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.
Educational Program A. DSST PUBLIC SCHOOLS shall implement and maintain the following characteristics of its educational program in addition to those identified in the Network Contract at DSST XXXX MIDDLE SCHOOL (“the School” within Exhibit A-3). These characteristics are subject to modification with the District’s written approval:
Professional Development Plan Professional Development Plan (PDP) refers to plans developed by faculty members addressing the criteria contained in Article 22 and Appendix G.
Educational Services Any service or supply for education, training or retraining services or testing including: special education, remedial education; cognitive remediation; wilderness/outdoor treatment, therapy or adventure programs (whether or not the program is part of a Residential Treatment facility or otherwise licensed institution); job training or job hardening programs; educational services and schooling or any such related or similar program including therapeutic programs within a school setting.
OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH & SAFETY (a) It is a mutual interest of the parties to promote health and safety in workplaces and to prevent and reduce the occurrence of workplace injuries and occupational diseases. The parties agree that health and safety is of the utmost importance and agree to promote health and safety and wellness throughout the organization. The employer shall provide orientation and training in health and safety to new and current employees on an ongoing basis, and employees shall attend required health and safety training sessions. Accordingly, the parties fully endorse the responsibilities of employer and employee under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, making particular reference to the following:
Operational Control Directing the operation of the Transmission Facilities Under ISO Operational Control to maintain these facilities in a reliable state, as defined by the Reliability Rules. The ISO shall approve operational decisions concerning these facilities, made by each Transmission Owner before the Transmission Owner implements those decisions. In accordance with ISO Procedures, the ISO shall direct each Transmission Owner to take certain actions to restore the system to the Normal State. Operational Control includes security monitoring, adjustment of generation and transmission resources, coordination and approval of changes in transmission status for maintenance, determination of changes in transmission status for reliability, coordination with other Control Areas, voltage reductions and Load Shedding, except that each Transmission Owner continues to physically operate and maintain its facilities.
Compliance Plan (1) This paragraph (h) applies to any portion of the contract that—
(i) Is for supplies, other than commercially available off-the-shelf items, acquired outside the United States, or services to be performed outside the United States; and
(ii) Has an estimated value that exceeds $500,000.
(2) The Contractor shall maintain a compliance plan during the performance of the contract that is appropriate—
(i) To the size and complexity of the contract; and
(ii) To the nature and scope of the activities to be performed for the Government, including the number of non- United States citizens expected to be employed and the risk that the contract or subcontract will involve services or supplies susceptible to trafficking in persons.
Operational Matters 7.1 The LGB shall comply with the obligations set out in Appendix 2 which deals with the day-to-day operation of, and delegation of responsibilities to, the LGB.
7.2 The LGB will adopt and will comply with all policies of the Trustees communicated to the LGB from time to time.
7.3 Both the Trustees and all members of the LGB have a duty to act with integrity, objectivity and honesty in the best interests of the Company and the Academy and shall be open about decisions and be prepared to justify those decisions except in so far as any matter may be considered confidential.
7.4 The LGB will review its policies and practices on a regular basis, having regard to recommendations made by the Trustees from time to time, in order to ensure that the governance of the Academy is best able to adapt to the changing political and legal environment.
7.5 The LGB shall provide such data and information regarding the business of the Academy and the pupils attending the Academy as the Trustees may require from time to time.
7.6 The LGB shall submit to any inspections by the Trustees, and any inspections pursuant to section 48 of the Education Act 2005 (Statutory Inspections of Anglican and Methodist Schools).
7.7 The LGB shall work closely with and shall promptly implement any advice or recommendations made by the Trustees in the event that intervention is either threatened or is carried out by the Secretary of State and the Trustees expressly reserve the unfettered right to review or remove any power or responsibility conferred on the LGB under this Scheme in such circumstances.
Professional Development Program (a) The parties agree to continue a Professional Development Program for the maintenance and development of the faculty members' professional competence and effectiveness. It is agreed that maintenance of currency of subject knowledge, the improvement of performance of faculty duties, and the maintenance and improvement of professional competence, including instructional skills, are the primary professional development activities of faculty members.
(b) Information collected as part of this program shall be the sole property of the faculty member. This information or any judgments arising from this program shall not be used to determine non-renewal or termination of a faculty member's contract, suspension or dismissal of a faculty member, denial of advancement on the salary scale, nor affect any other administrative decisions pertaining to the promotion or employment status of the faculty member.
(c) A joint advisory committee consisting of three regular faculty members who shall be elected by and are P.D. Committee Chairpersons and three administrators shall make recommendations for the operation, financing and management of the Professional Development Program.
Selection Planning Prior to the issuance to consultants of any requests for proposals, the proposed plan for the selection of consultants under the Project shall be furnished to the Association for its review and approval, in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 1 of Appendix 1 to the Consultant Guidelines. Selection of all consultants’ services shall be undertaken in accordance with such selection plan as shall have been approved by the Association, and with the provisions of said paragraph 1.
