ARTICLE XIX PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

(See Professional Development/100 Hours section of this manual for further information on this topic.)

All School Employees

(1) The Board shall pay the full cost of tuition and other reasonable expenses incurred in connection with any courses, workshops, seminars, conferences, inservice training sessions, or other such sessions which an employee elects to take and/or is requested by the administration to take. Said employee shall also be compensated for all time spent in actual attendance at said sessions beyond his/her regular workday and year at his regular rate of pay or overtime, whichever is applicable.

ARTICLE XIX PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

(The text of this sample language, and NJSBA's analysis, appears at the end of this document. )

All School Employees (Note that this contractual article cannot apply to all school employees, but only to the employee classifications included in the recognition article.)

(1) Pay and expenses for professional development is negotiable. As proposed, however, this section holds the following problems for the board:

First, a benefit that is generally associated with teaching staff members is extended to all employees in the bargaining unit.

Second, reimbursement is mandated for any courses that an employee elects to take, but prior administrative approval is not required. Therefore, a board could be committed to pay for coursework that is totally unrelated to the employee's assignment or function in the district.

Third: "Reasonable" expenses are not defined and so is likely to lead to differing interpretations and disputes. Unless specifically excluded from a negotiated arbitration procedure, the word will ultimately be defined by an arbitrator. (Boards may also want to check their existing policies for possibly existing reimbursement procedures and conditions for reimbursable expenses, such as: required receipts; caps on meal reimbursement, no coverage of liquor costs or costs incurred by a companion, etc. Boards that are inclined to agree to reimbursement for expenses will want to assure that their contractual agreement is consistent with their policy limitations.)

Fourth, the last sentence is also unacceptable. While most districts have some form of tuition reimbursement, few, if any, have agreed to also pay for the time a teacher spends after school hours in pursuing a higher academic degree desired by the teacher. Further, linking payment to the employee's regular rate of pay means that this rate will automatically increase, without additional negotiations, as salaries increase. This clause, when read in conjunction with section (18) of Article XI (which appears to extend overtime entitlements to teaching staff members) could also be read to commit the board to the highly unusual condition of paying teachers time and a half for any professional development activities that resulted in a "work week" in excess of 40 hours!

Finally, there are no limits on the board's financial obligation to the unit as a whole or to each individual employee. Agreement to this clause would thus result in the writing of a blank check for activities that are outside the board's control. The importance of capping the board's obligation to pay for professional development is magnified by the 100 hours continuing education requirement for teachers that will result in higher utilization and higher costs of this benefit. Boards should not agree to pay for professional activities that do not require the prior approval of the administration and are not capped. For additional information on this topic, please see the article "An Analysis of Professional Development Clauses" in The Negotiations Advisor.

ESP

(2) Each year the Board shall provide ...negotiated number... inservice programs for noncertificated staff. Representatives designated by the Association will meet with representatives designated by the Superintendent to cooperatively plan the programs. The planning meetings and inservice programs shall be held during the regular workday of the participants.

ESP

(2) The design of inservice programs is not negotiable and contractual clauses cannot require boards to cooperate with the union in arranging training courses. Hunterdon Central Regional Board of Education, PERC No. 87-83, 13 NJPER 23028. (Note, in planning inservice for continuing education purposes, N.J.A.C. 6: 11-13.3 (d) requires local professional development committees to design an inservice plan that must obtain the board's approval. This situation is not applicable here as continuing education is a requirement for teachers that does not apply to support staff.) Further, it would be most inadvisable for boards to agree to the last sentence as this would reduce work time. It also raises the issue of different regular "workdays" for various categories of support staff.

(3) Representatives designated by the Association shall be involved in the planning of any inservice program for ESP employees. Such representation shall be in ratio to the numbers of each employee category in the district. At least one (1) inservice program during the regular workday shall be provided for all categories of employees each year.

