Renewal Schools FAQ June 2015

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1 1 Renewal Schools FAQ June 2015 SBO Process Q: What happens if we re close to a decision but can t meet the June 12 extended deadline? How do I get another extension? A: Schools should try to come to agreement ASAP; have the vote this week if at all possible. Do your best and let us know as soon as possible if you are having trouble meeting the extended deadline; we believe no Renewal Schools will be told they must use the default options if they need more time. If you don t have many yellow buses, you may have more flexibility. Q: Can we use PD time for discussion of our SBOs? A. The DOE approved use of PD time on Monday, June 8 for discussion of SBOs. If your school wants to request additional time, please let us know. Q: How should schools select the option they want to use? A. We recommend you have a meeting to discuss these sample models, as well as the model proposed by your principal and other possible models, to identify which is the best fit for your students, CBO, and school needs. The focus should be on what would work best for students and on avoiding teacher workdays that are too long; this was the premise for the sample models. Before you take a formal SBO vote, you can take an informal survey to gauge what options have the most support and find out what questions, misunderstandings or anxieties people have. If you re having trouble coming to agreement, contact us and your district representative as soon as possible. We don t want schools going to default because of this. Q: What if our staff can t agree with the principal? If we don t do an SBO, what will happen? A. If your school isn t going to be able to come to agreement on an SBO, we need to know ASAP, since we want to avoid having schools just vote something down (or not take a vote) and end up with the default because they can t agree on a better option. The UFT and DOE have identified three models which don't require an SBO. If your school community cannot agree on a model that requires an SBO, the principal can choose from the models that do not require an SBO.

2 2 Q: Usually SBOs have two choices the standard contract, vs. the change the school wants to make. Would renewal SBOs only have the change listed? A: Yes, only list the change you want to make. Q: If there is more than one model to choose from on our SBO voting document, would that be a problem? A: Yes, don t put more than one model on the SBO document; choose one. Q: Does this SBO sunset after one year? A: Yes. Schedules Q: Are the examples from the Chancellor s and Mulgrew s letters the only scheduling models from which we can choose? A. No, those are just examples. If you have other ideas, propose them. Q: Is the staggered schedule mandatory? A. No, it is not mandatory. Q: Do the revisions to schedules only affect teachers? A: The Expanded Learning Time (ELT) is an additional instructional hour, therefore only teachers and IEP paras will be affected by ELT. No other titles will be affected. Other staff should follow their regular work schedule. If your school decides to integrate the time into the day, you can opt to create staggered schedules for other titles if necessary. Q: Do we have to use Friday as the enrichment day, or could we pick a different day? A: We believe that you can include a different day in your SBO if you prefer, but staffing issues may be a factor. If you move it to Monday, that might impact PD time possibly in a good way if CBOs could cover it so that teachers could have their PD time together. Any school with a well-developed overall plan should likely be approved. Contact your school's DSR and the UFT for assistance. Q: Can this work for trimesters? We use 59-minute periods.

3 3 A: Yes, configuration of the year shouldn t matter. Q: Our school wants to split the ELT time into two sessions in the morning and three in the afternoon, since we think students will come in the morning. Is this OK? A. We recommend you speak with your school s DSR. The UFT would likely approve this SBO. Q: We want Model #2, but want to increase the length of periods (to 56 minutes); teachers can choose whether they want to work ELT or not. What would the posting look like? A: We ll work with you to create an SBO that meets your needs. If you just want to extend length of periods and use a staggered schedule, you likely wouldn t need a posting. Q: We have always been multi-session; the principal wants single session (1-8) for next year, but some students still need 1-9 (for Honors, etc.). Can we use ELT to provide this? A: Yes, this is exactly the type of use imagined for this hour. You can integrate the extra hour into a nine-period day and cover it using staggered schedules. Q: Does the school day have to start at 8 a.m.? We now start at 8:30 and don t want to start earlier. A: A later start time is OK as long as ELT is covered, but Model 2 wouldn t work for you, because PD and PE would have to start at 8 a.m. or else kids would start very late (at 9:15). Contact us to work out the details. Q: Our elementary teachers are concerned about impact of an 8 a.m. start time on lunch hour; we don t want to eat at 10 a.m. A: Teacher lunch hour is based on student start time, so if you choose a model where PD starts at 8 a.m. (vs. student time starting then), it shouldn t affect it. Q: Can a staggered schedule be used in a small elementary school? A: Possibly, but it would be more challenging than in a HS. We might not have the time to figure it out for , but we would be open to exploring this with you for the future. ELT activities, staffing, and compensation Q: Who decides what activities will be happening during ELT?

