A backlog of bills prevented the Idaho House from taking up SB 1248 on Thursday, which means there is still time for you to contact your Representative and tell them to vote NO on this problematic legislation. As we detailed in yesterday’s Hotline, SB 1248 would allow charter schools to use whatever teacher contract they feel like using, and could destabilize the teacher workforce and undercut teacher’s collective bargaining rights.
House Committee Approves Extra Day Contract Compromise
The House Education Committee unanimously approved a motion to send HB 537 to the full House for their consideration. HB 537, sponsored by the Idaho School Boards Association, will allow school districts to issue extra day contracts to certain teachers who need to work additional days beyond the standard contract year to complete assignments directly associated with their teaching duties.
The legislation is the result of conversations among ISBA, the IEA and an association of Idaho Vo-Ag teachers to ensure that teachers who are issued extra day contracts receive the same daily rate of pay as they do for the days they work under the standard contract, and that the rights they have associated with their underlying contract will follow them to the extra day contract.
The bill now moves to the House for consideration.
House Ed Introduces Bill to Evaluate the Evaluations
The House Education Committee voted unanimously to introduce a bill crafted by committee chairman Reed DeMordaunt (R-Eagle), that would establish new oversight for teacher evaluations. The proposed legislation would tap experts from higher education to verify the evaluation done by school administrators on teachers under their supervision.
Teacher evaluations are more important than ever under the Career Ladder, which ties some aspects of teacher compensation to those evaluations. Since the drafting of the Career Ladder, the IEA has been providing training for members on how to prepare for evaluations and how to achieve positive outcomes. Contact the IEA office at 208-344-1341 for information about the evaluation toolkit and a training session near you.
DeMordaunt’s bill seeks to provide consistency in the teacher evaluation process from district to district. Idaho Education News raised questions about the accuracy of the evaluations that were reported to the state last year. The State Board of Education would be responsible for reporting evaluation results to the Senate Education Committee once the review by higher education experts is complete. The proposed legislation is expected to receive a full hearing from the House Education Committee as early as next week.
Happy Birthday Idaho Education Association
The IEA is celebrating its 124th birthday today! That is a whole lot of advocacy for generations of teachers and students in Idaho. We get our inspiration from the passion of professional educators who are amazingly dedicated to their students and their communities. Our commitment is unwavering and our important work is always ongoing.
