Dear Educators,

We are excited to share with you a proposal about teacher compensation and planning time that we shared with the Denver Classroom Teachers Association (DCTA) at last night's bargaining session. Separately, we also want to announce another important change about reducing the number of Student Learning Objectives (SLOs).

In our ongoing efforts to recruit and retain great teachers, we know that compensation is important. We are committed to continuing to be among the top three area school districts in teacher pay. We are also working to respond to your concerns about workload and the unique challenges that our educators face in our more highly impacted schools. Toward that end, we are proposing:

As always, we are committed to working through the compensation proposal with DCTA. Learn more about negotiations and previous district proposals here.

Increased Base Pay

Under our proposal, teachers on our traditional salary schedule would continue to get their steps, lanes and longevity. Teachers in the ProComp system would continue to receive all the incentives for which they qualify. Additionally, all teachers would receive a salary adjustment that will be paid as a flat $572 increase in base pay (on average a 1.04% increase). For example, if you are a teacher in ProComp with less than 14 years of service who completed a Professional Development Unit (PDU) and received a satisfactory evaluation this year, your base pay will increase by $2,205 next year. The district will also pay the additional 0.5% contribution increase required by statute to fund PERA. In total, this represents an average 3.3% increase in compensation for all teachers.

Expansion of Hard-to-Serve Incentives for all Title I Schools

In our ongoing efforts to recruit and retain great teachers, DPS is also committed to extending the ProComp Hard-to-serve incentive ($2,600) to all district Title I schools and to all teachers, including those on the traditional salary schedule. The expansion of this incentive will be funded by the DPS general fund.

Through multiple workgroups with teachers, we have heard time and time again that we need to increase compensation for our schools with higher levels of poverty. Our current collectively bargained ProComp Hard-to-serve incentive has arbitrary cut points that we have struggled with for some time. Many of you have been clear about your frustration with these cut points. For example, the current cut-off for elementary is set too high at 92% participation in the federal free- and reduced-price lunch program (FRL), meaning that teachers in elementary schools with 90% FRL do not qualify for the incentive in its current form. The DPS proposal will extend the incentive to schools that have at least 60% FRL and qualify for Title I. Over 60% of our educators work in Title I schools. We believe that the creation of this new Title I Incentive is a necessary step to recognize your commitment to working in our highly impacted schools.

We also understand that areas of our district are gentrifying and that some of our schools have lost access to the Hard-to-serve incentive when the school's FRL levels have dipped below the current cut points. As you have clearly pointed out, your job remains as challenging as ever. We want to assure our teachers who have lost or were at risk of losing this incentive that this compensation will now be in place so long as your school remains a Title I school. We would also pro-rate the incentive on a monthly basis so that you can trust it as a guaranteed portion of your take-home pay. Additionally, if your school eventually moves from Title I to non-Title I, we would guarantee continued payment of the incentive for the three years after the change (100% of the incentive the first year, 66% the second year, 33% the third year).

Two More Planning Days for All Title I Schools

We have also heard from you and recognize that our schools with high levels of poverty face unique challenges that require unique solutions. Toward the end of providing targeted supports to our higher poverty schools, we are proposing two additional planning days for all Title I schools. In recognition of the fact that schedules are already set for 2017-18, these two days will be included for Title I schools starting in the 2018-19 school year. We hope that this additional time to plan with your colleagues will help set you up for a successful year with your kids.

Title I Incentive to Increase in 2018-19

To compensate teachers in our Title I schools for the additional days and to recognize your commitment to our high-poverty schools, DPS also proposed increasing the Title I Incentive starting in 2018-19. Under our proposal, the new Title I Incentive would be increased from $2,600 to $3,000 a year.

Only One SLO Required for LEAP Next Year

As a reminder, state law requires that we include "multiple measures" of student growth and that those measures must account for 50% of a teacher's evaluation. Like other districts in Colorado, we must use SLOs as one of those measures because not all teachers have state assessment growth data to inform their evaluations. Based on your feedback, we are continuously working to improve your experience with LEAP and to ensure that the evaluation process is an effective growth tool for both you and your students. We know you are engaged in data-driven instruction and monitoring your students' progress toward standards on a daily basis. A portion of this is captured in your SLOs. Yet, a number of you have told us that you do not find added value in having two SLOs. Therefore, in order to honor school-based data driven instruction practices, to find ways to reduce your workload, and to still ensure compliance with state requirements, we have decided to require only one SLO next year for LEAP. Those teachers who wish to continue to use two SLOs are certainly free to do so. Please note that SSPs on the SSP GPS will still be required to do two SLOs (in order to meet the state law requirement for multiple measures) as well as teachers who have fewer than 10 students included in an SLO.

Commitment to Reaching Agreement with DCTA

Although negotiations continue with DCTA and some of our proposals may change as a result of those negotiations, we want to assure you that DPS and DCTA negotiators will be working diligently over the summer in order to reach agreement on the Master Agreement. We hope that by the time you return in August, we will have a signed agreement in place.

Have a wonderful and restful summer. Thank you for another great year with DPS! 

Warm regards,

Susana

Spread the Word: Free Summer Meals for Kids!

As we close out the school year, please remind families about the Summer Food Service Program. The program provides free breakfast and lunch to all kids 18 and younger, all summer long. Adults may also purchase a meal for only $3. The Summer Food Service Program is an easy and convenient way for kids to continue receiving healthy meals during the summer, while giving parents a break from cooking and preparing meals every day. Not to mention, the program saves parents money. A list of participating  schools can be found  here .

Complete the Annual Data Culture and Satisfaction Survey 

The Data Culture and Satisfaction Survey is the key mechanism used by DPS since 2013 to obtain a district picture of data use practices and perceptions of the level of support received in schools. While we know this is a busy time of year, the survey is important to inform summer planning of district supports and resources for you, school leaders and teachers in the area of data use, including professional learning, assessment and Student Learning Objectives, and academic portals, among others. You will be receiving a link from Robert Jakubowski later today to complete the survey. For your participation, you will be entered into a drawing for a $20 Starbucks gift card. Please contact [email protected] with any questions. 

Teachers can now access their ACCESS status results in Illuminate. Due to WIDA's new standards-setting process, student scores may be lower than expected and lower than in previous years. Teachers can use the ACCESS screencast and ACCESS User Guide for support with accessing and interpreting the data. Additional reports and resources are being developed throughout the summer. Please continue to check the ACCESS Score Toolkit for additional resources and updates.

Want to Use Istation More Effectively?

Teachers at schools that use Istation are encouraged to sign up for the 2017-18 school year Istation newsletter, which will include replicable, school-based best practices and recommendations for how to use the platform more effectively. To sign up, please click here.