Policies contained herein set forth provisions for initial and continuous employment of all personnel of the Smyth County school division. In addition to policies established by the Smyth County School Board, the school division shall comply with all applicable State and Federal laws and regulations.
These policies shall be administered by the superintendent, who shall be responsible for the appropriate recruitment, staffing, and employee relations of personnel of the Smyth County School Division and shall maintain a personnel file system for all employees of the school division.
Application for employment with the Smyth County School Board shall be in writing and on forms provided by the office of the superintendent. A personal interview is required as a prerequisite to an offer of employment.
It shall be the responsibility of the applicant to furnish accurate information, and any falsification of either information or credentials shall be cause for dismissal or refusal to employ.
It is the desire of the Smyth County School Board to recruit and retain the best possible qualified applicants. Qualified applicants within the division will be given an opportunity to apply for vacancies for which they are qualified. Vacancies within the division will be advertised and notifications provided to each school and appropriate supervisors.
Procedures shall be developed for filling vacancies or new positions to insure that all openings have been properly advertised to give all interested parties the opportunity to be considered and to expedite the selection process.
All applicants, as a condition of employment in full-time or part-time positions, must:
Unless otherwise determined by the school board, all costs of such requirements for employment will be born by the applicant.
It shall not be lawful for the school board of Smyth County to employ or pay any teacher or other school board employee from the public funds, federal, state, or local, if such teacher or other employee is the father, mother, brother, sister, spouse, son, daughter, son-in-law or daughter-in-law or brother-in-law of the superintendent, or of any member of the school board.
This provision shall apply to any such person employed by any school board in operation of the public free school system, adult education programs, or any other program maintained and operated by the Smyth County School Board.
This provision shall not apply to any person within such relationship or relationships who has been regularly employed by any school board prior to the taking of office of any member of such board or division superintendent of schools; or who has been regularly employed by any school board prior to the inception of such relationship or relationships. If any member of the school board knowingly violates these provisions, the individual member or members thereof shall be personally liable to refund to the local treasury any amounts paid in violation of this law, and such funds shall be recovered from such member or members by action or suit in the name of the Commonwealth on the petition of the attorney for the Commonwealth. Such funds, when recovered shall be paid into the local treasury for the use of public schools.
No family member of any employee may be employed by the school board if the family member is to be employed in a direct supervisory and/or administrative relationship either supervisory or subordinate to the employee. The employment and assignment of family members in the same organizational unit will be discouraged.
Present and past employees shall have access to their personnel files and records, exclusive of those items made confidential by law, which are maintained by the Smyth County school division. No separate file shall be maintained regarding an employee which is not available for that employee's inspection.
Information determined to be unfounded after a reasonable administrative review shall not be maintained in any employee personnel file, but may be retained in a separate sealed file by the administration if such information alleges civil or criminal offenses.
If information relative to employment is requested by banks or other establishments, written permission from the employee to release such information is required.
The following classifications apply to full-time employment positions with the Smyth County School Board:
Substitute teachers, homebound teachers, summer school teachers, or other professional or support staff employees, excluding bus drivers and food service employees, working 35 (thirty-five) hours or less per week will be classified as part-time or temporary employees. Bus drivers working on a 90% contract will be classified as part-time or temporary employees. Food service employees working less than 30 (thirty) hours per week will be classified as part-time or temporary employees. Such employees shall be entitled to those benefits required by law, but none of the other personal benefits or leave programs applicable to full-time employees will be available.
Licensed professional personnel not previously tenured in Virginia shall serve a probationary period of three years in Smyth County prior to being granted tenure as a regular employee. Classified professional personnel shall serve a probationary period of one year in the same position prior to being granted status as a regular employee. Support staff shall serve a probationary period of six months in the same position prior to being granted status as a regular employee.
Additional policy information on tenure/continuing contracts is found in 5.12 and 5.13 of this chapter.
