1. 1 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Educator and School Development Division October 2008

2. 2 The new Vice Principal, made an announcement, over the school intercom "The staff and students would like to congratulate Mr. Green on his forthcoming marriage. Later, when she saw him he thanked her for the special attention. He added, that perhaps, for Junior High school, she should use smaller words. It seems 2 or 3 students had asked him about his 3 earlier marriages.

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4. 4 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Beginning September 2008, random audits will be conducted to verify activities listed on Statements of Assurance.

5. 5 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Three areas of audits will occur: 1. Administrator 2. Teacher 3. HOUSSE

6. 6 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Criteria used to create pool of educators eligible for audits: Certificate Type Administrator 75, 77 Teacher 03, 04, 09, 10 Certificate Level (Standard – for teachers only) Statement of Assurance – Approved during time period September 1, 2007 to August 31, 2008

7. 7 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Based upon the previous criteria 2 pools of educators were identified. 1. Teachers 2. Administrators A statistical formula was applied to each pool, and X number of educators were randomly selected for audit.

8. 8 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Per the plan ISBE has filed with the feds re: NCLB, an audit must also be completed for teachers who claim HOUSSE for HQ status This pool of teachers came from those already identified to be audited for the Statement of Assurance, this is not a new pool.

9. 9 Educator Audits 2008 Timeline January 20 - February 9, 2009 ISBE reviews forms/files from ROEs September 24, 2008 Notices of Intent to Audit mailed by ISBE November 6, 2008 Second Notice of Intent to Audit will be sent by ROEs if no response January 16, 2009 ROEs send Educator Audit Reporting forms & appropriate educator files to ISBE December 1 – January 15, 2009 ROEs complete review of documentation November 28, 2008 Educators must have responded with documentation January 16, 2009 ROEs notify educators of prelim. audit results ROEs retain copies of documentation for one fiscal year September 2008 Educators Identified for Random Audits February 2009 ISBE notifies educators & ROEs of audit results March 2009 ROEs notify educators of opportunity for a hearing before suspension

10. 10 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 STEP 1 ISBE will mail Notices of Intent to Audit to educators on September 24, 2008. These Notices indicate to the educators that a response is due to the ROE by November 28, 2008. (A-1; T-1; NCLB-1)

11. 11 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 The response to the Notice should be the actual documentation to support the educators professional development activities or arrangements to submit the documents to the ROE.

12. 12 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 If the Notice of Intent to Audit is returned to ISBE by the postal service, it will be forwarded to the educators current school district address.

13. 13 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Step 2 If the ROE has not heard from the educator by November 5, the ROE should mail a second Notice of Intent to Audit letter dated November 6, 2008. (A-2; T-2)

14. 14 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 The November 6 letter will indicate that the educators must respond by November 28, 2008. Failure to respond to the audit could result in the suspension of the certificate(s).

15. 15 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 ROEs will generate a second Notice of Intent to Audit letter dated November 6, 2008. (A-2; T-2) ISBE will send a letter (template) electronically allowing the letters to be printed on ROE letterhead and signed by the regional superintendent. This Second Notice will be mailed by the ROE only in the event that there is no response from the first notice sent by ISBE.

16. 16 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Both letters specify the procedures for completing the audit process. Notice of Intent to Audit and the second Notice of Intent to Audit letter

17. 17 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 STEP 3 As ROEs receive the Statements of Assurance and evidence supporting the professional development activities, they will review them and determine if the documentation is acceptable. ROEs may wish to contact the individual educators for clarification of documentation.

18. 18 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Audits are to verify what is listed on the Statement of Assurances. However, documentation for additional activities can be accepted. Educators verified by signature when submitting the Statement of Assurance that they completed activities listed for credit.

19. 19 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 STEP 4 ROEs will complete and send to the Educator and School Development Division at ISBE the completed 2008 ROE Educator (Admin or Teacher or HOUSSE) Audit Reporting Form postmarked no later than January 16, 2009.

20. 20 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 STEP 5 ROEs will notify educators of the outcome of the review using the January 16 letter (template) provided by ISBE. (A-3; T-3; NCLB-2)

21. 21 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 ROEs need not return any documents to the educators. Documentation must be retained by ROEs through the next fiscal year should it be required for due process.

