Table of Contents
- Letter to Staff
- Preamble
- Leaves from Work
- Grant Proposals
- Grants
- BOCES Payments
- School Calendar
- Pay Periods
- Payroll Plan
- Tax Sheltered Annuities
- Extra Pay Reimbursement
- Prohibition on Contracts/Leases, Etc.
- Payroll Information
- Contact the Business Office
- Dates to Remember
- Reporting Student Accidents
- Attorney
- Royalties
- Overnight Trip Consent Forms
- Traditional Holiday Seasons
- Consent and Fund Solicitation
- Attendance at Staff Meetings
- Athletic Rules and Physical Examinations
- School Discipline Code
- Planning for the Substitute Teacher
- Lists of Names of Pupils
- Certification Processing and Graduate Hour Credit
- Scheduling During Examination Weeks
- Student Transportation
- Student Grading
- Student Appearance
- Pupil Interviews
- Employee Assistance Program
- Section 125 (Pre-Tax Benefit Program)
- Health Insurance (Buy-Out Option)
- Medicare
- Family Medical Leave Act
Letter to Staff
Dear Staff Member:
Please take a moment to review this handbook. It contains items and conditions of employment for staff. Other terms and conditions are in unit contracts, which result from collective negotiations. Any changes during the year will be shared with employees.
The Board of Education has extensive policies that cover such areas as general commitments, community relations, school board operations, administration, fiscal management, support operations, students, instruction, and personnel. These policies are now available to the public online.
If there are any questions, please ask your Building Principal, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction, Assistant Superintendent for Business Affairs or me for clarification.
Sincerely,
Cosimo Tangorra, Jr., Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
| Notice |
|---|
| The New Hartford Central School District declares that it will not discriminate on the basis of race (including but not limited to hair texture and protective hairstyles), color, creed, religion, national origin (regardless of English language skills), age, sex (including gender, gender identity, and sexual orientation), marital status, military or veteran status, disability, predisposing genetic characteristics, arrest record, or prior criminal convictions, except when sex or age are a bona fide occupational qualification, when a criminal conviction is related to job duties, and when an individual’s religion or disability warrants reasonable accommodation or any other human difference with regard to employment conditions of staff, opportunities and programs offered to students, the District’s relationship with the public, establishment of educational programs and services, access to facilities, programs and services, and with individuals with whom the District does business. Please see the Equal Opportunity and Prohibition of Discrimination, Bullying and Harassment (Including Sexual Harassment) Policy 0015. |
Preamble
The procedures contained herein may be based upon policy established by the Board of Education and is intended for general information purposes; not to create an employment contract. Such policies and procedures may be modified or discontinued by the District at any time.
Leaves from Work
Vacation trips, etc., should be planned to coincide with non-school days as per the school calendar, which is set a year in advance. Leaves from school for vacations and/or recreational purposes will not be approved. Whenever practical, requests for personal leave should be approved in advance by the Building Principal and, if necessary, by the Superintendent. Employees who are absent without leave will be subject to penalties.
Grant Proposals
Grant proposals, other than those for Teacher Center funding, must be submitted through the office of the Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction. Legislative grant proposals should be submitted through the office of the Superintendent. This process will eliminate proposals that overlap and address any unnecessary competition among local proposals.
Grants
All grant budgets must be submitted through the office of the Assistant Superintendent for Business Affairs for approval before they are submitted to the agency making the allocation. Grant budgets must include fringe benefit appropriation if salaries are to be paid. All grants paying stipends to staff must include all fringe benefit payments. Before a commitment is made to a person out of a grant the payment must be approved on a purchase order. All material purchases or contract commitments made with grant monies must be submitted on a requisition form. The Assistant Superintendent for Business Affairs will be the person to sign off on the grant submission before it is signed by the Superintendent. This pertains not only to Federal and State grants but to all grants. If salary commitments are made without pre-approval, they will not be paid.
