Rolla 31 Schools 

District Career Ladder Plan

R.I.S.E./Career Ladder

Rolla 31 Investment in Student Enrichment

Purpose

The Rolla School District is committed to providing a successful educational experience for all students. Educational excellence is dependent largely on the skill, talent and dedication of educators. The purpose of the R.I.S.E./Career Ladder Program is to enhance the educational experience of students by recognizing and rewarding productive, effective educators. The Rolla School District has developed a School Improvement Plan, a Curriculum Development Plan, a Professional Development Plan and participates in the Missouri School Improvement Program in order to facilitate and improve the educational experience for all students. All R.I.S.E./Career Ladder responsibilities will be academic in nature and shall directly and obviously relate to the improvement of programs and services for students as outlined in the District School Improvement Plan, Curriculum Development Plan, Professional Development Plan, the Missouri School Improvement Program or other instructional improvement plan in the  Rolla School District. The teacher's R.I.S.E./Career Ladder Development Plan (CDP) will associate each R.I.S.E./Career Ladder responsibility or volunteer effort with either a designated plan or other instructional improvement.

Stages

The Rolla School District shall assign qualified, participating teachers to the appropriate stage and award teachers supplemental pay in an amount to be specified annually and not to exceed 

$1,500 for Stage I

$3,000 for Stage II

$5,000 for Stage III.

This supplemental pay shall be in addition to the salary normally accorded the teacher by the district's salary schedule.

Eligibility

Eligible certificated staff are those coded in the MOSIS October Cycle under one of the following position codes:

• 40 - Library/Media
• 50 - Counselor/Guidance
• 60 - Teacher
• 70 - Other Pupil Services (psych examiners, PAT)
• 90 - Ancillary Personnel (SLP’s)

For the purposes of this document, all eligible personnel are referred to as ‘teachers’.

Eligible teachers in Stage I of the Rolla School District shall have the following: 

1. Completed two (2) years of teaching experience in Missouri public schools.
2. Completed the required beginning teacher assistance program and participated in two (2) years of mentoring (section 168.400.4 RSMo)
3. Performed at an acceptable level or above on all criteria on the most recent final evaluation instrument of the performance-based teacher evaluation process. The local evaluation process must fully aligned with the Essential Principles of Effective Evaluation (5 CSR 20 -400.375).
4. Be serving on not less than a regular length full time contract.
5. Appropriate certification in the subject area for each teacher.
6. Developed a R.I.S.E./Career Ladder Development Plan (CDP) that contains responsibilities or volunteer efforts that the educator will assume in order to receive his/her R.I.S.E./Career Ladder supplemental pay. The educator will complete one or more responsibilities or volunteer efforts between June 1 - May 31. The district shall ensure that a minimum of fifty (50) clock hours are completed for Stage I and these hours be completed outside the duties that require a teaching certificate under section 168.021 RSMo. This requirement should coincide with the standard* and be commensurate and adjustable to the compensation offered for Stage 1. This requirement should coincide with the standard* and be commensurate and adjustable to the compensation offered for Stage I. The educator shall relate each responsibility to an identified plan or other instructional improvement.

Eligible teachers in Stage II of the Rolla School District shall have the following:

1. Completed three (3) years of teaching experience in Missouri public schools.
2. Completed the required beginning teacher assistance program and participated in two (2) years of mentoring (section 168.400.4 RSMo)
3. Performed at an acceptable level or above on all criteria on the most recent final evaluation instrument of the performance-based teacher evaluation process. The local evaluation process must be fully aligned to the Essential Principles of Effective Evaluation (5 CSR 20-400.375).
4. Be serving on not less than a regular length full time contract.
5. Appropriate certification in the subject area for each teacher.
6. Developed a R.I.S.E./Career Ladder Development Plan (CDP) that contains responsibilities or volunteer efforts that the educator will assume in order to receive his/her R.I.S.E./Career Ladder supplemental pay. The educator will complete one or more responsibilities or volunteer efforts between June 1 - May 31. The district shall ensure that a minimum of seventy-five (75) clock hours are completed for Stage II. The district shall ensure that a minimum of seventy-five (75) clock hours are completed for Stage II and these hours be completed outside the duties that require a teaching certificate under section 168.021 RSMo. This requirement should coincide with the standard* and be commensurate and adjustable to the compensation offered for Stage II. The educator shall relate each responsibility to an identified plan or other instructional improvement.

