Debates over the efficacy of tenure are longstanding but tenure reform is now more prominent in the public eye given recent high-profile legislative battles in states like Ohio and Wisconsin. This focus on tenure also is a natural outgrowth of the large body of research showing that differences between individual teachers can have profound effects…

An increasing number of states are mandating teacher performance be considered in educator employment decisions, including awarding tenure and layoffs, according to a 50-state policy review of teacher tenure laws. Tenure laws have historically granted job protections based on years of employment. The Education Commission of the States (ECS)…

A year ago at ASBO International's Annual Meeting and Expo in Seattle, Washington, school business officials from four states presented a powerful double-session panel on the status of changes in teacher contracts and educational funding in their regions of the country. The presenters have since updated their comments with new information and…

A large literature on teacher collective bargaining describes the potential influence of provisions in teacher union contracts, but little is known about the determinants of these provisions. Using a unique dataset of every active teacher collective bargaining agreement in Washington state, we find that the proximity of two districts is a…

Hiring tenure-track faculty is an activity common to all colleges and universities. Most institutions engage in hiring activities each year. Despite the number of searches conducted annually, most available information about faculty hiring consists of guidelines for conducting searches and statistics about searches within disciplines. The purpose…

Over 2000 teachers in the state of Washington received reduction-in-force (RIF) notices in the past two years. The authors link data on these RIF notices to a unique dataset that includes student, teacher, school, and district variables to determine the factors that predict the likelihood of a teacher receiving a RIF notice. They find a teacher's…

Reform advocates and policymakers concerned about the quality and distribution of teachers support proposals of alternative compensation for teachers in hard-to-hire subject areas, hard-to-staff schools, and with special knowledge and skills. The successful implementation of such proposals depends in large part on teacher attitudes. The current…

This guide is intended to give individual school board directors an introduction to some of the legal issues they may encounter in their board service. This material is not intended to answer every question, even in the subject matter areas they cover. This guide is merely intended to alert directors to the legal issues that they will encounter…

Institutions of higher education nationwide have been adopting policies to help faculty members with primary caregiving roles to attain tenure, and much research has been devoted to their effectiveness. The range of policies and programs has expanded dramatically since the 1970s. Among the options now available are family leave, elder-care…

This document reviews professional leave data, 1971-72 in Washington. Following background material, guidelines for percentage range and financial aspects based on statistical data are presented. The Washington Council on Higher Education response to the request for the legislative budget committee concerning sabbatical and stipend leave programs…

A review of current faculty salaries within the context of the Washington Council for Postsecondary Education policy position includes comparison with various measures of competition and the effect of past, present, and projected increases in the cost of living. Tables include listing for: average faculty salaries; consumer price index for fiscal…

Noting the diminishing interinstitutional mobility among community college faculty, this paper examines current staff development practices and outlines recommendations for improving staff development at Valencia Community College (VCC). The paper first argues that traditional staff development activities, such as sabbatical leaves and research…

Designed to provide the Washington State Legislature with information for use in making future legislative determinations concerning selected community college issues, this report presents information on the state's community colleges including policies on annual leave, allocation of resources, and salary increments. Part I outlines the scope and…

This booklet presents a model for use by any size or type of school district in developing an affirmative action plan. The model is intended to give districts a clear idea of what affirmative action requires and what type of program must be implemented for affirmative action to be successful. Separate sections of the booklet discuss numerical…

The compensation policy for students and graduate assistant employees at two-year and four-year public institutions in Washington State was studied. General student employment (excluding teaching assistants) is considered in terms of regular student employment and work study employment. Regular student employment is fully funded out of the…