March 11, 2001

SENATE FLOOR AMENDMENT number __6____ to SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR SENATE BILLS 308, 373 & 485

Amendment sponsored by Senator Ramsay L. Gorham

1. On page 130, between lines 18 and 19, insert the following new section:

"Section 79. TEMPORARY PROVISION--MERIT PAY PILOT PROGRAM.--

A. The "merit pay pilot program" is created in the state department of public education. The program shall operate for the 2001-2002 through 2003-2004 school years. The purpose of the pilot program is to determine if providing incentive pay to meritorious teachers will improve test scores of students throughout the state. The pilot program is voluntary and shall include a program evaluation component. The merit pay pilot program advisory committee and the department shall provide periodic reports to the appropriate legislative interim committees and shall provide a final report to the legislature.

B. The governor, the speaker of the house of representatives and the president pro tempore of the senate shall name a merit pay pilot program advisory committee to make recommendations to the state board of education on the design and implementation of a merit pay pilot program, including a requirement that for a school to participate, at least sixty-five percent of its teachers must agree to participate and including the evaluation of the effectiveness of a value-added assessment tool to determine teaching effectiveness compared to student academic achievement.

C. The state department of public education shall select through a lottery process no more than one hundred twenty elementary, middle or junior high schools to participate in the pilot program.

D. Merit pay awards shall be provided as follows:

(1) four hundred dollars ($400) to teachers in public schools who are in the top ten percent of improving participating schools in the state as ranked in accordance with the Incentives for School Improvement Act;

(2) two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) to teachers who most improve their students' test scores as shown on pre- and post-test criteria-referenced or terra nova norm-referenced tests; and

(3) three thousand dollars ($3,000) for teachers who have received national board for professional teaching standards certification; provided that this award shall be given to no more than four teachers in the same public school.

E. Implementation of the pilot program is contingent on funding.".

2. Renumber the succeeding sections accordingly.

_______________________________

Ramsay L. Gorham

Adopted ___________________ Not Adopted ________________________

 (Chief Clerk) (Chief Clerk)

Date _________________