Behavior That Makes Us Crazy –Personnel Lessons For Educators That We Learned The Hard Way

Kelley BakerSteve Williamskbaker@hslegalfirm.comswilliams@hslegalfirm.comHarding & Shultz (402) 434-3000

H & S School Law

Document Review Review and compare school

policies, handbooks, contracts, and policies on file with NDE

Evaluation system Review it with teachers at the

beginning of the year Tell teachers what you want

Unprofessional Lips Sink Ships

E-mails Angry comments Sloppy writing “Discriminatory” comments

Be Direct and Clear

Be Direct and Clear Honesty is a sign of respect Speak the truth with love Be direct with criticism

• Don’t sandwich criticism between layers of praise

• Avoid mixed messages

Be Direct and Clear Set standards -- teachers can’t meet

standards without knowing them Write in the first person Avoid the “cliffhanger” evaluation Be consistent The “C” word - Confrontation

But Don’t Expect Gratitude

Avoid Gratuitous Praisepecially in writing

Don’t Inflate Evaluations

Don’t Inflate Evaluations No teacher is perfect A gratuitously glowing evaluation

does not help a teacher improve A “C” is not an “A” You will pay for evaluation inflation

• It makes it difficult to non-renew or terminate a teacher

• It lowers you in the board’s esteem

Don’t Use Cutesy Terms

Don’t Be Cute

Cute Gets You into TroubleDON’T:

• Be sneaky • RIF teachers who should be fired• Say one thing to one person and

another thing to another person

Don’t Ignore Problems

It Doesn’t Make Them Go Away

Don’t ignore:• The bad, creepy, or mean teacher

who is too troublesome to remediate• The teacher whose problems keep

recurring and exhaust you• A bad teacher by hiding her in Title

Post Evaluation Conference

Avoid the “Post-it note” conference Timing Document

Don’t Depend on “Counseling Someone Out”

Counseling Someone Out Distracts your focus Prompts you to avoid developing

necessary evidence Creates evidence of discrimination Leaves an impression of unfairness Getting away with it can be is as

bad as getting caught

Karate Do, Karate Don’t, Karate Maybe -- Squish

Karate Do, Karate Don’t If you do your job:

• A good result is more likely • You make the NSEA’s job easier• You impress the board positively

If you maybe do your job:• You encourage hearings• You impress the board negatively

Deadlines

Deadlines Meet your own deadlines For evaluations:

• Observe all probationary teachers once each semester

• Complete the entire evaluation process during the same semester

• Make the teacher sign the evaluation at the conference

Deadlines Set deadlines for teachers

• Make them reasonable • Enforce them• Do not extend them – “you missed

the deadline, get this done”

Get Your Legal Advice From Your District’s Lawyer

Get Your Legal Advice From Your District’s Lawyer

NOT:• The NSEA• The Department of Education• Nebraska Advocacy Services• Parents • Your conference administrators

And Follow That Advice Issue the reprimand Implement the improvement plan

Don’t Rely on Common Sense

Don’t Rely on Past Practice

SpEd law Negotiations Open Meetings Act Personnel Discrimination

(especially age)

Max the Miracle Man

Miracles Take TimeIt’s easier to work miracles when: You consult with your school

attorney on all personnel matters• Early• Often

Remember, it’s never too late to begin, but earlier is better than later

Be persistent – don’t give in

Don’t Play Doctor

Don’t Play Doctor You are an educator, not a

physician Stick to your area of expertise Focus on job performance Consider an accommodation for a

teacher with a disability A teacher whom you “perceive” as

disabled is protected by the ADA

You’re Not as Tough as You Think

You’re Not as Tough as You Think

Educators often feel that their memos and evaluations are harsh when: They are not The teacher and teacher’s attorney

don’t agree The board doesn’t find them to be

harsh or sufficiently clear

Behavior That Makes Us Crazy –Personnel Lessons For Educators That We Learned The Hard Way

Kelley BakerSteve Williamskbaker@hslegalfirm.comswilliams@hslegalfirm.comHarding & Shultz (402) 434-3000

H & S School Law