teacher pay and career paths in an opportunity culture: a ...teaching. opportunity culture...

© 2014 pu bl ic i m pact OpportunityCulture.org 1

Why do students need consistent, excellent teaching?

Researchconfirmsthatwithoutexcellentteachingconsistently,studentswhostartbehindstaybehind.Evenhardworking,solidteacherswhoachieveoneyearoflearningprogresseachyearleaveachievementgapsintact.Byprovidingallstudentswithexcellentteachers—thoseintoday’stop20to25percentwhoachievewelloveroneyearof learningprogress—schoolscanclosegapsfast.Butwithtraditionalstaffingplans,mostschoolscanprovidestu-dentswithexcellentteachersinonlyoneoutoffourclassrooms.

How can all students have access to excellent teaching?

✱ Recruit.Nationsnowsurgingaheadineducationhavelimitedwhocanteachtotophighschoolorcollegestudentswhoalsoexhibit other qualities needed for great teaching. U.S. schooldistrictsshouldfollowtheirlead.Butthisalonewouldbeinad-equateintheU.S.economy,wherehigher-paidcareersattracttopcandidates,too.

✱ Retain. Top-performing professionals want rapid on-the-jobdevelopmentthatleadstopaidcareeradvancementopportu-nities;districtsandstatesmustprovidethesetomaketeachinganattractive,long-termcareeroption(seeFigure1).

✱ Extend. Most teachers today work alone. Excellent teachersrarelyhaveauthority,time,orsustainedincentivestoleadwhileteaching.Solidteachersareontheirown,withfewchancestolearnonthejobfromexcellentpeers.Toensurethateverystu-denthasaccesstoexcellentteachingconsistently,districtsmusthelpexcellentteachersextendtheirreachtofarmorestudents,directlyandbyleadingteachingteams.“Reachextension”alsocreatesnewrolesandin-schooltimeforallteacherstolearnonthejobfromthebest,contributetoexcellenceimmediately,andpursuesustainablypaidcareeradvancement.

introduction

T o help all students reach their potential, district leaders must ensure that every student has consistent access to excellent teaching. Opportunity Culture compensation and career path structures help make that possible, and this guide shows how. Inthefollowingpages,PublicImpactdetailsthestepsdistrictscantaketodesignteachercareerpathsthatwillkeepexcellent

teachersintheclassroomandextendtheirreachtomorestudents,formorepay,withinbudget.Whendistrictsdesignthesepaths,theycreateopportunitiesforexcellentteacherstoreachmorestudentsdirectlyandbyleadingteachingteams,forsolidteacherstocontributetoexcellenceimmediately,andforallteacherstoreceivethesupportanddevelopmenttheydeserve.

In short, district leaders must establish an “Opportunity Cul-ture”forstudentsandteachers(seeFigure2).

How can district leaders make this a reality?

✱ First, district leaders must commit to reaching every studentwith excellent teaching consistently. Districts implementingOpportunity Culture models commit to five Opportunity Cul-turePrinciplesthatsupportthisgoal(seeFigure3).

✱ Second,leadersmustchangehowteachingrolesareorganized,byengagingteachersandprincipalstocraftschoolmodelsthatreachallstudentswithexcellentteaching.OpportunityCulture.org providesmaterialstohelp.

✱ Third, districts must align pay and other systems to supportteaching excellence and learning. This practical guide helpsdistricts design career paths and pay that reflect communityvalues,aswellasthecoregoalsofanOpportunityCulture—ex-cellentinstructionforallstudentsandexcellentcareeroppor-tunitiesforallteachers.

EarlyschoolsanddistrictsimplementinganOpportunityCulturehavebeenambitious.Alldistrictsareaimingto:

ò reach at least 80 percent of students with truly excellent teacherswhoareformallyaccountablefortheirlearning,

ò pay supplements of 10 to 50 percent to highly effectiveteachersfromthestart,

ò fund pay supplements within regular budgets,ò add time for teacher planning and collaboration,andò adapt evaluation and accountability systems to reflect the

responsibilitiesofnewroles.OpportunityCulturePrinciples(seeFigure3)makearangeofsus-tainable,high-impactcareerpathoptionspossible,withmoreorfewerlevelsofadvancement,andwithhigherorlowerpaysupple-mentsavailabletoeachrole.

OPPORTUNITYCULTURE.ORG

TEACHER PAY AND CAREER PATHS IN AN OPPORTUNITY CULTURE

A PRACTICAL POLICY GUIDE

by public impact

http://www.opportunityculture.org

http://OpportunityCulture.org



in this guideFollowinganoverviewofkeyOpportunityCultureconcepts,includingbasicmechanicsandschooldesignprinciples,thisguidedescribesthestepsessentialtolaunchingasuccessfulredesignofcareerpathsandcompensationstructures.Step-by-stepinstructionssupporttheparalleleffortsofdistrictleadersandanalyticalteams.

At- A- Glance materialsatthebeginningofeachsectionincludeconcisetextaboutthekeyconceptsanddecisionsthata district leadership teamwouldneedtounderstandandaddresswhentransitioningcompensationandcareerpathstoanOpportunityCulture.Districtleaderswillwanttoreviewstatepolicybarrierstochanges.Thetwo-pageresourceSeizing Opportunity at the Top II: Policymakers’ ChecklistprovidesaconcisesetofpolicyconditionsforpilotingandscalingupOpportunityCulturemodelsinadistrictoracrossastate.

MoredetailedmaterialfollowstheAt-A-Glancesections,andcoversthefullrangeofconsiderationsforan analytical teamtoevaluatetheimpactofdifferentcareerpathandcompensationdesignchoices.Theiranalysesinformdistrictleaders’deci-sionsaboutkeydesignchoices.Resourcesincludestep-by-stepguidesfordefiningandassessingdesigntrade-offs,andlinkedreferencestoadditionalmaterialsforredesigningschoolsandaligningstate-levelpolicies.

why use opportunity culture pay and paths?Fordecades,schoolsanddistrictshaveattemptedtodesigncareerpathsforteachersandtoaligncompensationwith instructionalexcellenceandleadership.Butmostoftheseeffortshavenotletteachersreorganizetheirschoolsinwaysthatbestsupportinstruc-tional excellence—by extending the reach of the best teachersandprovidingdaily,in-schoolprofessionallearningopportunities.

In most schools, “career advancement” for teachers involvesleavingtheclassroomanddirectworkwithstudentstobeaschoolprincipalorotheradministrator.Thefewmasterteacher,mentor,orspecialistrolesavailablerarely includerealauthorityorcreditfor the results of the mentored teachers, and actually removegreat teachers from formal responsibility for student outcomes.Moreover,theserolesonlysometimespaymore,andwhentheydo,thosesalarybumpsareoftenmodestandrelyontemporaryorpoliticallytenuousfunds.

Incontrast,thisguidedescribeshowdistrictsandschoolscandesign career paths and compensation structures to support an

OpportunityCulture,inwhichallteachershavecareeropportuni-tiesthatbuildtheirprofessionalcompetenceandmaximizetheirpositiveimpactonstudentlearning.AstheyadvanceinanOppor-tunityCulture,teachersreachmorestudents,formorepay—muchmore:The first sites have paid supplements of up to 50 percent of average salaries, within regular budgets, even before implement-ing the highest- level teacher- leader roles. Teachers have manyadvancementoptions,butnearlyalladvancedroleskeepexcellentteachersteaching—takingadvantageoftheirinstructionalmas-terywhiledevelopingtheirteamwork,organizing,andleadershipskills,andenablingallteacherstolearnonthejob(seeFigure1).

Early sites have paid supplements up to 50 percent of average salaries, within regular budgets.


http://opportunityculture.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Seizing_Opportunity_at_the_Top_II_Policymakers_Checklist-Public_Impact.pdf

http://opportunityculture.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Seizing_Opportunity_at_the_Top_II_Policymakers_Checklist-Public_Impact.pdf


Career Performance and Reach

figure 1. OpportunityCulture:WholeCareers’WorthofLearning,Advancement,andPayOpportunity

all effectiveness levelstraditional classroom teachers

effective

reach team teachers

excellent

direct-reach teachers and hybrids

excellent

multi-classroom leaders and hybrids

excellent

wide-span

multi-classroom

leaders50–100+%

pay supplement

12–50% pay supplement



0% pay supplement

Pay Supplements (% of base) increase with reach role responsibilities*

*Pay supplement figures are examples only and are expressed as a percent ofaverage pay.


Contents

Overview of an Opportunity Culture 5Opportunity Culture: Basic Mechanics 5Opportunity Culture: School Design Principles 6 BeforeandAfterTransitiontoanOpportunityCulture 7 building a better base 8 Bottom-UporLeadership-DrivenProcess 9

How to Design New Pay and Career Paths 9step 1. Get Organized 9 EstablishaTeamandSetaVision 9step 2. Understand School Models and Roles in an Opportunity Culture 11 OpportunityCultureSchoolModels 11 RolesinOpportunityCultureSchoolModels 11 Figure6.SchoolModelSnapshots 12step 3. Design Career Paths and Compensation 16 CriticalDecisionsforOpportunityCulture CareerPathsandPay 16step 4. Ensure Financial Sustainability 22 FundingPaidCareerAdvancementSustainably inanOpportunityCulture 22 examples of funding pay supplements through cost savings 23 FinancialSustainability:BasicScenarioAnalyses 25step 5. Design a Complete Career Lattice 27 ExamplesofCareerPathsforCommonOpportunity CultureRoles 29

Acknowledgements 39

appendixaPay for Hard-to-Staff Positions: STEM and Special Education 40

appendixbState-Level Options 41

appendixcDetermining Pay Supplements for Large-Class Teacher Roles 43

appendixdUnderstanding Existing Career Paths and Compensation in the District—Checklist 45

Figures and Tools

3 Figure1.OpportunityCulture 6 Figure2.OpportunityCultureVirtuousCycle 6 Figure3.OpportunityCulturePrinciples 7 Figure4.BeforeandAfterTransitiontoan

OpportunityCulture 10 Figure5.EstablishaVisionforCompensation

andCareerPaths 12 Figure6.SchoolModelSnapshots 14 Figure7.RolesinanOpportunityCulture 16 Figure8.SummaryofTeacherCareerPathsandRoles

inOpportunityCultureSchoolModels 18 Figure9.TeacherCareerPathsandRolesin

OpportunityCultureModels,withDirect-ReachTeachersMergedinOnePath

19 Figure10.ExampleCompetenciesinOpportunityCultureRoles

19 Figure11.FlatCareerStructure 19 Figure12.ModestlyDifferentiatedStructure 19 Figure13.MoreDifferentiatedStructure 19 Figure14.HighlyDifferentiatedStructure 21 Figure15.ExamplesofCareerLadderScenariosfor

HighlyDifferentiatedStructure 23 Figure16.HowNewSchoolModelsGenerateCost

SavingstoFundPaySupplements24 Figure17.ExampleofTeam-LevelSavingsAvailable

forHigherPayinOpportunityCultureModels24 Figure18.ExampleofPaySupplementsandTotalCosts26 Figure19.Example:ExchangeRatios 27 Figure20a. SummaryofTeacherCareerPathsandRoles 28 Figure20b. Example:Teacher“CareerLattice”29 Figure21.Overview:Direct-ReachTeacherCareerPath30 Figure22.Example:Direct-ReachTeacherCareerPath 31 Figure23.Overview:Multi-ClassroomLeaderCareerPath 32 Figure24.Example:Multi-ClassroomLeaderCareerPath 33 Figure25.Overview:SupportTeacherCareerPath34 Figure26.Example:SupportTeacherCareerPath 35 Figure27.Overview:ParaprofessionalCareerPath 35 Figure28.Example:ParaprofessionalCareerPath36 Figure29.Charlotte-Mecklenburg’sCareer/PayPaths

forDirect-ReachTeachersandMulti-ClassroomLeaders38 Figure30.Example:District-FundedTeacher-Leader

CareerPaths38 Figure31.CompleteEducationalLeadershipPathwith

Multi-SchoolLeadership


Thisreportshowshowadiverse array of advanced roles can be structured to provide sustainably funded career paths.

All roles and paths described here are financially sustainable:They generate savings that can be used to pay teachers moreforadvancement,without increasingthebudget.AlthoughnewfundingthatiswellspentcansupportOpportunityCulturemod-els,noneofthecareerpathsshownheredependsonnewfund-ing for pay increases. And all roles and paths allow teachers to learn and lead while teaching.ThesearekeyelementsoftheOp-portunityCulturevirtuouscycle,becausesustainablyhigherpayandadvancementopportunitiesattractmoregreatcandidatestotheteachingprofession,helptoretaintopperformers,andenableschoolstobemoreselectiveinhiring(seeFigure3).

Districtscanimplementthesenewpathsalongsideorinplaceofothercareerandpaysystems(see“BuildingaBetterBase,”page8.)Webrieflydescribecompanionpayreforms,althoughOpportunityCulturepayandcareerpathsworkwithtypicalbasepayprogres-sions,too.RolesdescribedherealignwiththeOpportunityCultureTeacher & Staff Selection, Development, and Evaluation Toolkit,school models,andfinancial analyses,availableonlineatOppor-tunityCulture.org.Mostschoolsusecombinationsorvariationsofthepublishedmodels.Seethewebsitetolearnmoreaboutschoolsimplementingthesemodels.

Opportunity Culture: Basic Mechanics

ThegoalsofOpportunityCultureschoolsaretoreach many more students with excellent teachingandtoprovideoutstanding ca-reer opportunities for teachers.OpportunityCultureschoolsusenewrolesandage-appropriatetechnologysoteachershavetimeto reach more students and can align their responsibilities withtheir teaching and leadership strengths. Paraprofessionals onteaching teams handle paperwork and supervise students’ digi-tallearningtime,projectwork,skillspractice,and(inelementaryschools) transitions and noninstructional time. Paraprofessionalsupportmeansthatteachershavemoretimeandopportunitiestoplan,collaborateinteams,andimproveonthejob.

Pre-serviceteachersmayfillparaprofessionalrolestopreparefortheteamworkrequiredinnewschoolmodels.Thisallowsschoolstoscreenthemforthecompetenciesneededforsuccessinacol-laborativeenvironmentwithadeepcommitmenttoexcellentout-

overview of an opportunity culture InanOpportunity Culture, schoolteamsredesignjobstoextendthereachofexcellentteachersandthosestrivingforexcellencetomorestudents,formorepay,withinbudget.Schoolsreallocatefundscurrentlyspentonothercoststocoverhigherpayanden-hancedon-the-jobplanning,collaboration,andlearningtimeforteachers.Teachersgainsustainablyfunded,well-paidopportuni-tiestolearnfromandleadtheirpeerswhilecontinuingtoteach.Neworenhancedfunding,ifany,flowsintothesenewrolesandcareer paths, rather than perpetuating professional isolation inthe one-teacher-one-classroom model. In traditional schools, ateacher’scareeroptionsarestaticandlimited.InanOpportunityCulture,thecareeroptionsaredynamicandnumerous.

Researchshowsthatthetop25percentofteachers,asmeasuredbystudentgrowth,producewellmorethanayear’sworthofstu-dent learning each year they teach. On average, students withtheseexcellentteachersmakeapproximatelythreetimestheprog-ressofstudentswithteachersinthebottom20to25percentofteachers,andshowanextrahalf-year’sgrowthoverstudentswithtypical—thatis,good,solid—teachers.1Thesegreatteachersarealsomoresuccessfulatdevelopingstudents’higher-orderthinkingskills.2Althoughgoodteachersworkhardtoproduceaboutayear’sworthofgrowthonaverage,theireffortsleaveachievementgapsintact—students who start behind rarely catch up—and leavemoststudentsfallingshortoftheirpotential.Studentswhostartbehindneedyearsofhighgrowthconsistentlytoclosegaps,andallstudentsneedthislevelofgrowthplusthehigher-orderthinkingskillsthatgreatteachersconveytomeetrisingglobalstandards.

Yet today’s classroom structure rarely differentiates betweenthesehigh-flyingteachersandotherteachers,givingeachteachersolecontrolofaclassroom.Less-effectiveteachersstruggleiniso-lation,withoutaccesstothehighlyeffectivepeerswhocouldhelpthemleaptowardexcellence.Andstudentsmustrelyontheluckoftheclassroomassignmentsdraw.

OpportunityCultureor“reach-extension”modelspositionex-cellentteacherstotakeresponsibilityformorestudentsbybothprovidingdirectstudent instructionand leadinganddevelopinggoodteachersonthejob,inrolesfullyaccountableforstudents’outcomes.Thesemodelsgivefarmorestudentsaccesstoexcel-lentinstruction,andtheygiveallteachersthechancetoimprove.

All Opportunity Culture roles and paths allow teachers to learn and lead while teaching.

In traditional schools, a teacher’s career options are static and limited. In an Opportunity Culture, the career options are dynamic and numerous.


http://opportunityculture.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Selection_Development_Evaluation_Toolkit-Public_Impact.pdf

http://opportunityculture.org/reach/school-models/

http://opportunityculture.org/reach/pay-teachers-more/

http://opportunityculture.org/



Opportunity Culture: School Design Principles

Opportunity Culture school design teams, which must include teachers, choosethemodelsandimplementationstepstofittheirschool,andtheirdesignsmustalignwiththefiveOpportunityCul-turePrinciples(seeFigure3).

comesforallstudents.ThisoptionextendstheOpportunityCul-tureenhancedpaystructurestoteachersintheirpre-serviceyearandactsasarecruitingpipelineforOpportunityCultureschools.

OpportunityCultureschoolsempowerbetterteachersto leadanddeveloptheirpeers,andprovidethemwiththetimetodoit.AllteacherscanearnmorewhenOpportunityCulturemodelsareimplementedfully,becausestaffingchangesfreefundsforhigherpay.Non-classroomteachers,suchasmathorliteracycoaches,canreturntoclassroomsinreachroleswithhigherpay,andallteacherscanfocustheirtimeonthemostcriticalaspectsoftheirteaching.

Opportunity Culture schools focus on their teachers: They letteachers reshape their profession to respect their time and tal-ents and to incorporate collaborative, on- the- job leadership and learning tohelpeveryone—teachersandstudents—excel.

Thattakesusbacktothevirtuouscyclepicturedabove:Withtheseopportunities,weexpectthatmoreteacherscommittedtoinstructionalexcellencewillenterandstayintheprofession,andmore will advance their skills. Early Opportunity Culture imple-mentershaveexperiencedsurgesinthenumberofjobapplicants,eveninhigh-poverty,hard-to-staffschools.

How to Reach Every Student with Excellent Teaching: A New Virtuous Cycle

Extended Reach Allows: Career Advancement On-the-Job Learning for All

Opportunity

**

SelectivityIncreasingly Strong For: Who Enters Who Stays**

Sustainably Higher Through: Greater Reach Reallocated Funds

Pay

**

Opportunity CultureFOR ALL

Extend Excellent Teachers’ Reach to More Students Directly and Through On-the-Job Leadership

©2013 Public Impact

All Opportunity Culture schools must include teachers in choosing their models and implementation steps.

figure2. OpportunityCultureVirtuousCycle

figure 3. opportunity culture principles

Teams of teachers and school leaders must choose and tailor models to:

1. Reach more students with excellent teachers and their teams

2. Pay teachers more for extending their reach

3. Fund pay within regular budgets

4. Provide protected in-school time and clarity about how to use it for planning, collaboration, and development.

5. Match authority and accountability to each person’s responsibilities



Before and After Transition to an Opportunity Culture

In traditional schools, teachers typically lack time to collaborateandlearntogetheratschool.Greatteachersdonothavetheroles,time,responsibility,orauthoritytohelpgoodteachersexcel.Manygood,solidteachersfeelfrustrated,knowingtheyfallshortoftheirgoals for some students. And they all do many tasks that otherprofessionals routinely delegate. As a result, teachers earn lessthantheirpotentialandlacksustainablyfunded,well-paidcareeradvancementopportunitiesthatallowthemtocontinuetoteach.Mostimportant,studentslackaccesstooutstandingteachinginmostclasses.OpportunityCulturemodelsthatadheretothefiveprinciplesexplicitlyaddresstheseproblems(seeFigure4).

