ARTICLE 10 CLASS SIZE

Chariho School District

A. The average maximum class size ratio of students per certified elementary classroom educator at each grade level in the school district shall be as follows:

No individual class shall exceed:

When district student enrollment counts at any grade K-6 level exceed the number of students required for a specific number of sections by five (5) or fewer students, NEA Chariho and the administration may mutually agree that educators may be compensated as per Appendix B if individual class size limits are violated. Otherwise, those five (5) students may be placed without adding an additional section.

Students who are in self-contained placements for more than seventy-five percent (75%) of the school day shall not be counted in class size calculations.

B. Secondary teaching responsibilities:

1. The maximum teaching responsibility for grades 7 and/or 8 educators shall be one hundred twenty-five (125) pupils per educator; no individual class shall exceed 25 students. The intent of the increase is not to layoff teachers, however, if enrollment declines, the School Committee reserves the right to reduce staff

2. The maximum teaching responsibility for grades 9 through 12 educators shall be one hundred twenty-five (125) pupils per educator. The intent of the increase is not to layoff teachers, however, if enrollment declines, the School Committee reserves the right to reduce staff

3. At the High School level, the maximum individual class size shall be as follows:

Advanced Placement*	20 students
Honors	30 students
College Preparation	30 students
Basic/Extended	20 students

*The District shall provide specialized training for educators of advanced placement courses. In the first year of teaching an advanced placement course, two (2) professional days per quarter shall be offered for the purpose of long-range planning.

C. In classes with work and/or laboratory stations, the number of students assigned shall not exceed the number of work and/or laboratory stations.

D. With mutual agreement with NEA Chariho, there may be split grade classes; i.e. an educator may be assigned a class containing students from more than one (1) grade level.

E. After October 2nd new students may be assigned on a fair and equitable basis so long as no individual class/teaching responsibility is exceeded. Every effort will be made to provide educators with twenty-four (24) hour notice prior to a student’s first day of class.

1. At the kindergarten through grade six (6) levels, in the event all individual classes within a grade in a building have reached the maximums as described above, new students will be assigned on a fair and equitable basis. Educators shall be compensated as set forth in Appendix B.

2. At the grade seven (7) through twelve (12) levels, in the event all individual classes/teaching responsibilities have reached the maximums as described above, new students will be assigned on a fair and equitable basis. Educators shall be compensated as set forth in Appendix B.

3. Payments to educators for overages will be dispersed on a quarterly basis.

F. School counselors at the High School and Career and Technical Center shall be assigned no more than two hundred sixty (260) and Middle School counselors no more than three hundred twenty (320) students per counselor. Counselor load shall be determined as of October 1st.

The school counselor or chair will be assigned a student caseload at .5 of the other High School guidance counselors, not to exceed one hundred thirty (130) students.

G. In some isolated instances where a student’s placement might be impacted by strict adherence to class size limits, such placements will be accommodated with consent of the individual educator and NEA Chariho. It is mutually understood that any such accommodations shall not be deemed a precedent in another or other similar situation.

H. At the elementary and middle school levels, the principal, in consultation with educators at each building, shall develop a procedure for the educationally appropriate placement of students for the next school year.

1. Two (2) educators and/or teams may request to loop; the permission of the principal is required, which shall not be unreasonably denied. Being in a looping program will not alter any educator’s originally assigned position. The parties agree that educators volunteering for and assigned to loops will remain in those positions for the term of the loop unless displaced.

a.  The looping process shall operate as follows:

i. There will be an equal number of voluntary educators and/or teams in each grade for the looping program.

ii. In the event there is an unequal number of educators and/or teams volunteering, a lottery will be used to determine the order of participation of voluntary educators and/or teams in the loop.

I. Educators will be allowed to voluntarily participate, with their principal’s approval, in a co-teaching model for regular/special education service delivery. The voluntary commitment to this model shall be open for annual renewal by both the educator and the principal. Any position posted and filled as a co-teaching position will not be subject to annual renewal by the educator. The principal may require a return of the educator’s classroom assignment to a traditional model if, in the principal’s opinion, the special education population in any succeeding year does not warrant the co-teaching model.