improving student achievement in other
public schools through replication of successful demonstration
school programs.
ARTICLE 5. COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION.
§18-5-18. Kindergarten programs.
(a) County boards shall provide kindergarten programs for all
children who have attained the age of five prior to September 1, of
the school year in which the pupil enters the kindergarten program
and may, pursuant to the provisions of section forty-four, article
five, chapter eighteen of this code, establish kindergarten
programs designed for children below the age of five. The programs
for children who shall have attained the age of five shall be
full-day everyday programs.
(b) Persons employed as kindergarten teachers, as
distinguished from paraprofessional personnel, shall be required to
hold a certificate valid for teaching at the assigned level as
prescribed by regulations rules established by the state board.
The state board shall establish and prescribe guidelines and criteria setting forth the minimum requirements for all
paraprofessional personnel employed in kindergarten programs
established pursuant to the provisions of this section and no such
paraprofessional personnel shall may be employed in any
kindergarten program unless he or she meets such the minimum
requirements. Beginning July 1, 2014, a person employed as an aide
in a kindergarten program is required to hold either an early
childhood classroom assistant teacher temporary authorization, an
early childhood classroom assistant teacher permanent authorization
or an early childhood classroom assistant teacher paraprofessional
certificate. The state board shall establish the minimum
requirements for each of the three early childhood classroom
assistant teacher licenses. Any person employed as an aide in a
kindergarten program that is eligible for full retirement benefits
before July 1, 2016, is not required to acquire licensure in this
section.
(c) The state board with the advice of the state
superintendent shall establish and prescribe guidelines and
criteria relating to the establishment, operation and successful
completion of kindergarten programs in accordance with the other
provisions of this section. Guidelines and criteria so established
and prescribed also are intended to serve for the establishment and operation of nonpublic kindergarten programs and shall be used for
the evaluation and approval of such those programs by the state
superintendent, provided application for such the evaluation and
approval is made in writing by proper authorities in control of
such the programs. The state superintendent, annually, shall
publish a list of nonpublic kindergarten programs, including
Montessori kindergartens that have been approved in accordance with
the provisions of this section. Montessori kindergartens
established and operated in accordance with usual and customary
practices for the use of the Montessori method which have teachers
who have training or experience, regardless of additional
certification, in the use of the Montessori method of instruction
for kindergartens shall be considered to be approved.
(d) Pursuant to such the guidelines and criteria, and only
pursuant to such the guidelines and criteria, the county boards may
establish programs taking kindergarten to the homes of the children
involved, using educational television, paraprofessional personnel
in addition to and to supplement regularly certified teachers,
mobile or permanent classrooms and other means developed to best
carry kindergarten to the child in its home and enlist the aid and
involvement of its parent or parents in presenting the program to
the child; or may develop programs of a more formal kindergarten type, in existing school buildings, or both, as such the county
board may determine, taking into consideration the cost, the
terrain, the existing available facilities, the distances each
child may be required to travel, the time each child may be
required to be away from home, the child's health, the involvement
of parents and such other factors as each county board may find
pertinent. Such The determinations by any county board shall be
are final and conclusive.
§18-5-44. Early childhood education programs.
(a) For the purposes of this section, "early childhood
education" means programs for children who have attained the age of
four prior to September 1 of the school year in which the pupil
enters the program created in this section.
(b) Findings. --
(1) Among other positive outcomes, early childhood education
programs have been determined to:
(A) Improve overall readiness when children enter school;
(B) Decrease behavioral problems;
(C) Improve student attendance;
(D) Increase scores on achievement tests;
(E) Decrease the percentage of students repeating a grade; and
(F) Decrease the number of students placed in special education programs;
(2) Quality early childhood education programs improve school
performance and low-quality early childhood education programs may
have negative effects, especially for at-risk children;
(3) West Virginia has the lowest percentage of its adult
population twenty-five years of age or older with a bachelor's
degree and the education level of parents is a strong indicator of
how their children will perform in school;
(4) During the 2006-2007 school year, West Virginia ranked
thirty-ninth among the fifty states in the percentage of school
children eligible for free and reduced lunches and this percentage
is a strong indicator of how the children will perform in school;
(5) For the school year 2008-2009, thirteen thousand one
hundred thirty-five students were enrolled in prekindergarten, a
number equal to approximately sixty-three percent of the number of
students enrolled in kindergarten;
(6) Excluding projected increases due to increases in
enrollment in the early childhood education program, projections
indicate that total student enrollment in West Virginia will
decline by one percent, or by approximately two thousand seven
hundred four students, by the school year 2012-2013;
(7) In part, because of the dynamics of the state aid formula, county boards will continue to enroll four-year old students to
offset the declining enrollments;
(8) West Virginia has a comprehensive kindergarten program for
five-year olds, but the program was established in a manner that
resulted in unequal implementation among the counties which helped
create deficit financial situations for several county boards;
(9) Expansion of current efforts to implement a comprehensive
early childhood education program should avoid the problems
encountered in kindergarten implementation;
(10) Because of the dynamics of the state aid formula,
counties experiencing growth are at a disadvantage in implementing
comprehensive early childhood education programs; and
(11) West Virginia citizens will benefit from the
establishment of quality comprehensive early childhood education
programs.
(c) Beginning no later than the school year 2012-2013, and
continuing thereafter, county boards shall provide early childhood
education programs for all children who have attained the age of
four prior to September 1 of the school year in which the pupil
enters the early childhood education program. Beginning no later
than the school year 2016-2017, and continuing thereafter, full day
early childhood education programs shall be available to all children.
(d) The program shall meet the following criteria:
(1) It shall be voluntary, except, upon enrollment, the
provisions of section one, article eight of this chapter apply to
an enrolled student; and
(2) It may be for fewer than five days per week and may be
less than full day All children shall have the opportunity to
enroll in a full day program. The program may be for fewer than
five days per week and may be less than full day based on family
need.
(e) Enrollment of students in Head Start, in any other program
approved by the state superintendent as provided in subsection (k)
of this section shall may be counted toward satisfying the
requirement of subsection (c) of this section.
(f) For the purposes of implementation financing, all counties
are encouraged to make use of funds from existing sources,
including:
(1) Federal funds provided under the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act pursuant to 20 U.S.C. §6301, et seq.;
(2) Federal funds provided for Head Start pursuant to 42
U.S.C. §9831, et seq.;
(3) Federal funds for temporary assistance to needy families pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §601, et seq.;
(4) Funds provided by the School Building Authority pursuant
to article nine-d of this chapter;
(5) In the case of counties with declining enrollments, funds
from the state aid formula above the amount indicated for the
number of students actually enrolled in any school year; and
(6) Any other public or private funds.
(g) Each county board shall develop a plan for implementing
the program required by this section. The plan shall include the
following elements:
(1) An analysis of the demographics of the county related to
early childhood education program implementation;
(2) An analysis of facility and personnel needs;
(3) Financial requirements for implementation and potential
sources of funding to assist implementation;
(4) Details of how the county board will cooperate and
collaborate with other early childhood education programs
including, but not limited to, Head Start, to maximize federal and
other sources of revenue;
(5) Specific time lines for implementation; and
(6) Any other items the state board may require by policy.
(h) A county board shall submit its plan to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Resources. The secretary shall
approve the plan if the following conditions are met:
(1) The county board has maximized the use of federal and
other available funds for early childhood programs;
(2) The county board has provided for the maximum
implementation of Head Start programs and other public and private
programs approved by the state superintendent pursuant to the terms
of subsection (k) of this section; and
(3) If the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human
Resources finds that the county board has not met one or more of
the requirements of this subsection, but that the county board has
acted in good faith and the failure to comply was not the primary
fault of the county board, then the secretary shall approve the
plan. Any denial by the secretary may be appealed to the circuit
court of the county in which the county board is located.
(i) The county board shall submit its plan for approval to the
state board. The state board shall approve the plan if the county
board has complied substantially with the requirements of
subsection (g) of this section and has obtained the approval
required in subsection (h) of this section.
(j) Every county board shall submit its plan for reapproval by
the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Resources and by the state board at least every two years after the initial
approval of the plan and until full implementation of the early
childhood education program in the county. As part of the
submission, the county board shall provide a detailed statement of
the progress made in implementing its plan. The standards and
procedures provided for the original approval of the plan apply to
any reapproval.
(k) A county board may not increase the total number of
students enrolled in the county in an early childhood program until
its program is approved by the Secretary of the Department of
Health and Human Resources and the state board.
(l) The state board annually may grant a county board a waiver
for total or partial implementation if the state board finds that
all of the following conditions exist:
(1) The county board is unable to comply either because:
(A) It does not have sufficient facilities available; or
(B) It does not and has not had available funds sufficient to
implement the program;
(2) The county has not experienced a decline in enrollment at
least equal to the total number of students to be enrolled; and
(3) Other agencies of government have not made sufficient
funds or facilities available to assist in implementation.
Any county board seeking a waiver shall apply with the
supporting data to meet the criteria for which they are eligible on
or before March 25 for the following school year. The state
superintendent shall grant or deny the requested waiver on or
before April 15 of that same year.
(m) The provisions of subsections (b), (c) and (d), section
eighteen of this article relating to kindergarten apply to early
childhood education programs in the same manner in which they apply
to kindergarten programs.
(n) Annually, the state board shall report to the Legislative
Oversight Commission on Education Accountability on the progress of
implementation of this section.
(o) Except as required by federal law or regulation, no county
board may enroll students who will be less than four years of age
prior to September 1 for the year they enter school.
(p) Neither the state board nor the state department may
provide any funds to any county board for the purpose of
implementing this section unless the county board has a plan
approved pursuant to subsections (h), (i) and (j) of this section.
(q) The state board shall promulgate a rule in accordance with
the provisions of article three-b, chapter twenty-nine-a of this
code for the purposes of implementing the provisions of this section. The state board shall consult with the Secretary of the
Department of Health and Human Resources in the preparation of the
rule. The rule shall contain the following:
(1) Standards for curriculum;
(2) Standards for preparing students;
(3) Attendance requirements;
(4) Standards for personnel; and
(5) Any other terms necessary to implement the provisions of
this section.
(r) The rule shall include the following elements relating to
curriculum standards:
(1) A requirement that the curriculum be designed to address
the developmental needs of four-year old children, consistent with
prevailing research on how children learn;
(2) A requirement that the curriculum be designed to achieve
long-range goals for the social, emotional, physical and academic
development of young children;
(3) A method for including a broad range of content that is
relevant, engaging and meaningful to young children;
(4) A requirement that the curriculum incorporate a wide
variety of learning experiences, materials and equipment, and
instructional strategies to respond to differences in prior experience, maturation rates and learning styles that young
children bring to the classroom;
(5) A requirement that the curriculum be designed to build on
what children already know in order to consolidate their learning
and foster their acquisition of new concepts and skills;
(6) A requirement that the curriculum meet the recognized
standards of the relevant subject matter disciplines;
(7) A requirement that the curriculum engage children actively
in the learning process and provide them with opportunities to make
meaningful choices;
(8) A requirement that the curriculum emphasize the
development of thinking, reasoning, decisionmaking and
problem-solving skills;
(9) A set of clear guidelines for communicating with parents
and involving them in decisions about the instructional needs of
their children; and
(10) A systematic plan for evaluating program success in
meeting the needs of young children and for helping them to be
ready to succeed in school.
(s) The secretary and the state superintendent shall submit a
report to the Legislative Oversight Commission on Education
Accountability and the Joint Committee on Government and Finance which addresses, at a minimum, the following issues:
(1) A summary of the approved county plans for providing the
early childhood education programs pursuant to this section;
(2) An analysis of the total cost to the state and county
boards of implementing the plans;
(3) A separate analysis of the impact of the plans on counties
with increasing enrollment; and
(4) An analysis of the effect of the programs on the
maximization of the use of federal funds for early childhood
programs.
The intent of this subsection is to enable the Legislature to
proceed in a fiscally responsible manner, make any necessary
program improvements based on reported information prior to
implementation of the early childhood education programs.
(t) After the school year 2012-2013, on or before July 1 of
each year, each county board shall report the following information
to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Resources
and the state superintendent:
(1) Documentation indicating the extent to which county boards
are maximizing resources by using the existing capacity of
community-based programs, including, but not limited to, Head Start
and child care; and
(2) For those county boards that are including eligible
children attending approved, contracted community-based programs in
their net enrollment for the purposes of calculating state aid
pursuant to article nine-a of this chapter, documentation that the
county board is equitably distributing funding for all children
regardless of setting.
