Common use of School Autonomy Clause in Contracts

School Autonomy. The parties agree that the school site is the appropriate place for most decision-making affecting the education of children in that school. Accordingly, they agree that a school should have as much flexibility as possible in managing their operations and educational programs for maximum educational effectiveness. The parties also share a mutual interest in removing barriers from attracting and retaining a diverse group of talented teachers. There is a collective desire to develop pilot schools in the district where site-based autonomy and collaborative shared decision-making are the norm. Collaborative shared decision-making is a process in which all members of the education community at the school level collaborate in establishing a vision, identifying problems, defining goals, implementing programs, and learning from experience. The purpose of collaborative shared decision-making is to create a climate in the schools where faculty, parents, administrators, students and other community members work together and share the responsibility and accountability for school improvement, student achievement, increased satisfaction among professional educators, greater involvement by and with parents, and stronger support from the community at large. Finally, the Union and the Board agree that any school community wishing to attain school autonomy must follow the process and complete the application process as described below: 1. Applications for autonomous schools shall be completed by the school’s Instructional Leadership Team (ILT). In the spirit of this agreement all applications will be based on distributed leadership within the school. No application will be approved that does not provide for shared decision-making at the school site. All applications must demonstrate school faculty support in accordance with Article 8-28.6 of the collective bargaining agreement and school community involvement. 2. All applications shall be submitted to a Joint Governance Board which is comprised of four members selected by the District and four members selected by the Union in addition to the Superintendent and the Union President. a. The Superintendent and PTU president shall establish the Joint Governance Board (JGB), which either they or their designees will co-chair, to oversee and support the entire autonomous schools program. The JGB shall also develop and implement a program evaluation and progress report system. b. The JGB is responsible for ensuring the autonomous schools program is aligned with the district’s strategic planning. The JGB shall use a collaborative decision-making model in all aspects of its work. Governing By-laws shall be developed by the JGB. Any modifications to the by-laws must be approved by no less than 70% of the members of the JGB. c. Applications will be reviewed based on a variety of criteria and the final decision is the sole responsibility of the joint governance board. Schools may not appeal the joint governance board’s decision but may apply for autonomous school status each year. d. Details of the application, the selection criteria, timelines, and other procedural steps will be developed by the joint governance board and maintained by the board and may be revised at any time by the board. e. The joint governance board will also have the authority to revoke autonomous status if it determines such an action is in the best interest of the students. Procedures for revocation will be developed and maintained by the joint governance board and may be revised at any time by the JGB. f. The JGB shall also develop and implement a program to evaluate the autonomous schools program and provide ongoing updates to the School Board and other interested parties at least once every six months. 3. Schools may apply for varying components of autonomy. The specific decisions for which components of autonomy to be approved shall be determined by the JGB. After a school’s approval of autonomous status, teachers may elect to opt-out of the school. Those leaving for reasons unrelated to performance will be eligible for future employment in the district based on the transfer policies as established by the CBH Committee. 4. All autonomous schools, at a minimum, shall follow the district’s base compensation, health benefits, and evaluation programs as defined in the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Any contractual variance included in a school’s application must be approved by the Union in accordance with Article 8-28. 5. The PSD and the Union will create and deliver a joint informational training for the application process and subsequent trainings for schools whose application has been accepted.

School Autonomy. The parties agree that the school site is the appropriate place for most decision-making affecting the education of children in that school. Accordingly, they agree that a school should have as much flexibility as possible in managing their operations and educational programs for maximum educational effectiveness. The parties also share a mutual interest in removing barriers from attracting and retaining a diverse group of talented teachers. There is a collective desire to develop pilot schools in the district where site-based autonomy and collaborative shared decision-making are the norm. Collaborative shared decision-making is a process in which all members of the education community at the school level collaborate in establishing a vision, identifying problems, defining goals, implementing programs, and learning from experience. The purpose of collaborative shared decision-making is to create a climate in the schools where faculty, parents, administrators, students and other community members work together and share the responsibility and accountability for school improvement, student achievement, increased satisfaction among professional educators, greater involvement by and with parents, and stronger support from the community at large. Finally, the Union and the Board District agree that any school community wishing to attain school autonomy must follow the process and complete the application process as described below: 1. Applications for autonomous schools shall be completed by the school’s Instructional Leadership Team (ILT). In the spirit of this agreement all applications will be based on distributed leadership within the school. No application will be approved that does not provide for shared decision-making at the school site. All applications must demonstrate school faculty support in accordance with Article 8-28.6 of the collective bargaining agreement and school community involvement. 2. All applications shall be submitted to a Joint Governance Board which is comprised of four members selected by the District and four members selected by the Union in addition to the Superintendent and the Union President. a. The Superintendent and PTU president shall establish the Joint Governance Board (JGB), which either they or their designees will co-chair, to oversee and support the entire autonomous schools program. The JGB shall also develop and implement a program evaluation and progress report system. b. The JGB is responsible for ensuring the autonomous schools program is aligned with the district’s strategic planning. The JGB shall use a collaborative decision-making model in all aspects of its work. Governing By-laws shall be developed by the JGB. Any modifications to the by-laws must be approved by no less than 70% of the members of the JGB. c. Applications will be reviewed based on a variety of criteria and the final decision is the sole responsibility of the joint governance board. Schools may not appeal the joint governance board’s decision but may apply for autonomous school status each year. d. Details of the application, the selection criteria, timelines, and other procedural steps will be developed by the joint governance board and maintained by the board and may be revised at any time by the board. e. The joint governance board will also have the authority to revoke autonomous status if it determines such an action is in the best interest of the students. Procedures for revocation will be developed and maintained by the joint governance board and may be revised at any time by the JGB. f. The JGB shall also develop and implement a program to evaluate the autonomous schools program and provide ongoing updates to the School Board District and other interested parties at least once every six months. 3. Schools may apply for varying components of autonomy. The specific decisions for which components of autonomy to be approved shall be determined by the JGB. After a school’s approval of autonomous status, teachers may elect to opt-out of the school. Those leaving for reasons unrelated to performance will be eligible for future employment in the district based on the transfer policies as established by the CBH Committee. 4. All autonomous schools, at a minimum, shall follow the district’s base compensation, health benefits, and evaluation programs as defined in the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Any contractual variance included in a school’s application must be approved by the Union in accordance with Article 8-28. 5. The PSD and the Union will create and deliver a joint informational training for the application process and subsequent trainings for schools whose application has been accepted.