Full-time employees classified as professional personnel shall be issued written employment contracts. Support personnel, other than bus drivers, shall be employed on a non-contract basis.
The Smyth County School Board will abide by those regulations for the employment of professional personnel issued by the Virginia Department of Education.
The superintendent shall assign licensed professional personnel to respective positions within the school division and may reassign such professional personnel to any school within the county, provided that such reassignment shall not affect the salary of such personnel.
Continuing contract status shall not be construed as prohibiting the superintendent from reassigning licensed professional personnel to any school within the school district, nor to reassigning administrative or supervisory personnel to teaching positions providing notice of reassignment is given by the school board no later than April 15 of a given year.
The Smyth County School Board is authorized, upon recommendation of the Superintendent, to issue a valid Three-Year Non-renewable Eligibility License to classroom teacher candidates in accordance with the following criteria:
Written contracts shall be made by the school board with each teacher, administrator, or supervisor employed by it, except those temporarily employed as substitute teachers, before such employee assumes his or her duties. Contracts will be in the form prescribed by the State Board of Education, with special covenants added by the local school board as appropriate. Contracts shall be signed in duplicate, with a copy thereof furnished to both parties.
The following definitions shall apply in this policy:
Only persons regularly employed full time by a school board as licensed personnel shall be eligible for continuing contract status.
A probationary term of service of three years in the same school division is required prior to the issuance of a continuing contract. Once a continuing contract status has been attained in a school division elsewhere in Virginia, a one year probationary period shall be served in the Smyth County school division prior to the issuance of a continuing contract. A licensed professional holding probationary contract status in another school division in the state shall be required to serve a three-year probationary term in the Smyth County school division prior to the issuance of a continuing contract.
A person employed as an administrator or supervisor, including a person who has previously achieved continuing contract status as a teacher, shall serve three years in such position in the Smyth County school division before acquiring continuing contract status as an administrator or supervisor. Continuing contract status acquired by an administrator or supervisor shall not be construed as prohibiting the school board from reassigning the administrative or supervisory personnel to a teaching position if notice of reassignment is given by the school board by April 15 of any year. If an administrator or supervisor is reassigned to a teaching position, such reassignment shall be to continuing contract status.
In calculating probationary terms of service for teachers, administrators, and supervisors, employment for 180 or more teaching days during one school year shall constitute a single year of service. If a teacher, administrator, or supervisor separates from service during his or her probationary period and does not return to service in the same school division by the beginning of the year following the year of separation, such person shall be required to begin a new probationary period.
If a teacher who has attained continuing contract status separates from service and does not return to teaching in Virginia public schools for a period longer than two years, such person shall be required to begin a new three-year probationary period. Teaching service outside of the Virginia Public School System shall not be counted as meeting in whole or in part the required probationary term.
Continuing contracts may be executed in behalf of persons holding a valid postgraduate, collegiate professional, or vocational certificate.
The contractual period is that prescribed by the State Board of Education. A 200-day contractual period shall include:
Individual teaching contracts may be extended beyond the standard 200 day contract period as the need for instructional personnel is determined by the school board. Supervisors and administrators shall be contracted for ten (10), eleven (11), or twelve (12) months or for a specified number of work days as determined by the school board.
The coaching/sponsor contract shall be separate and apart from the annual or continuing contract and termination of the contract shall not constitute cause for the termination of the annual or continuing contract.
The coaching/sponsor contract shall require the party intending to terminate the contract to give reasonable notice to the other party prior to the effective date of the termination.
The Smyth County School Board may reprimand, suspend, demote or dismiss an employee for reasonable cause including, but not limited to, the following:
The Smyth County School Board will maintain zero tolerance for inappropriate action taken by school bus drivers, and/or the failure of a school bus driver to take appropriate action, such creating an environment in which students safety is threatened, or a risk to public safety is created.
