Human Resources Insider

Human Resources

Insider Exemplary! Community Celebrates History-Making Announcement

The Knox County Schools made history on August 3, 2015, when it was named an

Exemplary District by the Tennessee Department of Education. The Knox County

Schools is the first large urban school district to ever earn this distinction from the state.

Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam, Tennessee Commissioner of Education Dr. Candice

McQueen, Knox County Schools Superintendent Dr. Jim McIntyre and other special

guests made the announcement during an exciting celebration held at Carter Middle

School. To earn the Exemplary distinction, the Knox County Schools significantly improved student performance and narrowed

achievement gaps for students over the 2014-2015 school year. Click here for more details.

In addition to announcing the Exemplary District distinction, Governor Haslam, Dr. McQueen and Dr. McIntyre also named the 2014-

2015 Reward Schools, which are schools that lead the state in progress and performance. Six schools in the Knox County Schools

earned the Reward School designation:

Carter High School (Progress)

Carter Middle School (Progress)

Copper Ridge Elementary School (Progress)

Gap Creek Elementary School (Performance)

Farragut High School (Performance)*

Sequoyah Elementary School (Performance)** *Third consecutive year as a Reward School

**Fourth consecutive year as a Reward School

Reward Schools are the top five percent of schools for performance and the top five percent of schools for progress. Schools are desig-

nated as Reward for performance for overall student achievement. This designation is determined annually by a one-year success rate,

which is calculated by adding together the total number of proficient or advanced students in each subject and dividing by the total

number of test takers for each subject. Schools are designated as Reward for progress for

having high student growth. This designation is determined by a one-year TVAAS

(Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System) school composite.

Also participating in the August 3 celebration were Knox County Board of Education Chair

Mike McMillan, Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett, Carter Middle School Principal Tom-

my Watson, Former Carter Middle School Principal Chad Smith and Carter High School

Principal Ryan Siebe.

More than 400 teachers, school staff members, community members, students and dignitar-

ies attended the event in the new gymnasium at Carter Middle School. Additionally, teach-

ers and staff members of all Knox County Schools were able to celebrate together via live

streaming to all 90 schools. Members of the Carter High School marching band, directed by Matt McCurry, elevated the excitement

with rousing music, and cheerleaders from Carter High and Middle schools added spirit to the festive atmosphere.

Click here for information from the Tennessee Department of Education.

Public Higher Ed Discount…….. Page 1 Commencement Schedule…….. Page 1 License Renewal……………….. Page 2 Spotlight on Board Policy……... Page 3 Unscheduled In-service Deadline Page 3 Guidelines for Admin Positions Page 4 Information from Social Security Page 5 TCRS Information…………….. Page 5 How to Become a Substitute…. Page 6 Advantages of Being a Sub…... Page 7 Certified Retirements…………. Page 8 Classified Retirements……….... Page 9 KCS Calendar 2015/2016…….. Page 10 HR Directory…………………. Page 11 Web Addresses……………….. Page 12

September VOLUME 8

YEAR 2015

Human Resources Insider 2

Award Notification

Elementary, middle and high school educators and administra-

tors in TEAM schools (or those evaluated via TEAM process) will

receive notification of APEX awards the week of September 28

through October 2, 2015, Thank a Teacher Week. Teachers and

administrators in TAP schools will be notified of their TAP award

status late October. The award notification process will be via the

Employee Self-Service system, or ESS. The notification letter will

include a table of summary results as follows:

The notification will also include eligibility status for APEX. The

APEX eligibility guidelines can be found by clicking here APEX

knoxschools.org and selecting APEX Eligibility guidelines. The

guidelines are also available in the Ultra Gold Manual. The eligi-

bility guidelines are also distributed to all new teachers at the New

Teacher Academy and to all new teachers attending the New

Teacher Orientation.

