Bill Text: MN SF920 | 2013-2014 | 88th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Teacher unrequested leave of absence provisions modifications
Sponsorship: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-02-28 - Referred to Education [SF920 Detail]
Download: Minnesota-2013-SF920-Introduced.html
1.2relating to education; modifying unrequested leave of absence provisions for
1.3teachers;amending Minnesota Statutes 2012, sections 122A.245, subdivision
1.41; 122A.40, subdivisions 5, 10, 11; 122A.41, subdivisions 2, 14; 123A.75,
1.5subdivision 1; 179A.20, by adding a subdivision; repealing Minnesota Statutes
1.62012, section 122A.40, subdivision 11.
1.7BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.8 Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.245, subdivision 1, is amended to
1.9read:
1.10 Subdivision 1. Requirements. (a) To improve academic excellence, improve ethnic
1.11and cultural diversity in the classroom, and close the academic achievement gap, the
1.12Board of Teaching must approve qualified teacher preparation programs under this section
1.13that are a means to acquire a two-year limited-term license, which the board may renew
1.14one time for an additional one-year term, and to prepare for acquiring a standard license.
1.15The following entities are eligible to participate under this section:
1.16(1) a school district or charter school that forms a partnership with a college or
1.17university that has a board-approved alternative teacher preparation program; or
1.18(2) a school district or charter school, after consulting with a college or university
1.19with a board-approved teacher preparation program, that forms a partnership with a
1.20nonprofit corporation organized under chapter 317A for an education-related purpose that
1.21has a board-approved teacher preparation program.
1.22(b) Before participating in this program, a candidate must:
1.23(1) have a bachelor's degree with a 3.0 or higher grade point average unless the
1.24board waives the grade point average requirement based on board-adopted criteria;
2.1(2) pass the reading, writing, and mathematics skills examination under section
2.2122A.09, subdivision 4
, paragraph (b); and
2.3(3) obtain qualifying scores on applicable board-approved rigorous content area and
2.4pedagogy examinations under section122A.09, subdivision 4 , paragraph (e).
2.5(c) The Board of Teaching must issue a two-year limited-term license to a person
2.6who enrolls in an alternative teacher preparation program. This limited-term license is not
2.7a provisional license under section 122A.40 or 122A.41.
2.8EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment.
2.9 Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.40, subdivision 5, is amended to read:
2.10 Subd. 5. Probationary period. (a) The first three consecutive years of a teacher's
2.11first teaching experience in Minnesota in a single district is deemed to be a probationary
2.12period of employment, and, the probationary period in each district in which the teacher is
2.13thereafter employed shall be one year. The school board must adopt a plan for written
2.14evaluation of teachers during the probationary period that is consistent with subdivision
2.158. Evaluation must occur at least three times periodically throughout each school year
2.16for a teacher performing services during that school year; the first evaluation must occur
2.17within the first 90 days of teaching service. Days devoted to parent-teacher conferences,
2.18teachers' workshops, and other staff development opportunities and days on which a
2.19teacher is absent from school must not be included in determining the number of school
2.20days on which a teacher performs services. Except as otherwise provided in paragraph
2.21(b), during the probationary period any annual contract with any teacher may or may not
2.22be renewed (1) as the school board shall see fit, or (2) consistent with the negotiated
2.23unrequested leave of absence plan in effect under subdivision 10. However, the board
2.24must give any such teacher whose contract it declines to renew for the following school
2.25year written notice to that effect before July 1. If the teacher requests reasons for any
2.26nonrenewal of a teaching contract, the board must give the teacher its reason in writing,
2.27including a statement that appropriate supervision was furnished describing the nature and
2.28the extent of such supervision furnished the teacher during the employment by the board,
2.29within ten days after receiving such request. The school board may, after a hearing held
2.30upon due notice, discharge a teacher during the probationary period for cause, effective
2.31immediately, under section122A.44 .
2.32(b) A board must discharge a probationary teacher, effective immediately, upon
2.33receipt of notice under section122A.20, subdivision 1 , paragraph (b), that the teacher's
2.34license has been revoked due to a conviction for child abuse or sexual abuse.
3.1(c) A probationary teacher whose first three years of consecutive employment are
3.2interrupted for active military service and who promptly resumes teaching consistent with
3.3federal reemployment timelines for uniformed service personnel under United States
3.4Code, title 38, section 4312(e), is considered to have a consecutive teaching experience
3.5for purposes of paragraph (a).
3.6(d) A probationary teacher must complete at least 120 days of teaching service each
3.7year during the probationary period. Days devoted to parent-teacher conferences, teachers'
3.8workshops, and other staff development opportunities and days on which a teacher is
3.9absent from school do not count as days of teaching service under this paragraph.
3.10EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment.
