156.557 Standards for improving performance of certified school personnel -- Criteria for evaluation -- Content of programs -- Administrative regulations -- Waiver for alternative plan -- Appeals -- E - Kentucky Statutes

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Page 1 of 4 156.557 Standards for improving performance of certified school personnel -- Criteria for evaluation -- Content of programs -- Administrative regulations --
Waiver for alternative plan -- Appeals -- Exemptions -- Review of evaluation
systems -- Assistance to improve evaluation systems. (1) The Kentucky Board of Education shall establish statewide standards for evaluation and support for improving the performance of all certified school personnel. (2) The performance criteria on which teachers and administrators shall be evaluated shall include, but not be limited to:
(a) Performance of professional responsibilities related to his or her assignment, including attendance and punctuality and evaluating results; (b) Demonstration of effective planning of curricula, classroom instruction, and classroom management, based on research-based instructional practices, or
school management skills based on validated managerial practices; (c) Demonstration of knowledge and understanding of subject matter content or administrative functions and effective leadership techniques; (d) Promotion and incorporation of instructional strategies or management techniques that are fair and respect diversity and individual differences; (e) Demonstration of effective interpersonal, communication, and collaboration skills among peers, students, parents, and others; (f) Performance of duties consistent with the goals for Kentucky students and mission of the school, the local community, laws, and administrative
regulations; (g) Demonstration of the effective use of resources, including technology;
(h) Demonstration of professional growth;
(i) Adherence to the professional code of ethics; and
(j) Attainment of the teacher standards or the administrator standards as established by the Education Professional Standards Board that are not
referenced in paragraphs (a) to (i) of this subsection. (3) The certified employee evaluation programs shall contain the following provisions: (a) Each certified school employee, below the level of superintendent, shall be evaluated by a system developed by the local school district and approved by
the Kentucky Department of Education. (b) The local evaluation system shall include formative evaluation and summative evaluation.
1. "Formative evaluation" means a continuous cycle of collecting
evaluation information and interacting and providing feedback with
suggestions regarding the certified employee's professional growth and
performance. 2. "Summative evaluation" means the summary of, and conclusions from,
the evaluation data, including formative evaluation data, that:
a. Occur at the end of an evaluation cycle; and Page 2 of 4 b. Include a conference between the evaluator and the evaluated
certified employee, and a written evaluation report. (c) The Kentucky Board of Education shall adopt administrative regulations incorporating written guidelines for a local school district to follow in
developing, implementing, and revising the evaluation system and shall
require the following:
1. All evaluations of certified employees below the level of the district
superintendent shall be in writing on evaluation forms and under
evaluation procedures developed by a committee composed of an equal
number of teachers and administrators; 2. The immediate supervisor of the certified school employee shall be
designated as the primary evaluator. At the request of a teacher,
observations by other teachers trained in the teacher's content area or
curriculum content specialists may be incorporated into the formative
process for evaluating teachers; 3. All monitoring or observation of performance of a certified school
employee shall be conducted openly and with full knowledge of the
employee; 4. Evaluators shall be trained, tested, and approved in accordance with
administrative regulations adopted by the Kentucky Board of Education
in the proper techniques for effectively evaluating certified school
employees and in the use of the school district evaluation system; 5. The evaluation system shall include a plan whereby the person evaluated
is given assistance for professional growth as a teacher or administrator.
