Monthly Archives: December 2015

Chamblee Charter High School Petition

Posted on December 10, 2015 by | 1 comment

Chamblee Charter High School (CCHS) opened in 2000 and focuses on STEAM and the Mastery Learning System. On Monday the Board of Education approved their petition for a 5 year charter term.
Charter schools are prohibited from having admissions criteria, so the current magnet program at the site will remain under the governance of the District rather than the CCHS governing board; however, both the District and the CCHS governing board have mutually agreed to maintain the District’s magnet program at the site in a manner as close as possible to the historical operation of the program, while still ensuring that the program remains compliant with all applicable laws, policies, and regulations.

Trenton Arnold is a Regional Superintendent and also oversees the day-to-day operations of DeKalb’s Charter Office.  Here he answers a few questions related to conversion charters.
Question: What is the difference between a charter and charter petition? Can you briefly explain the process of how a charter petition becomes a charter?
Trenton Arnold: At the December 7, 2015 Board meeting the District will recommend the approval of Chamblee Charter High School’s petition renewal. A charter petition is the application that a petitioner completes to demonstrate their case for being awarded charter status. The charter itself is the agreement/contract between the petitioner, the local Board of Education, and the State Board of Education.
Question: Are charter schools or the district bound by details in the approved charter petition not found in the charter?
Trenton Arnold: The renewal process for Chamblee Charter High School began with their submission of a petition to the District for review. The role of the District is to then review the petition and provide feedback with an opportunity for rewrites. The petitioner may then resubmit the petition after making any changes for final review. The District reviews the petition and determines the appropriate recommenda-tion to the Board. The local Board then has the ultimate decision-making authority on approving or denying any petition.
Should the petition be approved, it moves to the Georgia Department of Education for review and approval/denial by the State Board of Education. While the charter petition itself is not a legally binding document like the charter contract, it is important for the charter petition to represent accurate information to both the Local Board and State Board of Education so that their decisions to approve or deny a contract for the proposed charter school are made with full information.
Furthermore, if the charter petition is approved, the charter school’s essential features, demographics, and general information, as captured within the charter petition, will be included in the legally binding charter contract.
Question: The Substantial Autonomy Assurance letter says “governing Board will be afforded opportunities to dialogue with DCSD to expand its autonomy over the course of the charter term.” Please expound on that and the process for expanding autonomy.
Trenton Arnold: As noted in the Governance Matrix for Chamblee Charter High School, it will be up to their board to seek additional autonomy; however, the District has committed in the Substantial Autonomy Assurance letter to providing substantial autonomy to the governing board should DeKalb’s Board approve the petition.
Additionally, the District is willing to further collaborate with the school’s governing board should they request additional autonomy beyond what is outlined in the agreed upon Governance Matrix as long as the request serves the best interest of the students and the District, is aligned with the charter’s mission and achievement of measurable goals, and remains legally compliant.

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Posted in Charter Schools

Pay Raises For Teachers

Posted on December 9, 2015 by | 23 comments

Pay Raises For Teachers
And Other Certified School Based Employees

Based on an  analysis, conducted by the DeKalb Schools Department of Human Resource, of five metro Atlanta school districts, not including Atlanta Public Schools, it was determined that the metro districts pay teachers with 7-17 years of completed experience an average of $2,000 to $14,000 dollars higher annually than DeKalb County Schools. Teachers with less than 7 and more than 17 years experience were found to be making more than the metro average.
On Monday, the board appropriated $21.5 million on an annualized basis for a mid-year salary adjustment.  Affected employees will see the adjustments in their January 15, 2016 paycheck.  More than 8,700 employees including 6,000 teachers will receive a pay raise. The plan is to increase teachers’ salaries to the metro averages for those with  7 to 17 years of experience. All other teachers will receive a 2% increase.
It is noted that counselors are attached to the teacher salary schedule and are generally underpaid compared to their counterparts in neighboring districts.  The board will look into rectifying that in the upcoming 2016-17 budget.
Comp Plan Details
•  Teachers – Teachers with 7-17 years of completed experience will receive an increase of up to $14,000 to make their salary comparable to the average annual salary of other metro Atlanta school districts. All other teachers will receive a 2% pay raise.
•  Principals – High Schools – 5%; Middle Schools – 3%; Elementary Schools – 2%; All Assistant Principals – 2%.
•  Pre-K Teachers – Certified Pre-K Teachers will transition from a flat rate to the DeKalb Teachers salary schedule based on valid GAPSC certification and completed experience.
•  Parapros – Instructional paraprofessionals will receive a 1-2% salary increase based on current salary placement.
Other certified school based professionals on the DeKalb Teachers salary schedule will receive the same raises as the teachers on that schedule.  Those employees include Media Specialists, Counselors, Psychologists, Lead Teachers for Special Education, Social Workers, Academic Coaches, Instructional Specialists.
Q & A
When will raises be seen in paychecks?

  • January 15, 2016.

Why was APS excluded from the equation for determining salary adjustments?

  • Due to a much larger tax base, Atlanta Public School’s teacher salaries were excluded.

Which school districts were included in your study?

  • Cobb, Fulton, Gwinnett, Clayton, and Henry.

How much will the total cost be to the District?

  • $21.5 million on an annualized basis.

Supplemental Retirement 2% Match Program
The Board of Education also adopted the Supplemental Retirement 2% Match Program.  Under this program, the BOE will contribute 2% of an employee’s base salary into a 403(b) account for employees who meet the following criteria:

  • Full-time employees who have completed at least five (5) years of full-time continuous employment after January 1, 2011 AND
  • Contribute to Teachers Retirement System of Georgia (TRS) or Employees’ Retirement System of Georgia (ERS) AND
  • Invest at least 2% of their base salary into one (1) 403(b) account with one of the four BOE approved optional Investment and Retirement Providers.

Related Posts

School Based Certified Personnel Comp Plan
January 11, 2016 – Description, research and analysis behind DeKalb Schools’ employee comp plan. Teachers will receive an increase of up to $14,000 to make their salary comparable to the average annual salary of other metro Atlanta school districts. Affected employees will see the adjustments in their January 15, 2016 paycheck.

Pay Raises For Teachers
December 9, 2015 – More than 8,700 employees including 6,000 teachers will receive a pay raise in their January 15, 2016 check. Teachers will receive an increase of up to $14,000 annually.
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DeKalb Principal Salary Schedules
December 6, 2015 – For many years I’ve been concerned about the inconsistencies in principal compensation. Dr. Jackson-Davis answers a few general questions I had about principal salaries.
* DeKalb Teacher Salary Schedule
* Fulton Teacher Salary Schedule
* Gwinnett Teacher Salary Schedule
* Cobb Teacher Salary Schedule
* Clayton Teacher Salary Schedule
* Henry Teacher Salary Schedule

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Posted in Finances, Teachers