3.11 Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.40, subdivision 10, is amended to read:
3.12 Subd. 10. Negotiated unrequested leave of absence. (a) The school board
3.13and the exclusive bargaining representative of the teachersmay must negotiate a plan,
3.14consistent with subdivision 8, providing for unrequested leave of absence without pay or
3.15fringe benefits for as many teachers as may be necessary because of discontinuance of
3.16position, lack of pupils, financial limitations, or merger of classes caused by consolidation
3.17of districts.Failing to successfully negotiate such a plan, the provisions of subdivision
3.1811 shall apply. The negotiated plan must not include provisions which would result in
3.19the exercise of seniority by a teacher holding only a provisional license, other than a
3.20vocational education license if required for the position,contrary to the provisions of
3.21subdivision 11, paragraph (c), or the reinstatement of a teacher holding only a provisional
3.22license, other than a vocational education license, contrary to the provisions of subdivision
3.2311, paragraph (e) required for the position. The provisions of section
179A.16 do not
3.24apply for the purposes of this subdivision.
3.25(b) Beginning in the 2016-2017 school year and later, and notwithstanding any law to
3.26the contrary, a school board must place teachers on unrequested leave of absence based on
3.27their subject matter licensure fields and most recent evaluation outcomes and effectiveness
3.28category under subdivision 8, among other locally determined criteria, and may include
3.29both probationary teachers and continuing contract teachers within an effectiveness
3.30category. Notwithstanding section 13.43, subdivision 2, paragraph (a), clause (5), or
3.31any other law to the contrary, a teacher's effectiveness category and the underlying data
3.32on the individual teacher generated under the teacher evaluation process in subdivision
3.338, paragraph (b), used to determine a teacher's effectiveness category for purposes of
3.34this subdivision are private data on individuals. For purposes of placing a teacher on
3.35unrequested leave of absence or recalling a teacher from unrequested leave of absence, a
4.1school board is not required to reassign a teacher with more seniority to accommodate the
4.2seniority claims of a teacher who is similarly licensed and effective but with less seniority.
4.3Nothing in this paragraph permits a school board to use a teacher's remuneration as a basis
4.4for making unrequested leave of absence decisions. Any executed employment contract
4.5between the school board and the exclusive representative of the teachers must contain the
4.6negotiated unrequested leave of absence plan. The school board must publish in a readily
4.7accessible format the unrequested leave of absence plan it negotiates under this paragraph.
4.8(c) A teacher who receives notice of being placed on unrequested leave of absence
4.9under paragraph (b) may submit to the board, within 14 days of receiving the notice, a
4.10written request for a hearing before a neutral hearing officer to establish whether the district
4.11met the following teacher evaluation requirements under subdivision 8: if the teacher is
4.12a probationary teacher, all evaluations required under subdivision 5 were provided; a
4.13three-year professional review cycle was established for the teacher; any summative
4.14evaluation of the teacher was performed by a qualified and trained evaluator; a peer review
4.15evaluation occurred in any year when the teacher was not evaluated by a qualified and
4.16trained evaluator; and if the teacher did not meet professional teaching standards, a teacher
4.17improvement process with goals and timelines was established. The school board and the
4.18exclusive representative of the teachers must agree on a panel of people and a process
4.19to select the person to hear the matter. The hearing officer must issue a decision within
4.2014 days of the request for the hearing. Nothing in this paragraph prevents a school board
4.21and the exclusive representative of the teachers from negotiating a different process for
4.22determining whether the teacher evaluation requirements listed in this paragraph were met.
4.23(d) For purposes of this subdivision, a provisional license is a license to teach issued
4.24by the Board of Teaching under a waiver or variance.
4.25EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective beginning in the 2016-2017 school
4.26year and later.
4.27 Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.40, subdivision 11, is amended to read:
4.28 Subd. 11. Unrequested leave of absence. (a) The board may place on unrequested
4.29leave of absence, without pay or fringe benefits, as many teachers as may be necessary
4.30because of discontinuance of position, lack of pupils, financial limitations, or merger
4.31of classes caused by consolidation or reorganization of districts under chapter 123A.
4.32The unrequested leave is effective at the close of the school year. In placing teachers on
4.33unrequested leave, the board is governed by thefollowing provisions: in this subdivision.
4.34(a) (b) The board may place probationary teachers on unrequested leave first in the
4.35inverse order of their employment. A teacher who has acquired continuing contract rights
5.1must not be placed on unrequested leave of absence while probationary teachers are retained
5.2in positions for which the teacher who has acquired continuing contract rights is licensed;.
5.3(b) (c) Teachers who have acquired continuing contract rights shall be placed on
5.4unrequested leave of absence in fields in which they are licensed in the inverse order
5.5in which they were employed by the school district. In the case of equal seniority, the
5.6order in which teachers who have acquired continuing contract rights shall be placed on
5.7unrequested leave of absence in fields in which they are licensed is negotiable;.
5.8(c) (d) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (b) (c), a teacher is not entitled
5.9to exercise any seniority when that exercise results in that teacher being retained by the
5.10district in a field for which the teacher holds only a provisional license, as defined by the
5.11board of teaching, unless that exercise of seniority results in the placement on unrequested
5.12leave of absence of another teacher who also holds a provisional license in the same field.
5.13The provisions of this paragraph do not apply to vocational education licenses; required
5.14for the available positions.
