NCLB – Notification of Qualifications of Instructional Staff

Parents’ Right-To-Know

Professional Qualifications of Classroom Teachers

2008-2009

On January 8, 2002, President Bush signed into law the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). A provision of this new Title I law requires all districts to notify parents of all children in all Title I schools that they have the right to request and receive timely information on the professional qualifications of their children’s classroom teachers. This requirement applies to all Title I schools, both Targeted Assistance and School wide.

*According to the new NCLB law (Section 111 – State Plans (6) Parents’ Right-To-Know), LEAs must report:

(A) Qualifications – At the beginning of each school year, a local educational agency that receives funds under this part shall notify the parents of each student attending any school receiving fund under this part that the parents may request and the agency will provide the parents on request (and in a timely manner), information regarding the professional qualifications of the student’s classroom teachers, including at a minimum the following:

(i) Whether the teacher has met State qualifications and licensing criteria for the grade levels and subject areas in which the teacher provides instructions.

(ii) Whether the teacher is teaching under emergency or other provisional status through which State qualification or licensing criteria have been waived.

(iii) The baccalaureate degree major of the teacher and any other graduate certification or degree held by the teacher, and the field of discipline of the certification or degree.

(iv) Whether the child is provided services by paraprofessionals and, if so, their qualifications.

(B) Additional Information – In addition to the information that parents may request under Subparagraph (A), a school that receives funds under this part shall provide to each individual parent:

(i) information on the level of achievement of the parent’s child in each of the State academic assessments as required under this part; and

(ii) timely notice that the parent’s child has been assigned, or has been taught for four or more consecutive weeks by a teacher who is not highly qualified.

Because the Grand Coulee Dam School District receives Title I Part A funds, all teachers must be highly qualified by the end of 2006-06 whether or not they are paid with Title I funds (Sec. 1119(a)(2). State Plan). This means that any teacher that is hired prior to the first day of the 2002-03 school year has four years to obtain the necessary credentials.

The District Local Improvement Plan (LIP) describes how the District will meet the required timelines as described in Section 1111 and 1112 of the law.

Note: the notices and information provided to parents shall be in an understandable and uniform format and, to the extent possible must also be provided in a language that parents can understand.