The system shall also specify the processes to be used when corrective
actions are necessary in relation to the performance of one's assignment;
and 6. The training requirement for evaluators contained in subparagraph 4. of
this paragraph shall not apply to district board of education members. (4) (a) Each superintendent shall be evaluated according to a policy and procedures developed by the local board of education and approved by the department. (b) The summative evaluation of the superintendent shall be discussed and adopted in an open meeting of the board and reflected in the minutes. (c) If the local board policy requires a written evaluation of the superintendent, it shall be made available to the public upon request. (d) Any preliminary discussions relating to the evaluation of the superintendent by the board or between the board and the superintendent prior to the
summative evaluation shall be conducted in closed session. (5) A local district may request from the Kentucky Department of Education a waiver from the guidelines and administrative regulations promulgated by the Kentucky
Board of Education as required in subsection (3)(c) of this section in order to
implement an alternative evaluation plan for employees on continuing contracts. Page 3 of 4 The department shall grant a waiver if the alternative plan provides for a three (3)
phase certified employee evaluation plan that includes:
(a) Phase One: Evaluation for Professional Growth. 1. Evaluation is based on a wide array of relevant sources and directed
toward general and specific recommendations for improvement; and 2. Evaluation does not include documentation that might adversely affect
employment status. (b) Phase Two: Transition. 1. Evaluation is for the purpose of intensive scrutiny of job performance; 2. Evaluation includes documentation that may lead to adverse
employment decisions; 3. Assistance and support for improvement shall be provided by the school
district; and 4. Placement of an individual in the transition phase shall not be subject to
appeal, but the employee shall be notified of the decision in writing. (c) Phase Three: Evaluation for Deficiency. 1. Notwithstanding KRS 161.760, written notice of potential termination,
reduction of direct classroom responsibility, or other adverse actions and
conditions for job retention are given the employee; 2. A clear time frame for proposed actions is provided the employee; and 3. The summative evaluation is subject to appeal. An alternative plan for the evaluation of certified personnel shall be proposed to the
Kentucky Department of Education if the local district evaluation committee is in
support of the plan. Training necessary to implement the alternative plan shall be
provided to the principals, supervisory personnel, and the employees to be
evaluated. The local district shall provide support to implement the plan. The
department shall provide technical assistance to districts wishing to develop
alternative evaluation plans. (6) The Kentucky Board of Education shall establish an appeals procedure for certified school employees who believe that the local school district failed to properly
implement the approved evaluation system. The appeals procedure shall not involve
requests from individual certified school employees for review of the judgmental
conclusions of their personnel evaluations. (7) The local board of education shall establish an evaluation appeals panel for certified personnel that shall consist of two (2) members elected by the certified employees
of the district and one (1) member appointed by the board of education who is a
certified employee of the board. Certified employees who think they were not fairly
evaluated may submit an appeal to the panel for a timely review of their evaluation.
In districts that have adopted an alternative evaluation plan under subsection (4) of
this section, the appeal shall only apply to the summative evaluation of Phase Three. (8) Local school districts with an enrollment of sixty-five thousand (65,000) or more students shall have an evaluation system but shall be exempt from procedures or Page 4 of 4 processes described in this section as long as the plan meets the standards
established by the Kentucky Board of Education for local school district evaluation
systems. The local plan shall include an appeals process for employees who believe
they were not fairly evaluated. (9) Between July 15, 2000, and June 30, 2001, each school district shall review its local evaluation system to assure that the system is working effectively and to make
changes to improve its system. (10) Beginning with the 2001-2002 school year, and in subsequent years, the Kentucky Department of Education shall annually provide for on-site visits by trained
personnel to a minimum of fifteen (15) school districts to review and ensure
appropriate implementation of the evaluation system by the local school district.
The department shall provide technical assistance to local districts to eliminate
deficiencies and to improve the effectiveness of their evaluation systems. The
department may implement the requirement in this subsection in conjunction with
other requirements, including, but not limited to, the scholastic audit process
required by KRS 158.6455. Effective: July 15, 2010
History: Amended 2010 Ky. Acts ch. 157, sec. 1, effective July 15, 2010. -- Created 2000 Ky. Acts ch. 527, sec. 4, effective July 14, 2000. Legislative Research Commission Note (7/15/2010). The internal numbering of subsection (4) of this statute has been modified by the Reviser of Statutes from the
way it appeared in 2010 Ky. Acts ch. 157, sec. 1, under the authority of KRS
7.136(1).