OREGON TEACHER STANDARDS AND PRACTICES COMMISSION
AUGUST 2011
II. A. Mission Statement & Statutory
Authority
Mission: To establish, uphold and enforce professional
standards of excellence and communicate those standards to the public and
educators for the benefit of Oregon’s students.
Goals:
1.
Establish high
standards for educator preparation excellence and regularly review approved
programs for delivery of adopted licensure standards.
2.
Provide
leadership for professional licensure standards including standards for:
cultural inclusion; educator dispositions; subject-matter competency.
3.
To provide timely
high quality services to licensees, higher education, and the public.
4.
Maintain and
develop clear, concise and easy to understand administrative rules.
5.
Establish high
standards for educator professional conduct and regularly communicate those
standards to the field.
Statutory Authority: The
statutory authority for the TSPC can be found in ORS 342.120 to 342.430. The administrative rules supporting these statutes
can be found in
Commission Composition: The 17 Commission
members are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Oregon Senate. The composition of the TSPC is as follows: 1 school board member; 2 general public
members; 1 state university faculty member; 1 independent college or university
faculty member; 1 elementary principal; 1 secondary principal; 1 superintendent
of city schools; 1 ESD or county superintendent; 4 elementary school teachers
and 4 secondary school teachers.
Commission
Duties: The Commission has three primary
responsibilities or duties:
1. Establish rules for licensure and charter school
registration and issue licenses or registrations to public school teachers,
administrators, school counselors, school psychologists and school nurses.
2. Maintain professional standards of competent and
ethical performance and proper assignment of licensed and registered educators.
3. Adopt standards for approval of college and university
teacher education programs which lead to licensure and approve programs which
meet such standards.
II. B. Name
of Executive Director, address and phone number: Victoria Chamberlain, Executive
Director, 465 Commercial St. NE, Salem, Oregon 97301, 503-378-6813.
II. C. Name
of Governor’s Policy Advisor: Marjorie Lowe
II. D. Name
of Affirmative Action Representative:
Keith Menk, 503-378-3757
IIE. Organizational
Chart: (See attached.)
III. A. Agency EEO/AA Policy Statement: It is the policy of the
Teacher Standards and Practices Commission that no person be subjected to
discrimination on the basis of race, national origin, religion, sex, age,
disability, marital status or sexual orientation in any program, service or
activity for which the Commission is responsible. The Commission will comply with the
requirements of state and federal law concerning nondiscrimination and will
strive by its actions to enhance the dignity and worth of all persons.
The affirmative action plan is enforced by the
Commission in the evaluation of the Executive Director: the Executive
Director’s evaluation of managers and key staff. The criteria for performance evaluation does
include evaluation of support for affirmative action, results in achieving
agency goals and promotion of harassment free work environment.
If a complaint is filed, the Deputy Director (Human
Resource Manager, Affirmative Action Representative) is charged with
investigation of complaints. The Deputy
Director is responsible for adherence to acceptable, nondiscriminatory
investigative procedures and practices to ensure fair and objective
investigation of complaints.
The Executive Director has set clear expectations
that all managers and employees are responsible for implementation of the
Affirmative Action Plan. These expectations are communicated to managers and
employees via staff meeting, instructions to selection teams and in performance
evaluations.
The agency publishes the Affirmative Action Plan
through the Commission meeting process and
on the agency website. This distributes the report
and plan to all stakeholders, employees, and the general public. All employees
have access to email and the Affirmative Action report. The Executive Director
establishes the Affirmative Action plan as an agenda item to be reviewed and
discussed in an open public meeting.
Managers and supervisors are held accountable for
any claims of discrimination and harassment through the performance evaluation
process. The Executive Director is held
accountable by the Commission who annually requests survey input from employees
on the performance of the Executive Director.
III.
B. Training, Education and
Development Plan and Schedule
i. Staff:
TSPC routinely provides
training to staff and Commission members.
The TSPC safety and wellness committee plans quarterly training
available to all employees. Recent
trainings sponsored by the safety committee have included first aid and CPR and
wellness. In addition, the agency has supported cross-training between
employees at all levels, giving the agency the ability to respond to various
demands upon the system. TSPC has supported employees to attend the Willamette
University Diversity Conference and Conversations for Equity in Education
(CFEE) workshops. TSPC has also
supported supervisory training for managers.
