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TIA - Frequently Asked Questions

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La Porte ISD Teacher Incentive Allotment Q&A

What is TIA (Teacher Inventive Allotment)?
The Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA) was established by House Bill in an effort to reward, retain, and recruit highly effective teachers. The TIA is a program that provides top-performing teachers with an accessible pathway to a six-figure salary without having to leave the classroom.

Why is La Porte ISD applying for the Teacher Incentive Allotment?
La Porte ISD has great teachers that are showing fantastic student growth. As a district and as a profession, it is important that we retain these terrific teachers in the classroom.  Also, for the district to remain competitive in recruiting talented teachers, it must offer competitive compensation packages. Finally, the program and process of TIA serve as an incentive for teachers to grow professionally and focus on student growth.

Where does TIA funding come from?
The TIA funding was built into Texas state law as part of House Bill 3 during the 86th Texas        Legislature. It is a Tier 1 allotment through the Foundation School Program (FSP), the system through which the state provides funding to districts. This system, grounded in the Texas Education Code, creates a sustainable funding source for districts implementing TIA.

Is the TIA only for teachers?
Yes. The Teacher Incentive Allotment is specific to classroom teachers coded as 087 in PEIMS (Public Education Information Management System).

What is a designation?
Texas teachers can earn a designation – a distinction awarded to highly effective public-school teachers. The three designation levels are Recognized, Exemplary, and Master. These are placed on a teacher’s SBEC (State Board for Educator Certification) teaching certification and last for five years. Teachers with a National Board certification may be designated as Recognized.

What is National Board Certification and where can I find information about NCBT?
National Board Certification is a voluntary, advanced professional certification for Pre-K–12 educators that identifies teaching expertise through a performance-based, peer-reviewed assessment. More than 125,000 teachers across all 50 states have achieved Board Certification.

A teacher can find more information about National Board Certification from the NCBT website: NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFICATION.

Can Teachers earn Recognized designation if they are National Board Certified?
Yes. They will automatically earn a Recognized designation if they are already Nationally Board Certified. They can move up in designations.

How long does a TIA Designation last for a teacher?
TIA Designations are good for five years, at which the district can automatically submit teachers who meet eligibility for renewal for consideration by the state. Teachers earning a TIA    Designation of Recognized, Exemplary, or Master will receive their designated stipend for five years. Their designation moves with the teacher from campus to campus or another district should they move campuses or districts until that five-year period expires.

A teacher can move up levels within the TIA Designation System during the five years after receiving a designation. The teacher is not “stuck” at the level of Recognized or Exemplary. If a teacher receives an evaluation that qualifies them for a higher level within the system, then they would then be re-designated at that higher level for five years.

Once earned, can a teacher lose the designation?
The only ways teachers will lose the designation and allotment are if the teachers 1) lose their certification or 2) move out of a teaching position. The designated teacher holds a designation for 5 years. During those 5 years, the teacher may be considered for a higher designation, which will cause the 5-year period to start over. The allotment is paid to the teacher annually for 5 years.

Can multiple teachers on the same campus receive a designation? If so, is there a limit to how many?
Yes. Any teacher in an eligible position who receives a TIA designation of Recognized, Exemplary, or Master will qualify for the TIA funds associated with those corresponding designations, regardless of how many receive such designations per campus. There is no limit to the number of those who can receive a designation.

How is the local designation system for LPISD being developed?
The first step was to convene a committee of representatives from across the district to learn about TIA, do research, and provide input into the initial decisions around our local designation system. The LPISD TIA committee continues to meet monthly as we work on the application to develop and actualize the local designation system for LPISD.

Who will decide if a teacher receives a designation?
LPISD is in the process of creating a local teacher designation system that will include a measure of student growth, teacher observation and possibly other components.  That system will be used to evaluate whether a teacher earns a designation and which designation they earn.  The TEA must approve the local designation system and Texas Tech University will approve assuming the data LPISD will submit is valid and reliable.

When will LPISD TIA local designation system be implemented?
Currently, the LPISD is completing the TIA application for the 2023-2024 school year. LPISD is applying for the G cohort.