Eligible teachers in Stage III of the Rolla School District shall have the following:

1. Completed five (5) years of teaching experience in Missouri public schools.
2. Completed the required beginning teacher assistance program and participated in two (2) years of mentoring (section 168.400.4 RSMo)
3. Performed at an acceptable level or above on all criteria on the most recent final evaluation instrument of the performance -based teacher evaluation process. The local evaluation process must be fully aligned to the Essential Principles of Effective Evaluation (5 CSR 20 -400.375).
4. Be serving on not less than a regular length full time contract.
5. Appropriate certification in the subject area for each teacher.
6. Developed a R.I.S.E./Career Ladder Development Plan (CDP) that contains responsibilities or volunteer efforts that the educator will assume in order to receive his/her R.I.S.E./Career Ladder supplemental pay. The educator will complete one or more responsibilities or volunteer efforts between June 1 - May 31. The district shall ensure that a minimum of one hundred (100) clock hours are completed for Stage III. The district shall ensure that a minimum of one hundred (100) clock hours are completed for Stage III and these hours be completed outside the duties that require a teaching certificate under section 168.021 RSMo. This requirement should coincide with the standard* and be commensurate and adjustable to the compensation offered for Stage III. The educator shall relate each responsibility to an identified plan or other instructional improvement.

Eligible teachers may elect to participate in any stage for which they meet the required elements. 

Responsibilities/Volunteer Efforts

Eligible teachers participating in the R.I.S.E./Career Ladder Grant Program of the Rolla School District shall complete a minimum of clock hours in one or more responsibilities or volunteer efforts. Rolla School District teachers will complete:

• At least fifty (50) clock hours for those teachers in Stage I
• At least seventy-five (75) clock hours for those teachers in Stage II
• At least one hundred (100) clock hours for those teachers in Stage III

Rolla School district teachers participating in the R.I.S.E./Career Ladder Grant Program shall complete a minimum of the required hours on responsibilities or voluntary efforts in at least one of the following areas. Hours must be tracked within these categories on the teacher Career Development Plan. 

• Serving as a coach, supervisor, or organizer of any extracurricular activities for which the teacher does not already receive additional compensation
• Serving as a mentor for students, whether in a formal or informal capacity
• Providing high-quality tutoring or additional learning opportunities to students
  • Required Minimum Hours
    • Stage I: 10 hours
    • Stage II: 15 hours
    • Stage III: 20 hours
• Assisting students with postsecondary education preparation including, but not limited to, teaching an ACT or SAT preparation course or assisting students with completing college or career school admission or financial assistance applications
• Other (with a description of how this teacher’s responsibility or voluntary effort directly and obviously relates to the improvement of programs and services for students as outlined in the District School Improvement Plan, Curriculum Development Plan, Professional Development Plan, Missouri School Improvement Program or instructional improvement).

Plan Development

The Rolla School District teachers selected five teachers, two building level administrators, two parents, and two central office personnel to serve on a working group that developed the Rolla School District’s DCLP. This working group gathered Present Feedback on the draft of the DCLP and made appropriate revisions before it was presented to the local school board for approval.

CAREER LADDER REVIEW COMMITTEE

1. Function of Career Ladder Review Committee (CLRC)

The function of the CLRC will be to review teacher-submitted Career Ladder plans by evaluating these plans in comparison to district-established, state-approved criteria.  The CLRC will then approve each implementation plan (or suggest revisions) and will approve the final completion of each plan for payment.

