Public Act 102-1139
 
HB5285 EnrolledLRB102 23977 CMG 33182 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
34-8.1 as follows:
 
    (105 ILCS 5/34-8.1)  (from Ch. 122, par. 34-8.1)
    Sec. 34-8.1. Principals. Principals shall be employed to
supervise the operation of each attendance center. Their
powers and duties shall include but not be limited to the
authority (i) to direct, supervise, evaluate, and suspend with
or without pay or otherwise discipline all teachers, assistant
principals, and other employees assigned to the attendance
center in accordance with board rules and policies and (ii) to
direct all other persons assigned to the attendance center
pursuant to a contract with a third party to provide services
to the school system. The right to employ, discharge, and
layoff shall be vested solely with the board, provided that
decisions to discharge or suspend nonlicensed employees,
including disciplinary layoffs, and the termination of
licensed employees from employment pursuant to a layoff or
reassignment policy are subject to review under the grievance
resolution procedure adopted pursuant to subsection (c) of
Section 10 of the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act.
The grievance resolution procedure adopted by the board shall
provide for final and binding arbitration, and,
notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary,
the arbitrator's decision may include all make-whole relief,
including without limitation reinstatement. The principal
shall fill positions by appointment as provided in this
Section and may make recommendations to the board regarding
the employment, discharge, or layoff of any individual. The
authority of the principal shall include the authority to
direct the hours during which the attendance center shall be
open and available for use provided the use complies with
board rules and policies, to determine when and what
operations shall be conducted within those hours, and to
schedule staff within those hours. Under the direction of, and
subject to the authority of the principal, the Engineer In
Charge shall be accountable for the safe, economical operation
of the plant and grounds and shall also be responsible for
orientation, training, and supervising the work of Engineers,
Trainees, school maintenance assistants, custodial workers and
other plant operation employees under his or her direction.
    There shall be established by the board a system of
semi-annual evaluations conducted by the principal as to
performance of the engineer in charge. Nothing in this Section
shall prevent the principal from conducting additional
evaluations. An overall numerical rating shall be given by the
principal based on the evaluation conducted by the principal.
An unsatisfactory numerical rating shall result in
disciplinary action, which may include, without limitation and
in the judgment of the principal, loss of promotion or bidding
procedure, reprimand, suspension with or without pay, or
recommended dismissal. The board shall establish procedures
for conducting the evaluation and reporting the results to the
engineer in charge.
    Under the direction of, and subject to the authority of,
the principal, the Food Service Manager is responsible at all
times for the proper operation and maintenance of the lunch
room to which he is assigned and shall also be responsible for
the orientation, training, and supervising the work of cooks,
bakers, porters, and lunchroom attendants under his or her
direction.
    There shall be established by the Board a system of
semi-annual evaluations conducted by the principal as to the
performance of the food service manager. Nothing in this
Section shall prevent the principal from conducting additional
evaluations. An overall numerical rating shall be given by the
principal based on the evaluation conducted by the principal.
An unsatisfactory numerical rating shall result in
disciplinary action which may include, without limitation and
in the judgment of the principal, loss of promotion or bidding
procedure, reprimand, suspension with or without pay, or
recommended dismissal. The board shall establish rules for
conducting the evaluation and reporting the results to the
food service manager.
    Nothing in this Section shall be interpreted to require
the employment or assignment of an Engineer-In-Charge or a
Food Service Manager for each attendance center.