§18-5-45. School calendar.
(a) As used in this section:
(1) "Instructional day" means a day within the instructional
term which meets the following criteria:
(A) Instruction is offered to students for at least the
minimum amount of hours provided by state board rule;
(B) Instructional time is used for instruction and
cocurricular activities; and
(C) Other criteria as the state board determines appropriate.
(2) "Cocurricular activities" are activities that are closely
related to identifiable academic programs or areas of study that
serve to complement academic curricula as further defined by the
state board.
(b) Findings. --
(1) The primary purpose of the school system is to provide
instruction for students.
(2) The school calendar, as defined in this section, is
designed to define the school term both for employees and for
instruction.
(3) The school calendar shall provide for one hundred eighty
separate instructional days.
(c) The county board shall provide a school term for its
schools that contains the following:
(1) An employment term that excludes Saturdays and Sundays and
consists of at least two hundred days, which need not be
successive;
(2) Within the employment term, an instructional term for
students of no less than one hundred eighty separate instructional
days, which includes an inclement weather and emergencies plan
designed to guarantee an instructional term for students of no less
than one hundred eighty separate instructional days; and
(3) A policy that requires additional minutes of instruction
in the school day or additional days of instruction to recover time
lost due to late arrivals and early dismissals; and
(4) A policy that determines that if it is not possible to
complete one hundred eighty separate instructional days with the
current school calendar, the county board shall schedule
instruction on any available noninstructional day, regardless of the purpose for which the day originally was scheduled, and the day
will be used for instruction of students: Provided, That the
provisions of this subsection do not apply to:
(1) Holidays; and
(2) Election day.
(d) The instructional term shall commence and terminate on a
date selected by the county board. Calculation of the required one
hundred eighty separate instructional days must fall within a three
hundred sixty-five day period to be established by the county
board.
(e) Noninstructional days shall total twenty and shall be
comprised of the following:
(1) Seven holidays;
(2) Election day as specified in section two, article five,
chapter eighteen-a of this code; and
(3) The remaining days to be designated by the county board
for purposes to include, but not be limited to:
(A) Curriculum development;
(B) Preparation for opening and closing school;
(C) Professional development;
(D) Teacher-pupil-parent conferences;
(E) Professional meetings; and
(F) Making up days when instruction was scheduled but not
conducted.
(f) The state board may not schedule the primary statewide
assessment program thirty days prior to the end of the
instructional year unless the state board determines that the
nature of the test mandates an earlier testing date.
(g) The following applies to cocurricular activities:
(1) The state board shall determine what activities may be
considered cocurricular;
(2) The state board shall determine the amount of
instructional time that may be consumed by cocurricular activities;
and
(3) Other requirements or restrictions the state board may
provide in the rule required to be promulgated by this section.
(h) Extracurricular activities may not be used for
instructional time: Provided, That the state board may provide for
the attendance by students of certain activities sanctioned by the
Secondary School Activities Commission when those activities are
related to statewide tournaments or playoffs or are programs
required for Secondary School Activities Commission approval.
(i) Noninstructional interruptions to the instructional day
shall be minimized to allow the classroom teacher to teach.
(j) Prior to implementing the school calendar, the county
board shall secure approval of its proposed calendar from the state
board or, if so designated by the state board, from the state
superintendent.
(k) In formulation of a school's calendar, a county school
board shall hold at least two public meetings that allow parents,
teachers, teacher organizations, businesses and other interested
parties within the county to discuss the school calendar. The
public notice of the date, time and place of the public hearing
must be published in a local newspaper of general circulation in
the area as a Class II legal advertisement, in accordance with the
provisions of article three, chapter fifty-nine of this code.
(l) The county board may contract with all or part of the
personnel for a longer term.
(m) The minimum instructional term may be decreased by order
of the state superintendent in any county declared a federal
disaster area and where the event causing the declaration is
substantially related to a reduction of instructional days.
(n) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, the state board may grant a waiver to a county board for
its noncompliance with provisions of chapter eighteen, eighteen-a,
eighteen-b and eighteen-c of this code to maintain compliance in reaching the mandatory one hundred eighty separate instructional
days established in this section.
(o) The state board shall promulgate a rule in accordance with
the provisions of article three-b, chapter twenty-nine-a of this
code for the purpose of implementing the provisions of this
section.
ARTICLE 5A. LOCAL SCHOOL INVOLVEMENT.
§18-5A-5. Public school faculty senates established; election of
officers; powers and duties.
(a) There is established at every public school in this state
a faculty senate which is comprised of all permanent, full-time
professional educators employed at the school who shall all be
voting members. Professional educators, as used in this section,
means professional educators as defined in chapter eighteen-a of
this code. A quorum of more than one half of the voting members of
the faculty shall be present at any meeting of the faculty senate
at which official business is conducted. Prior to the beginning of
the instructional term each year, but within the employment term,
the principal shall convene a meeting of the faculty senate to
elect a chair, vice chair and secretary and discuss matters
relevant to the beginning of the school year. The vice chair shall
preside at meetings when the chair is absent. Meetings of the faculty senate shall be held during the times provided in
accordance with subdivision (12), subsection (b) of this section as
determined by the faculty senate. Emergency meetings may be held
during noninstructional time at the call of the chair or a majority
of the voting members by petition submitted to the chair and vice
chair. An agenda of matters to be considered at a scheduled
meeting of the faculty senate shall be available to the members at
least two employment days prior to the meeting. For emergency
meetings the agenda shall be available as soon as possible prior to
the meeting. The chair of the faculty senate may appoint such
committees as may be desirable to study and submit recommendations
to the full faculty senate, but the acts of the faculty senate
shall be voted upon by the full body.
(b) In addition to any other powers and duties conferred by
law, or authorized by policies adopted by the state or county board
of education or bylaws which may be adopted by the faculty senate
not inconsistent with law, the powers and duties listed in this
subsection are specifically reserved for the faculty senate. The
intent of these provisions is neither to restrict nor to require
the activities of every faculty senate to the enumerated items
except as otherwise stated. Each faculty senate shall organize its
activities as it deems most effective and efficient based on school size, departmental structure and other relevant factors.
(1) Each faculty senate shall control funds allocated to the
school from legislative appropriations pursuant to section nine,
article nine-a of this chapter. From such funds, each classroom
teacher and librarian shall be allotted $100 for expenditure during
the instructional year for academic materials, supplies or
equipment which, in the judgment of the teacher or librarian, will
assist him or her in providing instruction in his or her assigned
academic subjects or shall be returned to the faculty senate:
Provided, That nothing contained herein prohibits the funds from
being used for programs and materials that, in the opinion of the
teacher, enhance student behavior, increase academic achievement,
improve self-esteem and address the problems of students at-risk.
The remainder of funds shall be expended for academic materials,
supplies or equipment in accordance with a budget approved by the
faculty senate. Notwithstanding any other provisions of the law to
the contrary, funds not expended in one school year are available
for expenditure in the next school year: Provided, however, That
the amount of county funds budgeted in a fiscal year may not be
reduced throughout the year as a result of the faculty
appropriations in the same fiscal year for such materials, supplies
and equipment. Accounts shall be maintained of the allocations and expenditures of such funds for the purpose of financial audit.
Academic materials, supplies or equipment shall be interpreted
broadly, but does not include materials, supplies or equipment
which will be used in or connected with interscholastic athletic
events.
(2) A faculty senate may establish a process for members to
interview new prospective professional educators and
paraprofessional employees submit recommendations for hiring of
classroom teachers at the school and submit recommendations
regarding employment to the principal, who may also make
independent recommendations, for submission to the county
superintendent: Provided, That such process shall be chaired by
the school principal and must permit the timely employment of
persons to perform necessary duties.
(3) A faculty senate may nominate teachers for recognition as
outstanding teachers under state and local teacher recognition
programs and other personnel at the school, including parents, for
recognition under other appropriate recognition programs and may
establish such programs for operation at the school.
(4) A faculty senate may submit recommendations to the
principal regarding the assignment scheduling of secretaries,
clerks, aides and paraprofessionals at the school.
(5) A faculty senate may submit recommendations to the
principal regarding establishment of the master curriculum schedule
for the next ensuing school year.
(6) A faculty senate may establish a process for the review
and comment on sabbatical leave requests submitted by employees at
the school pursuant to section eleven, article two of this chapter.
(7) Each faculty senate shall elect three faculty
representatives to the local school improvement council established
pursuant to section two of this article.
(8) Each faculty senate may nominate a member for election to
the county staff development council pursuant to section eight,
article three, chapter eighteen-a of this code.
(9) Each faculty senate shall have an opportunity to make
recommendations on the selection of faculty to serve as mentors for
beginning teachers under beginning teacher internship programs at
the school.
(10) A faculty senate may solicit, accept and expend any
grants, gifts, bequests, donations and any other funds made
available to the faculty senate: Provided, That the faculty senate
shall select a member who has the duty of maintaining a record of
all funds received and expended by the faculty senate, which record
shall be kept in the school office and is subject to normal auditing procedures.
(11) Any faculty senate may review the evaluation procedure as
conducted in their school to ascertain whether the evaluations were
conducted in accordance with the written system required pursuant
to section twelve, article two, chapter eighteen-a of this code and
the general intent of this Legislature regarding meaningful
performance evaluations of school personnel. If a majority of
members of the faculty senate determine that such evaluations were
not so conducted, they shall submit a report in writing to the
State Board of Education: Provided, That nothing herein creates
any new right of access to or review of any individual's
evaluations.
(12) A local board shall provide to each faculty senate a
two-hour block of time for a faculty senate meeting on a day
scheduled for the opening of school prior to the beginning of the
instructional term. and a two-hour block of time on each
instructional support and enhancement day scheduled by the board
for instructional activities for students and professional
activities for teachers pursuant to section forty-five, article
five of this chapter A faculty senate may meet for an unlimited
block of time per month during noninstructional days to discuss and
plan strategies to improve student instruction and to conduct other faculty senate business. A faculty senate meeting scheduled on a
noninstructional day shall be considered as part of the purpose for
which the noninstructional day is scheduled. This time may be
utilized and determined at the local school level and includes, but
is not limited to, faculty senate meetings.
(13) Each faculty senate shall develop a strategic plan to
manage the integration of special needs students into the regular
classroom at their respective schools and submit the strategic plan
to the superintendent of the county board of education periodically
pursuant to guidelines developed by the State Department of
Education. Each faculty senate shall encourage the participation
of local school improvement councils, parents and the community at
large in developing the strategic plan for each school.
Each strategic plan developed by the faculty senate shall
include at least: (A) A mission statement; (B) goals; (C) needs;
(D) objectives and activities to implement plans relating to each
goal; (E) work in progress to implement the strategic plan; (F)
guidelines for placing additional staff into integrated classrooms
to meet the needs of exceptional needs students without diminishing
the services rendered to the other students in integrated
classrooms; (G) guidelines for implementation of collaborative
planning and instruction; and (H) training for all regular classroom teachers who serve students with exceptional needs in
integrated classrooms.
CHAPTER 18A. SCHOOL PERSONNEL.
ARTICLE 2. SCHOOL PERSONNEL.
§18A-2-7. Assignment, transfer, promotion, demotion, suspension
and recommendation of dismissal of school personnel
by superintendent; preliminary notice of transfer;
hearing on the transfer; proof required.
(a) The superintendent, subject only to approval of the board,
may assign, transfer, promote, demote or suspend school personnel
and recommend their dismissal pursuant to provisions of this
chapter. However, an employee shall be notified in writing by the
superintendent on or before March 1 if he or she is being
considered for transfer or to be transferred. Only those employees
whose consideration for transfer or intended transfer is based upon
known or expected circumstances which will require the transfer of
employees shall be considered for transfer or intended for transfer
and the notification shall be limited to only those employees. Any
teacher or employee who desires to protest the proposed transfer
may request in writing a statement of the reasons for the proposed
transfer. The statement of reasons shall be delivered to the
teacher or employee within ten days of the receipt of the request. Within ten days of the receipt of the statement of the reasons, the
teacher or employee may make written demand upon the superintendent
for a hearing on the proposed transfer before the county board of
education. The hearing on the proposed transfer shall be held on
or before April 15. At the hearing, the reasons for the proposed
transfer must be shown.
(b) The superintendent at a meeting of the board on or before
April 15 shall furnish in writing to the board a list of teachers
and other employees to be considered for transfer and subsequent
assignment for the next ensuing school year. 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.