This process is necessary for budget control and will allow the District to comply with Comptroller regulations and State Department requirements.
BOCES Payments
Purchase orders will be used to authorize all staff payments paid through BOCES Cosers. This process must be used to authorize the commitment before work is completed. The approved purchase order will be the commitment that will authorize the claim to be paid upon receipt.
School Calendar
View the New Hartford Central School District School Calendar 2024-25.
School Hours
| Kindergarten and Grades 1-6 | 8:50 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. |
| Grades 7-9 | 7:45 a.m. – 2:20 p.m. |
| Grades 10-12 | 7:45 a.m. – 2:20 p.m. |
Superintendent’s Conference Days
- September 3 – No School
- October 11 – No School
Parent-Teacher Conferences Grades K-6
- November 1 – Dismissal at 11:45 a.m.
- November 7 – Dismissal at 11:45 a.m.
- November 14 – Dismissal at 11:45 a.m.
- March 7 – Dismissal at 11:45 a.m.
Parent-Teacher Conferences Grades 7-12
- November 1 – Dismissal at 10:40 a.m.
- March 7 – Dismissal at 10:40 a.m.
Grades K-6 Early Dismissal at 11:45 a.m.
- June 6
- June13
- June 20
- June 27
Pay Periods
The following dates fall on a Friday unless otherwise noted.
- July 12
- July 26
- August 9
- August 23
- September 6
- September 20
- October 4
- October 18
- November 1
- November 15
- November 26 (Tuesday)
- December 13
- December 27
- January 10
- January 24
- February 7
- February 21
- March 7
- March 21
- April 4
- April 17 (Thursday)
- May 2
- May 16
- May 30
- June 13
- June 27
Payroll Plan
Instructional staff may request the 12-month plan. Under this plan, the last check in June will be equal to 5/26ths of your contract. Make your request known in writing on the “26 CHECK ELECTION FORM” prior to August 9, 2024. The payroll plan previously selected by instructional staff will be used unless notice of desired change is received on the 26 Check Election Form in the Business Office prior to August 9, 2024.
Tax Sheltered Annuities
All annuity withholdings scheduled for the 2023-2024 year will be scheduled for the 2024-2025 year unless notice of desired change is received in the Business Office prior to September 1. Withholding changes can be made by completing an SRA online at www.omni403b.com or by contacting the Business Office for a Salary Reduction Agreement (SRA).
Extra Pay Reimbursement
Please be advised that reimbursement for all extra duties will be paid by separate check.
Extra duties include, among others, all sports and intramural, recreational activities and clubs and supervisory duties covered by the contract. Exceptions will be mileage payments, which will be paid subsequent to submission vouchers.
Those occasions when staff members attend approved conferences, the period between submission of expenses and reimbursement should not take longer than one month.
Pay dates are as follows:
| 1. Fall Sports and Extra Duty | First payroll November |
| 2. Winter Sports and Extra Duty | First payroll December Second payroll March |
| 3. Spring Sports and Extra Duty | Second payroll June |
| 4. Intramural Sports and Adult Education | First payroll November Second payroll March Second payroll June |
| 5. Co-Curricular Advisors | First payroll December Second payroll June |
| 6. Summer School Teachers | Paid in two installments |
| 7. Tutoring Service (Homebound) | Paid by claim form for services Approved by the Director of Student Services Rate $45 per hour |
Prohibition on Contracts/Leases, Etc.
Employees of the New Hartford Central School District are prohibited from entering into contracts or leases, financial arrangements, etc., for school-related purposes without written approval of the School District’s Purchasing Agent.
Payroll Information
All personnel are to notify the Business Office at once of any change in name, address, assignment or other conditions of employment affecting payroll. All new personnel are required to complete pre-employment forms in the District and Business Offices before starting work. This information is essential in the preparation of automated payroll information.