Key factors resulting in ineligibility included:

Working less than 150 instructional days

Not meeting the 18-hour unscheduled in-service requirements,

including building and system-wide hours

Not maintaining “good standing” as an employee

Employees placed on administrative leave or suspended without

pay for discipline issues

Non-tested teachers performing “below expectations” on the

qualitative portion of the TEAM evaluation

Receiving “partial-year exemption” for the TEAM evaluation

system for any reason.

Any educator who believes their notification is incorrect may

complete an APEX Inquiry and Resolution form. The form can be

accessed on the Human Resources Department webpage, choosing

APEX under Departments, and clicking on Inquiry Resolution

Process Form on the right side of the page. For assistance, please

e-mail Angie Goddard.

Objective 1 Student

Success

Objective 2 Effective Instruction

Objective 3 Teacher

Leadership

Objective 4 High-Needs Schools

70 5 0

Significantly Above Expectations Supporter Not a High Needs

School or 50% FRL

and Less Than 3 Years APEX Results for 2014 -15 Academic

Year Total Index Award

Model Performance 75 $1,500.00

Inquiry and Resolution Committee

We are seeking five (5) teacher volunteers for the committee,

spanning all grade levels. Specific qualifications for serving

include:

Current employee in good standing, who was also a full-time

regular employee in the 2014-15 school year.

Current and 2014-15 assignment at a TEAM (versus TAP)

school, system-wide assignment that includes TEAM schools,

and/or evaluated via TEAM model (versus TAP).

Interest in and understanding of the APEX system.

Please e-mail HR@knoxschools.org if you would like to serve

on this committee. Please list Inquiry and Resolution

Committee Nomination on the subject line and attach your

resume.

The nomination deadline is Friday, October 2. Selected

teachers will be notified by Friday, October 9. The

committee’s first meeting will be announced.

We appreciate your interest in advance!

Reaching the Top Rewarding teacher and student success!

September 9–30, 2015

Growth and Achievement

Measure Selection Tool Open

online.

September 29, 2015

Evaluators MUST pass the

certification by close of business

Monday, September 29, 2015. You

may not conduct observations for

the 2015-16 school year until you

have passed the certification test.

September 30, 2015

Target date to have all Beginning

of Year Conferences completed

September 28 –

October 2, 2015

APEX Notification Week

September 16 –

October 3, 2015

Inquiry and Resolution

Committee Volunteer

Application/Nomination Process

October 1-

October 30, 2015

Phase I APEX Inquiry Resolution

Process window is open

November 30-

December 4, 2015

Phase II APEX Inquiry and Resolu-

tion Process window is open for

one week after returning from

Thanksgiving Break

Human Resources Insider 3

Tennessee Department of Education Operating Procedures (5.502c)

Educator Licensure Policy—Transition Procedures

Overview In July 2015, the Tennessee State Board of Education approved a new policy regarding educator licensure. In some instances, an edu-

cator with an initial license (e.g., transitional, apprentice) may qualify to advance to the professional license. In other instances, an

educator holding an initial license may be issued a practitioner license, the new form of initial licensure. This document is designed

to help key stakeholders understand how educators with existing licenses will transition to new license types under the new policy.

Beginning September 1, 2015, the initial license issued to all educators will be the practitioner license. There are three categories of

the practitioner license: Practitioner Teacher, Practitioner School Services Personnel, and Practitioner Occupational Teacher. After

meeting specific requirements, educators will be eligible to apply for advancement to a professional license. Next steps for applying

an initial practitioner license or advancing to a professional license can be found on our website.

If after reviewing this document, you have questions about the transition, please contact the Office of Educator Licensure (OEL) at

education.licensing@tn.gov. Information may also be found on our website.

Reactivating an Expired or Inactive License To reactivate an inactive license, an educator must ensure that the Office of Educator licensing (OEL) has received qualifying scores

(not more than 5 years old) on all required content assessments for each endorsement an educator is seeking to reactivate. If the OEL

has valid assessment scores (not more than 5 years old) on file, the educator does not need to submit new scores. Please contact the

Office of Educator Licensing for additional requirements and instructions: education.licensing@tn.gov.