Annually, managers are encouraged to participate in the cultural
competency training, conferences or planning meetings, often conducted in
cooperation with stakeholders.
TSPS is an agency of only 25.5 staff
members (3.0 FTE Limited Duration; 1.5 FTE Temporary), so no succession plan
has been developed. In an agency this small, it is important not to establish a
perception of favoritism and preferential treatment. This contributes to the
desire not to establish a formal or informal succession plan. Likewise, with
limited staffing, career ladders are difficult to establish. All employees have the opportunity to apply
for any advancement in the organization. The limited number of positions and
the limitations of the state classification system does not afford many
opportunities. TSPC has a positive track
record of hiring from within, developing staff for promotions, and recruiting and
selecting a diverse workforce.
Different units with the agency have
regular staff meetings, varying from weekly to as needed. The management team meets biweekly. The agency generally conducts an all staff
meeting and retreat annually, focusing on some particular training topic.
The Commission also has an annual
professional development meeting. This
is in addition to the training and orientation provided to new
commissioners.
The Commission does review the agencies
affirmative action report.
ii. Volunteers: The
agency does not utilize volunteers as employees. The Commissioners, by appointment, are
considered volunteers. As described
above, the Commission is an important partner in the implementation,
accountability and evaluation of the Affirmative Action Plan. The plan is discussed annually with the
Commission and the Executive Director briefs the Executive Board of the
Commission quarterly or on an as needed bases on employee issues.
iii.
Providers/ Vendors (does not apply)
III.
C. Programs: TSPC
has no internship programs. The agency does not have a Community Outreach
program either. TSPC does not have a specific diversity initiative program,
with the exception of program and licensure activities. TSPC has been reviewing administrative rules
establishing standards for cultural competency for educators and program
requirements. The focus has been on
creating a culturally competent workforce to ensure equity in the educational
setting.
The Affirmative Action Plan is provided to
all stakeholders, including higher education institutions, professional
associations and the general public and license holders via the agency’s
website and the annual report to the Commission. The Commission works extensively with
stakeholders on issues of diversity, affirmative action and cultural competency
in the course of approving programs, establishing standards for educator
licensure and in professional standards.
Vendors have access to the Affirmative
Action plan through the agency’s website.
TSPC has a limited number of vendors providing services or supplies to
the agency.
III.
D.
Status of Cultural Competency
Assessment/Implementation: TSPC has not participated in the Statewide
Cultural Competency Assessment and Implementation Services. The agency has no plans at this point to
participate in the assessment.
III.E Status of Contracts to Minority Businesses
(ORS 659A.015): TSPC has not participated in the Statewide Cultural
Assessment and Implementation Service. The agency has no plans at this point to
participate in the assessment.
IV.
Roles for Implementing
Affirmative Action Plan: Agency’s Organization Structure and Responsibilities
for Implementation:
Commissioners: The Commission will assist the Governor in identifying qualified
educators and public members who represent the geographic and ethnic diversity
of the state and to meet the criteria for appointment established by statute.
Currently,
of the seventeen (17) appointed Commissioners, the diversity is: 29% under-represented persons (5); 71% Anglo-European
(12); 59% male (10); and 41% female (7). This compares to 2009-2010 as follows: 29% under-represented persons (3); 65%
Anglo-European (11); 59% male (10); and 41% female (7).
Executive Director:
The Executive Director is responsible
for implementation of the Equal Employment Opportunity policies and the
oversight of adherence to Affirmative Action principles. The Executive Director also oversees the
implementation of agency policies which reflect best practices with regard to
hiring and workplace cultural inclusion. The Executive Director is a
Agency Staff:
The Commission employs a staff of 25
Demographically,
the staff is 7.7% African American; 4% Pacific Islander; 8% PWD; 4% Native
American; 11.5% Latino and 84% white. The
agency has five management service staff members who are 33% male and 20% being
Latina (the female Executive Director). Two
persons on staff have an identified disability. Because of the agency’s small
size, opportunities arise with each vacancy to make a difference. The agency will continue to work toward a
more diverse workforce by more active recruitment in the event of staff vacancies.