All other teachers and employees not so listed shall be considered
as reassigned to the positions or jobs held at the time of this
meeting. The list of those recommended for transfer shall be
included in the minute record of the meeting and all those so
listed shall be notified in writing, which notice shall be
delivered in writing, by certified mail, return receipt requested,
to the persons' last known addresses within ten days following the
board meeting, of their having been so recommended for transfer and
subsequent assignment and the reasons therefor.
(c) The superintendent's authority to suspend school personnel shall be temporary only pending a hearing upon charges filed by the
superintendent with the board of education and the period of
suspension may not exceed thirty days unless extended by order of
the board.
(d) The provisions of this section respecting hearing upon
notice of transfer is not applicable in emergency situations where
the school building becomes damaged or destroyed through an
unforeseeable act and which act necessitates a transfer of the
school personnel because of the aforementioned condition of the
building.
(e) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, when actual student enrollment in a grade level or
program, unforeseen before March 1 of the preceding school year,
permits the assignment of fewer teachers or service employees to or
within a school under any pupil-teacher ratio, class size or
caseload standard established in section eighteen-a, article five,
chapter eighteen of this code or any policy of the state board, the
superintendent, with board approval, may reassign the surplus
personnel to another school or to another grade level or program
within the school if needed there to comply with any such
pupil-teacher ratio, class size or caseload standard. The
reassignment may be made without following the notice and hearing provisions of this section, and at any time during the school year
when the conditions of this subsection are met. The employee
reassigned under this subsection shall be the least senior teacher
or service employee working at the school, or in the grade level or
program, in the requisite certification or classification area(s).
If the classroom teacher is reassigned there shall be no diminution
of pay or benefits as a result of the reassignment.
ARTICLE 3. TRAINING, CERTIFICATION, LICENSING, PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT.
§18A-3-1d. Teach For America.
(a) Definitions. -- For the purposes of this section:
(1) "Critical need alternative teaching certificate" means a
certificate issued to a candidate who has been admitted to the
Teach For America Corps, is assigned to teach in West Virginia, and
who does not meet the standard educational requirements for teacher
certification.
(2) "Teach For America" means the national nonprofit
organization focused on eliminating educational inequity by
recruiting, selecting, training and supporting high-achieving
recent college graduates and professionals to teach for at least
two years in low-income communities throughout the United States,
as part of the Teach For America corps.
(3) "Teach For America corps member" means an individual who
has been admitted to the Teach For America corps to be a teacher,
and who is in the process of completing a two-year commitment as
part of the corps.
(b) Critical need alternative teaching certificate -
(1) To serve as teacher of record under this section, the
candidate must hold a critical need alternative teaching
certificate issued by the state superintendent and endorsed for the
instructional field in which the candidate seeks certification.
(2) The certificate is issued for two years and may be renewed
for one additional year, and no individual may hold a critical need
alternative teacher certificate for a period exceeding three years.
The critical need alternative teacher certificate is equivalent to
a professional teaching certificate for the purpose of issuing a
continuing contract, and for the purposes of being designated a
highly qualified teacher under the No Child Left Behind Act.
(3) To be eligible for a critical need alternative teacher
certificate, an applicant shall meet the following criteria:
(A) Have been admitted into the Teach For America corps and be
part of the Teach For America corps serving West Virginia;
(B) Possess at least a bachelor's degree with a minimum of a
2.5 grade point average from a regionally accredited institution of higher education in any discipline;
(C) Pass the same basic skills and subject matter test or
tests required by the state board for traditional program
candidates to become certified in the area for which licensure is
being sought, and passage of the subject matter test or tests
shall be sufficient to earn endorsement in the instructional field,
provided that all other requirements set forth in this subsection
are met;
(D) Have completed Teach For America's summer training
institute;
(E) Hold United States citizenship; be of good moral character
and be physically, mentally and emotionally qualified to perform
the duties of a teacher;
(F) Attain the age of eighteen years on or before October 1 of
the year in which the critical need alternative teacher certificate
is issued; and
(G) Qualify for employment following a criminal history check
pursuant to section ten of this article.
(4) Notwithstanding any law or rule to the contrary, a person
who satisfies the requirements set forth in subdivision (3) of this
subsection shall be granted a formal document authorizing him or
her to work in a public school in West Virginia.
(5) Teach For America provides essential knowledge and skills,
and participants in the West Virginia corps certified under this
section shall complete the summer training institute and ongoing
two-year professional development required by Teach for America.
(6) In addition to receiving support provided by Teach For
America staff, candidates certified under this section shall
successfully complete a Beginning Teacher Internship program under
section two-b of this article.
(7) Professional support team. --
(A) Training and support of teachers certified under this
section are provided by a professional support team including the
school principal, or his or her designee, an experienced classroom
teacher who is serving as a mentor under the Beginning Teacher
Internship program pursuant to section two-b of this article, and
a staff member of Teach For America.
(B) The school principal, or his or her designee, serves as
chairperson of the team.
(C) The professional support team shall submit a written
evaluation of the teacher certified under this section to the
county superintendent at the conclusion of the teacher's second
year of teaching. The written evaluation shall be in a form
specified by the county superintendent
and submitted on a date specified by the county superintendent
. The evaluation shall report
the progress of the teacher toward meeting the requirements of the
training and support program, and all final decisions on the
progress of the teacher and recommendations shall rest with the
principal.
(D) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, upon program
completion and at least three years of successful teaching
experience, the teacher is eligible for a professional certificate,
as per the requirements established in section one-e of this
article.
§18A-3-1e. Recommendation for certification of teachers on the
critical need alternative teaching certificate.
(a) At the conclusion of the program administered pursuant to
section one-d of this article, the support team defined in section
one-d of this article shall prepare a comprehensive evaluation
report on the teacher's performance. This report shall be submitted
directly to the State Superintendent of Schools and shall contain
a recommendation as to whether or not a professional certificate
should be issued to the teacher. The report shall be made on
standard forms developed by the state superintendent.
The comprehensive evaluation report shall include one of the
following recommendations:
(1) Approved: Recommends issuance of a professional
certificate;
(2) Insufficient: Recommends that a professional certificate
not be issued but that the candidate be allowed to seek reentry on
one or more occasions in the future into an approved alternative
teacher education program or the Teach For America program; or
(3) Disapproved: Recommends that a professional certificate
not be issued and that the candidate not be allowed to enter into
another approved alternative teacher education program or the Teach
For America program in this state, but may not be prohibited from
pursuing teacher certification through other approved programs for
the education of teachers in this state.
(b) The support team shall provide the teacher with a copy of
the teacher's written evaluation report and certification
recommendation before submitting it to the state superintendent. If
the teacher disagrees with the provider's recommendation, the
teacher may, within fifteen days of receipt, request an appeal in
accordance with the certification appeals process established by
the State Board of Education.
§18A-3-2a. Certificates valid in the public schools that may be
issued by the state superintendent.
In accordance with state board rules for the education of professional educators adopted pursuant to section one of this
article and subject to the limitations and conditions of that
section, the state superintendent may issue the following
certificates valid in the public schools of the state:
(a) Professional teaching certificates. --
(1) A professional teaching certificate for teaching in the
public schools may be issued to a person who meets the following
conditions:
(A) Holds at least a bachelor's degree from an accredited
institution of higher education in this state; and
(i) Has completed a program for the education of teachers
which meets the requirements approved by the state board; or
(ii) Has met equivalent standards at institutions in other
states and has passed appropriate state board approved basic skills
and subject matter tests or has completed three years of successful
experience within the last seven years in the area for which
licensure is being sought; or
(B) Holds at least a bachelor's degree in a discipline taught
in the public schools from an accredited institution of higher
education; and
(i) Has passed appropriate state board approved basic skills
and subject matter tests; or
(ii) Has completed three years of successful experience within
the last seven years in the area for which licensure is being
sought; and
(I) Has completed an alternative program for teacher education
approved by the state board or the Teach For America program in
accordance with section one-d of this article;
(II) Is recommended for a certificate in accordance with the
provisions of sections one-a, and one-b and one-e of this article
relating to the program; or
(III) Is recommended by the state superintendent based on
documentation submitted.
(2) The certificate shall be endorsed to indicate the grade
level or levels or areas of specialization in which the person is
certified to teach or to serve in the public schools.
(3) The initial professional certificate is issued
provisionally for a period of three years from the date of
issuance:
(A) The certificate may be converted to a professional
certificate valid for five years subject to successful completion
of a beginning teacher internship or induction program, if
applicable; or
(B) The certificate may be renewed subject to rules adopted by the state board.
(b) Alternative program teacher certificate. -- An alternative
program teacher certificate may be issued to a candidate who is
enrolled in an alternative program for the education of teachers in
accordance with the provisions of section one-a of this article.
(1) The certificate is valid only for the alternative program
position in which the candidate is employed and is subject to
enrollment in the program.
(2) The certificate is valid for one year and may be renewed
for each of the following two consecutive years only.
(c) Critical need alternative teaching certificate. -- A
critical need alternative teaching certificate may be issued to a
candidate in accordance with provisions of section one-d of this
article.
_____(1) The certificate is valid subject to the provisions of
section one-d of this article.
_____(2) The certificate is valid for two years and may be renewed
for one additional year only.
_____(c) (d) Professional administrative certificate. --
(1) A professional administrative certificate, endorsed for
serving in the public schools, with specific endorsement as a
principal, vocational administrator, supervisor of instructions or superintendent, may be issued to a person who has completed
requirements all to be approved by the state board as follows:
(A) Holds at least a master's degree from an institution of
higher education accredited to offer a master's degree; and
(i) Has successfully completed an approved program for
administrative certification developed by the state board in
cooperation with the chancellor for higher education; and
(ii) Has successfully completed education and training in
evaluation skills through the center for professional development,
or equivalent education and training in evaluation skills approved
by the state board; and
(iii) Possesses three years of management level experience.
(2) Any person serving in the position of dean of students on
June 4, 1992, is not required to hold a professional administrative
certificate.
(3) The initial professional administrative certificate is
issued provisionally for a period of five years. This certificate
may be converted to a professional administrative certificate valid
for five years or renewed, subject to the regulations of the state
board.
(d) (e) Paraprofessional certificate. -- A paraprofessional
certificate may be issued to a person who meets the following conditions:
(1) Has completed thirty-six semester hours of post-secondary
education or its equivalent in subjects directly related to
performance of the job, all approved by the state board; and
(2) Demonstrates the proficiencies to perform duties as
required of a paraprofessional as defined in section eight, article
four of this chapter.
(e) (f) Other certificates; permits. --
(1) Other certificates and permits may be issued, subject to
the approval of the state board, to persons who do not qualify for
the professional or paraprofessional certificate.
(2) A certificate or permit may not be given permanent status
and a person holding one of these credentials shall meet renewal
requirements provided by law and by regulation, unless the state
board declares certain of these certificates to be the equivalent
of the professional certificate.
(3) Within the category of other certificates and permits, the
state superintendent may issue certificates for persons to serve in
the public schools as athletic coaches or coaches of other
extracurricular activities, whose duties may include the
supervision of students, subject to the following limitations:
(A) The person is employed under a contract with the county board of education.
(i) The contract specifies the duties to be performed,
specifies a rate of pay that is equivalent to the rate of pay for
professional educators in the district who accept similar duties as
extra duty assignments, and provides for liability insurance
associated with the activity; and
(ii) The person holding this certificate is not considered an
employee of the board for salary and benefit purposes other than as
specified in the contract.
(B) A currently employed certified professional educator has
not applied for the position; and
(C) The person completes an orientation program designed and
approved in accordance with state board rules.
(f) (g) Teacher-In-Residence Permit. --
(1) A teacher-in-residence permit may be issued to a candidate
who is enrolled in a teacher-in-residence program in accordance
with an agreement between an institution of higher education and a
county board. The agreement is developed pursuant to subsection
(f), section one of this article and requires approval by the state
board.
(2) The permit is valid only for the teacher-in-residence
program position in which the candidate is enrolled and is subject to enrollment in the program. The permit is valid for no more than
one school year and may not be renewed.
ARTICLE 3A. CENTER FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.
§18A-3A-1. Center for Professional Development; intent and
mission; Principals Academy curriculum and
expenses; authorization to charge fees.
(a) Teaching is a profession that directly correlates to the
social and economic well-being of a society and its citizens.