BAL License Conversion By August 31, 2015, any educator who holds a Beginning Administrator License (BAL) must convert or advance the license to an

Instructional Leader License (ILL). Read more about BAL conversion.

Notice of Annual Salary All regular, interim and temporary certified staff have a Notice of Annual Salary (NAS) generated annually, which is accessible through

the Employee Self-Service (ESS) online tool. The 2015-16 NAS will be available for viewing the first week of October. The salary

numbers reflect payroll records as of September 30, 2015. As a reminder, your ESS ID is your employee ID number with leading zeros.

If you have any question regarding ESS access, please contact the Technology Help Desk at 594-1852 or email at

helpdesk@knoxschools.org. If you have questions regarding your salary, please contact the Payroll Department at 594-1690.

It’s Time for Open Enrollment

Please note Open Enrollment is October 1, 2015 – October 31, 2015. Information and forms are available online at knoxschools.org/

benefits, at one of the benefit meetings or from the Benefits & Employee Relations Department which is located on the 3rd floor of the

Andrew Johnson Building. Forms may be faxed, mailed or hand carried to the office.

Tenure Celebration

Save the Date: Fifth year teachers who are eligible for tenure will be recognized at a special event on November 17. The list of

recipients has not been finalized as we are still awaiting information from the State Department. Human Resources will

hopefully be able to notify those teachers who have earned tenure the week of October 26.

The tenure celebration will be held at the Sarah Simpson Professional Development Center, in the Great Room, on Thursday,

November 17 from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. Dinner will be served and a special program has been planned for the recipients.

If you have questions regarding tenure eligibility, please e-mail Christine Wolf.

Human Resources Insider 4

Spotlight on a Knox County Schools Board Policy

Civility Code - BK

Philosophy of Personal Conduct

It is the intent of the Board to promote mutual respect, civility and orderly conduct

among district employees, parents and the general public. This policy provides rules of conduct that both permit

and encourage participation in school activities and communication between parents, community members and

school district personnel. This policy also identifies those behaviors that are considered inappropriate and disrup-

tive to the operation of a school or other school district facility.

It is not the intent of the Board to deprive any person of his or her right to freedom of expression. (See the full

policy here)

The Aesop service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and can be accessed via internet and

phone.

You can interact with Aesop on the internet at Aesop Education. Here, you will be able to enter absenc-

es, check your absence schedule, and exercise other features such as uploading your lesson plans for substitutes to view online.

You can also call Aesop toll free at 1-800-942-3767. Simply follow the voice menu to enter and manage

absences and access other features. We recommend that you call in to check the computer recording of your name and title. To do this,

press Option 4 and follow the prompts.

When entering an absence, please wait until you receive a confirmation number before you terminate the phone call or close your inter-

net browser window. Your transaction is not complete until you receive a confirmation number.

It is highly recommended that you write notes or attach documents to your absence, so you can insure that your substitute is prepared to

handle your duties during your absence.

Preferred Substitutes

Help improve the chances of getting your absence filled by creating a Preferred Substitutes list. Aesop will attempt to contact these

substitutes first when you create an absence.

Once you have added a number of substitutes to your Preferred Substitutes list, you can select up to five of them to be your "Favorite

Five". The Favorite Five will get even more of an advantage when attempting to fill your absences.

Substitutes that are marked as favorites, and who are considered "qualified and available" at the time the absence is created, will be

notified instantly by email when you create an absence that needs a substitute. Also, Aesop will begin calling the Favorite Five subs

during the next evening calling period up to 120 nights before the absence.

For more information on how to manage and add substitutes to your Preferred Substitutes list, please select the Help tab on your Aesop

home page.

Human Resources Insider 5

FLU MIST ADMINISTRATION

The flu mist administration in our schools is upon us, and we want to remind you of the procedure to follow for

staff who have a medical need to be away from their base school during the time the flu mist is being adminis-

tered.

