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Joseph Frey, Deputy Commissioner for Higher Education

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No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB)

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NCLB NYS
Field Memo
#09-2003 

Cover Letter

Table of Contents

Introduction

Part A: Teachers Subject to the NCLB 

Part B: Deadlines for Being a “Highly Qualified” Teacher 

Part C: Definitions of “Highly Qualified” Teachers 

Part D: Applying the “Highly Qualified” Definitions to Specific Circumstances 

Part E: Parents' Right to Know 

Part F: Professional Development for Teachers 

Part G : Accountability, Reporting and Records 

Appendix A 

Appendix B 

Appendix C 

Appendix D 

Appendix E 

Appendix F 

For More Information: nclbnys@mail.nysed.gov

 

Print Field Memo #09-2003 as  or PDF or WORD 

Part B: Deadlines for Being a “Highly Qualified” Teacher

B1. When must public school teachers of core academic subjects be “highly qualified” for all the core academic subjects they teach?

There are two deadlines for public school teachers of core academic subjects. The deadline that applies to an individual teacher depends on when the teacher was hired and the teacher's employer. 
  • Teachers of core academic subjects must be “highly qualified” when hired if they are:
     
    1. hired after the first day of class in school year 2002-2003; and
       
    2. supported by Title I, Part A funds. 

  • All other public school teachers of core academic subjects must be “highly qualified” by the end of school year 2005-2006, regardless of whether they are supported by Title I, Part A funds. This applies to all public schools, whether or not the school receives Title I, Part A funds. [34 CFR 200.55]
B2. What is the definition of “supported by Title I, Part A funds?”

A teacher “supported by Title I, Part A funds” is employed by a local educational agency (LEA) receiving Title I, Part A funds and : 
  • works in a “targeted assistance school” and is paid with Title I, Part A funds; or 
  • works in a “schoolwide program school;” or 
  • provides services to eligible private school students . [34 CFR 200.55(a)(2)]

“Targeted assistance schools” and “schoolwide programs” are defined in sections 1114 and 1115 of the NCLB. 

Teachers of core academic subjects who are employees of LEAs that do not receive Title I, Part A funds; BOCES; the State schools at Batavia and Rome; or Special Act School Districts are not employed by an LEA receiving Title I, Part A funds and, thus, do not need to be “highly qualified” until the end of school year 2005-2006. 

Teachers employed by a private school, even if the private school is authorized by section 4201 of the Education Law or approved by the Commissioner of Education to provide services to children with disabilities, are not subject to the NCLB's requirements for teachers. [34 CFR 200.57(d)] 
B3. How do the NCLB's deadlines apply to teachers on a Preferred Eligibility List (PEL)?

Sections 2510(3) and 3013(13) of the Education Law entitle a teacher whose employment has been ended by a school district to be on a Preferred Eligibility List (PEL) and to be reemployed in a similar position for which the teacher is qualified during a seven-year period. Section 2588(7) of the Education Law provides a similar reemployment right to New York City teachers whose positions are abolished. Technical assistance that SED received from the USDOE indicates that the State may define terms that federal laws, regulations or guidance have not defined. Therefore, SED interprets “newly hired” as intended to encompass new employment, but not reemployment that is required under State law, such as reemployment from a PEL. This means that a teacher of a core academic subject: 
  •  who is reemployed from a PEL prior to the end of school year 2005-2006 and was originally hired after the first day of class in school year 2002-2003 must be “highly qualified” when reemployed; and 

  • who is reemployed from a PEL prior to the end of school year 2005-2006 and was originally hired on or before the first day of class in school year 2002-2003 must be “highly qualified” on or before the end of school year 2005-2006; and 

  • who is reemployed from a PEL after the end of school year 2005-2006 must be “highly qualified” when reemployed because all teachers of core academic subjects must be “highly qualified” after the end of school year 2005-2006. 

Teachers reemployed from a PEL who are beyond the first year of their first ever certification may use the “high objective uniform State standard of evaluation” (HOUSSE) or any of the other methods required by the NCLB to satisfy the subject matter competency requirement in the NCLB definition of “highly qualified.” The HOUSSE is described in NCLB NYS Field Memo #05-2003, available at http://www.highered.nysed.gov/nclbhome.htm. 

In fairness to teachers on Preferred Eligibility Lists, SED suggests that, to the extent feasible, LEAs notify teachers on Preferred Eligibility Lists about the NCLB's requirements for the teachers to be “highly qualified.” 

 

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