538

EVALUATION OF PROFESSIONAL STAFF

This policy applies to the evaluation of licensed, professional staff employed by the Appleton Area School District (the District), including all educators, who are required under state law to be under a written contract with the School Board, with the exception of substitute employees and individuals who are employed as administrators.

The Board delegates to the Superintendent or designee(s) the responsibility of defining and implementing a systematic program of evaluation for the licensed, professional educators covered by this policy, including the specific criteria and procedures that will be used to conduct performance evaluations. The evaluation program shall be consistent with applicable law and with this policy, including the following general parameters:

1. Consistent with the Board’s Operational Expectations, all educators should strive for continuous improvement and participate in regular opportunities for professional growth; the overall evaluation process shall include both formative and summative components:
   • The formative component of the process requires each educator to submit to their administrative supervisor an annual student learning and professional growth goal. The selected professional development activities shall be related to the goals and include steps the educator will take to improve student achievement.
   • The summative component shall include method(s) and timeline by which the educator and evaluator will assess the progress that has been made to help improve student achievement.
2. The evaluation process shall be designed to identify individual strengths and areas of growth; guide individualized professional development; recognize distinguished performance and leadership; document contributions to organizational results, policies, and annual goals; and provide feedback to improve educator practice.
3. The evaluation system shall include a process for providing educators in need of support with a systematic individual support plan, which will be monitored by an administrator, in situations where the administration determines that (a) a performance deficiency is amenable to potential resolution through such a plan; (b) doing so is in the best interests of the District; and (c) doing so will not unacceptably compromise student learning. The individual support plan will provide the educator with measurable objectives on which to improve and a support team. Educators placed on an individual support plan have not maintained their Educator Effectiveness Status; they may be placed on an individual support plan as part of or outside of the educator’s summative evaluation. This paragraph shall not be interpreted as a commitment to provide every educator with an individual support plan prior to taking any type of employment action that is within the District’s discretion as an employer.
4. The core evaluation criteria and the basic evaluation procedures to be used for similarly situated educators should themselves be substantially similar. However, an administrator may depart from this general premise where there is a legitimate reason for individualizing particular components of the evaluation process.

Minimum Frequency of Formal, Written Evaluations

1. A new educator with no previous educator teaching experience shall be formally evaluated using the District’s evaluation process in each of their first three years of employment.
2. Educators who come with at least three years of previous teaching experience in their licensed area will be formally evaluated in their first year of employment in the District, and in years two and three as needed to be determined by the primary evaluator.
3. A continuing educator with at least three years of experience in the District shall be formally evaluated at least every third school year.
4. Educators moving to a new role in the district will be formally evaluated in their first year in the new role using the District’s evaluation process.

Nothing in this policy shall be interpreted as a limitation on the number, scope, or type of formal or informal evaluations that may be scheduled and conducted by the administration. The District may place different educators holding similar positions on different evaluation schedules and use different evaluation procedures or methods based upon, for example, the District’s identification of a need for an educator to improve performance in one or more areas.

Additional Responsibilities of the Superintendent

The Superintendent is further responsible for ensuring that:

1. A summary of the District’s employee evaluation program is prepared and made available to the District employees to whom it is relevant.
2. New educators whose positions are covered by this policy are provided with an orientation to the District’s evaluation program and to their responsibilities related to the program, and any required training.
3. The employee evaluation program and its implementation across the District are intermittently assessed to identify areas for possible improvement.
4. The Board is informed of any substantial modifications to the professional staff evaluation process.

Cross References:
Professional Staff Development, 537

Legal References:
Wisconsin State Statutes 115.415, 118.21, 118.22, 120.12(2m), 121.02(1)(a), Section 121.02(1)(b),121.02(1)(q)
Wisconsin Administrative Code PI 8.01(2)(a),8.01(2)(b), 8.01(2)(q), 34, 34.064, 47

Adoption Date: October 13, 2025