Knox County Schools allows staff who are pregnant to use one day of paid administrative leave to be out of

their building on the day flu mist is given to students. The staff member will be given a one day, special assign-

ment at another school, to be arranged by the appropriate HR Staffing Manager, and will report to the assigned

school on the designated day. However, to use this privilege, staff who are pregnant must have a signed physi-

cian's statement stating the need to be excused from their regular school assignment on flu mist day.

To help you prepare your attendance records for staff who will need to be out of your building the day the flu

mist is being administered, we have developed an outline of the procedures principals will need to follow.

1. The staff member who is requesting to use one day of administrative leave to avoid the administration of the

flu mist at their school must enter the request via Aesop and indicate the leave is for "Flu Mist Administra-

tive”. A physician's statement indicating they are not to be present in your building on flu mist day must be

submitted to the school administrator. The principal must approve the leave request via Aesop.

2. Once the absence has been entered into Aesop and approved by the school administrator, the Principal or

Campus User must send an email to the appropriate HR Staffing Manager to let him/her know that the staff

member requesting the leave needs to be placed at another school on the day that the mist is being adminis-

tered at their base school. The staff member will be assigned by the staffing manager to another work site on

the excused day.

3. To request a placement for an elementary staff member who needs to be out of the building on a designated

flu mist day, the principal must email Sandie Roach at Sandra.Roach@knoxschools.org or call 594-1910.

4. To request a placement for a middle or high school staff member who needs to be out of the building on a

flu mist day, the principal should email Dr. Stephanie Taylor at Stephanie.Taylor@knoxschools.org or call

594-1924.

5. If the educator prefers not to work at an alternate work site, personal leave may be used for that ab-

sence. Knox County Schools will provide one day of administrative leave with pay for anyone needing to

be out of a building on the scheduled flu mist day; however, the person taking the leave will be assigned to

work at another site for that day. To restate for clarification, if the educator does not wish to report to anoth-

er work site, the person must take personal leave.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact an HR supervisor and (s)he will be happy to assist you.

A list of locations and dates follows this page.

Human Resources Insider 6

Location Clinic Date Start Time Location Clinic Date Start Time

Adrian Burnett 10/7/2015 8:30 AM Holston Middle School 9/23/2015 8:30 AM

AL Lotts 10/30/2015 10:30 AM Inskip Elementary 10/21/2015 2:30 PM

Amherst Elementary 10/6/2015 12:30 PM Karns Annex A B & C 10/6/2015 8:30 AM

Austin East High 9/29/2015 8:30 AM Karns Elementary 10/6/2015 8:30 AM

Ball Camp 10/26/2015 8:30 AM Karns High School 10/26/2015 12:30 PM

Bearden Elementary 10/21/2015 8:30 AM Karns Middle 10/6/2015 10:30 AM

Bearden High School 9/23/2015 10:30 AM Kelley Volunteer Academy 10/8/2015 10:30 AM

Bearden Middle School 9/23/2015 8:30 AM Knox Adaptive Education Center 10/21/2015 10:30 AM

Beaumont Magnet 10/20/2015 8:30 AM L&N STEM 10/19/2015 12:30 PM

Belle Morris Elementary 10/19/2015 10:30 AM Lincoln Park Technology 9/28/2015 11:00 AM

Blue Grass 10/30/2015 8:30 AM Lonsdale Elementary 10/20/2015 2:30 PM

Bonny Kate 9/24/2015 12:30 PM Maintenance 9/28/2015 7:00 AM

Brickey - McCloud Elementary 10/23/2015 8:30 AM Maynard Elementary 10/20/2015 10:30 AM

Byington - Solway Tech 10/26/2015 10:30 AM Moreland Heights 9/25/2015 12:00 PM

Career Magnet Academy 10/29/2015 10:30 AM Mount Olive 9/25/2015 8:30 AM

Carter Elementary 9/29/2015 8:30 AM New Hopewell Elementary 9/24/2015 10:30 AM

Carter High School 10/28/2015 8:30 AM North Knox Voc Technology Center 10/7/2015 10:30 AM