Superior teaching is essential to a well-educated and productive
populace. Strong academic leadership provided by principals and
administrators skilled in modern management principles is also
essential. The intent of this article is to recognize the value of
professional involvement by experienced educators, principals and
administrators in building and maintaining a superior force of
professional educators and to establish avenues for applying this
involvement.
(b) The general mission of the center is to advance the
quality of teaching and management in the schools of West Virginia
through: (1) The implementation primarily of statewide training,
professional staff development, including professional staff
development for at least teachers, principals and
paraprofessionals, and technical assistance programs and practices as recommended by the state board to assure the highest quality of
teaching and management; and (2) the provision of technical and
other assistance and support to regional and local education
agencies in identifying and providing high-quality professional
staff development, including professional staff development for at
least teachers, principals and paraprofessionals, and training
programs and implementing best practices to meet their locally
identified needs. The center also may implement local programs if
the state board, in its Master Plan for Professional Staff
Development established pursuant to section twenty-three-a, article
two, chapter eighteen article two-i, chapter eighteen-a of this
code, determines that there is a specific local need for the
programs. Additionally, the center shall perform other duties
assigned to it by law.
Nothing in this article shall be construed to require requires
any specific level of funding by the Legislature.
(c) The Center for Professional Development Board is
reconstituted, and all terms of members elected or appointed prior
to the effective date of this section are expired. The center
board shall consist of thirteen persons as follows:
(1) The Secretary of Education and the Arts, ex officio, and
the state superintendent, ex officio, each of whom is:
(A) Entitled to vote; and
(B) A Cochair of the board.
(2) Two members of the state board, elected by the state
board;
(3) One person employed by West Virginia University and one
person employed by Marshall University, both of whom are:
(A) Appointed by the President of the employing institution;
(B) Faculty in the teacher education section of the employing
institution; and
(C) Knowledgeable in matters relevant to the issues addressed
by the center;
(4) One regional education service agency executive director,
elected by all of the regional education service agency executive
directors;
(5) Three experienced educators, of whom one is a working
classroom teacher, one is a school principal and one is a county
administrator. All such educators are:
(A) Appointed by the Governor by and with the advice and
consent of the Senate;
(B) Experienced educators who have achieved recognition for
their superior knowledge, ability and performance in teaching or
management, as applicable; and
(C) Knowledgeable in matters relevant to the issues addressed
by the center; and
(6) Three citizens of the state who are:
(A) Knowledgeable in matters relevant to the issues addressed
by the center, including, but not limited to, professional
development and management principles; and
(B) Appointed by the Governor by and with the advice and
consent of the Senate.
(C) Not more than two such members may be residents within the
same congressional district.
(d) Each appointment and election is for a two-year term.
Such members may serve no more than two consecutive two-year terms.
(1) The state board shall elect another member to fill the
unexpired term of any person who vacates state board membership.
(2) The regional education service agency executive directors
shall elect an executive director to fill the unexpired term of any
executive director who ceases to be employed in that capacity.
(3) Of the initial members appointed by the Governor, three
are appointed for one-year terms and three are appointed for
two-year terms. Each successive appointment by the Governor is for
a two-year term. The Governor shall appoint a new member to fill
the unexpired term of any vacancy in the appointed membership.
(4) The President of West Virginia University and Marshall
University each appoints an employee to fill the unexpired term of
any member who ceases to be employed by that institution.
(e) The Center for Professional Development Board shall meet
at least quarterly and the appointed members shall be reimbursed
for reasonable and necessary expenses actually incurred in the
performance of their official duties from funds appropriated or
otherwise made available for those purposes upon submission of an
itemized statement therefor.
(f) The position of executive director is abolished. The
Governor shall appoint, by and with the advice and consent of the
Senate, a chief executive officer with knowledge and experience in
professional development and management principles. Any reference
in this code to the Executive Director of the Center for
Professional Development means the Chief Executive Officer. From
appropriations to the Center for Professional Development, the
center board sets the salary of the Chief Executive Officer. The
center board, upon the recommendation of the Chief Executive
Officer, may employ other staff necessary to carry out the mission
and duties of the center. The Chief Executive Officer serves at
the will and pleasure of the Governor. Annually, the center board
shall evaluate the Chief Executive Officer, and shall report the results to the Governor. The duties of the Chief Executive Officer
include:
(1) Managing the daily operations of the center;
(2) Ensuring the implementation of the center's mission;
(3) Ensuring collaboration of the center with other
professional development providers;
(4) Requesting from the Governor and the Legislature any
resources or statutory changes that would help in enhancing the
collaboration of all professional development providers in the
state, in advancing the quality of professional development through
any other means or both;
(5) Serving as the chair of the Principals Standards Advisory
Council created in section two-c, article three of this chapter and
convening regular meetings of this council to effectuate its
purposes; and
(6) Other duties as assigned by the Governor or the center
board.
(g) When practicable, personnel employed by state higher
education agencies and state, regional and county public education
agencies shall be made available to the center to assist in the
operation of projects of limited duration, subject to the
provisions of section twenty-four, article two, chapter eighteen of this code.
(h) The center shall assist in the delivery of programs and
activities pursuant to this article to meet statewide, and if
needed as determined by the goals and Master Plan for Professional
Staff Development established by the state board pursuant to
section twenty-three-a, article two, chapter eighteen article
two-i, chapter eighteen-a of this code, the local professional
development needs of paraprofessionals, teachers, principals and
administrators and may contract with existing agencies or agencies
created after the effective date of this section or others to
provide training programs in the most efficient manner. Existing
programs currently based in agencies of the state shall be
continued in the agency of their origin unless the center
establishes a compelling need to transfer or cancel the existing
program. The center shall recommend to the Governor the transfer
of funds to the providing agency, if needed, to provide programs
approved by the center.
(i) The Center for Professional Development shall implement
training and professional development programs for the Principals
Academy based upon the minimum qualities, proficiencies and skills
necessary for principals in accordance with the standards
established by the state board pursuant to the terms of section two-c, article three of this chapter.
(j) In accordance with section two-c, article three of this
chapter, the center shall be is responsible for paying reasonable
and necessary expenses for persons attending the Principals
Academy: Provided, That nothing in this section shall be construed
to require requires any specific level of funding by the
Legislature.
(k) Persons attending the professional development offerings
of the center and other courses and services offered by the Center
for Professional Development, except the Principals Academy shall
be assessed fees which shall be less than the full cost of
attendance. There is hereby created in the State Treasury a
special revenue account known as the "Center for Professional
Development Fund". All moneys collected by the center shall be
deposited in the fund for expenditure by the center board for the
purposes specified in this section. Moneys remaining in the fund
at the end of the fiscal year are subject to reappropriation by the
Legislature.
(l) The center board shall make collaboration with the state
board in providing professional development services in the
following areas a priority:
(1) Services to those public schools selected by the state superintendent pursuant to section three-g, article two-e, chapter
eighteen of this code; and
(2) Services in any specific subject matter area that the
state board, the Legislature or both, determine is justified due to
a need to increase student achievement in that area.
§18A-3A-2. Professional development project.
Subject to the provisions of section twenty-three-a, article
two, chapter eighteen article two-i, chapter eighteen-a of this
code, through this project the Center for Professional Development
shall:
(1) Identify, coordinate, arrange and otherwise assist in the
delivery of professional development programs and activities that
help professional educators acquire the knowledge, skills,
attitudes, practices and other such pertinent complements
considered essential for an individual to demonstrate appropriate
performance as a professional person in the public schools of West
Virginia. The basis for the performance shall be the laws,
policies and regulations adopted for the public schools of West
Virginia, and amendments thereto. The center also may permit and
encourage school personnel such as classroom aides, higher
education teacher education faculty and higher education faculty in
programs such as articulated tech prep associate degree and other programs to participate in appropriate professional development
programs and activities with public school professional educators;
(2) Identify, coordinate, arrange and otherwise assist in the
delivery of professional development programs and activities that
help principals and administrators acquire knowledge, skills,
attitudes and practices in academic leadership and management
principles for principals and administrators and such other
pertinent complements considered essential for principals and
administrators to demonstrate appropriate performance in the public
schools of West Virginia. The basis for the performance shall be
the laws, policies and regulations adopted for the public schools
of West Virginia, and amendments thereto;
(3) Serve in a coordinating capacity to assure that the
knowledge, skills, attitude and other pertinent complements of
appropriate professional performance which evolve over time in the
public school environment are appropriately reflected in the
programs approved for the education of professional personnel,
including, but not limited to, advising the teacher education
programs of major statutory and policy changes in the public
schools which affect the job performance requirements of
professional educators, including principals and administrators;
(4) Provide for the routine updating of professional skills of professional educators, including principals and administrators,
through in-service and other programs. The routine updating may be
provided by the center through statewide or regional institutes
which may require a registration fee;
(5) Provide for the routine education of all professional
educators, including principals and administrators, and those
service personnel having direct contact with students on warning
signs and resources to assist in suicide prevention under
guidelines established by the state board. The education may be
accomplished through self review of suicide prevention materials
and resources approved by the state board. The provisions of this
paragraph may be known and cited as the "Jason Flatt Act of 2012";
(6) Provide consultation and assistance to county staff
development councils established under the provisions of section
eight, article three of this chapter in planning, designing,
coordinating, arranging for and delivering professional development
programs to meet the needs of the professional educators of their
district. From legislative appropriations to the center, exclusive
of the amounts required for the expenses of the principals academy,
the center shall, unless otherwise directed by the Legislature,
provide assistance in the delivery of programs and activities to
meet the expressed needs of the school districts for professional development to help teachers, principals and administrators
demonstrate appropriate performance based on the laws, policies and
regulations adopted for the public schools of West Virginia; and
(7) Cooperate and coordinate with the institutions of higher
education to provide professional staff development programs that
satisfy some or all of the criteria necessary for currently
certified professional educators to meet the requirements for an
additional endorsement in an area of certification and for
certification to teach in the middle school grades.
If the center is not able to reach agreement with the
representatives of the institutions providing teacher education
programs on which courses will be approved for credit toward
additional endorsements, the state board may certify certain
professional staff development courses to meet criteria required by
the state board. This certification shall be done on a course by
course basis.
§18A-3A-3. Professional personnel evaluation project.
Subject to the provisions of section twenty-three-a, article
two, chapter eighteen article two-i, chapter eighteen-a of this
code, through this project the center shall:
(1) Establish programs that provide education and training in
evaluation skills to administrative personnel who will evaluate the employment performance of professional personnel pursuant to the
provisions of section twelve, article two of this chapter; and
(2) Establish programs that provide instruction to classroom
teachers who will serve as beginning teacher mentors in accordance
with the provisions of section two-b, article three of this
chapter.
ARTICLE 4. SALARIES, WAGES AND OTHER BENEFITS.
§18A-4-2a. State minimum salary bonus for classroom teachers with
national board certification.
(a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the
rigorous standards and processes for certification by the National
Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) helps to promote
the quality of teaching and learning. Therefore, classroom
teachers in the public schools of West Virginia should be
encouraged to achieve national board certification through a
reimbursement of expenses and an additional salary bonus which
reflects their additional certification, to be paid in accordance
with the provisions of this section.
(b) Three thousand five hundred dollars shall be paid annually
to each classroom teacher who holds a valid certificate issued by
the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards for the life
of the certification, but in no event more than ten years for any one certification.
(c) The payments:
(1) Shall be in addition to any amounts prescribed in the
applicable state minimum salary schedule;
(2) Shall be paid in equal monthly installments; and
(3) Shall be considered a part of the state minimum salaries
for teachers.
(d) One-half the certification fee shall be paid for
reimbursement once to each teacher who enrolls in the program for
the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards
certification and one-half the certification fee shall be paid for
reimbursement once to each teacher who completes the National Board
for Professional Teaching Standards certification. Completion
shall be defined as the completion of ten scorable entries, as
verified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.
Teachers who achieve National Board for Professional Teaching
Standards certification may be reimbursed a maximum of $600 for
expenses actually incurred while obtaining the National Board for
Professional Teaching Standards certification.
(e) The state board shall limit the number of teachers who
receive the initial reimbursements of the certification fees set
forth in subsection (d) to two hundred teachers annually. The state board shall establish selection criteria for the teachers by
the legislative rule required pursuant to subsection (g) of this
section.
