Introduced Version
House Bill 2500 History
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Key: Green = existing Code. Red = new code to be enacted
H. B. 2500
(By Delegates M. Poling, Paxton and Duke)
[Introduced January 14, 2011; referred to the
Committee on Education then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §18A-4-2a of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to school personnel; salaries,
wages and other benefits; state minimum salary bonus for
classroom teachers with National Board for Professional
Teaching Standards certificate; renewal of certificate;
continuing salary bonus for renewed certificates; providing
for reimbursement of renewal fees; and continuing bonus
eligibility if a classroom teacher accepts employment as
principal or in another school or board level instructional
leadership position.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §18A-4-2a of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 4. SALARIES, WAGES AND OTHER BENEFITS.
§18A-4-2a. State minimum salary bonus for classroom teachers with
national board certification.
(a) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the
rigorous standards and processes for certification by the National
Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) helps to promote
the quality of teaching and learning. Therefore, classroom
teachers in the public schools of West Virginia should be
encouraged to achieve and maintain national board certification
through a reimbursement of expenses and an additional salary bonus
which reflects their additional certification, to be paid in
accordance with the provisions of this section.
(b) (1) $3,500 shall be paid annually to each classroom
teacher who holds a valid certificate issued by the National Board
of Professional Teaching Standards for the life of the
certification, but in no event more than ten years for any one
certification.
(2) $3,500
shall be paid annually to each classroom teacher
who holds a valid renewal certificate issued by the National Board
of Professional Teaching Standards for the life of the renewal
certificate, but in no event more than ten years for any one
renewal certificate.
(c) The payments:
(1) Shall be in addition to any amounts prescribed in the
applicable state minimum salary schedule;
(2) Shall be paid in equal monthly installments; and
(3) Shall be considered a part of the state minimum salaries
for teachers.
(d) For initial certification, one-half the certification fee
shall be paid for reimbursement once to each teacher who enrolls in
the program for the National Board for Professional Teaching
Standards certification and one-half the certification fee shall be
paid for reimbursement once to each teacher who completes the
National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification.
Completion shall be defined as the completion of ten scorable
entries, as verified by the National Board for Professional
Teaching Standards. Teachers who achieve National Board for
Professional Teaching Standards certification may be reimbursed a
maximum of $600 for expenses actually incurred while obtaining the
National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification.
(e) For renewal certification, each teacher who completes the
National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification
renewal process shall be reimbursed for the renewal certification
fee. Completion of the certification renewal process means the
successful renewal of the ten-year NBPTS certification as verified
by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.
__________(e) (f) The state board shall limit the number of teachers who receive the initial reimbursements of the certification fees
are
reimbursed for the first one half of the fee for initial
certification, as
set forth in subsection (d) of this section, to
two hundred teachers annually. The state board shall establish
selection criteria for the teachers by the legislative rule
required pursuant to subsection (g) (i) of this section.
(f) (g) Subject to the provisions of subsection (e) (f) of
this section, funding for reimbursement of the certification fee
and expenses actually incurred while obtaining the National Board
for Professional Teaching Standards certifications shall be
administered by the State Department of Education from an
appropriation established for that purpose by the Legislature. If
funds appropriated by the Legislature to accomplish the purposes of
this subsection are insufficient, the state department shall
prorate the reimbursements for expenses and shall request of the
Legislature, at its next regular session, funds sufficient to
accomplish the purposes of this subsection, including needed
retroactive payments.
(h) A classroom teacher who holds certification by the
National Board for Professional Teaching Standards and accepts
employment as a principal, an assistant principal, or in another
instructional leadership position at either the school or board
level, shall remain eligible for the additional salary bonus for
NBPTS certification for the life of the certificate held.
__________(g) (i) The state board shall promulgate legislative rules
pursuant to article three-b, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code to
implement the provisions of this section.
NOTE: The purpose of the bill is to continue the bonus
eligibility of a classroom teacher who holds a valid renewal
certificate issued by the National Board of Professional Teaching
Standards if that classroom teacher accepts employment as principal
or in another school or board level instructional leadership
position.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.