Contact the Business Office
For information regarding:
- Employee Retirement System
- Withholding Tax
- Health Insurance
- Federal Credit Unions
- Tax Sheltered Annuities
- Social Security
- Retirement Benefits
- Life Insurance
- Dental Insurance
Dates to Remember
August 21 – Last day to turn in hours for Graduate Credit.
October 1 – Last day to apply for Physical Examination benefit.
November 30 – Last day to turn in hours for Graduate Credit.
December 15 – Last day for First Observation for Master Teacher and Tenure candidates.
February 1 – Last day to apply for a Summer School position.
Last Day of February – Last day to provide notice for sick leave reimbursement.
March 15 – Last day to apply for a Sabbatical Leave.
April 30 – Last day to receive Summative Report for probationary teachers and those teachers applying for Master Teacher.
May 5 – Deadline for Voluntary Transfer.
May 15 – Notification of Sabbatical recipients. Notification of Summer School Appointment. Denial of Tenure Notification.
May 31 – Notification of denial for Promotion/Termination. Last day for Tenured teachers to receive Summative Report.
June 1 – Last day of Involuntary Transfer.
Last Day of School – Last day to submit a letter for summer bid meeting.
Reporting Student Accidents
All students’ accidents are to be reported to the Building Principal and the School Nurse. Students requiring medical attention should be taken to the Health Office by another student or employee, if necessary.
The School Nurse will prescribe the appropriate medical attention, refer student accident claims and complete school accident forms when required.
In the event of a serious injury when there is no nurse available, it is the teacher’s responsibility to:
- Stay with the injured person.
- Perform basic first aid (pressure to control bleeding, check for proper breathing, etc.).
- Send another adult to notify parents/guardians.
- Remain calm and use common sense.
The responsibility for accident care and reporting after school hours will be assumed by the supervisor in charge.
Attorney
If the District is involved in litigation that requires testimony by employees, or District personnel are involved in litigation as third person non-interested witnesses, the Building Principal should be immediately contacted. No comments should be given on the matter until it has been discussed with the Building Principal. If the school attorney advises comment, this will be communicated.
Royalties
The Board of Education may have legal rights to the royalties of copyrightable or patentable work on research and writing projects that are done on District time or with the use of District equipment, resources, or facilities. All research and writing proposals that will generate royalties as a result of using District time or resources should be reported to the Superintendent of Schools prior to project initiation.
Overnight Trip Consent Forms
Faculty advisors must provide copies of the Consent Form to all students who will be going on overnight trips so that we will have, in writing, a parent/guardian permission and an indication of emergency medical treatment. This form is available from the Building Principal and must be used for overnight trips. UNLESS THE CONSENT FORM IS FILLED IN BY PARENTS/GUARDIANS, STUDENTS CANNOT PARTICIPATE IN OVERNIGHT EVENTS! ADVISORS WILL RETAIN COPIES OF THE FORM IN CASE DECISIONS HAVE TO BE MADE REGARDING MEDICAL TREATMENT.
Traditional Holiday Seasons
- By law, religious indoctrination in the schools is forbidden.
- Recognition of traditional holidays, including those which have their origins in the world’s religions, is permissible.
- Recognition of these traditional holidays may include only:
- Educational programs that give expression to those aspects of such religious holidays that reflect the social and cultural characteristics of the community and its people.
- Teaching history, literature, music, customs, art of various religious faiths.
- Care must be taken to ensure balance and equity in recognition or traditional religious holidays.
- In those cases, where individual students request to be excused from educational programs relating to religious holidays, they shall be excused.
Consent and Fund Solicitation
Contests and activities that are sponsored by outside agencies and that involve participation by pupils or granting of awards or prizes to pupils shall not be announced or permitted in the schools unless approved by the Superintendent. Such activities must be adjudged to have educational value for the participants before permission may be granted.
Regents prohibit the solicitation of funds from school children in the public schools in order to guarantee public school children a learning environment free from the pressure of peers or adults to make charitable donations to selected organizations. Therefore, New Hartford students may not solicit funds from other students in school for charitable activities, etc.
