Information for Educators

Posted on January 7, 2009

Information For Educators

Registration for Spring Leadership Seminars Begins January 12
FCPS Staff Members Invited to Participate in Jefferson-Overseas Schools Technology Institute, Registration Deadline Is March 13
Applications Now Being Accepted for Spring Custodial Management Training Seminar Program, Deadline Is February 6

National Board for Professional Teaching Standards Information Meeting to Be Held January 8
Tuition Reimbursement Program to Change for Spring Semester
Revamped Donations Web Site Does the Work for You

Registration for Spring Leadership Seminars Begins January 12

Online registration through MyPLT for the spring Leadership Seminars (formerly the Leadership Academy Seminars) begins at 8 a.m. on Monday, January 12. Information about the Leadership Seminars will be available inside the new online publication, PLT COMPASS, which will be posted at http://www.fcps.edu/plt/leadership.htm.

The goal of PLT COMPASS is to provide direction, instruction, and inspiration for current and aspiring school-based, central office, and support administrators; teacher leaders; and school teams within FCPS. Each issue has an overall theme; the theme for the spring issue is Focus on the FCPS Leadership Standards.

For more information, contact Janet Kabel at Janet.Kabel@fcps.edu or 703-204-4013.

FCPS Staff Members Invited to Participate in Jefferson-Overseas Schools Technology Institute, Registration Deadline Is March 13

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology would like to extend an invitation to all FCPS educators to attend or present at this year’s Jefferson-Overseas Schools Technology Institute (JOSTI) conference. TJHSST, in collaboration with the U.S. State Department’s Office of Overseas Schools, hosts this annual five-day technology conference to provide a professional development opportunity for educators and technology support staff members located in their member schools. There will be a special emphasis on virtual learning, highlighting collaborative communities and shared resources with hands-on training for integrating technology across various grade levels and curricula.

The conference will take place June 22-26 at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. Sessions will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Monday-Thursday and 9 a.m. to noon on Friday. TJHSST will be able to accommodate 50 participants from FCPS and 25 recertification points will be awarded for participating in the five-day conference. Administrators, technology staff members, librarians, and teachers are invited to attend.

A registration fee of $100 per person includes lunch daily and an opening dinner Monday night. Registration must be completed through MyPLT (search for JOSTI) before March 13; checks for the registration fee, made payable to TJHSST, should be sent to Barbara Dent, JOSTI conference coordinator, TJHSST.

If you are interested in presenting at this conference, e-mail Robert.Latham@fcps.edu for further information and a proposal form.

Applications Now Being Accepted for Spring Custodial Management Training Seminar Program, Deadline Is February 6

The Management Training Seminar program is being offered this spring to custodians in supervisory roles who demonstrate leadership and the motivation to become successful building supervisors. This series of 12 courses will introduce and/or update participants on proven, effective supervisory practices. Activities will focus on instruction, individual and group discussions, role-playing, case studies, and tape viewing.

Those selected will attend class once a week on Wednesdays, beginning March 4 and continuing through May 27 from 8 to 11:30 a.m. Course registrations are due to the Department of Professional Learning and Training by February 6. The course outline and registration form have been sent to all principals and program managers.

Contact Plant Operations at 703-764-2463 with any questions.

National Board for Professional Teaching Standards Information Meeting to Be Held January 8

A National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) information meeting on the certification process will be held from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, January 8, 2009, in the instruction and professional development (IPD) room at the Fairfax Education Association (FEA) office, located at 3917 Old Lee Highway, Fairfax, VA 22030.

The NBPTS seeks to establish and maintain high and rigorous standards for what accomplished teachers should know and be able to do. A candidate for NBPTS certification undergoes an assessment process that includes four portfolios of the teacher’s work and six assessment center exercises.

NBPTS certification is available in the following fields for secondary teachers: English/language arts, math, science, social studies, career and technical studies, health education, music, foreign language, physical education, and art. Generalist certificates, as well as art, music, and physical education certificates are available for elementary school teachers. Certificates are also available for teachers of students with exceptional needs (students birth to 18+), library media (students 3 to 18+), and for teachers of English as a new language (ages 3 -18+), literacy: reading-language arts (ages 3 -12), and school counseling (ages 3 -18+).

Fairfax County Public Schools has over 300 teachers certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. The Virginia Department of Education and FCPS offer stipends, dependent on budget availability, to teachers who attain NBPTS certification.

If you plan to attend or need additional information about NBPTS, contact Patty Dimetres, FCPS national board program manager, at patricia.dimetres@fcps.edu.

Tuition Reimbursement Program to Change for Spring Semester

The FCPS tuition reimbursement program has changed effective with the spring 2009 semester. Tuition Assistance Regulation 9005 was recently rewritten to establish five priorities for the tuition reimbursement program and to simplify the language. There is also information in the regulation about when and how to apply for tuition reimbursement.