Managers and Supervisors are held responsible for the implementation of the
Affirmative Action Plan and compliance with policies and procedures. The Deputy Director is held responsible for
the recruitment and selection process. As
the Affirmative Action representative, he is responsible for conducting the
selection process for new hires. Just in
time training is provided to supervisors and staff members involved in the
hiring process. This training includes
discussion of agency goals related to creating a diverse workforce. All
managers and a significant number of employees have been involved in recent
selection processes and have actively participated in the maintenance of the
plan. The Executive Director holds all
managers and supervisors accountable through the performance evaluation process
on achievement of the goals of the Affirmative Action plan.
Affirmative Action Representative: The Deputy Director (Human Resource Manager,
Affirmative Action Representative) play a key role in the development,
implementation and maintenance of the plan.
He is involved in all selection processes, including developing
selection criteria, training of staff and managers in recruitment and selection
of staff, conducting reference checks, investigation of any complaints, and recruitment
outreach. The Deputy Director is also
responsible for overseeing and assisting the Executive Director in the
effective retention practices using the affirmative action policies. As stated previously, the Deputy Director is
responsible for conducting affirmative action training and information sessions
for management and staff. He is also
responsible for investigating, addressing and resolving complaints. Since the agency is small, the Executive
Director, Deputy Director and the Leadership team all accept responsibility for
creating a welcoming environment for all employees. The management team, along with the
Affirmative Action Representative, coordinates an annual staff retreat where
goals are decisions for creating a positive work environment for all
employees. The Deputy Director
(Affirmative Action Representative) is considered top management because of the
size of the agency. He is held accountable
for affirmative action results by the Executive Director in on-going discussions
and during the annual performance evaluation.
TSPC
has two Spanish-bilingual individuals as a way to better serve the public. These individuals have been an enormous help
recently with new educators seeking information from the Commission. The Deputy Director is an expert in cultural
competency and civil rights training. We
believe that we also must develop the cultural competency skills of the
existing staff. Training in this area is
an agency commitment over the next biennium.
Workplace:
The agency is committed to maintaining a
workplace that is harassment free and culturally inclusive.
V. Accomplishments
for the 2009-2011 Biennium
The
agency’s Employee Handbook which addresses affirmative action and equal
employment opportunity issues was updated. The agency encourages employees to attend
professional development related to cultural inclusion. At least three
employees participated in workshops or other training opportunities. One
commission staff member is a faculty member in the Oregon CFEE (Center for Equitable
and Effective Leadership) which delivers a week long seminar to educators
(administrators, teachers and higher education faculty) on issues of white
privilege and cultural competency. [See:
http://www.lclark.edu/graduate/community_engagement/school_transformation/equitable_and_effective_leadership/]
Beginning
September 1, 2009, the commission requires a “Protecting Student and Civil Rights in the Educational Environment”
test for all new licensees. This test
covers: state and federal civil rights; equity in the educational environment;
and professional standards of conducts (ethics). It is the first of its kind in
the nation.
Additionally,
we continue to be active in working with local Oregon Indian Tribes on issues
related to education, licensure and language saving measures through
participate in the Government-to-Government meetings.
TSPC
also works closely with the Oregon Association of Latino Administrators (OALA)
and the Oregon Leadership Network (OLN).
The agency executive director is active with the OLN’s equity leadership
development activities and we are working actively with ODE to create
culturally inclusive evaluation tools for school district and school building
administrative leadership.
TSPC
continues to work closely with higher education to increase the culturally
inclusive standards for both educators and teachers being prepared for
education licensure in Oregon (teachers, administrators, school counselors and
school psychologists).
The
agency has the only adopted “Alternative Assessment” system in the nation. We have developed a process of review that
allows candidates who have failed the licensure examination to demonstrate
subject-matter competency through demonstrated high quality of academic
coursework in the area. Candidates must
submit a “B” average or better in the content area in which they are seeking
licensure. This allows second-language
candidates who suffer from adverse impacts on licensure testing to seek an
alternative method of becoming licensed in a valid and credible manner.
