Illinois 2023-2024 Regular Session

Illinois Senate Bill SB1569 Latest Draft

Bill / Introduced Version Filed 02/08/2023

                            103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB1569 Introduced 2/8/2023, by Sen. Kimberly A. Lightford SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:   105 ILCS 5/24-11 from Ch. 122, par. 24-11   Amends the Employment of Teachers Article of the School Code. Provides that if an employing board determines to dismiss any teacher who currently holds a summative evaluation rating of "Proficient" or "Excellent" during the probationary period (instead of determines to dismiss a teacher in the last year of a specified probationary period), the employing board must provide a written notice for dismissal with specific reasons for dismissal. Provides that any full-time teacher who does not receive written notice from the employing board at least 45 days before the end of any school term and whose performance does not require dismissal (instead of whose performance does not require dismissal after the fourth probationary year) shall be re-employed for the following school term. Effective immediately.  LRB103 25984 RJT 52338 b   A BILL FOR 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB1569 Introduced 2/8/2023, by Sen. Kimberly A. Lightford SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:  105 ILCS 5/24-11 from Ch. 122, par. 24-11 105 ILCS 5/24-11 from Ch. 122, par. 24-11 Amends the Employment of Teachers Article of the School Code. Provides that if an employing board determines to dismiss any teacher who currently holds a summative evaluation rating of "Proficient" or "Excellent" during the probationary period (instead of determines to dismiss a teacher in the last year of a specified probationary period), the employing board must provide a written notice for dismissal with specific reasons for dismissal. Provides that any full-time teacher who does not receive written notice from the employing board at least 45 days before the end of any school term and whose performance does not require dismissal (instead of whose performance does not require dismissal after the fourth probationary year) shall be re-employed for the following school term. Effective immediately.  LRB103 25984 RJT 52338 b     LRB103 25984 RJT 52338 b   A BILL FOR
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB1569 Introduced 2/8/2023, by Sen. Kimberly A. Lightford SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
105 ILCS 5/24-11 from Ch. 122, par. 24-11 105 ILCS 5/24-11 from Ch. 122, par. 24-11
105 ILCS 5/24-11 from Ch. 122, par. 24-11
Amends the Employment of Teachers Article of the School Code. Provides that if an employing board determines to dismiss any teacher who currently holds a summative evaluation rating of "Proficient" or "Excellent" during the probationary period (instead of determines to dismiss a teacher in the last year of a specified probationary period), the employing board must provide a written notice for dismissal with specific reasons for dismissal. Provides that any full-time teacher who does not receive written notice from the employing board at least 45 days before the end of any school term and whose performance does not require dismissal (instead of whose performance does not require dismissal after the fourth probationary year) shall be re-employed for the following school term. Effective immediately.
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A BILL FOR
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1  AN ACT concerning education.
2  Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3  represented in the General Assembly:
4  Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section
5  24-11 as follows:
6  (105 ILCS 5/24-11) (from Ch. 122, par. 24-11)
7  Sec. 24-11. Boards of Education - Boards of School
8  Inspectors - Contractual continued service.
9  (a) As used in this and the succeeding Sections of this
10  Article:
11  "Teacher" means any or all school district employees
12  regularly required to be licensed under laws relating to the
13  licensure of teachers.
14  "Board" means board of directors, board of education, or
15  board of school inspectors, as the case may be.
16  "School term" means that portion of the school year, July
17  1 to the following June 30, when school is in actual session.
18  "Program" means a program of a special education joint
19  agreement.
20  "Program of a special education joint agreement" means
21  instructional, consultative, supervisory, administrative,
22  diagnostic, and related services that are managed by a special
23  educational joint agreement designed to service 2 or more

 

103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB1569 Introduced 2/8/2023, by Sen. Kimberly A. Lightford SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
105 ILCS 5/24-11 from Ch. 122, par. 24-11 105 ILCS 5/24-11 from Ch. 122, par. 24-11
105 ILCS 5/24-11 from Ch. 122, par. 24-11
Amends the Employment of Teachers Article of the School Code. Provides that if an employing board determines to dismiss any teacher who currently holds a summative evaluation rating of "Proficient" or "Excellent" during the probationary period (instead of determines to dismiss a teacher in the last year of a specified probationary period), the employing board must provide a written notice for dismissal with specific reasons for dismissal. Provides that any full-time teacher who does not receive written notice from the employing board at least 45 days before the end of any school term and whose performance does not require dismissal (instead of whose performance does not require dismissal after the fourth probationary year) shall be re-employed for the following school term. Effective immediately.
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A BILL FOR

