Avery County Schools Policy Policy Code: 7810
EVALUATION OF LICENSED EMPLOYEES
The Avery County Board of Education recognizes that an effective staff is critical to the smooth operation of the school system and to creating a learning environment in which students can succeed. The board further believes that students will not excel in performance unless those who most directly affect students, including administrators, teachers, and other licensed professionals, excel in their performance. It is the intent of the board to employ only those licensed employees who continuously exhibit a pattern of behavior that exemplifies excellent performance.
The Avery County Board of Education places a high priority to securing the most competent personnel available and, once they are employed, in assisting them in their professional growth and development throughout their careers. An effective evaluation program that clearly describes an employee’s performance is a critical aspect of professional growth and assistance. Further, performance evaluation data is an important factor for consideration in decisions regarding continued employment. The superintendent must be able to substantiate any recommendation for continued employment with evaluation data, among other factors.
The superintendent is directed to develop and implement an effective evaluation system for licensed personnel that is consistent with State Board of Education policies. School administrators who are responsible for conducting evaluations shall comply with all state requirements in regard to the type and frequency of evaluation, including as applicable, the processes for evaluating licensed employees in schools designated as low performing. The school principal shall evaluate teachers. The superintendent or designee shall evaluate principals and assistant principals and may incorporate any guidelines or strategies developed by the State Board to assist in the evaluations. The superintendent or designee shall evaluate principals and assistant principals.
All licensed personnel must be evaluated at least annually using state-approved evaluation instruments in conformance with the processes established by the State Board in the North Carolina Educator Evaluation System for that class of personnel. Teachers with fewer than three consecutive years of experience shall be evaluated annually in accordance with the comprehensive evaluation cycle established in State Board Policy EVAL-004. For teachers with three or more years of experience, the abbreviated evaluation process established in State Board Policy EVAL-004 satisfies the annual evaluation requirement; however, a teacher receiving an abbreviated evaluation may request that the evaluator conduct a formal observation. In addition, in any given year, the principal may elect to use the comprehensive or standard evaluation processes set forth in State Board Policy EVAL-004 or require additional formal or informal observations to evaluate a teacher with three or more ears of experience. The principal also may supplement the State Board evaluation processes for other categories of licensed by requiring additional observation or other evaluation measures. The annual evaluation of principals and assistant principals must include a mid-year review.
Avery County Schools Policy Code: 7810 Page 1 of 3 The evaluation system must incorporate the following directives.
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Evaluators must clearly identify exemplary performance as well as deficiencies in performance.
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Evaluators are encouraged to use supplementary means of assessing and documenting performance in addition to the state performance standards, assessment rubrics, and evaluation instruments, including, but not limited to, additional formal observations, informal observations, conferences, review of lesson plans and grade books, interactions with the employee, plans of growth or improvement, and any other accurate indicators of performance.
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Student performance and growth data will be considered as a part of the evaluation of licensed personnel, as provided in the assessment rubric for the class of employees under evaluation. For teachers, such data shall include analysis of student work for performance-based courses and student performance as measured by the statewide growth model for educator effectiveness or as otherwise authorized by the State Board of Education and approved by the local board. Multiple means of assessing student performance must be used whenever possible. If only one method of measurement of student performance is used, it must be a clearly valid tool for evaluating an employee’s impact on student performance.
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Peer observations of teachers with fewer than three years of experience must be conducted as required by law using the evaluation instrument and process established by the State Board and must be considered by the school administrator in evaluating teacher performance.
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Supervisors and principals should facilitate open communication with employees about performance expectations.
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An employee who is unclear about how performance is being assessed or desires additional evaluation opportunities should address these issues with the immediate supervisor.
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Evaluators will be held accountable for following the evaluation system and all applicable state guidelines on the evaluation of employees.
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Evaluation data will be submitted to the central office personnel file in accordance with state law and board policy on personnel files (policy 7820, Professional and Staff Development).
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Evaluation data will be used in making employment decisions, including decisions related to Professional Staff Development (policy 1610/7800), career status (policy 7410) and suspension, demotion and dismissal of employees (policies 7930 and 7940). Employment decisions may be made by the board and
Avery County Schools Policy Code: 7810 Page 2 of 3 administration regardless of whether the evaluation system has been followed by evaluators, so long as there is a legally sufficient basis for the decisions.
- The superintendent and all evaluators are encouraged to develop ways to recognize distinguished performance and to capitalize on the abilities of exemplary employees in helping other employees. The superintendent and evaluators are encouraged to involve employees in developing these processes.
The superintendent shall develop any other necessary procedures and shall provide training, as necessary, to carry out the board directives and to meet state requirements.
Legal References: G.S. 115C-47(18), -286.1, -325, -333, -333.1, -333.2; State Board of Education Policies EVAL-004 through -006, EVAL-022, EVAL-025 through -031
Cross References: Professional Staff Development (policy 1610/7800) Career Status (policy 7410), School Administrator Contracts (policy 7425), Action Plans for Licensed Employees (policy 7811), Personnel Files (policy 7820), Professional Employees: Demotion and Dismissal (policy 7930); Classified Personnel; Suspension and Dismissal (policy 7940)
Adopted: 7/01/02 Revised: 12/04/06; 9/14/09; 3/14/11; 09/01/2015; 1/10/17; 4/28/17
Avery County Schools Policy Code: 7810 Page 3 of 3