4 4 A: Each school s school leadership team will make decisions about this as part of the planning process, and we re still working on this with the DOE. There will be postings that describe rate of pay, type of work, and other details. Don t get too overwhelmed by details about this issue; schedule decisions are the highest priority for now. Q: Would people who do ELT be working in small groups? Or, will they be with the students they teach during the day? A: Both are possible; schools should think about what they actually want to offer. What you choose depends on what the kids need and how to best use the time. The answers to these questions are also affected by rate of pay, an issue which is still being decided. Q: What will the guidelines be for class size in ELT activities? A: That will depend on the rate of pay; we should have an answer very soon. Q: Is there still a possibility for additional hours (e.g. per session) if my school uses a staggered schedule? A. Yes. Q: Can ELT be added into a day in a way that is open only to teachers of certain subjects? A: Yes, staffing for ELT will be done by postings and it s possible that not every subject will be covered. Q: Can IEP mandates be provided during ELT? A: No. Q: Is there any guidance on ELT curriculum? We re a middle school. A: That s still being discussed. Especially for elementary and middle schools, it will be answered as part of rate-of-pay discussions; whether or not there s a new or different curriculum will make a difference. We ll let you know when we have more information. Q: How much say will teachers have over who is chosen for positions? A: There s no requirement for a hiring committee or anything similar, but teachers in each Renewal School must be hired, if they meet the eligibility and selection criteria, before anyone from outside the school can be hired.

5 5 Q: What happens if we don t get teachers at our school to apply for ELT postings? How would the additional time be covered? A: Positions would be opened up to other people in your district, who would then be able to work in your school doing ELT activities. Q: If teachers come from other buildings to staff ELT time, how is travel time considered? Do we have to wait for them to arrive? A: No, you aren t required to stay. Q: Can paraprofessionals apply for ELT positions? A: Yes, paras can also choose to apply or not for positions; they are not required to do so. Q: Do IEP paras have to stay after school with their students? A: When the ELT is academic instructional time, the student with an IEP para must have the para during ELT. There will be postings for para positions in ELT. Paras will not be mandated to stay. Preference will be given first to the student's para, if he or she applies. Q: Are ELT teachers required to work on the enrichment day (Friday on the model schedules)? A: No; the Chancellor has said that day doesn t have to be instructional, therefore ELT teachers don t necessarily need to be there because the CBO can provide services. Q: What if an ELT teacher is absent? A: The ELT activity will be covered; we strongly discourage splitting up students. You may be able to use per diem subs beyond the school day; the details are still being worked out with the DOE. Q: Who pays for ELT? Funding A: Schools will receive funding to pay for this; CBOs also have contracts and funding. Details are still being determined. It will be a combination of school and CBO funding, but schools will be getting more money than their current budgets.

6 6 Q: Will my school get funding to hire Master or Model teachers or Peer Collaborators? A: Yes, we have been told schools will be getting up to $27,500 for this in their budgets. The deadline to apply for these positions is June 22 for Renewal Schools. Other questions Q: Will ELT time impact the evaluation process, especially in terms of lesson plans and observations? A: This is still being discussed with DOE; for now, we don t have a final answer, but we know this is a common and important concern. Q: If our school makes its ELA/Math targets based on our scores, will we be taken off the Renewal list? A: There s a lag in the reporting of scores, so you will not be taken off for ; you might be taken off for