South Carolina General Assembly
104th Session, 1981-1982

Bill 539


                    Current Status

Bill Number:               539
Ratification Number:       480
Act Number                 391
Introducing Body:          Senate
Subject:                   Relating to teacher certification
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(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

(A391, R480, S539)

AN ACT TO AMEND ACT 187 OF 1979, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO TEACHER CERTIFICATION, SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR THE EMPLOYMENT OF A TEACHER UNDER ANNUAL CONTRACTS FOR A MAXIMUM OF TWO YEARS INSTEAD OF FOUR YEARS, ALLOW TRANSFER OF CONTINUING CONTRACT STATUS TO ANY SCHOOL DISTRICT OF THE STATE, REMOVE THE PROHIBITION AGAINST TEACHING IF A TEACHER FAILS TO RECEIVE AN ANNUAL OR CONTINUING CONTRACT AND ALLOW A SCHOOL DISTRICT TO EMPLOY A TEACHER FOR A SECOND YEAR UNDER A PROVISIONAL CONTRACT.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

Nonrenewable provisional contract

Section 1. Section 4 of Act 187 of 1979, as last amended by Act 43 of 1981, is further amended to read:

"Section 4. A person who receives a teaching certificate as provided in Section 3 may be employed by any school district under a nonrenewable provisional contract. All school districts shall comply with procedures and requirements promulgated by the Board of Education relating to aid, supervision, and evaluation of persons teaching under a provisional contract. All teachers working under a provisional contract shall be paid at least the beginning salary on the state minimum salary schedule.

Each school district shall use the evaluation instrument developed in accordance with Section 3 to evaluate all provisional teachers at least three times. The results of a teacher's evaluation shall be provided to the teacher in writing. Each school district shall give provisional teachers appropriate advice and assistance to help remedy any deficiencies that are detected by the three required evaluations. Such advice and assistance shall include, but not be limited to, state procedures and programs developed in accordance with Section 3 of this act.

At the end of a one-year provisional contract period, the evaluation shall be reviewed by the school district to determine if the provisional teacher has performed at the level required by the evaluation instrument. If the evaluations indicate that the provisional teacher has performed in an adequate manner, such teacher shall be eligible for an annual contract. If the evaluations indicate that the provisional teacher is deficient in teaching ability, the school district may employ such teacher for an additional year under a provisional contract or the district may terminate his employment. If employment is terminated, another school district may employ him under a new one-year provisional contract. No person may be employed as a provisional teacher for more than two years. This paragraph shall not preclude his employment under an emergency certificate in extraordinary circumstances if such employment is appoved by the State Board of Education. During the one-year provisional contract period the employment dismissal provisions of Article 3, Chapter 19, and Article 5, Chapter 25, of Title 59 of the 1976 Code shall not apply.

After successful completion of the one-year provisional period, a teacher who is fully certified may be employed by any school district under a one-year annual contract. The decision by the school district to continue a teacher's employment beyond an annual contract shall be based on written evaluations conducted at least two times annually using an evaluation instrument that at least meets the criteria established by the State Board of Education for an acceptable instrument. Evaluators shall complete a program of reliability training. School districts shall give the results of a teacher's evaluation in writing to the teacher and shall counsel him concerning his strengths and weaknesses as a teacher. School districts shall use deficiencies identified by the evaluations of teachers on annual contracts as a guide to the establishment of staff development programs.

A teacher shall be employed for a maximum of two years under annual contracts. This paragraph shall not preclude his employment under an emergency certificate in extraordinary circumstances if such employment is approved by the State Board of Education.

The teacher failing to receive the annual or continuing contract shall not be employed as a classroom teacher in any public school in this State for a minimum of two years. Prior to reentry as a provisional or annual contract teacher, he must complete six units of credit for certificate renewal and six units of credit for remediation in areas of identified deficiencies. The teacher shall reenter at the contract level which he had attained before dismissal and continue toward the next contract level. The provisions of this paragraph granting an opportunity for reentry into the profession shall be available to a teacher once, and only once.

After the successful completion of a provisional year and one annual contract, a teacher shall receive a continuing contract and shall have full procedural rights that currently exist under law relating to employment and dismissal. The provisions of Article 5, Chapter 25, of Title 59 of the 1976 Code and Article 3, Chapter 19, of Title 59 shall not apply to teachers working under one-year annual contracts. Teachers working under a one-year annual contract who are not recommended for reemployment at the end of the year may have an informal hearing before the district superintendent. The superintendent shall schedule the hearing no sooner than seven nor later than thirty working days after he receives a request from such teacher for a hearing. At the hearing all of the evidence shall be reviewed by the superintendent. The teacher may provide such information, testimony, or witnesses as the teacher deems necessary. The decision by the superintendent shall be given in writing within twenty days of the hearing. The teacher may appeal the superintendent's decision to the school district board of trustees. Any such appeal shall include a brief statement (1) of the questions to be presented to the board, and (2) wherein the teacher believes the superintendent to have erred in his judgment. Failure to file such an appeal with the board within ten days of the receipt of the superintendent's decision shall cause the decision of the superintendent to become final judgment in the matter. The board of trustees shall review all the materials presented at the earlier hearing and, after examining these materials, the board may or may not grant the request for a board hearing of the matter. Written notice of the board's decision on whether or not to grant the request shall be rendered within thirty-five calendar days of the receipt of the request. If the board determines that hearing by the board is warranted, the teacher shall be given written notice of the time and place of such a hearing which shall be set not sooner than seven nor later than fifteen days from the time of the board's determination to hear the matter. The decision of the board shall be final.

If a person has completed an approved teacher training program at a college or university outside this State and has no teaching experience, he shall have the same status as a person who has completed such program at a college or university in this State. If a person has completed an approved teacher training program at a college or university outside this State, has passed the examination he is required to take for certification purposes and has one year of teaching experience, he may be employed by a school district as a provisional teacher. If a person has completed an approved teacher training program at a college or university outside this State, has passed the examination he is required to take for certification purposes, and has more than one year of teaching experience, he may be employed by a school district as one who has completed the one-year provisional period.

When any teacher has been awarded a continuing contract in one district of the State such continuing status shall be transferable to any other district in the State where such teacher is employed. Teachers certified under the trades and industrial education certification process shall be exempt from the provisions of this act which require the completion of scholastic requirements for teaching at an approved college or university and a provisional contract period. Such teachers may be employed by a school district for a maximum of five years under annual contracts prior to being employed under a continuing contract. Before being employed under a continuing contract these teachers shall pass the Basic Skills Examination developed in accordance with Section 3(b) (1), the state approved skill examination in their area which is currently required, the teaching examination developed in accordance with Section 3(b) (2) and successfully complete the performance evaluations as required for all teachers who are employed under provisional contracts. Certification renewal requirements for such teachers shall be those which are promulgated by the State Board of Education."

Time effective

Section 2. This act shall take effect upon approval by the Governor.