Designteamsmustfolloweachprinciple,becauseeachbuildsonanother.Theseprincipleshelpdistrictsavoidthemistakesofotherpayandcareerpathprograms,whichremovegreatteachersfromresponsibilityforstudents,paylittleorusetemporarygrantsforadvancedroles,andfailtogiveteacherstheplanningorcollabora-tiontimenewrolesrequire.

In contrast, each Opportunity Culture Principle was carefullychosen to ensure that great teachers continue to teach, reachmorestudents,earncommensuraterewards(notjusttitles),andhavetimetoplan,collaborate,lead,andlearnatschool.Principle5ensuresthatadvancedrolescomewithformalresponsibilityforincreasedstudentandpeersuccess.

figure 4. BeforeandAfterTransitiontoanOpportunityCulture

Before After

Time Notenoughplanningandcollaborationtime Moreplanningandcollaborationduringschoolhours

Teamwork Solopractice,exceptforoccasionalprofessionallearningcommunitymeetings

Teamworkandcollaborationthatemphasizeseveryone’sstrengths,withteamtimeduringschoolhours

Teacher-Leadership Low-authoritymentoringandcoachingofwillingpeers Empoweredteacher-leaders

Noaccountabilityofmentors/coachesforstudentoutcomes Teacher-leadersheldaccountableformentees’developmentandtheirstudents’outcomes

Lowornopaysupplements Substantialpaysupplements

Professional Learning

OccasionaltrainingandPLCmeetings,notnecessarilyledbybetterteachers

On-the-joblearning,everyweek,ledbygreatteacherstrainedtoco-planandco-improveinstruction

Substitutecoveragefortraining/PLCmeetingsrequiredduringschoolyear

Paraprofessionalsontheteamroutinelycoverprofessionallearningtime

Career Advancement

Bestteachersmustleaveclassroomtoadvance Bestteacherskeepteachingandadvancebyreachingmorestudents,directlyorbyleadingpeers

School Leadership Constantshortageofprincipalsequippedtoleadandmanageexcellentschoolsforallstudentsandstaff

Surgeinnumberofteacherswithleadershipandmanagementskills,honedasteacher-leaders

Teacher-leadershelpprincipalsleadschoolswell

Higher Pay Rare Potentiallyavailablefor allworkingonreachteams

Amountsaresmall Substantialamounts

Fundedbytemporarygrantsorsuperintendent-dependentreallocations

Builtintoschool-determinedbudgets

School Culture Defensiveaboutstudentoutcomes Happytoembracepursuitofexcellenceinteachingandlearning

Nomutualaccountabilityforteachers Mutuallyaccountableteammatessolveproblems

Student Learning Onaverage,moststudentsgettoday’s“year’sworth”oflearning,leavingmostgapsintactandmiddlingstudentsbelowhonorslevel

Moststudentsgetmorethantoday’s“year’sworth,”andmorestudentslearnhabitsofsuccess

Less-effectivehigher-orderthinkinginstruction Advancedhigher-orderthinkingskills

Failureentrenchedamongdisadvantagedstudents Morestudentsclosegaps

Mediocrityentrenchedamongotherstudents Morestudentsadvancelikeinternationalpeers



building a better baseTotalcompensationforteacherstypicallyincludesbasepayandbenefits.Asmallportionofdistrictsaddperformancebonuses.

By far the largest component is base pay, which in moststatesanddistrictsincludes“lanes”ofadvancement,typicallybasedonadvanceddegrees.Extrapaysometimes isavailableforworkinginhard-to-staffsubjectsandschools.Teachersalsoprogress up through “steps” of incremental increases withineachlane,basedonexperience.

Opportunity Culture career paths and compensation cansupplementmostexistingbasepaysystemswithoutreplacingthem.Pilotschoolshaveimplementedsupplementsontopoftraditionalstep-and-lanesystems.

Modifying the Traditional Pay System

Districtsandstatesareincreasinglyconsideringalternativebasepay systems, such as those described in Public Impact’s 2007reportImproving Teaching Through Pay for Contribution,forthebipartisanNationalGovernor’sAssociation.

Pay for contribution simply means investing more in theteachers and teaching roles that contribute measurably moretostudentlearning.Itcanincludemultipletraditionalandnewelementsinadditiontopayingforearlyyearsofexperience:payforperformance;forworkinginhard-to-staffschoolsandsub-jects(“marketpay”);foradvancedroles;forskillandknowledgeacquisition;foradvanceddegreesthataffectstudentlearning;andtoretainbetterteachers.Well-designedpayforcontribu-tion is particularly attractive to higher contributors. For thisreason,itcanhelpshapenotonlytheperformanceofcurrentteachers,butalsothequalityofthefutureteachingworkforcebyshiftingwhoentersandstaysintheprofession.

In2008,DukeUniversityeconomistJacobVigdorelevatedtheideaofpaying teachers more earlier in their careers,asinotherprofessions.Thisshiftcanallowallteacherstoearnmoreoveracareer,evenwhenannualend-of-careerpayissomewhatlower.EducationResource Strategies, in the2012Strategic Design of Teacher Compensation, elevated making strategic decisionsabouthowtoallocatespendingtovariouselementsofteachercompensation. TNTP re-elevated the logic of alternative basepay systems in Shortchanged: The Hidden Costs of Lockstep Teacher Pay.

Inrecentyears,awiderangeoforganizationsincludingtheCenter for Teaching Quality (CTQ) and Teach Plus have also

crafted new, advanced roles—peer leadership on the job inhigh-povertyschools(TeachPlus’sT3program)andhybridroles(CTQ’s Teacherpreneurs) that let the most effective teacherscontinueteachingwhileplayingotherroles.Advocatesforex-cellentteachers,suchastheNationalNetworkofStateTeach-ers of the Year (NNSTOY), have called for a new set of careerpathways, not just one-off roles, that let teachers advance inselective,increasinglyhigh-impact,better-paidrolesoveraca-reer,whileteaching.Payforadvancedrolesisarelativelynon-controversial model of paying more for higher contributionsandstrategicallytargetingdollars,startingearlyandcontinuingthroughoutteachers’careers.

Some districts also provide pay supplements to increase“market”competitivenessofpayatvaryingcareerstagesandforsimilarknowledgeandskills inhard-to-staffsubjects,par-ticularlyforSTEMteacherswithdegreesintheirsubjects.Somedistrictsconsiderteacherpayratesinnearbydistricts(recogniz-ingtheymayalsohaveadifferentcostofliving).

Allofthesemodificationstobasepaysystemscanbeimple-mentedalongsideoraspartofOpportunityCultureschoolmod-els,ordistrictscankeeptraditionalbasesystemsintact.

See:Hassel,E.A.,&Hassel,B.C.(2007).Improving teaching through pay for contribution.Washington,DC:NationalGovernorsAssociationCenterforBestPractices.Retrievedfromhttp://www.nga.org/files/live/sites/NGA/files/pdf/0711IMPROVINGTEACHING.PDF;Vigdor,J.(2008,Fall).Scrap the sacrosanct salary schedule: How about more pay for new teachers, less for older ones?EducationNext.Re-trievedfromhttp://educationnext.org/scrap-the-sacrosanct-salary-schedule/#comments;EducationResourceStrategies.(2012,October).Strategic design of teacher compensation. Watertown,MA:Author.Retrievedfromhttp://www.erstrategies.org/cms/files/1900-strategic-design-of-teacher-compensation.pdf;TNTP.(2014).Shortchanged: The hidden costs of lockstep teacher pay.Brook-lyn,NY:Author.Retrievedfromhttp://tntp.org/assets/documents/TNTP_Shortchanged_2014.pdf;Natale,C.F.,Bassett,K.,Gaddis,L.,&McKnight,K.(2013).Creating sustainable teacher career pathways: A 21st century imperative.NationalNetworkofStateTeachersoftheYearandCenterforEducatorEffectivenessatPearson.Retrievedfromhttp://www.nnstoy.org/download/Various/CSTCP_21CI_pk_final_web.pdf


http://www.nga.org/files/live/sites/NGA/files/pdf/0711IMPROVINGTEACHING.PDF

http://educationnext.org/scrap-the-sacrosanct-salary-schedule/#comments

http://www.erstrategies.org/cms/files/1900-strategic-design-of-teacher-compensation.pdf


http://tntp.org/assets/documents/TNTP_Shortchanged_2014.pdf










http://www.nnstoy.org/download/Various/CSTCP_21CI_pk_final_web.pdf

http://www.nnstoy.org/download/Various/CSTCP_21CI_pk_final_web.pdf


Atleastthefollowingpeopleshouldparticipateinsomeway:

✱ Superintendent✱ Personorpeopleresponsibleforimplementingyouroverall

OpportunityCultureinitiative✱ Headofhumanresources(andthecompensationdepartment,

ifany)✱ Headoffinanceorbudgetoffice✱ Teachersfromimplementingschools(representativeson

designteam,orhavemanyprovideinput)✱ Principalsfromimplementingschools(representativeson

designteam,orhavemanyprovideinput)✱ Unionleader(s)✱ Otherscriticaltosuccessfulchangeinyourdistrict

Activitiesinclude:

✱ Organizing thedesignprocess.✱ Providing input and reviewofvisionanddesignviainterviews,

focusgroup(s),onlinesurveys,orotherfeedbackmechanisms.✱ Developing concrete design optionstoincludecareerpaths

withspecificpaysupplements,entryandadvancementcriteria,andscenarioanalysestoensurebudgetneutralityofalloptions.

✱ Reviewing and discussing optionsbasedondistrictvisionandvalues.

✱ Making final decisionsaboutpayandcareerpathdesign.✱ Communicatingfinalpayandcareerpathdesigndecisionsto

principals,teachers,andothers.

First,thedistrictmustmake one person responsible for organiz-ing the compensation and career path design processfromstarttofinishandcommunicatingwithallparticipants.Thiswillsavesignificanttimeandpreventmiscommunications.Thedistrictmayalsoengageacompensationdesignexpertorothertechnicalassis-tanceprovidertoorganizetheprocessand/ortoprovidetechnicaladvice,particularlyifdistrictstaffarealreadyoverburdened.

Next,determine which of the people listed above will partici-pate in each of the activities.Determineearlywhichindividualsfrom schools will be invited to participate. District leaders willneedtochoosethelevelofteacherinvolvementbasedonthedis-trictcultureandonthespeedwithwhichnewpayandpathsmustbedesigned.Werecommendthatteachersprovideinputintoca-reerpathsandpaydesignswheneverpossible,withrepresentationacrosssubjectsandgrades.

In all cases, teachers are critical to choosing or tailoring new school models, the roles within the models, and implementation steps in each school. These are the foundation of new career paths, and including teachers in these decisions is essential to the spirit of an Op-portunity Culture.

Bottom- Up or Leadership- Driven Process

ThedesignofOpportunityCulturecareerpathsandpaycanpre-cede pilot school designs, or it can follow. Early sites allowed ahandfulofschoolstopilottheirmodelsfirst,anddevelopedtem-porarypaystructurestosupporttheseschools.Thefirstdistricttoscaleupthesemodels,Charlotte-MecklenburgSchools,designeditscareerpathsandpaytoreflectthedesignsalreadychosenbypilotschoolsandthecostandstaffingstructuresofallitsschools.Districtsmayusethisprocess,ortheymaydevelopcareerpathsand pay structures in advance, still leaving schools consider-able design flexibility within the Opportunity Culture Principles.Whetherbottom-upordrivenbydistrictleadership,thenewpathsandpaycanreflectthevaluesofthedistrictbyengagingteachersandschoolwideleadersinthedesignprocess.

how to design new pay and career pathsIfyourdistrict isconsideringadoptingOpportunityCulture (OC)models—orsimilarstaffingredesignorteacher-leadershiproles—itwillneedtodesignnewcompensationandcareerpaths.Thefol-lowingsectionswalkyouthroughthesteps:

✱ Step 1: Get Organized✱ Step 2:Understand School Models and Roles

in an Opportunity Culture✱ Step 3: Design Career Paths and Compensation✱ Step 4: Ensure Financial Sustainability✱ Step 5: Design a Complete Career Lattice

Step 1: Get Organized

At- A- Glance: Establish a Team and Set a VisionThedistrictleadershipteam,perhapsassistedbyanOCimple-mentationorcompensationdesigncoordinator,willneedto:

✱ Determinewhowillprovideinputandmakefinalpayandcareerpathdesigndecisions;and

✱ Setavisionforpayredesignthatwillguidedetaileddecisionsabouthowadvancedrolesarerewarded.

Establish a Team and Set a Visionestablish a team and process for district compensation and career path designDistrict leadership, ideally the superintendent, must decide whowillorganizethepayandcareerpathdesignprocess,whowillmakefinaldesigndecisions,andwhowillcontributeinotherways.


figure 5. EstablishaVisionforCompensationandCareerPathsAt your leadership team’s meeting to establish the district’s vision for compensation and career paths...

Begin with a brief overview of:•Thedistrict’sstudentlearningoutcomesbygradelevel,subject,andstudentsubgroups;and•Thedistrict’sstudentlearningimprovementgoals.

Set the context by asking:•Willthenewcompensationandcareerpathplanadd to or replacethecurrentcompensationschedule?•Inmostcases,yourteamwillknowtheanswertothisquestionandshouldanswertherestofthequestionsaccordingly.Ifnot,

revisititattheendofyourdiscussion.Walk the team through these questions about:

The district’s current compensation plan and career paths1.Whatworks wellinthedistrict’scompensationandcareerpathsthatyouwanttokeep?Why?2.Whatdoes not work wellinthedistrict’scompensationandcareerpaths?Whatistheconsequenceofthoseshortcomings?3.Overall,dothedistrict’scompensationandcareerpathsencourageacultureofexcellencethatsupportsyourmission?

How?Hownot?Designing a new compensation plan and career paths4.Whatfeaturesshouldthedistrict’snew compensation and career path planhave?

Howmighteachaffectteachersandthedistrict?5.Whatfeaturesshouldthedistrict’snewcompensationandcareerpathsavoid?6.Discusshowimportanteachofthefollowingistothedistrict’scareerpathsandpay...andnegativeeffectstoavoid.

Features the new compensation plan could reward or prioritize

How important is the feature?1.Essential 2.Importantbutnotessential3.Notveryimportant 4.Mustnotinclude

Negative effects to avoid if including — or not including — this feature in a pay plan?

Experienceasteacher

Commitmentto/experienceinanewrole

Reachingmorestudentswithexcellentteaching

Ensuringthatstudentsarenotsubjectedtoineffectiveteaching

Leadershipofpeerteachers

Studentlearningoutcomes

Teamwork

Advanceddegrees

Teachingeconomicallydisadvantagedstudents

Payingmoreforhard-to-staffsubjects(e.g.,STEM)

Payingthesameforthesamejob,regardlessofabove

7. Ifyoucouldsummarizeyourvisionforcareerpathsandpayinonesentence,whatwoulditbe?(Suggestion:Individualswritedownandreadaloud).

8. Whatarethecommonelementstoformyourvisionofteacherpayandcareerpathsinourdistrict?(Circleorotherwiseindicateonflipchart,whiteboard,etc.)

9. LeadershipCheck-In a.Isthisvisionambitious enoughforyourdistrict’steachers? b.Willthegroupcommit to designing and implementingpayandpathsthatachievethisvision? c.Willthegroupcommittocommunicating with and leading otherstoimplementacrossthedistrict? 10. Discussand,ifpossible,determinewho shouldbeeligibleforpaysupplements:Excellentteachers;effectiveteachers;

principalsand/orassistantprincipals;paraprofessionalsinnewroles;certainsubjectsorgrades;other? 11. Isthisvisionfeasibleforthedistrictfinancially?Whatstepsareneededtobesure?Whowilltakethesesteps?Willstate

policiesinhibitorprohibityourvision?(Assignresponsibilityforidentifyinganystatepolicyconflicts.)




The core models and roles of an Opportunity Culture providethefoundationforbuildingcareerandpaystructures.Schoolsstillhavesignificantlatitudefordetermininghoweachmodelandroleoperateswithineachschool.Teachersthemselveshavesignificantautonomytomaketherolesworkwell.

Figure6givesbriefdescriptionsofeachmodelwithlinkstomoredetailed resources. All of these models create extended-reachclassroomsandextended-reachrolesthatdelivergreatresultsformorestudentsandbettercareeroptionsforteachers.

Roles in Opportunity Culture School Models

OpportunityCultureschoolmodelsincludenewteaching,leader-ship,andparaprofessionalrolesdesignedforleadingwhileteach-ing,learningonthejob,makingthemostofeachteacher’stimeandtalents,andreachingmorestudentswithexcellentteachingwhilealsopayingteachersmore.

ThevastmajorityofOpportunityCulturerolesareself-fundedat the school levelbythenewstaffingmodels.Amuchmorelimitednumberofroles—districtcurriculumandassessmentdesigners,forexample—maybefundedbyreallocatingdistrict- levelresources.

BelowandinFigures7a –7d,“RolesinanOpportunityCulture”(beginningonpage14),weofferdetailsaboutthenewroles,howthey correspond to career paths in an Opportunity Culture, andfundingsourcesfortheirpaysupplements.ReaderscanfindevenmoredetailonOpportunityCulture.org,includingsamplejobde-scriptionsformostroles.

teaching roles

Most instructional roles fall into one of three teaching career paths: Multi- Classroom Leader, Direct- Reach Teacher, and Support Teacher. Teachers can progress to higher levels of responsibility and pay within a path, or move to a more advanced path.

Multi- classroom leaders (MCLs) intheMulti-ClassroomLeader-shipmodelareexcellentteacherswith leadershipcompetencieswho reach more students by leading instructional teams, while also continuing to teachsomestudentsdirectly—insmall-grouppulloutsorintactclasses.MCLsareresponsibleforachievinghighgrowthforallclassroomsinthepod,determininghowstudentsspend time, and tailoring the team-teachers’ roles according totheir strengths. Their teams may include direct-reach teachers,teamteachers,and/orparaprofessionals.Theyareaccountableforallstudents’outcomes,andcanadvancebyleadingmoreclassesandteacherswhileachievingexcellentoutcomes.

Direct- reach teachers reach more students directly, extendingtheir reach alone or on a team. Blended-learning teachers, whouseaTime-TechnologySwap,andexpanded-impactteachers,whouse a Time Swap without online learning; subject specialization

set a visionYourdistrict’sleadershipteam,withinputfromallinterestedpar-ties,mustestablish a vision to guide your compensation and ca-reer path design decisions.Thisstepincludessettingparameterson school models, if any. (See OpportunityCulture.org for addi-tionaltoolstohelpwithsettingparameters.)

IncludeinyourvisionhowmuchyouwantyourOpportunityCul-turecareerpathstosupportspecificvalues,suchasreachingmorestudents,excellentteaching,andleadershipormentoringofpeers.Figure5providesguidingquestionsthatyourteamcanusetoleaddiscussionsanddecisionmakingaboutyourvision.

