Title 6, Education

(a) All school districts shall be required to provide workers' compensation coverage for their employees. (b) Coverages shall be provided for losses incurred while performing work for the school district.

(a) Claims incurred before July 1, 1994, shall continue to be the responsibility of the state. (b) Claims incurred on and after July 1, 1994, shall be the responsibility of the school districts.

(a) School districts may provide workers' compensation coverage either through private carriers, municipal self-funding groups, or one (1) or more self-funding groups. (b) Self-funding groups established for this purpose shall meet the following requirements:(1) Any such group es…

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “High-need public school” means an Arkansas public school that, at the time a master principal first becomes entitled to a high-need school salary bonus, is identified as failing to meet certain established levels of academic achievement under r…

(a) There is created the Master School Principal Program to provide training programs and opportunities to expand the knowledge base and leadership skills of public school principals. (b) The program shall be administered by the Arkansas Leadership Academy. (c) The program shall …

(a) The Division of Elementary and Secondary Education shall promulgate rules for the nine-thousand-dollar yearly incentive bonus provided under this section for principals receiving master school principal status. (b) The division shall pay a yearly incentive bonus of nine thous…

(a) The State Board of Education shall promulgate rules for an additional high-need school salary bonus, including a hold-back longevity bonus, for each principal receiving master school principal status and serving as a principal of a high-need public school. (b) (1) The Divisio…

(a) By August 1, 2022, each public school district and open-enrollment public charter school in the state shall prepare a three-year teacher and administrator recruitment and retention plan. (b) The plan shall set forth goals for:(1) The recruitment and retention of teachers and …

(a) The Equity Assistance Center shall provide technical assistance, guidance, and support to public school districts and public open-enrollment charter schools in developing recruitment and retention plans and setting and meeting annual goals. (b) (1) Each public school district…

(a) (1) The Department of Education shall set goals for increasing the number of teachers and administrators of minority races and ethnicities in this state.(2) (A) The Division of Higher Education shall collaborate with the State Board of Education, local universities, colleges,…

(a) Each school district in the state shall have a set of written personnel policies, including the teacher salary schedule. (b) “Personnel policies” means all school district policies, guidelines, regulations, and procedures that pertain to the terms and conditions of a teacher'…

(a) School district boards of directors or their representatives shall not take or threaten actions that interfere with, restrain, or coerce a teacher in the exercise of the teacher's right to join a professional organization. (b) However, nothing in this section shall be constru…

(a) Each school district shall have a committee on personnel policies, which shall consist of no fewer than five (5) classroom teachers and no more than three (3) administrators, one (1) of which may be the superintendent. (b) (1) The classroom teacher members of each school dist…

(a) The personnel policies of all school districts shall be:(1) Considered to be incorporated as terms of licensed personnel contracts; and(2) Binding on licensed personnel and the school district. (1) Considered to be incorporated as terms of licensed personnel contracts; and (2…

(a) (1) Each school district's committee on personnel policies shall organize itself in the first quarter of each school year and elect a chair and a secretary.(2) The committee shall develop a calendar of meetings throughout the year to review the school district's personnel pol…

(a) Each teacher or administrator employed by a school district for the first time shall be given a digital copy of the school district's personnel policies in effect at the time of his or her employment. (b) Each teacher or administrator shall be furnished a digital copy of any …

No school district which does not have written personnel policies shall be accredited by the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education.

(a) (1) It is the public policy of the State of Arkansas that:(A) Each school district shall have a written grievance procedure that provides for an orderly method of resolving concerns raised by an employee at the lowest possible administrative level and in a clear and timely ma…

(a) For purposes of this section, the following definitions shall apply:(1) “Consolidation” means any reorganization, merger, collapse, or annexation of any school districts or portions of any school districts either voluntarily or involuntarily;(2) “Interim policy review board” …

An employee shall be entitled to and shall be offered the opportunity to have a witness or representative of the employee's choice present during any disciplinary or grievance matter with any administrator.

(a) As used in this section:(1) “Personal leave” means absence for illness, annual leave, or other personal leave as defined by the personnel policies of a school district or an education service cooperative; and(2) “School functions” means:(A) Athletic or academic events related…

This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Classified School Employee Minimum Salary Act”.

