Public Act 098-0470
 
HB3063 EnrolledLRB098 08391 NHT 38496 b

    AN ACT concerning education.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section
24A-5 as follows:
 
    (105 ILCS 5/24A-5)  (from Ch. 122, par. 24A-5)
    Sec. 24A-5. Content of evaluation plans. This Section does
not apply to teachers assigned to schools identified in an
agreement entered into between the board of a school district
operating under Article 34 of this Code and the exclusive
representative of the district's teachers in accordance with
Section 34-85c of this Code.
    Each school district to which this Article applies shall
establish a teacher evaluation plan which ensures that each
teacher in contractual continued service is evaluated at least
once in the course of every 2 school years.
    By no later than September 1, 2012, each school district
shall establish a teacher evaluation plan that ensures that:
        (1) each teacher not in contractual continued service
    is evaluated at least once every school year; and
        (2) each teacher in contractual continued service is
    evaluated at least once in the course of every 2 school
    years. However, any teacher in contractual continued
    service whose performance is rated as either "needs
    improvement" or "unsatisfactory" must be evaluated at
    least once in the school year following the receipt of such
    rating.
    Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Section or
any other Section of the School Code, a principal shall not be
prohibited from evaluating any teachers within a school during
his or her first year as principal of such school. If a
first-year principal exercises this option in a school district
where the evaluation plan provides for a teacher in contractual
continued service to be evaluated once in the course of every 2
school years, then a new 2-year evaluation plan must be
established.
    The evaluation plan shall comply with the requirements of
this Section and of any rules adopted by the State Board of
Education pursuant to this Section.
    The plan shall include a description of each teacher's
duties and responsibilities and of the standards to which that
teacher is expected to conform, and shall include at least the
following components:
        (a) personal observation of the teacher in the
    classroom by the evaluator, unless the teacher has no
    classroom duties.
        (b) consideration of the teacher's attendance,
    planning, instructional methods, classroom management,
    where relevant, and competency in the subject matter
    taught.
        (c) by no later than the applicable implementation
    date, consideration of student growth as a significant
    factor in the rating of the teacher's performance.
        (d) prior to September 1, 2012, rating of the
    performance of teachers in contractual continued service
    as either:
            (i) "excellent", "satisfactory" or
        "unsatisfactory"; or
            (ii) "excellent", "proficient", "needs
        improvement" or "unsatisfactory".
        (e) on and after September 1, 2012, rating of the
    performance of all teachers as "excellent", "proficient",
    "needs improvement" or "unsatisfactory".
        (f) specification as to the teacher's strengths and
    weaknesses, with supporting reasons for the comments made.
        (g) inclusion of a copy of the evaluation in the
    teacher's personnel file and provision of a copy to the
    teacher.
        (h) within 30 school days after the completion of an
    evaluation rating a teacher in contractual continued
    service as "needs improvement", development by the
    evaluator, in consultation with the teacher, and taking
    into account the teacher's on-going professional
    responsibilities including his or her regular teaching
    assignments, of a professional development plan directed
    to the areas that need improvement and any supports that
    the district will provide to address the areas identified
    as needing improvement.
        (i) within 30 school days after completion of an
    evaluation rating a teacher in contractual continued
    service as "unsatisfactory", development and commencement
    by the district of a remediation plan designed to correct
    deficiencies cited, provided the deficiencies are deemed
    remediable. In all school districts the remediation plan
    for unsatisfactory, tenured teachers shall provide for 90
    school days of remediation within the classroom, unless an
    applicable collective bargaining agreement provides for a
    shorter duration. In all school districts evaluations
    issued pursuant to this Section shall be issued within 10
    days after the conclusion of the respective remediation
    plan. However, the school board or other governing
    authority of the district shall not lose jurisdiction to
    discharge a teacher in the event the evaluation is not
    issued within 10 days after the conclusion of the
    respective remediation plan.
        (j) participation in the remediation plan by the
    teacher in contractual continued service rated
    "unsatisfactory", an evaluator and a consulting teacher
    selected by the evaluator of the teacher who was rated
    "unsatisfactory", which consulting teacher is an