5.15(d) (e) Notwithstanding paragraphs (a), (b), and (c), and (d), if the placing of a
5.16probationary teacher on unrequested leave before a teacher who has acquired continuing
5.17rights, the placing of a teacher who has acquired continuing contract rights on unrequested
5.18leave before another teacher who has acquired continuing contract rights but who has
5.19greater seniority, or the restriction imposed by the provisions of paragraph(c) (d) would
5.20place the district in violation of its affirmative action program, the district may retain the
5.21probationary teacher, the teacher with less seniority, or the provisionally licensed teacher;.
5.22(e) (f) For purposes of placing a teacher on unrequested leave of absence or recalling
5.23a teacher from unrequested leave of absence, nothing in this subdivision requires a school
5.24board to reassign a teacher to accommodate the seniority claims of a teacher who is
5.25similarly licensed and effective but with less seniority.
5.26(g) Teachers placed on unrequested leave of absence must be reinstated to the
5.27positions from which they have been given leaves of absence or, if not available, to
5.28other available positions in the school district in fields in which they are licensed.
5.29Reinstatement must be in the inverse order of placement on leave of absence. A teacher
5.30must not be reinstated to a position in a field in which the teacher holds only a provisional
5.31license, other than a vocational education license, while another teacher who holds a
5.32nonprovisional license in the same field remains on unrequested leave. The order of
5.33reinstatement of teachers who have equal seniority and who are placed on unrequested
5.34leave in the same school year is negotiable;.
5.35(f) (h) Appointment of a new teacher must not be made while there is available, on
5.36unrequested leave, a teacher who is properly licensed to fill such vacancy, unless the
6.1teacher fails to advise the school board within 30 days of the date of notification that a
6.2position is available to that teacher who may return to employment and assume the duties
6.3of the position to which appointed on a future date determined by the board;.
6.4(g) (i) A teacher placed on unrequested leave of absence may engage in teaching
6.5or any other occupation during the period of this leave;.
6.6(h) (j) The unrequested leave of absence must not impair the continuing contract
6.7rights of a teacher or result in a loss of credit for previous years of service;.
6.8(i) (k) Consistent with subdivision 10, the unrequested leave of absence of a teacher
6.9who is categorized as effective or better under subdivision 8, who is placed on unrequested
6.10leave of absence, and who is not reinstated shall continue for a period of five years,
6.11after which the right to reinstatementshall terminate terminates. The teacher's right to
6.12reinstatementshall also terminate terminates if the teacher fails to file with the board by
6.13April 1 ofany each year a written statement requesting reinstatement;.
6.14(l) Consistent with subdivision 10, the unrequested leave of absence of a teacher
6.15who is categorized as ineffective or less under subdivision 8, who is placed on unrequested
6.16leave of absence, and who is not reinstated continues for the following school year
6.17only, after which the teacher's right to reinstatement terminates. The teacher's right to
6.18reinstatement also terminates if the teacher fails to file with the board by April 1 in that
6.19following school year a written statement requesting reinstatement.
6.20(j) (m) The same provisions applicable to terminations of probationary or continuing
6.21contracts in subdivisions 5 and 7 must apply to placement on unrequested leave of absence;.
6.22(k) (n) Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to impair the rights of teachers
6.23placed on unrequested leave of absence to receive unemployment benefits if otherwise
6.24eligible.
6.25EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective for the 2013-2014 through 2015-2016
6.26school years.
6.27 Sec. 5. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.41, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
6.28 Subd. 2. Probationary period; discharge or demotion. (a) All teachers in
6.29the public schools in cities of the first class during the first three years of consecutive
6.30employment shall be deemed to be in a probationary period of employment during which
6.31period any annual contract with any teacher may, or may not, be renewed (1) as the school
6.32board, after consulting with the peer review committee charged with evaluating the
6.33probationary teachers under subdivision 3, shall see fit, or (2) consistent with the negotiated
6.34plan for discontinuing or terminating teachers in effect under subdivision 14. The school
6.35site management team or the school board if there is no school site management team, shall
7.1adopt a plan for a written evaluation of teachers during the probationary period according
7.2to subdivisions 3 and 5. Evaluation by the peer review committee charged with evaluating
7.3probationary teachers under subdivision 3 shall occur at least three times periodically
7.4throughout each school year for a teacher performing services during that school year; the
7.5first evaluation must occur within the first 90 days of teaching service. Days devoted to
7.6parent-teacher conferences, teachers' workshops, and other staff development opportunities
7.7and days on which a teacher is absent from school shall not be included in determining the
7.8number of school days on which a teacher performs services. The school board may, during
7.9such probationary period, discharge or demote a teacher for any of the causes as specified
7.10in this code. A written statement of the cause of such discharge or demotion shall be given
7.11to the teacher by the school board at least 30 days before such removal or demotion shall
7.12become effective, and the teacher so notified shall have no right of appeal therefrom.
7.13(b) A probationary teacher whose first three years of consecutive employment are
7.14interrupted for active military service and who promptly resumes teaching consistent with
7.15federal reemployment timelines for uniformed service personnel under United States
7.16Code, title 38, section 4312(e), is considered to have a consecutive teaching experience
7.17for purposes of paragraph (a).