Additional grounds for dismissal of a school bus driver will include, although not necessarily limited to the following:
All provisions of Section 5.15 will continue to apply to bus drivers just as to all school board employees.
Written notice must be provided to an employee stating the reasons for disciplinary action.
The procedure to be utilized for licensed professional personnel will be that prescribed by the Code of Virginia under 22.1-309.
The procedure to utilize for classified professional personnel and support staff is as follows:
Personnel who are dismissed from employment shall be ineligible thereafter for employment in any school or duty station within the school system.
It is the policy of the board not to employ or to continue the employment of personnel who may be deemed unsuited for service by reason of criminal conviction. Conviction of a crime, in and of itself, is not an automatic bar to employment. Where a conviction relates to suitability of the individual to perform duties in a particular position, such person may be denied employment or be terminated.
Individuals applying for employment with the Smyth County School for any position shall be required to disclose prior convictions of law other than minor traffic violations or juvenile offenses. Information provided by applicants may be verified by work history personal reference or criminal record inquiries to determine the applicant's acceptability for employment. Where a prior conviction is ascertained, the school system will consider the nature of the offense, the date of the offense, and the relationship between the offense and the position for which application is sought.
Some examples of offenses which are incompatible with the employment by the school board include, but are not limited to, the following:
If an applicant makes any misrepresentation or willful omissions of fact regarding prior criminal history, such misrepresentation or omission shall be sufficient cause for disqualification of the applicant or termination of employment.
Request for release from the obligation of a contract or resignation from a position of employment shall be in writing, shall set forth the reason for resignation, and should be submitted at least two weeks in advance of the intended date of termination or as specified by Department of Education regulations.
Regulations governing resignation and contract obligations are found in section 5.20, Uniform Hiring of Teachers, of Chapter V of this policy manual.
Phase One covers employment sought for the next school year and covers the period from the beginning of the current school year to the close of business on April 14 of the current school year. The end of the phase on April 14 corresponds to the provisions of Section 22.1-304 of the Code of Virginia allowing written notice of non-continuation of contract by April 15. If April 14 ends on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the end of Phase One will be the last administrative working day prior to the Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday.
During phase one, a teacher may apply and be interviewed for employment for the next school year in other school divisions without notice to or permission from the Smyth County School Board.
During phase one, a teacher accepting employment in another division for the next school year must resign by giving written notice to the Smyth County School Board. The notice should specify that the resignation is applicable for the next school year only.
Phase Two begins on April 15 and ends of May 31 or the date the teacher contract is final, whichever is later. The contract is final when the date of signature and, at a minimum, the salary terms are finally known.
During Phase Two, teachers, whether probationary or continuing contract, may seek employment and file applications for the next school year with other school divisions. Teachers may seek employment during this phase without notification to the Smyth County School Board.
During Phase Two, the prospective employer may offer a contract without proof of release from contract from the Smyth County School Board. The teacher must obtain a written release from the contract with the current employer prior to signing a contract with the prospective employer. Releases should be liberally granted during this phase.
Phase Three begins on June 1 or the date the salary is finally set by the local school board, whichever occurs later. In Phase Three, the contract is a firm and binding obligation on the teacher and the school division.
During Phase Three, teachers may seek employment and file applications for the next school year with other school divisions; however, a prospective employer should not offer a contract to any teacher during Phase Three until the teacher has secured a written release from the contract with the Smyth County School Board, and a teacher should not accept a contract until a written release has been secured.
The Smyth County School Board at its discretion, may release a teacher from the contract. The Board will release teachers for good cause.
Good cause is determined by the Smyth County School Board. It should reflect a consideration of all the factors affecting both the employee and the school board. Factors in determining good cause may include the employee's reason for leaving, contractual terms and agreements, and the overall effect of the resignation on the employee and the school division.