Any student organization that wishes to conduct a fund raising activity according to Board policy must submit a form for approval. Forms are available in the school offices.
Attendance at Staff Meetings
Teacher attendance at designated meetings is considered a part of the normal duty of a teacher. A teacher who finds it impossible to attend an assigned meeting will notify the Building Principal or the committee chairman beforehand, so that all absences will be accounted for.
The chief concern of the program of in-service education is professional growth, which will be reflected in an improved standard of classroom teaching.
Athletic Rules and Physical Examinations
No student may participate in sports or cheerleading without the proper completion of the parental statements on the Athletic Eligibility Rules (which requires a student and parent’s/guardian’s signature), nor may any student participate on a team prior to completion of the required physical examination and health history. The coach is ultimately responsible to ensure that parental permission is granted and the physical examination completed. Should there be any questions in your mind about any student, please check immediately with the school nurse, etc.
NOTE: The parents’/guardian’s signed statement on the Athletic Eligibility Rules form and Emergency Medical Card should be kept in the custody of the coach.
School Discipline Code
A school-wide student discipline code outlining procedures to be followed is included in Board Policy Manual. Please refer to these guidelines.
Planning for the Substitute Teacher
In order to aid the substitute teacher in doing the assigned job as well as possible, it is necessary for the teacher to plan each day as though a substitute were going to take over.
The teacher should:
- Leave plans that are clearly outlined and easily followed.
- Have teacher’s manuals, desk copies of textbooks, and seatwork (elementary) available.
- Leave an up-to-date seating chart.
- List daily duties in plan book.
- Attach class schedule to the plan book.
- Leave important information about any child.
- Disability, e.g., sight, hearing, epilepsy.
- Emotional instability.
- List reading, arithmetic, and other groups.
- List names of pupils for special classes, e.g., speech, band, chorus.
- Specify special plan for classroom procedure.
- Names of pupils who can be of help to the substitute teacher.
- Each teacher should prepare their class for the event of a substitute teachers assignment.
Lists of Names of Pupils
No employee of the school may furnish lists of names and addresses of pupils to anyone without permission of the Superintendent.
Certification Processing and Graduate Hour Credit
Ms. Diana Jaworski serves the school district as the Personnel Clerk. She is located in the business office house at 29 Oxford Road and can be called on extension 1280.
Important
An amendment to the Education Law reads as follows: “Failure by teaching and supervisory employees to maintain certification as required by statute and regulations for the commissioner shall constitute cause of removal . . .”
Applicants For Certification
An official transcript of all graduate hours should be sent directly from the college to Ms. Jaworski, who will make copies for your personnel folder. Upon receipt of your teaching certificate, please send it to Ms. Jaworski.
Graduate Hours
A grade report of all graduate hours should be sent to Ms. Jaworski as soon as you receive it so that information will be up to date when evaluating teachers for salary schedule advancement and also for credit hour remuneration.
Scheduling During Examination Weeks
The New Hartford Board of Education adopted a resolution prohibiting any contests, games, concerts, programs, etc. during the finals and Regents week. The reason for this action is to ensure that students have proper time for preparation for final exams, mid-year exams and Regents exams.
Student Transportation
School district employees are not to transport students in their (employee’s) vehicle unless so authorized.
Student Grading
To be consistent with the philosophy that children learn every day, it is felt that final grades for the year’s work should not be based totally on the final examination. Grades should primarily reflect evaluation of daily learning and to a lesser extent, long term retention of the development of facts and concepts.
Student Appearance
The Board of Education and/or the School Administrator may not impose limitations on dress in which fashion or taste is the sole consideration. A student may not be excluded from regular instruction because of their appearance if style, fashion or taste is the sole criterion for such exclusion. Rules concerning student dress must relate to a specific educational purpose, such as health, safety or full participation in school activities. School authorities may prohibit dress, which is so distractive as to interfere with the learning process.