Progress: The agency has made progress in the hiring of
a diverse workforce. During the past
year the agency reemployed two individuals of color and promoted a person into a
leadership role in the agency. The
agency does not have a written retention strategy, but attempt to retain all
employees because of the cost of training and commitment to quality customer
service. The management team continually discusses the
most important aspect of retention of employees is creating a positive work
environment, through good training programs, transparency on management
decisions, focus on quality customer service and a supportive structure. This approach is becoming one of the
strengths of the agency. Another
strength is the commitment to quality equitable education for all students and
what that means for the agency.
VI. Program
Analysis: Goals and Action Plan for the
2011-2013 Biennium
Goals for the 2011-2013 biennium:
1.
Complete the work
on developing and implementing cultural competency and cultural inclusion
standards for all educators;
2.
Review programs
for implementation of cultural competency standards into all education
preparation areas: teaching;
administration; school counseling and school psychology;
3.
Continue to
recruit diverse staff into agency vacancies, including promotion of diverse
staff;
4.
Examine whether
the ethics standards adequately address issues arising out of racism,
harassment and discrimination;
5.
Continue work
with higher education to implement cultural competency standards into educator
preparation programs; and
6.
Continue work on
agency staff cultural awareness.
7.
Continue the
evaluation of management on the achievement of affirmative action goals
established by the agency.
Action Plan:
1.
The agency is
meeting regularly with higher education and redrafting administrative rules to
accommodate the new preparation standards;
2.
The agency is
vigorously pursuing equal opportunities for vacancy candidates;
3.
The agency is
reviewing its content standards tests that appear to have a visible adverse
impact on under-represented education candidates and contracting with a testing
company that creates test with a significantly lower adverse impact;
4.
Continue the
promotion of cultural competency development of staff through professional
development;
5.
Continue to
involve staff in the achievement of goals by inclusion in the selection process
for vacancies;
6.
Continue to
involve staff in the development of staff activities in the creating a
“positive work environment” through team work and trainings.
Discussion
of Current vs. Baseline Analysis for Parity
The G52E306U.CSV
report indicates that TSPC is under-represented in the administrative support
area by 1.3% with POC, and 1.4% with women in the investigative and compliance
category. While TSPC has diverse representation in the administrative support
and investigative employment categories, it is recognized emphasis will be
placed on unrepresented areas as vacancies arise. In all other areas we meet
the required goals.
A. Agency’s
Policy Documentation
1.
Agency Reasonable Accommodation Policy and Complaint
Procedure Statement
Policy: The TSPC identified the following
goals to develop and maintain a representative workforce:
1. Include appropriate representation of
females, under-represented populations, and persons with disabilities in all
job classifications. Make modifications
and accommodations that enable employees with disabilities to receive equal
benefits and privileges afforded other employees.
2. Provide equal employment opportunity for
all applicants.
3. Represent the ethnic and geographic
diversity of the state as well as the educational positions and publics which
have an interest in the Commission’s actions.
Procedure:
Step
1: Any person who requires a reasonable
accommodation and believes they have been unfairly denied such accommodation
may submit a complaint to the supervisor of the person making the decision to
deny or to the Executive Director. This
complaint must be submitted in writing and contain the name and address of the
person filing the complaint and briefly describe the event.
Step
2: The supervisor along with the Deputy Director will review the
complaint, request for accommodation, reason for denial and will make a
decision to uphold or overturn the decision. The supervisor will make a decision within five
working days of receiving the complaint.
Step
3:
If the person filing the complaint is not satisfied with the decision of
the supervisor, the person filing the complaint may submit their complaint to
the Executive Director who will make a decision to uphold or overturn the
decision. The Executive Director may
elect to delegate this responsibility to the Deputy Director. The Executive Director or designee will make a
decision within five working days of receiving the complaint.
Step
4:
If the person filing the complaint is not satisfied with the decision of
the Executive Director, the person may submit his or her complaint to the
Bureau of Labor and Industries or the US Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission. Contact information will be
provided by the Executive Director.