Note: The last date to submit a tuition reimbursement request for coursework completed during summer 2008 and fall 2008 semesters is January 31. After that date, the reimbursement will not be accepted. Also, effective January 31, tuition reimbursement form PLT-250 (10/08) is obsolete and will not be accepted.

Changes to Tuition Reimbursement Eligibility

Within available funds, all FCPS full-time and part-time contracted instructional and support employees, who are eligible for employee benefits, are eligible for tuition reimbursement. The refund shall not exceed the maximum tuition reimbursement amount determined annually by the assistant superintendent of the Department of Professional Learning and Training.

Based on available funding, tuition reimbursement priority shall be given to a contracted employee as follows:

Priority 1: A provisionally licensed instructional employee currently teaching in an FCPS critical field, as identified by the Department of Human Resources each year.
Priority 2: An instructional or support employee enrolled in FCPS-approved coursework to meet the qualifications in a designated critical need area within FCPS;
Priority 3: An instructional employee completing a three-semester-hour college or university course to fulfill the content area requirement for the renewal of his or her five-year renewable Virginia teaching license.
Priority 4: An instructional or support employee completing course work through a regionally accredited college- or university-approved program culminating in an associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree and/or endorsement to meet the qualifications in a designated critical need area within FCPS.
Priority 5: A support employee who is not required to hold a degree for his or her position and is completing: (1) college credit coursework to earn a degree; (2) apprenticeship program courses for a technical trades position designated as a critical need area in FCPS; or (3) certificate programs through the FCPS Adult and Community Education program (up to a maximum of 45 hours of adult education credit per fiscal year).

When to Apply for a Tuition Reimbursement

Tuition reimbursement is now a preapproval process:

The employee will complete the NEW (PLT-905) tuition reimbursement request form located at http://www.fcps.edu/plt/treimbursement.htm and submit the completed application to the Department of Professional Learning and Training during the following time lines:
- Fall semester: mid-August.
- Spring semester: mid-December.
- Summer semester: mid-May.
Upon receipt of the request, the Department of Professional Learning and Training will notify the employee of the approval or denial. Once a tuition reimbursement request is approved, the funds will be held in reserve for the employee.

Requests for tuition reimbursements will not be approved after the last day on which a course meets.

To Receive the Tuition Reimbursement Payment

To receive the reimbursement payment:

Tuition reimbursement payments will be initiated after the approved course has been satisfactorily completed with a grade of “A or B” or “Pass” if a Pass-Fail for a graduate-level course, or “C” or better for a undergraduate course as verified by an unofficial university transcript and/or grade report and proof-of-payment from the college or university.
Grade verification and proof of payment must be received by the Department of Professional Learning and Training within 60 days of course completion.
Tuition reimbursement payments are paid monthly and are included in the employee’s paycheck.

Note: The cost of textbooks, miscellaneous fees, travel, etc., is not reimbursed by the tuition reimbursement program.

Substitutes, hourly paid employees, and employees on leaves of absence are ineligible for tuition reimbursement.

Final determination of an employee’s eligibility for tuition reimbursement shall rest with the assistant superintendent, Department of Professional Learning and Training, or his or her designee.

For questions regarding tuition reimbursement and how to obtain the new tuition reimbursement request form, contact Rita Cloutier, Department of Professional Learning and Training, at 703-204-3905 or rita.cloutier@fcps.edu.

Revamped Donations Web Site Does the Work for You

The FCPS web page at which online visitors can donate goods such as computers, formal wear, or furniture has been revamped to provide users with a more efficient way to donate. The donations web site, found at http://commweb.fcps.edu/donatetofcps, allows users who want to donate goods to FCPS to easily provide their contact information and relevant information about the item(s) that they are donating. FCPS does not accept every donation offered, so the site also offers clear explanations about what items are accepted and includes minimum standards for many items—older model computers for instance.

In short, the new online donations web site makes donating to FCPS easier for donors and staff members by:

Having a one-stop page for donors.
Allowing a donor to select the school that he or she wants the donation to be offered to first.
Directly involving the central administration staff members who help coordinate pickup or delivery, trace donated items through the process, and confirm receipt of the items.
Automatically generating an acknowledgement e-mail and, upon receipt of the donation, another e-mail suitable for tax purposes.
Systematically recording donated items for central office reporting requirements.

The donations web site can also be accessed from the FCPS web site index page under “D” for donations or from the “What Do You Want To Do?” menu under the home page banner.

For more information, contact Jay Garant in the Office of Business and Community Partnerships, Department of Communications and Community Outreach, at 571-423-1225 or jay.garant@fcps.edu.