Hillsborough County Public Schools Information and Technology
Action Item

DATE: Tuesday, March 4, 2008
TO: School Board Members
FROM: MaryEllen Elia, Superintendent

SUBJECT / RECOMMENDATIONS

Approve the Increase in Participant Fee for Hillsborough County Public Schools Alternative Certification Program (Information and Technology Division)

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

In 1998, the Florida Department of Education approved the implementation of Hillsborough County Public Schools’ Alternative Certification Program (ACP) to allow teachers who did not major in education to complete their certification requirements. The benefits of the program include training provided by classroom teachers, topics related to effective teaching practice, and a strong coaching/mentoring component. Since its implementation, over 1500 teachers have completed their certification requirements through Hillsborough’s ACP.

ACP is a self-sustaining program that utilizes participant fees to provide services including the required coursework, ACP Coach contracts and other office requirements. Upon the initial implementation of ACP, the participant fee was $600.00. In 2004, the fee was increased to $800.00 to help cover the increased cost of materials. At that time, the District also received a Federal Transition to Teaching Grant. This grant has supplemented the ACP fees for Title I participants over the past four years. Grant funds for ACP will not be available in 2008-2009.

Since the last fee increase, the program has added two additional classes to fulfill state requirements. The cost of each of these courses is approximately $200.00 per participant.

We request authorization for a fee increase from $800.00 to $1,200.00 for the 2008-2009 school year. This increase will allow us to continue to offer ACP as a self-sustaining program.

ANNUAL DISTRICT GOAL(S) AND CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTOR(S)

Goal 3, Success Factor 2: Recruit and retain highly qualified teachers and provide an ongoing mentoring program. Goal 3, Success Factor 3: Align professional development with teacher needs as reflected by student achievement data.

FINANCIAL IMPACT (Budgeted: Yes)

The ACP components are funded entirely by participant fees. In 2006-2007, ACP revenue totaled $542,691.98 and expenditures totaled $536,008.88, leaving ACP with a balance of $6,683.10.

EVALUATION

ACP participants and school administrators are surveyed annually to assess the success of the program. ACP instructors are surveyed and provide critical feedback for the courses. ACP office staff track the retention rate of teachers who complete the ACP program to determine the success of its components. In addition, ACP staff are working with Assessment and Accountability to develop a method for measuring the ACP participants’ impact on student achievement.

SUBMITTED BY: Chuck Fleming, Director, Staff Development

Jack E. Davis
Chief Information and Technology Officer
(813) 272-4600
Gretchen Saunders
Chief Business Officer
(813) 272-4270
A 5.10
Hillsborough County Public Schools (Florida) * Mtg.#20080304_289 * Section A Item# 5.10