7.18(c) A probationary teacher must complete at least 120 days of teaching service each
7.19year during the probationary period. Days devoted to parent-teacher conferences, teachers'
7.20workshops, and other staff development opportunities and days on which a teacher is
7.21absent from school do not count as days of teaching service under this paragraph.
7.22EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment.
7.23 Sec. 6. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.41, subdivision 14, is amended to read:
7.24 Subd. 14. Services terminated by discontinuance or lack of pupils; preference
7.25given. (a)A teacher whose services are terminated on account of discontinuance of
7.26position or lack of pupils must receive first consideration for other positions in the district
7.27for which that teacher is qualified. In the event it becomes necessary to discontinue one
7.28or more positions in the 2013-2014 through 2015-2016 school years, in making such
7.29discontinuance, teachers must receive first consideration for other positions in the district
7.30for which that teacher is qualified and must be discontinuedin any department in the
7.31inverse order in which they were employed, unless.
7.32(b) Beginning in the 2016-2017 school year and later, a board and the exclusive
7.33representative of teachers in the district must negotiate a planproviding otherwise.,
7.34consistent with subdivision 5, for discontinuing and terminating teachers under this
7.35subdivision based on their subject matter licensure fields and most recent evaluation
8.1outcomes and effectiveness category under subdivision 5, among other locally determined
8.2criteria, and may include both probationary teachers and continuing contract teachers
8.3within an effectiveness category. Notwithstanding section 13.43, subdivision 2, paragraph
8.4(a), clause (5), or any other law to the contrary, a teacher's effectiveness category and
8.5the underlying data on the individual teacher generated under the teacher evaluation
8.6process in subdivision 5, paragraph (b), used to determine a teacher's effectiveness
8.7category for purposes of this subdivision are private data on individuals. For purposes
8.8of discharging, demoting, or recalling a teacher whose services are discontinued or
8.9terminated under this subdivision, a school board is not required to reassign a teacher with
8.10more seniority to accommodate the seniority claims of a teacher who is similarly licensed
8.11and effective but with less seniority. Nothing in this paragraph permits a school board to
8.12use a teacher's remuneration as a basis for discontinuing or terminating a teacher. Any
8.13executed employment contract between the school board and the exclusive representative
8.14of the teachers must contain the negotiated plan for discontinuing or terminating teachers.
8.15The school board must publish in a readily accessible format any plan it negotiates for
8.16discontinuing or terminating teachers under this paragraph.
8.17(c) A teacher who receives notice of discontinuance or termination under paragraph
8.18(b) may submit to the board, within 14 days of receiving the notice, a written request
8.19for a hearing before a neutral hearing officer to establish whether the district met the
8.20following teacher evaluation requirements under subdivision 5: if the teacher is a
8.21probationary teacher, all evaluations required under subdivision 2 were provided; a
8.22three-year professional review cycle was established for the teacher; any summative
8.23evaluation of the teacher was performed by a qualified and trained evaluator; a peer review
8.24evaluation occurred in any year when the teacher was not evaluated by a qualified and
8.25trained evaluator; and if the teacher did not meet professional teaching standards, a teacher
8.26improvement process with goals and timelines was established. The school board and the
8.27exclusive representative of the teachers must agree on a panel of people and a process
8.28to select the person to hear the matter. The hearing officer must issue a decision within
8.2914 days of the request for the hearing. Nothing in this paragraph prevents a school board
8.30and the exclusive representative of the teachers from negotiating a different process for
8.31determining whether the teacher evaluation requirements listed in this paragraph were met.
8.32(b) (d) Notwithstanding the provisions of clause paragraph (a), for the 2013-2014
8.33through 2015-2016 school years, a teacher is not entitled to exercise any seniority when
8.34that exercise results in that teacher being retained by the district in a field for which the
8.35teacher holds only a provisional license, as defined by the Board of Teaching, unless that
8.36exercise of seniority results inthe termination of terminating the services, on account
9.1of discontinuance of position or lack of pupils, of another teacher who also holds a
9.2provisional license in the same field. The provisions of thisclause paragraph do not apply
9.3to vocational education licenses.
9.4(c) (e) Notwithstanding the provisions of clause paragraph (a), for the 2013-2014
9.5through 2015-2016 school years, a teacher must not be reinstated to a position in a field
9.6in which the teacher holds only a provisional license, other than a vocational education
9.7license, while another teacher who holds a nonprovisional license in the same field is
9.8available for reinstatement.
9.9EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective July 1, 2013, and applies to
9.10negotiated plans for discontinuing or terminating teachers agreed to on or after that date.
9.11 Sec. 7. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 123A.75, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
9.12 Subdivision 1. Teacher assignment. (a) As of the effective date of a consolidation
9.13in which a district is divided or the dissolution of a district and its attachment to two or
9.14more existing districts, each teacher employed by an affected district shall be assigned to
9.15the newly created or enlarged district on the basis of a ratio of the pupils assigned to each
9.16district according to the new district boundaries. The district receiving the greatest number
9.17of pupils must be assigned the most effective teacher under section 122A.40, subdivision 8,
9.18with the greatest seniority, and the remaining teachers must be alternately assigned to each
9.19district from most to least effective and with most to least seniority within each category of
9.20effectiveness until the district receiving the fewest pupils has received its ratio of teachers
9.21who will not be retiring before the effective date of the consolidation or dissolution.