(3) For many of the same reasons cited in section (2) above, this provision should be unacceptable to boards. In addition, an agreement to provide at least one annual inservice program for each category of employees seems to be an unreasonable and possibly burdensome commitment. While boards of education may find that providing inservice to its support staff is a good and beneficial practice, the determination of who will receive training and when and how training is delivered is not negotiable. Note, however, that the impact of those decisions may be severable from the decision itself and be negotiable. See, for example, City of Newark, PERC No. 86-52,11 NJPER 16242 ; Town of Hackettstown, PERC No. 82-102, 8 NJPER 13136.

All School Employees

(4) After consultation with the Association, the Board shall expend up to ...negotiated amount... each school year to purchase books, equipment, and/or other resource materials for use by employees. The Board shall provide adequate space for housing said books and materials in convenient and readily accessible locations.

(4) To the extent that the first sentence involves the formulation of the school budget, it is not a negotiable topic. Rutgers, PERC No. 76-13, 2 NJPER 13. The last sentence would unwisely commit the board to allocating space for this purpose without considering the district's facility needs.

(5) The Board shall expend ...negotiated amount... to establish ...negotiated number... grants to employees interested in designing and implementing innovative ideas and techniques in accordance with procedures jointly developed with the Association. The procedure for awarding said grants shall be mutually developed by the Board and Association.

(5) This provision is virtually unknown in school contracts.

NJEA SAMPLE AGREEMENT

Addition to PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: New Jersey's Teachers' Continuing Education Requirement

NJSBA ANALYSIS

Addition to PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT:

New Jersey's Teachers' Continuing Education Requirement

A. Purpose

In our rapidly changing society, teachers must constantly reviewcurricular content, teaching methods and materials, educationalphilosophy and goals, social change, and other topics related toeducation. The Board recognizes that it shares with its professional staff the responsibility for the upgrading and updating of teacherperformance and methodology. The Board and the Association support the principle of continuing training of teachers and the improvement of instruction. The parties further agree that each teacher should fulfill the obligation for professional improvement in ways that best serve her/his own problems, functions, interests, and needs. The Board agrees to implement the following commencing with the 1999-2000 school year.

A. This is a goal statement that is neither necessary nor suitable to a negotiated agreement. Boards will want to carefully review the contained statements to determine whether they comply with board goals. For example, the first sentence appears to link continuing education to research, but not to improved classroom instruction. Nevertheless, even if there is board support for these statements, including them in the contract can be used against the board as an arbitrator can then rely on these clauses to resolve a dispute that could arise under this provision. However, boards should not agree to the last sentence: teachers must fulfill their obligations not to serve their own problems or needs, but to become more effective teachers to meet the students’ needs.

B. Professional Development Committee

1. Role of the Committee

The Committee shall be empowered to work in conjunction withthe district superintendent, with input from parents, communitymembers and local business leaders to assess in-service needs and professional development opportunities and to plan and implement professional development programs in accordance with the standards established by the state Professional Teaching Standards Board and by the Commissioner of Education at the board’s recommendation. The Committee shall present its plan to the County Professional Development Committee for its review and recommendation. In the event revision is needed, the Committee shall have the sole responsibility for revising and resubmitting the plan.

2. Composition of the Committee

The Committee will be comprised of four classroom teachers elected by the district’s instructional and educational services staff through their majority representative and two administrative staff appointed by the superintendent of schools. They shall elect a chairperson from among themselves. Committee members shall serve three-year terms. Initial terms shall be staggered.

The superintendent shall appoint two (2) members and the Association shall elect four (4) members to the Committee. The Committeeshall elect a chairperson from among themselves. Said individuals shall serve three (3) year terms. Initial terms shall be staggered.

3. Conduct of Committee Business

(a) The Committee will be given a working budget and secretarial assistance sufficient to complete its mission. Each unit member serving on the Committee will receive ________(hours/periods) of release time and/or per hour payment equal to the individual’s hourly rate. Said rate to be calculated using the following formula: 1/200th of the individual’s annual salary divided by the number of hours in the workday. Workday is defined as time between required sign in and sign out.

