Professional Development Leave A. Policy. Professional development leave shall be made available to employees who meet the requirements set forth below. Such leaves are granted to increase an employee's value to the University through enhanced opportunities for professional renewal, educational travel, study, formal education, research, writing, or other experience of professional value, not as a reward for service.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND EDUCATIONAL IMPROVEMENT A. The Board of Education agrees to pay the actual tuition costs of courses taken by a teacher at accredited colleges or universities up to three courses per two (2) year fiscal periods from July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2008 and July 1, 2008 to June 30, 2010 respectively, except as follows:
1. No teacher may be reimbursed for courses taken during the first year of teaching in Vineland.
2. Teachers taking courses in the second and third years of employment in Vineland will not receive remuneration until tenure has been secured. The remuneration will then be retroactive and will be paid to the teacher in a lump sum within sixty (60) days after the teacher has secured tenure.
3. All courses must be pre-approved by the Superintendent or his designee subject to the following requirements:
(a) A teacher must provide official documentation that he/she has obtained a grade of B or better;
(b) Reimbursement shall be paid only for courses directly related to teacher’s teaching field which increase the teacher’s content knowledge and are related to the teacher’s current certification, as determined by the Superintendent or his/her designee in his/her sole discretion; no reimbursement shall be paid for courses leading to a post graduate or professional degree in a field other than education or teaching. Further, effective September 1, 2010, all newly hired teachers shall not be eligible for reimbursement until they are tenured, and they shall not be eligible for retroactive reimbursement upon gaining tenure for courses taken prior to being tenured.
(c) The maximum total payments to be made by the Board shall not exceed $130,000.00. Courses shall be applied for no earlier than the following dates: Summer Session - April 1 Fall/Winter Session - June 1 Spring Session - October 1 Courses must, as set forth hereinabove in this sub-article 18.A.3, be pre-approved by the Superintendent or his designee, prior to the teacher commencing the course(s); and
(d) Teacher taking courses shall sign a contract requiring them to reimburse the Board for all tuition paid for a course if the teacher shall voluntarily leave the employ of the Board within one (1) full school/academic year of completion of said course, except that reimbursement shall not be required when the teacher shall voluntarily leave the employ of the Board due to a significant, documented life change.
4. Tuition reimbursement costs shall be a sum not to exceed the actual cost of college credits charged in an accredited public State college/University of the State of New Jersey.
B. When the Superintendent initiates in-service training courses, workshops, conferences and programs designed to improve the quality of instruction, the cooperation of the Vineland Education Association will be solicited. Notwithstanding the above, the initiation of in-service training courses, workshops, conferences and programs shall be determined solely at the discretion of the Board.
C. One professional leave day may be granted to a teacher upon request, according to the following guidelines:
1. The professional day may be for attendance at a workshop, seminar or visit to another school for the expressed purpose of self professional improvement for the job.
2. The request shall arrive in the office of the Superintendent of Schools at least ten (10) working days prior to the date requested and shall be reviewed by the immediate supervisor prior to submission. The Board reserves the right to deny a professional leave day before or immediately following a holiday or on a day which by its nature suggests a hardship for providing a substitute.
3. No more than two teachers from any one elementary school or from any one department in the secondary schools may be granted a professional leave for a given day.
4. The teacher may be required to submit a report to the Superintendent of Schools, Assistant Superintendent, supervisor (s), principal and staff regarding the activity of the professional day.
5. Costs incurred by the teacher for the professional day authorized under this Section shall be the teacher’s responsibility.
6. A maximum of 90 professional leave days may be authorized for the school year which shall be apportioned as follows: elementary, 35; grades seven and eight, 20; and high school, 35.
D. If the Board initiates a teacher’s attendance at a professional workshop, seminar or visit, the expenses shall be the responsibility of the Board. Further, this day shall not be subtracted from the 90 professional leave days granted to teachers of the Association.
E. The Board agrees to pay the full cost of courses taken by secretaries related to skills and knowledge improvement when such courses are required and approved by the Board.
F. The Board and the Association agree that it is important to communicate when developing and implementing current and future learning technologies, including but not limited to distance and on-line learning.
Professional Development; Adverse Consequences of School Exclusion; Student Behavior The Board President or Superintendent, or their designees, will make reasonable efforts to provide ongoing professional development to Board members about the adverse consequences of school exclusion and justice-system involvement, effective classroom management strategies, culturally responsive discipline, appropriate and available supportive services for the promotion of student attendance and engagement, and developmentally appropriate disciplinary methods that promote positive and healthy school climates, i.e., Senate Bill 100 training topics. The Board will conduct periodic self-evaluations with the goal of continuous improvement. New Board Member Orientation The orientation process for newly elected or appointed Board members includes:
Professional Development Funds 23.1.1 Two Professional Development Funds, a Professional Development Support Fund and an Education Leave Fund, shall be established to support professional development activities as defined in 23.2. On April 1st of each year, the College will allocate an amount equal to no less than 0.9% of total faculty salary (exclusive of severance payments) to the Professional Development Support Fund, and an amount equal to no less than 0.6% of total faculty salary to the Educational Leave Fund. Any unused balances in these funds shall carry over to the next budget year.
23.1.2 The College agrees to provide the Association with the authority to administer the program on behalf of the College for those activities approved by the College in accordance with 23.2, 23.4 and 23.5.
23.1.3 Nothing in this Agreement prevents the College from funding professional development activities in addition to those activities supported through the Professional Development Funds (23.1.1) in accordance with the procedures described in this Article.
Professional Development Days Upon request, each Employee shall be granted at least three (3) professional development days annually for professional development, at the Basic Rate of Pay. An Employee shall be advised, prior to taking any professional development days of any transportation, registration fees, subsistence and other expenses that will be paid by the Employer. Such hours not used in each fiscal year shall not be carried forward into subsequent years. Applications for such paid professional development opportunities shall be made in writing, to the Employer as early as possible.
Association Activities The parties agree employees shall have the right to form, join, and participate in the lawful activities of the Association for the purpose of representation in matters of employment relations. No employee shall be interfered with, restrained, coerced, or discriminated against because of the exercise of such rights.
Professional Development 9.01 Continuous professional development is a hallmark of professional nursing practice. As a self-regulating profession, nursing recognizes the importance of maintaining a dynamic practice environment which includes ongoing learning, the maintenance of competence, career development, career counselling and succession planning. The parties agree that professional development includes a diverse range of activities, including but not limited to formal academic programs; short-term continuing education activities; certification programs; independent learning committee participation. The parties recognize their joint responsibility in and commitment to active participation in the area of professional development.
Ethics No officer, agent or employee of the Board is or shall be employed by Provider or has or shall have a financial interest, directly or indirectly, in this Agreement or the compensation to be paid hereunder except as may be permitted in writing by the Board’s Code of Ethics, adopted May 25, 2011 (11-0525-PO2), as amended from time to time, which policy is hereby incorporated by reference into and made part of this Agreement as if fully set forth herein.
Professional Development Fund Article 20
Professional Dues The school district will pay the annual dues for the Superintendent’s membership in the American Association of School Administrators, Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, and Nebraska Council of School Administrators. The Superintendent’s membership in other professional organizations will be considered annually and may be approved at the discretion of the school board.