In the event the Smyth County School Board declines to grant a request for release from a contract on the grounds of insufficient or unjustifiable cause, and the teacher breaches or expresses an intent to breach the contract, the school board may, within 30 days of the breach, file a petition with the Board of Education setting forth all the facts in the case and requesting that the teacher's license be suspended for the next school year or apply other remedies appropriate under law or contract.
Employees shall keep such records and make such reports as may be required by the superintendent for the efficient operation and administration of the school system.
Under the auspices of the Smyth County School Board, the superintendent and/or designee will, within the confines of code requirements, Department of Education regulations, and board policy, develop the organizational structure, determine position responsibilities, and make employment decisions, as determined to be in the best interest of fulfilling the mission of the Smyth County School Board.
Seniority is recognized as a consideration but is not to be the sole factor in determining employee assignments, position responsibilities, and/or other such actions undertaken by the school board, superintendent, or designee in management of the work force.
The school board shall annually approve salaries for supervisory and administrative personnel and a salary schedule for licensed employees.
Wages and salary levels of support personnel shall be determined by the superintendent.
Licensed professional personnel shall be evaluated each year. Under the direction of the superintendent, a cooperatively developed procedure and evaluative instruments for the conduct of personnel evaluation will be implemented. A brief description of the procedure and a copy of evaluative instruments are included in the appendix section.
Students from approved institutions of higher learning may be accepted for student teaching in Smyth County schools upon approval of the superintendent and under provisions prescribed to ensure that the progress of the students will not be adversely affected.
The principal of each school will secure substitutes from a list of approved substitutes prepared by the school board office. All substitutes will be paid by the school board. The pay shall be on a per diem rate set annually by the school board. The rate of pay is based on training. Forms will be provided the principal for reporting substitutes to the superintendent's office. The completed form shall be sent to the superintendent's office immediately after the regular teacher returns. The following guidelines are to be used for employing substitute teachers:
No one should be employed as a classroom substitute without at least a high school education and having reached the age of 21 years. An exception may be made to the age requirement if the substitute has an associate degree from a community college leading to a teaching certification.
Professional staff members may not be paid for tutoring students enrolled in a class under their direction.
No employee shall accept gainful employment in any private business or outside activity during the term of his/her employment when such employment shall detract from effectiveness in fulfilling assigned duties.
At the discretion of and with prior approval of the superintendent of schools, teachers and other licensed personnel may absent themselves without forfeiture of per diem pay to serve in workshops, on committees, visit other schools, or as elected delegates of their educational association.
Professional leave may be granted by the superintendent for a maximum of two days for elected delegates to the annual convention of the Virginia Education Association. The location of the meeting and the convention schedule will determine the amount of time approved.
The school board recognizes the right of its employees to engage in political activity. No employee, however, shall solicit support for any political candidate or political issue during regular work hours on school property. The board acknowledges the right of its employees to seek political office.
The school board may authorize additional compensation for licensed employees for supervision of activities not directly related to or feasibly included in the normal teaching day. The school board shall establish appropriate categories and shall determine compensation for extended responsibility supplements.
School property, equipment, personnel, and students shall be used only for activities that promote and enhance the educational program of the Smyth County School Board and shall not be used for activities that result in personal gain for employees of the school system.
Employees of the school system shall not solicit or accept money or other things of value for services performed within the scope of their official duties, except the compensation, expenses or other remuneration paid by the Smyth County School Board. Violation of the Virginia Conflict of Interest Act may be cause for disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal.
The board shall provide all employees with those benefits required by law and may offer additional benefit programs to full-time employees as determined by the board and within legal restriction and interpretation thereof.
For voluntary programs, the Board shall determine the amount of premium or contributions to be paid by the employer from Board funds and by the employee through payroll deduction.
Unless otherwise provided for by governmental statue or provisions of school board policy, an employee will not be eligible for employer-paid benefits while on unpaid leave if such leave exceeds ten (10) days in any given month.
For purposes of this policy, an employee who is not receiving compensation from the Smyth County School Board is considered to be unpaid leave regardless of whether or not the employee is receiving payments from sources such as workers compensation or disability income programs.
