CHAPTER 6.00 - PERSONNEL

6.15 Educational Paraprofessional and Aides

POLICY: 

An education paraprofessional is any person assigned by the School Board to assist instructional staff member(s) in performing his/her instructional or professional duties or responsibilities. A paraprofessional may have additional responsibilities consistent with the requirements of the Federal No Child Left Behind Act.

(1) The conditions of employment of an education paraprofessional shall be governed by Board policy and shall include the following:

(a) Have a high school diploma or hold a high school equivalency diploma issued pursuant to State Board of Education rules. 

(b) Be at least eighteen (18) years of age. 

(c) Submit to a complete set of fingerprints taken by a law enforcement agency or properly trained District personnel and the appropriate processing fee. The fingerprints shall be acceptable for processing by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Director of Human Resources or designee shall initiate a records check by the two (2) agencies. 

(d) A drug test may be required of all school related personnel applicants recommended for hire and shall be administered by the Board approved testing laboratory. 

(e) A drug testing processing fee may be deducted from the employee’s first salary warrant. 

(f) One (1) of the following additional conditions apply immediately to all educational paraprofessionals (employed in a Title I school) hired after January 8, 2002 or by January 8, 2006 to educational paraprofessionals employed prior to January 8, 2002. 

-Completed two (2) years of study in an institution of higher education (60 semester hours); 

-Have an associate or higher degree; 

-Passed a formal academic assessment, to be approved by the Federal and State agencies.

(2) The principal shall assure that the education paraprofessional assigned to the school possesses a clear understanding of State and District rules relating to education paraprofessional responsibilities and to the safety, welfare, and health of students. It shall be the principal and the instructional staff member’s responsibility to ascertain that an education paraprofessional possesses the necessary knowledge about rules to perform duties of a special nature in a proper and reasonable manner. 

(3) It shall be the principal’s responsibility to assure the School Board and the Superintendent that each education paraprofessional possesses a clear understanding of all State and District instructional practices and rules relevant to an education paraprofessional responsibilities if he/she is expected to assist a teacher in promoting learning activities. When an education paraprofessional is assigned duties requiring knowledge of instructional practices and policies or providing prescribed physical care for students of a specialized nature, it is the instructional staff member’s responsibility to ascertain in advance whether the education paraprofessional possesses the necessary knowledge and skills. 

(4) The education paraprofessional shall complete a period of supervised practice when assigned to a new instructional staff member or assigned a type of duty which he/she has not previously performed. The length of such supervised practice may vary depending upon previous experiences of the education paraprofessional. A record shall be maintained in each school to show the length, nature, and inclusive dates of each supervised practice assignment for each education paraprofessional. 

(5) An education paraprofessional may administer or proctor statewide standardized assessments or assessments associated with Florida Approved Courses in accordance with Florida Statutes and State Board of Education rules. Paraprofessionals must complete required training prior to performing these tasks.

(6) An education paraprofessional shall not perform any of the following:

(a) Establish instructional objectives; 

(b) Render decisions regarding the relevancy of certain activities or procedures to achieve instructional objectives; 

(c) Make decisions regarding the appropriateness of training materials for accomplishing instructional objectives; and, 

(d) Evaluate a student’s attainment of instructional objectives unless clear and objective criteria such as a specific achievement standard on an objective test are defined. 

(e) Any duties that are prohibited in federal and/or state legislation. 

(6) The principal and instructional staff members who are assigned education paraprofessionals shall be responsible for assigning duties to education paraprofessionals which are consistent with Florida Statutes, State Board of Education rules, and School Board rules. 

STATUTORY AUTHORITY : 1001.41; 1012.22; 1012.23, F.S. 

LAWS IMPLEMENTED: 1001.43; 1008.24; 1012.22; 1012.32; 1012.37, F.S.; 34CFR200. 

STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION RULES: 6A-1.070; 6B-1.006 

History: Adopted: January 14, 1999 

Revision Date(s): October 7, 2003; February 8, 2005, September 12, 2006;  January 12, 2016 

Formerly: