KRS § 156.557 — KY Code / Title XIII / Chapter 156 / Section 156.557
156.557 Definitions -- Statewide framework for teaching -- District personnel evaluation system -- Summative evaluations -- Appeals -- Prohibition against disclosure of confidential information -- Limits on reporting of evaluation results
Status: in_force

156.557 Definitions -- Statewide framework for teaching -- District personnel

evaluation system -- Summative evaluations -- Appeals -- Prohibition against

disclosure of confidential information -- Limits on reporting of evaluation

results.

(1) As used in this section:

(a) "Formative evaluation" means a continuous cycle of collecting evaluation

information and providing feedback with suggestions regarding the certified

employee's professional growth and performance; and

(b) "Summative evaluation" means the summary of, and conclusions from, the

evaluation data, including formative evaluation data that:

1. Occur at the end of an evaluation cycle; and

2. Include a conference between the evaluator and the evaluated certified

employee and a written evaluation report.

(2) The Kentucky Department of Education, in consultation with the Kentucky teacher

and principal steering committees and other groups deemed appropriate by the

commissioner of education, shall develop a statewide framework for teaching that

shall promote the continuous professional growth and development of skills needed

to be a highly effective teacher or a highly effective administrator in a school or

district.

(3) Each district shall develop and implement a personnel evaluation system aligned

with the statewide framework for teaching established in subsection (2) of this

section that shall:

(a) Use multiple measures of effectiveness;

(b) Include both formative and summative evaluation components;

(c) Measure professional effectiveness;

(d) Support professional growth;

(e) Have at least four (4) performance levels;

(f) Be used to inform personnel decisions;

(g) Be considerate of the time requirements of evaluators at the local level and

shall not require that all certified school personnel have a formal summative

evaluation each year; and

(h) Rate teachers or administrators by multiple measures instead of a single

measure.

(4) The performance criteria by which teachers and administrators shall be evaluated

shall include but not be limited to:

(a) Performance of professional responsibilities related to his or her assignment,

including attendance and punctuality and evaluating results;

(b) Demonstration of effective planning of curricula, classroom instruction, and

classroom management, based on research-based instructional practices, or

school management skills based on validated managerial practices;

(c) Demonstration of knowledge and understanding of subject matter content or

administrative functions and effective leadership techniques;

(d) Promotion and incorporation of instructional strategies or management

techniques that are fair and respect diversity and individual differences;

(e) Demonstration of effective interpersonal, communication, and collaboration

skills among peers, students, parents, and others;

(f) Performance of duties consistent with the goals for Kentucky students and

mission of the school, the local community, laws, and administrative

regulations;

(g) Demonstration of the effective use of resources, including technology;

(h) Demonstration of professional growth;

(i) Adherence to the professional code of ethics; and

(j) Attainment of the teacher standards or the administrator standards as

established by the Education Professional Standards Board that are not

referenced in paragraphs (a) to (i) of this subsection.

(5) The following provisions shall apply to each school district's personnel evaluation

system:

(a) Certified school personnel, below the level of superintendent, shall be

evaluated;

(b) The evaluation system shall include formative evaluation and summative

evaluation components; and

(c) The Kentucky Board of Education shall adopt administrative regulations

incorporating written guidelines for a local school district to follow in

implementing the personnel evaluation system and shall require the following:

1. All evaluations of certified school personnel below the level of the

district superintendent shall be in writing on evaluation forms and under

evaluation procedures developed by a committee composed of an equal

number of teachers and administrators;

2. The immediate supervisor of the certified school personnel member

shall be designated as the primary evaluator. At the request of a teacher,

observations by other teachers trained in the teacher's content area or

curriculum content specialists may be incorporated into the formative

process for evaluating teachers;

3. All monitoring or observation of performance of a certified school

personnel member shall be conducted openly and with full knowledge of

the personnel member;

4. Evaluators shall be trained, tested, and approved in accordance with

administrative regulations adopted by the Kentucky Board of Education

in the proper techniques for effectively evaluating certified school

personnel. Evaluators shall receive support and resources necessary to

ensure consistent and reliable ratings;

5. The personnel evaluation system shall include a plan whereby the

person evaluated is given assistance for professional growth as a teacher

or administrator. The system shall also specify the processes to be used

when corrective actions are necessary in relation to the performance of

one's assignment;

6. The system shall require annual summative evaluations for each teacher

or other professional who has not attained continuing service status

under KRS 161.740 or continuing status under KRS 156.800(7). The

system shall require summative evaluations once every five (5) years for

a teacher or other professional who has attained continuing service

status under KRS 161.740 or continuing status under KRS 156.800(7),

principals, assistant principals, and other certified administrators.

Additional summative evaluations may be performed at the discretion of

the immediate supervisor of a teacher or other professional based upon a

case-by-case analysis of the performance criteria set forth in subsection

(4) of this section but shall not be imposed as a uniform requirement

across the system; and

7. The training requirement for evaluators contained in subparagraph 4. of

this paragraph shall not apply to district board of education members.

(6) (a) Each superintendent shall be evaluated according to a policy and procedures

developed by the local board of education and approved by the department.

(b) The summative evaluation of the superintendent shall be in writing, discussed

and adopted in an open meeting of the board and reflected in the minutes, and

made available to the public upon request.

(c) Any preliminary discussions relating to the evaluation of the superintendent

by the board or between the board and the superintendent prior to the

summative evaluation shall be conducted in closed session.

(7) The Kentucky Board of Education shall establish an appeals procedure for certified

school personnel who believe that the local school district failed to properly

implement the evaluation system. The appeals procedure shall not involve requests

from individual certified school personnel members for review of the judgmental

conclusions of their personnel evaluations.

(8) The local board of education shall establish an evaluation appeals panel for certified

school personnel that shall consist of two (2) members elected by the certified

employees of the local district and one (1) member appointed by the board of

education who is a certified employee of the local board of education. Certified

school personnel who think they were not fairly evaluated may submit an appeal to

the panel for a timely review of their evaluation.

(9) The Kentucky Department of Education may annually provide for on-site visits by

trained personnel to review and ensure appropriate implementation of the

evaluation system by the local school district. The department shall provide

technical assistance to local districts to eliminate deficiencies and to improve the

effectiveness of the evaluation system.

(10) The disclosure, pursuant to KRS Chapter 61, of any data or information, including

student growth data, that local school districts or the Kentucky Department of

Education collect on individual classroom teachers under this section is prohibited.

(11) The results of evaluations conducted under this section shall not be included in the

accountability system described in KRS 158.6455 and no reporting requirements

related to these results shall be imposed upon the local school districts by the

Kentucky Department of Education.