Step 2: Understand School Models and Roles in an Opportunity CultureThis section provides basic information about the OpportunityCultureschool models and roles within individual schools, as well as roles serving multiple schools.MoredetailaboutschoolmodelsandrolesisavailableonOpportunityCulture.org.

At- A- Glance: Opportunity Culture School Models and Roles

Schooldesignteamsselect,combine,andcustomizeOpportu-nity Culture school models (adhering to the five Opportunity Culture Principles in Figure 3). These models include Multi-ClassroomLeadership;ElementarySubjectSpecialization;TimeSwaps,withorwithoutadigitallearningelement;reasonable,voluntaryClass-SizeIncreases;and,inextremeshortages,teach-ingbyremotelylocatedteachers.

Rolesincludenewteaching,leadership,andparaprofessionalroles,alldesignedforon-the-jobleadershipandlearning,andtomakethemostofeachteacher’stimeandtalentsandreachmorestudentswithexcellentteaching—formorepay.

The vast majority of Opportunity Culture roles are self-fundedat the school levelbythenewstaffingmodels.Amuchmorelimitednumberofroles—districtcurriculumandassess-mentdesigners,forexample—maybefundedbyreallocationof district- level resources. Funding increases may supplementpayboostsinalloftheseroles,butnonedependonadditionalfundingforthecore,substantialpayincreasesdescribedhere.

Opportunity Culture School Models

Schooldesignteamsselect,combine,andcustomizeschoolmodelsandroles(adheringtothefiveOpportunity Culture Principles inFigure3).ThesemodelsincludeMulti-ClassroomLeadership;Ele-mentarySubjectSpecialization;TimeSwaps,withorwithoutadig-ital learningelement; reasonable,voluntaryClass-Size Increases;and,inextremeshortages,teachingbyremotelylocatedteachers.









ELEMENTARY SPECIALIZATIONA school’s best teachers teach one of two core subject pairs: math/science or language arts/social studies, while teammates take care of students the rest of the time and cover administrative work. This allows specialized teachers to instruct multiple classrooms of students and gain more time for planning and collaboration.

MULTI-CLASSROOM LEADERSHIPTeachers with leadership skills both teach and lead teams or “pods” of other teachers in order to share strategies and best practices for classroom success. Responsible for achieving high growth for all classrooms in the pod, the teacher-leader determines how students spend time and tailors teachers’ roles according to their strengths.

OTHER TEACHERS

EXCELLENT TEACHER

REMOTE TEACHINGSchools without enough excellent teachers can enlist accountable remote teachers down the street or across the nation. Remote teachers use technology to provide live, but not in-person, instruction, while on-site teammates manage administrative duties and develop the whole child.

TIME-TECHNOLOGY SWAPSStudents spend part of the day engaged in self-paced digital learning. Digital instruction replaces enough of top teachers’ time that they can teach more students, using face-to-face teaching time for higher-order learning and personalized follow-up. Teachers can use part of their freed time for planning and collaboration.

DIGITAL LEARNING

FACE-TO-FACE TEACHING

CLASS-SIZE INCREASES

class-size increasesExcellentteachersteachlargerclasses,bychoiceandwithinlimits,insomecasesshiftingstudentsfromotherteachers’classrooms.

elementary specializationAschool’sbestteachersteachonlytheirbestsubject(s)—suchasmath/scienceorlanguagearts/socialstudies—whileteammatestakecareofstudentstherestofthetimeandcoveradministra-tivework.Thisallowsspecializedteacherstoinstructmultipleclassroomsofstudentsandgainmoretimeforplanningandcollaboration.

multi-classroom leadershipTeacherswithleadershipskillsbothteachandleadteamsor“pods”ofotherteachersinordertosharestrategiesandbestpracticesforclassroomsuccess.Responsibleforachievinghighgrowthforallclassroomsinthepod,theteacher-leaderdeter-mineshowstudentsspendtimeandtailorsteachers’rolesaccordingtotheirstrengths.

time-technology swapsStudentsspendpartofthedayengagedinself-paceddigitallearning.Digitalinstructionreplacesenoughoftopteachers’timethattheycanteachmorestudents,usingface-to-faceteach-ingtimeforhigher-orderlearningandpersonalizedfollow-up.Teacherscanusepartoftheirfreedtimeforplanningandcol-laboration.ArelatedmodelcallsforaTime Swapwithouttech-nology,replacingdigitalinstructiontimewithtimeforofflineskillspracticeandprojects.

remote teachingSchoolswithoutenoughexcellentteacherscanenlistaccountableremoteteachersdownthestreetoracrossthenation.Re-moteteachersusetechnologytoprovidelive,butnotin-person,instruction,whileon-siteteammatesmanageadministrativedutiesanddevelopthewholechild.

figure 6. SchoolModelSnapshots



paraprofessional roles

ParaprofessionalsarecriticalinanOpportunityCulture.Theysup-port teachers in numerous capacities, saving teachers time toextend their reach, plan, and lead team meetings during schoolhours.Paraprofessionalscanadvancetheircareersbytakingmoreresponsibility for students in ways that help direct-reach teach-ersandmulti-classroomleadersreachmorestudentssuccessfully.Paysupplementsaboveteachingassistantratesmaybeincludeddependingonhoweachdistrictchoosestoreallocatefundsfromtheswapsdescribedabove.

Pre-service teachers may take roles that paraprofessionalswouldotherwisehold,earningasalaryandbenefitsratherthanteachingforfreeintheirstudentteachingyear.OneOpportunityCulturepilotdistrictselectsandtrainspre-serviceteacherstoworkinateamforayearwithamulti-classroomleaderresponsiblefortheirdevelopment.Thisarrangementpreparesincomingteachersfortheteamworkrequiredbynewschoolmodels;allowsschoolstoscreenforthecompetenciesneededinacollaborativeenviron-mentwithahighcommitmenttoexcellentoutcomesforallstu-dents;andservesasarecruitingpipelineforOpportunityCultureschools.

district- funded teacher- leader roles

TheserolescansupportOpportunityCulturemodelsandexpandteachers’impactacrossseveralschoolsorwholedistricts(andpo-tentiallybeyond).

Theserolesmayincludecurriculum and assessment designers, coaches of multi- classroom leaders, and video and digital learn-ing designers, among others. (The designers’ influence may be“boundless,”extendingfarbeyondtheirdistrict.)Districtsgener-allymustreallocatedistrict spendingtofundtheserolessustain-ably.3Ideally,teachersintheserolesstillteachparttimeinOppor-tunityCultureschools.

multi- school leader roles

Multi-SchoolLeadership isalsoapossibilityinanOpportunityCul-ture,maximizingthe impactofexcellentschool leadersanden-ablingthemto leadandmentordevelopingprincipals.Adistrictcouldfundamulti-schoolleaderbycarefullyplanningschoollead-ershipstaffingratiostomakehigher-paidrolessustainablewithinbudget,reorganizingassistantsuperintendentrolesforenhancedaccountability and authority, and combining advanced and de-velopingschoolleadersacrossschools.WeincludethispossibilityheretoshowthefullleadershipcontinuumpossibleinanOppor-tunityCulture.WatchOpportunityCulture.orgforfuturepublica-tions that explore the structure and funding reallocation to paytheserolessustainably.

teachers;andlarge-classteachersareall“direct-reachteachers.”Districtsmayincludenotjustexcellentteachers,butalsoeffective ones(good,solidteachers)inthispath.Theseteachersalsowantopportunitiestojointeamsonwhichtheycancollaborate,extendthereachoftheteam,learnfromoutstandingpeers,andpoten-tiallyearnmore.Somedistrictsrequirethatgood,solidteachersextending their reach work on a team led by a multi-classroomleader. Districts may differentiate among the direct-reach rolesandpayforteachersofvaryinglevelsofeffectivenessbyhavingseverallevelswithinthedirect-reachpath.

Butsomedistrictsmaylimitthedirect-reachpathtohighlyef-fective(excellent)teachersonly,andinsteadplaceeffectiveteach-ersinthesupportteacherpath(seeFigure7B).Extendingthereachofgood,solidteachersdoesnotbyitselfadvancethegoalofreach-ingmorestudentswithexcellentteachers,butschoolsthatcom-bine thiswithteamleadershipbyexcellentteachersmaydevelopmoreteacherswholeaptowardinstructionalexcellence.

Pilotschoolshaveofferedthesedirect-reachrolesonlytohighlyeffectiveteachersin the initial year.Butthefirstdistricttoscaleup,Charlotte-MecklenburgSchools,subsequentlybeganprovidingsmallerpaysupplementstoeffectiveteacherswhotakeondirect-reachrolesonateamwithhighlyeffectivepeers.(SeeFigure29aonpage36toseeanexamplefromCharlotte.)

Schools typically fund MCL and direct- reach pay supplementswithinbudgetbyswappingateachingpositionforaparaprofes-sionalsupportpositiononeachteamand/orbyshiftinginstruc-tional specialists and facilitators who were selected for theirteachingprowessbackintoclassroomroles,wheretheycanreachmorestudentsformorepay.Schoolsalsocanfundhigherpaybycarefullyplanningthestaffingratioofadvancedandnewerteach-ersoneachteam.Eachschoolshoulddeterminewhatreallocationmethodswillachievethemaximumbenefitforstudentsandforteachers’professionallearningonthejob.

Support teachersareeffective,butnotyethighlyeffective,teach-erswhosupportreachteamsorteachintraditionalclassroomsinaschoolthatalsohasextended-reachclassrooms.Supportteachersinclude team teachers, professional tutors, and traditional class-roomteachers.Theymayreceivepaysupplementsdependingonhoweachdistrictchoosestoreallocatefundsfreedbythepositionswapsdescribedabove.Forexample,schoolsmaychoosetocarveoutsupplementsforteacherswhocannotextendreachfeasibly,given their students and courses. (Some districts may choose toincluderolesforgood,solidteacherswhoextendtheirreachaspartofthissupportteacherpath,andnotaslowerlevelsofthedirect-reachpath.)



figure 7. RolesinanOpportunityCulture

7b.supportteachersrolesinanopportunityculture

These classroom roles typically do not extend reach directly.

teamteachers*teachinsubjects/rolesassignedbyateacher-leader.Rolesmayincludesmall-grouporindividualtutoring,grading,supervisingprojects,lecturing,analyzingstudentdata,planninginstruction,assistingwithtechnology,andothers.Thismaybeconstructedasanentry-leveltrainingroleorasateachingrolewithlessresponsibilityandshorterhoursthanafullteachingrole.

* Districts may choose to include good, solid teachers who extend their reach directly in this path, instead of the direct-reach path.

professionaltutors**deliverassignedsmall-groupandindividualinstruction.Aprofessionaltutorisacertifiedorexperiencedteacherwhohasoptedforaroledeliveringfocusedinstruction.Professionaltutorsadvancetheircareersbyaddingdataassessmentandplanning,orbyteachingadvancedorspecializedcontent,toallowteachersandmulti-classroomleaderstoextendtheirreach.Tutorsmaybeallowedtoworklimitedorflexiblehours.

** Teachers work an average of more than 50 hours per week in the U.S. These positions can be structured for part-time employment or a 40-hour week, with compensation adjustment proportional to the reduction in hours. Such positions may allow teachers who would otherwise retire or leave the workforce for family reasons to continue helping students.

classroomteachersteachinatraditional,one-teacher-one-classroommode.Theseteachersmayteachsubjects,classes,orstudentpopulationsforwhichextended-reachmodelsarenotappropriate.Alternatively,theymaysimplycontinuethetraditionalmodeasanOpportunityCultureredesignisphasedin,eventuallyconvertingtooneofthenewroles.

7a.school-levelreachrolesinanopportunityculture

multi-classroomleaders(mcls) continuetoteachwhile leadinganddevelopingpodsofteacherswhousetheirmethodsandmaterialswithmultipleclassroomsofstudents.TheMCLisaccountableforallthestudents’outcomes.

direct-reachteachersextendtheirreachonateambyswappingenoughteachingtimewithaparaprofessionalsotheycanteachmorestudents.Districtsmayincludeonlyhighlyeffectiveteachersinthedirect-reachpath,orbothhighlyeffectiveandeffectiveteachersworkingtogetheronateam.

•elementaryspecializedteachersteachonlytheirbestsubject(s).

•blended-learningteachersuseTime-TechnologySwapstoteachadditionalstudents,withoutincreasinginstructionalgroupsizes,andfocusonpersonalizedinstructionandstudents’higher-orderthinkingskills.

•expanded-impactteachersuseTimeSwapstoteachadditionalstudents,withoutincreasinginstructionalgroupsizes,andfocusonpersonalizedinstructionandstudents’higher-orderthinkingskills.

•large-classteachersextendreachbyincreasingclasssizes,withinlimitsandbychoice.*

•remotelylocatedteachersusetechnologytopro-videlive,butnotin-person,instruction,whileon-siteteammatesmanageadministrativedutiesanddevelopthewholechild.

* Few pilot Opportunity Culture schools have chosen to use this model alone. Although it requires the least change in school processes, it maintains the one-teacher-one-classroom mode, and does not create a natural team of teachers who can help one another succeed. By combining technical class-size increases (increased student:teacher ratios) with Time-Technology Swaps or Elementary Subject Speciali zation, teachers can reach more students while maintaining or decreasing the number of students in a class with a teacher at any given time. Teachers can gain school-day planning and collaboration time in some combinations, too. Schools must plan class-size increases carefully to serve students’ and teachers’ interests.



7c.paraprofessionalrolesinanopportunitycultureThese roles may have individual titles or a single title such as “Reach Associate.”

tutors supportteachers’reachextensionwithtargetedinstructionprescribedbytheteachers.*

learningcoaches supportreachbytakingcareofthe“wholechild”(social,emotional,behavioral,andtime/taskmanagement),bysupervisingskillspracticeandprojectsasassignedbyteachers,andbyotherwiseassistingteachersandteamsextendingtheirreach.

digitallabmonitors supportreachbysupervisingstudentsinadigitallearninglab.

assistantteachers supportreachbyreducingteachers’noninstructionaladministrativeworkloadandbyotherwiseassistingteachers,typicallyinatraditionalclassroomstructure.

*Paraprofessional tutors do not have certification or experience as traditional classroom teachers, but do have the necessary subject-matter knowledge. Tutors may work in person at a school or remotely. All other paraprofessional positions work in schools. Tutor role may be combined with other roles.

7d.district-fundedteacher-leaderrolesinanopportunitycultureThese roles, funded through district reallocations, support teachers by producing instructional materials or providing support to reach-extending teachers across schools. Though less common, these roles can be structured to generate sub-stantial benefits across a district (and for all but leadership coaches, may have “boundless” influence far beyond the dis-trict). For example, teachers can be granted part-time release from classroom duties to take on district-level roles such as curriculum and assessment design. For more information, visit OpportunityCulture.org.

videoteachers recordvideounitsofinstructionforrepeatedusebystudentslearningdigitally.

designspecialists designcurricula,assessments,and/orstudentdiagnostictoolsschoolscanuse.

leadershipcoaches coachmulti-classroomleadersandpossiblyadvanceddirect-reachteacherswhoareinformallymentoringotherteachers.Theyprovidesupport,guidance,andfacilitationtoimproveinstructionalleadershipbyOpportunityCultureteachersresponsibleforhelpingotherteacherssucceed.Theyalsocontinuetoteachparttime.

digitaldesigners contributetothedesignofinstructionalsoftware,usingtheirknowledgeofsubject-mattercontentandstudentmotivation.




figure 8.SummaryofTeacherCareerPathsandRolesinOpportunityCultureSchoolModels

Path Direct-Reach TeacherMulti-Classroom

Leader Support TeacherDistrict- Funded Teacher-Leader

Roles

ElementarySpecializedTeacher

Blended-LearningTeacher

Expanded-ImpactTeacher(low-tech)

Large-ClassTeacher

Multi-ClassroomLeader

TeamTeacher

ProfessionalTutor

DesignSpecialist*

LeadershipCoach(ofMulti-ClassroomLeaders)

VideoTeacher

DigitalDesigner

How is reach extended?

Teachingbestsubjecttomoreclasses,whilereducingotherduties

Swappingportionoftimewithparaprofessional-supervisedskillspracticeandprojects—digitaloroffline—toteachmorestudents

Increasingclasssizes,withinlimitsandbychoice

Leadingmultipleclassrooms’worthofstudentswithateachingteamforwhomleaderisresponsible

Supportingmulti-classroomleaderorefficientteam,and/oraddressingsubjectorteachingrole(s)delegatedbyteamleader

Producingmaterialsthatreachstudentsacrossschoolsinthedistrict,orcoachingmulti-classroomleadersacrossschools

School Model

Subject Specialization (Elementary)

Time-Tech SwapTime-Time Swap

Class-Size Changes

Multi-Classroom Leadership All School Models

*Curriculum and assessment designers are common examples.

ThegraphicinFigure8showshowtheteachingrolesrelatetoschoolmodelsandcareerpaths.Step3focusesondesigningcareerpathsandrestructuringcompensationaccordingly.

Step 3: Design Career Paths and CompensationOnceyourteamhasestablishedavisionandunderstandstheOp-portunityCulturemodelsandroles,youcanbegintomakedeci-sionsaboutyourdistrict’scareerpathsandcompensationstructure.Herewediscusscriticaldesigndecisionsforcareerpathsandpay.

At- A- Glance: Critical Decisions for Opportunity Culture Career Paths and PayCriticaldesigndecisionsfordesigningOpportunityCultureca-reerpathsandassociatedpayincludethese:1.Whoiseligibleforpaysupplements?2.Willroleswithsimilarcoststructuresbecommunicatedas

oneormultiplepaths?3.Whatarethecriteriaforentryandadvancementtothenext

levelorintonewroles?4.Whatarethecriteriaforremaininginroles?5.Howmanylevelsofprogressionwilleachpathhave?

6.Whataretheroledescriptions/dutiesthatshowadvancedresponsibilitiesateachleveloneachpath?

7.Whatpaysupplementsareavailableforeachleveloneachpath?

8.Howwillpaysupplementsbestructured?

Critical Decisions for Opportunity Culture Career Paths and Pay

Revisit your vision to help with these questions. Your financialanalysis (Step4,beginningonpage22)alsowilldeterminehowmuchmoneyyouhavetospreadamongteacherswhoreachmorestudents and lead peers. For now, think about how your valuesmight affect answers to each of these questions, and how youranswersmightaffectthebehaviorsyouwanttoencourageanddiscourageinordertoachieveoutstandingstudentlearning.

1. Who is ideally eligible for pay supplements?Yourdesignteamwillneedtodeterminewhatpositionsareeli-gibleforpaysupplementsandincludetheseinyourcareerpaths.Addingmorestaffrewardsmorepeople,butwilllimitthelevelofpayfortheadvancedandleadershiprolesthatmaybemostcriticaltostudentoutcomes.Specifically:



learning, with increased paraprofessional support, and replace most of the existing instructional positions in Opportunity Culture schools.

3. What are the criteria for entry and advancement to the next level or new roles?

DistrictsmayconsidermultiplecriteriaforentryandadvancementintoOpportunityCultureroles.Thesemightinclude:

✱ Pastperformancelevelandconsistency,includingevidenceofstudentlearningandotherelements

✱ Behavioralcompetencies,suchasteamwork,leadership,andplanningahead(seeFigure10forbriefexamples)

✱ Experienceinteachingandotherrelevantroles✱ CommitmenttoandexperienceworkinginOpportunity

Culturemodels

Allpilotdistrictsrequiredthatcandidatesforadvanced,extended-reachrolesachieveahighlyeffectiveorequivalentperformancelevel for some number of years to qualify for the position. Oneearly district allowed effective teachers to become direct-reachteachers,butnotmulti-classroomleaders;positionsforgood,solidteachersdidnotcounttowardthegoalofreaching80percentofstudentswithhighlyeffectiveteachers.Districtsvaryinwhetherentryandpromotionwithinaprogression,suchasdifferinglev-els of multi-classroom leader, require prior experience in a verysimilarrole.

