Public Act 102-0729
 
HB4256 EnrolledLRB102 21733 CMG 30852 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 Sections
24A-5, 24A-15, and 34-85c 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 or 3 school years as provided in
this Section.
    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) except as otherwise provided in this Section, 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.
    No later than September 1, 2022, each school district must
establish a teacher evaluation plan that ensures that each
teacher in contractual continued service whose performance is
rated as either "excellent" or "proficient" is evaluated at
least once in the course of the 3 school years after receipt of
the rating and implement an informal teacher observation plan
established by agency rule and by agreement of the joint
committee established under subsection (b) of Section 24A-4 of
this Code that ensures that each teacher in contractual
continued service whose performance is rated as either
"excellent" or "proficient" is informally observed at least
once in the course of the 2 school years after receipt of the
rating.
    For the 2022-2023 school year only, if the Governor has
declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant
to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act,
a school district may waive the evaluation requirement of all
teachers in contractual continued service whose performances
were rated as either "excellent" or "proficient" during the
last school year in which the teachers were evaluated under
this Section.
    Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Section
or any other Section of this 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 or 3 school years, as applicable, then a new
2-year or 3-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" in an overall
    performance evaluation received after the foregoing
    implementation date and receives a subsequent rating of
    "unsatisfactory" in any of the teacher's 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.
    Nothing contained in this amendatory Act of the 98th
General Assembly repeals, supersedes, invalidates, or
nullifies final decisions in lawsuits pending on the effective
date of this amendatory Act of the 98th General Assembly in
Illinois courts involving the interpretation of Public Act
97-8.
    If the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public
health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois
Emergency Management Agency Act that suspends in-person
instruction, the timelines in this Section connected to the
commencement and completion of any remediation plan are
waived. Except if the parties mutually agree otherwise and the
agreement is in writing, any remediation plan that had been in
place for more than 45 days prior to the suspension of
in-person instruction shall resume when in-person instruction
resumes and any remediation plan that had been in place for
fewer than 45 days prior to the suspension of in-person
instruction shall be discontinued and a new remediation period
shall begin when in-person instruction resumes. The
requirements of this paragraph apply regardless of whether
they are included in a school district's teacher evaluation
plan.
(Source: P.A. 101-643, eff. 6-18-20; 102-252, eff. 1-1-22.)
 
    (105 ILCS 5/24A-15)
    Sec. 24A-15. Development of evaluation plan for principals
and assistant principals.
    (a) Each school district, except for a school district
organized under Article 34 of this Code, shall establish a
principal and assistant principal evaluation plan in
accordance with this Section. The plan must ensure that each
principal and assistant principal is evaluated as follows:
        (1) For a principal or assistant principal on a
    single-year contract, the evaluation must take place by
    March 1 of each year.
        (2) For a principal or assistant principal on a
    multi-year contract under Section 10-23.8a of this Code,
    the evaluation must take place by March 1 of the final year
    of the contract.
    On and after September 1, 2012, the plan must:
        (i) rate the principal's or assistant principal's
    performance as "excellent", "proficient", "needs
    improvement" or "unsatisfactory"; and
        (ii) ensure that each principal and assistant
    principal is evaluated at least once every school year.
    Nothing in this Section prohibits a school district from
conducting additional evaluations of principals and assistant
principals.
    For the 2022-2023 school year only, if the Governor has
declared a disaster due to a public health emergency pursuant
to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act,
a school district may waive the evaluation requirement of all
principals or assistant principals whose performances were
rated as either "excellent" or "proficient" during the last
school year in which the principals or assistant principals
were evaluated under this Section.
    (b) The evaluation shall include a description of the
principal's or assistant principal's duties and
responsibilities and the standards to which the principal or
assistant principal is expected to conform.
    (c) The evaluation for a principal must be performed by
the district superintendent, the superintendent's designee,
or, in the absence of the superintendent or his or her
designee, an individual appointed by the school board who
holds a registered Type 75 State administrative certificate.
    Prior to September 1, 2012, the evaluation must be in
writing and must at least do all of the following:
        (1) Consider the principal's specific duties,
    responsibilities, management, and competence as a
    principal.
        (2) Specify the principal's strengths and weaknesses,
    with supporting reasons.
        (3) Align with research-based standards established by
    administrative rule.
    On and after September 1, 2012, the evaluation must, in
addition to the requirements in items (1), (2), and (3) of this
subsection (c), provide for the use of data and indicators on
student growth as a significant factor in rating performance.
    (c-5) The evaluation of an assistant principal must be
performed by the principal, the district superintendent, the
superintendent's designee, or, in the absence of the
superintendent or his or her designee, an individual appointed
by the school board who holds a registered Type 75 State
administrative certificate. The evaluation must be in writing
and must at least do all of the following:
        (1) Consider the assistant principal's specific
    duties, responsibilities, management, and competence as an
    assistant principal.
        (2) Specify the assistant principal's strengths and
    weaknesses with supporting reasons.
        (3) Align with the Illinois Professional Standards for
    School Leaders or research-based district standards.
    On and after September 1, 2012, the evaluation must, in
addition to the requirements in items (1), (2), and (3) of this
subsection (c-5), provide for the use of data and indicators
on student growth as a significant factor in rating
performance.
    (d) One copy of the evaluation must be included in the
principal's or assistant principal's personnel file and one
copy of the evaluation must be provided to the principal or
assistant principal.
    (e) Failure by a district to evaluate a principal or
assistant principal and to provide the principal or assistant
principal with a copy of the evaluation at least once during
the term of the principal's or assistant principal's contract,
in accordance with this Section, is evidence that the
principal or assistant principal is performing duties and
responsibilities in at least a satisfactory manner and shall
serve to automatically extend the principal's or assistant
principal's contract for a period of one year after the
contract would otherwise expire, under the same terms and
conditions as the prior year's contract. The requirements in
this Section are in addition to the right of a school board to
reclassify a principal or assistant principal pursuant to
Section 10-23.8b of this Code.
    (f) Nothing in this Section prohibits a school board from
ordering lateral transfers of principals or assistant
principals to positions of similar rank and salary.
(Source: P.A. 96-861, eff. 1-15-10; 97-217, eff. 7-28-11.)
 