 

 

105 ILCS 5/24-11 from Ch. 122, par. 24-11



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1  school districts that are members of the joint agreement.
2  "PERA implementation date" means the implementation date
3  of an evaluation system for teachers as specified by Section
4  24A-2.5 of this Code for all schools within a school district
5  or all programs of a special education joint agreement.
6  (b) This Section and Sections 24-12 through 24-16 of this
7  Article apply only to school districts having less than
8  500,000 inhabitants.
9  (c) Any teacher who is first employed as a full-time
10  teacher in a school district or program prior to the PERA
11  implementation date and who is employed in that district or
12  program for a probationary period of 4 consecutive school
13  terms shall enter upon contractual continued service in the
14  district or in all of the programs that the teacher is legally
15  qualified to hold, unless the teacher is given written notice
16  of dismissal by certified mail, return receipt requested, by
17  the employing board at least 45 days before the end of any
18  school term within such period.
19  (d) For any teacher who is first employed as a full-time
20  teacher in a school district or program on or after the PERA
21  implementation date, the probationary period shall be one of
22  the following periods, based upon the teacher's school terms
23  of service and performance, before the teacher shall enter
24  upon contractual continued service in the district or in all
25  of the programs that the teacher is legally qualified to hold,
26  unless the teacher is given written notice of dismissal by

 

 

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1  certified mail, return receipt requested, by the employing
2  board at least 45 days before the end of any school term within
3  such period:
4  (1) 4 consecutive school terms of service in which the
5  teacher receives overall annual evaluation ratings of at
6  least "Proficient" in the last school term and at least
7  "Proficient" in either the second or third school term;
8  (2) 3 consecutive school terms of service in which the
9  teacher receives 3 overall annual evaluations of
10  "Excellent"; or
11  (3) 2 consecutive school terms of service in which the
12  teacher receives 2 overall annual evaluations of
13  "Excellent" service, but only if the teacher (i)
14  previously attained contractual continued service in a
15  different school district or program in this State, (ii)
16  voluntarily departed or was honorably dismissed from that
17  school district or program in the school term immediately
18  prior to the teacher's first school term of service
19  applicable to the attainment of contractual continued
20  service under this subdivision (3), and (iii) received, in
21  his or her 2 most recent overall annual or biennial
22  evaluations from the prior school district or program,
23  ratings of at least "Proficient", with both such ratings
24  occurring after the school district's or program's PERA
25  implementation date. For a teacher to attain contractual
26  continued service under this subdivision (3), the teacher

 

 

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1  shall provide official copies of his or her 2 most recent
2  overall annual or biennial evaluations from the prior
3  school district or program to the new school district or
4  program within 60 days from the teacher's first day of
5  service with the new school district or program. The prior
6  school district or program must provide the teacher with
7  official copies of his or her 2 most recent overall annual
8  or biennial evaluations within 14 days after the teacher's
9  request. If a teacher has requested such official copies
10  prior to 45 days after the teacher's first day of service
11  with the new school district or program and the teacher's
12  prior school district or program fails to provide the
13  teacher with the official copies required under this
14  subdivision (3), then the time period for the teacher to
15  submit the official copies to his or her new school
16  district or program must be extended until 14 days after
17  receipt of such copies from the prior school district or
18  program. If the prior school district or program fails to
19  provide the teacher with the official copies required
20  under this subdivision (3) within 90 days from the
21  teacher's first day of service with the new school
22  district or program, then the new school district or
23  program shall rely upon the teacher's own copies of his or
24  her evaluations for purposes of this subdivision (3).
25  If the teacher does not receive overall annual evaluations
26  of "Excellent" in the school terms necessary for eligibility

 

 