    Principals shall be employed to supervise the educational
operation of each attendance center. If a principal is absent
due to extended illness or leave of absence, an assistant
principal may be assigned as acting principal for a period not
to exceed 100 school days. Each principal shall assume
administrative responsibility and instructional leadership, in
accordance with reasonable rules and regulations of the board,
for the planning, operation and evaluation of the educational
program of the attendance center to which he is assigned. The
principal shall submit recommendations to the general
superintendent concerning the appointment, dismissal,
retention, promotion, and assignment of all personnel assigned
to the attendance center; provided, that from and after
September 1, 1989: (i) if any vacancy occurs in a position at
the attendance center or if an additional or new position is
created at the attendance center, that position shall be
filled by appointment made by the principal in accordance with
procedures established and provided by the Board whenever the
majority of the duties included in that position are to be
performed at the attendance center which is under the
principal's supervision, and each such appointment so made by
the principal shall be made and based upon merit and ability to
perform in that position without regard to seniority or length
of service, provided, that such appointments shall be subject
to the Board's desegregation obligations, including but not
limited to the Consent Decree and Desegregation Plan in U.S.
v. Chicago Board of Education; (ii) the principal shall submit
recommendations based upon merit and ability to perform in the
particular position, without regard to seniority or length of
service, to the general superintendent concerning the
appointment of any teacher, teacher aide, counselor, clerk,
hall guard, security guard and any other personnel which is to
be made by the general superintendent whenever less than a
majority of the duties of that teacher, teacher aide,
counselor, clerk, hall guard, and security guard and any other
personnel are to be performed at the attendance center which
is under the principal's supervision; and (iii) subject to law
and the applicable collective bargaining agreements, the
authority and responsibilities of a principal with respect to
the evaluation of all teachers and other personnel assigned to
an attendance center shall commence immediately upon his or
her appointment as principal of the attendance center, without
regard to the length of time that he or she has been the
principal of that attendance center.
    Notwithstanding the existence of any other law of this
State, nothing in this Act shall prevent the board from
entering into a contract with a third party for services
currently performed by any employee or bargaining unit member.
    Notwithstanding any other provision of this Article, each
principal may approve contracts, binding on the board, in the
amount of no more than $10,000, if the contract is endorsed by
the Local School Council.
    Unless otherwise prohibited by law or by rule of the
board, the principal shall provide to local school council
members copies of all internal audits and any other pertinent
information generated by any audits or reviews of the programs
and operation of the attendance center.
    Each principal shall hold a valid Professional Educator
License issued in accordance with Article 21B and endorsed as
required by that Article for the position of principal. The
board may establish or impose clear, specific, explicit, and
objective academic, educational, examination, and experience
requirements and criteria that are in addition to those
established and required by Article 21B for issuance of a
valid license endorsed for the position of principal as a
condition of the nomination, selection, appointment,
employment, or continued employment of a person as principal
of any attendance center, or as a condition of the renewal of
any principal's performance contract. If the additional
requirements and criteria result or may result in the
exclusion of an otherwise qualified and licensed candidate
from being eligible for selection to serve as a principal of an
attendance center, then the board shall maintain a public
database that includes the names of all the candidates who are
eligible to be selected as a principal and who do not choose to
not have their name included in the database. The board shall
give notice of no less than 30 days to all otherwise qualified
and licensed candidates each quarter of their ability to be
included in the database and shall make updates to the
database within no more than 10 days after the end of the
quarter for which notice is given.
    The board must establish standards and procedures to
ensure that no candidate is deemed ineligible to be selected
as a principal for reasons that are not directly related to the
candidate's anticipated performance as a principal. The
standards and procedures established by the board must do all
of the following:
        (1) Set forth all of the specific criteria used by the
    board to make decisions concerning the eligibility of
    candidates.
        (2) Provide each candidate with a written,
    competency-aligned score report and evidence-based
    rationale related to the scoring criteria for each
    competency area.
        (3) Provide remediation goals and other supportive
    services to assist a candidate in correcting any
    deficiencies identified by the board in the board's
    rationale.
        (4) Include provisions to ensure that no person is
    discriminated against on the basis of conscious or
    implicit biases associated with race, color, national
    origin, or a disability that is unrelated to the person's
    ability to perform the duties of a principal.