9.22(b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), the board and the exclusive representative of
9.23teachers in each district involved in the consolidation or dissolution and attachment may
9.24negotiate a plan for assigning teachers to each newly created or enlarged district.
9.25(c) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, the provisions of this section apply
9.26only to the extent they are consistent with section 122A.40, subdivisions 8, 10, and 11.
9.27EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment.
9.28 Sec. 8. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 179A.20, is amended by adding a subdivision
9.29to read:
9.30 Subd. 4a. Unrequested leave of absence for teachers. A school board and the
9.31exclusive representative of the teachers may not execute a contract unless the contract
9.32contains a plan for unrequested leave of absence under section 122A.40, subdivision 10,
9.33or a plan for discontinuing or terminating teachers under section 122A.41, subdivision 14.
10.1EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective beginning in the 2016-2017 school
10.2year and later.
10.3 Sec. 9. REPEALER.
10.4Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.40, subdivision 11, is repealed effective
10.5for the 2016-2017 school year and later.
1.3teachers;amending Minnesota Statutes 2012, sections 122A.245, subdivision
1.41; 122A.40, subdivisions 5, 10, 11; 122A.41, subdivisions 2, 14; 123A.75,
1.5subdivision 1; 179A.20, by adding a subdivision; repealing Minnesota Statutes
1.62012, section 122A.40, subdivision 11.
1.7BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.8 Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.245, subdivision 1, is amended to
1.9read:
1.10 Subdivision 1. Requirements. (a) To improve academic excellence, improve ethnic
1.11and cultural diversity in the classroom, and close the academic achievement gap, the
1.12Board of Teaching must approve qualified teacher preparation programs under this section
1.13that are a means to acquire a two-year limited-term license, which the board may renew
1.14one time for an additional one-year term, and to prepare for acquiring a standard license.
1.15The following entities are eligible to participate under this section:
1.16(1) a school district or charter school that forms a partnership with a college or
1.17university that has a board-approved alternative teacher preparation program; or
1.18(2) a school district or charter school, after consulting with a college or university
1.19with a board-approved teacher preparation program, that forms a partnership with a
1.20nonprofit corporation organized under chapter 317A for an education-related purpose that
1.21has a board-approved teacher preparation program.
1.22(b) Before participating in this program, a candidate must:
1.23(1) have a bachelor's degree with a 3.0 or higher grade point average unless the
1.24board waives the grade point average requirement based on board-adopted criteria;
2.1(2) pass the reading, writing, and mathematics skills examination under section
2.3(3) obtain qualifying scores on applicable board-approved rigorous content area and
2.4pedagogy examinations under section
2.5(c) The Board of Teaching must issue a two-year limited-term license to a person
2.6who enrolls in an alternative teacher preparation program. This limited-term license is not
2.7a provisional license under section 122A.40 or 122A.41.
2.8EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment.
2.9 Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.40, subdivision 5, is amended to read:
2.10 Subd. 5. Probationary period. (a) The first three consecutive years of a teacher's
2.11first teaching experience in Minnesota in a single district is deemed to be a probationary
2.12period of employment, and, the probationary period in each district in which the teacher is
2.13thereafter employed shall be one year. The school board must adopt a plan for written
2.14evaluation of teachers during the probationary period that is consistent with subdivision
2.158. Evaluation must occur at least three times periodically throughout each school year
2.16for a teacher performing services during that school year; the first evaluation must occur
2.17within the first 90 days of teaching service. Days devoted to parent-teacher conferences,
2.18teachers' workshops, and other staff development opportunities and days on which a
2.19teacher is absent from school must not be included in determining the number of school
2.20days on which a teacher performs services. Except as otherwise provided in paragraph
2.21(b), during the probationary period any annual contract with any teacher may or may not
2.22be renewed (1) as the school board shall see fit, or (2) consistent with the negotiated
2.23unrequested leave of absence plan in effect under subdivision 10. However, the board
2.24must give any such teacher whose contract it declines to renew for the following school
2.25year written notice to that effect before July 1. If the teacher requests reasons for any
2.26nonrenewal of a teaching contract, the board must give the teacher its reason in writing,
2.27including a statement that appropriate supervision was furnished describing the nature and
2.28the extent of such supervision furnished the teacher during the employment by the board,
2.29within ten days after receiving such request. The school board may, after a hearing held
2.30upon due notice, discharge a teacher during the probationary period for cause, effective
2.31immediately, under section
2.32(b) A board must discharge a probationary teacher, effective immediately, upon
2.33receipt of notice under section
2.34license has been revoked due to a conviction for child abuse or sexual abuse.
3.1(c) A probationary teacher whose first three years of consecutive employment are
3.2interrupted for active military service and who promptly resumes teaching consistent with
3.3federal reemployment timelines for uniformed service personnel under United States
3.4Code, title 38, section 4312(e), is considered to have a consecutive teaching experience
3.5for purposes of paragraph (a).