(1) As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise requires:(1) (A) “Classified employee” means any employee of a public school district in Arkansas who performs work for the school district and who is not required to hold a valid teaching license issued by the State Bo…

(a) A full-time classified employee shall not receive an hourly rate of compensation less than six dollars and twenty-five cents ($6.25) per hour. (b) No classified employee's hourly rate of compensation shall be reduced as a result of this subchapter. (c) Beginning July 1, 2003,…

The State Board of Education is authorized to promulgate rules to establish a method of determining whether a classified employee shall be considered to work twenty (20) or more hours per week.

(1) For those classified employees working more than twenty (20) hours per week:(1) (A) Each school district in the state shall provide no fewer than two (2) paid fifteen-minute breaks during each regular workday for each classified school employee.(B) The contract day shall not …

(a) (1) The purpose of this section is to provide a bonus from the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education in recognition of the efforts made by paraprofessional employees who attain highly qualified status.(2) A person who is eligible for a bonus under this section may re…

(a) Each school district in the State of Arkansas shall have a set of written personnel policies, including the salary schedule for classified employees. (b) Personnel policies of concern to the classified personnel policies committee shall include without limitation the followin…

(a) The provisions of this subchapter shall not apply if the school district chooses to officially recognize in its policies an organization representing the majority of the nonmanagement classified employees of the school district for the purpose of negotiating personnel policie…

(a) (1) Each school district shall have a committee on personnel policies for classified employees, which shall consist of at least one (1) nonmanagement classified representative from each of the following five (5) classifications:(A) Maintenance, operation, and custodians;(B) T…

(a) The personnel policies of each school district shall be considered to be incorporated as terms of the classified employees' contracts and shall be binding upon the classified employees and the school district. (b) (1) Any change or addition to the classified personnel policie…

(a) The school district's committee on personnel policies for classified employees shall organize itself in the first quarter of each school year, elect a chair and secretary, and develop a calendar of meetings throughout the year to review the school district's personnel policie…

(a) (1) Each classified employee being employed by a school district for the first time shall be given a copy of the school district's personnel policies in effect at the time of his or her employment.(2) A digital copy provided to an employee or an online copy that is accessible…

This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Teacher Compensation Program of 2003”.

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) (A) (i) “Basic contract” means a teacher employment contract for one hundred ninety (190) days that includes no less than six (6) days of professional development, except as provided under subdivision (1)(B) of this section for teachers employed…

(a) (1) The board of directors in each public school district and open-enrollment public charter school in the state shall pay classroom teachers a minimum base salary of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000).(2) To be eligible for funds to implement the minimum base salary under this…

Each biennium, the House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education shall analyze the compensation levels provided in this subchapter, review relevant data, and make recommendations to the General Assembly for any adjustments to the compensation levels as needed…

(a) As used in this section, “teacher” means a full-time employee of the C-Step Program or the Arkansas National Guard Youth Challenge Program, or both:(1) Who is compelled by law to secure a license from the State Board of Education as a condition precedent to employment in a po…

(a) (1) It is the public policy of the State of Arkansas that each school district shall have a written policy on reduction in force based upon criteria for a layoff and recall of employees, which shall include without limitation an employee's:(A) Merit;(B) Ability;(C) Attendance…

This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Arkansas Teacher of the Year Act”.

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “In residence” means working exclusively with the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education at a location agreed upon between the division and the Arkansas Teacher of the Year;(2) “School district board of directors” means the local board o…

(a) (1) The Division of Elementary and Secondary Education shall develop a process for selecting the Arkansas Teacher of the Year.(2) This process shall work in conjunction with and in support of the process for selecting a National Teacher of the Year. (1) The Division of Elemen…

(a) Each school district and open-enrollment public charter school whose applicant is selected as Arkansas Teacher of the Year shall place that teacher on paid administrative leave for the school year immediately following the teacher's selection as Arkansas Teacher of the Year f…

(a) During the school year in which a school district's or an open-enrollment public charter school's Arkansas Teacher of the Year is on paid administrative leave, the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education shall reimburse the school district or open-enrollment public cha…

(a) While serving as Arkansas Teacher of the Year, the teacher shall also serve in an advisory position as a nonvoting member of the State Board of Education. (b) The teacher shall provide a written advisory report to the state board on how to better provide teacher professional …

(1) The purpose of this subchapter is to provide a lifetime teaching license to:(1) Recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to education or the profession of teaching through educational research, scholarly endeavors, excellence in teaching, educational inno…