    The board, in cooperation with the organization that
represents the district's principals and assistant principals,
must establish a grievance and hearing procedure for those
candidates the general superintendent or the general
superintendent's designee has deemed ineligible to serve as
principal of an attendance center or whose eligibility has
been slated for revocation. The evaluator must be a State
Board of Education-trained principal evaluator or must receive
such training before rendering a decision. The hearing officer
must receive sufficient training in principal evaluation
processes and criteria to render an informed decision.
    Within 10 days after the general superintendent or the
general superintendent's designee determines that a candidate
is ineligible or makes a decision to revoke the eligibility of
an administrator, the general superintendent or the general
superintendent's designee must notify the candidate or
administrator, in writing, of the specific reasons for the
general superintendent's or the general superintendent's
designee's determination of the candidate's or administrator's
ineligibility. Within 30 days after receiving this
notification, the candidate or administrator may request that
the general superintendent or the general superintendent's
designee initiate a review of the decision through the
grievance and hearing process established pursuant to this
Section.
    In the case of a principal who is deemed ineligible based
on a performance evaluation, the evaluator conducting the
review must consider as evidence of the principal's
performance any local school council evaluation that covers
the same evaluation period. If a decision to revoke
eligibility is grieved, the administrator shall remain on the
eligibility list until the administrator receives a decision
in the grievance. However, prior to any hiring decision, the
board may communicate to any local school council that the
administrator has a grievance pending while the grievance is
pending. The grievance decision shall be binding on the
principal and the board.
    If performance evaluations are included in the criteria
used by the board in determining that a principal is no longer
eligible to seek a principal position at an attendance center,
the board's criteria must use the standard of either an
unsatisfactory summative evaluation or 2 or more basic or
lower summative performance evaluations within a period of 7
school years, except as provided below in the case of a
principal who is in his or her first principal position. A
principal with summative performance evaluations of basic in
the principal's first 2 school years in that role shall not
impact a principal's eligibility status if the principal earns
an increased numerical rating in at least one competency
domain while maintaining ratings on all other competency
domains in the school year immediately following the basic
rating. A principal who is deemed ineligible based on a
performance evaluation may request that the general
superintendent review that determination under the grievance
procedure, in which case the general superintendent's designee
must be a State Board of Education-trained principal
evaluator, and, in conducting that review, the general
superintendent's designee must consider any local school
council evaluation that covers the same evaluation period. If
an individual evaluator rates an individual principal as
unsatisfactory for the first time, the board may not determine
that a principal is no longer eligible to serve as a principal
based on performance evaluations from that evaluator if,
during the same school term of service, the local school
council's evaluation of the principal's performance was
distinguished. If a principal has been deemed ineligible based
on a performance evaluation, the principal's status is
restored to eligible when the principal receives a proficient
or higher summative performance evaluation rating, provided
the principal meets all other criteria for eligibility.
    The board shall specify in its formal job description for
principals, and from and after July 1, 1990 shall specify in
the 4 year performance contracts for use with respect to all
principals, that his or her primary responsibility is in the
improvement of instruction. A majority of the time spent by a
principal shall be spent on curriculum and staff development
through both formal and informal activities, establishing
clear lines of communication regarding school goals,
accomplishments, practices and policies with parents and
teachers. The principal, with the assistance of the local
school council, shall develop a school improvement plan as
provided in Section 34-2.4 and, upon approval of the plan by
the local school council, shall be responsible for directing
implementation of the plan. The principal, with the assistance
of the professional personnel leadership committee, shall
develop the specific methods and contents of the school's
curriculum within the board's system-wide curriculum standards
and objectives and the requirements of the school improvement
plan. The board shall ensure that all principals are evaluated
on their instructional leadership ability and their ability to
maintain a positive education and learning climate. It shall
also be the responsibility of the principal to utilize
resources of proper law enforcement agencies when the safety
and welfare of students and teachers are threatened by illegal
use of drugs and alcohol, by illegal use or possession of
weapons, or by illegal gang activity.
