005.28.21 Ark. Code R. 004

Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 10, October, 2024

Rule 005.28.21-004 - Master Principal

Governing Eligibility and Financial Incentives for Arkansas Leadership Academy Master Principal Program Effective Date June 2,2022

1.00 Regulatory Authority

1.01 These rules shall be known as the Arkansas Department of Education Division of Elementary and Secondary Education (Division) Rules Governing the Arkansas Leadership Academy Master Principal Program.

1.02 These rules are enacted under the Arkansas State Board of Education's (State Board) authority pursuant to Ark. Code. Ann.§§ 611-105, 6-17- 1601 et seq., and 25-15-201 et seq.

2.00 Purpose

2.01 The purpose of these rules is:

2.1.1 The improvement of student learning by strengthening principal leadership;

2.1.2 The encouragement of principals to participate in and complete the Master Principal Program by authorizing the Division to pay full incentive bonuses to participants;

2.1.3 The establishment of eligibility requirements; and

2.1.4 The establishment of the mechanism for the payment to principal participants, as determined by the amount of funding available for the program.

Source: Ark. Code Ann.§ 6-17-1602

3.00 Definitions

For the purposes of these rules, the following terms shall mean:

3.01 "Building Level Principal" means a principal who holds a standard building-level administrator license from the Division or is working under an approved licensure exception, and who serves as a full-time school principal in an Arkansas public school.

3.02 "High-need public school" means an Arkansas public school that at the time a master principal first becomes entitled to a high-need school salary bonus, is identified as failing to meet certain established levels of academic achievement under rules adopted by the State Board.

3.03 "High-need school salary bonus" means an annual bonus to a Master Principal serving as a principal of a high-need public school. High needs schools will be schools that are identified every three years as in need of comprehensive support and improvement (CSI) using the ESSA School Index score as approved in Arkansas ESSA plan:

3.03.1 Lowest performing 5% of all schools receiving Title I Part A funds.

3.03.2 High schools with a four-year Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate below 66.667 percent

3.04 "Hold-back longevity bonus" means a portion of the high-need school salary bonus held back to be paid at the end of three (3) years and five (5) years of serving as a principal of the same high-need public school.

3.05 "Incentive bonus" means a bonus paid to a Master Principal serving as a principal of any public school in the state.

3.06 "Successful completion" of the Master Principal Designation process is defined as officially being designated as a Master Principal by the Arkansas Leadership Academy.

3.07 "The Arkansas Leadership Academy" is defined as a collaborative partnership which identifies and designates principals who meet rigorous standards by effectively demonstrating student learning in their schools as well as demonstrating high levels of knowledge, skills, dispositions, and commitments approved by the State Board of Education.

Source: Ark. Code Ann.§ 6-17-1601

4.00 Selection Process and Requirements

4.01 The Arkansas Leadership Academy administers the Master Principal Program.

4.01.1 Program applications are available from the Arkansas Leadership Academy.

4.01.2 All Arkansas public school building level principals with one (1) year of experience as a building-level principal may apply. Preference will be given to applicants with three (3) or more years of leadership experience. The years of experience preference may be evaluated on a case by case basis.

4.01.3 The number of participants each year in each phase may be determined by the amount of funding available for the program.

4.02 Criteria and Selection to the Master Principal Program

4.02.1 Phase I:

4.02.1.1 Phase I shall expand the knowledge base and leadership skills of the principal.

4.02.1.2 Selection of participants for Phase I will be based on responses to the application and on a balance of demographic information.

4.02.1.3 The number of participants each year may be determined by the amount of funding available for the program.

4.02.2 Phase II:

4.02.2.1 Phase II shall require the principal to apply strategies and to collect evidence of improvement in student learning and school processes.

4.02.2.2 Phase II participants are those who have successfully demonstrated a thorough understanding and implementation of Arkansas Leadership Standards addressed in Phase I as evidenced by Phase I assessments, which may include portfolios, student achievement data, site visits, self-assessments, and other forms of evidence.

4.02.3 Phase III: Selection of participants for Phase III will be based on a participant's successful completion of Phase II assessments, evidence of school results, and letters of recommendation.

4.02.3.1 Phase III shall require the principal to publicly demonstrate the ability and skills that lead to sustained academic improvement in a school and a school district.