3.6(d) A probationary teacher must complete at least 120 days of teaching service each
3.7year during the probationary period. Days devoted to parent-teacher conferences, teachers'
3.8workshops, and other staff development opportunities and days on which a teacher is
3.9absent from school do not count as days of teaching service under this paragraph.
3.10EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment.
3.11 Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.40, subdivision 10, is amended to read:
3.12 Subd. 10. Negotiated unrequested leave of absence. (a) The school board
3.13and the exclusive bargaining representative of the teachers
3.14consistent with subdivision 8, providing for unrequested leave of absence without pay or
3.15fringe benefits for as many teachers as may be necessary because of discontinuance of
3.16position, lack of pupils, financial limitations, or merger of classes caused by consolidation
3.17of districts.
3.18
3.19the exercise of seniority by a teacher holding only a provisional license, other than a
3.20vocational education license if required for the position,
3.21
3.22license, other than a vocational education license
3.23
3.24apply for the purposes of this subdivision.
3.25(b) Beginning in the 2016-2017 school year and later, and notwithstanding any law to
3.26the contrary, a school board must place teachers on unrequested leave of absence based on
3.27their subject matter licensure fields and most recent evaluation outcomes and effectiveness
3.28category under subdivision 8, among other locally determined criteria, and may include
3.29both probationary teachers and continuing contract teachers within an effectiveness
3.30category. Notwithstanding section 13.43, subdivision 2, paragraph (a), clause (5), or
3.31any other law to the contrary, a teacher's effectiveness category and the underlying data
3.32on the individual teacher generated under the teacher evaluation process in subdivision
3.338, paragraph (b), used to determine a teacher's effectiveness category for purposes of
3.34this subdivision are private data on individuals. For purposes of placing a teacher on
3.35unrequested leave of absence or recalling a teacher from unrequested leave of absence, a
4.1school board is not required to reassign a teacher with more seniority to accommodate the
4.2seniority claims of a teacher who is similarly licensed and effective but with less seniority.
4.3Nothing in this paragraph permits a school board to use a teacher's remuneration as a basis
4.4for making unrequested leave of absence decisions. Any executed employment contract
4.5between the school board and the exclusive representative of the teachers must contain the
4.6negotiated unrequested leave of absence plan. The school board must publish in a readily
4.7accessible format the unrequested leave of absence plan it negotiates under this paragraph.
4.8(c) A teacher who receives notice of being placed on unrequested leave of absence
4.9under paragraph (b) may submit to the board, within 14 days of receiving the notice, a
4.10written request for a hearing before a neutral hearing officer to establish whether the district
4.11met the following teacher evaluation requirements under subdivision 8: if the teacher is
4.12a probationary teacher, all evaluations required under subdivision 5 were provided; a
4.13three-year professional review cycle was established for the teacher; any summative
4.14evaluation of the teacher was performed by a qualified and trained evaluator; a peer review
4.15evaluation occurred in any year when the teacher was not evaluated by a qualified and
4.16trained evaluator; and if the teacher did not meet professional teaching standards, a teacher
4.17improvement process with goals and timelines was established. The school board and the
4.18exclusive representative of the teachers must agree on a panel of people and a process
4.19to select the person to hear the matter. The hearing officer must issue a decision within
4.2014 days of the request for the hearing. Nothing in this paragraph prevents a school board
4.21and the exclusive representative of the teachers from negotiating a different process for
4.22determining whether the teacher evaluation requirements listed in this paragraph were met.
4.23(d) For purposes of this subdivision, a provisional license is a license to teach issued
4.24by the Board of Teaching under a waiver or variance.
4.25EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective beginning in the 2016-2017 school
4.26year and later.
4.27 Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.40, subdivision 11, is amended to read:
4.28 Subd. 11. Unrequested leave of absence. (a) The board may place on unrequested
4.29leave of absence, without pay or fringe benefits, as many teachers as may be necessary
4.30because of discontinuance of position, lack of pupils, financial limitations, or merger
4.31of classes caused by consolidation or reorganization of districts under chapter 123A.
4.32The unrequested leave is effective at the close of the school year. In placing teachers on
4.33unrequested leave, the board is governed by the
4.34
4.35inverse order of their employment. A teacher who has acquired continuing contract rights
5.1must not be placed on unrequested leave of absence while probationary teachers are retained
5.2in positions for which the teacher who has acquired continuing contract rights is licensed
5.3
5.4unrequested leave of absence in fields in which they are licensed in the inverse order
5.5in which they were employed by the school district. In the case of equal seniority, the
5.6order in which teachers who have acquired continuing contract rights shall be placed on
5.7unrequested leave of absence in fields in which they are licensed is negotiable
5.8
5.9to exercise any seniority when that exercise results in that teacher being retained by the
5.10district in a field for which the teacher holds only a provisional license, as defined by the
5.11board of teaching, unless that exercise of seniority results in the placement on unrequested
5.12leave of absence of another teacher who also holds a provisional license in the same field.
5.13The provisions of this paragraph do not apply to vocational education licenses
5.14for the available positions.