22. 22 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 STEP 6 In February 2009 ISBE will send letters to educators who did not meet minimum requirements informing them of any further action.

23. 23 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Step 7 In March 2009 ROEs will send letters to educators who did not meet minimum requirements informing of their opportunity for a hearing before certificate is suspended.

24. 24 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Any educator who receives Notice of Opportunity for Hearing has 10 days to request a hearing before the ROE. If no hearing is requested, the certificate is suspended for one year.

25. 25 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 If the hearing at the ROE results in the suspension of the certificate, the educator may appeal to the State Teacher Certification Board. That Board may not waive renewal requirements.

26. 26 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Step 9 If the professional development requirements were not met, the educators certificate will be suspended for one year.

27. 27 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Working on a certificate that is not registered is illegal and is a great liability for the school district in many ways. Educators who do not have current valid certificates should not be employed in positions requiring teacher certification.

28. 28 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Administrator Audits

29. 29 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 2007 Administrator Audits 360 administrators were audited 24 reported by ROEs as not meeting requirements 14 received letters allowing additional documentation 7 received Notice of Opportunity for a Hearing 3 requested a hearing 4 administrators administrative certificate(s) suspended

30. 30 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 2008 Administrator Audits 90 administrators being audited 21 ROEs have no audits to conduct 3 ROEs have 10 or more audits to conduct 17 ROEs have 1 or 2 audits to conduct

31. 31 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Review TSR data Review exemption status Include copy of district letter regarding TSR data in audit file (if TSR/exemption status are different)

32. 32 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Determine how many CPD hours are required (can be as few as 10 or as many as 100) List the number of required CPD hours on the administrator audit reporting form

33. 33 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Review SOAs for creditable activities (i.e. a number of approved administrator SOAs contain some activities that are not creditable) Review evidence/paper documentation for SOA activities that appear to be creditable

34. 34 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Ensure that evidence/paper documentation confirms creditable SOA activities (i.e. serving on district committees/teams, reporting to school boards, training teachers or parents, etc. are not creditable – they are considered job duties)

35. 35 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Evidence/documentation should clearly be associated with each specific SOA activity or Evidence/ documentation for activities not listed on SOA (i.e. additional activities administrator completed but did not list)

36. 36 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 List exact number of CPD hours documented on administrator audit reporting form

37. 37 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Teacher Audits

38. 38 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 2007 Teacher Audits 396 teachers were audited 28 reported by ROEs as not meeting requirements 27 received letters allowing additional documentation 14 received Notice of Opportunity for a Hearing 1 requested a hearing (still pending) 13 teachers certificate(s) suspended

39. 39 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 2008 Teacher Audits 94 teachers being audited 26 ROEs have no audits to conduct 2 ROEs have more than 10 audits to conduct 11 ROEs have 1 or 2 audits to conduct

40. 40 Statements of Assurance Electronically submitted Statements will be included with copies of the letters of intent, and these will be mailed by ISBE. Paper statements will not be included but should be on file at the ROE.

41. 41 Evidence of Completion All evidence of completion required is listed in the administrative rules. Subpart J of Part 25 Teachers will receive Teacher Certificate Audit Information, which contains requirements for all evidence of completion

42. 42 Evidence of Completion Teachers have been asked to number the evidence submitted to correspond with their Statement entries.

43. 43 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 Teacher/HOUSSE Audits

44. 44 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 2007 Teacher HOUSSE Audits 125 teachers were audited 30 reported by ROEs as not verifying p.d. 25 entered professional development not related to TSR assignment 5 teachers had HQ HOUSSE data deleted from file - these teachers will be required to move to the HQ status if still in the assignment

45. 45 Educator Certificate Renewal Audits 2008 2008 Teacher HOUSSE Audits 15 teachers being audited 38 ROEs have no audits to conduct 1 ROE has 5 audits to conduct 7 ROEs have 1 or 2 audits to conduct

46. 46 Why Audit for NCLB NCLB requires accountability at both the State and LEA level. DOE will be sending a team to IL this fall to audit the agency and selected school districts. Feds need to know we are making a good faith effort to comply. $600M in aid at stake.

