4120 - EMPLOYMENT OF SUPPORT STAFF

Greater Clark County School Corporation

Bylaws & Policies

4120 - EMPLOYMENT OF SUPPORT STAFF

The School Board recognizes that it is vital to the successful operation of the Corporation that positions created by the Superintendent be filled with qualified and competent staff.

The Board shall approve the employment and establish the term of employment for each support staff member employed by this Corporation.

All support staff employees not covered by the terms of a negotiated agreement are "at-will" employees. Their employment can be terminated with or without cause at any time. No other representative of the Corporation has the authority to enter into any agreement for employment for any specified period of time with a support staff employee.

All non-certificated staff except those listed in the Certified Administrators/Classified Directors Fringe Benefits Document shall be considered members of the support staff:

All applications for employment shall be referred to the Human Resources Department.

Relatives of Board members may be employed by the Board, provided the member of the Board involved does not participate in any way in the discussion or vote on the employment.

The Board will not employ (but may reemploy) the children, siblings, spouse, parents, in-laws, or bona fide dependents of:

	A.	a Board member.

	B.	a regular full-time support staff member.

Should the Board choose to employ a family member as herein defined, both the family member and the Board member must file a conflict of interest statement.

Any support staff member's intentional misstatement of fact material to his/her qualifications for employment or the determination of salary shall be considered by this Board to constitute grounds for dismissal.

Relatives of staff members may be employed by the Board, provided the staff member being employed is not placed in a position in which s/he would be supervised by the relative staff member.

When appropriate, no candidate for employment as a support staff member shall receive recommendation for such employment without having proffered visual evidence of his/her certification or pending application for certification.

The Superintendent may prepare administrative guidelines for the recruitment and selection of all support staff.

VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS

If a staff member is a volunteer firefighter and has notified the School Corporation in writing that s/he is a volunteer firefighter, the School Corporation may not discipline the staff member for:

	A.	being absent from duty by reason of responding to a fire or emergency call that was received prior to the time the staff member was to report to duty;

	B.	leaving his/her duty station to respond to a fire or an emergency call if s/he has prior authorization from his/her supervisor to leave duty in response to a call received after s/he has reported to work;

		However, when an emergency call is received while the staff member is on duty, the staff member should notify the principal before leaving so coverage for his/her class can be arranged.

	C.	an injury or being absent from work because of an injury that occurs while the staff member is engaged in emergency firefighting or other emergency response, provided the staff member's absence from work due to each instance of emergency firefighting activity or other emergency response does not exceed six (6) months from the date of injury.

The Corporation shall require that the staff member present a written statement from the officer in charge of the volunteer fire department at the time of the absence indicating the staff member was engaged in an emergency call at the time of his/her absence.

The Corporation shall require that the staff member who was injured while engaged in emergency firefighting or other emergency response provide evidence from a physician or other medical authority showing treatment for the injury at the time of his/her absence and a connection between the injury and the employee's emergency response activities. Any such evidence shall be retained in a separate medical file created for the staff member and treated as a confidential medical record.

REQUIREMENTS FOR TITLE I PARAPROFESSIONALS

Newly hired paraprofessionals – All paraprofessionals hired for a Title I supported program must have a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent and one of the following:

A.	Completed two (2) years study at an institution of higher education; or

B.	Obtained at least an associates degree; or

C.	Met a rigorous standard of quality and demonstrate through formal State or local academic assessment:

	1.	knowledge of and the ability to assist in instructing, reading, writing, and mathematics; or

	2.	knowledge of and the ability to assist in instructing, reading readiness, writing readiness, and mathematics readiness, as appropriate.

Existing paraprofessionals - All current paraprofessionals working for a Title I supported program must:

	A.	have a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent;

	B.	not later than January 8, 2006, meet the requirements for newly hired paraprofessionals as described above.

Exceptions – These requirements do not apply to a paraprofessional:

	A.	who is proficient in English and a second language and serves as a translator primarily to enhance the participation of children in Title I programs; or

	B.	whose duties consist solely of conducting parental involvement activities.

Paraprofessional duties – Paraprofessionals working for a Title I supported program may be assigned to:

	A.	provide one-on-one tutoring for eligible students during times when the teacher would not otherwise be instructing the student;

	B.	assist with classroom management, such as organizing instructional and other materials;

	C.	provide assistance in a computer laboratory;

	D.	provide support in a library or media center;

	E.	conduct parental involvement activities;

	F.	act as a translator;

	G.	provide instructional services to students, if working under the direct supervision of a teacher;

	H.	perform limited duties beyond classroom instruction or that do not benefit program participants, so long as those duties are also assigned to non-Title I paraprofessionals. Title I paraprofessionals may not be assigned to more of these duties, proportional to their total work time, than the amount assigned to similar non-Title I paraprofessionals in the same school.

I.C. 20-26-5-4, 20-26-9-12, 35-44.1-1-4, 36-8-12-10.5
20 U.S.C. 6319