Reimbursement for travel expenses incurred by an employee while on approved business for the school system will be provided from school board funds. Such reimbursement will be made under the administration and supervision of the superintendent based upon allowance guidelines established by the school board.
Breakfast $7.00; Lunch $12.00; Dinner $16.00
No per meal/per diem is to be requested if such meal is included as a part of a meeting or training for which the employee has traveled to attend.
If reimbursement for actual expenses is requested, receipts must be provided and approval for reimbursement of meal expenses must be granted by the immediate supervisor. Expenses considered unreasonable will not be reimbursed.
The Smyth County School Board will pay the tuition for professional personnel taking graduate-level classes for relicensure and staff development purposes under the following conditions:
In the event of a decrease in pupil enrollment, insufficient allocation of financial resources, expiration of special grants and/or other conditions which may require a modification of the curriculum or instructional program resulting in a reduction in staff, the school board, upon recommendation of the superintendent, shall determine the program adjustments to be made and the reduction in force required.
Detailed reduction in force procedural guidelines are included in the appendix section of this policy manual.
The Smyth County School Board will follow an orderly procedure for resolving disputes concerning application of Board policies, rules, and regulations as they affect the work of employees, and disciplinary actions which include dismissal or probation.
The procedure to be utilized by professional certificated personnel will be that provided by the Virginia Board of Education in accordance with the Standards of Quality for school divisions and the statutory mandate of Chapters 13.2 and 15, Article 3, Title 22.1 of the Code of Virginia. The procedure to be utilized by professional classified staff and support personnel will be developed and approved by the Smyth County School Board.
The detailed Procedure for Adjusting Grievances is included in the appendix section of this policy manual.
Full-time professional and support personnel, exclusive of bus drivers and food service workers, are granted one (1) sick leave day per month of employment. (10 month contract = 10 sick leave days, 11 month contract = 11 sick leave days, 12 month contract = 12 sick leave days). Sick leave days are to be credited on the first working day of a contract year. Sick leave accumulation will be unlimited for all employees. At retirement, an employee will receive a per diem reimbursement for accumulated unused sick leave.
Sick leave shall be credited when the employee reports for work on or after the first working day of a contract year. For purposes of this policy, the first working day for a twelve month employee is defined as the first weekday in July; for an eleven month employee the first weekday is August; for a ten month (200 days or less) employee the first day all employees in the classification are expected to report to work.
Sick leave shall be allowed for personal illness or, up to five (5) days per occurrence, for illness or death in the immediate family. The immediate family shall be defined as natural parents, foster parents, step-parents, stepchildren, grandparents, grandchildren, spouse, children, brother, sister, father-in-law, mother-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, nieces, nephews, aunt, uncle, or any other relative living in the household of the employee. Paid sick leave shall not be granted in lieu of or in addition to workers compensation.
The Smyth County School Board will reserve the right to request that an employee provide medical documentation for an absence of more than five (5) consecutive days or if absences occur on a routine and/or frequent basis. Employees may be entitled to additional unpaid leave under the family and medical leave policy.
The Smyth County School Board will accept the transfer of accumulated sick leave from an employee who has been employed in another public school system in Virginia.
Full-time bus drivers and food service personnel shall be granted nine (9) days of sick leave per year.
The Smyth County School Board will provide eligible employees up to twelve weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for certain family and medical reasons as provided for by the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993. Employees are eligible if they have worked for at least one year and for 1,250 hours over the previous twelve months.
The one year period within which an employee may take twelve weeks unpaid leave under provisions of the Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 is defined as the twelve-month period since the beginning employee’s last exercise of leave under the Family Medical Leave Act. The employee may therefore take no more than twelve weeks family or medical leave within any twelve month time period.
