Schools for Excellence
The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards has been awarded a five-year Teacher Incentive Fund grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The grant – Schools for Excellence – is designed to:
- Improve student achievement by increasing teacher and principal effectiveness;
- Reform teacher and principal compensation systems so that teachers and principals are rewarded for increases in student achievement;
- Increase the number of effective teachers teaching poor, minority and disadvantaged students in hard-to-staff subjects; and
- Create sustainable performance-based compensation systems.
NBPTS Partnership with Richmond, VA and Maine
NBPTS has partnered with Richmond Public Schools, VA, that includes nine Title I, urban hard-to-staff schools. Maine Department of Education is a second program site with five rural districts and 15 schools.
Performance-Based Compensation
Year One is dedicated to planning that engages local steering committees in designing local Performance Based Compensation Systems (PBCS). The PBCS is comprised of five required components:
- A rigorous, transparent and fair teacher and principal evaluation using observation-based assessments and student achievement data;
- Differentiated effectiveness incentives for additional responsibilities and leadership;
- Targeted needs-based professional development;
- A data-management system that gives significant weight to student growth and other supplemental measures; and
- Strategy for communicating and sharing information about the design and use of the PBCS.
During the remaining four years, NBPTS, with its district and school-based partners, will implement the PBCS that rewards, at differentiated levels, teachers and principals who demonstrate their effectiveness through improved student achievement. Additionally, NBPTS and partners will implement strategies for attracting, retaining and strengthening the educator workforce within these challenging school environments. Among them in Year Two, all staff will participate in Take One!–professional development based on one of the ten components of the National Board Certification process. In Year Three, principals may pursue National Board Certification for Principals.
Measuring Success
The Schools for Excellence initiative success will be measured by four criteria:
- The district has a PBCS in place that is sustainable beyond the grant;
- High-quality professional development is provided for teachers and principals through NBPTS training;
- Staff are recruited and turnover is limited in hard-to-staff schools and subjects; and
- The number (or percentage) of teachers and principals who received an incentive payment based on student achievement results.
Contact Us
For information, contact Wendy Russell, Project Administrator at wrussell@nbpts.org