Thepilotschoolsreceivedabout30applicationsperopenpo-sition on average, making increased selectivity possible, even inhigh-poverty, hard-to-staff schools. However, few districts haveexperiencesuccessfullyselectingcandidatesforexcellenceinsuchlargenumbers,andfornewroles,toboot.Overtimeandasmoredatabecomeavailableabouthowhiringratingspredictteachers’actualeffectivenessinextendingtheirreach,weexpectthatdis-tricts will improve their ability to select the best candidates fornewroles.

TheTeacher & Staff Selection, Evaluation and Development Tool-kit on OpportunityCulture.org includes selection tools for manyOpportunityCulturerolesbasedonpastperformanceandbehav-ioralcompetencies.Figure10showsasnapshotofsomebehavioralcompetencies districts can use to select people into reach roles.CheckOpportunityCulture.orgforadditional,freehelpfordistrictsandschoolsscreeningmanyapplicantsfortheseroles.Somedis-trictsmayalsoneedtechnicalassistancetoreorganizethehiringprocesses.

4. What are the criteria for remaining in roles?ThevisionoftheOpportunityCulturemodelsistoreachfarmorestudents with excellent teaching—and high-growth learning—

✱ Willbothhighlyeffectiveandeffectiveteachershavepaidrolesinyourcareerprogression,orjusthighlyeffectiveteachers?Somedistrictsmaywanttohighlighttheimportanceofperformingatthehighestlevelbyrewardingonlyhighlyeffectiveteacherswhotakenewroles.Othersmaywanttoencouragegood,solidteacherstojointeamsledbytheiroutstandingpeersandtoreachmorestudentsefficientlyandeffectively.

✱ Inwhatgradesandsubjectswillteachershavetheopportunitytoextendtheirreach?Coresubjects?Others,too?Willteacherswhocannotjoinreachteamsreceiveasupplementofsomekind?

✱ Willparaprofessionalswhosupportextended-reachteachersreceivepaysupplements?

✱ Willprincipalsandassistantprincipalsreceivepaysupplements?

InmostOpportunityCulturepilots,districtshaveprovidedsupple-mentsonlytohighlyeffectiveteacherswhowereactuallyextend-ingtheirreach.However,thefirstdistricttoscaleup,Charlotte-MecklenburgSchools,enteringitssecondyearin2014–15,chosetopaysmallerbutstillsignificantsupplementstoeffective teacherswhojoinreachteamswithhighlyeffectiveleaders,andtoparapro-fessionals,aswell.Thiscreatesanincentiveforeffectiveteachersto join reach teams, learn from their highly effective peers, andsupporttheteams’effortstoimprovestudentoutcomes.

2. Will roles with similar cost structures be communicated as one or multiple paths?

Differentclassroommodelscreatedistinctroles.However,thecosteffectivenessandpotentialpaysupplementsareverysimilarformost direct- reach roles, especially specialized teachers, blended-learningteachersandexpanded-impactteachers.

Districtsmaychoosetocommunicatetheserolesandassociatedpathsseparatelyorasonesetofrelated“direct-reach”roles.Com-municatingthemtogetherclarifiesthatlateralmovementamongtheserolescanbefluidwithoutaffectingpay,allowingteacherstomovewithinandacrossschoolsthathaveadopteddiversecombi-nationsofclassroommodels.

Figure9showstheteachingroles inoneprogression,withalldirect-reach teaching roles merged into one path. Step 4 of thisguideprovidesdetailedguidanceforthefinancialcalculationstodeterminefeasiblepaysupplementlevels.

Allofthecareerpathsinthetable(onpage18)canhelptrans-form traditional schools to produce outstanding results for stu-dents. The paths for direct-reach teachers and multi-classroom leaders hold these teachers directly accountable for more students’







figure 9.TeacherCareerPathsandRolesinOpportunityCultureModels,withDirect-ReachTeachersMergedinOnePath*

Direct-Reach Teacher Multi-Classroom LeaderSupport Teacher and

Non-ReachDistrict-Funded Teacher-Leader



Expanded-ImpactTeacher

Large-ClassTeacher

Multi-ClassroomLeader TeamTeacher

ProfessionalTutor

TraditionalClassroomTeacher

Full-TimeorHybrid:

VideoTeacher

DigitalDesigner DesignSpecialist— Curriculum&Assessment

Pay Supplement: 10–40%forHighlyEffective3–6%+forEffective

Pay Supplement:20–100%+

Pay Supplement:Dependsonhowsavingsdistributed

Pay Supplement:Dependsoncurrentdistrictspending

$ Source:SchoolReallocation



$ Source:DistrictReallocation

*Pay supplement figures are examples only and are expressed as a percent of average pay. Factors affecting supplements include current spending levels in schools, the number of roles to which spending is reallocated in a given school, and state policies allowing position swaps with full funding.

andfarfewerwithineffectiveteaching.Criteriaforremaininginreach-extended roles should, in most cases, be similar to thosefor entry, but with effectiveness determined in the new job re-sponsibilities.Undoubtedly,however,somepeoplewhoareexcel-lentteachersalonewillstrugglewiththeplanning,teamwork,orleadershiprequiredforexcellenceinsomemodels,particularlyinwider-spanmulti-classroomteacher-leaderroles.Again,overtimeandwithmoredata,districtswillimprovetheirabilitytoidentifythebestcandidatesforreachpositions.Placementintoreachrolesshouldimproveandreducethenumberofteacherschoosingthewrongrolesandextendingreachineffectively.Additionaltrainingandpreparationmaterialstohelpteachersprepareforextended-reachroleswillbepostedonOpportunityCulture.org.

5. How many levels of progression will each path have?Districts must determine how many levels of differentiated re-sponsibilityandpaytheywillofferoneachpath.Ineachrole,mul-tiplelevelsarepossibleusingperformanceandexperienceinreachroles(whichwecall“commitmenttoreachmodels”)asdifferen-tiatorsoflevels.(SeeFigures11–14.)

✱ In a very flat structure, all teachers extending their reach receive the same supplement,simplydividingthecostsavingsfromanefficientschoolmodelbythenumberofteachers(seeFigure 11).“Careerpaths”wouldnotreallybepaths,butasetofsingle-levelroles.Flatstructuresrewardeveryonesimilarly.Buttheydonotrecognizethemorecomplicated

responsibilitiesofmulti-classroomleaderscomparedtomostdirect-reachrolesandwouldlikelybeadisincentiveforteachersconsideringthischallengingrole.FlatstructuresthatdonotpayforexperienceandcontinuedeffectivenessorexcellenceinreachrolesalsodonotrewardcommitmenttoOpportunityCulturerolesandanongoingdevelopmentofteachingexcellenceandleadership.

✱ In a modestly differentiated structure, the more challenging role of multi- classroom leader might earn more than direct- reach roles,anddifferentspansofleadershipmayberecognized(seeFigure 12).

✱ In a more differentiated structure, different roles, leadership spans, and levels for effective and highly effective teachers are recognized,withtheresponsibilityforinformalmentoringandthemostcomplexdifferentiationandinstructionalplanningpushedtothemosteffectiveteammembers,forhigherpay(see Figure 13).

✱ The most highly differentiated career structures include levels for different reach roles, leadership spans, effectiveness levels, and years of experiencethatdemonstratecommitmenttoworkinginOpportunityCulturemodels(seeFigure 14).Highlydifferentiatedpathsandpayhavethepotentialtoreachthemoststaffmemberswithasupplementalpayopportunity,becauselowersupplementsinthebottomhalfofthecontinuumsavefundsthatcanbeusedtopaymoretoparaprofessionals,principals,andteacherswhocannotextend



figure 10.Example CompetenciesinOpportunityCultureRoles

Achievement Thedriveandactionstosetchallenginggoalsandreachahighstandardofperformancedespitebarriers.

Teamwork Theabilityandactionsneededtoworkwithotherstoachievesharedgoals.

Planning Ahead Abiastowardplanninginordertoreachgoalsandavoidproblems.

Developing Others Influencewiththespecificintenttoincreasetheshort-andlong-termeffectivenessofanotherperson.

Impact & Influence Actingwiththepurposeofinfluencingwhatotherpeoplethinkanddo.

Flexibility Theabilitytoadaptone’sapproachtotherequirementsofasituationandtochangetactics.

Monitoring & Directiveness Thedriveandactionstosetclearexpectationsandholdothersaccountableforperformance.

figure 14. HighlyDifferentiatedStructure

Role Example Pay Supplement*

Multi-ClassroomLeaderIV:Leads11+teachers’worthofclasseswithteam 75%ofaveragepay

Multi-ClassroomLeaderIII:Leads8–10teachers’worthofclasseswithteam 65%

Multi-ClassroomLeaderII:Leads4–7teachers’worthofclasseswithteam 50%

Multi-ClassroomLeaderI:Leads2–3teachers’worthofclasseswithteam 22%

MasterReachTeacher—HighlyEffective,Mentor,3+yearsonreachteam** 22%

SeniorReachTeacher—HighlyEffective,Mentor,upto3yearsonreachteam** 10%

TeamTeacherII—Effective,TeamTeacher,3+yearsonreachteam

AdvancedReachTeacher—Effective,3+yearsonreachteam

6%

TeamTeacherI—Effective,TeamTeacher,upto3yearsonreachteam

ReachTeacher—Effective,upto3yearsonreachteam

3%

Paraprofessional 3%

ClassroomTeacher 0%

* Pay supplement figures are examples only and are expressed as a percent of average pay.** Includes blended-learning, expanded-impact, and specialized elementary teachers.

figure 11. FlatCareerStructure


AllExtended-ReachTeachersDirect-Reach Teachers and Multi-Classroom Leaders

25%ofaveragepay

ClassroomTeacher 0%

*Pay supplements are examples and are a percent of average pay.

figure 12. ModestlyDifferentiatedStructure


Multi-ClassroomLeader 40%ofaveragepay

Direct-ReachTeacher** 20%

ClassroomTeacher 0%


figure 13. MoreDifferentiatedStructure


Multi-ClassroomLeaderII 50%ofaveragepay

Multi-ClassroomLeaderI 30%

Direct-ReachTeacher—HighlyEffective,Mentor**

20%

Direct-ReachTeacher—Effective,TeamTeacher

5%

ClassroomTeacher 0%




theirreach,withinbudget.Higherlevelsofresponsibilitycanalsoberewardedaccordingly.

Mostearlypilotsusedamodestlydifferentiatedstructure,pay-ingdirect-reachandleadershiprolesdifferently,butpayingonlyhighly effective teachers more. Effective teachers in pilot sitesgenerallydonotearnmore,norarepilotsitesprovidingadditionalpayforexperiencelevels.

Charlotte-Mecklenburgbrokeitsownmoldinitssecondyearbycreatingtwolevels(andhence,paysupplements)ofdirect-reachteam-teacherrolesforeffectiveteachers,andtwolevelsofdirect-reachrolesforhighlyeffectiveteachers.Inthishighlydifferenti-ated structure, teachers can earn more by maintaining their ef-fectiveorhighlyeffectiveevaluationratingsmostyears (twoofthethreeorfourofthefivemostrecentyears)whilestayingontheir reach team. As a result of savings from the same positionswapsthatfundteachersupplements,theschoolscouldalsopayasupplementabovetheteachingassistantpaytoparaprofessionalswhosupportOpportunityCultureteams.Moredifferentiationcanactuallyspreadthebenefittomorestaff,akeyvalueadoptedbythisearlyscalingdistrict.

Figure15highlightssomeofthetradeoffsinvolvedinstructuringahighlydifferentiatedcareerladder.

6. What are the role descriptions/duties that show advanced responsibilities at each level on each path?

Advancedroles—onesthatreachmorestudentswithexcellence,leadothers,orsupportreachteams—comenotjustwithhigherpay,butadditionalresponsibilities.Districtsshouldclarifyinwrit-ingthedutiesexpectedateachlevelonacareerpath.

Direct-reach teachers have a larger student load than compa-rableteachersinatraditionalmodel(evenwhenclasssizesdonotincrease), requiring more planning, sometimes in coordinationwithotherteachersandaparaprofessionalsupportteam.Teachersinadvancedlevelsoftheserolescanplayalargerroleininstruc-tionalplanning,differentiation,andpeermentoringthanothersontheteam.

Multi-classroom leaders have to plan not for one set of stu-dents,but for two, three,ormore”classes”ofstudents,and fortheinstructionalrolesanddevelopmentoftheirteammembers.Advancedlevelsofthisroleleadlargerteams,requiringmoreplan-ning,coordination,andconsistentleadership.

ParaprofessionalsinOpportunityCulturemodelsareresponsiblefordevelopingstudents’social,emotional,andtime-managementskillsand,insomecases,forcoordinatingwithseveralteachers,notjustone.Advancedlevelsofthisrolemightdomoretosaveteamteacherstimesothatmorestudentsareservedveryeffectively.

Foradditionaldetailonalloftheserolesandresponsibilities,seetheTeacher & Staff Selection, Evaluation and Development Toolkit, whichhasbasicroledescriptionsformostschool-basedOpportunityCultureroles.Schoolsanddistrictscaneditthesetofittheircontext.

7. What pay supplements are available for each level on each path?

Finally,districtswillneedtodeterminethesizeofthepaysupple-mentstheycanoffertoteachersateachlevelofeachrole,whileremaining within budget, and how those supplements will bestructured.

Ideally, teachers with comparable levels of instructional,planning,teamwork,andleadershipskillswouldbeabletoearnsimilarpayindifferingpathswithinadistrict.Paycomparabilitywill prevent teachers fromflocking tomore highly paid rolesandavoidingunderpaidroles,relativetoeachrole’sreach,com-plexity,andchallenge.

For example, one district considered having only one levelof pay for its multi-classroom leaders. However, it moved totwo, and then four, levels when staff realized that paying aleaderwithoneextraclassroomthesameasthoseleadingsixor seven teachers would make great multi-classroom leadershesitatetoextendtheirreachasmuchastheycould,infavorofaless-challengingstudentload.(SeeStep4:EnsureFinancialSustainabilityonpage22fordetailedguidanceonfundingca-reerpaths).

8. How will pay supplements be structured?Thedistrictalsomustdeterminehowpaysupplementswillbecalculated and structured. Although most districts calculatesupplementsasapercentageofaveragepaytodeterminefi-nancialsustainability,theytypicallyexplain and paythesupple-mentsas dollar figures.InallOpportunityCulturesitesthusfar,districtsarepayingsupplementsthatareflatdollarfigures,re-gardlessoftheindividuals’currentpay.Payingsetdollarsrather

Opportunity Culture pilots were somewhat conservative, paying supplements below what is financially sustainable. Nonetheless, the pilot supplements were as high as 50 percent of average base pay, far higher than bonuses or supplements available in other districts that do not have temporary grants.





figure 15. ExamplesofCareerLadderScenariosforHighlyDifferentiatedStructure*

scenario 1: AllRolesHighlyDifferentiated

support direct reach teacher-leadership

Multi-ClassroomLeaderIV 75%

Multi-ClassroomLeaderIII 65%

Multi-ClassroomLeaderII 50%

MasterReachTeacher 22% Multi-ClassroomLeaderI 22%

SeniorReachTeacher 10%

TeamTeacherII 6% AdvancedReachTeacher 6%

TeamTeacherI 3% ReachTeacher 3%

EffectiveTeachers

Upper2Levels:HighlyEffectiveTeachersLower2Levels:EffectiveTeacher

HighlyEffectiveTeachers

*Pay supplement figures are examples only and are expressed as a percent of average pay.

scenario 2: FlatRolesforEffectiveTeachers





MasterReachTeacher 22% Multi-ClassroomLeaderI 22%

SeniorReachTeacher 10%

TeamTeacher 6% ReachTeacher 6%

EffectiveTeachers

Upper2Levels:HighlyEffectiveTeachersLowerLevel:EffectiveTeacher



scenario 3: FlatDirect-ReachTeacherRole





Direct-ReachTeacher 22% Multi-ClassroomLeaderI 22%

TeamTeacherII 6%

TeamTeacherI 3%

EffectiveTeachers

HighlyEffectiveTeachers;orbothEffectiveandHighlyEffective

HighlyEffectiveTeacher

pros•Lower-paidentrylevelsforhighly

effectiveteachersgeneratesavingstopayeffectiveteachers,andpossiblyotherstaff,supplements

•Allteachersearnmore•Morestepsfeelgood

con•Morecomplexwithmorelevels

pro•Simple,singlestepforteamteachers

cons•Singlesteplimitsfeelingofprogress

forteamteachers•Lesssavingstopayothersmorewhen

thereisnolower-paidentrylevelforeffectiveteachers

pros•Simple,singlestepforhighlyeffec-

tive,direct-reachteachers•Highlyeffectiveearnmorefaster

cons•Singlesteplimitsfeelingofprogress

forhighlyeffectivedirect-reachteachers

•Lesssavings,withoutentrylevelfordirect-reachteachers,topayothersmore

•Putspressureonprincipalstopro-motetoMCLrolestoosoon

lev

els

lev

els

lev

els




thanpayingapercentageofbasepaypreventsschoolsfromdis-favoringexperiencedteachersforadvancedroles,andalsoavoidslast-minutebudgetpincheswhenastatechangesitspaystructureafterdistricthiring.

Step 4 explains how to reallocate funds to pay more, withinbudget.

Step 4: Ensure Financial SustainabilityCriticaldesigndecisionsaboutcompensationmustbeconsistentwiththethirdOpportunityCulturePrinciple:fundingpaywithinregularbudgets.Hereweshowhownewstaffingstructurescanbefinanciallysustainable—savingenoughmoneytopayteachersmore,whilereachingmorestudentswithexcellentteaching.

At- A- Glance: Funding Paid Career Advancement Sustainably in an Opportunity Culture Thedistrictcompensationdesignleaderandteammustensurethatnewstaffingmodelsand/orotherschoolanddistrictre-allocationsfundallpaysupplementsinthenewcareerpaths.Eachrolemustbefinanciallysustainableasteachersthrough-outthedistrict’sschoolsadvancetheirreach,responsibilities,andinstructionalexcellence.

Thebasicstepstoestablishfinancialsustainabilityinclude:1.Understandingthesourcesofsustainablefundingand

howtocalculatefeasibleaveragepaysupplements2.Conductingbasicscenarioanalysestoensurefinancial

sustainabilityforallaffectedschools

Funding Paid Career Advancement Sustainably in an Opportunity Culture

understanding the sources of sustainable funding and how to calculate feasible average pay supplementsAlthoughadditionalgrants—temporaryfederalfunding,specialstate programs, or private philanthropy—might boost supple-mentsfurther,eventhemostleanlystaffedschoolsshouldbeabletoincreasesomeorallteachers’payusingregularbudgetsavail-ableatthetimeofredesign.Morehelpidentifyingopportunitiesforresponsiblereallocationtofundnewstaffingmodelsisavail-ableonOpportunityCulture.org.