Unpaid leave will be granted for any of the following reasons: to care for the employee's child after birth, adoption, or foster care placement; to care for the employee's spouse, son, daughter, or parent with a serious health condition; or for a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to work.
The employee will provide thirty (30) days advance notice if the leave is "foreseeable." The employee must furnish medical certification to support a request for leave because of a serious health condition and a medical "fitness for duty" report to return to work.
Employees will be entitled to job benefits and protection while on FMLA leave. For the duration of FMLA leave the employer will maintain the employee's health coverage under the group health plan and will continue to pay its share of the premium payment as if the employee were not on leave. An employee who chooses to maintain coverage must continue to pay the share of health plan premiums required of working employees. Upon return from FMLA leave employees will be restored to their original or equivalent positions with equivalent pay, benefits, and other employment terms. The use of FMLA leave will not result in the loss of any employment benefit that accrued prior to the start of an employee's leave.
The school board and its administrative staff will not interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise of any right provided under FMLA. Neither will the employer discharge or discriminate against any person for opposing any practice made unlawful by FMLA or for involvement in any proceeding under or relating to FMLA.
The school board will provide three days of personal leave each contract year to all full-time employees except bus drivers and food service personnel. Unused personal leave may be carried forward as accumulated sick leave. Personal leave days are required to be used before June 30th of each school year. Bus drivers and food service personnel will be granted two days of personal leave per year.
Personal leave shall be credited when the employee reports for work on the first working day of a contract year. For purposes of this policy, the first working day shall be as defined in policy section 5.40, sick leave.
Scheduling of personal leave must receive prior approval from the immediate supervisor unless such leave is taken due to an emergency situation. If an emergency situation does not exist and the use of personal leave will substantially interfere with the effective operation of the school system, request for personal leave may be denied.
Leave with pay shall be granted if an employee is called to serve on jury duty, or subpoenaed to attend court pertaining to school board business. Payment made for jury service will be returned to the county. Payment made for travel will be retained by the employee.
Regular employees shall be granted a leave of absence with pay without loss of vacation or sick leave for annual active duty training as a member of the National Guard or any reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States, for a period not exceeding 15 calendar days.
An employee who is absent for emergency duty with the National Guard under orders of the Governor pursuant to Section 44-75 of the Code of Virginia shall be entitled to leave of absence with pay for the period of ordered absence.
A regular employee who enters on active duty or who received orders in any of the Armed Forces of the United States shall be entitled to military leave without pay and to reinstatement in a similar position upon return from active duty as prescribed by public law.
The Smyth County School Board may grant an academic year sabbatical leave to licensed personnel.
Vacation leave for all full-time, twelve-month employees shall be determined as follows:
| Years of Experience | Days of Leave |
|---|---|
| 1-10 | 12 |
| 11-15 | 15 |
| 16+ | 18 |
For this purpose, experience shall be defined as full-time, twelve-month employment in administrative, supervisory, or support positions.
Leave will be granted and counted beginning with the first working day after the final teacher workday at the end of school in May-June and concluding with the final teacher workday the following May-June. Scheduling of vacation leave must receive prior approval from the immediate supervisor. Unless otherwise authorized by the superintendent, twelve month employees will use ten days of available leave during the summer when school is not in session. Additional leave days may be taken during the regular school term with the approval of the immediate supervisor. Unused vacation leave cannot be accumulated but may be transferred to accumulated sick leave.
In addition to leave granted and counted beginning with the first working day after the final teacher workday in May-June, an additional one-half of vacation leave for which an employee is eligible will be granted when the employee reports to work in January of the following year. An additional one-twelfth of leave for which an employee is eligible will be granted for each month worked during the remainder of the following year. No more than the number of days to which the employee is entitled based on position and years of experience will remain on balance as of July 1. Any excess above that amount cannot be accumulated as vacation leave but will be transferred to accumulated sick leave.