Pupil Interviews
Pupils may not be interviewed by any person except an employee of the Board of Education or a person authorized by the District without approval of the Building Principal. The Building Principal or representative(s) shall be present at any approved interview and the pupil’s parents/guardians shall be contacted except in the case of alleged child abuse and neglect. In the case of child abuse and neglect reports, parental contacts will be made according to Policy #6401.
Employee Assistance Program
The Employee Assistance Program has been established to help school personnel and their families manage personal or family matters that may impair the quality of an individual’s personal life and work. The Employee Assistance Program provides school personnel and members of their families private assistance with assessment and referral to specialized agencies and services that may offer professional help to attempt resolution to problems affecting work performance. To access your EAP, simply call the toll-free number 1-800-252-4555 or 1-800-225-2527 to talk with a counselor or coach who will work with you to address your issues. You can also visit your EAP online at www.EducatorsEAP.com for thousands of problem-solving resources and self-help tools.
Section 125 (Pre-Tax Benefit Program)
The District makes available to all employees a benefit plan that allows for tax exemption of certain benefit payments. The plan is divided into three parts; A, B, and C.
Part A has no member cost. It allows members to tax defer all of their share of health/dental insurance premium costs. Employees must designate that they want their share of the insurance premium to be taken as a 125 deduction (making it tax exempt.)
Part B allows members to tax defer through payroll deduction any “out-of-pocket” medical expense. Members must annually estimate their expenses and the amount designated will be deducted in 20 equal installments starting in September and ending in June. The cost of the company (Lifetime Benefit Solutions) administrative fee for this benefit will amount to $2.28 per pay period for 20 pay periods each year ($45.50 per year). Payments will be made to providers by the plan administrator upon submission of a claim form.
Part C can cover the cost of day care/nursing home care expenses. Employees must designate the yearly deduction for this expense and it will be deducted over 20 pay periods. Payments are made to providers upon submission of claim forms.
Once employees designate a deduction for Part A, B or C of the 125 Plan, that deduction will continue into the next school year unless a change form/letter is received in the Business Office by the end of December. The plan is in effect for the period January 1 through December 31. For additional information on this benefit option, please call the Personnel Office, (315) 624-1280.
Health Insurance (Buy-Out Option)
An insurance buy-out is available to all employees eligible for health insurance coverage. Individuals who decide that they do not want health insurance coverage may opt out of participation in the program after participation in the program for ONE year, and receive a direct payment for declining coverage. Payment for not participating in the program will be made via payroll check in the first pay period in December.
Since coverage is on a school year basis, employees who take advantage of this plan must waive coverage prior to May 15 for the following school year. Designations for declination of coverage will stay in existence until notice is received from the employee to change the designation. Once an employee has declined coverage, they can only re-enroll in the plan during the open enrollment period in July with no qualifying physical, or evidence of insurability or anytime during the year if a spouse and/or a dependent loses insurance due to a layoff, cancellation of insurance or company bankruptcy, etc.
Employees who elect not to participate in the Health Insurance Plan and to utilize the buyout option must present proof of alternative insurance coverage to the Superintendent of Schools or designee each year. For additional information regarding the Buy-Out Option, please call the Personnel Office, (315) 624-1280.
Medicare
Employees, upon retirement, who participate in the District’s health plan must notify the District as soon as they qualify for Medicare because of their age or disability status.
Family Medical Leave Act
Eligible employees may be provided with up to twelve weeks of leave during a 12- month period for the employee’s own serious health condition; to care for a family member with a serious health condition; for the birth of a child and care for the employee’s newborn child, adopt a child, or to receive a child into foster care; to care for a family member who is a member of the armed services and who has a serious injury or illness incurred in the line of duty; or, to respond to certain qualifying exigencies when a family member is on active duty or is called to active duty with the armed services.
If you are anticipating an extended absence please contact Jennifer Russ at the Human Resources/Labor Relations Office, (315) 624-1019. Please see the Family Medical Leave Act Policy 8200.