New teacher evaluations move forward in St. Lawrence County schools

CANTON — School districts in St. Lawrence County are moving forward with adopting new teacher evaluation procedures and avoiding the contention that’s been faced elsewhere.

Two districts, Norwood-Norfolk and Hermon-DeKalb central schools, have already signed agreements with their teachers unions, and many other districts are close, said Stephen J. Todd, St. Lawrence-Lewis Board of Cooperative Educational Services assistant superintendent for instruction.

Much of the groundwork for the new evaluation system was worked out during the summer through a series of workshops BOCES sponsored for all 18 districts in the region.

Representatives from teachers unions, administration and school boards were involved in the process. The sessions resulted in a template evaluation that can be used as a model for all of the districts, Mr. Todd said.

“We worked out a regional set of language,” he said. “I’m not aware of a lot of controversy out there.”

Some districts sent several people to the workshops, which Mr. Todd said worked to their advantage because they were better prepared to implement the changes in their own districts.

“I know in other parts of the state things are not moving forward,” he said. “The sorts of things they’re arguing about in the big cities, we settled a long time ago.”

Within the next two months, Mr. Todd said, he expects the remaining 16 districts in the region will finalize their new teacher evaluation procedures.

“Some started talking later, while others jumped out of the gate early,” Mr. Todd said. “Most are getting down to the nuts and bolts.”

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo has been frustrated by the large percentage of districts in the state, including New York City districts, that have not yet reached settlements with their teacher unions. Establishing an appeals process that’s acceptable to both sides has been one of the major roadblocks.

He has also criticized teacher unions and threatened to withhold state aid to districts that fail to reach settlements by December.

In order to receive $700 million in federal Race to the Top aid, the state agreed to establish a teacher evaluation system for rating teachers and principals.

The new system is supposed to toughen sanctions against teachers who are rated as ineffective.

Norwood-Norfolk Superintendent Elizabeth A. Kirnie credited Mr. Todd for leading the summer workshops and guiding districts through the process by establishing a template evaluation.

Her district reached an agreement in October and was the first in the region to settle.

“It was a lot of hard work, but in the end we came away with a document that’s very well thought out and useful,” Mrs. Kirnie said. “Once we had the document in hand, it was sort of fill in the blanks and sign the bottom line.”

A national conference she attended last year in Denver, joined by the district’s board president and the teachers union vice president, also helped foster a strong working relationship. The conference was hosted by U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.

“A year later we’re still enjoying the benefits of what we learned and the relationships we built,” Mrs. Kirnie said.

Hermon-DeKalb Superintendent Ann M. Adams said the process also went smoothly at her district and an agreement was reached quickly.

“Not every piece is in place, but we have agreed what we’re going to use and how we’re going to use it,” Ms. Adams said. “The relationship between the staff and our board is very good. There is a lot of trust.”