5.15
5.16probationary teacher on unrequested leave before a teacher who has acquired continuing
5.17rights, the placing of a teacher who has acquired continuing contract rights on unrequested
5.18leave before another teacher who has acquired continuing contract rights but who has
5.19greater seniority, or the restriction imposed by the provisions of paragraph
5.20place the district in violation of its affirmative action program, the district may retain the
5.21probationary teacher, the teacher with less seniority, or the provisionally licensed teacher
5.22
5.23a teacher from unrequested leave of absence, nothing in this subdivision requires a school
5.24board to reassign a teacher to accommodate the seniority claims of a teacher who is
5.25similarly licensed and effective but with less seniority.
5.26(g) Teachers placed on unrequested leave of absence must be reinstated to the
5.27positions from which they have been given leaves of absence or, if not available, to
5.28other available positions in the school district in fields in which they are licensed.
5.29Reinstatement must be in the inverse order of placement on leave of absence. A teacher
5.30must not be reinstated to a position in a field in which the teacher holds only a provisional
5.31license, other than a vocational education license, while another teacher who holds a
5.32nonprovisional license in the same field remains on unrequested leave. The order of
5.33reinstatement of teachers who have equal seniority and who are placed on unrequested
5.34leave in the same school year is negotiable
5.35
5.36unrequested leave, a teacher who is properly licensed to fill such vacancy, unless the
6.1teacher fails to advise the school board within 30 days of the date of notification that a
6.2position is available to that teacher who may return to employment and assume the duties
6.3of the position to which appointed on a future date determined by the board
6.4
6.5or any other occupation during the period of this leave
6.6
6.7rights of a teacher or result in a loss of credit for previous years of service
6.8
6.9who is categorized as effective or better under subdivision 8, who is placed on unrequested
6.10leave of absence, and who is not reinstated shall continue for a period of five years,
6.11after which the right to reinstatement
6.12reinstatement
6.13April 1 of
6.14(l) Consistent with subdivision 10, the unrequested leave of absence of a teacher
6.15who is categorized as ineffective or less under subdivision 8, who is placed on unrequested
6.16leave of absence, and who is not reinstated continues for the following school year
6.17only, after which the teacher's right to reinstatement terminates. The teacher's right to
6.18reinstatement also terminates if the teacher fails to file with the board by April 1 in that
6.19following school year a written statement requesting reinstatement.
6.20
6.21contracts in subdivisions 5 and 7 must apply to placement on unrequested leave of absence
6.22
6.23placed on unrequested leave of absence to receive unemployment benefits if otherwise
6.24eligible.
6.25EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective for the 2013-2014 through 2015-2016
6.26school years.
6.27 Sec. 5. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.41, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
6.28 Subd. 2. Probationary period; discharge or demotion. (a) All teachers in
6.29the public schools in cities of the first class during the first three years of consecutive
6.30employment shall be deemed to be in a probationary period of employment during which
6.31period any annual contract with any teacher may, or may not, be renewed (1) as the school
6.32board, after consulting with the peer review committee charged with evaluating the
6.33probationary teachers under subdivision 3, shall see fit, or (2) consistent with the negotiated
6.34plan for discontinuing or terminating teachers in effect under subdivision 14. The school
6.35site management team or the school board if there is no school site management team, shall
7.1adopt a plan for a written evaluation of teachers during the probationary period according
7.2to subdivisions 3 and 5. Evaluation by the peer review committee charged with evaluating
7.3probationary teachers under subdivision 3 shall occur at least three times periodically
7.4throughout each school year for a teacher performing services during that school year; the
7.5first evaluation must occur within the first 90 days of teaching service. Days devoted to
7.6parent-teacher conferences, teachers' workshops, and other staff development opportunities
7.7and days on which a teacher is absent from school shall not be included in determining the
7.8number of school days on which a teacher performs services. The school board may, during
7.9such probationary period, discharge or demote a teacher for any of the causes as specified
7.10in this code. A written statement of the cause of such discharge or demotion shall be given
7.11to the teacher by the school board at least 30 days before such removal or demotion shall
7.12become effective, and the teacher so notified shall have no right of appeal therefrom.
7.13(b) A probationary teacher whose first three years of consecutive employment are
7.14interrupted for active military service and who promptly resumes teaching consistent with
7.15federal reemployment timelines for uniformed service personnel under United States
7.16Code, title 38, section 4312(e), is considered to have a consecutive teaching experience
7.17for purposes of paragraph (a).
7.18(c) A probationary teacher must complete at least 120 days of teaching service each
7.19year during the probationary period. Days devoted to parent-teacher conferences, teachers'
7.20workshops, and other staff development opportunities and days on which a teacher is
7.21absent from school do not count as days of teaching service under this paragraph.
7.22EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment.