School- level reallocation supports higher pay for most of theadvancedrolesinanOpportunityCulture.Schooldesignsselectedbyeachschool’sdesignteammustfollowtheOpportunityCulturePrinciples,whichincludefundingpaysupplementswithinsustain-able budgets rather than with temporary grants. Staff role andschedulechangesallowfewerteacherstoservethesamenumber

ofstudents,withouthavingtoincreaseinstructionalgroupsizes.Meanwhile, extra paraprofessional support relieves teachers ofsomedutiesandallowssavingsforhigherpay,becausetheserolespaylessthanteachingroles.4Schoolscanalsoreallocatefundsforpaysupplementsbyshiftingsomenon-classroomteachers—suchassubjectfacilitatorsorresourceteachers(specialeducationandEnglish language learners excepted)—back into higher-paid,reach-extendedteachingroles.Inaddition,thesestaffingchangesalsocreatemorein-schooltimeforteachersandmulti-classroomleaderstoplan,collaborate,lead,andlearnonthejob.

Instituting only a limited staffing redesign at the school levelmay be tempting. But avoiding paraprofessional swaps mayleaveteacherswithoutthetimetoco-planandlearnfrommulti-classroomleadersduringtheschoolday,andleavethoseleaderswithouttimetoplanandlead. Inaddition,pilotschoolsthatre-tained school-level facilitators/non-classroom specialists along-sidenewextended-reachteacher-leaders—whoarefullyaccount-ableforstudentoutcomes—reportconfusionabouttheremainingroleforthosefacilitators.Inmanycases,though,facilitatorshavefilledthenew,higher-paidmulti-classroomleaderroles.

Schools may also reallocate other spending to pay more forrolesthatextendteachers’reach.Thisguidedoesnotdetailhowtoreallocateotherbudgetlineitemstohigherpay,butthesameprincipleapplies:Reallocationstosupporthigherpayshouldcomefrombudget line itemsthatare fundedsustainably, ratherthanwithtemporarygrants.

Using school-level reallocation, even extremely leanly staffedschoolsshouldbeabletoincreasedirect-reachteachers’paybyatleastanaverageof10percent,andincreasemulti-classroomleaderpaybyatleastanaverageof25percent.Potentially,however,real-locatingmoreschool-levelfundscouldsupportmuchhigherpaysupplements;see“ExamplesofFundingPaySupplementsthroughCostSavings”onpages23-24.

TheexampleillustratesjustoneofthemanywaysthatOpportu-nityCulturemodelscouldbeimplemented,butitshowsthekindofanalysisthatdistrictsmustdoforeachschoolmodeltoensurefinanciallyviablecareerpathpaysupplements.

Funding the majority of advanced teacher roles with school-level reallocation lets schools’ design teams retain control overthecorestaffingstructuresoftheirschools,becausethestaffingbudgetisintheirhands.Theycantinkerwiththeirschoolmodelsto reflect changes in student population and teacher recruitingandretentionsuccess.

Finally,thecalculationsheredonotincludethereallocationofbenefitsthatoccurwhenschoolschoosetoshiftnon-classroomteachingstaffbackintoclassroomroles(suchasmulti-classroomleader)formorepay.Whenaschooldoesnotreplacethoseposi-




examples of funding pay supplements through cost savingsHereareexamplesofhowelementaryandsecondaryschoolscanreallocatefundsforsustainablyfundedcareeradvance-mentusinganewstaffingmodelthatadherestoOpportunityCulturePrinciples.TheseexamplesarebasedonananalysispublishedintheProjected Statewide Impact of “Opportunity Culture” School Models.5ThisshowsthestaffingshifttoaMulti-ClassroomLeadershipmodelcombinedwitheitheraTimeSwaporElementarySubjectSpecializationmodel.

Intheseshifts,oneortwoteachingpositionswithinagrade(elementary)orsubject(secondary),aswellasaportionofaninstructionalspecialistrole,areswappedforanewpara-professionalsupportposition.Theparaprofessionalsavestheteamtimebysupervisingstudents’projectworkandskillspractice,underthedirectionoftheteachersontheteamandsometimesusingdigitalinstruction.Paraprofessionalsarepaidlessthanteachers,sotheteamsavesmoneytopaymulti-classroomleadersanddirect-reachteachersmore.Theyallgaintimetoreachmorestudents,plan,andcollaborateatschool.

ReaderscanfindmoreexamplesandwaystoreallocatefundstohigherpayonthePay Teachers MoreandSchool Model DetailspagesofOpportunityCulture.org.

figure 16. HowNewSchoolModelsGenerateCostSavingstoFundPaySupplements

At an elementary school . . . At a secondary school . . .

Agrade-levelgroupingof4traditionalclassrooms Asubjectgroupingof6traditionalclassrooms

would be staffed by would be staffed by

1Multi-ClassroomLeader(MCL) 1Multi-ClassroomLeader(MCL)

2Direct-ReachTeachers 3Direct-ReachTeachers

1Paraprofessional 1Paraprofessional

reducing the need for reducing the need for

1traditionalteachingrole 2traditionalteachingroles

0.33FTEInstructionalFacilitator/Specialist 0.33FTEInstructionalFacilitator/Specialist

UsingthestaffingshiftsdescribedinFigure16,Figures17and18demonstratethesavingsandpaysupplementsthatarepossibleusingthenationalaverageteachersalaryof$56,100andtheschoolmodeldescribedabove.6ThefinancialanalysisinFigure17includesanallowanceforthetechnologycostsas-sociatedwithincreasingdigitalinstructioningrades6–12.

Usingnationalaverageteachersalaries,weprojectthatmembersofreach-extendingteachingteamscanearnpaysupplementsworth15percentofaveragebasepay,onaver-age;multi-classroomleaderscanearnsupplementsworth55percent,onaverage(seeFigure18).

Overa35-yearcareer,thesepaysupplementsforextendingreachwouldtranslateinto$294,525to$1,035,045inextrain-comeperteacher,withoutanyincreaseineducationbudgets.(Note:Theestimateof$294,525assumesa35-yearcareerwithasupplementof$8,415.Theestimateof$1,035,045assumestwoyearswithasupplementof$8,415and33yearswithasupplementof$30,855.)

Annualandlifetimepaypotentialforoutstandingmulti-classroomleaderscouldexceedtheseamounts.Theanalysisdoesnotincludewider-spanteacher-leaderrolesonlargerteams,whichcouldpayevenhighersupplements,anduseshigh-sideestimatesofparaprofessionalsalariesandtechnologycosts.

continued on next page


http://opportunityculture.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Projected_Statewide_Impact_of_Opportunity_Culture_School_Models-Public_Impact.pdf







teachingparttime,whichkeepspeopleintheseleadershiprolesconnectedtoclassroomrealities.Theserolesareoftencalled“hy-bridroles”andwouldtypicallybefar fewer innumberthantheextended-reach roles created through school staffing redesign,but they provide another leadership opportunity for excellentteachers.Forexample:

✱ Aportionofcurriculum and assessment design and oversight fundsatthedistrictlevelcouldbereallocatedtocoverpart-timereleaseforteacherswhocontinuetoteachparttime,

tions,butinsteadinveststhefundsforthosepositionsinhigherpayforclassroomextended-reachroles,therearefewerpositionsintheschool.Thebenefitssavingfromeachofthesepositionsisequalapproximatelyto32percentofaverageteacherpay.Thus,thepositionreduction,howeversmall,providesanadditionalfi-nancialcushionforensuringthefinancialsustainabilityofhigherpayforextendedreach.

District- level reallocation canfundsomeextended-reachrolesaswell,but isprimarilyappropriateforteachingrolesthatspanmultiple schools or the whole district. Teachers can continue

figure 17.ExampleofTeam-LevelSavingsAvailableforHigherPayinOpportunityCultureModelsThisshowstheteam-levelsavingspossiblebasedonthestaffing-levelchangesshowninFigure 16.SeeFigure 18forhowthesecostsavingscouldfundsubstantialsupplementsfordirect-reachteachersandmulti-classroomleaders.

Source of Savings/Costs to Make Pay Competitive k–5 6–12

savings

Withleadership,smallerteamsofteacherscanteachstudentswell

4> 3teachers($56,100)

6> 4teachers($112,200)

Somenon-classroomspecialists(e.g.,teachercoaches)shiftintoteacher-leaderroles

0.33FTEperteam($18,513)

0.33FTEperteam($18,513)

gross savings (74,613) ($130,713)

costs

Newparaprofessionalssupportteacherteams,savingtimeforreach,collaboration,andlearning

+1paraprofessional$26,500

+1paraprofessional$26,500

NewtechnologyisneededforTime-TechnologySwaps $47,500

gross new costs $26,500 $74,000

net netsavingsforpaysupplements* ($48,113) ($56,713)

*All dollar figures are examples only, using the assumptions stated

figure 18. ExampleofPaySupplementsandTotalCostsThisfigureshowsthepotentialpaysupplementsinthestaffingmodelshiftsshowninFigure 16.NoticehowthesesupplementsfitwithinthesavingsfromthestaffingmodelsshowninFigure 17.

Teacher Category

Average Salary Before Pay

Supplements Pay Supplement

Supplement Cost(grades k–5)

2Direct-ReachTeachers1Multi-ClassroomLeader

Supplement Cost (grades 6–12)

3Direct-ReachTeachers1Multi-ClassroomLeader

Direct-ReachTeachers $56,100 $8,415(15%) x2=$16,830 x3=$25,245

Multi-ClassroomLeaders $56,100 $30,855(55%) x1=$30,855 x1=$30,855

Total funds reallocated to teacher pay per team*

$47,685 $56,100

*All dollar figures are examples only, using the assumptions stated.

examples of funding pay supplements through cost savings (continued)



2. Two District Roles Transformed into Four Leadership Coach Roles: Forexample,twodistrict-levelprofessionaldevelopmentor instructional leadershiprolescanbetransformed intofour,part-time multi-classroom leadership coach positions. Each ofthefourteachers,chosenforexcellenceininstructionandlead-ership,teachesa0.66timeslotbutextendsreachbyanaverageof50percenttoteachafullstudentload,withextraplanningtime,whilecoachingMCLsacrossthedistrict.Combined,theseteachers need one extra paraprofessional to support the fourofthemintheirextended-reachteaching.Thesavingsaretwodistrictsalariesandonebenefitpackagecost,whichisanaver-ageof32percentofateachersalary(note:theparaprofessionalconsumes one benefit package). The district can pay each ofthe four teachers a supplement that is 45 percent of average pay, within budget. This is competitive with advanced multi-classroomleaderpay.

Finally,adistrictthathasoverinvestedincentralofficestaffmayusethisdesignprocesstoshiftthoseresourcestoschoolsperma-nently,whichwillprovideschoolteamswithevenmoreflexibil-itytocreatetheidealstaffingandhigherpayfornewroles.Inallcases,districtsmaychoosetoallocategrowingbudgetsdispropor-tionately to teachers who extend their reach through roles thathelp improve instruction district-wide—while allowing theseteacherstoremainintheclassroomparttime.

Financial Sustainability: Basic Scenario AnalysesScenario analysis ensures that pay supplement levels for reachrolesarefinanciallysustainableacrossawholedistrict,takingintoconsiderationvariationsinstaffinglevelsatschoolswithinsomedistricts. In other words, districts must ensure that pay supple-mentsareviablewithreasonablestaffingmodelsinallschools.

school- level reallocations

Pilotdistrictshavecreatedspecialcalculationspreadsheetswith“exchange rates” for each position at each level in new schoolmodelsandcareerpaths.Theexchangeratesareessentiallytheproportionofpayofnewpositionstoaverageteacherpayintra-ditional classroom positions. The district can provide these ex-changeratios,setaccordingtothenewlydeterminedcareerandpaypaths.SeeFigure19foranexampleofhowexchangeratioscouldbestructured.

Toestimatewhatpaysupplementsarefeasibletocreatethese“exchangeratios,”thedistrictwillneedtorunhypotheticalstaff-ing scenarios that are within the five Opportunity Culture Prin-ciplesforitsmost leanly staffed schools—thosewiththefewestinstructionalspecialists/facilitators.

ratherthanfull-timedistrict-levelrolesthatdrawthebestteachersoutofteaching(andmakere-entrymoredifficultafterthepassageoftime).Theseteacherscanusetheirtimetocollaboratewithprincipals,multi-classroomleaders,andotherexpertteacherstoimproveassessmentsandcurricula.

✱ Aportionofdistrictprofessional development fundscouldbereallocatedtofundinstructional leadership coaches for multi- classroom leadersacrossallorpartofadistrict.ExceptionalteacherswhoexcelincoachingandpeerfacilitationcouldfillthisroleasanalternativetotheMCLrole,oritcouldbeofferedtoassistantprincipalswhoexcelininstructionalcoachingtofundafocusonprovidinginstructionalsupportratherthanadministrativetasks.Whenteacherstakethisrole,theywouldalsocontinuetoteachparttime.Asdistrictsdevelopalargepoolofexperiencedmulti-classroomleaders,someofthemmaychoosetomoveintothiscoachingrole.

✱ Sometextbook or technology fundscouldbereallocatedtofundcostsandpart-timereleaseforoutstanding teachers to videotape engaging lectures thatmanyteachersinthatsubjectcoulduseinaTimeSwapmodel.

Some new roles, such as digital learning designers, might existoutside a district, working for independent organizations thatprovide tools and services to districts. These would not need tobeincludedincareerpathswithinadistrict,butwementionthemheretorecognizethevastarrayofpositionsthatOpportunityCul-tureschoolmodelsgenerate.

examplesHereweofferbriefexamples.SeefutureOpportunityCulturepub-licationsformoredetailedexamplesofhybridmodels.

1. Two District Roles Transformed into Four Hybrid Blended- Learning Coach Roles: For example, two district-level profes-sional development or instructional leadership roles can betransformed into four, part-time blended-learning coach posi-tions.Eachofthecoacheswouldbechosenfordemonstratedinstructionalexcellenceinblendedlearningandcoachingskills.Eachwouldteachhalftime,extendingtheirreachintheseposi-tionsbyanaverageof50percent,whilegainingplanningtime,andcoachotherblended-learningteachershalftime.Onaverage,oneparaprofessional—whocostslessthanateacher—wouldbeneededtosupporttheseteachers’extended-reachteaching,unless current school staffing covers this adequately. At leasthalfofateacher’ssalaryworthoffundsaresavedandcanbeusedtopaytheteacherseachasupplement that is 12.5 percent of average pay, within budget. This role provides a possiblebridgetomulti-classroomleadershipfortheseteachers.



b.Howwillparaprofessionalsupportforthesepositionsbefunded?Willadditionalpositionsbeneeded?Willthataffectfundsavailable?

7.Whatlevelofsupplementisneededtomakeeachhybridroleattractiverelativetoothercareeropportunities?Aredifferentiallypaidbasicandadvancedlevelsofhybridroleswarranted—e.g.,basedonrolecomplexity,rarityofcapabilitiesneeded,andscopeofimpactorreach?Orshouldeveryoneinthisrolereceivethesamesupplement,becausetherolesarereallysimilar?

8.Howmanyhybridpositionpaysupplementswillthesefundsthensupport?Considertheimpactifteachersareworkingintheserolesinvaryingpercentages—halftime(50percent)whilealsoteachinghalftime;orone-thirdtime(33percent)whileteachingtwo-thirdsofthetime,forexample.

9.Howwillthemechanicsofmoneytransferfromthedistrictroletotheteacher,whosepaymighttypicallycomefullyfromindividualschools’budgets,work?

Ideally,thedistrictwouldmatchthefundingsourcewithsimilarhybridfunctions,forexampleusingprofessionaldevelopmentbud-getsto fundhybrid leadershipcoachpositionstosupportMulti-Classroom Leaders. However, if an area is over- or underfunded,

Oncethedistrictsettleson its idealsetofcareerpaths,morescenarioanalysesareessentialtoensurelong-termsustainabilityacross the district, accounting for the total expected number ofemployees earning each supplement. Conducting basic scenarioanalyseswillensurefinancialsustainabilityforallaffectedschools.Thedistrictcanthenadjusttheexchangeratiostosustainablelev-elstocreateitsfinalcareerpathswithpaysupplements.

AsdiscussedinAppendixA,thedistrictmayalsowanttodiffer-entiatepaysupplementsforhigh-povertyandotherhard-to-staffschools.SchoolsreceivingTitleIfundingmayhaveasustainablesourcetopayevenhighersupplementsthanotherdistrictschoolsto attract excellent teachers into extended-reach and teacher-leaderroles.Districtswillneedtoestablishaschedulefordiffer-entialpaysupplements,backedwithscenarioanalysestoensuresustainability,fortheseschoolsiftheywishtomotivateteacherstotakereachrolesinhigh-povertyschools.

district- level reallocations

Thenumberofadvancedrolesfundedatthedistrictlevelarelikelytobefarfewerinnumberthanschool-levelextended-reachroles.Someofthetechnicalissuesforsustainablefundingandrespon-sibly extending these teachers’ reach are the same, though, asschool-levelreallocations inanOpportunityCulture.Thedistrictmustdecide:

1.Whichcurrentdistrict-levelroleswouldbetterserveschoolsifteacherscouldfillthemwhileteachingparttime?

2.Howcanresponsibilitiesofonefull-timepositionbebrokenintopartsformultiplepeople,eitherworkingindependently(e.g.,servingspecifiedschools)orasateam(solvingdistrict-widechallengestogether)?

3.Howmanyofeachofthepart-time(or“hybrid”)rolesareneededtoenhancedistrict-widefunctionsandtoconnectthemmorecloselytotheneedsofteachersintheclassroom?

4.Howmanycurrentdistrictpositions(orothersourcesofdistrict-levelfunding)couldbetransitionedintohybridroles?

5.Whattotalfundsareavailable?Bothsalariesandbenefitscanbeusedforthesereallocations,aswellasotherbudgetedfundsthatwouldbebetterusedfortheseroles.

6.Willhybridteachersbeextendingtheirreachintheirpart-timeteachingpositions?

a.Ifso,howwillthisaffectwhetheradditionalteachercoverageisneededtosupportapart-timeposition?Willthisaffectfundsavailable?

figure 19.Example:ExchangeRatios

Current Classroom Teacher = 1. “1”is100%oftheaverageteacherpayinthedistrictforteachersnotextendingreach.

Direct-Reach Teacher = 1.2. “1.2”istheaverageteacherpayplusa20%paysupplement,onaverage.

Multi-Classroom Leader I = 1.3. “1.3”istheaverageteacherpayplusa30%paysupplement,onaverage.

Multi-Classroom Leader II = 1.4. “1.4”istheaverageteacherpayplusa40%paysupplement,onaverage.

Reach Associate/Paraprofessional = 0.55. “0.55”istheaverageparaprofessionalpayasapercentofaverageteacherpay(.50),plusa5%boostfortheadditionalresponsibilityofsupportinganOpportunityCultureteam.



great and good teachers, for more pay, within budget—whilereachingfarmorestudentswithexcellentteaching.SeeFigure20a foraquickoverviewoftherolesandpathsandFigure20bforoneofthewaystheycanfittogetherintoasetofpathswithlevelsofprogressionineachpath.

Figures21through28illustratemoredetailedexamplesoftheseteachercareerpaths,aswellasparaprofessionalandschoolleaderpaths.Foreachpath,weincludeanoverviewthatdetailsentrycrite-ria,advancementrequirements,andpaypotential,andanexample.

WealsoprovideCharlotte-Mecklenburg’sCareer/PayPathsforDirect-Reach Teachers and Multi-Classroom Leaders as one ex-ample,becausethisprogressionincludesalloftheschool-basedteachingpositions. Itdoesnot includemulti-school/hybridposi-tionsatthetimeofthispublication.

thiscanbeagoodtimetoreallocateinvestmentstowardtheareasmostlikelytobenefitstudentsandtheirteachers.

