(1)
Distinguished educators.
(i) General
responsibilities. An appointed distinguished educator shall:
(a) assess the learning environment of
schools in the district;
(b) review
or provide assistance in the development and implementation of any district
improvement plan and/or any corrective action, restructuring, or comprehensive
plan of any school within the district to which the distinguished educator is
assigned. Such distinguished educator shall either endorse without change or
make recommendations for modifications to any such plan to the Board of
Education, trustees, or chancellor (in a school district in a city of one
million or more inhabitants), and the commissioner; and
(c) participate in summer training and
ongoing professional learning, as directed by the State Education
Department.
(ii) Specific
responsibilities for distinguished educator for school district. A
distinguished educator appointed to a school district shall:
(a) conduct an intensive review of district
and school systems, structures, operations and facilities and develop an action
plan pursuant to subdivision (f) of this section;
(b) assess the district's capacity to promote
and support teaching and learning within all schools in the district;
(c) work with district administration and the
Board of Education to review data, analyze district and school structures, plan
for improvement, assist in targeting district priorities;
(d) facilitate increased student performance
across the district; and
(e)
recommend administrative and operational improvements to strengthen
systems.
(iii) Specific
responsibilities for distinguished educator for a school. A distinguished
educator assigned to a school or school within a school district shall:
(a) assess the learning environment of the
school(s) within the district;
(b)
identify or confirm systemic or instructional barriers and critical gaps to
improving student achievement;
(c)
improve curricula, instructional and assessment strategies.
(iv) Appointed distinguished
educators shall be deemed ex-officio, non-voting members of the Board of
Education or trustees. In a school district in a city of one million or more
inhabitants, any such distinguished educator shall be deemed an ex-officio,
non-voting member of the community district education council or the city
board, as applicable.
(2)
School districts.
(i) The school district to
which a distinguished educator is appointed shall cooperate fully with an
appointed distinguished educator. Such cooperation shall include, but not be
limited, to:
(a) providing the distinguished
educator with a space to work and a district email address to be used for
official correspondence;
(b)
placing on the district website, reports of the distinguished educator and
contact information for the distinguished educator;
(c) providing the distinguished educator with
an opportunity to present a report to the board of education at least quarterly
on the implementation of the improvement efforts of the district and/or any
schools to which a distinguished educator is assigned; and
(d) promptly scheduling meetings with
district personnel as requested by the distinguished
educator.
(ii) Upon
receipt of any recommendations from the distinguished educator for modification
of a district improvement plan and/or any corrective action, restructuring, or
comprehensive plan, the Board of Education, trustees, or chancellor shall
either modify the plans accordingly or provide a written explanation to the
commissioner of its reasons for not adopting such recommendations. The
commissioner shall direct the district to modify the plans as recommended by
the distinguished educator unless the commissioner finds that the written
explanation provided by the district has compelling merit.
(iii) If an appointed distinguished educator
is employed by a school district or charter school, it shall be the duty of the
Board of Education or trustees of such school district, the chancellor of a
city school district in a city of one million or more inhabitants, or the board
of trustees of such charter school to facilitate the efforts of any such
appointed distinguished educators in their employ by granting reasonable leave
requests and otherwise accommodating their efforts, to the extent such efforts
do not substantially interfere with the educator's performance of his or her
regular duties.
(iv) The reasonable
and necessary expenses incurred by the appointed distinguished educators while
performing their official duties shall be paid by the school district pursuant
to section
100.16
of this Part.
(v) Right to return.
Consistent with and to the extent permitted under any applicable provisions of
law, existing collective bargaining agreements, and contracts:
(a) The employee shall be ensured that, at
the end of his/her term of services as a distinguished educator, he/she will be
returned to the previously held position or a position comparable to the one
he/she had at the beginning of his/her leave, whether or not a reduction in
work force is required to comply with this requirement.
(b) Upon return to service with his/her
employer, the employee's term of service as a distinguished educator shall
count as service time for purposes of scheduled, routine, or general
compensation enhancements, retirement eligibility, retirement benefit
calculation and seniority.
(vi) The school district shall ensure that a
distinguished educator, upon appointment to such district or assignment to a
school within such district, shall be subject to the fingerprint and criminal
history record check requirements contained in law, including, but not limited
to, Education Law sections 305(3), 1125(3), 1604(39) and (40), 1709(39) and
(40), 1804(9) and (10), 1950(4)(ll) and (mm), 2503(18) and (19), 2554(25) and
(26), 2590-h(20), 2854(3)(a-2) and (a-3) and 3035, and Part 87 of this
Title.