Policy 5:200

Personnel

Reduction in Force – Certified Employees

1. Should it become necessary to give an honorable dismissal to a certified professional employee on contractual continued service, primary consideration shall be given to the length of service of each employee within the affected Department.
   1. Length of service is defined as the amount of continuous service as a certified employee of the District.
   2. Periods of authorized leaves of absence and periods during which the employee is on recall shall not interrupt continuous service, but all such periods of leave other than sick leave or sabbatical leave in excess of twenty (20) calendar days shall not be counted in determining length of service.
   3. Departments are defined:
      1. Grades K, 1, and 2
      2. Grades 3, 4, and 5
      3. Grades 6, 7, 8
         1. LA/Reading, LA/Writing, Social Studies
         2. Math and Science
      4. Grades K-9
         1. Art, vocal music, instrumental music, drama, and foreign language (subject to demonstrating oral fluency in the affected language)
         2. EEP, computers, Discovery Center, and Resource Center
         3. Physical Education
         4. Pupil Services
2. All such certificated professional employees in an affected department shall be terminated in reverse order of their length of service in the District.
   1. Certificated employees with fourteen (14) years or more seniority or who are among the top one-third (1/3) of the seniority list, whichever is greater, shall have seniority in every department in which they are certified.
   2. Other certificated employees shall have seniority in the department in which they are teaching at the time of the reduction in force.  If a certified employee is then teaching in more than one department, the employee shall elect one (1) such department as provided in the next succeeding subparagraph.
   3. Certificated employees with experience in more than one department may elect to claim seniority rights in any department in which the employee taught full time for at least two (2) full school years within the preceding six (6) school years in the District including in which the lay-offs are occurring.  Such election shall be in writing and filed with the Superintendent and his designee prior to February 15.
   4. If the length of service of certificated employees shall be equal, preference shall be given to the employee then receiving the larger salary.  If such salary shall be equal, preference shall be determined by lot.
3. All such certificated professional employees in an affected department shall be recalled in inverse order.
   1. Certificated employees who have been laid off pursuant to this Article shall have the right of recall in inverse order of lay-of by department until the beginning of the second school term following their dismissal.  If a vacancy shall occur in a department when there is no one on the recall list, the employee with the greatest seniority on any other recall list shall be tendered the position if fully certified therefore.
   2. Notice of recall shall be sent to the affected employee by registered or certified mail to the last address submitted by the employee to the Board.  Failure of the employee to affirmatively respond to such notice within seven (7) calendar days of its receipt or within ten (10) calendar days of its mailing, whichever shall be the lesser, shall terminate the responsibility of the Board hereunder.
4. When a program is discontinued as a result of the elimination of an entire department, the affected tenured employees shall be given priority consideration for any vacancies for which they are certified and qualified.

Resignation/Retirement:

Resignations:

Tenure teachers may resign at any time by obtaining concurrence of the School Board at least thirty (30) days before the intended date of resignation.  The letter shall include a statement of the teacher’s reason for terminating employment.

No tenure teacher may resign during the school year in order to accept another teaching position without agreement of the School Board.

Probationary teachers under contract may terminate their service during the period of the contract only when termination is mutually agreed between the School Board and the teacher.

Retirements:

An employee who voluntarily leaves the District shall submit a letter of retirement or resignation to the School Board.  The letter shall state the employee’s reasons for leaving District employment.

In general, staff retirements shall be effective at the close of the regular school year.  To receive retirement benefits, staff members contemplating retirement should make their intentions known to the School Board in a timely fashion so that necessary arrangements can be made.

Refer to contractual agreements between the Board of Education, Wilmette Public Schools District 39, Cook County, Illinois and the Wilmette Education Association, IEA-NEA and the Support Council of District 39, Wilmette, Local 1274, IFT/AFT, AFL-CIO for specific guidelines regarding retirement options and benefits.

Adopted: November 10, 1997