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1  to achieve accelerated contractual continued service in
2  subdivisions (2) and (3) of this subsection (d), the teacher
3  shall be eligible for contractual continued service pursuant
4  to subdivision (1) of this subsection (d). If, at the
5  conclusion of 4 consecutive school terms of service that count
6  toward attainment of contractual continued service, the
7  teacher's performance does not qualify the teacher for
8  contractual continued service under subdivision (1) of this
9  subsection (d), then the teacher shall not enter upon
10  contractual continued service and shall be dismissed. If a
11  performance evaluation is not conducted for any school term
12  when such evaluation is required to be conducted under Section
13  24A-5 of this Code, then the teacher's performance evaluation
14  rating for such school term for purposes of determining the
15  attainment of contractual continued service shall be deemed
16  "Proficient", except that, during any time in which the
17  Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health
18  emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency
19  Management Agency Act, this default to "Proficient" does not
20  apply to any teacher who has entered into contractual
21  continued service and who was deemed "Excellent" on his or her
22  most recent evaluation. During any time in which the Governor
23  has declared a disaster due to a public health emergency
24  pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency Management
25  Agency Act and unless the school board and any exclusive
26  bargaining representative have completed the performance

 

 

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1  rating for teachers or mutually agreed to an alternate
2  performance rating, any teacher who has entered into
3  contractual continued service, whose most recent evaluation
4  was deemed "Excellent", and whose performance evaluation is
5  not conducted when the evaluation is required to be conducted
6  shall receive a teacher's performance rating deemed
7  "Excellent". A school board and any exclusive bargaining
8  representative may mutually agree to an alternate performance
9  rating for teachers not in contractual continued service
10  during any time in which the Governor has declared a disaster
11  due to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the
12  Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, as long as the
13  agreement is in writing.
14  (e) For the purposes of determining contractual continued
15  service, a school term shall be counted only toward attainment
16  of contractual continued service if the teacher actually
17  teaches or is otherwise present and participating in the
18  district's or program's educational program for 120 days or
19  more, provided that the days of leave under the federal Family
20  Medical Leave Act that the teacher is required to take until
21  the end of the school term shall be considered days of teaching
22  or participation in the district's or program's educational
23  program. A school term that is not counted toward attainment
24  of contractual continued service shall not be considered a
25  break in service for purposes of determining whether a teacher
26  has been employed for 4 consecutive school terms, provided

 

 

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1  that the teacher actually teaches or is otherwise present and
2  participating in the district's or program's educational
3  program in the following school term.
4  (f) If the employing board determines to dismiss any the
5  teacher who currently holds a summative evaluation rating of
6  "Proficient" or "Excellent" during in the last year of the
7  probationary period as provided in subsection (c) of this
8  Section or subdivision (1) or (2) of subsection (d) of this
9  Section, but not subdivision (3) of subsection (d) of this
10  Section, the written notice of dismissal provided by the
11  employing board must contain specific reasons for dismissal.
12  Any full-time teacher who does not receive written notice from
13  the employing board at least 45 days before the end of any
14  school term as provided in this Section and whose performance
15  does not require dismissal after the fourth probationary year
16  pursuant to subsection (d) of this Section shall be
17  re-employed for the following school term.
18  (g) Contractual continued service shall continue in effect
19  the terms and provisions of the contract with the teacher
20  during the last school term of the probationary period,
21  subject to this Act and the lawful regulations of the
22  employing board. This Section and succeeding Sections do not
23  modify any existing power of the board except with respect to
24  the procedure of the discharge of a teacher and reductions in
25  salary as hereinafter provided. Contractual continued service
26  status shall not restrict the power of the board to transfer a

 

 

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1  teacher to a position which the teacher is qualified to fill or
2  to make such salary adjustments as it deems desirable, but
3  unless reductions in salary are uniform or based upon some
4  reasonable classification, any teacher whose salary is reduced
5  shall be entitled to a notice and a hearing as hereinafter
6  provided in the case of certain dismissals or removals.
7  (h) If, by reason of any change in the boundaries of school
8  districts, by reason of a special education cooperative
9  reorganization or dissolution in accordance with Section
10  10-22.31 of this Code, or by reason of the creation of a new
11  school district, the position held by any teacher having a
12  contractual continued service status is transferred from one
13  board to the control of a new or different board, then the
14  contractual continued service status of the teacher is not
15  thereby lost, and such new or different board is subject to
16  this Code with respect to the teacher in the same manner as if
17  the teacher were its employee and had been its employee during
18  the time the teacher was actually employed by the board from
19  whose control the position was transferred.
20  (i) The employment of any teacher in a program of a special
21  education joint agreement established under Section 3-15.14,
22  10-22.31 or 10-22.31a shall be governed by this and succeeding
23  Sections of this Article. For purposes of attaining and
24  maintaining contractual continued service and computing length
25  of continuing service as referred to in this Section and
26  Section 24-12, employment in a special educational joint