See future Opportunity Culture publications for more detailaboutfundinghybrid,district-levelandmulti-schoolroles.

Step 5: Design a Complete Career LatticeCombining all of these career opportunities within one districtprovidesa“careerlattice”oflearning,earning,andleadershippo-tentialforteachers,leaders,andparaprofessionalsatalllevelsofpractice. Individuals can move up, over, or even down to matchtheirneedsatvariouspointsoftheircareersandpersonallives.

Herewerepeatthe“bigpicture”viewofthecareerpathsavail-ableinOpportunityCulturemodelsthatextendthereachofboth

figure 20a.SummaryofTeacherCareerPathsandRolesinOpportunityCultureSchoolModels(Note:ThisisareprintofFigure8,repeatedhereforreaders’convenience.)

Path Direct-Reach TeacherMulti-Classroom

Leader Support TeacherDistrict- Funded Teacher-Leader

Roles



Expanded-ImpactTeacher(low-tech)

Large-ClassTeacher

Multi-ClassroomLeader

TeamTeacher

ProfessionalTutor

DesignSpecialist*

LeadershipCoach(ofMulti-ClassroomLeaders)

VideoTeacher

DigitalDesigner

How is reach extended?

Teachingbestsubjecttomoreclasses,whilereducingotherduties

Swappingportionoftimewithparaprofessional-supervisedskillspracticeandprojects—digitaloroffline—toteachmorestudents

Increasingclasssizes,withinlimitsandbychoice

Leadingmultipleclassrooms’worthofstudentswithateachingteamforwhomleaderisresponsible

Supportingmulti-classroomleaderorefficientteam,and/oraddressingsubjectorteachingrole(s)delegatedbyteamleader

Producingmaterialsthatreachstudentsacrossschoolsinthedistrict,orcoachingmulti-classroomleadersacrossschools

School Model

Subject Specialization (Elementary)

Time-Tech SwapTime-Time Swap

Class-Size Changes

Multi-Classroom Leadership All School Models

*Curriculum and assessment designers are common examples.



figure 20b. Example:Teacher“CareerLattice”Teacherscanmoveuporacrosstheselevelsastheyqualifyforadvancementorprogressiontoadifferentpath.Paypercentagesareexamples,asarethenumberoflevelsofprogressionwithineachpath.

p at h sSupport Teacher

PathDirect-Reach Teacher

PathMulti-Classroom Leader

PathDistrict-Funded

Teacher-Leader Path

Multi-ClassroomLeaderIV 75% HybridLeaderIV 75%

Multi-ClassroomLeaderIII 65% HybridLeaderIII 65%

Multi-ClassroomLeaderII 50% HybridLeaderII 50%

MasterReachTeacher 22% Multi-ClassroomLeaderI 22% HybridLeaderI 22%

SeniorReachTeacher 10% SeniorHybridI 10%

TeamTeacherII 6% AdvancedReachTeacher 6%

TeamTeacherI 3% ReachTeacher 3%

EffectiveTeachers Upper2Levels:HighlyEffectiveTeachersLower2Levels:EffectiveTeachers




lev

els



figure 21.Overview: Direct-ReachTeacherCareerPathDirect-reachteacherstypicallycommittoworkinginanefficientteamofteachersoraparaprofessional-teacherteam.Theytakeresponsibility for more students.Direct-reachteacherscanadvancetheircareersbydirectlyextendingtheirreachtomorestudents,byimprovingtheirinstructionalplanninganddeliveryskills,andbyengaginginmentoringandcoachingathigherlevels.

Direct-Reach Teacher Career PathSpecializedTeacher

Blended-LearningTeacherExpanded-ImpactTeacher

Large-ClassTeacher*

Entry Advancement Pay Supplement*competencies✓ Achievement✓ PlanningAhead✓ Influence&Impact✓ Teamwork✓ DevelopingOthers✓ Flexibility

experience0 years entry level3+ years advanced levelsStudiesshowthatteachereffectivenesssurgesduringtheearlycareeryears.Requiringenoughexperiencetodemonstrateeffectivenessintheclassroomensuresthatdirect-reachteacherswillbewellequippedtoassumeresponsibilityanddeliverresultsformorestudents,andtomentorothers.

performanceLower Levels: Proficient/EffectiveHigher Levels: Excellent/Highly EffectiveDirect-reachrolesprovidedevelopmentoppor-tunitiesforgoodandexcellentteachersandallowthemtoreachmorestudents.

To next level within this pathTobuildcommitmenttotheprofession,multiplelevelscanprovideadvancementoppor-tunitiesfordirect-reachteach-erswhoremaininreachroles,receiveeffectiveorexcellentevaluationsformultipleyears,demonstrateadvancedteach-ingskills,andmentorothers.

Asteachersadvanceinthispath,theycantakeonmentor-ingrolesandmorecomplexinstructionaltasksthatpreparethemfortheresponsibilitiesofateacher-leader,orthathonetheirworkonateam.

To next pathTeacherswhodemonstrateconsistentexcellenceandleadershipinthedirect-reachteacherpathearneligibilityfortheformalleadershiprespon-sibilitiesofamulti-classroomleaderrole.Othersmaytakedistrictormulti-schoolroles.Manymaster-levelreachteach-ersmaychoosetoremaininthispath,ratherthanassumeformalleadership.

•Multi-ClassroomLeaderPath•District-FundedTeacher-

LeaderPath•Multi-SchoolTeacherPath

Highly Effective:10to43%**

Effective: Asdeterminedbydistrictwithinbudget.Upto6%inpilots.

Bytakingonresponsibilityformorestudents,direct-reachteachersgenerateefficienciesthatsustainablyfundincreasedpay.Thesustainablepaymaxi-mumsforeachofthedirect-reachrolesareavailableonlineonthePay Teachers MorepageofOpportunityCulture.org

* Pay supplement figures are examples only and are expressed as a percent of average pay. The pay potential for each of these roles varies slightly, though much more so for large-class teachers. However, pilot schools have generally chosen to put these on one path. Districts must make sure that the pay supplements are sustainable for all the roles, which may lower the range for those that could otherwise be paid somewhat more. The large-class teachers’ calculation is different, because school budgets already assume that a larger-than-average class size is likely for some teachers—but teachers are not paid for this. See appendixc: Determining Pay Supplements for Large-Class Teacher Roles.

**Ranges depend on the specific configuration of models implemented.

Examples of Career Paths for Common Opportunity Culture Roles

Here we present a series of tables showing basic career pathsin an Opportunity Culture. Districts can add more levels withineachpathorhavefewerthanthedetailedprogressionsshow,asdescribedinStep4.SeealsotheCharlotte-MecklenburgSchoolsexampleinFigure29.




figure 22.ExampleofaDirect-ReachTeacherCareerPathThisexampleshowsaprogressionforteachersonadirect-reachcareerpath—whichmaycoverelementaryspecialists,blended-learningteachers,expanded-impactteachers,andlarge-classteachers,asindicatedinFigure 21.Somedistrictsmayrestrictpaysupplementstohighly effectiveteachers.Othersmayincludeeffectiveteachers.Districtsthatincludeeffectiveteacherswillneedtodeterminehowtheresponsibilitiesandpaydifferforeffectiveandhighlyeffectiveteacherswhoextendreachdirectly.Paylevelsandsupplementsareexamples;supplementsareexpressedasapercentofaveragepay.

Level Minimum Experience Performance Pay Supplement*

Master ReachTeacher•Extendsreachonefficientteamtohelpmorestudents.•Masteryofinstructionalplanninganddifferentiation

effectivewithawidevarietyofstudents.•Mentorsandleadspeerinformally.

5years(3asDirect-ReachTeacher)

Excellent/HighlyEffectivein2of3yearsasDirect-ReachTeacher

22%

Senior Reach Teacher•Extendsreachonefficientteamtohelpmorestudents.•Masteryofinstructionalplanninganddifferentiation.•Mentorsandleadspeersinformally.

3yearsExcellent/HighlyEffectivein2of3previousyears

10%

Advanced Reach Teacher•Extendsreachonefficientteamtohelpmorestudents.•Usesadvancedinstructionalplanninganddeliveryskills.

3years Effectiveinmostrecent2years 6%

Reach Teacher •Extendsreachonefficientteamtohelpmorestudents.•Workswithteammatestoplanandimplement

instruction.

0years N/A 3%


Multiple levels give Direct-Reach Teachers incentives to improve and advance

Experience thresholds keep teachers engaged through the 4-year “itch”

Advancement to top levels that are restricted to excellent teachers creates substantial incentives for best to extend reach

Significant sup-plements at top help teaching compete with other professions



figure 23.Overview: Multi-Classroom LeaderCareerPath Multi-classroomleaders(MCLs)extendtheirreachbyleadingmultipleteachersandclassroomsofstudentswhilecontinuingtoteach.Multi-classroomleadersareformallyaccountableforalloftheteachersandstudentsontheirteam.MCLscanprogressintheircareersbyleadingmoreteachersandmoreclasseswithexcellentoutcomes.

Multi-Classroom Leader Career Path

Entry Requirements Advancement Opportunities Pay Supplement

competencies✓Achievement✓PlanningAhead✓Influence&Impact✓Teamwork✓DevelopingOthers✓Flexibility✓Monitoring&Directiveness

experience3+ yearsExperienceteaching;someexperiencesuccessfullyleadingandmanagingateamofadultstoaccomplishgoals

performanceExcellent/Highly EffectiveTeacher-leaderrolesprovidedevelopmentopportunitiesforexcellentteacherswithleadershipaspirationswhowanttomaintaindirectclassroominvolvementwithstudents.Candidatesmustshowpriorevidenceofhigh-progressstudentoutcomesinrelevantsubjects(inthetop25%comparedwithotherteachersinastateoronnationaltests).

To next levelMultiplelevelscanprovideadvancementopportunitiesformulti-classroomleaderswhoreceiveexcellentevaluationsformultipleyears.

Advancementwithinthepathshouldcorrespondtowiderspans,withincreasedaccountabilityforlargerand/ormorechallengingteachingteamsand/oradditionalstudents.

To next pathTeacherswhodemonstrateexceptionalleadershipabilitiesmaypursuedistrictormulti-schoolleadershippositions.

•District-FundedTeacher-LeaderPath

•Multi-SchoolLeaderPath

20%tomorethan100%*Bytakingonresponsibilityformoreclassroomsandstudents,multi-classroomleadersgenerateefficienciesthatsustainablyfundsubstantialpayincreases.

ThesustainablepaymaximumsforMCLsareavailableonlineonthePay Teachers MorepageofOpportunityCulture.org

*Ranges depend on the specific configuration of models implemented. Pay supplement figures are examples only and are expressed as a percent of average pay.




figure 24. ExampleofaMulti-ClassroomLeaderCareerPathPaylevelsandsupplementsareexamples;supplementsareexpressedasapercentofaveragepay.


MCL IV•Teachesandleadsefficient,highlyeffectivereachteam

of12+teachersandtheirstudents.•Mayberesponsibleforwholeschoolinasubjector

threeormoregradelevels.

8years(4asMCL)Excellent/HighlyEffectivein3of4previousyears

70%

MCL III•Teachesandleadsefficient,highlyeffectivereachteam

of8–11teachersandtheirstudents.5years(2asMCL)

Excellent/HighlyEffectivein3of4previousyears

55%

MCL II•Teachesandleadsefficient,highlyeffectivereachteam

of4–7teachersandtheirstudents.4years


40%

MCL I•Teachesandleadsefficient,highlyeffectivereachteam

of2–3teachersandtheirstudents.•Rolemaybeembeddedinlargerreachteam.

3yearsExcellent/HighlyEffectivein2of3previousyears

10–22%(orparwith

topdirect-reachroles)


Multiple levels give MCLs options to expand leadership responsi-bilities and extend reach

Thresholds provide con-tinued growth opportuni-ties over the course of a career. For example, the earliest an MCL I could be-come an MCL II is scheduled to coincide with multiple years of great teaching and then a broadening into informal leadership and mentoring in the schools

High bars attract top per-formers and keep principals from promoting too soon, before teachers understand what makes them highly effective and have a base of experience teaming with and influencing other adults

Substantial supplements keep excellent teachers in these roles lon-ger and cement commitment to the profession



figure 25. Overview: SupportTeacherCareerPathSupportteachersteachinsubjectsorrolesassignedbythemulti-classroomleader(MCL)andcollaboratewiththeteam.Rolesmayincludetutoring,grading,projectsupervising,lecturing,analyzingstudentdata,planninginstruction,assistingwithtechnology,andothers.Supportteacherscanadvanceintheircareersbydemonstratingexcellenceinmultipleinstructionalrolesand/orpeerleadership.Theymustsupportareachteacherorteaminorderforpaysupplementstobefundedsustainably,orsavingsfromreachclassroomselsewhereintheschoolmaybeusedtofundsupplements.

Support Teacher Career PathTeamTeacher

ProfessionalTutor

Entry Advancement Pay Supplement

competencies✓Achievement✓Influence&Impact✓Teamwork✓DevelopingOthers✓Flexibility

experience0+ yearsNeworexperiencedclassroomteacherswiththerequisitecompetenciesareeligiblefortheseroles.

performanceProficient/EffectiveSupportteachingrolesproviderichdevelopmentopportunitiesforproficientteacherstopursueexcellencethroughfocusedcollaborationwithdirect-reachteachersandmulti-classroomleaders.

To next levelToprovideincentivesforcontinuousimprovement,districtsmaydesignatemultiplelevelswithinthispath,forexampleTeamTeacherIandIIroles.Teachersneedtodemonstrateconsistentproficiencyintheroletobeconsideredforadvancement.

Sincethispathwouldbetheentrypointformanynewteachers,aprogressionthatrewardsgrowthintheearlycareeryearsboostsretentionandencouragescontinuedcontributionstotheteam.

To next pathSupportteacherswhodemonstrateconsistentproficiencyandwhotakeonreach-extendedrolesareeligibleforlowerlevelsoftheDirect-Reachpath.ThosewhodemonstrateconsistentexcellenceareeligibleforadvancementtohigherlevelsofDirect-Reachandothercareerpaths.

•Direct-ReachPath•Multi-ClassroomLeaderPath•District-FundedTeacher-

LeaderPath•Multi-SchoolTeacherPath

0–6%*Theseroleshelpcreatetheefficienciesneededtoincreasepayonlywhenworkingwithefficientteamsthatreachmorestudentsthanistypical;districtsmayoffermodestsupplementstoalignincentivesformaximizingtheteam’ssuccess,evenwhenateacherisnothighlyeffectiveorplaysamorelimitedroleonanefficientteamdesignedforexcellenceinteaching.Schoolsmaychoosetoallocatesavingsfromotherclassroomsusingreachmodelstopaytheserolesmore,aswell.

*Ranges depend on the specific configuration of models implemented. Pay supplement figures are examples only and are expressed as a percent of average pay.



figure 26. ExampleofaSupportTeacherCareerPathThisexampleshowsaprogressionforsupportteachers,whotypicallyworkaspartofateam.Somedistrictsmaypayasupplementtotheseteachersfortheirrolesinextendingtheteam’sreach,whileothersmaylimitsupplementstoteachersplayingfullteachingrolesasdirect-reachteachers(seeFigure 22).Districts also may use the Support Teacher path for effective teachers who extend reach directly and are working toward highly effective status, instead of having lower levels on the Direct-Reach path.Paylevelsandsupplementsareexamples;supplementsareexpressedasapercentofaveragepay.


Team Teacher II •Helpsteamextendreachtohelpmorestudents.

Contributestoinstructionalplanningorothertasksthatenableteamtoextendreachandachieveexcellentoutcomes,asdeterminedbyteamleader.

•Usesadvancedinstructionalplanninganddeliveryskills.•Maybea“direct-reach”teacherworkingtowardhighly-

effectivestatus.

3years(3asTeamTeacherI)

Proficient/Effectiveorabovein3yearsasTeamTeacherI

6%

Team Teacher I •Helpsteamextendreachtohelpmorestudents.•Playsfocusedinstructionalrole,asdeterminedbyteam

leader.•Maybea“direct-reach”teacherworkingtowardhighly-

effectivestatus.

0Proficient/Effectiveoraboveintwomostrecentyears

0–3%

Professional Tutor•Providesindividualorsmall-groupinstructionin

supportofanextended-reachteam.•Mayadvancebyprovidingmoreinstructionalplanning

toteam.

0Proficient/Effectiveoraboveintwomostrecentyears

0–3%


Multiple levels give Support Teachers incentives to improve and advance

Levels partly based on ex-perience reward teachers for early-career effective-ness gains

Career options for profi-cient performers keep good teachers engaged

Some districts offer modest supple-ments to motivate Team Teachers to join teams and support the team’s success. Some have considered add-ing Professional Tutors to efficient teams when cost savings exceed new spending on pay



figure 27. Overview: ParaprofessionalCareerPath

Paraprofessional Career PathLearningCoach

TutorDigitalLabMonitor

AssistantTeacher

Entry Requirements Advancement Opportunities Pay Supplement*

competencies✓Influence&Impact✓Teamwork✓Flexibility✓Achievement

experiencelevel0+ yearsNeworexperienceduncertifiedpersonnelareeligiblefortheseroles.

performanceProficient/Effective

To next levelIncreasedorganizationalskillandsuccessdevelopingstudents’socialandemotionalskills,allowingteacherstoextendreachfurther,andboostingparaprofessionalpay,aswell.

Sincethispathmaybetheentrypointforindividualswhowilleventuallypursuecareersascertifiedteachers,paraprofessionalscanmakelateralmovestoavarietyofrolestodevelopnewskillsets.

To next path•Mentorothers•Returntoschoolfordegree

tobecomeTeamTeacherorDirect-ReachTeacher

3–15%

* Pay levels and supplements are examples; supplements are expressed as a percent of average pay. Because paraprofessional pay is far lower, and these roles are less numerous, these percentages can be higher than for team teachers or aligned with those percentages.

figure 28. ExampleofaParaprofessionalCareerPath


Master Reach Associate—Operatesmoreindependentlyandperformsmoreorganizingandsupervisorytasks,enablingteacherstoreachmorestudentswithexcellentoutcomes.

5years(2asReachAssociate)


15%

Reach Associate—Supportsteacherorteamtoextendtheirreachbysupervisingstudents’skillspracticeandprojecttime,developingstudents’social,emotional,andorganizationalskills,andcompletingadministrativepaperwork.

0years Proficient/Effectiveconsistently 3%

Teaching Assistant—Assiststeacherasdirected 0years Proficient/Effective 0%extra

* Pay levels and supplements are examples; supplements are expressed as a percent of average pay. Because paraprofessional pay is far lower, and these roles are less numerous, these percentages can be higher than for team teachers or aligned with those percentages.

Multiple levels give paraprofessionals incentives to improve and advance

Levels that are partly based on experience reward paraprofessionals for early-career effectiveness gains

Career options for proficient performers keep good para-professionals contributing to the team

Supplements motivate para-professionals to join teams and support the team’s success



Charlotte-Mecklenburg’sCareer/PayPathsin2014–15Thesetablesfromthe2014-15schoolyearinCharlotte-MecklenburgSchools(CMS)usetheterm“excellent”tomeanteacherswhoproducestudentlearninggrowthinthetopquartile,onaverage,andwhoshowotherbehaviorscorrelatedwithstudentlearning.ThiscareerpathandpayscalewasdevelopedwiththehelpofPublicImpactforthedistrict’ssecondyearofimplementation,asCMSbegantoscaleupfromtheoriginalfourschoolsinto17additionalschoolsinoneyear.

