Any policy or regulation revisions and/or updates required as a result of the new tenure law (TEACHNJ) and the proposed new evaluation administrative code (AchieveNJ) will be provided to districts upon final adoption of the AchieveNJ administrative code.
 

Strauss Esmay Associates is proud to announce their 28th Annual Seminar on Friday, June 14, 2013. Workshop and registration information can be located on our website under the EVENTS tab. The original registration form which was mailed to district offices had a “typo” stating the seminar was to be held on June 24, 2013. Our apologies for any confusion.
 

Strauss Esmay Associates received clarification from the NJDOE regarding its May 14, 2012 memo and IEEs. A parent is entitled to an IEE only if there is a disagreement with the initial evaluation or reevaluation conducted by the school district. In addition, the Federal law permits a school district to establish a maximum rate for an IEE provided the rate is established using specific and reasonable criteria. Therefore, Policy Guide 2468 included in Policy Alert 198 is consistent with the May 14, 2012 Memo from the NJDOE, N.J.A.C. 6A:14-2.5, and 34 CFR Section 300.502. The NJDOE is proposing an update to the entire chapter, N.J.A.C. 6A:14, and the proposed new section N.J.A.C 6A:14-2.5 includes some timelines that will be incorporated into Policy Guide 2468 when adopted, which is expected to be before June 30, 2013. A district may want to defer adoption of this Policy until the NJDOE adopts the updated code or adopt this Policy with an expectation to make revisions after NJDOE adoption. Strauss Esmay will update Policy Guide 2468 soon after NJDOE adoption of the new code.
 

New Jersey’s new tenure law was signed by the Governor on August 6, 2012 and most provisions of the law became effective on August 6, 2012. The new law is very complicated and impacts issues such as evaluation rating categories, filing of tenure charges, tenure hearings, and tenure accrual times. Some provisions of the new law affect all employees while other sections of the new law affect employees hired after August 6, 2012. The new law requires the State Board of Education to promulgate administrative code and will require several new and revised Policy and Regulation Guides, which will be prepared after the new administrative code is adopted.

The NJDOE has informed school districts that School Improvement Panels must be convened by February 1, 2013. The NJDOE FAQ regarding this new law, including the requirements of the School Improvement Panels, may be downloaded at http://www.state.nj.us/education/genfo/faq/faq_eval.htm.
 

P.L. 212, Chapter 51 - Janet's Law was recently approved requiring public and nonpublic schools to have automated external defibrillators and to establish emergency action plans for responding to sudden cardiac events. The law takes effect September 1, 2014. Strauss Esmay Associates is in the process of updating Policy Guide 5300 – Automated External Defibrillators to be consistent with the new law. This revised Guide will be included in Policy Alert 199 scheduled to be released in May 2013.
 

School districts have been working on their School Safety and Security Plans and the School Safety and Security Plan Review Checklist. The Plan requires certain policies and procedures that are consistent with the provisions established by the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness and the New Jersey Department of Education. Strauss Esmay Policy and Regulation Guides 8420 and Regulations Guides 8420.1 through 8420.10 satisfy many of the requirements. However, there are some additional Policy and Regulation Guides that may be helpful. This list may be downloaded from the “Other Download” section under the Policy Alerts tab on this website. A district should contact our offices if a district needs Strauss Esmay Associates to write any additional Policy and/or Regulation Guides for its School Safety and Security Plan.
 

Recent tragic events will cause school districts to evaluate their school district’s safety and security plans, including Policies and Regulations/Procedures. Policy Guide 8420 outlines a school district’s responsibilities in this area that are consistent with N.J.A.C. 6A:16-5.1. Regulation Guides 8420.1 through 8420.7 and 8420.10 provide several specific school safety and security regulations. There are additional school safety and security Policy and Regulation Guides that may be helpful to a school district. This list may be downloaded from the “Other Download” section under the Policy Alerts tab on this website.

The most recent updates were provided in Policy Alert 191 – December 2010. As required in N.J.A.C. 6A:16-5.1(b)1, these Guides were updated using information and practices recommended in the training CD, Critical Incident Response: Procedures for School Administrators, Faculty, and Staff, developed by the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness and the New Jersey Department of Education. As recommended when these Guides were updated in 2010, a school district should review their school safety and security plans, including school safety and security Policy and Regulation Guides, with local law enforcement officials. The information outlined below, School Safety and Security Plan, has been posted on the Strauss Esmay website for the past several months, may also be helpful. The Memorandum of Agreement between Education and Law Enforcement Officials (Section 8.2.1) indicates procedures for critical incidents shall remain confidential and shall not be shared with the public. Based on this requirement, a district should remove these detailed documents from any manuals available to the public.
 

