Yes the DOE does hire experienced teachers from outside the DOE in shortage and non-shortage areas and give them salary credit, with a few restrictions, for previous experience. The DOE actively recrutis experienced shortage area teachers through programs like the Housing Incentive that provides a $15K payment to successful applicants to offset some of the higher costs of living and working in the NYC area.

Quality Review training includes learning about data, things to look for in classroom visits, the daily operations of schools, and how to talk to the different contingencies within school communities. The reviewers are trained to look for alignment between professional development, budget, scheduling, use of data, etc., in order to provide useful and meaningful feedback to the school. Trainees must then shadow an experienced reviewer and learn how to implement their training. Before shadowing a reviewer or conducting an individual review, all reviewers are asked if there is any conflict of interest or potential reason that may cause an unfair evaluation of the assigned schools. All New York City Department of Education trained reviewers conduct their shadowing and Quality Reviews outside of their region in schools with which they are unfamiliar. The Department of Education takes every precaution possible to make sure there is no bias in the Quality Reviews. There is also an appeals process that a principal can initiate during or after the Quality Review process if they feel their reviewer is biased.

Funding from the old regional new teacher mentoring program has been devolved to schools and is included in budget allocations schools already have. There are many possible ways a school might choose to set up new teacher mentoring. For more information, follow this link: http://schools.nyc.gov/Offices/ChildrenFirst/TeachersExcellence/Teacher+Mentoring

The Partnership Support Organizations were subject to a rigorous review and competitive bidding process. The Department of Education issued a Request for Proposals in January entitled "Partnership School Support." The DOE received proposals from for-profit and not-for profit organizations were received in response to the RFP. Evaluations were performed by cross-functional committees representing different NYCDOE offices. Each proposal was evaluated on the characteristics of its program plan, organizational capacity and demonstrated effectiveness. The partners selected were each found to offer clear, detailed, rational and concise descriptions of the supports they will provide, show evidence of adequate human, organizational, technical and professional resources and abilities, and demonstrate prior experience providing comparable services in or to schools.

Yes the lead teacher program will continue in the 2007-08 school year. There will be several ways a school can qualify to have lead teachers. Details will be shared with all schools in late May or early June.

Assuming that the school itself does not start in the 4th grade, those students would be eligible for a poverty weight.

Students enrolled at schools that begin before grade 4 (e.g., all K–5, K–8, and K-12 schools) qualify for the poverty weight if they also qualify for free lunch and/or receive public assistance, according to data provided by New York City’s Human Resources Administration. These are also the criteria for Title I eligibility. These students will continue to receive the poverty weight after elementary school as long as they meet the eligiblity criteria. We do not use achievement data because we do not want perverse incentives.

Students attending these schools will continue to be eligible for additional funding through a portfolio weight for high schools. Categories for the 2007-08 school year are: Career and Technical Education (21 schools); Specialized Academic (10 schools); Specialized Audition (6 schools); Transfer (30 schools). For more specific information on which high schools are eligible for portfolio weights, please consult the relevant pages on this website (Key Elements - New Formula (Weights)) or the Fair Student Funding Resource Guide.

In general, facilities and maintenance will continue to be funded outside Fair Student Funding. We considered accounting for annexes but there are too many unique circumstances for a blanket policy. Nonetheless, we will consider extraordinary circumstances on a case-by-case basis.

We have moved toward charging actual salaries for two reasons: First, it will create more equity. A school with many novice teachers will not end up being underfunded when compared to schools with many senior teachers. They will have leftover dollars to spend on new programs and materials, lowering class size, or professional development for teachers, among other options. Second, it will lead to a better use of resources because principals will decide how to spend money to improve student achievement. For example, a principal might hire additional teachers to reduce class size or create mentorship opportunities by mixing junior and senior teachers. Previously, principals could not make those choices when they had a fixed number of positions. In the new system, principals will be able to make smart choices about the mix of employees on their budgets, just as other managers do. What will matter will be the educational bottom line: how to improve student achievement.