Evaluations for teachers are proposed again

Erin Neff

Thursday, March 8, 2001 | 10:45 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- The first and second time didn't succeed, but a lawmaker is hoping another stab at teacher evaluation legislation will work this session, thanks to the addition of more than $51 million in state funding.

Assemblyman Bernie Anderson, D-Sparks, introduced a bill Wednesday that would change evaluation requirements and would grant $20 million in each of the next two years to fund merit pay bonuses.

An additional $11 million is earmarked in the bill to give four school districts funding to help improve teaching.

A similar measure, without any of the fiscal impacts, won significant bipartisan support during the 1999 session, passing the Assembly 33-9 and the Senate 19-1.

But Gov. Kenny Guinn vetoed the measure, saying it "inhibits the removal of poor teachers from the classroom and places an undue and potentially substantial burden on school administrators."

Guinn said that while the legislation had good merits, it provided no way for administrators to help teachers improve.

Anderson, a high school government teacher, tried to override the veto earlier this session, but that attempt failed 26-15 in the Assembly, just two votes shy of the needed two-thirds majority.

When Assembly Democrats tried to override the veto, Guinn said he would reconsider teacher evaluation measures if they could address some of his concerns.

"We have a commitment already from the governor to try to come up with another way to address this," Anderson said. "This bill is the vehicle to do that."

Assembly Bill 297 states that any administrator charged with conducting teacher evaluations should personally observe that teacher for at least one hour. Any evaluation should "include a description of the action that will be taken to assist the teacher in correcting any deficiencies reported in the evaluation."

And, upon the teacher's request, "a reasonable effort must be made to assist the teacher to correct those deficiencies reported in the evaluation of the teacher for which the teacher requests assistance."

Anderson's measure requires an additional apportionment for each school year from the state distributive school account. The funding would equal one-half of one percent of the basic support guarantee established for the district for each pupil. Each district would be required to use the money for professional development for teachers.

The Clark County School District would receive $2,4 million for the 2001-02 year and $3 million for the 2002-03 year. The total expenditure for Clark, Douglas, Elko and Washoe counties would be $5.1 million in 2001-02 and just over $6 million in 2002-03.

Anderson's bill also requests a total of $40 million to be transferred from the state's general fun to the distributive school account for merit pay for outstanding teachers. The bill establishes a mechanism for each school district board to develop criteria for determining whether an employee has achieved outstanding development.

Guinn's proposed budget does not include any funding for either of Anderson's proposals. The governor did include $56 million in his proposed budget for a one-time bonus for teachers.

The teachers' union had proposed a 4 percent tax on business profits over $50,000 through an initiative petition to pay for teacher's salaries. The Nevada Supreme Court ruled that petition effort unconstitutional.