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Title I Hiring Requirements for Paraeducators

and

Parental Notification of Teacher and Paraeducator Qualifications

Regional

Technical Assistance Sessions

May 2009

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Findings

The DE DOE has not ensured that its LEAs

• complied with the hiring requirements for instructional paraprofessionals working in Title I schools.

• notified parents of their right to request information regarding the qualifications of their child’s teachers and paraeducators.

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DE DOE Monitoring Response

DOE will

• provide technical assistance and guidance to districts and charter schools

• monitor the permits and assignments of instructional paraeducators

• monitor the parent notifications required of district/charter schools

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What are the hiring requirements?

Instructional paraeducators hired after the enactment of NCLB (January 8, 2002) and working in a program supported with Title I funds must have either:

• Completed at least two years of study at a college/university OR

• Obtained an associate’s degree or higher OR

• Passed an assessment of knowledge of and ability to assist in the instruction of reading, writing, and mathematics. (ParaPro is the test that DE has adopted.)

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What are the hiring requirements?

• Instructional paraeducators hired before the enactment of NCLB (January 8, 2002) and working in a program supported with Title I funds must satisfy the statutory requirements no later than four years after the date of enactment

• These paraeducators had until the last day of the 2005-2006 school year to satisfy the requirement.

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What are the Statutory Citations?

• For instructional paraeducators hired after the enactment date of NCLB: Section 1119 (c)(1)

• For instructional paraeducators hired before the date of enactment: Section 1119(d)

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Which schools must comply with the requirement?

• All Title I schoolwide schools must now employ only those instructional paraeducators who meet the NCLB requirement.

• All targeted assistance Title I schools must now employ only those instructional paraeducators who meet the NCLB requirement if they are working in a program supported with Title I funds.

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What if a school is not in compliance?

• The US ED was clear and direct when it found instructional paraeducators who had not meet the NCLB hiring requirements:

“The DE DOE must … submit to ED documentation of the steps that [the district] has taken to immediately remove the two paraprofessionals not meeting Title I hiring requirements from schools receiving Title I funds.”

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What if a school is not in compliance?

• The district/charter school must immediately remove any instructional paraeducators who do not meet Title I hiring requirements from schools receiving Title I funds.

• The district/charter school may not keep instructional paraeducators in their current position while they are working on meeting the Title I hiring requirements.

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What if a school is not in compliance?

• Districts/charters can move instructional paraeducators not meeting Title I hiring requirements to schools that do not receive Title I funds OR

• Reassign the instructional paraeducators to a service paraeducator role OR

• Release the paraeducator from district/charter school employment.

• During the reassignment, provide support to the paraeducator to meet the NCLB hiring requirements.

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DOE Response

• DOE has contacted districts/charters about instructional paraeducators who do not meet the Title I hiring requirements.

• DOE will continue to query DEEDS to identify additional instructional paraeducators who do not meet the TitleI hiring requirements and will contact district/charter school HR and Title I directors/coordinators/staff when needed.

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District/Charter School Action

• District/charter school HR staff can query DEEDS and contact schools to find the paraeducators not meeting the Title I hiring requirements.

• District/charter school HR staff and Title I directors/coordinators can work together to assure compliance with the Title I hiring requirements.

• Districts/charter schools must hire only those instructional paraeducators who meet the Title I hiring requirements at the time of hire if employment will be in a Title I school.

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Parent Notification

• Districts/charter schools must notify parents of their right to request information about the qualifications of their child’s teachers in a timely manner.

• Also, the notification must state that parents have the right to know if their child is receiving services from paraeducators and if so, their qualifications.

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Parent Notification: Citation

• Section 1111(h)(6)(A) requires that an LEA at the beginning of each school year notify parents of children attending Title I schools that they may request, and the LEA will provide in a timely manner, information regarding the professional qualifications of the student’s classroom teachers:

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Parent Notification: Citation

• Whether the teacher has met State qualification and licensing criteria for the grade levels and subject areas in which the teacher provides instruction;

• Whether the teacher is teaching under emergency or other provisional status through which the State qualification or licensing criteria have been waived;

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Parent Notification: Citation

• The baccalaureate degree major of the teacher and any other graduate certification or degree held by the teacher, and the field of discipline of the certification or degree; and

• Whether the child is provided services by paraprofessionals, and if so, their qualifications.

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Parent Notification: Citation

• The notice and information provided to parents … shall be in an understandable and uniform format, and, to the extent practicable, provided in a language that the parents can understand.

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Parent Notification

• The DE DOE sent information, including templates/sample letters, to district/charter school HR and Title I staff and information about the parent notification requirements.

• District/charter school HR staff and Title I directors/coordinators working together will help to ensure communication and compliance in meeting the parent notification requirement.

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Monitoring

• The DE DOE will monitor compliance with the Title I hiring requirements on an on-going basis as well as during the Fall monitoring.

• The DE DOE will monitor parental notification via the on-line monitoring tool and the Fall monitoring visits.

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Contact Information

For questions, information, and assistance,

please contact

Patricia Bigelow

pbigelow@doe.k12.de.us

302.739.4120