7.23 Sec. 6. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.41, subdivision 14, is amended to read:
7.24 Subd. 14. Services terminated by discontinuance or lack of pupils; preference
7.25given. (a)
7.26
7.27
7.28or more positions in the 2013-2014 through 2015-2016 school years, in making such
7.29discontinuance, teachers must receive first consideration for other positions in the district
7.30for which that teacher is qualified and must be discontinued
7.31inverse order in which they were employed
7.32(b) Beginning in the 2016-2017 school year and later, a board and the exclusive
7.33representative of teachers in the district must negotiate a plan
7.34consistent with subdivision 5, for discontinuing and terminating teachers under this
7.35subdivision based on their subject matter licensure fields and most recent evaluation
8.1outcomes and effectiveness category under subdivision 5, among other locally determined
8.2criteria, and may include both probationary teachers and continuing contract teachers
8.3within an effectiveness category. Notwithstanding section 13.43, subdivision 2, paragraph
8.4(a), clause (5), or any other law to the contrary, a teacher's effectiveness category and
8.5the underlying data on the individual teacher generated under the teacher evaluation
8.6process in subdivision 5, paragraph (b), used to determine a teacher's effectiveness
8.7category for purposes of this subdivision are private data on individuals. For purposes
8.8of discharging, demoting, or recalling a teacher whose services are discontinued or
8.9terminated under this subdivision, a school board is not required to reassign a teacher with
8.10more seniority to accommodate the seniority claims of a teacher who is similarly licensed
8.11and effective but with less seniority. Nothing in this paragraph permits a school board to
8.12use a teacher's remuneration as a basis for discontinuing or terminating a teacher. Any
8.13executed employment contract between the school board and the exclusive representative
8.14of the teachers must contain the negotiated plan for discontinuing or terminating teachers.
8.15The school board must publish in a readily accessible format any plan it negotiates for
8.16discontinuing or terminating teachers under this paragraph.
8.17(c) A teacher who receives notice of discontinuance or termination under paragraph
8.18(b) may submit to the board, within 14 days of receiving the notice, a written request
8.19for a hearing before a neutral hearing officer to establish whether the district met the
8.20following teacher evaluation requirements under subdivision 5: if the teacher is a
8.21probationary teacher, all evaluations required under subdivision 2 were provided; a
8.22three-year professional review cycle was established for the teacher; any summative
8.23evaluation of the teacher was performed by a qualified and trained evaluator; a peer review
8.24evaluation occurred in any year when the teacher was not evaluated by a qualified and
8.25trained evaluator; and if the teacher did not meet professional teaching standards, a teacher
8.26improvement process with goals and timelines was established. The school board and the
8.27exclusive representative of the teachers must agree on a panel of people and a process
8.28to select the person to hear the matter. The hearing officer must issue a decision within
8.2914 days of the request for the hearing. Nothing in this paragraph prevents a school board
8.30and the exclusive representative of the teachers from negotiating a different process for
8.31determining whether the teacher evaluation requirements listed in this paragraph were met.
8.32
8.33through 2015-2016 school years, a teacher is not entitled to exercise any seniority when
8.34that exercise results in that teacher being retained by the district in a field for which the
8.35teacher holds only a provisional license, as defined by the Board of Teaching, unless that
8.36exercise of seniority results in
9.1of discontinuance of position or lack of pupils, of another teacher who also holds a
9.2provisional license in the same field. The provisions of this
9.3to vocational education licenses.
9.4
9.5through 2015-2016 school years, a teacher must not be reinstated to a position in a field
9.6in which the teacher holds only a provisional license, other than a vocational education
9.7license, while another teacher who holds a nonprovisional license in the same field is
9.8available for reinstatement.
9.9EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective July 1, 2013, and applies to
9.10negotiated plans for discontinuing or terminating teachers agreed to on or after that date.
9.11 Sec. 7. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 123A.75, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
9.12 Subdivision 1. Teacher assignment. (a) As of the effective date of a consolidation
9.13in which a district is divided or the dissolution of a district and its attachment to two or
9.14more existing districts, each teacher employed by an affected district shall be assigned to
9.15the newly created or enlarged district on the basis of a ratio of the pupils assigned to each
9.16district according to the new district boundaries. The district receiving the greatest number
9.17of pupils must be assigned the most effective teacher under section 122A.40, subdivision 8,
9.18with the greatest seniority, and the remaining teachers must be alternately assigned to each
9.19district from most to least effective and with most to least seniority within each category of
9.20effectiveness until the district receiving the fewest pupils has received its ratio of teachers
9.21who will not be retiring before the effective date of the consolidation or dissolution.
9.22(b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), the board and the exclusive representative of
9.23teachers in each district involved in the consolidation or dissolution and attachment may
9.24negotiate a plan for assigning teachers to each newly created or enlarged district.
9.25(c) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, the provisions of this section apply
9.26only to the extent they are consistent with section 122A.40, subdivisions 8, 10, and 11.
9.27EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment.
9.28 Sec. 8. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 179A.20, is amended by adding a subdivision
9.29to read:
9.30 Subd. 4a. Unrequested leave of absence for teachers. A school board and the
9.31exclusive representative of the teachers may not execute a contract unless the contract
9.32contains a plan for unrequested leave of absence under section 122A.40, subdivision 10,
9.33or a plan for discontinuing or terminating teachers under section 122A.41, subdivision 14.
10.1EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective beginning in the 2016-2017 school
10.2year and later.
10.3 Sec. 9. REPEALER.
10.4Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 122A.40, subdivision 11, is repealed effective
10.5for the 2016-2017 school year and later.