Carter Middle 9/29/2015 10:30 AM Northshore Elementary 10/30/2015 2:30 PM

Cedar Bluff Elementary 10/27/2015 10:30 AM Northwest Middle 10/29/2015 8:30 AM

Cedar Bluff Middle School 9/23/2015 1:00 PM Norwood Elementary 10/6/2015 2:30 PM

Cedar Bluff Preschool 10/27/2015 12:30 PM Pleasant Ridge 10/28/2015 2:00 PM

Central Building 10/28/2015 11:00 AM Pond Gap Elementary 10/20/2015 12:30 PM

Central High School 10/6/2015 12:30 PM Powell Elementary 10/23/2015 10:30 AM

Central Office 10/30/2015 8:30 AM Powell High 10/23/2015 2:30 PM

Chilhowee Intermediate School 9/23/2015 10:30 AM Powell Middle 10/23/2015 12:30 PM

Christenberry Elementary 10/21/2015 10:30 AM Richard Yoakley 9/29/2015 10:30 AM

Copper Ridge Elementary 10/21/2015 8:30 AM Ridgedale 9/30/2015 12:30 PM

Corryton Elementary 10/2/2015 8:30 AM Ritta Elementary 10/2/2015 2:30 PM

Dogwood Elementary 9/25/2015 12:30 PM Rocky Hill Elementary 10/23/2015 8:30 AM

East Knox County Elementary 9/23/2015 12:30 PM Sam E Hill Family 10/20/2015 12:30 PM

Fair Garden Family Center 9/30/2015 8:30 AM Sarah Moore Greene 9/30/2015 10:30 AM

Farragut High School 10/2/2015 2:00 PM Sarah Simpson Center 9/25/2015 2:30 PM

Farragut Intermediate 10/2/2015 10:30 AM Sequoyah Elementary 10/20/2015 8:30 AM

Farragut Middle 10/2/2015 12:30 PM Shannondale Elementary 10/6/2015 8:30 AM

Farragut Primary 10/2/2015 8:30 AM South Doyle High 9/29/2015 1:30 PM

Fountatin City Elementary 10/28/2015 8:30 AM South Doyle Middle School 9/24/2015 2:30 PM

Ft. Sanders Educational Dev. 10/19/2015 2:30 PM South Knox Elementary 10/19/2015 8:30 AM

Fulton High 9/28/2015 1:00 PM Spring Hill 10/8/2015 8:30 AM

Gap Creek Elementary 9/24/2015 8:30 AM Sterchi Elementary 10/21/2015 12:30 PM

Gibbs Elementary 10/2/2015 10:30 AM Sunnyview Primary 9/23/2015 2:00 PM

Gibbs High 10/2/2015 12:30 PM Vine Middle School 10/8/2015 12:30 PM

Green Elementary (Magnet) 10/8/2015 2:30 PM West Haven Elementary 10/27/2015 2:30 PM

Gresham Middle 10/6/2015 10:30 AM West High 10/20/2015 10:30 AM

Halls Elementary 10/7/2015 10:30 AM West Hills Elementary 10/21/2015 12:30 PM

Halls High 10/7/2015 2:30 PM West Valley Middle 10/30/2015 12:30 PM

Halls Middle 10/7/2015 12:30 PM West View Elementary 10/20/2015 2:30 PM

Hardin Valley Academy 10/22/2015 8:30 AM Whittle Springs 9/28/2015 9:00 AM

Hardin Valley Elementary 10/22/2015 8:30 AM

2015-16 Flu Mist Schedule

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KCS 2015-2016 Human Resources Directory

HUMAN RESOURCES – All administrative/supervisory

positions for schools and central office.

Chief Human Resources Officer – Dr. Kathy Sims

HR Administrative Assistant – Pam Blackburn 594-1090

HR Receptionist/Admin. Asst. – Sherry Self 594-1929

(Name and address changes.)