4.02.3.2 Phase III participants are those who have successfully demonstrated a thorough understanding and implementation of Arkansas Leadership Standards addressed in Phase II as evidenced by Phase II assessments, which may include portfolios, student achievement data, site visits, self-assessments, and other forms of evidence.

4.02.4 Master Principal Designation: The Arkansas Leadership Academy will make a Master Principal Designation after a participant successfully completes Phase III, passes extensive reviews of school results, and passes rigorous assessments based on the performance areas of the assessment.

4.02.5 Participants in the Master Principal Program will have up to two (2) years to complete the assessments for each phase for a maximum time of six (6) years to complete the program and earn designation, unless extended at the discretion of the Arkansas Leadership Academy due to extenuating circumstances.

Source: Ark. Code Ann. § 6-17-1602

5.00 Payment of Fees and Bonuses

5.01 Incentive Bonus

5.01.1 The Division of Elementary and Secondary Education shall pay a $9,000 annual incentive bonus to a school district that employs a Master Principal Designee as a full-time building-level principal for payment to the Master Principal Designee as a bonus in the first school year after designation and a yearly bonus for each of the next four (4) consecutive years of eligibility.

5.01.2 The lifetime maximum for an incentive bonus is $45,000.

5.01.3 A qualified applicant will establish eligibility for receipt of the incentive bonus by submitting to the Division, on an annual basis, proof of:

5.01.3.1 Receiving the official Master Principal Designation from the Arkansas Leadership Academy;

5.01.3.2 At the time of receiving the bonus, being employed full-time as a building-level principal in an Arkansas public school district, verified by the school district;

5.01.3.3 Not having received the $9,000 annual incentive bonus for more than four (4) years.

Source: Ark. Code Ann.§ 6-17-1603

5.02 High-need School Salary Bonus

5.02.1 The Division shall pay a high-need salary bonus of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) for every school year for no more than five (5) years to any building-level principal who:

5.02.1.1 Receives Master Principal Designation from the Leadership Academy; and

5.02.1.2 Is employed full time as a building-level principal at the time of receiving the bonus in a high-need public school.

5.02.2 The high-need school salary bonus shall be paid as follows:

5.02.2.1 Twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) for each school year that a Master Principal is employed in a high-need public school; and

5.02.2.2 An additional five thousand dollars ($5,000) to be set aside for each qualifying school year to be paid as follows:

5.02.2.2.1 An initial hold-back longevity bonus of fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) at the end of three (3) consecutive school years as a Master Principal in the same school; and

5.02.2.2.2 A final hold-back longevity bonus of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) at the end of five (5) consecutive school years as a Master Principal in the same school.

5.02.3 The high-need school salary bonus with the hold-back longevity bonus payable under this section shall be paid in addition to the five-year incentive bonus allowed in 5.01 if the Master Principal is within the timeframe for eligibility for the five-year incentive bonus.

5.02.4 In the Master Principal Program, a person shall not receive a yearly incentive bonus, a salary bonus, or a longevity bonus if the person leaves the full-time employment as a principal of an Arkansas public school district.

5.02.5 No increase in the starting or yearly bonus is retroactive.

Source: Ark. Code Ann. § 6-17-1604

6.00 Repayment of Yearly Incentive Bonus

6.01 Repayment of state funds for the Arkansas Leadership Academy Master Principal is required if a recipient does not complete the school-year in which the bonus was received as a full-time buildinglevel principal. The repayment amount shall be prorated for the time not served.

6.02 The State Board may revoke a building-level administrator license for failure to repay state funds under these rules.

7.00 Monitoring

7.01 The local public school district that employs a Master Principal must verify to the Division annually the employment status of that principal for each year of the five-year annual incentive bonus eligibility.

8.00 Funding

8.01 The payment for any bonus under these rules is subject to the appropriation and availability of funds.

8.02. To the extent funds as provided for by Ark. Code Ann§ 6-17-1601 et seq. are available, such funds may be used to fund the incentive bonus, high-need salary bonus, and hold-back longevity bonus.

005.28.21 Ark. Code R. 004

Adopted by Arkansas Register Volume 47 Number 06, Effective 6/2/2022