(b) The Professional Development Committee shall establish its own rules and procedures. The Committee will develop the appropriate forms needed to conduct its business and meet its responsibilities to the district and individuals. Said forms will include but not be limited to application forms, payment requests and maintenance of individual training hours.

C. Programs

1. Pay and expenses for training

The Board agrees to pay the full cost of tuition and other reasonableexpenses incurred in connection with any workshops, seminars, conferences, in-service training sessions, or other such sessions which a teacher attends as a part of his/her continuing education plan and/or is required and/or requested to attend by the administration. Said expenses shall include, but are not limited to registration fees, transportation, material and lodging.

2. In-service workshops, conferences, programs

(a) In any given year, the Board will provide in-service professionaldevelopment experiences that will assist the teacher in attaining the required 100 hours of continuing education. The district experiences will be sufficient to meet the employee’s annual progress requirement.

(b) In-service programs shall be conducted during the in-schoolteacher workday and work year if teacher attendance is required.

3. Attendance at other programs

(a) All programs conducted by the district outside the in-schoolteacher workday, work year or during the summer shall be voluntary and compensated at the rate set forth in ARTICLE_________, Section ________ and/or quality for advancement on the salary guide as set forth in ARTICLE _________, Section__________.

(b) Teachers will have the right to apply to attend Professional Development activities other than those approved by the State or County Standards Boards as part of the local professional development program. No denial of such a request shall be arbitrary or capricious.

4. Summer program for professional development

The Board agrees to appropriate _____________($________) dollarsfor a Summer Program for Professional Development to afford teachers the opportunity to participate in activities that they propose and that contribute to the professional development of the participating teachers.Participation in these activities shall be voluntary. Participantsshall be compensated according to the rate set forth in ARTICLE ________, Section _______ and/or qualify for advancement on the salary guide as set forth in ARTICLE _______, Section _______.

D. Innovative Grants

In order to encourage educational creativity and sharing and to expand educational opportunities for students, the Board agrees to appropriate __________dollars to establish a grant program.

1. Grant will be made available to teachers for a development of innovative educational initiatives that enhance the educational program of the district and to provide professional development and growth opportunities for district staff.

2. A grant committee consisting of ___individuals will be established. The committee will represent various grade levels, (elementary, middle and high school). The committee will be responsible for establishing the guidelines, application and operational procedures governing the grant program. The application shall include the number of Continuing Education Credit hours to be earned toward the 100-hour requirement.

3. Individual grants shall not exceed ____________($________) dollars.

E. Trainers Credit

Any teacher who provides in or out-of-district training experiencesfor colleagues and/or community members shall receive hour for hour credit toward their 100-hour obligation.

F. Record Keeping

The district will maintain a record of the number of continuing education for each teacher and provide each teacher with an accounting of his/her accumulated hours each September. Any discrepancies between the district and teacher’s records should be noted within 30 days of the board records.

B.1. The role of the Committee is fully described in N.J.A.C. 6:11-13.3(d). It is unnecessary and unwise to attempt to restate its role in a negotiated agreement. A contractual restatement is open to misstatements (as this one demonstrates, see below) and, if included in the express terms of a negotiated contract may become reviewable by a labor arbitrator.

Note: The second paragraph totally misstates and misrepresents the Code’s provision. The Code specifically reserves the right of final approval, or disapproval, for the board of education. The last sentence usurps the board’s role by endowing the Committee with the sole responsibility of revising the plan. In fact, a board that rejects a proposed plan can and should provide reasons for its rejection and therefore the board is instrumental in developing revisions to a new plan.

B.2. The composition of the Committee is also addressed in the Code cited above. The Code also suggests that the conduct of the Committee shall be in accordance with rules developed by the PTSB. The reference to the selection of the chairperson may therefore be ultimately addressed through guidelines.