    educational employee as defined in the Educational Labor
    Relations Act, has at least 5 years' teaching experience,
    and a reasonable familiarity with the assignment of the
    teacher being evaluated, and who received an "excellent"
    rating on his or her most recent evaluation. Where no
    teachers who meet these criteria are available within the
    district, the district shall request and the applicable
    regional office of education shall supply, to participate
    in the remediation process, an individual who meets these
    criteria.
        In a district having a population of less than 500,000
    with an exclusive bargaining agent, the bargaining agent
    may, if it so chooses, supply a roster of qualified
    teachers from whom the consulting teacher is to be
    selected. That roster shall, however, contain the names of
    at least 5 teachers, each of whom meets the criteria for
    consulting teacher with regard to the teacher being
    evaluated, or the names of all teachers so qualified if
    that number is less than 5. In the event of a dispute as to
    qualification, the State Board shall determine
    qualification.
        (k) a mid-point and final evaluation by an evaluator
    during and at the end of the remediation period,
    immediately following receipt of a remediation plan
    provided for under subsections (i) and (j) of this Section.
    Each evaluation shall assess the teacher's performance
    during the time period since the prior evaluation; provided
    that the last evaluation shall also include an overall
    evaluation of the teacher's performance during the
    remediation period. A written copy of the evaluations and
    ratings, in which any deficiencies in performance and
    recommendations for correction are identified, shall be
    provided to and discussed with the teacher within 10 school
    days after the date of the evaluation, unless an applicable
    collective bargaining agreement provides to the contrary.
    These subsequent evaluations shall be conducted by an
    evaluator. The consulting teacher shall provide advice to
    the teacher rated "unsatisfactory" on how to improve
    teaching skills and to successfully complete the
    remediation plan. The consulting teacher shall participate
    in developing the remediation plan, but the final decision
    as to the evaluation shall be done solely by the evaluator,
    unless an applicable collective bargaining agreement
    provides to the contrary. Evaluations at the conclusion of
    the remediation process shall be separate and distinct from
    the required annual evaluations of teachers and shall not
    be subject to the guidelines and procedures relating to
    those annual evaluations. The evaluator may but is not
    required to use the forms provided for the annual
    evaluation of teachers in the district's evaluation plan.
        (l) reinstatement to the evaluation schedule set forth
    in the district's evaluation plan for any teacher in
    contractual continued service who achieves a rating equal
    to or better than "satisfactory" or "proficient" in the
    school year following a rating of "needs improvement" or
    "unsatisfactory".
        (m) dismissal in accordance with subsection (d) of
    Section 24-12 or Section 24-16.5 or 34-85 of this Code of
    any teacher who fails to complete any applicable
    remediation plan with a rating equal to or better than a
    "satisfactory" or "proficient" rating. Districts and
    teachers subject to dismissal hearings are precluded from
    compelling the testimony of consulting teachers at such
    hearings under subsection (d) of Section 24-12 or Section
    24-16.5 or 34-85 of this Code, either as to the rating
    process or for opinions of performances by teachers under
    remediation.
        (n) After the implementation date of an evaluation
    system for teachers in a district as specified in Section
    24A-2.5 of this Code, if a teacher in contractual continued
    service successfully completes a remediation plan
    following a rating of "unsatisfactory" and receives a
    subsequent rating of "unsatisfactory" in any of the
    teacher's annual or biannual overall performance
    evaluation ratings received during the 36-month period
    following the teacher's completion of the remediation
    plan, then the school district may forego remediation and
    seek dismissal in accordance with subsection (d) of Section
    24-12 or Section 34-85 of this Code.
    Nothing in this Section or Section 24A-4 shall be construed
as preventing immediate dismissal of a teacher for deficiencies
which are deemed irremediable or for actions which are
injurious to or endanger the health or person of students in
the classroom or school, or preventing the dismissal or
non-renewal of teachers not in contractual continued service
for any reason not prohibited by applicable employment, labor,
and civil rights laws. Failure to strictly comply with the time
requirements contained in Section 24A-5 shall not invalidate
the results of the remediation plan.
(Source: P.A. 96-861, eff. 1-15-10; 96-1423, eff. 8-3-10; 97-8,
eff. 6-13-11.)
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.