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2015 SESSION
15101931DBe it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§ 22.1-77 and 22.1-253.13:5 of the Code of Virginia are amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 22.1-77. Duties of clerk.
The clerk of the school board shall keep in a separate volume
the minutes of the meetings of the school board, including all bids submitted
on any building, material, supplies, work, or project to be let to contract by
such school board, and in another volume a receipt and disbursement record as
prescribed by the Board of Education and. The clerk shall record in the minutes for the
first school board meeting of the calendar year each school board member's
compliance or noncompliance with the professional development activities
required by subsection D of §
22.1-253.13:5 for the previous calendar year. The clerk
shall keep on file vouchers, contracts, certifications
provided annually by school board members in accordance with subsection D of §
22.1-253:13.5, and other official papers. They
Such files shall be subject to
such periodic examinations as
shall be prescribed or approved by the Board of Education.
The clerk shall discharge, under the general direction of the division
superintendent, such other duties in connection with the business of the school
division as may be required of him by the school board or the Board of Education.
§ 22.1-253.13:5. Standard 5. Quality of classroom instruction and educational leadership.
A. Each member of the Board of Education shall participate in high-quality professional development programs on personnel, curriculum and current issues in education as part of his service on the Board.
B. Consistent with the finding that leadership is essential for the advancement of public education in the Commonwealth, teacher, principal, and superintendent evaluations shall be consistent with the performance standards included in the Guidelines for Uniform Performance Standards and Evaluation Criteria for Teachers, Principals, and Superintendents. Evaluations shall include student academic progress as a significant component and an overall summative rating. Teacher evaluations shall include regular observation and evidence that instruction is aligned with the school's curriculum. Evaluations shall include identification of areas of individual strengths and weaknesses and recommendations for appropriate professional activities.
C. The Board of Education shall provide guidance on high-quality professional development for (i) teachers, principals, supervisors, division superintendents, and other school staff; (ii) principals, supervisors, and division superintendents in the evaluation and documentation of teacher and principal performance based on student academic progress and the skills and knowledge of such instructional or administrative personnel; (iii) school board members on personnel, curriculum and current issues in education; and (iv) programs in Braille for teachers of the blind and visually impaired, in cooperation with the Virginia Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired.
The Board shall also provide technical assistance on high-quality professional development to local school boards designed to ensure that all instructional personnel are proficient in the use of educational technology consistent with its comprehensive plan for educational technology.
D. Each local school board shall require
(i) its members to participate annually in high-quality
professional development activities at the state, local, or national levels on leadership, governance, including, but not limited to, strategic planning and policy development, and
effective supervision of schools, in accordance with criteria established by
the Board of Education. Such professional
development activities shall include the powers conferred and duties imposed on
local school boards by statute, regulation,
and the Constitution of Virginia; personnel policies and
practices; the program
evaluation of personnel,
curriculum, and instruction; use of data in planning and decision making and measuring academic performance; socioeconomic risk factors and best practices to
address external effects on
student achievement; the Freedom of Information Act (§
2.2-3700 et seq.); the federal Family
Educational Rights and Privacy Act (20 U.S.C. § 1232g) and related regulations;
and current issues in education as part of their service on the local board. Each local school
board member shall certify his compliance
with the training requirements
of this subsection to the clerk of his school board no later than December 31
of each year, in a form prescribed by the Board of Education.
and (ii) E. Each local school
board shall require the division
superintendent to participate annually in high-quality professional development
activities at the local, state, or national levels, including the Standards of
Quality, Board of Education regulations, and the Guidelines for Uniform
Performance Standards and Evaluation Criteria for Teachers, Principals, and
Superintendents.
E. F. Each
local school board shall provide a program of high-quality professional
development (i) in the use and documentation of performance standards and
evaluation criteria based on student academic progress and skills for teachers,
principals, and superintendents to clarify roles and performance expectations
and to facilitate the successful implementation of instructional programs that
promote student achievement at the school and classroom levels; (ii) as part of
the license renewal process, to assist teachers and principals in acquiring the
skills needed to work with gifted students, students with disabilities, and
students who have been identified as having limited English proficiency and to
increase student achievement and expand the knowledge and skills students
require to meet the standards for academic performance set by the Board of
Education; (iii) in educational technology for all instructional personnel
which is designed to facilitate integration of computer skills and related
technology into the curricula; and (iv) for principals and supervisors designed
to increase proficiency in instructional leadership and management, including
training in the evaluation and documentation of teacher and principal
performance based on student academic progress and the skills and knowledge of
such instructional or administrative personnel.
In addition, each local school board shall also provide teachers and principals with high-quality professional development programs each year in (a) instructional content; (b) the preparation of tests and other assessment measures; (c) methods for assessing the progress of individual students, including Standards of Learning assessment materials or other criterion-referenced tests that match locally developed objectives; (d) instruction and remediation techniques in English, mathematics, science, and history and social science; (e) interpreting test data for instructional purposes; (f) technology applications to implement the Standards of Learning; and (g) effective classroom management.
F. G. Schools and school divisions
shall include as an integral component of their comprehensive plans required by
§ 22.1-253.13:6, high-quality professional development programs that support
the recruitment, employment, and retention of qualified teachers and
principals. Each school board shall require all instructional personnel to
participate each year in these professional development programs.
G. H. Each local school board
shall annually review its professional development program for quality,
effectiveness, participation by instructional personnel, and relevancy to the
instructional needs of teachers and the academic achievement needs of the
students in the school division.
2. That the Board of Education, in conjunction with the Virginia School Boards Association, shall establish criteria for the professional development and training of local school board members. At a minimum, such criteria shall (i) differentiate training requirements for newly elected or appointed members and members who have completed one or more years of service; (ii) set a process for approving providers of such training; (iii) include a model professional development framework that emphasizes the content areas specified in subsection D of § 22.1-253.13:5 and identifies additional content areas critical to the effective supervision of schools; (iv) include a training needs assessment instrument for use by local school boards in assessing their particular training needs; and (iv) specify a format for the annual certification required by subsection D of § 22.1-253.13:5.
3. That the provisions of the first enactment clause of this act shall be effective July 1, 2016.