Also note that both options listed here conflict with the Code’s requirement that, to assure continuity, initial members’ terms shall be staggered with half of the members serving two years and the other half serving three years. The Code also specifies that subsequent terms shall be for two years and that members can be reappointed up to three times.

B.3. As cited above, the Code suggests that the PTSB will issue recommendations for the conduct of the Committee. A contractual commitment may therefore be unnecessary and unwise.

B.3.a. Although a board may be inclined to provide the Committee with a working budget and a secretary, these issues are outside the scope of negotiations. Budgetary allocations are not negotiable (Rutgers, PERC No. 76-13, 2 NJPER 13) and neither are staff assignments or the deployment of staff (Ridgefield Park Board of Education, 78 NJPER 144, 1978).

The rest of a. that addresses issues of compensation for service on the Committee is negotiable, but a board’s agreement is of questionable wisdom for a number of reasons. First, at this time, it is unclear how much time the local committee will need to carry out its continuing education responsibilities, and any other tasks that are delegated to the Committee by the Department of Education. Therefore, boards must be very careful that they are not writing blank checks to the Committee. Secondly, the proposal appears to provide a choice of compensation that is far from clear. For example, does the choice of compensation rest with the teachers? Or is release time the procedure that will be used if the Committee meets during the school day or can teachers seek “compensatory release” time for those meetings that are scheduled outside the school day? (Note that the Committee’s responsibilities under the Code requires input from the community and thus after-school meetings are very likely to occur.) Further, section a. appears to establish a cap on the number of hours of release time; it is unclear if the “and/or” would obligate the board to pay an additional stipend after the defined release time is exhausted. In addition, no cap is placed on the dollar amount. Should you agree to this type of language, you are most unadvisably signing a blank check. Finally, many boards have found that paying hourly rates for committee work is not only unjustified and possibly expensive but can also become an administrative headache as each teacher is eligible for a different rate. Further, a per diem rate is an automatic escalator clause that increases, without further negotiations, whenever the teacher’s salary increases. Boards that are inclined to agree to payment for this committee’s work should thus give serious consideration to a flat rate of compensation.

Further, and of most importance given the uncertain nature of the amount of time the committee will need, any agreement to compensation must include a negotiated limit, or “cap,” on the board’s fiscal obligation. It would also be advisable to clarify whether the compensation cap is applicable to every year of the contract or is totally inclusive for the life of the negotiated agreement.

B.3.b. As noted above, the PTSB may issue recommendations for the Committee’s conduct. The PTSB has also developed forms for local committees’ use As noted above, the PTSB may issue recommendations for the Committee’s conduct. The PTSB has also developed forms for local committees’ use in submitting information to the County Board. It may therefore be unwise and premature to reach a negotiated agreement authorizing the Committee to develop its own forms. Further, and of greater importance, is the last sentence’s definition of the Committee’s use of forms. At this point in time, there is no indication that the committees’ authority will include any of the issues this committee is planning to address. The review of application forms and payment requests appear to be within the administration’s role and not within the jurisdiction of the Committee. Agreement to this last sentence would appear to be extremely unwise.

C.1. Pay and expenses for continuing education is negotiable. As proposed, however, this section holds many potential problems for the board. It is, in fact, a blank check which can be predicted to result in significant and totally unacceptable expenditures for a board. First, there obviously is no cap on the board’s financial obligation to the unit as a whole or to each individual teacher. Secondly, payment is not limited to continuing education activities, but is applicable to any workshop (does it also apply to formal courses and thus supplement the possible restrictions of your tuition reimbursement article?) that the teacher may attend. Further, the kind of expenses that are “included, but not limited” by the third sentence is incredibly broad and could apply to all sorts of expenses, no matter how frivolous (such as first-class air travel and hotel accommodations) that are incurred by the teacher. Not only should these expenses be capped, but they should also require prior approval of the administration.

