ProComp Payments
Overview
Salary increases earned through the ProComp salary system are made either as a sustained or permanent increase or as a one-time bonus. The payments for the various ProComp components and elements are made according to the design of the element and how it functions. Most of the ProComp payments are paid in monthly installments, prorated over 12 months.
Some payments are regularly scheduled through the payroll department, while others are initiated by the employee with proper documentation provided by the employee. Salary increase and employee information change forms are posted in Section 11 of this section.
The payments for all elements, except tuition reimbursement, are based on a percentage of an index that is negotiated by DPS and DCTA. The percentages paid for each element do not change unless negotiated by DPS and DCTA. Tuition reimbursement pays a total of $1,000 over the course of an educator’s career.
The payments for the majority of ProComp elements build toward an educator’s pension and highest average salary. Payments made for tuition reimbursement do not build toward pension or highest salary.
Student Growth Payments
Student Growth Objectives
DPS educators are paid through ProComp for objectives they meet during the contract year. Each teacher and SSP sets two objectives. If both are met, the educator receives a salary increase of 1% of the ProComp index. If only one objective is met, the educator earns a one-time bonus of 1% of the index.
Payments for meeting student growth objectives are regularly scheduled and do not need to be initiated by the employee. Principals or managers report to payroll whether objectives are met. Payroll then computes pay increases for the educators who are in ProComp. The payments are prorated over 12 months, starting in September, based on how many objectives were met the previous year. Complete information and guidelines for student growth objectives are listed in Section 4A.
Payments for objectives are spread over 12 months, starting in September after the school year in which they are met.
Distinguished Schools
All educators who work in a distinguished school are eligible to receive a payment valued at 2% of the index. Distinguished schools are identified every autumn, based on data gathered about the previous contract year. Payment is made each month over a 12-month period beginning in January and retroactive to September. Educators do not need to initiate any paperwork to receive their payments for distinguished schools. The payments are generated through payroll for teachers and SSPs who served in the schools from data submitted by the Planning, Assessment and Research (PAR) Department.
Detailed information on the qualifications for distinguished schools is listed in Section 4B.
Knowledge and Skills Payments
Professional Development Units
Employees are paid for one professional development unit (PDU) per year, though the educator may complete a PDU and “bank” or save it for up to two years. Educators receive an increase equal to 2% of the index salary for each PDU they complete, after peer review of the three components: study, reflection and demonstration. They must initiate the procedure and submit the proper documents to get proper approval for each PDU before payment can be made. Detailed information on qualifying for payment for a PDU is found in Section 5A of this handbook.
The payouts for PDUs begin in the 2006-2007 contract year for educators in ProComp, once proper documentation is approved. Payment occurs at the completion of the work. The employee does not need to initiate the payment process. The PDU administrator will report to Payroll the records of completed PDUs. Payment for PDUs build pension and are counted toward final average salary.
Tuition Reimbursement
Tuition reimbursement is a lifetime account of $1,000 for DPS educators. Payments may be made at any time during an educator’s career and may be used all at once or spread out over multiple years. The payments are used for fees for classes, professional conferences or other developmental opportunities. Educators receive the reimbursement upon submission of proper documents and their approval. Guidelines for using tuition reimbursement and further details on payment procedures are provided in Section 5B of the handbook.
The tuition reimbursement element of ProComp was one of the first elements to be paid, taking effect in the 2005-2006 school year.
Procedures to Apply and Receive Payment
There are several guidelines for payment under the tuition reimbursement plan:
- Educators first must share their plans with their supervisor or administrator before beginning the study for which they want reimbursement. This communication is documented by the supervisor’s signature on the Tuition Reimbursement Proposal and Request Form
- The plan of study must improve practice in their current or proposed assignment and it must involve quality training through a higher education facility or a recognized professional association
- The reimbursement may be applied to work the teacher is already doing for ProComp, such as the study required for a Professional Development Unit
- Study must be completed before reimbursement can be initiated, and it needs to have been finished with a grade of C or better. If the class is pass/fail, then the only acceptable grade is “pass.”
Once the educator completes the study satisfactorily, he or she follows certain procedures to receive the tuition reimbursement:
- Documentation is shown to the supervisor that indicates successful completion of the professional development activity, such as an official university or college transcript or certificate of completion. The supervisor signs the Tuition Reimbursement Proposal and Request Form.
- The educator submits the original documentation to Payroll/Business Services. Documentation must include:
- Official university or college transcript or certificate of completion
- Receipts for what is to be reimbursed (cancelled checks, credit card receipts, etc.). Acceptable expenses include tuition, registration and books. No parking costs or similar fees are covered
- The completed Tuition Reimbursement Proposal and Request Form
- The educator keeps a copy of the documentation and should also give one to the supervisor.
- Once the payment is made, the paperwork is filed in the employee’s personnel file in Human Resources
Please note, the supervisor who makes the final sign off needs to be the same person—or that person’s replacement—who first approved the course proposal, although there is no time limit on when the courses are taken and presented for reimbursement.