“TBD”isnotedforitemsonwhichCMShadyettomakeadecision.Supplementsarelowerthanpossible,duetoanoutmodedNorthCarolinapolicythatrequiresschoolstoreturnaportionofstatefundswhenswappingonepositionforanother.

Inallcases,thepositionmustbeavailablewithinagivenschoolinagivenyearinorderforapersontohavetherole.

See pages 23-24 for examples of how school staffing ratios and savings allow pay supplements like those in these paths.

figure 29a. Charlotte-Mecklenburg’sCareer/PayPathsforDirect-ReachTeachersThistableappliestodirect-reachtitlessuchasblended-learningteachers,expanded-impactteachers,andelementaryspecializedteachers,allofwhichfallundertheroleslistedbelow.Theseteachersallworkonteamsthatreachmorestudentswithconsistentlyexcellentteachingandprovideopportunitiesforgoodteacherstoimprovetheirpractice.

Role Description Eligibility: Enter/Remain* Pay Supplement** Exchange Ratio

(as % of teacher FTE)

Master Reach Teacher

ExtendsreachonefficientteamtohelpmorestudentswithTimeSwapsorElementarySpecialization.TeamofpeersmayhaveMCL.Demonstratesmasteryofinstructionalplanninganddifferentiationeffectivewithwidevarietyofstudents.Mentorsandleadpeersinformally.

Demonstratessustainedexcellence.ExcellentReachTeacherinsubject(s)taughtatleast2oflast3years;orexcellentteacherinanyclassroomteachingroleatleast4outoflast5years.Atleast5ormoreyearsteachingexperiencetotal.

$9,800 1.25

Senior Reach Teacher ExtendsreachonefficientteamtohelpmorestudentswithTimeSwapsorElementarySpecialization.TeamofpeersmayhaveMCL.Demonstratesmasteryofinstructionalplanninganddifferentiation.Mentorsandleadspeersinformally.

Excellentteacherinsubject(s)taughtatleast2oflast3years;3ormoreyearsteachingexperience.Nopriorreachteamexperienceisrequired.

$6,0001.15

Reach Team Teacher I & II

ExtendsreachonefficientteamtohelpmorestudentswithTimeSwaporElementarySpecialization.TeammusthaveMCL.

NominimumyearsofexperienceforlevelI;levelIIavailableafter3years.Proficientorhigherratinginallpreviousyearsasteacher,thefirstyearofteachingexcepted.

Level II:TBD,approx.$3,000

Level I:$1,500

1.05forLevelI

Reach Instructional Associate

SupportsReachTeachers’dutiesincluding,butnotlimitedto,leadingsupplementalinstructionthatincludesdigitallearningifavailable,andindependentlymonitoringandsupervisingstudentstoprovideasafelearningenvironment.

FulfillseducationandexperienceinCMSjobdescription;selectedbyschoolleadership. PayGrade2(plusfull

timehours,teacherworkdays,and5subdays)

* Eligibility parameters are guidelines, not requirements. Teachers who do not sustain their records in advanced roles must take a role available at any lower level on the career path, and may remain and advance as long as record of excellence is sustained thereafter.

**Pay supplement figures are examples only and are expressed as a percent of average pay.



figure 29b.Charlotte-Mecklenburg’sCareer/PayPathsforMulti-ClassroomLeadersMulti-classroomleaders(MCLs)leadteamsusingvariouscombinationsofdirect-reachteachersandmodels,butallincludestaffingchangesthatextendthereachofthewholeteamtomorestudentsefficiently.TheMCLmustdeterminerolesandtheteamprocesstoachieveexcellentstudentoutcomes.

Role Description Eligibility: Enter/Remain* Pay Supplement **

Exchange Ratio (as % of

teacher FTE)

Multi-Classroom Leader IV(Futurerolepossibility)

Teachesandleadsefficient,highlyeffectivereachteamof11+classrooms’worthofstudents(elementary)or11+teachers’worthofstudents(secondary)&theirteachers.MinimumnumberofstudentsinpodTBD.(Note:thisrolenotavailableyetinCMS;planphase-inovertime)

Minimum4yearsofexperienceasclassroomteacherorreachteacher.Excellentatleast3oflast4yearsworked.Demonstratedleadershipcompetencies. TBD($35,000+) TBD

Multi-Classroom Leader III(Futurerolepossibility)

Teachesandleadsefficient,highlyeffectivereachteamof8–10classrooms’worthofstudents(elementary)or8–10teachers’worthofstudents(secondary)&theirteachers.MinimumnumberofstudentsinpodTBD.(Note:thisrolenotavailableyetinCMS;planphase-inovertime)

Minimum4yearsofexperienceasclassroomteacherorreachteacher.Excellentatleast3oflast4yearsworked.Demonstratedleadershipcompetencies.

TBD($25,000-30,000)

TBD

Multi-Classroom Leader II Teachesandleadsefficient,highlyeffectivereachteamof4–7classrooms’worthofstudents(elementary)or4–7teachers’worthofstudents(secondary)andtheirteachers.Minimumnumberofstudentsinpod:75forelementary;300secondary.

Minimum4yearsofexperienceasclassroomteacherorreachteacher.Excellentatleast3oflast4yearsworked.Demonstratedleadershipcompetencies.

$20,000*** 1.45

Multi-Classroom Leader I

(Requires especially thoughtful co-scheduling to make the MCL role viable.)

Teachesandleadsefficient,highlyeffectivereachteamof2–3classrooms’worthofstudents(elementary)or2–3teachers’worthofstudents(secondary)andtheirteachers.For2-teacherpods,rolemustbeembeddedinlargerreachteam.Minimumnumberofstudentsinpod:40forelementary;180secondary.

Minimum3yearsofexperienceasclassroomteacherorreachteacher.Excellentatleast2oflast3yearsworked.Indicatorsofleadershipcompetencies.

$13,0001.30

* Eligibility parameters are guidelines, not requirements. MCLs who do not sustain their records in advanced roles must take a role available at any lower level on the career path, and may remain and advance as long as record of excellence is sustained thereafter.

**Pay supplement figures are examples only and are expressed as a percent of average pay.*** Project L.I.F.T., a zone of high-poverty schools attempting turnarounds, pays $23,000 for this role.



figure 30. ExampleofDistrict-FundedTeacher-LeaderCareerPaths

Position Pay Supplement*

District-Funded Teacher-Leader Role:

DesignSpecialistVideoTeacherLeadershipCoachDigitalDesigner

HybridLeaderIVUpto75%

HybridLeaderIIIUpto65%

HybridLeaderIIUpto50%

HybridLeaderIUpto22%

SeniorHybrid5–10%

Optional Step: Direct-ReachTeacherorMulti-ClassroomLeader

10–43%20–morethan100%

Classroom Teacher 0%

figure 31. CompleteEducationalLeadershipPathwithMulti-SchoolLeadershipMulti-school leaders managemultipleschoolswithateamofprincipalsandassistantprincipalsforwhomtheyarerespon-sible.Multi-classroomleadershipprovidesanewpathwayfordevelopingtheleadershipcompetenciesandmanagementskillsofteachersbeforeassumingschoolwideleadershiproles,poten-tiallyincreasingthequalityandquantityofschoolwideleaders.Multi-schoolleadershipsimilarlyallowsoutstandingprincipalstodeveloptheirleadershipskillsandhelpotherschoolwideleaderslearnonthejob—whileretainingresponsibilityforstudentsuc-cess.Roleandpaydetailforlevels5-11onthisprogressionwillbeaddressedinfuturepublications.

Level Role

11 Superintendent

10 AssistantSuperintendent

9 Multi-SchoolLeader4



6 Principal

5 AssistantPrincipal

4 Multi-ClassroomLeader4



1 ClassroomTeacherorDirect-ReachTeacher

0 Pre-ServiceTeachers




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Please cite this report as: PublicImpact:Hassel,E.A.,Holly,C.,&Locke,G.(2014).Teacher pay and career paths in an Opportunity Culture: A practical policy guide.ChapelHill,NC:PublicImpact.Retrievedfromhttp://opportunityculture.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Teacher_Pay_and_Career_Paths_in_an_Opportunity_Culture_A_Practical_Policy_Guide-Public_Impact.pdf

AcknowledgementsThisreportwaswrittenbyEmilyAyscueHassel,ChristenHolly,andGillianLocke.TheauthorswouldliketothankPublicImpact’sDanielaDoyle,BryanC.Hassel,andLyriaBoastfortheirreview;SharonKebschullBarrettforcopyediting;andBeverleyTyndallforshepherdingthisreportthroughproduction.ThanksalsotoAprilLeidigfordesignandlayoutoftheguide.Additionally,thankyoutoAmandaKoconofTNTPforherespeciallyhelpfulfeedback.Thanksalsotoourcurrentimplementationpartnerorganizations,EducationResourceStrategiesandEducationFirst,fortheircontributionstodesignofpayandrolesindistricts,whichheav-ilyinformedthisguide.

ThisguidewasmadepossibleinpartbysupportfromTheJoyceFounda-tionandCarnegieCorporationofNewYork.ThestatementsmadeandviewsexpressedaresolelytheresponsibilityofPublicImpact.FormoreinformationabouttheOpportunityCultureinitiativeandotherfunders,visitOpportunityCulture.org.

©2014PublicImpact,ChapelHill,NC

PublicImpact’smissionistodramaticallyimprovelearningoutcomesforallchildrenintheU.S.,withaspecialfocusonstudentswhoarenotservedwell.Weareateamofprofessionalsfrommanybackgrounds,includingformerteachers.Weareresearchers,thoughtleaders,tool-builders,andon-the-groundconsultantswhoworkwithleadingeducationreformers.FormoreonPublicImpact,pleasevisitwww.publicimpact.com.

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tive,butwhowantintensiveon-the-jobdevelopmenttoincreasetheiroddsofachievingexcellenceconsistently—andthepayandcareeropportunitiesthatresult.

Thepositiveeffectonrecruitingoffinanciallysustainablepaysupplements of 10 percent to 70 percent is likely substantiallygreaterthantherecruitingeffectofpoliticallyandfinanciallytenu-ous,orclearlytemporary,supplementsofamuchsmallersize.

Putanotherway,ascientistorprogrammermaking$60,000isunlikelytoleavethatjobtostartasateacherat$40,000.Thisjustisn’t feasible for many people who have college debt and otherobligationsundertakenbasedonexpectationsofhigherpay.Butifthatpersonperceivesthatheorshewillexcelinteachingandcanenvisionreturningtothat$60,000payinlessthanfiveyearsofteachingandteacher-leadership,suddenlythecalltoteachisonethatmorepeoplecananswer.Ifthatpersonalsoseesthatlonger-termpaycanapproachsixfigureswithcombinedexcellenceandleadership,again,makingacareerswitchseemsmorefeasible.

The early Opportunity Culture schools included science andmathteachersfromthestartastheyphasedintheirnewmodels,and all saw large increases in the number of qualified and out-standing applicants. (All of the early schools were high-povertyschools,andthesupplementsrangingfrom10percentto50per-centindeedattractedlargenumbersofapplicants,eveninschoolswithunfilledpositionspreviously.)

ThepathsandpayinthisguideapplyextremelywelltoSTEMsubjects.OpportunityCulture.org/STEMhasadditionalresourcesforunderstandingthegapbetweensupplyanddemandinSTEMteachingandthenegative impactonstudentoutcomes, jobop-portunities,andeconomicgrowth.TheseresourcesalsoprovideafocusedlookathownewschoolmodelscanincreasethenumberandimpactofhighlyeffectiveSTEMteachers.

Special education has not been a focus of the earliest Oppor-tunityCulturepilots,butspecialeducationteachershavealreadyaskedtobeincludedinfutureyears.(LookformoreresourcesforbuildingOpportunityCulturemodelsthatworkforspecialeduca-tionteachersinthefutureonOpportunityCulture.org.)

appendix a. pay for hard- to- staff positions: stem and special educationHard-to-staffpayprovidesgreaterfinancialrewardsforthosewhoteach in jobs thatareharder tofill: roles inwhichthesupplyofteachersfallsshortoftheneed—forqualifiedteachers,andevenmoresoforhighlyeffectiveteachers.Thistypicallyincludes:

✱ Schoolswithgreaternumbersofeconomicallydisadvantagedstudents

✱ Rolesthataremoredemandingthanistypical,primarilyspecialeducation

✱ Rolesrequiringknowledgeandskillsforwhichotherjobspayfarmorethanteaching,primarilyteachinginscience,technology,engineering,andmath(STEM)

Providing“marketpay”—paythatdrawsteachersinlargeenoughnumbers into these roles—has been challenging. Paying moreforanyofthesejobscanbeaccomplishedbyappropriatingmoremoneyatthestateordistrict/countylevel,whenthereispoliticalwillandfiscalcapacity.Butbecauseofthelargenumbersofteach-ers,theamountofsuchpaysupplementsistypicallylimitedand,particularlyinthecaseofSTEMpay,maynotclosethegapenoughtoenticelargernumbersofcapablepeopleintotheseroles.Inad-dition,teachersinothersubjectsmayfinditunfairtopayteachersinsomesubjectsmorethanothers.

How can Opportunity Culture career paths and pay help?

OpportunityCulturemodelsprovideachancetoincreasepayfortheseteachersinamountsrangingfromsmallsupplementsforallteacherstoverylargeonesforhighlyeffectiveteacherswhocanleadteachingteamssuccessfully.Teachersenteringoneoftheserolescansee inadvancethattheircareerandpayopportunitieswillincreasesubstantiallywithprovenexcellence,potentiallyat-tractingfarmoreofthosewhobelievetheycanachieveexcellence.Theprospectofworkingalongsidehighlyeffectivepeersfromthestartalsomayattractteacherswhofeelcertaintheycanbeeffec-


http://OpportunityCulture.org/STEM


Identifying which districts make the transition to new models and in what order

Optionsinclude:

✱ Hand-picked,opt-in:Stateleadersorprivatephilanthropistshand-pickopt-inpilotdistricts,basedondistrictleadercommitmentandcapacity,followedbyalargerroll-outprocessofadditionaldistricts.

✱ Selectiveopt-inapplicationprocess:Thestateruns(orhiresaprivateentitytorun)aformal,structuredapplicationprocessfordistrictsthatchoosetoapplyandshowsomecombinationofdistrictleadercommitment,capacity,andcompellingplans,runbythestateoraprivateentity.

✱ Less-selectiveopt-in:Thestateprovidespartialsupporttoalargenumberofdistrictsthatoptin.Districtswouldberesponsiblefororganizingtheirownchangeprocessesandobtainingsignificantsupplementaltransitionfunding,ifneeded.

✱ Mandate:ThestatemandatesthatalldistrictstransitiontoOpportunityCulturemodels,onascheduledeterminedbythestate,withfinancialandothersupportfromthestateandprivateentities.

Funding the temporary costs of transition

Initially,mostdistrictswillneedsomeexternalassistanceinsomeorallofthreeareas:

✱ Facilitatingtheoverallchangeprocessinadistrict,incollaborationwithseniordistrictleaders

✱ Facilitatingschooldesignteamsinselecting,creating,ortailoringschoolmodels

✱ Aidingindistrictsystemsredesign—tobuildnewcareerpaths,compensationsupplementschedules,budgetingrules,staffingflexibilityguidelines,selection,training,andthelike.

Mostdistrictswillnothavefundingtomakethetransition,unlesstheyhaveapriorfederalorprivategrantand choosetouseitforthesefinanciallysustainablemodels.Intheabsenceofpriorfund-ing,optionsinclude:

✱ Privatephilanthropicfundingfortransitioninasmallnumberofdistricts;inthenearfuture,thisbyitselfisunlikelytoresultinthekindofstatewidetransformationmodeledinProjected Statewide Impact of “Opportunity Culture” School Models.

✱ Privatephilanthropicfundingofafirstcohort,followedbypublicfundingforadditionaldistricts

✱ Partialpublictransitionfundingsupplementedbyprivatephilanthropyspreadthroughoutthestate

appendix b. state- level optionsStateswishingtomakethetransitiontoOpportunityCulturemod-els intheirschoolshavemanyoptions.CompanionresourcesonOpportunityCulture.orgwillcontinuetopresenttheseoptionsinincreasingdetail.HerewepresentaverybriefsummaryadaptedandexpandedfromProjected Statewide Impact of “Opportunity Culture” School Models.

AstatewideimplementationofOpportunityCulturemodels,ca-reerpaths,andpaywilldependonstatepreferences,funding,andpolicyenvironments.Leadersofstatewidetransitionswillneedtotakethesesteps:

✱ gatheringpoliticalsupportforchange✱ determiningdesignparameters✱ identifyingwhichdistrictsmakethetransitiontonewmodels

andinwhatorder✱ fundingthetemporarycostsoftransition✱ makingpolicychangestoallowgreatimplementation.

Herewebrieflyaddresseachofthesestepsexceptgatheringpo-liticalsupport.

Determining the design parameters:

Statesmaysetdesignparametersasaconditionforprovidingdis-trictswithtransitionfunding,whichshouldalignwiththeOppor-tunityCulturePrinciples.Forexample,theymaysetthe:

✱ minimumtargetforthepercentageofstudentswhowillhavehighlyeffectiveteachersaccountableforlearningincertainsubjectsbyacertaindate,

✱ minimumamountofpaysupplementsforcommonOpportunityCultureroles,

✱ minimumamountofin-schoolplanningandcollaborationtimethatteachersandteacher-leadersmusthave,and

✱ specificevaluationandaccountabilityrequirementsforteachersinhigher-paid,OpportunityCultureroles.

Otherparametersmayalsobeimportanttoastate’sleaders.Forexample,somemaywanttosetexpectationsforuseoforlimitsondigitalinstruction,forminimumpaysupplementsforparapro-fessionalssupportingOpportunityCultureteachers,orforgivingflexibilitytoschoolstoswappositionsandcostsfreelytoachievegreatimplementation.

However,statesmayalso leavesomeorallof thesedecisionstodistricts.Themorecommittedastateistofullyscalingupandfundingtransitioncosts,themoreimportantitmaybetoestablishdesignparameters.







Inbrief,somecriticalpolicyconditionsincludetheneedto:

✱ Identifyexcellentteachers(thoseapproximatelyasstrongastoday’stop25percent)inallgradesandhigh-prioritysubjects,usingincreasinglyaccurateperformanceevaluationprocesses.Theseteacherswillextendtheirreachtomorestudentsdirectlyorbyleadingteams,andtheywillhelppeersimprove.

✱ Instatesthatallocatefundstodistrictsearmarkedforcertainpositions,allowdistrictstoswappositionsataveragepayratestoofferOpportunityCulturepaysupplements.Otherwise,districtscannotofferteachersreach-extendingpaysupplementsaslargeasthoseshowninthisguideandProjected Statewide Impact of “Opportunity Culture” School Models,ortheywillbeabletoofferonlylimitednumbersofpositions.

✱ Letteacherstakeresponsibilityformorestudents—bychoiceandformorepay—aslongashighlyeffectiveteachersareresponsibleforeachstudent’slearning.Today’sclass-sizelawsrestontheantiquatedassumptionthatteachersworkalone,ratherthaninteamswithon-the-jobcollaborationtimeandteacher-leadership—andwithextraparaprofessionalsupportasinotherprofessions.

✱ Removeanyotherbarriersthatinhibitschoolsfrompayingexcellentteachersandtheirteamsmoreforreachingmorestudents.