Further, it is unwise for a board to agree to any expense that does not comply with the board’s goals. Boards may want to check their existing policies for possibly existing reimbursement procedures and exclusions to reimbursable expenses, such as: required receipts; caps on meal reimbursement; no coverage of liquor costs or costs incurred by a companion; etc. Boards that are inclined to agree to reimbursement for expenses may want to assure that their contractual agreement is consistent with their policy limitations.

Also, watch the word “reasonable” in the first sentence. What appears reasonable is obviously subject to many different interpretations and is open to many disputes. Unless specifically excluded from a negotiated arbitration procedure, the word will ultimately be defined by an arbitrator. It would be far wiser for a board considering agreement to any type of reimbursement to reject the word “reasonable” and replace it with “approved in advance by the administration.” (Boards that have carefully worded and considered policies on reimbursement could also seek to delete the word “reasonable” and require that reimbursement be in accordance with board policy.)

C.2.a. This section is of questionable legality. It essentially requires the board to provide sufficient inservice, in any one year, that would satisfy all teachers’ continuing education activities for that year. This would appear to present significant interference with, and intrusion into, the board’s right under the continuing education and the PERC law to set criteria for acceptable training programs. As such, this section would appear to not be negotiable. Regardless of its negotiability, agreement to the second sentence in particular would be extremely unwise. This sentence would require a district to provide a program for any teacher whose PIP for the year contained a particular area of improvement that was not covered by the district’s planned inservice program. The potential horrors of this “worst case scenario” are self-evident.

C.2.b. Is this acceptable to the board? Is there enough time in the existing teachers’ workday or work year to accommodate additional inservice without damaging students’ instructional time? To assure that training that occurs during the teachers’ negotiated work time does not reduce or dilute the district’s instructional time, boards may want to consider counterproposals to: lengthen the work year; to lengthen a number of workdays to provide inservice after school; and to assure administrative flexibility to deviate from any negotiated work schedule to provide sufficient instructional and inservice time.

C.2.c. Agreement to this section would appear to dilute the intent of continuing education requirement. Some indistrict inservice may not be related to improving teachers’ knowledge or application of instructional methodology or skills. As such, these sessions should not count towards continuing education credits. Further, it would also seem unwise to agree to include state-mandated training programs that are not related to improving instructional skills to be credited towards the 100 hours. (If this credit is required by the Commissioner, then the credit will be required and does not need to be included in a negotiated agreement. Check with your resources for the latest development in this area.)

C.3.a. This is a confusing provision that would appear to not apply to continuing education credit. Since continuing education activities must be included in PIPs, attending identified in-district training, during or after the workday or work year, is required of the teacher. How, then, could attendance to fulfill the requirement be seen to be “voluntary”? Should a district already offer (or choose to initiate) a summer academy program, the language of this section would appear to preclude credit towards the 100 hours for this type of “voluntary” attendance.

The compensation language is negotiable. The “and/or” language should be clarified: do teachers get both? do teachers choose one and lose the other option? The board will need to assess the acceptability of the proposed approach. They will also need to check the provisions of the cited articles and, particularly with the eligibility for advancement on the guide, check both the short and long-term financial implications of this type of agreement. Further, boards will need to be alert to the union’s proposed guides: are new columns added to the guides? what will be the impact of immediately placing staff who already have attained the additional credits required by the new columns? what will be the future impact of faster staff movement across the guide?

C.3.b. Again, this provision could not apply to continuing education credit as those activities must meet state standards. The intent of this section must be clarified. Do other sections of the contract cover similar situations and if so, why is this provision necessary? What kind of activities are contemplated as falling into this category? The provision could be intended to assure that teachers are not limited in their selection of additional professional activities. This provision could also be consistent with board goals. However, under any circumstances, boards must assure that they do not become responsible for the payment of these costs, unless the activities: are related to the students’ or the district’s needs; receive prior administrative approval; and the teacher submits proof of successful completion. As in all areas of expenditures, boards should also seek to cap their obligation. In this particular area which supplements the board’s obligation to “assist and support” continuing education activities, boards must be particularly careful that the costs of funding these activities which are not state approved does not reduce their financial ability to meet their continuing education obligation. Be careful, therefore, of the “arbitrary and capricious” language in the last sentence which will, ultimately, be defined by an arbitrator.