(f) Subject to the provisions of subsection (e) of this
section, funding for reimbursement of the certification and
re-certification fee and expenses actually incurred while obtaining
the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards
certifications shall be administered by the State Department of
Education from an appropriation established for that purpose by the
Legislature. If funds appropriated by the Legislature to
accomplish the purposes of this subsection are insufficient, the
state department shall prorate the reimbursements for expenses and
shall request of the Legislature, at its next regular session,
funds sufficient to accomplish the purposes of this subsection,
including needed retroactive payments.
(g) The state board shall promulgate legislative rules
pursuant to article three-b, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code to
implement the provisions of this section.
(h) Nothing in this section prevents the state board from
reimbursing classroom teachers that seek national board
re-certification.
§18A-4-7a. Employment, promotion and transfer of professional personnel; seniority.
(a) A county board of education shall make decisions affecting
the hiring of professional personnel other than classroom teachers
on the basis of the applicant with the highest qualifications.
(b) The county board shall make decisions affecting the hiring
of new classroom teachers fill vacancies in professional positions
of employment on the basis of the applicant with the highest
qualifications. The county superintendent shall be hired under
separate criteria established by the county board.
(c) In judging qualifications for hiring employees pursuant to
subsections (a) and (b) of this section filling vacancies in
professional positions of employment, consideration shall be given
to each of the following:
(1) Appropriate certification, licensure or both;
(2) Amount of experience relevant to the position; or, in the
case of a classroom teaching position, the amount of teaching
experience in the subject area;
(3) The amount of course work, degree level or both in the
relevant field and degree level generally;
(4) Academic achievement;
(5) Relevant specialized training;
(6) Past performance evaluations conducted pursuant to section twelve, article two of this chapter;
(7) Seniority; and
(7) (8) Other measures or indicators upon which the relative
qualifications of the applicant may fairly be judged.
(d) If one or more permanently employed instructional
personnel apply for a classroom teaching position and meet the
standards set forth in the job posting, the county board of
education shall make a decision affecting the filling of the
position on the basis of the following criteria:
(1) Appropriate certification, licensure or both;
(2) Total amount of teaching experience;
(3) The existence of teaching experience in the required
certification area;
(4) Degree level in the required certification area;
(5) Specialized training directly related to the performance
of the job as stated in the job description;
(6) Receiving an overall rating of satisfactory in the
previous two evaluations conducted pursuant to section twelve,
article two of this chapter; and
(7) Seniority.
(e) In filling positions pursuant to subsection (d) of this
section, consideration shall be given to each criterion with each criterion being given equal weight. If the applicant with the most
seniority is not selected for the position, upon the request of the
applicant a written statement of reasons shall be given to the
applicant with suggestions for improving the applicant's
qualifications. In judging qualifications for filling a classroom
teacher vacancy at a school, the county board shall also give
consideration to any recommendations made by the principal and by
the process, if any, established by the faculty senate pursuant to
section five, article five-a, chapter eighteen of this code to
interview prospective professional educators.
_____(f) (e) With the exception of guidance counselors, the
seniority of classroom teachers, as defined in section one, article
one of this chapter shall be determined on the basis of the length
of time the employee has been employed as a regular full-time
certified and/or licensed professional educator by the county board
of education and shall be granted in all areas that the employee is
certified, licensed or both.
(g) (f) Upon completion of one hundred thirty-three days of
employment in any one school year, substitute teachers, except
retired teachers and other retired professional educators employed
as substitutes, shall accrue seniority exclusively for the purpose
of applying for employment as a permanent, full-time professional employee. One hundred thirty-three days or more of said employment
shall be prorated and shall vest as a fraction of the school year
worked by the permanent, full-time teacher.
(h) (g) Guidance counselors and all other professional
employees, as defined in section one, article one of this chapter,
except classroom teachers, shall gain seniority in their
nonteaching area of professional employment on the basis of the
length of time the employee has been employed by the county board
of education in that area: Provided, That if an employee is
certified as a classroom teacher, the employee accrues classroom
teaching seniority for the time that that employee is employed in
another professional area. For the purposes of accruing seniority
under this paragraph, employment as principal, supervisor or
central office administrator, as defined in section one, article
one of this chapter, shall be considered one area of employment.
(i) (h) Employment for a full employment term shall equal one
year of seniority, but no employee may accrue more than one year of
seniority during any given fiscal year. Employment for less than
the full employment term shall be prorated. A random selection
system established by the employees and approved by the board shall
be used to determine the priority if two or more employees
accumulate identical seniority: Provided, That when two or more principals have accumulated identical seniority, decisions on
reductions in force shall be based on qualifications.
(j) (i) Whenever a county board is required to reduce the
number of professional personnel in its employment, or within a
school, the employee holding a position to be reduced with the
least amount of seniority or the least amount of seniority within
the school, in defined circumstances, shall be properly notified
and released from employment pursuant to the provisions of section
two, article two of this chapter. The provisions of this
subsection are subject to the following:
(1) All persons employed in a certification area to be reduced
within a school who are employed under a temporary permit shall be
properly notified and released before a fully certified employee in
such a position within a school is subject to release;
(2) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, all employees subject to release shall be considered
applicants for any vacancy in an established, existing or newly
created position that, on or before February 15, is known to exist
for the ensuing school year, and for which they are qualified, and,
upon recommendation of the superintendent, the board shall appoint
the successful applicant from among them before posting such
vacancies for application by other persons;
_____(2) (3) An employee subject to release shall be employed in
any other professional position where the employee is certified and
was previously employed or to any lateral area for which the
employee is certified, licensed or both, if the employee's
seniority is greater than the seniority of any other employee in
that area of certification, licensure or both: Provided, That the
position is not at a school to which the employee is not currently
assigned;
(3) (4) If an employee subject to release holds certification,
licensure or both in more than one lateral area and if the
employee's seniority is greater than the seniority of any other
employee in one or more of those areas of certification, licensure
or both, the employee subject to release shall be employed in the
professional position held by the employee with the least seniority
in any of those areas of certification, licensure or both, whose
position is either at the same school or not assigned to a school;
and
(4) (5) If, prior to August 1, of the year a reduction in
force is approved, the reason for any particular reduction in force
no longer exists as determined by the county board in its sole and
exclusive judgment, the board shall rescind the reduction in force
or transfer and shall notify the released employee in writing of his or her right to be restored to his or her position of
employment. Within five days of being so notified, the released
employee shall notify the board, in writing, of his or her intent
to resume his or her position of employment or the right to be
restored shall terminate. Notwithstanding any other provision of
this subdivision, if there is another employee on the preferred
recall list with proper certification and higher seniority, that
person shall be placed in the position restored as a result of the
reduction in force being rescinded.
(k) (j) For the purpose of this article, all positions which
meet the definition of "classroom teacher" as defined in section
one, article one of this chapter shall be lateral positions. For
all other professional positions, the county board of education
shall adopt a policy by October 31, 1993, and may modify the policy
thereafter as necessary, which defines which positions shall be
lateral positions. The board shall submit a copy of its policy to
the state board within thirty days of adoption or any modification,
and the state board shall compile a report and submit the report to
the Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability by
December 31, 1993, and by that date in any succeeding year in which
any county board submits a modification of its policy relating to
lateral positions. In adopting the policy, the board shall give consideration to the rank of each position in terms of title;
nature of responsibilities; salary level; certification, licensure
or both; and days in the period of employment.
(l) (k) After the twentieth day prior to the beginning of the
instructional term, no person employed and assigned to a
professional position may transfer to another professional position
in the county during that instructional term unless the person
holding that position does not have valid certification. The
provisions of this subsection are subject to the following:
(1) The person may apply for any posted, vacant positions with
the successful applicant assuming the position at the beginning of
the next instructional term;
(2) Professional personnel who have been on an approved leave
of absence may fill these vacancies upon their return from the
approved leave of absence;
(3) The county board, upon recommendation of the
superintendent may fill a position before the next instructional
term when it is determined to be in the best interest of the
students. The county superintendent shall notify the state board
of each transfer of a person employed in a professional position to
another professional position after the twentieth day prior to the
beginning of the instructional term;
(4) The provisions of this subsection do not apply to the
filling of a position vacated because of resignation or retirement
that became effective on or before the twentieth day prior to the
beginning of the instructional term, but not posted until after
that date; and
(5) The Legislature finds that it is not in the best interest
of the students particularly in the elementary grades to have
multiple teachers for any one grade level or course during the
instructional term. It is the intent of the Legislature that the
filling of positions through transfers of personnel from one
professional position to another after the twentieth day prior to
the beginning of the instructional term should be kept to a
minimum.
(m) (l) All professional personnel whose seniority with the
county board is insufficient to allow their retention by the county
board during a reduction in work force shall be placed upon a
preferred recall list. As to any professional position opening
within the area where they had previously been employed or to any
lateral area for which they have certification, licensure or both,
the employee shall be recalled on the basis of seniority if no
regular, full-time professional personnel, or those returning from
leaves of absence with greater seniority, are qualified, apply for and accept the position.
(n) (m) Before position openings that are known or expected to
extend for twenty consecutive employment days or longer for
professional personnel may be filled by the board, the board shall
be required to notify all qualified professional personnel on the
preferred list and give them an opportunity to apply, but failure
to apply shall not cause the employee to forfeit any right to
recall. The notice shall be sent by certified mail to the last
known address of the employee, and it shall be the duty of each
professional personnel to notify the board of continued
availability annually, of any change in address or of any change in
certification, licensure or both.
(o) (n) Openings in established, existing or newly created
positions shall be processed as follows:
(1) Boards shall be required to post and date notices which of
each opening at least once and may at their discretion post an
opening more than once in order to attract more qualified
applicants. The posting or postings for an opening are subject to
the following:
(A) The notices Each notice shall be posted in conspicuous
working places for all professional personnel to observe for at
least five working days;
(B) The At least one notice shall be posted within twenty
working days of the position openings and shall include the job
description;
(C) Any special criteria or skills that are required by the
position shall be specifically stated in the job description and
directly related to the performance of the job;
(D) Postings for vacancies made pursuant to this section shall
be written so as to ensure that the largest possible pool of
qualified applicants may apply; and
(E) Job postings may not require criteria which are not
necessary for the successful performance of the job and may not be
written with the intent to favor a specific applicant;
(2) No vacancy shall be filled until after the five-day
minimum posting period of the most recent posted notice of the
vacancy;
(3) If one or more applicants under all the postings for a
vacancy meets the qualifications listed in the job posting, the
successful applicant to fill the vacancy shall be selected by the
board within thirty working days of the end of the first posting
period;
(4) A position held by a teacher who is certified, licensed or
both, who has been issued a permit for full-time employment and is working toward certification in the permit area shall not be
subject to posting if the certificate is awarded within five years;
and
(5) Nothing provided herein shall prevent the county board of
education from eliminating a position due to lack of need.
(p) (o) Notwithstanding any other provision of the code to the
contrary, where the total number of classroom teaching positions in
an elementary school does not increase from one school year to the
next, but there exists in that school a need to realign the number
of teachers in one or more grade levels, kindergarten through six,
teachers at the school may be reassigned to grade levels for which
they are certified without that position being posted: Provided,
That the employee and the county board of education mutually agree
to the reassignment.
(q) Reductions in classroom teaching positions in elementary
schools shall be processed as follows:
(1) When the total number of classroom teaching positions in
an elementary school needs to be reduced, the reduction shall be
made on the basis of seniority with the least senior classroom
teacher being recommended for transfer; and
(2) When a specified grade level needs to be reduced and the
least senior employee in the school is not in that grade level, the least senior classroom teacher in the grade level that needs to be
reduced shall be reassigned to the position made vacant by the
transfer of the least senior classroom teacher in the school
without that position being posted: Provided, That the employee is
certified, licensed or both and agrees to the reassignment.
(r) (p) Any board failing to comply with the provisions of
this article may be compelled to do so by mandamus and shall be
liable to any party prevailing against the board for court costs
and reasonable attorney fees as determined and established by the
court. Further, employees denied promotion or employment in
violation of this section shall be awarded the job, pay and any
applicable benefits retroactive to the date of the violation and
payable entirely from local funds. Further, the board shall be
liable to any party prevailing against the board for any court
reporter costs including copies of transcripts.
(s) (q) The county board shall compile, update annually on
July 1 and make available by electronic or other means to all
employees a list of all professional personnel employed by the
county, their areas of certification and their seniority.
(r) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the
contrary, upon recommendation of the principal and approval by the
classroom teacher and county board, a classroom teacher assigned to the school may at any time be assigned to a new or existing
classroom teacher position at the school without the position being
posted.
§18A-4-8. Employment term and class titles of service personnel;
definitions.
