School board approves many merit-pay plans

A few districts and/or charter schools simply stated in their plan that they are still working on their plan. "That is a plan," Shumway said. "It's a plan to plan."

Many of the performance-based compensation plans are a mix of elements. Some rely on test data. Others include teacher assessments such as surveys from parents and students, as well as a principal's judgment. Some of the plans are "extremely impressive" and it is evident there was a lot of thought put into them, said board member Debra Roberts of Beaver.

Some of the plans are 30 to 40 pages long. Others consist of one page.

The requirements included listing who is eligible, the criteria for extra pay and how it will be assessed. Some of the plans designate merit-based pay only for teachers, others include classified personnel. A total of six districts and 24 charter schools are limiting their plans to teachers only.

The Legislature earmarked $20 million in one-time funding for the compensation plans. The money is to be doled out to districts and charter schools based on enrollment.

If all districts and charter schools in the state applied, the funding would amount to $36.33 per pupil, according to USOE.

How much of this would a teacher get? It depends, said board member Mark Cluff of Alpine. "It varies," he said.

For example, Park City School District's plan is for a pilot program in only two of its schools, in order to make the amount sizable for its experiment. The district has an enrollment of approximately 4,300.

In general, the average merit-based pay in any district or charter school could be about $500 for a teacher, board members said.

Thirty-seven of the plan applications were from school districts while 50 were from charter schools.

Three districts, Daggett, Tintic and Uintah, are not participating. And more than a dozen charter schools are not participating, including AMES, Beehive Science and Technology Academy, Da Vinci Academy, Guadalupe School, Itineris Early College High School, John Hancock Academy, Karl G. Maeser Preparatory Academy, Moab School, Monticello Academy, Navigator Pointe Academy, NUAMES, Ranches Academy, Rockwell High School, Soldier Hollow School, Spectrum Academy, Timpanogos Academy and Uintah River High School.

In April, the merit-based pay program was presented to the board and passed after first and second readings. The rule was then adopted on the third reading in May. A USOE state office staff committee assigned by the board spent the past few days reviewing the plans.

Reports of each district and charter school in the state are available at www.schools.utah.gov/board/otpbcp/

Legislators aim to review and comment on the plans in August.

The board also agreed Thursday to request USOE state office staff to develop guidelines to evaluate and offer feedback regarding outcomes of the experiment. This information could be offered to the legislature recommendation on what works and what doesn't.

The board was in joint meetings Thursday with higher education officials, legislative committees concerned with education and representatives of Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.

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