a) The teacher
shall be a full-time teacher (i.e., under at least a current nine month (180
days) contract based on an eight hour day).
b) A school district may apply for a grant
for personal services of each full-time agricultural education
teacher.
c) Activities funded under
this grant as personal services shall occur outside of the regularly scheduled
teaching duties for the benefit of agricultural education.
d) Grants are available to eligible school
districts to assist with the personal services costs of agricultural education
teachers beyond or outside of the nine month contract but not to exceed the
total of 12 months in any given year.
e) Each teacher identified in the intent to
apply application is responsible for completing and documenting the 400 hours
of approved activities beyond the regularly scheduled teaching duties for the
benefit of agricultural education. The school district shall submit that
documentation to the State Board of Education, along with documentation
substantiating the total payment (its share of the cost of payments to each
teacher as well as the allocated funds).
1)
Grant Term Violations
A) Failure to Submit
Required Documentation
If a school district fails to submit the required
documentation in order to meet the grant requirements, the district is
considered the offending party.
B) Failure to Meet the 400 Hour Extra Work
Commitment
If an individual teacher within the district (if there is
more than one agricultural education teacher) fails to complete or document the
400 hours, that teacher is the offending party. If all teachers in a district
fail to complete or document the 400 hours, the district is the offending
party.
2)
Penalty for Failing to Meet the Documentation or Work Hour Requirement Failure
to meet a program requirement will result in the ineligibility of the offending
party for a grant in the subsequent year.
3) The State Board of Education can waive
this ineligibility in extenuating circumstances when completion of the
requirements is not possible and/or is out of the district's control (e.g.,
severe illness, death, etc.). The district shall document the circumstance as
applicable.
f) In the
case of a teacher on leave or long-term illness (e.g., sabbatical, sick leave,
maternity leave), it is possible for a school district to request that a
long-term substitute or equivalent representative fulfill the hours to receive
the funds so long as the teacher or the substitute completing the hours
receives those funds.
g) The
district will hold the teacher harmless in the event:
1) the grant is prorated subject to Section
75.530(b). The
teacher shall be entitled to the extended contract benefits or additional hours
outside of the teacher's regularly scheduled teaching duties for the benefit of
agricultural education, as agreed to by the school district and teacher prior
to the grant application; or
2) a
district applies for the grant and then the grant becomes no longer available.
The teacher shall be entitled to the extended contract benefits or additional
hours outside of the teacher's regularly scheduled teaching duties for the
benefit of agricultural education, as agreed to be the school district and
teacher prior to acceptance of the grant.
