FARMINGTON — The Regional School Unit 9 board of directors heard a presentation on the updates to the teacher-evaluation process at the Tuesday, July 26, meeting.

Director of Curriculum Laura Columbia and Mt. Blue Education Association President Doug Hodum spoke about what revisions are being proposed to the evaluation process, which will soon come before the board for approval.

Columbia and Hodum are co-chairs of the teacher-evaluations committee, which is half comprised of teachers from across the district’s schools alongside a special education interventionist and building/district administrators.

Columbia said the committee has worked on revisions to the process in the last year, with a focus on prioritizing improvement and facilitating the overall evaluation process.

The committee is seeking to keep the evaluation system and software the same, but is proposing changes to the number of components to be evaluated.

Teachers would also have an opportunity to choose growth plans and action steps encapsulating a series of elements they’ve labeled as “SMART” goals, an acronym for “specific,” “measurable,” “attainable,” “relevant” and “time based.”

Columbia said the SMART guidelines can help teachers “move forward in their goals” and offer “principles to use for feedback.”

Alongside these changes, Hodum told the board that the committee will be “implementing a variety of different supports” upon request from staff and administrators.

“We’ve gotten some feedback from … administrators and teachers saying that they feel like they need a little bit more support in the process,” Hodum explained.

He said the committee has met with administrators to help them establish a system for creating growth plans with teachers and finalizing ratings/scores for teachers.

The committee will also practice teacher observations with administrators — who are required to do so in the evaluation process.

To better support teachers, Hodum said that they will be spreading out orientations/trainings on how to use the evaluation software programs.

He said this will help avoid overwhelming new teachers with information and give them “a little bit more time to process through and develop a good, solid growth plan.”

During discussion, Weld Director Debbie Smith asked how often the evaluations occur.

Hodum explained probationary teachers, or new teachers, are reviewed annually for the two-year probationary period. Following that period, the evaluations will happen every three years unless they are assigned an action plan.

Following the presentation Superintendent Chris Elkington said it’s been important to prioritize the voice of teachers so the evaluations can “lead to improved learning for students and improved instruction by staff.”

“This is one of the most important efforts that we can make in our school system,” Elkington said. “This committee is vital.”

Board of directors Chairperson Carol Coles, of Starks added that these revisions, focused on growth can help with the perception that an “evaluation is a negative thing, when in fact it can be a support to improve schools and do some exciting work.”