If during the period from the day after the final teacher workday in May-June and the final teacher workday the following May-June, an employee uses more than the number of days to which the employee is entitled to have earned for one year of work, leave granted and counted beginning with the day after the final teacher workday in May-June will be reduced accordingly.
At no time may an employee take paid vacation leave in excess of the existing balance of accrued vacation leave.
Holiday leave will be determined by the superintendent and the school board. The following paid holidays will be granted to all full-time, twelve-month employees:
If school is in session on Memorial Day, an additional day will be granted in conjunction with Independence Day. Holidays falling on Sunday will be observed the following Monday. Holidays falling on Saturday will be observed the preceding Friday. A holiday falling during annual leave shall not be counted in computing leave charged to an employee. Should it be necessary for a full-time, twelve-month employee to work on a designated holiday, such employee shall be granted a compensatory day off.
In addition to designated holidays, the superintendent may close schools because of extenuating circumstances or other reasons in the best interest of the school system.
The unlawful manufacture, dispensing, possession, use, and/or distribution of alcohol and illicit drugs, including anabolic steroids by an employee of the Smyth County School Board is prohibited.
Drug abuse in the workplace has major adverse effects on the welfare of all citizens of the United States, and it results in lost productivity each year. Employees who use illegal drugs have three to four times more accidents while at work.
Employees with drug abuse problems are encouraged to seek help. Employees desiring more information on the dangers of drug abuse in the workplace and those employees needing drug counseling, rehabilitation, or other employee assistance should contact any of the following for assistance.
Employees will be referred to the appropriate resource for available counseling, rehabilitation or other assistance.
Penalties may be imposed upon employees for drug use violations occurring in the workplace.
Employees voluntarily seeking assistance for a substance abuse problem will not be disciplined as a result of their disclosure of prior drug or alcohol use and treatment by a substance abuse specialist will be handled in confidence. An employee may not avoid discipline for violation of the drug-free workplace policy by participating in a treatment program unless he or she does the following:
In the case of employees returning to work after successful completion of a treatment program, the school system reserves the right to test for controlled substances and alcohol on a random or periodic basis, for one year after the employee's return to work.
Drivers of school buses and other school owned vehicles shall be subject to the drug testing program prescribed under the Omnibus Transportation Testing Act and Virginia Department of Highway and Federal Highway Administration regulations. A copy of this program shall be given to all employees authorized to drive school buses and other school vehicles and to the supervisors of such drivers.
Interpretation and training in the application of this program shall be provided by the superintendent or designee. Refusal to submit to such testing will be grounds for dismissal.
A copy of the drug and testing program is found in the appendix section of this manual.
Authorization to take unpaid leave, except as otherwise governed by existing policy or government statue, must be granted by the superintendent of schools. The unauthorized use of unpaid leave may result in disciplinary action up to and including dismissal.
After ten (10) consecutive working days as a substitute for a specific employee on extended leave, the substitute will receive the level of compensation to which he/she, based on certification, would earn as a full-time, regular employee at step zero (0) on the current Smyth County School Board Pay Scale. The substitute, as a temporary employee, will not be entitled to any additional benefits to which regular, full-time employees are entitled, except as prescribed by law.
The Smyth County School Board, in keeping with its philosophy of providing quality education and encouraging professional staff to present themselves as role models, hereby establishes a standard of dress which requires each employee of the school system to dress appropriately for the position and/or activity in which she/he is engaged. Staff will dress in a manner as to avoid any health or safety problems or any disruption to the educational process.
A salary scale for administrators will be maintained which provides a base salary with adjustments for experience, degree attained, size of school, and bus driver supervision. Provisions for rewarding exceptional performance and for factoring in unsatisfactory performance will also be a part of salary determination.
An employee whose performance is adjudged to be unsatisfactory will not be advanced to the next step on the scale. If the employee was already at the top step on the scale, the employee would be reduced to the next lower step.
An employee not already at the top scale or the next to last step, whose performance is adjudged to be exemplary, will be advanced two steps on the scale. An employee already at the next to last step would be advanced to the highest step.