Graduate Degree and National Licenses and Certificates
Employees in ProComp earn 9% of the ProComp index for an advanced degree. In order to receive compensation, the educator must complete the Request for Salary Advance portion of the Employee Information Change Form that is available on the Payroll and ProComp websites. Also required is the official transcript clearly indicating the degree conferred and the date of the degree. Payment begins on the next scheduled payday that is at least 25 days after the educator has properly submitted all required documentation to the Department of Human Resources.
Teachers and counselors who earn a National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) license receive a salary increase equal to 9% of the index under ProComp. Teachers may complete more than one NBPTS license and receive an additional salary increase of 9% as long as it is relevant to their current or proposed assignment. This license is available in several subject areas.
A number of advanced licenses and advanced certificates held by student services professionals have also been approved for an increase equal to 9% of the index. The distinction “advanced certificate” is important. Extra compensation is not provided for licenses and certificates required for employment. A list of licenses is provided in Section 5C.
Procedure to Receive Payment
To be compensated for an advanced license or advanced certificate, an educator must complete the Request for Salary Advance portion of the Employee Information Change Form that is available on the ProComp and Payroll websites. (a copy of the form is posted in Section 11 of this handbook). Attached to the form should be a copy of the license or certificate clearly indicating the name of the licensee and the effective dates of the license or certificate.
Educators are compensated for advanced licenses and advanced certificates related to their current assignments. Employees who change to an assignment unrelated to the license or certificate are no longer be entitled to this ProComp incentive.
Salary Decreases for Failure to Renew a License
If an employee received a salary increase for acquiring an advanced license or certificate and fails to renew that license or otherwise causes the license to lapse, the employee loses that salary increase. The amount lost is the same percentage as awarded when the license was obtained, only it is calculated on the index in effect at the time the license lapsed. Salary is reduced on the next scheduled payday following the expiration of the license. The salary increase is restored at the same percentage once the license is renewed; but it will be calculated on the index in effect at the time the proper renewal documentation is submitted to the Department of Human Resources.
Professional Evaluation Payments
Non-probationary teachers and student services professionals are evaluated every three years, and those who are given a satisfactory rating receive a payment equal to 3% of the ProComp index. Probationary employees are given annual evaluations. They receive a payment of 1% of the ProComp index if they receive a satisfactory evaluation.
These payments will be scheduled through payroll, without any initiation by the employee, and are prorated over a 12-month period. The payments build pension and highest average salary.
Market Incentives Payments
The criteria to be paid for Market Incentives are clearly spelled out in detail in the Market Incentives section. (Section 7) These payments are regularly scheduled and generated through payroll, though some itinerant employees who serve several schools will have to document their time and payment amounts in logs. The payments are paid in monthly installments to educators who serve in a hard to staff positions or work in hard to serve schools. Educators who qualify for either Market Incentive will be paid 3% of index salary for each month they serve in the eligible school or position.
The eligible hard-to-staff positions are listed in Section 7A and the hard-to-serve schools for the current year are listed in Section 7B. Both the positions and schools may change on an annual basis, though once schools are placed on the list of hard to serve, they will remain there for three years. If schools are renewed as hard to serve, they will be on the list for another three years.
Market incentives was the first ProComp component to begin issuing payments. Educators who signed up for ProComp in the first opt-in window began receiving MI payments, retroactive to September 2005, in January 2006. These regularly scheduled payments build pension and are counted toward the highest average salary.
Contacts Not Eligible for Compensation
Some services are not continuously provided to the same student but are, rather, intermittent by their nature. The following activities are not eligible for market incentive compensation:
u Periodic visits
u Brief or time limited consultations (not continuous )
u Intake
u Infrequent care or services (not continuous)
u Intermittent analysis
Teachers in Residence
Teachers in residence (TiRs) are normally hired into DPS at a salary below that which is paid to a regular teacher. The TiR program is designed to give an employee who is NCLB qualified in a content area a course of study to become a licensed teacher with full credentials. ProComp offers teachers in residence the incentives available to any other teacher, plus a raise to 5% of the index when they complete the TiR program, if they were hired at a salary below that of a regular teacher. Educators who entered the program on the regular salary scale are not eligible for the 5% increase.
TiRs who are hired into DPS after January 1, 2006 are automatically in ProComp and eligible to receive the program benefits, including tuition reimbursement for any classes they might be taking.
Application for Salary Increase
Teachers in resident who complete the TiR program may apply for a salary increase by submitting an Employee Change Form to payroll. They must also include an official transcript from Metropolitan State College indicating completion of the program and a copy of their Professional Teaching License, issued by the Colorado Department of Education. See Section 11- Forms for Employee Change Form.
Traditional Salary Schedule
For educators who chose not to opt into ProComp during the available windows, the traditional salary schedule will remain active. It will not be discontinued until all teachers and SSP’s who might have been paid through it originally have either left the district or retired. This applies only to employees who were hired prior to January 2006. All educators hired after ProComp went into effect in January 2006 will be placed into the ProComp system.