(a) The purpose of this section is to establish an employment
term and class titles for service personnel. The employment term
for service personnel may not be less than ten months. A month is
defined as twenty employment days. The county board may contract
with all or part of these service personnel for a longer term. The
beginning and closing dates of the ten-month employment term may
not exceed forty-three weeks.
(b) Service personnel employed on a yearly or twelve-month
basis may be employed by calendar months. Whenever there is a
change in job assignment during the school year, the minimum pay
scale and any county supplement are applicable.
(c) Service personnel employed in the same classification for
more than the two hundred-day minimum employment term shall be paid
for additional employment at a daily rate of not less than the
daily rate paid for the two hundred-day minimum employment term.
(d) A service person may not be required to report for work
more than five days per week without his or her agreement, and no part of any working day may be accumulated by the employer for
future work assignments, unless the employee agrees thereto.
(e) If a service person whose regular work week is scheduled
from Monday through Friday agrees to perform any work assignments
on a Saturday or Sunday, the service person shall be paid for at
least one-half day of work for each day he or she reports for work.
If the service person works more than three and one-half hours on
any Saturday or Sunday, he or she shall be paid for at least a full
day of work for each day.
(f) A custodian, aide, maintenance, office and school lunch
service person required to work a daily work schedule that is
interrupted shall be paid additional compensation in accordance
with this subsection.
(1) A maintenance person means a person who holds a
classification title other than in a custodial, aide, school lunch,
office or transportation category as provided in section one,
article one of this chapter.
(2) A service person's schedule is considered to be
interrupted if he or she does not work a continuous period in one
day. Aides are not regarded as working an interrupted schedule
when engaged exclusively in the duties of transporting students;
(3) The additional compensation provided for in this subsection:
(A) Is equal to at least one eighth of a service person's
total salary as provided by the state minimum pay scale and any
county pay supplement; and
(B) Is payable entirely from county board funds.
(g) When there is a change in classification or when a service
person meets the requirements of an advanced classification, his or
her salary shall be made to comply with the requirements of this
article and any county salary schedule in excess of the minimum
requirements of this article, based upon the service person's
advanced classification and allowable years of employment.
(h) A service person's contract, as provided in section five,
article two of this chapter, shall state the appropriate monthly
salary the employee is to be paid, based on the class title as
provided in this article and on any county salary schedule in
excess of the minimum requirements of this article.
(i) The column heads of the state minimum pay scale and class
titles, set forth in section eight-a of this article, are defined
as follows:
(1) "Pay grade" means the monthly salary applicable to class
titles of service personnel;
(2) "Years of employment" means the number of years which an employee classified as a service person has been employed by a
county board in any position prior to or subsequent to the
effective date of this section and includes service in the Armed
Forces of the United States, if the employee was employed at the
time of his or her induction. For the purpose of section eight-a
of this article, years of employment is limited to the number of
years shown and allowed under the state minimum pay scale as set
forth in section eight-a of this article;
(3) "Class title" means the name of the position or job held
by a service person;
(4) "Accountant I" means a person employed to maintain payroll
records and reports and perform one or more operations relating to
a phase of the total payroll;
(5) "Accountant II" means a person employed to maintain
accounting records and to be responsible for the accounting process
associated with billing, budgets, purchasing and related
operations;
(6) "Accountant III" means a person employed in the county
board office to manage and supervise accounts payable, payroll
procedures, or both;
(7) "Accounts payable supervisor" means a person employed in
the county board office who has primary responsibility for the accounts payable function and who either has completed twelve
college hours of accounting courses from an accredited institution
of higher education or has at least eight years of experience
performing progressively difficult accounting tasks.
Responsibilities of this class title may include supervision of
other personnel;
(8) "Aide I" means a person selected and trained for a
teacher-aide classification such as monitor aide, clerical aide,
classroom aide or general aide;
(9) "Aide II" means a service person referred to in the "Aide
I" classification who has completed a training program approved by
the state board, or who holds a high school diploma or has received
a general educational development certificate. Only a person
classified in an Aide II class title may be employed as an aide in
any special education program;
(10) "Aide III" means a service person referred to in the
"Aide I" classification who holds a high school diploma or a
general educational development certificate; and
(A) Has completed six semester hours of college credit at an
institution of higher education; or
(B) Is employed as an aide in a special education program and
has one year's experience as an aide in special education;
(11) "Aide IV" means a service person referred to in the "Aide
I" classification who holds a high school diploma or a general
educational development certificate; and
(A) Has completed eighteen hours of state board-approved
college credit at a regionally accredited institution of higher
education, or
(B) Has completed fifteen hours of state board-approved
college credit at a regionally accredited institution of higher
education; and has successfully completed an in-service training
program determined by the state board to be the equivalent of three
hours of college credit;
(12) "Audiovisual technician" means a person employed to
perform minor maintenance on audiovisual equipment, films, and
supplies and who fills requests for equipment;
(13) "Auditor" means a person employed to examine and verify
accounts of individual schools and to assist schools and school
personnel in maintaining complete and accurate records of their
accounts;
(14) "Autism mentor" means a person who works with autistic
students and who meets standards and experience to be determined by
the state board. A person who has held or holds an aide title and
becomes employed as an autism mentor shall hold a multiclassification status that includes both aide and autism
mentor titles, in accordance with section eight-b of this article;
(15) "Braille or sign language specialist" means a person
employed to provide braille and/or sign language assistance to
students. A service person who has held or holds an aide title and
becomes employed as a braille or sign language specialist shall
hold a multiclassification status that includes both aide and
braille or sign language specialist title, in accordance with
section eight-b of this article;
(16) "Bus operator" means a person employed to operate school
buses and other school transportation vehicles as provided by the
state board;
(17) "Buyer" means a person employed to review and write
specifications, negotiate purchase bids and recommend purchase
agreements for materials and services that meet predetermined
specifications at the lowest available costs;
(18) "Cabinetmaker" means a person employed to construct
cabinets, tables, bookcases and other furniture;
(19) "Cafeteria manager" means a person employed to direct the
operation of a food services program in a school, including
assigning duties to employees, approving requisitions for supplies
and repairs, keeping inventories, inspecting areas to maintain high standards of sanitation, preparing financial reports and keeping
records pertinent to food services of a school;
(20) "Carpenter I" means a person classified as a carpenter's
helper;
(21) "Carpenter II" means a person classified as a journeyman
carpenter;
(22) "Chief mechanic" means a person employed to be
responsible for directing activities which ensure that student
transportation or other county board-owned vehicles are properly
and safely maintained;
(23) "Clerk I" means a person employed to perform clerical
tasks;
(24) "Clerk II" means a person employed to perform general
clerical tasks, prepare reports and tabulations and operate office
machines;
(25) "Computer operator" means a qualified person employed to
operate computers;
(26) "Cook I" means a person employed as a cook's helper;
(27) "Cook II" means a person employed to interpret menus and
to prepare and serve meals in a food service program of a school.
This definition includes a service person who has been employed as
a "Cook I" for a period of four years;
(28) "Cook III" means a person employed to prepare and serve
meals, make reports, prepare requisitions for supplies, order
equipment and repairs for a food service program of a school
system;
(29) "Crew leader" means a person employed to organize the
work for a crew of maintenance employees to carry out assigned
projects;
(30) "Custodian I" means a person employed to keep buildings
clean and free of refuse;
(31) "Custodian II" means a person employed as a watchman or
groundsman;
(32) "Custodian III" means a person employed to keep buildings
clean and free of refuse, to operate the heating or cooling systems
and to make minor repairs;
(33) "Custodian IV" means a person employed as head
custodians. In addition to providing services as defined in
"custodian III," duties may include supervising other custodian
personnel;
(34) "Director or coordinator of services" means an employee
of a county board who is assigned to direct a department or
division.
(A) Nothing in this subdivision prohibits a professional person or a professional educator from holding this class title;
(B) Professional personnel holding this class title may not be
defined or classified as service personnel unless the professional
person held a service personnel title under this section prior to
holding the class title of "director or coordinator of services."
(C) The director or coordinator of services shall be
classified either as a professional person or a service person for
state aid formula funding purposes;
(D) Funding for the position of director or coordinator of
services is based upon the employment status of the director or
coordinator either as a professional person or a service person;
and
(E) A person employed under the class title "director or
coordinator of services" may not be exclusively assigned to perform
the duties ascribed to any other class title as defined in this
subsection: Provided, That nothing in this paragraph prohibits a
person in this position from being multiclassified;
(35) "Draftsman" means a person employed to plan, design and
produce detailed architectural/engineering drawings;
(36) "Electrician I" means a person employed as an apprentice
electrician helper or one who holds an electrician helper license
issued by the State Fire Marshal;
(37) "Electrician II" means a person employed as an
electrician journeyman or one who holds a journeyman electrician
license issued by the State Fire Marshal;
(38) "Electronic technician I" means a person employed at the
apprentice level to repair and maintain electronic equipment;
(39) "Electronic technician II" means a person employed at the
journeyman level to repair and maintain electronic equipment;
(40) "Executive secretary" means a person employed as
secretary to the county school superintendent or as a secretary who
is assigned to a position characterized by significant
administrative duties;
(41) "Food services supervisor" means a qualified person who
is not a professional person or professional educator as defined in
section one, article one of this chapter. The food services
supervisor is employed to manage and supervise a county school
system's food service program. The duties include preparing
in-service training programs for cooks and food service employees,
instructing personnel in the areas of quantity cooking with economy
and efficiency and keeping aggregate records and reports;
(42) "Foreman" means a skilled person employed to supervise
personnel who work in the areas of repair and maintenance of school
property and equipment;
(43) "General maintenance" means a person employed as a helper
to skilled maintenance employees and to perform minor repairs to
equipment and buildings of a county school system;
(44) "Glazier" means a person employed to replace glass or
other materials in windows and doors and to do minor carpentry
tasks;
(45) "Graphic artist" means a person employed to prepare
graphic illustrations;
(46) "Groundsman" means a person employed to perform duties
that relate to the appearance, repair and general care of school
grounds in a county school system. Additional assignments may
include the operation of a small heating plant and routine cleaning
duties in buildings;
(47) "Handyman" means a person employed to perform routine
manual tasks in any operation of the county school system;
(48) "Heating and air conditioning mechanic I" means a person
employed at the apprentice level to install, repair and maintain
heating and air conditioning plants and related electrical
equipment;
(49) "Heating and air conditioning mechanic II" means a person
employed at the journeyman level to install, repair and maintain
heating and air conditioning plants and related electrical equipment;
(50) "Heavy equipment operator" means a person employed to
operate heavy equipment;
(51) "Inventory supervisor" means a person employed to
supervise or maintain operations in the receipt, storage, inventory
and issuance of materials and supplies;
(52) "Key punch operator" means a qualified person employed to
operate key punch machines or verifying machines;
(53) "Licensed practical nurse" means a nurse, licensed by the
West Virginia Board of Examiners for Licensed Practical Nurses,
employed to work in a public school under the supervision of a
school nurse;
(54) "Locksmith" means a person employed to repair and
maintain locks and safes;
(55) "Lubrication man" means a person employed to lubricate
and service gasoline or diesel-powered equipment of a county school
system;
(56) "Machinist" means a person employed to perform machinist
tasks which include the ability to operate a lathe, planer, shaper,
threading machine and wheel press. A person holding this class
title also should have the ability to work from blueprints and
drawings;
(57) "Mail clerk" means a person employed to receive, sort,
dispatch, deliver or otherwise handle letters, parcels and other
mail;
(58) "Maintenance clerk" means a person employed to maintain
and control a stocking facility to keep adequate tools and supplies
on hand for daily withdrawal for all school maintenance crafts;
(59) "Mason" means a person employed to perform tasks
connected with brick and block laying and carpentry tasks related
to these activities;
(60) "Mechanic" means a person employed to perform skilled
duties independently in the maintenance and repair of automobiles,
school buses and other mechanical and mobile equipment to use in a
county school system;
(61) "Mechanic assistant" means a person employed as a
mechanic apprentice and helper;
(62) "Multiclassification" means a person employed to perform
tasks that involve the combination of two or more class titles in
this section. In these instances the minimum salary scale shall be
the higher pay grade of the class titles involved;
(63) "Office equipment repairman I" means a person employed as
an office equipment repairman apprentice or helper;
(64) "Office equipment repairman II" means a person responsible for servicing and repairing all office machines and
equipment. A person holding this class title is responsible for
the purchase of parts necessary for the proper operation of a
program of continuous maintenance and repair;
(65) "Painter" means a person employed to perform duties
painting, finishing and decorating wood, metal and concrete
surfaces of buildings, other structures, equipment, machinery and
furnishings of a county school system;
(66) "Paraprofessional" means a person certified pursuant to
section two-a, article three of this chapter to perform duties in
a support capacity including, but not limited to, facilitating in
the instruction and direct or indirect supervision of students
under the direction of a principal, a teacher or another designated
professional educator.