STAFFING OPERATIONS – All school-based classified

and certified personnel.

Director of Human Resources Operations

Mr. Adrian Rucker 594-1926

HR Manager Secondary School Staffing

Dr. Stephanie Taylor 594-1924

HR Manager Elementary School Staffing

Sandy Roach 594-1910

HR Generalist for Non-Title I Schools Elementary

Certified & Classified Employees

Alicia Glenn 594-1920

HR Generalist for Title I Schools Elementary

Certified & Classified Employees

Lisa Phillips 594-4436

HR Generalist for High Schools

Leanne Robillard 594-1911

HR Generalist for Middle Schools (Includes secondary athletic coaches)

Lori Busby 594-2984

System-Wide Staffing – All itinerant positions, pool

positions, instructional coaches, etc.

Human Resources Specialist Irma Thompson 594-1919

Substitutes, Orientation Angie Goddard 594-1918

Assistant to Rodney Russell and Adrian Rucker

Verification of Experience/Licensure – State reporting and

support for experience verification and licensure.

Human Resources Specialist Karen McCormack 594-1921

HUMAN CAPITAL STRATEGY – Performance

management, evaluation, recruiting, HR systems and

communications.

Certified Evaluations – Both TEAM and HR support, as well

as APEX, tenure, and licensure advancement.

Director of Human Capital Strategy

Dr. Rodney Russell 594-1922

Assistant to Rodney Russell

Angie Goddard 594-1918

Human Resources Specialist (Licensure, TEAM)

Christine Wolf 594-1912

Aesop, SearchSoft, Interns – On-boarding for subs and

interns, ongoing support for Aesop and Search Soft

HR IT Specialist Stacey Dykes 594-1913

BENEFITS/EMPLOYEE RELATIONS – All insurance,

benefits, sick bank, retirement, workers compensation, and

employee investigations. Office of Civil Rights, EEOC

Sick Leave for Certified/Classified – Sick leave bank

enrollment and requests

Director of Benefits/Employment Relations

Scott Bolton 594-1686

Administrative Secretary Bunny Seymour 594-1686

Administrative Secretary Alice Sims 594-1682

Retirement, Life Insurance, Tax Shelters & Supplemental

Insurance – All retirement requests and assistance processing

forms and payroll deductions

Retirement Manager Robin Moody 594-1100

Insurance & Benefits – All classified and certified benefits

Benefits Manager Kristin Blanton 594-0193

Insurance Manager Ashley Huffaker 594-1270

Administrative Secretary Bunny Seymour 594-1686

Billing- Billing for Insurance and support for Insurance

Benefits

Benefits Specialist Donna Wright 594-1685

Data Match Auditor Lauren Mayes 594-9568

Discipline/Investigations – All employee investigations for

classified and certified employees in violation of Board policy,

rules, and procedures.

Discipline/Investigations Manager Becky Wuethrich 594-1686

Workers’ Compensation

Safety Engineer Adam Parson 594-1683

Administrative Secretary Alice Sims 594-1682

Unemployment, Discrimination Complaints & ADA

Director of Benefits/ Employee Relations

Scott Bolton 594-1686

PAYROLL DEPARTMENT – All payroll related issues,

including automatic deposits, discrepancies, and processing.

Angie Corum 594-1690

Who Does What in Human Resources Now? Several employees in the Human Resources Department have assumed new job duties and/or responsibilities as the result of reorganization. While the

full reorganization structure has not been fully implemented, we continue to review and analyze the organizational structure to ensure that we are able

to serve our clientele more efficiently and effectively. Please take a moment to review the directory below.

Human Resources Insider 11

Have any ideas, suggestions and/or questions for the HR Insider Newsletter?

Submit comment by email to HR@knoxschools.org

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We are on the web! Knox Co Schools Human Resources

Human Resources

Andrew Johnson Building 912 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902 Phone: 865-594-1929 Fax: 865-594-3758

Thank A Teacher Week is September 28 – October 2, 2015