General Objectives (Not all inclusive)

• Each staff member and teacher shall demonstrate a high level of competence in his or her area of technical responsibility, whether it is administration, counseling, teaching, or other occupation/profession.
• Each staff member and teacher shall demonstrate skills in communicating verbally, in writing, in time management, in leadership, and in stress management; so as to contribute successfully to the goals of the Academies.
• Each staff member and teacher shall appreciate diversity and conduct his or her important duties without discriminating.
• Each staff member and teacher will attain and employ the skills to be successful in the Academies’ technology-rich environment.
• Teachers will have good classroom management techniques and will be able to interpret and take appropriate action on assessment data.
• Each staff member and teacher will understand the many systems such as transportation, food service, supply, academics, counseling, and auxiliary programs to the extent that they can, as appropriate, identify systemic area for overall Academies’ improvement.

The intent of The Academies is to create experts at each school in different areas; one for classroom management, one for assessment, etc. We believe our dollars may be best spent having experts from one school train teachers from all our Academies’ schools.

We plan to have our in-service training conducted by the Academies recognized by the district and state by developing an Academies’ Professional Development Plan in accordance with state guidelines. All professional development we offer will have a component written for it that follows state guidelines. We also understand that any staff development offered by the sponsor is also available to our teachers.

Generally speaking, there are 12 days available to teachers each year that are work days without students present. Of the 12, we will use 4 days for preplanning and two for post planning. The post planning days are those at the end of each semester for computing of grades and general catching up time. The remain six days will be used for in-service training.

New employee induction includes a discussion of job duties, performance expectations, work rules, and company policies. A one-day new employee orientation will be held each August. Attendance is mandatory and the day is considered a workday that is part of the teaching contract.

Orientation to Academies’ policies and procedures is best accomplished through a review of the Employee Handbook, discussing each item with new employees to ensure thorough understanding. A signed statement signifying that the employee has read and understands the rules will become part of the employee’s personnel record. Some of the topics that will be discussed during the new employee orientation are:

• attendance policies
• leave policies and rules
• pay procedures and schedules
• safety and security practices
• employee benefits
• grievance procedures
• dress codes, rules or expectations
• work ethics
• employment documentation and personnel files

Since positive relationships and interface with the Sponsor is critical to the success of Academies’ programs, the new employee orientation will also focus on the school’s role in the district’s educational process, resources available in the local area, interaction with the district personnel, and district policies and procedures applicable to the Academies.

Pre-service training will be conducted one day each August for all employees, including new employees. Attendance is mandatory and the day is considered a workday that is part of the teaching or staff employment contract. The focus of pre-service is the specific position tasks, educational program, and site environment. The objective of pre-service training is to orient the employee to his role prior to the initiation of services. Among the topics to be covered during pre-service are:

• program goals and objectives
• program structure and format
• role and responsibilities of the employee/instructor
• operational guidelines, polices, and procedures
• specific course content
• instructional methodologies, resources, and materials
• flexible, innovative student evaluation
• classroom management strategies
• record keeping and reporting procedures

In-service training is the upgrading and updating of teacher skills. One of the strongest aspects of the school’s learning program will be the teacher’s ability to utilize their instructional expertise to guide the organization and development of the entire school’s academic focus, as well as the strategies to be utilized for individual students. Teachers will meet weekly on Wednesdays for one hour after school to articulate among grade levels, share professional development opportunities and expertise, continually monitor and expand on the academic program, share successful instructional methodologies, and review instructional materials. Teachers will also utilize this joint planning time to organize an instructional schedule, articulate between grade levels, and identify goals and objectives for students. Staff development is the key to success for classroom instruction; teachers will be encouraged to participate in a wide variety of staff development opportunities and sharing their knowledge with the staff through school based learning sessions.

Additionally, six one-day in-service training sessions will be conducted each school year. Attendance is mandatory at the Wednesday sessions and at the six in-service training sessions, and these hours and days are considered workdays that are part of the teaching or staff employment contract. Among the topics to be covered for in-service training are:

• Structuring Your Lesson Plans
• Writing Meaningful Objectives
• Behavior Modification Procedures in Every Classroom
• Aggression Replacement Training
• Academies’ Curriculum Orientation
• Conducting Effective After School Clubs and Activities
• Computer Usage in the Instructional Media Center
• Effective Inclusion Strategies for Special Education Youth
• Contract Compliance
• Assessment and Measuring Student Progress
• End of Year Closing Procedures
• Training Teachers in Technology. There must be effective training and assistance for educators to help them enrich both instruction and student experiences. Technology cannot replace the human “high touch” which will always remain an essential element in the classroom. Teachers must be the leaders in harnessing the power of technology in the classroom. “High tech” will be the teacher’s latest partner in the learning process. All of our staff must have the skills to use the hardware and software that will be available to them. To accomplish this, we will implement both one-on-one technical support and large group training for the faculty and staff. Summer workshops will be conducted incorporating hands on use of technology and curriculum development. Using our video conferencing system, we will be able to participate in staff development initiatives happening at other institutions. In addition, we will continue to seek for grants, which will allow us to expand our offering of off-site staff development programs.

Academies-Choice training will be encouraged, but voluntary. Academies-Choice activities must be done on non-contract time (i.e. evenings, weekends, summer). The Administration will select a variety of staff development materials that could be readings, activities, computer-based materials, seminars, and similar venues for voluntary staff development. Each activity will be assigned a point value. Point values will be consistent with the State of Florida staff development guidelines for accrediting in-service training. Teachers who accumulate 12 Academies-Choice points in a calendar year beginning August 1st will receive a $150 stipend and an Academies certificate.

Teachers also have the opportunity to identify staff development activities on their own, and they may seek approval of these activities from the administration. An activity, when approved, will be assigned a point value. Since staff development is so important to the teaching and learning process, the Academies will seek additional funding support from the Parent-Teacher-Organization to double the stipend.

One way to attain Academies-Choice points will be through “Profiler.” The Profiler was developed by Omaha Public schools, McCrel, the National Science Foundation, and the University of Omaha. It evaluates a teacher’s pedagogy content knowledge and compares it to “Exemplars” and recommends areas of instruction.