(A) A person employed on the effective date of this section in
the position of an aide may not be subject to a reduction in force
or transferred to create a vacancy for the employment of a
paraprofessional;
(B) A person who has held or holds an aide title and becomes
employed as a paraprofessional shall hold a multiclassification
status that includes both aide and paraprofessional titles in
accordance with section eight-b of this article; and
(C) When a service person who holds an aide title becomes
certified as a paraprofessional and is required to perform duties
that may not be performed by an aide without paraprofessional
certification, he or she shall receive the paraprofessional title
pay grade;
(67) "Payroll supervisor" means a person employed in the
county board office who has primary responsibility for the payroll
function and who either has completed twelve college hours of
accounting from an accredited institution of higher education or
has at least eight years of experience performing progressively
difficult accounting tasks. Responsibilities of this class title
may include supervision of other personnel;
(68) "Plumber I" means a person employed as an apprentice
plumber and helper;
(69) "Plumber II" means a person employed as a journeyman
plumber;
(70) "Printing operator" means a person employed to operate
duplication equipment, and to cut, collate, staple, bind and shelve
materials as required;
(71) "Printing supervisor" means a person employed to
supervise the operation of a print shop;
(72) "Programmer" means a person employed to design and prepare programs for computer operation;
(73) "Roofing/sheet metal mechanic" means a person employed to
install, repair, fabricate and maintain roofs, gutters, flashing
and duct work for heating and ventilation;
(74) "Sanitation plant operator" means a person employed to
operate and maintain a water or sewage treatment plant to ensure
the safety of the plant's effluent for human consumption or
environmental protection;
(75) "School bus supervisor" means a qualified person:
(A) Employed to assist in selecting school bus operators and
routing and scheduling school buses, operate a bus when needed,
relay instructions to bus operators, plan emergency routing of
buses and promote good relationships with parents, students, bus
operators and other employees; and
(B) Certified to operate a bus or previously certified to
operate a bus;
(76) "Secretary I" means a person employed to transcribe from
notes or mechanical equipment, receive callers, perform clerical
tasks, prepare reports and operate office machines;
(77) "Secretary II" means a person employed in any elementary,
secondary, kindergarten, nursery, special education, vocational or
any other school as a secretary. The duties may include performing general clerical tasks; transcribing from notes, stenotype,
mechanical equipment or a sound-producing machine; preparing
reports; receiving callers and referring them to proper persons;
operating office machines; keeping records and handling routine
correspondence. Nothing in this subdivision prevents a service
person from holding or being elevated to a higher classification;
(78) "Secretary III" means a person assigned to the county
board office administrators in charge of various instructional,
maintenance, transportation, food services, operations and health
departments, federal programs or departments with particular
responsibilities in purchasing and financial control or any person
who has served for eight years in a position which meets the
definition of "secretary II" or "secretary III";
(79) "Supervisor of maintenance" means a skilled person who is
not a professional person or professional educator as defined in
section one, article one of this chapter. The responsibilities
include directing the upkeep of buildings and shops, and issuing
instructions to subordinates relating to cleaning, repairs and
maintenance of all structures and mechanical and electrical
equipment of a county board;
(80) "Supervisor of transportation" means a qualified person
employed to direct school transportation activities properly and safely, and to supervise the maintenance and repair of vehicles,
buses and other mechanical and mobile equipment used by the county
school system. After July 1, 2010, all persons employed for the
first time in a position with this classification title or in a
multi-classification position that includes this title shall have
five years of experience working in the transportation department
of a county board. Experience working in the transportation
department shall consist of serving as a bus operator, bus aide,
assistant mechanic, mechanic, chief mechanic or in a clerical
position within the transportation department;
(81) "Switchboard operator-receptionist" means a person
employed to refer incoming calls, to assume contact with the
public, to direct and to give instructions as necessary, to operate
switchboard equipment and to provide clerical assistance;
(82) "Truck driver" means a person employed to operate light
or heavy duty gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles;
(83) "Warehouse clerk" means a person employed to be
responsible for receiving, storing, packing and shipping goods;
(84) "Watchman" means a person employed to protect school
property against damage or theft. Additional assignments may
include operation of a small heating plant and routine cleaning
duties;
(85) "Welder" means a person employed to provide acetylene or
electric welding services for a school system; and
(86) "WVEIS data entry and administrative clerk" means a
person employed to work under the direction of a school principal
to assist the school counselor or counselors in the performance of
administrative duties, to perform data entry tasks on the West
Virginia Education Information System, and to perform other
administrative duties assigned by the principal;
_____(87) "Early Childhood Classroom Assistant Teacher - Temporary
Authorization" means a person who does not possess minimum
requirements for the Permanent Authorization requirements, but are
enrolled in and pursuing requirements;
_____(88) "Early Childhood Classroom Assistant Teacher - Permanent
Authorization" means a person who has completed the minimum
requirements for a state-awarded certificate for early childhood
classroom assistant teachers that meet or exceed the requirements
for a Child Development Associate. Equivalency for the West
Virginia Department of Education will be determined as the Child
Development Associate or the West Virginia Apprenticeship for Child
Development Specialists; and
_____(89) "Early Childhood Classroom Assistant Teacher -
Paraprofessional Certificate" means a person who has completed permanent authorization requirements, as well as additional
requirements comparable to current paraprofessional certificate.
(j) Notwithstanding any provision in this code to the
contrary, and in addition to the compensation provided for service
personnel in section eight-a of this article, each service person
is entitled to all service personnel employee rights, privileges
and benefits provided under this or any other chapter of this code
without regard to the employee's hours of employment or the methods
or sources of compensation.
(k) A service person whose years of employment exceeds the
number of years shown and provided for under the state minimum pay
scale set forth in section eight-a of this article may not be paid
less than the amount shown for the maximum years of employment
shown and provided for in the classification in which he or she is
employed.
(l) Each county board shall review each service person's job
classification annually and shall reclassify all service persons as
required by the job classifications. The state superintendent may
withhold state funds appropriated pursuant to this article for
salaries for service personnel who are improperly classified by the
county boards. Further, the state superintendent shall order a
county board to correct immediately any improper classification matter and, with the assistance of the Attorney General, shall take
any legal action necessary against any county board to enforce the
order.
(m) Without his or her written consent, a service person may
not be:
(1) Reclassified by class title; or
(2) Relegated to any condition of employment which would
result in a reduction of his or her salary, rate of pay,
compensation or benefits earned during the current fiscal year; or
for which he or she would qualify by continuing in the same job
position and classification held during that fiscal year and
subsequent years.
(n) Any county board failing to comply with the provisions of
this article may be compelled to do so by mandamus and is liable to
any party prevailing against the board for court costs and the
prevailing party's reasonable attorney fee, as determined and
established by the court.
(o) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the
contrary, a service person who holds a continuing contract in a
specific job classification and who is physically unable to perform
the job's duties as confirmed by a physician chosen by the
employee, shall be given priority status over any employee not holding a continuing contract in filling other service personnel
job vacancies if the service person is qualified as provided in
section eight-e of this article.
(p) Any person employed in an aide position on the effective
date of this section may not be transferred or subject to a
reduction in force for the purpose of creating a vacancy for the
employment of a licensed practical nurse.
(q) Without the written consent of the service person, a
county board may not establish the beginning work station for a bus
operator or transportation aide at any site other than a county
board-owned facility with available parking. The workday of the
bus operator or transportation aide commences at the bus at the
designated beginning work station and ends when the employee is
able to leave the bus at the designated beginning work station,
unless he or she agrees otherwise in writing. The application or
acceptance of a posted position may not be construed as the written
consent referred to in this subsection.
(r) Itinerant status means a service person who does not have
a fixed work site and may be involuntarily reassigned to another
work site. A service person is considered to hold itinerant status
if he or she has bid upon a position posted as itinerant or has
agreed to accept this status. A county board may establish positions with itinerant status only within the aide and autism
mentor classification categories and only when the job duties
involve exceptional students. A service person with itinerant
status may be assigned to a different work site upon written notice
ten days prior to the reassignment without the consent of the
employee and without posting the vacancy. A service person with
itinerant status may be involuntarily reassigned no more than twice
during the school year. At the conclusion of each school year, the
county board shall post and fill, pursuant to section eight-b of
this article, all positions that have been filled without posting
by a service person with itinerant status. A service person who is
assigned to a beginning and ending work site and travels at the
expense of the county board to other work sites during the daily
schedule, shall not be considered to hold itinerant status.
§18A-4-14. Duty-free lunch and daily planning period for certain
employees.
(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of section seven, article
two of this chapter, every teacher who is employed for a period of
time more than one-half the class periods of the regular school day
and every service personnel whose employment is for a period of
more than three and one-half hours per day and whose pay is at
least the amount indicated in the "state minimum pay scale" as set forth in section eight-a of this article shall be provided a daily
lunch recess of not less than thirty consecutive minutes, and such
employee shall not be assigned any responsibilities during this
recess. Such recess shall be included in the number of hours
worked, and no county shall increase the number of hours to be
worked by an employee as a result of such employee being granted a
recess under the provisions of this section.
(2) Every teacher who is regularly employed for a period of
time more than one-half the class periods of the regular school day
shall be provided at least one planning period within each school
instructional day to be used to complete necessary preparations for
the instruction of pupils. Such planning period shall be the
length of the usual class period in the school to which such
teacher is assigned, and shall be shortest class taught by the
classroom teacher and may not be less than thirty minutes. No
teacher shall may be assigned any responsibilities during this
period. and no county shall increase the number of hours to be
worked by a teacher as a result of such teacher being granted a
planning period subsequent to the adoption of this section (March
13, 1982).
Principals, and assistant principals, where applicable, shall
cooperate in carrying out the provisions of this subsection, including, but not limited to, assuming control of the class period
or supervision of students during the time the teacher is engaged
in the planning period. Substitute teachers may also be utilized
to assist with classroom responsibilities under this subsection:
Provided, That any substitute teacher who is employed to teach a
minimum of two consecutive days in the same position shall be
granted a planning period pursuant to this section.
(3) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent
prevents any teacher from exchanging his or her lunch recess or a
planning period or any service personnel from exchanging his or her
lunch recess for any compensation or benefit mutually agreed upon
by the employee and the county superintendent of schools or his or
her agent: Provided, That a teacher and the superintendent or his
or her agent may not agree to terms which are different from those
available to any other teacher granted rights under this section
within the individual school or to terms which in any way
discriminate among such teachers within the individual school, and
that service personnel granted rights under this section and the
superintendent or his or her agent may not agree to terms which are
different from those available to any other service personnel
within the same classification category granted rights under this
section within the individual school or to terms which in any way discriminate among such service personnel within the same
classification category within the individual school.
ARTICLE 5. AUTHORITY; RIGHTS; RESPONSIBILITY.
§18A-5-2. Holidays; closing of schools; time lost because of such;
special Saturday classes.
(a) Schools shall may not be kept open on any Saturday nor on
the following days which are designated as legal school holidays,
namely: Independence Day, Labor Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving
Day, Christmas Day, New Year's Day, Martin Luther King's birthday,
Memorial Day, West Virginia Day, and any day on which a primary
election, general election or special election is held throughout
the state or school district and any day appointed and set apart by
the president or the Governor as a holiday of special observance by
the people of the state.
When any such holiday falls within the employment term, it
shall be considered as a day of the employment term and the
full-time school personnel shall receive his or her pay for same.
(b) When any of the above designated holidays, except a
special election, falls on Saturday, the schools shall be closed on
the preceding Friday; when any such falls on Sunday, the schools
shall be closed on the following Monday.
(c) Special classes may be conducted on Saturdays, provided they are conducted on a voluntary basis, for pupils and by teachers
and service personnel, and that such teachers and service personnel
shall be remunerated in ratio to the regularly contracted pay.
