Kuipers Proposes Bills to Change Tenure Law and Control

ALERT! - I received this from MEA's Lobbyist, Dave Stafford, yesterday evening. It concerns legislation that was proposed by Sen. Kuipers from Holland. These two bills will have the effect to 1) change your protections under the tenure law, and 2) grossly change the state's new teacher evaluation requirements under the RTTT law by requiring that student growth account for at least 50% of a teacher's evaluation. There are indications from the MEA Economist, Ruth Beier, that these two bills will be TIE-BARRED to the amendments needed to guarantee Michigan gets it share of the EduJob Funds (see yesterdays blogpost)!

CALL or EMAIL SENATOR KUIPERS TODAY!!!!
**Lansing Office - 517-373-6920 or 877-KUIPERS
**Email: senwkuipers@senate.michigan.gov
Tell him to take care of business and pass funding for schools, which the legislature previously screwed up, and leave teacher evaluation up to people who know what they are talking about!

From Dave Stafford, MEA Lobbyist -
Two bills were introduced in the Michigan Senate today and taken up in the Senate Education Committee today to severely restrict the tenure rights of Michigan teachers and remove many of the due process provisions that currently protect them on the one hand, and to create artificial mandates regarding the standards on which they are to be evaluated.

SB 1581 proposes several changes to the Michigan Teacher Tenure Act:
* In her/his last year of probation the teacher is not deemed to complete probation unless s/he receives a rating of "effective" from the administration.
* The bill removes language that says failure to evaluate the teacher in her/his last year of probation is evidence that s/he is successful and replaces it with language that says failure to evaluate is NOT evidence that s/he is successful.
* Regardless of whether a teacher in her/his last year of probation is notified 60 days before the end of the school year that s/he will be terminated, the teacher shall not be employed in the following year unless s/he receive a rating of "effective" under the evaluation system called for in SB 1582 (below).
* For teachers WHO ARE ON TENURE the bill provides that they will go back to serve a four year probationary period if they receive "ineffective" ratings under the evaluation system called for in SB 1582 (below). THESE TEACHERS WOULD BE DEEMED TO BE PROBATIONARY FOR ALL PURPOSES UNDER THE TENURE ACT, INCLUDING DISCIPLINE AND DISCHARGE. SB 1582 proposes to amend Sec. 1249 of the School Code dealing with evaluations to make several changes:

REGARDING TEACHER EVALUATION -
* Add language that each teacher and school administrator be evaluated by a system that "rates the teacher as either effective' or 'ineffective'".
* It takes out language that says the evaluation will use multiple rating categories that take into account student growth "as a significant factor" and replace it with a provision, "in a way that ensures that at least 50% of the annual evaluation is based on student growth."
* It proposes that state assessments must be used unless there is no state assessment in which case local assessments may be used to measure student growth. * The bill proposes that the evaluation system appeal process provides for an appeal to either the district superintendent or to the ISD superintendent (or their designee).

It appears that the Senate will try to move these bills this week in order to be ready to push for their passage as part of the final negotiations on the re-appropriation of the Federal EduJobs funding that was partially vetoed by Gov. Granholm last month.

ME AGAIN - This is even more outrageous......the Legislature meets on today, November 10th and then takes a two week recess. They return on Tuesday November 30th and are scheduled to meet Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday (11/30, 12/1 & 12/2) for sure.

CALL or EMAIL SENATOR KUIPERS TODAY!!!!
**Lansing Office - 517-373-6920 or 877-KUIPERS
**Email: senwkuipers@senate.michigan.gov
Tell him to take care of business and pass funding for schools, which the legislature previously screwed up, and leave teacher evaluation up to people who know what they are talking about!