SB316 Alabama 2016 Session

Under existing law, the Students First Act of 2011 provides a process for public K-12 school teachers to attain tenure

This bill would create the Preparing and Rewarding Educational Professionals (PREP) Act of 2016

This bill would provide a procedure for observing and evaluating teachers, principals, and assistant principals on performance and student achievement

This bill would make an appropriation of $10,000,000 from the Education Trust Fund to the Legislative School Performance Recognition Program, for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2017, to fund rewards earned by schools pursuant to that program

This bill would require implementation of the Legislative School Performance Recognition Program before September 1, 2016

This bill would increase the number of years of service required to attain tenured status pursuant to the Students First Act of 2011, as amended by this act, under the same governing board from three to five consecutive years with three consecutive ratings of satisfies expectations, exceeds expectations, or significantly exceeds expectations pursuant to this act; would allow a governing board to evaluate a tenured teacher every other year; and would subject a tenured teacher who receives a rating of below expectations or significantly below expectations to two consecutive annual evaluations immediately thereafter

This bill would subject any tenured teacher who receives two consecutive ratings of below expectations or significantly below expectations pursuant to this act to personnel action by the governing board

This bill would establish the Alabama Teacher Recruitment Fund and would make an appropriation of $5,000,000 from the Education Trust Fund to the Alabama Teacher Recruitment Fund for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2017

This bill would establish the Alabama Teacher Mentor Program, to provide continuity in the improvement and growth of new teachers, and would make an appropriation of $3,000,000 from the Education Trust Fund to the Alabama Teacher Mentor Program for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2017

This bill would also establish the Legislative Teacher Advisement Committee to make recommendations to the Legislature, the State Board of Education, and the State Superintendent of Education regarding issues of classroom instruction and performance rewards for schools

Amendment 621 of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, now appearing as Section 111.05 of the Official Recompilation of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, as amended, prohibits a general law whose purpose or effect would be to require a new or increased expenditure of local funds from becoming effective with regard to a local governmental entity without enactment by a 2/3 vote unless: it comes within one of a number of specified exceptions; it is approved by the affected entity; or the Legislature appropriates funds, or provides a local source of revenue, to the entity for the purpose

The purpose or effect of this bill would be to require a new or increased expenditure of local funds within the meaning of the amendment. However, the bill does not require approval of a local governmental entity or enactment by a 2/3 vote to become effective because it comes within one of the specified exceptions contained in the amendment

Relating to public education; to create the Preparing and Rewarding Educational Professionals (PREP) Act of 2016; to provide a procedure for observing and evaluating teachers, principals, and assistant principals on performance and student achievement; to make an appropriation of $10,000,000 from the Education Trust Fund to the Legislative School Performance Recognition Program, for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2017, to fund rewards earned by schools pursuant to that program; to amend Sections 16-6C-3 and 16-24C-4, Code of Alabama 1975, to require implementation of the Legislative School Performance Recognition Program before September 1, 2016, and to increase the number of years of service required to attain tenured status pursuant to the Students First Act of 2011, from three to five consecutive years with three consecutive ratings of satisfies expectations, exceeds expectations, or significantly exceeds expectations; to allow a governing board to evaluate a tenured teacher every other year; to subject a tenured teacher who receives a rating of below expectations or significantly below expectations to two consecutive annual evaluations immediately thereafter; to subject a tenured teacher who receives two consecutive ratings of below expectations or significantly below expectations pursuant to this act to personnel action by the governing board; to establish the Alabama Teacher Recruitment Fund; to make an appropriation of $5,000,000 from the Education Trust Fund to the Alabama Teacher Recruitment Fund, for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2017; to establish the Alabama Teacher Mentor Program; to make an appropriation of $3,000,000 from the Education Trust Fund to the Alabama Teacher Mentor Program for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2017; to establish the Legislative Teacher Advisement Committee to make recommendations to the Legislature, State Board of Education, and State Superintendent of Education regarding classroom instruction and school performance rewards; and in connection therewith to have as its purpose or effect the requirement of a new or increased expenditure of local funds within the meaning of Amendment 621 of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, now appearing as Section 111.05 of the Official Recompilation of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, as amended.