(d) Any school or schools may be closed by proper authorities
on account of the prevalence of contagious disease, conditions of
weather or any other calamitous cause over which the board has no
control. Under any or all of the above provisions, the time lost
by the closing of schools is may not be counted as days of
employment and may not be counted as meeting a part of the
requirements of the minimum term of one hundred eighty days of
instruction. On such those day or days, county boards of education
may provide appropriate alternate work schedules for professional
and service personnel affected by the closing of any school or
schools under any or all of the above provisions. Professional and
service personnel shall receive pay. Insofar as funds are
available or can be made available during the school year, the
board may extend the employment term for the purpose of making up
time that might affect the instructional term.
In addition to any other provisions of this chapter, the board
is further authorized to provide in its annual budget for meetings,
workshops, vacation time or other holidays through extended
employment of personnel at the same rate of pay.
CHAPTER 18C. STUDENT LOANS; SCHOLARSHIPS AND STATE AID.
ARTICLE 4. UNDERWOOD-SMITH TEACHER SCHOLARSHIP AND LOAN
ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.
§18C-4-1. Scholarship and loan assistance fund created; purposes;
funding.
(a) It is the purpose of this article to improve the quality
of education in the public schools of West Virginia by encouraging
and individuals who have demonstrated outstanding academic
abilities to pursue teaching careers at the preschool, elementary,
middle or secondary levels in the public schools of this state. In
addition, of those individuals who have demonstrated outstanding
academic abilities to pursue teaching careers, for scholarships
initially awarded for the fall semester, one thousand nine hundred
ninety-eight 2013, and thereafter, particular efforts will be made
in the scholarship selection and loan assistance criteria and
procedures to reflect the state's present and projected teacher
needs, including needs statewide and in different geographic areas
and for teachers with education and training in specific
disciplines subject and geographic areas of critical need.
(b) The higher education governing boards shall, in
consultation with the State Board of Education and the State
Superintendent of Schools, promulgate reasonable legislative rules in accordance with the provisions of article three-a, chapter
twenty-nine-a of this code, for the administration of the
Underwood-Smith Teacher Scholarship and Loan Assistance program by
the senior administrator in furtherance of the purposes of this
article, including, but not limited to, scholarship selection
criteria and procedures, renewal, compliance, noncompliance and
repayment, deferral and excusal. In accordance with such rules,
the senior administrator shall establish appropriate guidelines for
program operation the following:
______________(1) Establishing scholarship selection criteria and
procedures;
______________(2) Establishing criteria and procedures for identifying
subject areas, public schools or geographic areas in critical need
of teachers;
______________(3) Awarding loan assistance, including establishing
conditions under which partial awards may be granted for less than
a full year of teaching in an area of critical need;
______________(4) Determining eligibility for loan assistance renewal;
______________(5) Establishing criteria for determining participant
compliance or noncompliance with terms of the agreement and
establishing procedures to address noncompliance including, but not
limited to, repayment, deferral and excusal;
______________(6) Establishing procedures ensuring that loan assistance
funds are paid directly to the proper lending entity; and
______________(7) Developing model agreements.
(c) There is hereby created in the State Treasury a special
revolving fund to be known as the "Underwood-Smith Teacher
Scholarship and Loan Assistance Fund" to be administered by the
senior administrator solely for granting scholarships and loan
assistance to prospective teachers in accordance with this article.
Any moneys which may be appropriated by the Legislature, or
received by the senior administrator from other sources, for the
purposes of this article shall be deposited in the fund. Any
moneys remaining in the fund at the close of a fiscal year shall be
carried forward for use in the next fiscal year. Any moneys repaid
to the senior administrator by reason of default of a scholarship
agreement under this article shall also be deposited in the fund.
Fund balances shall be invested with the state's consolidated
investment fund, and any and all interest earnings on these
investments shall be used solely for the purposes for which moneys
invested were appropriated or otherwise received.
(d) The senior administrator may accept and expend any gift,
grant, contribution, bequest, endowment or other money for the
purposes of this article and shall make a reasonable effort to encourage external support for the scholarship program.
(e) For the purpose of encouraging support for the scholarship
program from private sources, the senior administrator may set
aside no more than half of the funds appropriated by the
Legislature for Underwood-smith Teacher Scholarships and Loan
Assistance to be used to match two state dollars to each private
dollar from a nonstate source contributed on behalf of a specific
institution of higher education in this state.
§18C-4-2. Selection criteria and procedures for awarding
scholarships.
(a) The Governor shall designate an existing scholarship
selection agency or panel to select the recipients of
Underwood-Smith teacher scholarships who meet the eligibility
criteria set forth in subsection (b) of this section. If no such
agency or panel exists, the Governor shall appoint a scholarship
selection panel for this purpose which shall consist of seven
persons representative of public school administrators, teachers,
including preschool teachers, and parents.
(b) Eligibility for an Underwood-Smith Teacher Scholarship
award shall be limited to West Virginia resident students who:
(1) Have graduated or are graduating from a West Virginia high
school and rank in the top ten percent of their graduating class or the top ten percent statewide of those West Virginia students
taking the American college test;
(2) Have a cumulative grade point average of at least three
and twenty-five one hundredths on a possible scale of four after
successfully completing two years of course work at an approved
institution of higher education in West Virginia;
(3) Are public school aides or paraprofessionals as defined in
section eight, article four, chapter eighteen-a of this code and
who have a cumulative grade point average of at least three and
twenty-five one hundredths on a possible scale of four after
successfully completing two years of course work at an approved
institution of higher education in West Virginia; or
(4) Are graduate students at the master's degree level who
have graduated or are graduating in the top ten percent of their
college graduating class.
(c) In accordance with the rules of the commission, the vice
chancellor for administration shall develop criteria and procedures
for the selection of scholarship recipients that reflect the
purposes of this article and the areas in which particular efforts
will be made in the selection of scholars as set forth in section
one of this article and which also may include, but not be limited
to, the grade point average of the applicant, involvement in extracurricular activities, financial need, current academic
standing and an expression of interest in teaching as expressed in
an essay written by the applicant. Such criteria and procedures
further may require the applicant to furnish letters of
recommendation from teachers and others. It is the intent of the
Legislature that academic abilities be the primary criteria for
selecting scholarship recipients: Provided, That the qualified
applicants with the highest academic abilities who intend to pursue
teaching careers in areas of critical need and shortage as
determined by the State Board of Education shall be given priority.
(d) In developing the selection criteria and procedures to be
used by the panel, the vice chancellor for administration shall
solicit the views of public and private education agencies and
institutions and other interested parties. These views: (1) Shall
be solicited by means of written and published selection criteria
and procedures in final form for implementation; and (2) may be
solicited by means of public hearings on the present and projected
teacher needs of the state or any other methods the vice chancellor
for administration may determine to be appropriate to gather the
information.
(e) The Vice Chancellor for Administration shall make
application forms for Underwood-Smith Teacher Sholarships available to public and private high schools in the state and in other
locations convenient to applicants, parents and others, and shall
make an effort to attract students from low-income backgrounds,
ethnic or racial minority students, students with disabilities, and
women or minority students who show interest in pursuing teaching
careers in mathematics and science and who are underrepresented in
those fields.
§18C-4-2a. Selection criteria and procedures for loan assistance.
(a) Eligibility for an award is limited to a teacher who meets
the following requirements:
(1) Has earned a teaching degree and is certified to teach a
subject area of critical need in the public schools of West
Virginia. A certified teacher in a subject area of critical need
who is enrolled in an advanced in-field degree course or who has
earned an advanced in-field degree may apply for an award to be
paid toward current or future education loans;
(2) Has agreed to teach, or currently is teaching, a subject
area of critical need in a state school or geographic area of the
state identified as an area of critical need.
(b) In accordance with the rule promulgated pursuant to
section one of this article, the administrator shall develop
criteria and procedures for the administration of the program. These shall include, but are not limited to, ensuring that awards
are given only on the condition that the recipient adheres to an
agreement to teach a subject area of critical need in the
identified school or geographic area of critical need.
(c) The vice chancellor for administration shall make
available program application forms to public and private schools
in the state via the department's website and in other locations
convenient to potential applicants.
§18C-4-3a. Loan assistance agreement.
(a) Before receiving an award, each eligible teacher shall
enter into an agreement with the department and shall meet the
following criteria:
(1) Provide the department with evidence of compliance with
subsection (b), section four of this article;
(2) Teach in a subject area or geographic area of critical
need full-time under contract with a county board for a period of
two school years for each year for which loan assistance is
received pursuant to this article. The senior administrator may
grant a partial award to an eligible recipient whose contract term
is for less than a full school year pursuant to criteria
established by rule.
(3) Acknowledge that an award is to be paid to the recipient's educational loan institution, not directly to the recipient, only
after the department determines that the recipient has complied
with all terms of the agreement; and
(4) Repay all or part of an award received pursuant to this
article if the award is not paid to the educational loan
institution or if the recipient does not comply with the other
terms of the agreement.
(b) Each agreement shall fully disclose the terms and
conditions under which an award may be granted pursuant to this
article and under which repayment may be required. The agreement
also shall include the conditions and procedures established by
section five of this article.
§18C-4-4. Renewal conditions; noncompliance; deferral; excusal.
(a) The recipient of an Underwood-Smith Teacher Scholarship is
eligible for scholarship renewal only during such periods that the
recipient is:
(1) Enrolled as a full-time student in an accredited
institution of higher education in this state;
(2) Pursuing a course of study leading to teacher
certification at the preschool, elementary, middle or secondary
level in this state;
(3) Maintaining satisfactory progress as determined by the institution of higher education the recipient is attending; and
(4) Complying with such other standards as the boards may
establish by rule.
(b) The recipient is eligible for renewal of loan assistance
only during the periods when the recipient is under contract with
a county board to teach in a subject area of critical need in a
school or geographic area of critical need, and complies with other
criteria and conditions established by rule.
_____
(b) (c) Recipients found to be in noncompliance with the
agreement entered into under section three of this article shall be
required to repay the amount of the scholarship awards received,
plus interest, and, where applicable, reasonable collection fees,
on a schedule and at a rate of interest prescribed in the program
guidelines. Such guidelines shall also provide for proration of
the amount to be repaid by a recipient who teaches for part of the
period required under subsection (a), section three of this article
and for appeal procedures under which a recipient may appeal any
determination of noncompliance.
(c) (d) A recipient shall not be considered in violation of
the agreement entered into under section sections three and three-a
of this article during any period in which the recipient is:
(1) Pursuing a full-time course of study at an accredited institution of higher education;
(2) Serving, not in excess of four years, as a member of the
armed services of the United States;
(3) Seeking and unable to find full-time employment in
accordance with paragraph (A), subdivision (2), subsection (a),
section three of this article and is fulfilling any of the
alternatives specified in paragraph (B) of said subdivision; or
(4) Satisfying the provisions of additional repayment
exemptions that may be prescribed by the boards by rule;
(d) A recipient shall be excused from repayment of a teacher
scholarship received under this article if the recipient dies or
becomes permanently and totally disabled as established by sworn
affidavit of a qualified physician.
(5) Unable to fulfill the agreement due to death, permanent or
temporary disability as established by sworn affidavit of a
qualified physician or a condition covered under the Family and
Medical Leave Act of 1993.
(e) The rules adopted by the governing boards may provide
guidelines under which the senior administrator may, if extenuating
circumstances exist, extend the period for fulfilling the
obligation to fifteen years for scholarships.
_____(f) For purposes of loan assistance, if a teacher is teaching under a contract in a position that no longer meets the definition
of critical need under rules established in accordance with this
article, the teacher is eligible for renewal of loan assistance
until the teacher leaves his or her current position.
§18C-4-6. Amount and duration of loan assistance; limits.
(a) Each award recipient is eligible to receive loan
assistance of up to $2,000 annually subject to limits set forth in
subsection (b) of this section:
(1) If the recipient has taught math or science for a full
school year under contract with a county board in a school or
geographic area of critical need; and
(2) If the recipient otherwise has complied with the terms of
the agreement and with provisions of this article and any rules
promulgated pursuant thereto.
(b) No recipient may receive loan assistance pursuant to this
article which accumulates in excess of $15,000.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to improve public education
by revising outdated provisions of the code to implement
initiatives that will better prepare students for the college and
work realities of the 21st Century.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.
§18-2-39, §18A-3-1d, §18A-3-1e, §18C-4-2a, §18C-4-3a and
§18C-4-6 are new;
therefore strike-throughs and underscoring have
been omitted.
§18-5-45, §18-2I-1, §18-2I-2, §18-2I-3, §18-2I-4 and §18-2I-5
are completely rewritten;
therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.
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