Connecticut § 10-66dd - School professionals and persons holding charter school educator permits employed in charter schools. Charter schools subject to laws governing public schools; exceptions; waivers. Participation in the state teacher retirement system.

§ 10-66dd. School professionals and persons holding charter school educator permits employed in charter schools. Charter schools subject to laws governing public schools; exceptions; waivers. Participation in the state teacher retirement system.

Sec. 10-66dd. School professionals and persons holding charter school educator permits employed in charter schools. Charter schools subject to laws governing public schools; exceptions; waivers. Participation in the state teacher retirement system. (a) For purposes of this section, “school professional” means any school teacher, administrator or other personnel certified by the State Board of Education pursuant to section 10-145b.

(b) (1) Subject to the provisions of this subsection and except as may be waived pursuant to subsection (d) of section 10-66bb, charter schools shall be subject to all federal and state laws governing public schools, including the provisions of sections 10-4a and 10-4b.

(2) Subject to the provisions of subdivision (5) of this subsection, at least one-half of the persons providing instruction or pupil services in a charter school shall possess the proper certificate other than (A) a certificate issued pursuant to subdivision (1) of subsection (c) of section 10-145b, or (B) a temporary certificate issued pursuant to subsection (c) of section 10-145f on the day the school begins operation and the remaining persons shall possess a certificate issued pursuant to said subdivision (1) or such temporary certificate on such day.

(3) The commissioner may not waive the provisions of chapters 163c and 169 and sections 10-15c, 10-153a to 10-153g, inclusive, 10-153i, 10-153j, 10-153m and 10-292.

(4) The state charter school governing council shall act as a board of education for purposes of collective bargaining. The school professionals and persons holding a charter school educator permit, issued by the State Board of Education pursuant to section 10-145q, employed by a local charter school shall be members of the appropriate bargaining unit for the local or regional school district in which the local charter school is located and shall be subject to the same collective bargaining agreement as the school professionals employed by such district. A majority of those employed or to be employed in the local charter school and a majority of the members of the governing council of the local charter school may modify, in writing, such collective bargaining agreement, consistent with the terms and conditions of the approved charter, for purposes of employment in the charter school.

(5) For the school year commencing July 1, 2011, and each school year thereafter, the Commissioner of Education may waive the requirements of subdivision (2) of this subsection for any administrator or person providing instruction or pupil services employed by a charter school who holds a charter school educator permit, issued pursuant to section 10-145q, provided not more than thirty per cent of the total number of administrators and persons providing instruction or pupil services employed by a charter school hold the charter school educator permit for the school year.

(6) For the school year commencing July 1, 2011, and each school year thereafter, any administrator holding a charter school educator permit, issued pursuant to section 10-145q, shall be authorized to supervise and conduct performance evaluations of any person providing instruction or pupil services in the charter school that such administrator is employed.

(c) School professionals employed by a local or regional board of education shall be entitled to a two-year leave of absence, without compensation, in order to be employed in a charter school provided such leave shall be extended upon request for an additional two years. At any time during or upon the completion of such a leave of absence, a school professional may return to work in the school district in the position in which he was previously employed or a comparable position. Such leave of absence shall not be deemed to be an interruption of service for purposes of seniority and teachers' retirement, except that time may not be accrued for purposes of attaining tenure. A school professional who is not on such a leave of absence and is employed for forty school months of full-time continuous employment by the charter school and is subsequently employed by a local or regional board of education shall attain tenure after the completion of twenty school months of full-time continuous employment by such board of education in accordance with section 10-151.

(d) (1) An otherwise qualified school professional hired by a charter school prior to July 1, 2010, and employed in a charter school may participate in the state teachers' retirement system under chapter 167a on the same basis as if such professional were employed by a local or regional board of education. The governing council of a charter school shall make the contributions, as defined in section 10-183b, for such professional.

(2) An otherwise qualified school professional hired by a charter school on or after July 1, 2010, and who has not previously been employed by a charter school in this state prior to July 1, 2010, shall participate in the state teachers' retirement system under chapter 167a on the same basis as if such professional were employed by a local or regional board of education. The governing council of a charter school shall make the contributions, as defined in section 10-183b, for such professional.

(3) Any administrator or person providing instruction or pupil services in a charter school who holds a charter school educator permit issued by the State Board of Education pursuant to section 10-145q shall participate in the state teachers' retirement system under chapter 167a pursuant to subdivision (2) of this section when such administrator or person providing instruction or pupil services obtains professional certification pursuant to section 10-145b.

(P.A. 96-214, S. 4; 96-244, S. 56, 63; P.A. 97-247, S. 14, 27; P.A. 10-111, S. 13; P.A. 11-28, S. 4, 5; 11-60, S. 1; 11-234, S. 2; P.A. 22-118, S. 190; P.A. 23-160, S. 44.)

History: P.A. 96-244 amended Subsec. (c) to remove provision that a leave of absence not be deemed an interruption of service for “any purpose of employment” and substituted “teacher's retirement” for “employee benefits”, effective July 1, 1996; P.A. 97-247 made technical changes in Subsec. (b), effective July 1, 1997; P.A. 10-111 amended Subsec. (d) by designating existing provisions as Subdiv. (1), adding “hired by a charter school prior to July 1, 2010, and” therein and adding Subdiv. (2) re mandatory participation in teacher retirement system, effective July 1, 2010; P.A. 11-28 made technical changes in Subsecs. (b) and (d), effective June 3, 2011; P.A. 11-60 amended Subsec. (b) by adding provision re persons holding charter school educator permit in Subdiv. (4), adding Subdiv. (5) re waiver for charter school educator permit holders and making a conforming change in Subdiv. (2), and amended Subsec. (d) by adding Subdiv. (3) re participation in state teachers' retirement system when charter school educator permit holders obtain professional certification, effective July 1, 2011; P.A. 11-234 made identical changes as P.A. 11-60 and added Subsec. (b)(6) re authorization for administrators holding permit to supervise and conduct performance evaluations, effective July 1, 2011; P.A. 22-118 amended Subsec. (d) to delete references to Subdiv. (7) of Sec. 10-183b in Subdivs. (1) and (2), effective July 1, 2022; P.A. 23-160 amended Subsec. (b)(1) by adding “including the provisions of sections 10-4a and 10-4b”, effective July 1, 2023.