    Nothing in this Section shall prohibit the board and the
exclusive representative of the district's teachers from
entering into an agreement under Section 34-85c of this Code
to establish alternative procedures for teacher evaluation,
remediation, and removal for cause after remediation,
including an alternative system for peer evaluation and
recommendations, for teachers assigned to schools identified
in that agreement.
    On or before October 1, 1989, the Board of Education, in
consultation with any professional organization representing
principals in the district, shall promulgate rules and
implement a lottery for the purpose of determining whether a
principal's existing performance contract (including the
performance contract applicable to any principal's position in
which a vacancy then exists) expires on June 30, 1990 or on
June 30, 1991, and whether the ensuing 4 year performance
contract begins on July 1, 1990 or July 1, 1991. The Board of
Education shall establish and conduct the lottery in such
manner that of all the performance contracts of principals
(including the performance contracts applicable to all
principal positions in which a vacancy then exists), 50% of
such contracts shall expire on June 30, 1990, and 50% shall
expire on June 30, 1991. All persons serving as principal on
May 1, 1989, and all persons appointed as principal after May
1, 1989 and prior to July 1, 1990 or July 1, 1991, in a manner
other than as provided by Section 34-2.3, shall be deemed by
operation of law to be serving under a performance contract
which expires on June 30, 1990 or June 30, 1991; and unless
such performance contract of any such principal is renewed (or
such person is again appointed to serve as principal) in the
manner provided by Section 34-2.2 or 34-2.3, the employment of
such person as principal shall terminate on June 30, 1990 or
June 30, 1991.
    Commencing on July 1, 1990, or on July 1, 1991, and
thereafter, the principal of each attendance center shall be
the person selected in the manner provided by Section 34-2.3
to serve as principal of that attendance center under a 4 year
performance contract. All performance contracts of principals
expiring after July 1, 1990, or July 1, 1991, shall commence on
the date specified in the contract, and the renewal of their
performance contracts and the appointment of principals when
their performance contracts are not renewed shall be governed
by Sections 34-2.2 and 34-2.3. Whenever a vacancy in the
office of a principal occurs for any reason, the vacancy shall
be filled by the selection of a new principal to serve under a
4 year performance contract in the manner provided by Section
34-2.3.
    The board of education shall develop and prepare, in
consultation with the organization representing principals, a
performance contract for use at all attendance centers, and
shall furnish the same to each local school council. The term
of the performance contract shall be 4 years, unless the
principal is retained by the decision of a hearing officer
pursuant to subdivision 1.5 of Section 34-2.3, in which case
the contract shall be extended for 2 years. The performance
contract of each principal shall consist of the uniform
performance contract, as developed or from time to time
modified by the board, and such additional criteria as are
established by a local school council pursuant to Section
34-2.3 for the performance contract of its principal.
    During the term of his or her performance contract, a
principal may be removed only as provided for in the
performance contract except for cause. He or she shall also be
obliged to follow the rules of the board of education
concerning conduct and efficiency.
    In the event the performance contract of a principal is
not renewed or a principal is not reappointed as principal
under a new performance contract, or in the event a principal
is appointed to any position of superintendent or higher
position, or voluntarily resigns his position of principal,
his or her employment as a principal shall terminate and such
former principal shall not be reinstated to the position from
which he or she was promoted to principal, except that he or
she, if otherwise qualified and licensed in accordance with
Article 21B, shall be placed by the board on appropriate
eligibility lists which it prepares for use in the filling of
vacant or additional or newly created positions for teachers.
The principal's total years of service to the board as both a
teacher and a principal, or in other professional capacities,
shall be used in calculating years of experience for purposes
of being selected as a teacher into new, additional or vacant
positions.
    In the event the performance contract of a principal is
not renewed or a principal is not reappointed as principal
under a new performance contract, such principal shall be
eligible to continue to receive his or her previously provided
level of health insurance benefits for a period of 90 days
following the non-renewal of the contract at no expense to the
principal, provided that such principal has not retired.
(Source: P.A. 102-894, eff. 5-20-22.)
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.

Effective Date: 2/10/2023