In order to secure compliance with the requirements of the Virginia School Safety Audit and as a security measure, each school employee will be issued an identification badge.
This badge is to be worn by all employees at all times while working on school board property. The identification badge will also be used when making on-site school board and/or school-related purchases. Additionally, the identification badge will be necessary for the employee to be admitted free of charge to events in which students participate and are sponsored by any of the schools in the Smyth County school district.
An employee who is certified by a physician as unable to work due to a disability, such disability qualifying for retirement under Virginia Retirement System disability determination, should be allowed use of no more than 60 days of accumulated sick leave prior to the effective date of disability retirement under Virginia Retirement System provisions.
Additional accumulated sick leave shall be compensated at the per diem amount set by the school board to be paid to an employee eligible for non-disability related service retirement.
The retired employee must have a minimum of fifteen (15) years service under the Virginia Retirement System and must be receiving a monthly defined benefit payment under Virginia Retirement System guidelines.
The retired employee’s membership in the group health and dental insurance plan will terminate at the time the employee becomes eligible for Medicare.
A dependent enrolled in the group health plan at the time of retirement of the employee, or a dependent added at a later time due to a qualifying event, may continue on the plan during such time as the retired employee remains a member of the plan, until such dependent is eligible for Medicare.
A dependent may remain on the plan, at such time as a qualifying event results in removal of the retired employee from plan membership. The time period will be as provided under COBRA guidelines for dependents of an active employee whose membership in the plan is terminated by a qualifying event.
The Smyth County School Board will not contribute toward the cost of insurance coverage for retired employees, other than as actuarially determined by the Virginia Retirement System as the school board’s contribution to insurance credit issued to retired employees by the Virginia Retirement System.
Release of information is governed by the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, regulations regarding access to student records, and appropriate business practice regarding access to personnel records, employee information, or school board business.
Required and/or appropriate confidentiality is expected of all employees at all times. Failure to maintain required and/appropriate confidentiality in regard to students, employees, records, information, and/or school board business will result in disciplinary action up to and including dismissal.
Paid sick leave is for the purpose of providing covered employees with salary continuation when the employee is medically unable to report to work, or due to illness or death in the immediate family.
Maternity leave is covered by sick leave, as is any other medical condition, which would render the employee unable to report to work.
The Smyth County School Board reserves the right to request medical documentation for an absence of more than five (5) consecutive days. The superintendent of schools is empowered to act on behalf of the board in this regard.
The standard period of time for which an employee will be granted paid sick leave for maternity is six calendar weeks from the date-of-birth for a normal delivery and eight calendar weeks for Caesarian delivery.
If sick leave beyond the standard period of time for maternity is requested, the principal or supervisor will ask the employee to furnish medical documentation that she is medically unable to return to work and submit a copy of the physician’s statement to the payroll office.
As with any other personal illness, paid leave for maternity will be granted if the employee has sufficient sick leave on balance. Otherwise, unpaid leave will be granted.
Under provisions of the family and medical leave policy, an employee will be granted additional unpaid leave, above and beyond the period that the physician specifies for maternity leave, to care for the employee’s child after birth. The employee will provide thirty days advance notice if the leave is foreseeable.
Upon the child’s birth, someone from the family (or someone on the family’s behalf) must contact the Payroll Department at 276-783-8865 ext. 237 or 271 to report the date of birth. This information is needed to properly track maternity leave and to assist with any insurance issues that may arise.
If the employee is not currently insured through the Smyth County School Board’s group health and dental plans, she may apply for coverage within 31 days of the birth of the child.
If the employee is currently insured through the Smyth County School Board’s group health and dental plans, and intends to add the child to her policy, she must do so within 31 days of birth. During this time period the employee also has the option of changing from one plan to another. The employee will be responsible for payment of any additional premiums associated with policy additions or changes.