47. 47 ROE NCLB Audits – Why? Many discussions with the Cert Committee of the IARSS concerned the audit responsibility issue. No great pleasure at the thought but acceptance that it must be done. Only 15 NCLB audits across the state.

48. 48 Who Is Audited? Teachers with Standard certificates Who are undergoing renewal audit Who are HQ in a subject(s) through HOUSSE Who have themselves entered the HOUSSE HQ assertion on ECS or who have entries from CPS. HOUSSE on ECS refers to any HQ subject with proof known only to the teacher.

49. 49 How Are Persons Selected? For each renewing teacher selected, the computer will check for those who have indicated they are HQ through HOUSSE. All subjects they have claimed will be listed. Each HOUSSE subject they entered will be audited.

50. 50 What Notice Does the Teacher Receive? Each HQ audited teacher will receive a letter notifying of the audit and listing the HOUSSE subjects for which they must provide proof. They will receive info telling what makes a teacher HQ and they will receive a HOUSSE copy showing what proof satisfies each activity.

51. 51 What Is the Teacher to Provide? The teacher is to provide a copy of the union worksheet for each subject showing the HQ status and supporting documentation indexed to the worksheet. In cases where they have a higher degree in a subject, they need only produce the degree.

52. 52 What Is the Teacher to Provide? An assertion of a major on a transcript can be met by a copy of the transcript showing the major. An aggregate major claim should show the 32 semester hours of content on transcripts (an ElEd major does not count). Tests and Master Certificates will show up on TCIS.

53. 53 What Is the Teacher to Provide? Teaching experience in the subject is demonstrated by a letter from the district superintendent or other appropriate official detailing the experience and duration. Self contained elementary experience applies to all subjects included in the assignment and at all grade levels.

54. 54 NCLB CORE vs State Assignments Being HQ in the federal broad subjects makes you HQ in the subsumed subjects Science: Being HQ in science makes a teacher HQ in all sciences. Reading or language Arts: in Illinois these are both included in Language Arts, so courses count for each. Also Language Arts covers a variety of subjects and if HQ in LA, they are HQ in all assignments.

55. 55 NCLB CORE vs State Assignments Art, theatre/drama and music are separate in Arts; each requires distinct mastery.

56. 56 What to Look For Each HOUSSE subject must have documented proof that the requirement the teacher has claimed has been met. Each HOUSSE activity claimed, including teaching experience, must be directly related to the specific subject for the points to be applied. Use a copy of the rules in Part 25, Appendix D, as a guide to the various means of being HQ at grade level/subject; each HQ audited teacher will get a copy of HOUSSE PD.

57. 57 HOUSSE Examples Assertion of a masters degree in a subject requires proof of the degree. A masters degree in elementary education does not make a K-5 teacher HQ Assertion of coursework requires a transcript showing the credits totaling the claimed points. Equivalent to a major means 32 semester hours in content

58. 58 HOUSSE Examples A teacher with only a bilingual certificate may be considered HQ if they meet the federal requirement: They must have a letter copy or TCIS Q--- approval from ISBE granting them the HQ status for a specific time period and must be within that time period. ESL teachers must be HQ in English If using ESL to teach other content, then HQ in the other content.

59. 59 HOUSSE Examples Certain new special educators and small rural school teachers may also have a letter from ISBE approving them for HQ under federal provisions. The service must be within the time limitations of the approval Also available on TCIS under Q--- approvals.

60. 60 HOUSSE Evaluations Guide: Be liberal- as long as the PD can be confirmed to deal with the subject and is within the requirement, grant it. Do not give Carte Blanche to just any activity.

61. 61 HOUSSE Evaluations If a teacher does not have the proof, they have not met the requirement.

62. 62 HOUSSE Evaluations If a teacher is not HQ after the review, inform the teacher and inform the Educator and School Development Division of the results. The HQ status for that subject will be deleted and the teacher will be required to move to the HQ status if still in the assignment.

63. 63 What Penalties? Teachers who cannot demonstrate they have the 100 points in a subject will be given two years to obtain the points. They can continue to use HOUSSE as long as it is still available. If not, they must use one of the other means provided in law. If it appears that a teacher deliberately attempted to deceive, the door to more severe penalties is opened.

64. 64 NCLB