On Jan. 10, Zionsville Community Schools was awarded a $787,200 grant for teacher performance pay. This is the second teacher pay grant awarded to ZCS and brings total grants awarded to more than $1.15 million for 2013 and 2014.
Dr. Scott Robison, Supt. of Zionsville Schools, was thrilled with the announcement.
“I am extremely proud of the team members, and their leader, Jenny Froehle, who achieved their goals in seeking outside funding to implement the pay for performance aspect of the new law regarding teacher compensation,” Robison said. “This second grant success in two tries will yield more than a million dollars across two years for teacher merit pay.”
New legislation, passed in 2011, directs how school districts evaluate teachers and assign teacher compensation. Schools could meet the requirements of the new state law regarding teacher evaluation either by adopting the Indiana Dept. of Education’s teacher evaluation model (RISE), adopting another approved national model, or developing a model of their own.
In the fall of 2011, ZCS studied these options and chose to adopt RISE for its initial year under the new law. RISE requires multiple classroom observations and conversations about instruction and assessment data with teachers each year, requiring them to set goals for student achievement and growth on state and locally developed assessments.
A working committee made up of Froehle, Greg McDaniel, Sean Conner, Christine Squier, Matt Mulholland, and Robison was responsible for filing the grant with RISE.
“Thanks to all the members of the ZCS leadership team and teachers who have implemented our new evaluation system with professionalism and a positive attitude,” Froehle said.
This grant was specificially designated by the state for performance pay to augment the teacher merit pay pool and will not affect the general operating budget nor relieve the rainy day or referendum funding.