LPISD’s timeline:

  •   2023-2024: Submit TIA application to TEA in Spring 2024.

If LPISD TIA application is approved in July/August 2024:

  • 2024-2025- Data submission approval with Texas Tech
  • 2025-2026- Data submission for determining Designations for the Cohort 1 eligibility group. Teacher Payout by September 2026.

Are all teachers across La Porte ISD eligible for TIA designation?
Currently, no. La Porte ISD is applying for Cohort G, pending full system approval. The LPISD’s recommendation of Cohort 1 eligibility teachers were purposefully limited to start small, gain full system approval, and will grow in future years.

Which teaching categories are eligible per La Porte ISD’s TIA plan?
Below are the proposed eligibility teacher groups by phase.

 

TIA Phase in Schedule

Will additional grade levels and/or teaching categories be added in the future?
Yes. La Porte ISD plans to expand the program in the future to include additional grade levels and/or teaching categories. However, La Porte ISD elected to pursue a fully approved system before launching Cohort 2 with additional teaching categories.

What happens if a teacher changes grade levels next year?
TIA is always a year behind. The data from this year will be used to determine designations for next year. If a teacher does not earn a designation, his/her data from this year will be submitted for consideration in the next year.

When would TIA go into effect for La Porte ISD?
A TIA Designation System will be implemented in phases beginning with the 2024-2025 academic year serving as a “data collection year.” This will be a year with the designation program’s evaluation tools in place in order to provide supporting data that is then used for designating teachers within the system. LPISD plans to be in TIA in 2024-2025 school year and will continue to roll out over the preceding three to five years.

What is a teacher being measured on (to validate performance) for TIA?
If LPISD TIA application is approved, TEA and TTU review the following TIA required components that Districts submit annually in October (from the previous school year) to verify the validity and reliability of the measurements:

  • Teacher Performance
  • Student Growth

What does Student Growth look like for La Porte ISD?
Part of the work of the TIA Planning Committee will be to make recommendations during the 2023-2024 school year to District leadership around student growth measures for TIA purposes. Once District leadership and TEA approve, we will communicate the plan with all La Porte ISD staff.

How can I be sure the system is fair concerning assessing student growth?
The student growth requirement is a growth measure and not a proficiency measure. Regardless of where students start from, the student growth target measures the teacher’s ability to have their students meet their growth targets.

Why do we have to use T-TESS observations as part of this process?
Teacher Observation (T-TESS Domains II and III) is one of the two required components of the Teacher Incentive Allotment. The other required component is the Student Growth measure as determined by the District’s TIA committee and final approval by TEA.

How will I know that the evaluation process is fair?
LPISD will calibrate with administrators to ensure a fair, accurate, and rigorous observation system.

What is La Porte ISD’s plan for the allocation of the funds?
The funding for teachers designated as Recognized, Exemplary, and Master under TIA will flow to districts. In turn, the district must spend at least 90% of the funds on teacher compensation on the designated teachers’ campuses.

Texas Education Code (TEC) Section 48.114 (i)(1)(A) says: A district shall annually certify that funds received under this section were used as follows: At least 90% of each allotment received was used for the compensation of teachers employed at the campus at which the teacher for whom the District received the allotment is employed The statute states that allotment funds are not considered a property right.

Districts must submit their spending and communication plans for TEA to review during the system review process. La Porte ISD’s TIA planning committee will submit our spending and communication plan for final approval.

Does this impact my base pay?
No. The District’s salary scale determines your base pay. TIA is in addition to your already approved salary.

What is it that teachers should be doing now to prepare for consideration in the TIA?
The TIA recognizes teachers for the great work they are already doing. The best thing a teacher can do to earn a designation is to ensure he/she is participating and implementing professional learning based on T-TESS goals, designing effective lesson plans, following instructional best practices in the classroom, and meeting students where they are (differentiating, monitoring & adjusting) to help students grow!

 Helpful Links and Information

If you have additional questions regarding La Porte ISD Teacher Incentive Allotment, please submit your questions here.