If a board is inclined to agree to a form of section 3.b., it may be advisable to include language in addition to a cap that states that approval will be based on the administrator’s judgment of the activities’ value to the district and its students and the availability of funds.

C. 4. The formulation of the budget, and allocation of budgetary funds, are not negotiable. Rutgers, PERC No. 76-13, 2 NJPER 13. Whether a board philosophically supports this type of program, which is totally based on teacher-defined goals and activities, will be a local decision based on the board’s needs and goals. Boards will also need to decide if they are willing and able to fund the program as well as to pay teachers for the time spent on this type of program and then to provide increases in salaries based on movement on columns of the guide. Note that as written, the board would be writing a blank check to cover these costs. Also note that the interaction of this article with other existing contract provisions is also a type of escalator clause: any future increases negotiated in the cited articles would automatically increase the costs of this provision. Further, be aware that the eligibility for advancement on the salary guide is a hidden cost that cannot be ignored.

D.1. This section needs clarification. What is meant by “development of educational initiatives”? Changes in curriculum and in textbooks or other instructional materials would require board approval and the writer(s) of the grant could only provide recommendations. If the purpose of providing “professional development and growth opportunities for district staff” is to develop new inservice for the district that would be eligible for continuing education credit, then it would appear that this function is already being met by the local Professional Development Committee. (Note that a similar article has existed in the NJEA Sample Agreement for many years before the adoption of the Continuing Education Code and has rarely, if ever, been accepted by boards.) If the grants are meant to supplement the work of the local committee, then to count towards continuing education credit any program recommended by the grant would need to be approved by the County Board.

D.2. Who will be responsible for naming the committee members? The union should not be given a free hand in appointing the members as this then becomes a representative of the union and not teachers. Should the committee also represent administrators and board members? The second sentence completely ignores the board’s legitimate interest and role in the operation of the committee. At the very least, even with board representatives, the board should be able to review and approve or disapprove both the committee’s procedures and the nature of the grants.

Finally, the last sentence is also inappropriate. A definition of what counts towards continuing education is, and will continue to be, a function of the PTSB. (See The Negotiations Advisor article “The Continuing Education Requirement") Further, in accordance with N.J.A.C. 6:11-13.2 (b) 2, each teacher’s continuing education plan must be included in the teacher’s PIP. This proposal completely sidesteps this requirement.

D.3. Who retains the right to approve each grant? This responsibility should not be left to the proposed committee as it appropriately belongs to the superintendent and/or the board. Without administrative oversight, management will not be able to assure the quality of the grants. Also, although the proposal caps the amount of individual grants, it does not cap the number of grants that will be granted each year. Will the total amount be defined by the board’s budgeted (but not negotiated) allocations for this program? How will the grants be awarded? (The board should have the right to grant, or deny, requests for grants. Note, however, that like criteria for sabbaticals, these criteria are an exception to the general rule and may need to be negotiated. See, for example, Willingboro Board of Education, PERC No. 80-46, 5 NJPER 10240.)

E. What counts towards continuing education credits, and under what conditions, is an issue that is in the process of being defined by the PTSB for the Commissioner’s approval. Until the guidelines are fully developed, it would be foolish to agree to language that could ultimately conflict with nonnegotiable Commissioner’s guidelines.

F. Code requires districts to maintain a record of teachers’ accrued hours. Presumably, providing notice to teachers of their recorded progress and the resolution of discrepancies are procedures that are negotiable. However, before agreeing to any date and time lines, boards should consult with their administrative staff to assure the feasibility of considered time frames.