2. Composition of the Committee

The CLRC will consist of 18 teachers:  two from each of the three elementary schools, RTI, RTC, and the junior high, three from the middle school and high school, and two administrators (one from K-8 and one from grade 9-Vocational).  

3. Committee Selection

The administrators will be appointed by the Board of Education.  The certificated staff of each building will elect teachers serving on the CLRC for a term of two years with eight teachers, one from each building.  Each year anyone wishing to serve on the CLRC may submit his/her name to the building principal, and elections will be held within each building.  Mid-term vacancies will be filled by building elections to serve the unexpired terms.

4. Committee Organization

The committee shall elect the chairman of the CLRC.  If necessary, the committee may be divided into subcommittees to facilitate the review of teachers’ career ladder plans.  Each subcommittee must have at least two members from a different building than the teacher being reviewed.  The chairman shall assign teacher-submitted Career Ladder plans to the subcommittees and maintain an active file on all Career Ladder plans in effect.  The committee chairman may use the staff in the superintendent’s office for clerical duties.

The CLRC will meet as often as necessary to approve the submitted Career Ladder plans and to determine if the plans have been completed satisfactorily.  A simple majority will constitute a quorum at all meetings.

5. Planning Workshop

The CLRC will conduct a Career Ladder Planning Workshop in April of the first year for teachers who intend to participate in the program for the following school year.  Every year after that, the workshop will be conducted in April when necessary.

Career Ladder Committee Review Calendar

23-24 School Year

Assessment

The Rolla School District will utilize the District Central Office Advisory Committee as an assessment committee. This committee consists of educators, administrators and patrons. This committee will annually assess the success of the DCLP. They will report to the board each year at the regular June board meeting regarding the benefits for school and students, and teacher interest and participation. In addition, the Rolla School District will report data on their R.I.S.E./Career Ladder Grant Program to

the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education upon request. Information reported to the department upon request may include but not be limited to:

1. Total number of teachers participating at each stage
2. Total state contribution
3. Total local contribution
4. Total hours of teacher participation in these categories
   1. Serving as a coach, supervisor, or organizer of any extracurricular activities for which the teacher does not already receive additional compensation
   2. Serving as a mentor for students, whether in a formal or informal capacity
   3. Providing high quality tutoring or additional learning opportunities to students
   4. Assisting students with postsecondary education preparation including, but not limited to, teaching an ACT or SAT preparation course or assisting students with completing college or career school admission or financial assistance applications
   5. Other (with description of how this responsibility or voluntary effort directly and obviously relates to the improvement of programs and services for students as outlined in the District School Improvement Plan, Curriculum Development Plan, Professional Development Plan, Missouri School Improvement Program or instructional improvement)
5. Overall annual retention rates of participating teachers

Appeals

Any Rolla 31 School District educator who is denied participation in the R.I.S.E./Career Ladder Program due to a determination from the performance-based evaluation process or a determination that they have not met the requirements for participation will have the option to appeal that determination. The appeal procedure shall include:

1. An opportunity to have the decision reviewed by the superintendent of schools of the Rolla School District; and
2. An opportunity to have the decision rendered by the superintendent reviewed by the local board of education for the Rolla 31 School District.

Appeal procedures shall be implemented in a timely fashion. All decisions made with respect to a teacher's application to and placement on any stage of the R.I.S.E./Career Ladder shall be based on the qualifications for that stage as stated in this Rolla 31 School District R.I.S.E./Career Ladder Plan.

Teaching Experience and Application

An educator entering the Rolla 31 School District may apply to participate on any R.I.S.E./Career Ladder stage for which he/she is qualified based on total years of experience in a Missouri public school.

* The R.I.S.E./Career Ladder Grant Program Standard is:

The minimum number of responsibilities or volunteer efforts and the minimum number of clock hours must be met for a teacher to be eligible under the R.I.S.E./Career Ladder Grant Program.