Retaliation-Absolutely no retaliation or adverse action in any
form shall be taken against a client or applicant for employment because he/she
has filed a complaint alleging unfair denial of reasonable accommodation. It is unacceptable and unlawful conduct for an
agency employee to retaliate against a complainant in any manner because he/she
had filed a complaint, testified, assisted, or participated in any manner in an
investigation, proceeding or hearing conducted in accordance with these
procedures.
2.
Agency Harassment Policy and Complaint Procedure
Policy:
Harassment or discrimination
of any employee, visitor, vendor, or customer of TSPC, will not be tolerated.
Workplace harassment is a form of offensive treatment or behavior, which
to a reasonable person creates an intimidating, hostile or abusive work
environment. It may be sexual, racial,
religious or based on a person's age, disability, national origin or status as
a member of any protected class.
You
should immediately notify your supervisor if you believe you have been
harassed. If you are uncomfortable
speaking to your supervisor about the harassment you may notify any manager
with whom you feel comfortable speaking.
¨
Sexual harassment
includes any sexual advances, request for sexual favors, and other unwelcome
verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature.
¨
Sexual
harassment, and any other type of harassment includes:
(A)
Submission to such conduct is made either explicitly, or implicitly a term or
condition of an individual’s employment; or
(B)
Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the
basis for employment decisions affecting working environment.
¨
Such conduct has
the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work
performance, or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working
environment
TSPC
will not tolerate retaliation of any kind against employees, based upon their
allegations regarding discrimination or harassment. If employees or supervisors engage in
harassment or discrimination, they may be subject to immediate discipline,
including possible termination.
Sexual
harassment complaints should be made with accuracy and veracity.
Procedure:
For
discrimination: Anyone who is subject to, or aware of, what he
or she believes to be employment-related discrimination may file a complaint
with his or her immediate supervisor, another manager, or with the Executive
Director. The complaint should be
written unless the complainant, due to disability, is unable to file a written
complaint. The complaint should be filed
with the agency within 30 calendar days of the alleged act. Complaints should include the name of the
complainant, the name of the persons alleged to have engaged in the prohibited
conduct, a specific and detailed description of the conduct that the employee
believes is discriminatory, and a description of the remedy the employee
desires.
For
harassment: Anyone who is subject to or is aware of
harassing behavior should report that information immediately to agency
management. If at all possible, the
report should be made before the behavior becomes severe. The report may be made orally or in writing to
the employee's immediate supervisor or to any other management staff member. If the employee prefers, the report may be given
to a manager outside that complainant's work unit or to the Executive Director.
All supervisors and managers will report
complaints and incidents immediately to the Executive Director.
Investigation: The
recipient of a discrimination or harassment complaint shall promptly forward it
to the Executive Director, who will coordinate, or delegate responsibility for
coordinating, the department's investigation in consultation with the affected
employees' supervisor, excluding any supervisor who is potentially part of the
problem. The complaint will be given
prompt and thorough attention with an impartial investigation. If the complaint is substantiated, immediate
and appropriate corrective action will be taken. The affected parties shall be informed that
the investigation has concluded and that immediate appropriate corrective
action will be taken. All personnel can
be assured that complaints will be taken seriously and will be investigated as
necessary. They will be dealt with in a
discrete and confidential manner to the extent possible.
Nothing in this process precludes any
person from filing a formal grievance in accordance with the Bureau of Labor
and Industries (BOLI) or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).[1]
Timelines for filing complaints with BOLI and the EEOC are different from those
established in this policy. Contact them
directly for specific guidance on filing a formal grievance with them.
3.
Employee and Training Policy
TSPC does not have an established training
policy, but does budget for staff development during each budget cycle. TSPC
does promote staff training and development and provides support to employee by
flexing time, reimbursement for coursework directly related to their current
assignment, and sponsorship at conference and trainings events.
4.
Veterans Preference in Employment
TSPC supports employment of veterans. TSPC
is a small agency and currently has no employees in active or reserved military
status.
5.
Other documentation in support of its affirmative
action plan
TSPC has no other documentation to provide
in support of its affirmative action plan.
[1] TSPC employees are unrepresented and therefore do not have a subject collective bargaining agreement.