National Resource Center for Paraeducators (NRCP)
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The National Resource Center for Paraeducators (NRCP) is always interested in what is happening in the field of paraeducation. Over the last several years we have conducted surveys to determine who is working as a paraeducator, what your roles are, what type of local, district and state support you receive, as well as training and supervision issues and needs. Your feedback is vital as we seek to gather answers regarding the impact of COVID on your schools and your jobs over the last 2 years.
Please assist us with gathering this important information by clicking the link below to take the survey. We know your time is valuable, this short survey should only take 6-10 minutes of your time. A word from your president about NRCP. This is an organization that I have belonged to for quite a number of years. They hold national conferences, trainings and leadership meetings. I will be attending (virtually) a Leadership Meeting and Conference on January 11-13. Anyone is welcome to attend the conference if you choose. Please find a link below where you can subscribe to their newsletter for free. You will find a tremendous amount of helpful information on their website and in their newsletters. Paraeducators website at www.nrcpara.org |
Scholarships
AHPA will be giving out five $500.00 scholarships this year, one to each High School.
Who is eligible: Seniors who have a parent that is a member of AHPA.
How do I apply for a scholarship: Every school has their own process for applying for scholarships and the student’s advisor or Guidance officer will be notifying them of
dates/deadlines to fill out the application for their school. Some applications may have a box that needs to be checked if interested in and eligible for the AHPA scholarship.
What can I do now: To be eligible for the AHPA scholarship, you must send the following information to Jacquelyn.Dombek@ahschools.us
-Name of student applying and the school they attend
-Name of parent who is an AHPA member and the school they work at
–Deadline to get names to Jacquelyn Dombek is March 1, 2022
-A confirmation will be sent letting you know your name was received.
How will I be notified if my student earned the scholarship: The dates for the presentation of the scholarships will be posted and students will receive an invitation if they are to receive a scholarship.
Disclaimer: While AHPA provides the scholarship, they have no say in who receives it. There is a scholarship committee at each school that decides who receives each scholarship offered. It is based on things such as GPA (they generally require a minimum GPA), extracurricular activities, sports, volunteer work, classes enrolled in, etc. If no student meets the requirements at a particular school, no scholarship will be awarded at that school.
Mileage Reimbursement
A mileage rate of 58.5 cents per mile will become effective for reimbursable miles traveled on or after Jan. 1, 2022. This is a 2.5¢ increase from 2021.
Mileage forms are available on the district website in the Document Center for Staff under Accounting > Mileage or by clicking here. Be sure to report your mileage on the proper form (2021 or 2022 mileage) to ensure timely reimbursement. Please do not create your own mileage form, it slows down processing in accounting.
Mileage reimbursement is meant to cover only those miles incurred which are required in fulfillment of the employee’s contractual duties AND which would exceed the employee’s normal daily commute to their regular place of work. If you are sent from your building to a different location during your duty day for any reason, you are eligible for mileage reimbursement.
Budget
The Executive Board recommended and the Representative Committee passed AHPA’s 2022 budget.
Covid
The CDC has changed recommendations but the district policy is currently the same:
Individuals who test positive for COVID-19 can return to school when:
- It has been 10 days since symptoms first began or if no symptoms 10 days from a positive test; and
- Their symptoms have improved; and
- They have had no fever for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication.
- Note: All three must happen in order for individuals to return to school
If and when there is an outbreak of more than three confirmed cases in a classroom in 14 days, a notification will be sent to parent/guardians of students in that classroom.
This was the previous policy. After discussion with the district, staff will also be notified. This policy applies to elementary schools and center-based rooms. Secondary schools have too much movement from class to class to be able to track exposure and make notifications.
Revised School Calendar
ahschools.us/calendar – Mid year revisions article
Paras had the option on January 3rd to take a personal day or dock day if they chose not to work. Normally you cannot take a dock day if you still have personal days available, you also would not receive the two days of holiday pay over winter break if you take a dock day immediately before or after the break. Labor Relations stated: After further review, we will not be holding Paras to this practice on January 3rd. If a Para chooses to use a dock day on January 3rd, and save their personal day for use at a later time, that will be allowed.
Paras who normally work Adventures + before or after school were scheduled to support A+ students. Many paras were scheduled for CPI training and refresher courses while others were scheduled for Catalyst training at the ESC or other various training, some of which were online. Paras may also have been assigned to review IEPs, assist teachers with planning, collaborate with building staff, clean and organize spaces, assist Educational Office Professionals in the building or perform other duties as assigned.
There are three other upcoming dates that will be duty days for paras but not a student contact day. (Students in secondary schools will have an asynchronous learning day.) Those dates are February 18th, April 18th and May 13th. I am not aware if these days will be handled the same as January 3rd.