 

 

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1  program shall be deemed a continuation of all previous
2  licensed employment of such teacher for such joint agreement
3  whether the employer of the teacher was the joint agreement,
4  the regional superintendent, or one of the participating
5  districts in the joint agreement.
6  (j) For any teacher employed after July 1, 1987 as a
7  full-time teacher in a program of a special education joint
8  agreement, whether the program is operated by the joint
9  agreement or a member district on behalf of the joint
10  agreement, in the event of a reduction in the number of
11  programs or positions in the joint agreement in which the
12  notice of dismissal is provided on or before the end of the
13  2010-2011 school term, the teacher in contractual continued
14  service is eligible for employment in the joint agreement
15  programs for which the teacher is legally qualified in order
16  of greater length of continuing service in the joint
17  agreement, unless an alternative method of determining the
18  sequence of dismissal is established in a collective
19  bargaining agreement. For any teacher employed after July 1,
20  1987 as a full-time teacher in a program of a special education
21  joint agreement, whether the program is operated by the joint
22  agreement or a member district on behalf of the joint
23  agreement, in the event of a reduction in the number of
24  programs or positions in the joint agreement in which the
25  notice of dismissal is provided during the 2011-2012 school
26  term or a subsequent school term, the teacher shall be

 

 

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1  included on the honorable dismissal lists of all joint
2  agreement programs for positions for which the teacher is
3  qualified and is eligible for employment in such programs in
4  accordance with subsections (b) and (c) of Section 24-12 of
5  this Code and the applicable honorable dismissal policies of
6  the joint agreement.
7  (k) For any teacher employed after July 1, 1987 as a
8  full-time teacher in a program of a special education joint
9  agreement, whether the program is operated by the joint
10  agreement or a member district on behalf of the joint
11  agreement, in the event of the dissolution of a joint
12  agreement, in which the notice to teachers of the dissolution
13  is provided during the 2010-2011 school term, the teacher in
14  contractual continued service who is legally qualified shall
15  be assigned to any comparable position in a member district
16  currently held by a teacher who has not entered upon
17  contractual continued service or held by a teacher who has
18  entered upon contractual continued service with a shorter
19  length of contractual continued service. Any teacher employed
20  after July 1, 1987 as a full-time teacher in a program of a
21  special education joint agreement, whether the program is
22  operated by the joint agreement or a member district on behalf
23  of the joint agreement, in the event of the dissolution of a
24  joint agreement in which the notice to teachers of the
25  dissolution is provided during the 2011-2012 school term or a
26  subsequent school term, the teacher who is qualified shall be

 

 

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1  included on the order of honorable dismissal lists of each
2  member district and shall be assigned to any comparable
3  position in any such district in accordance with subsections
4  (b) and (c) of Section 24-12 of this Code and the applicable
5  honorable dismissal policies of each member district.
6  (l) The governing board of the joint agreement, or the
7  administrative district, if so authorized by the articles of
8  agreement of the joint agreement, rather than the board of
9  education of a school district, may carry out employment and
10  termination actions including dismissals under this Section
11  and Section 24-12.
12  (m) The employment of any teacher in a special education
13  program authorized by Section 14-1.01 through 14-14.01, or a
14  joint educational program established under Section 10-22.31a,
15  shall be under this and the succeeding Sections of this
16  Article, and such employment shall be deemed a continuation of
17  the previous employment of such teacher in any of the
18  participating districts, regardless of the participation of
19  other districts in the program.
20  (n) Any teacher employed as a full-time teacher in a
21  special education program prior to September 23, 1987 in which
22  2 or more school districts participate for a probationary
23  period of 2 consecutive years shall enter upon contractual
24  continued service in each of the participating districts,
25  subject to this and the succeeding Sections of this Article,
26  and, notwithstanding Section 24-1.5 of this Code, in the event

 

 

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1  of the termination of the program shall be eligible for any
2  vacant position in any of such districts for which such
3  teacher is qualified.
4  (Source: P.A. 101-643, eff. 6-18-20; 102-552, eff. 1-1-22;
5  102-854, eff. 5-13-22.)
6  Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
7  becoming law.

 

 

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