    (105 ILCS 5/34-85c)
    Sec. 34-85c. Alternative procedures for teacher
evaluation, remediation, and removal for cause after
remediation.
    (a) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the board and
the exclusive representative of the district's teachers are
hereby authorized to enter into an agreement to establish
alternative procedures for teacher evaluation, remediation,
and removal for cause after remediation, including an
alternative system for peer evaluation and recommendations;
provided, however, that no later than September 1, 2012: (i)
any alternative procedures must include provisions whereby
student performance data is a significant factor in teacher
evaluation and (ii) teachers are rated as "excellent",
"proficient", "needs improvement" or "unsatisfactory".
Pursuant exclusively to that agreement, teachers assigned to
schools identified in that agreement shall be subject to an
alternative performance evaluation plan and remediation
procedures in lieu of the plan and procedures set forth in
Article 24A of this Code and alternative removal for cause
standards and procedures in lieu of the removal standards and
procedures set forth in Section 34-85 of this Code. To the
extent that the agreement provides a teacher with an
opportunity for a hearing on removal for cause before an
independent hearing officer in accordance with Section 34-85
or otherwise, the hearing officer shall be governed by the
alternative performance evaluation plan, remediation
procedures, and removal standards and procedures set forth in
the agreement in making findings of fact and a recommendation.
    (a-5) If the Governor has declared a disaster due to a
public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois
Emergency Management Agency Act that suspends in-person
instruction, the timelines connected to the commencement and
completion of any remediation plan are paused. Except where
the parties mutually agree otherwise and such agreement is in
writing, any remediation plan that had been in place for 45 or
more days prior to the suspension of in-person instruction
shall resume when in-person instruction resumes; any
remediation plan that had been in place for fewer than 45 days
prior to the suspension of in-person instruction shall
discontinue and a new remediation period will begin when
in-person instruction resumes.
    (a-10) No later than September 1, 2022, the school
district must establish a teacher evaluation plan that ensures
that each teacher in contractual continued service whose
performance is rated as either "excellent" or "proficient" is
evaluated at least once in the course of the 3 school years
after receipt of the rating and establish an informal teacher
observation plan that ensures that each teacher in contractual
continued service whose performance is rated as either
"excellent" or "proficient" is informally observed at least
once in the course of the 2 school years after receipt of the
rating.
    (a-15) For the 2022-2023 school year only, if the Governor
has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency
pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management
Agency Act, the school district may waive the evaluation
requirement of any teacher in contractual continued service
whose performance was rated as either "excellent" or
"proficient" during the last school year in which the teacher
was evaluated under this Section.
    (b) The board and the exclusive representative of the
district's teachers shall submit a certified copy of an
agreement as provided under subsection (a) of this Section to
the State Board of Education.
(Source: P.A. 101-643, eff. 6-18-20; 102-252, eff. 1-1-22.)
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.