The Commissioner of Education decided M.W. v. Board of Education of the Borough of Haddonfield on September 24, 2012 extending the Ramapo Appellate Division case outlined below. The district’s 24/7 Pupil Code of Conduct Policy that imposed a consequence to extra-curricular students for conduct that involved drugs and/or alcohol away from school grounds was deemed invalid as the Policy failed to ensure the required nexus between the pupil’s conduct and the orderly operation of the school (as required in N.J.A.C. 6A:16-7.6(a)2.) was present before imposing a consequence. The Appellate Division of Superior Court recently upheld a Commissioner of Education decision in G.D.M. and T.A.M. on behalf of, minor child, B.M.M. v. Board of Education of the Ramapo Indian Hills Regional High School District, Bergen County, that held the school district’s regulation that conditions a pupil’s participation in extra-curricular activities on compliance with a code of conduct policy without consideration to a nexus between the alleged violation of law and school order and safety conduct was unlawful. All Strauss Esmay’s Policy and Regulation Guides are consistent with this Commissioner’s decision and the language in the applicable code, N.J.A.C. 6A:16-7.6. However, a school district may have developed and adopted its own code of conduct policy/regulation similar to the code of conduct policy determined to be unlawful in these decisions. A district that developed a code of conduct policy that imposes a consequence to a pupil for conduct away from school grounds should review their policy to ensure the language in N.J.A.C. 6A:16-7.6 is included and followed in the policy or regulation.
 

Policy Guide 1631 – Residency Requirements for Person Holding School District Office, Employment, or Position was included in Policy Alert 196. This new Guide was based on the New Jersey First Act (P.L. 2011, c. 70) and guidance published by the NJ Department of Community Affairs (DCA). It appears note 1. on page 1 of the Local Finance Notice - LFN 2011-30 is inconsistent with other notes in the LFN, the FAQ that was attached to the LFN, and the language in the law. The express language of the law, several comments in the LFN, and two answers in the FAQ indicate if a person holds office, employment, or position on the effective date of the law (September 1, 2011), but does not live in state, he is not required to move into New Jersey and is not subject to the residency requirements of the law. However, note 1. on page 1 of the LFN states employees hired on or after September 1, 2011 shall be subject to the residency requirements of the law. This provision of Policy Guide 1631 was based on the specific language of the law (N.J.S.A. 52:14-7.a. (4)) and indicates a person who holds office, employment, or a position in the district on September 1, 2011, but does not have his principal residence in New Jersey on September 1, 2011, shall not be subject to the residency requirements of the law. Strauss Esmay requested and received clarification from the DCA. The DCA has informed our office that upon preliminary review the language in the law would prevail, which means the Policy Guide language in the Policy Guide based on the language in the law is correct. We requested this clarification be published or provided in writing by the DCA upon their final review to avoid any additional confusion. Strauss Esmay is suggesting districts delay adopting this Policy until such clarification is provided. We will keep districts updated on this matter as information becomes available.
 

The Statement of Assurance, District Performance Review, and a Memorandum explaining these documents are available for download under the QSAC Support tab.
 

Strauss Esmay has installed several new password security measures. The only new measure that will affect the authorized user requires a user to “LOGOFF” to end a session on ELANOnline or DISTRICTOnline by clicking the “LOGOFF” button located at the top right hand corner of the screen. Failure to logoff a session in this manner will not permit the authorized user to sign into a subsequent session of ELANOnline or DISTRICTOnline until twenty minutes have expired. Therefore, all authorized users should logoff after signing-in to ELANOnline or DISTRICTOnline using the “LOGOFF” button at the upper right hand corner of the screen to avoid a twenty minute delay to log-in to a second session. Thank you for your cooperation in this new procedure.
 

All PASS school districts should be sure to register one person to Strauss Esmay’s new E-LERT system. This new system will provide important school policy and regulation information via e-mail to one person designated by the school district. If your district has not registered an E-LERT contact person, the E-LERT Registration Form may be downloaded from the Events tab and returned by fax to 732-255-1502.
 

Strauss Esmay Associates formally announces and offers professional development services for school districts looking to provide professional development and in-service programs to Board members, administrators, teachers, and support staff. Strauss Esmay offers in-service programs in school policy areas such as:

• School Ethics Act
• Inappropriate Staff Conduct
• Sexual Harassment
• Pupil Residency
• Family Leave
• School Law Review for Administrative Staff
• School Law and the Teacher
• Harassment, Intimidation, and Bullying

Click the Professional Development tab above to access more details on Strauss Esmay's Professional Development Services.