✱ Matchformalaccountabilityinthestate’ssystemtonewteacher-leaderandteam-teacherroles,sothatteachersareaccountable(andgetcredit)forthestudentsforwhomtheyareresponsible.

✱ Partialpublictransitionfundingsupplementedbyprivatephilanthropyobtaineddistrict-by-district

✱ Publicfundingofalltransitioncosts.

Regardlessoftheshapesthatdesignparameters,districtselection,andtransitionfundingtake,statewideimplementationshould:

✱ Allowdistrictsandschoolstimetoplanfornewmodelswithsignificantteacherandschoolleaderinvolvement

✱ Provideopportunitiesforevaluationandimprovementannually

✱ Usenaturalattrition,ratherthandismissalunwarrantedbyperformance,tomaketheteachingworkforcemoreselective.

Althoughstateshavemanymechanismsattheirdisposal toen-courage or enable districts to implement new models, careerpaths,andpayopportunities,someportionofdistrictsandschoolsmaywishtomaintaintheirconventionalstructure.

As more states and districts implement an Opportunity Cul-ture,weexpecttransitioncoststodecline,becauseanincreasednumberofpeopleexperiencedwiththesetransitionswillbecomeavailable,anddesignmaterialswillbeimproved.Thisinturnwillreducebarrierstostatewidetransformationtohigher-paidcareerpathsthatreachfarmorestudentswithexcellentteachers.

Making policy changes to allow great implementation

Afull-scaleimplementationofOpportunityCulturemodelswouldrequireastate tograntflexibility to local schooldistricts tode-velopnewstaffingstructuresandusefundsinnewways.Detailedpolicyrecommendationsarebeyondthescopeofthisreport,buttheyarebroadlydiscussedinSeizing Opportunity at the Top IIandforthcomingpublicationsthatwillreflecttheexperiencesofpilotdistricts.




http://opportunityculture.org/seizing-opportunity-at-the-top/


Abudget cut pointisbasedonthestate’sbudgetallocationformula—thetippingpointatwhichaclasswouldbesplitandanadditionalteacherhired.Paysupplementscouldbebasedonbudgetcutpointsorona“max-imumreasonableclasssize,”ideallydeterminedincollaborationwithteachersattheelementaryandsecondarylevels.

2. How will the district pay for an increase in class size?Definethenewallocationmechanism.

a.Thedistrictmaychoosetopaymoreonlyforclassesthatexceedthebudgetcutpoint(here,30students).

b.Alternatively,thedistrictcouldchoosetoofferadditionalpayforclassesthatexceedthethresholdforareasonableclasssize.Here,withabudgetcutpointof30,theaver-ageclasssizemightbe25students.Thedistrictcouldpro-videpaysupplementsforteacherswithmorethan25stu-dents.However, tofundthesesupplementssustainably,ifadistrictpaysmoreforclassesabovetheaveragebutbelowthebudgetcutpoint(e.g.27students)itmustalsopaylessforclassesbelowtheaverage(e.g.,23students).Wecallthis“class-sizeshifting.”Mostdistrictswouldnotchoosethisoption,becauseoftheinstabilityofpayforteachersteachingsmallerclasses.Mostdistrictswouldinsteadset“normal”class-sizerangestoallowforfluc-tuationsinschoolenrollment.

c.Notethattheavailabilityoflarge-classteachingpositionsissubjecttosomevariationinschoolenrollment,unlessaschoolanditsteachersarewillingtocombinestudentsatdifferinggradeorsubjectlevelsintomixedclassroomstocontrolclasssize.

d.Districtsshoulddecideinadvancehowpaywillbeaf-fectedifastudentisenrolledonlypartoftheyear.Districtscouldpro-ratepaysupplementsbasedonthenumberofmonthsorweeksofenrollmentorprovideanannualsupplementbasedonSeptemberenrollment.Thepaysupplementshouldbestructuredtoalign,ascloselyaspossible,withhowrevenueisreceivedbythedistrict.Forexample,ifstateallocationsaresetonaspecificdate,October1forexample,thensettingpaysupplementsonthesamedatewouldbethemostfinanciallycertainoption.

3. To whom will large- class teaching positions be made available?Specifycriteriathatwillbeusedtodetermineeligibility.Criteriacouldincludeteachers’effectivenessrat-ings,competencies,andyearsofexperienceasaregularteacherorinotherextended-reachroles.

4. What will be the limit on the number of students in a class at each level (elementary, middle, and high school)?Decidewhethertosetspecificdistrictlimitsorpermitschoolstodeterminewhatis“reasonableandfeasible.”Teachersaffectedshouldbeincludedinthisdecision;noteachershouldhaveaclasslargerthanpre-existinglimitswithoutoptingin.

appendix c. determining pay supplements for large- class teacher rolesTherelationshipbetweenclasssizeandthedistrict’sbudgetallo-cation process will determine the range of pay supplements thatschoolscanoffertoteacherswhotakeonlargerclasses,withinlim-itsandbychoice.Thefollowingdiscussionassumesthatthedistrictbudgetallocationpolicyisbasedonthenumberofpositionsfundedforacertainnumberofstudents.Attheend,weconsiderascenarioinwhichthedistrictusesastudent-basedbudgetallocationpolicy.

We have placed this section at the end of the guide because,at the time of publication, no Opportunity Culture schools hadadoptedlarger-than-normalclasses—thatis,morestudentswitheachteacheratagiventime.At leastoneschool increasedclasssizestomoretypicallevels,though,aftersmallclasseshadfailedtoachievetheintendedimpact—becausefindingenoughhighlyeffectiveteacherstoteachinsomanyclassroomsprovedimpos-sible.Nomatterthecircumstances,schoolsconsideringclass-sizeincreaseswillwanttodosocarefullyandincollaborationwiththeteachersaffected,tomaximizethepositiveimpactonstudentsofhavinggreatteachersmoreoftenandtominimizetheburdenontheteacherswhowillinglyteachmorestudents.

Beforemakingfinaldecisionsaboutpaysupplementsforlarge-classteachers,thedistrictmustconsidertheimpactofpaysupple-mentstructures,facilitiesandfurniturecosts,andparaprofessionalcosts.Hereweofferanexamplegoingthroughtheseconsiderations.

A. Pay supplement structures

1. What is the existing relationship between class size and the number of teaching positions funded through the district’s budget allocation process?Identifythebudget“cutpoints”forclasssize(thesizeatwhichmorefundsbecomeavailabletopayteachersmore).

a.Fundsaregenerallyallocatedtoschoolsbasedonthenumberofteachingpositionsneededtostaffclassesofacertainsize.Classsizeisusuallydefinedasarange.Forthisexample,let’ssaythatteachingpositionsarefundedforaclass-sizerangeof15–29students.

b.Inthiscase,thereisno“extramoney”topayforaclasssizeof29,butthereistopayforaclassof30ormore,becausethebudgetcutpointis30students.



ceivethesamepaysupplementforthesamework(notmorejustbecauseateachermighthavemoreyearsofexperienceandthereforeahigherbasesalary).Itisalsofairtodistrictsandschoolsbecausethecostofimplementingnewschoolmodelsispredictableandnotdependentonwhichteachersfillwhichpositions.Inaddition,schoolsarenotdis-incentivizedfromallowingexperiencedteacherstotakethisrole. Inthisexample,ifaveragepayis$45,000,thentheteacherwouldearn$1,500perstudentover30. Noticeherethatwedothecalculationbasedonthebud-getcutpointratherthanaverageclasssize.Thisisamoreconservativeestimate,topreventimpossiblepayscenariosthatoverextenddistrictbudgets.

2. If the marginal cost is lower when adding more students to a class . . .Thentheformulaforextrateacherpaycouldreflectthis.

New pay = Old pay + 1/30*(Average Pay)*1.25

Thefactorof1.25isarbitraryhere,andusedonlytoillustratehowalargersupplementwouldbepossibleifthemarginalcostofadditionalstudentsislower.Inpractice,thisnumberwouldbegreaterthan1andshouldreflectdistrict-specificcostconsiderations.Inthiscase,usingthe$45,000averagesalaryfromabove,theteacherwouldearn$1,875peraddi-tionalstudent.

3. If the marginal cost is higher when adding more students to a class . . .Thentheformulaforextrateacherpaycouldreflectthis.

New pay = Old pay + 1/30*(Average Pay)*0.75

Again,thefactorof0.75isarbitrary,andusedtoillustratehowasmallersupplementwouldbenecessaryifthemar-ginalcostofadditionalstudentsishigher(duetoadditionalfacilitiescosts,forexample).Inpractice,thisnumberwouldbelessthan1andshouldreflectdistrict-specificcostcon-siderations.Again,usingthe$45,000averagesalaryfromabove,heretheteacherwouldearn$1,125peradditionalstudent.

Theprecedingdiscussionassumesthatthedistrictbudgetalloca-tionpolicyisbasedonthenumberofpositionsfundedforacertainnumberofstudents.However,ifthebudgetingfromthestateisper studentandnotaffectedbyclass-sizeassumptions,thendis-tricts and schools have more freedom to pay teachers on a per-studentbasis.However,asmentionedabove,payingmoreforanabove-averageclasssizerequirespayinglessforalowerclasssize.Thiswouldcreateanunpredictableincomesituationforteachers,andoneoutsidetheircontrolinmanycircumstances.7

5. Will the option of taking less pay for small classes also be made available? Considerthetradeoffsdiscussedin2babove.Someteachers,suchasthosechoosingtoteachbe-yondausualretirementage,mightpreferthisoption.Butitshouldbeachoice.

6. Must a large- class teacher always be paired with a small- class teacher? Whataboutviceversa?Whatarethefinan-cialimplications?

B. Facilities and furniture costs

Considerthephysicalimplicationsoflargeclassesinyourclassrooms.

1. The classrooms must be big enough to accommodate a larger number of students. Moreefficienttable/furnitureconfigurationsandmaterialsstorageisonewaytofitmorestudentsinthesameroomeffectively.

2. There must also be enough classrooms to accommodate a larger number of classrooms when smaller class sizes are used at the same time. Trailersareacommonflextoolusedforthis,butthiscostmustbeincludedincalculationsofpotentialpay.Schoolsthatuseclass-sizeshifting—anequalnumberoflargerandsmallerclasses—willnotneedaddi-tionalclassrooms.

C. Paraprofessional costs

When paraprofessional support is part of the standard staffingpolicy—e.g.,teacherassistantsinlowergrades—increasingclasssizesmaysaveparaprofessionalcosts,ifthenumberofparapro-fessionals declines. The exception to this might be much largerclasssizes,inwhichtheschoolmightaddextraparaprofessionalsupportforlarge-classteacherstoshare.Decreasingclasssizesin-creasesparaprofessionalcosts, inadditiontoaddingteacherstothepayroll.

Pay Impact

Onceallofthecostfactorsareconsidered,thedistrictmustcalcu-latethemarginalcostofprovidinganeducationtoeachadditionalstudent.

1. If the marginal cost is the same for all students regardless of class size . . . Thentheteachercanearnapercentageofpaythatreflectedtheadditionalstudent.

New pay = Old pay + 1/30*(Average pay)

Aswithotherreachpaysupplements,weuseaveragepayasthebaseforthesupplement.Thisisfairforteachers,whore-



appendix d. understanding existing career paths and compensation in the district — checklistToredesigncareerandcompensationmodelstosupportanOp-portunity Culture, the district must first scrutinize its existingcareerandcompensationstructures.Thechecklistthatfollowsisdesignedtohelpdistrictleadersunderstandthosesystems.ItlaysthegroundworkforlateranalysistodeterminehowOpportunityCulturemodelsenhancepayandchangethepaydecision-makingprocess. It ismost importantwhenadistrict isconsideringmul-tiplecompensationchanges,notjustaddingOpportunityCulturerolestotheexistingpaystructure.

❒ Understand current decision-making modelsò Whohasauthoritytohireanddefineandassignroles?ò Whohasauthoritytodeterminecompensationofnew

hiresandexistingteachers?ò Whohasauthoritytoterminateemployment?ò Arethereanylegislativeoradministrativebarrierstotran-

sitioningtonewmodels?

❒ Understand existing performance evaluation processò Doyoumeasureperformance?ò Canyouidentifythetop25percentofteachers?ò Howdoyoumeasureperformance?

•Whomeasuresit,howoften,andusingwhatprocess?•Doyoumeasurevalue-added?Howconfidentareyouthat

performancemeasuresarecorrelatedwithstudentprog-ress?

•DoyoumeasureleadershipandteamworkcompetenciesrelevanttoOpportunityCulturereach-extensionmodels?(Note:theycanbeaddedtoselectionprocesseitherway)

ò Howisperformancemeasurementused?Development?Pay?Promotion/careerpaths?

❒ Understand existing roles and career advancement opportunitiesò Arethererolesthatallowforcareeradvancement?Inthe

classroom?Outoftheclassroom?ò Iscareeradvancementtiedtocompensationinanyway?

•How?Whichrolespaymore?Why?Dotheyaddcontentororganizingvaluetoteachingprocess?

•Howmuchmoredotheypay?Aretheyformulaicoratmanager’sdiscretion?Providedetailedschedule.

ò Howisadvancementfunded?Isfundingsustainable(notlimitedtoagrantterm)?Isadvancementsustainablyfund-edbyreallocationofdollarsatschoollevelordistrictlevel?

ò Whatdevelopmentisavailabletohelppeopleadvancetheircareers?Onthejob?Other?

ò Whattrainingisavailableforpeoplewhoadvancetorolesverydifferentfrompastwork?

ò Doadvancedroleshaveformalperformancemeasuresalignedwithenhancedresponsibilities?

ò Isauthorityformalandcleartoavoidconflictingauthorityanddiffusionofresponsibility?

❒ Understand existing compensationò Howisstartingpaydeterminedfornewemployees?

Structure/scales?Discretionwithinthose?Bywhom?ò Howareannualpayincreasesdetermined?Structure/

scales?Discretionwithinthose?Bywhom?ò Arethereotherpayopportunities?(Foradvancedroles,

performance,skills/degrees,certification,etc.)

❒ Understand current resourcesò Identifycurrentfundingsources—federal,state,and

local—andhowmucheachgenerates•Identifyhowfundsfromeachsourceareallocated•Identifystatutoryoradministrativerestrictionsforeach

sourcethatlimitdistricts’andschools’abilitytorepurposefunds

ò Inventoryexistingprofessional,technological,andcapitalresources:•Teachernumbersandeffectivenessdistributionby

schoolandsubject/grade•Instructionalcoachesbyschoolandsubjectandgrades

affected•Teachingassistantsbyschoolandsubjectandgrades

affected•Technologylabpersonnel,facilities,andequipmentby

school

❒ Understand district and state policiesthatalloworrestrictflexibleuseoffundsand/orpositionsò Arethererestrictionsontheuseoffreedfunds(e.g.,the

useoffundingforteacherpositionsbeingusedtofundnewparaprofessionals,technology,anddistributedasstipendstoreach-extendingteachers)thatwillneedtochange?



teams,alsoprovidesteacherswithadditionalplanningandteamcollabo-rationtime,inadditiontohigherpay.

5.PublicImpact:Holly,C.,Dean,S.,Hassel,E.A.,&Hassel,B.C.(2014).Projected statewide impact of “Opportunity Culture” school models.ChapelHill,NC:Author.Retrievedfromhttp://opportunityculture.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Projected_Statewide_Impact_of_Opportunity_Culture_School_Models-Public_Impact.pdf

6.Nationalaverageteachersalarywas$56,103forthe2012–13schoolyear.FromNEARankings&Estimates2013–14,TableC-11.http://www.nea.org/assets/docs/NEA-Rankings-and-Estimates-2013-2014.pdf. Teacheraidesalaryfromsalary.comwas$20,761(medianfor2014).Thehighersalaryof$26,500wasusedtoreflectthedesiretopaymoreforparaprofessionalsinsupportingreachextensionandtodemonstratefinancialsustainabilityunderthesemorerigorousassumptions.Likewise,thenewtechnologycostsforgrades6–12arehigh-sideestimates.

7.Thisishowfundingfora“solopractice”worksinotherprofessions,butnothowitworksinlargerprofessionalorganizations.Largerprofes-sionalorganizationspaysteadysalariesbasedonassumptionsabout“averageload”perprofessional.Whentheloadispersistentlytoolowforaprofessional,thatwouldbecauseforlimitingpayincreasesandeventu-allyfortermination(notenoughpatientsorclientsarechoosingtheper-son).Whenaloadispersistentlyheavyforaprofessional,abonustypi-callywouldfollow,fundedbytheextraclientsorpatientsserved.Oftentheextrarevenuegeneratedbyhighlyproductiveindividualsissplitbe-tweentheindividualandtheorganization(thepartnerstakeaprofit,or,inanonprofit,theorganizationcoversotherexpenseswiththeexcess).

Notes1.Studyresultsvary,butthetop20percentofteachersproduceabout

threetimestheprogressofthebottom20percentofteachers,andapoororAfrican-Americanstudentwhohasatop-25percentteacherratherthanabottom-25percentteacherforfouryearsinarowwillclosetheachievementgapwithhisorhernon-poororwhitepeers.Sourcesinclude:Sanders,W.L.,&Rivers,J.C.(1996).Cumulative and residual effects of teachers on future student academic achievement.Knoxville:UniversityofTennesseeValue-AddedResearchandAssessmentCenter.Retrievedfromhttp://www.cgp.upenn.edu/pdf/Sanders_Rivers-TVASS_teacher%20effects.pdf;Kane,T.J.,Rockoff,J.E.,&Staiger,D.O.(2006).What does certification tell us about teacher effectiveness?Cambridge,MA:NationalBureauofEconomicResearch.Retrievedfromhttp://www.nber.org/papers/w12155.pdf?new_window=1;andGordon,R.,Kane,T.J.,&Staiger,D.O.(1996).Identifying teacher performance on the job.Wash-ington,DC:TheHamiltonProject.Retrievedfromhttp://www.brookings.edu/views/papers/200604hamilton_1.pdf.

2.Bill&MelindaGatesFoundation(2010).Learning about teaching: Initial findings from the Measures of Effective Teaching project.Seattle,WA:Author.Retrievedfromhttp://www.metproject.org/downloads/Preliminary_Findings-Research_Paper.pdf

3.Eachoftheserolescouldhaveadifferentfundingmechanism,suchas:Designspecialistsfundedthroughdistrictreallocation;digitaldesign-ersfundedthroughprivateventures;andvideoteachersfundedthroughdistrictreallocation,withcostrecapturedwithasmall“tax”onOpportu-nityCultureschoolsoutoftheirreachsavings.

4.Addingparaprofessionals,andco-schedulinggradeandsubject





http://www.nea.org/assets/docs/NEA-Rankings-and-Estimates-2013-2014.pdf

http://www.nea.org/assets/docs/NEA-Rankings-and-Estimates-2013-2014.pdf

http://www.cgp.upenn.edu/pdf/Sanders_Rivers-TVASS_teacher%20effects.pdf

http://www.cgp.upenn.edu/pdf/Sanders_Rivers-TVASS_teacher%20effects.pdf

http://www.nber.org/papers/w12155.pdf?new_window=1

http://www.nber.org/papers/w12155.pdf?new_window=1

http://www.brookings.edu/views/papers/200604hamilton_1.pdf

http://www.brookings.edu/views/papers/200604hamilton_1.pdf

http://www.metproject.org/downloads/Preliminary_Findings-Research_Paper.pdf

http://www.metproject.org/downloads/Preliminary_Findings-Research_Paper.pdf

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