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STRATEGIC PLAN REPORT:

PREMIER WORKFORCE

We commit to invest in our

employees, encourage innovation,

and celebrate success

April 2019

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FAIRFAX COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Scott Brabrand, Ed.D. Division Superintendent

Marty K. Smith

Chief Operating Officer

GOAL CHAMPION Helen Nixon, Assistant Superintendent, Human Resources

OFFICE OF RESEARCH AND STRATEGIC IMPROVEMENT Ludmila Z. Hruda, Director

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Table of Contents Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 3

Report Organization ............................................................................................................... 3

Performance Color Codes ...................................................................................................... 4

Return on Investment ............................................................................................................. 4

Exceptional Employees ........................................................................................................... 6

Overview ................................................................................................................................ 6

Detail...................................................................................................................................... 7

Recruitment ......................................................................................................................... 7

SY 2017-18 Outcomes. ................................................................................................... 7

SY 2017-18 Actions......................................................................................................... 9

Return on Investment .....................................................................................................12

Data Analysis and Concusions .......................................................................................13

Hiring .................................................................................................................................15

SY 2017-18 Outcomes ...................................................................................................15

SY 2017-18 Actions .......................................................................................................16


Data Analysis and Conclusions ......................................................................................16

Retention ...........................................................................................................................16

SY 2017-18 Outcomes ...................................................................................................17

SY 2017-18 Actions .......................................................................................................17



Future Considerations ...........................................................................................................18

Market Competitive Compensation .......................................................................................18

Overview ...............................................................................................................................19

Detail.....................................................................................................................................20

SY 2017-18 Outcomes ...................................................................................................20

SY 2017-18 Actions .......................................................................................................20



Future Considerations ...........................................................................................................23

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Introduction This Strategic Plan report is the first to be completed since the School Board’s adoption

of the Strategic Plan SY 2018-20 Focus on March 7, 2019. Those enhancements include

streamlined outcomes the division is focusing on for school years (SYs) 2018-20 along

with enhanced metrics and streamlined targets to demonstrate progress on those

outcomes. This Premier Workforce report describes actions and outcomes from SY 2017-

18, which occurred prior to the recent approval of the enhanced Strategic Plan. While

these actions were not intentionally aligned to the current metrics approved in March

2019, they did further the majority of these new metrics. Future reports will describe

intentionally-aligned actions implemented to help the division reach its desired outcomes.

Report Organization

Reporting on each outcome comprises six sections:

Overview of SY 17-18 performance and progress toward the 2018-20 Targets for

each of the plan’s Aspirations.

Outcomes Narrative details the performance on each metric and highlights progress

toward the 2018-20 Target.

Actions Narrative highlights individual activities falling under the overarching

strategic action (“How”) that staff implemented. In this first year, since it is a look back

at 2017-18, when these structures were not in place, these activities describe what

FCPS undertook during the reporting year. In future years, the activities listed in this

section will describe programs, services, projects, and initiatives that are part of the

Division’s Strategic Action Plans developed specifically to achieve each outcome.

Return on Investment (ROI) Analysis provides evidence of the relation between

funds expended on activities and strategic benefits. ROI can also support decisions

made on whether to continue, modify, or end activities within the Strategic Action Plan.

In this first year of reporting on the new metrics, ROI analysis should not be used for

this latter purpose as 2017-18 activities were not specifically intended to support the

new metrics.

Data Analysis and Conclusions provides an analysis of the effectiveness of the

activities taken to make progress toward the goal and what adjustments, if any, are

recommended for FCPS to make continued progress or extend efforts to new

initiatives.

Future Considerations contains implications for policy, funding, and/or strategic

concerns.

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Performance Color Codes

For this report, each metric has a color-coded assessment of overall progress toward the

2020 targets. The assessments of progress in this report are interim assessments toward

the 2020 target and, therefore, any improvement since baseline was judged as having

progressed toward the target.

Dark teal indicates that FY18 performance met or exceeded the SYs 18-20

target. For metrics reporting on subgroups, for performance to be color-coded

dark teal, all subgroups had to have made progress toward the SYs 18-20

target.

Light teal indicates that FY18 performance progressed toward the SYs 18-20

target. For metrics reporting on subgroups, for performance to be color-coded

light teal, all but one of the subgroups had to have made progress toward the

SYs 18-20 target.

Yellow indicates that FY18 performance did not make progress toward the SYs

18-20 target. For metrics reporting on subgroups, for performance to be color-

coded yellow, two or more subgroups had to have shown no progress.

Return on Investment

This is the first time return on investment (ROI) information is being included in FCPS’

annual Strategic Plan reporting. In this first year, the ROI calculations are based on funds

that could be directly tied to new or enhanced actions associated with the current metrics.

It is anticipated that future reports will allow for more complex ROI analyses, as we align

our programs, services, projects, and initiatives to the focused plan and its new metrics

and targets.

FCPS uses a continuum of approaches for evaluating the link between expenditures and

benefits to analyze ROI (see graphic below). As approaches increase along this

continuum, so do the time, data, and expertise required for execution. Less complex

approaches are more descriptive than evaluative, describing outcomes observed after

related funds are spent. More complex approaches become increasingly evaluative and,

in some cases, can definitively link specific expenditures to their related benefits. The five

approaches that FCPS uses to assess the return on investment are:

Cost per participant describes expenditures in relation to the number of

participants in a program or project, or the number of recipients of services

provided by a service or initiative.

Cost description is a process of identifying observed benefits or outcomes that

are associated with a specific program, service, project, or initiative that has been

funded, such as improvements to student achievement, operational efficiency, or

teacher retention.

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Monetary ROI evaluates whether a monetary investment results in a monetary

gain larger than the initial investment amount (e.g., cost savings or cost

avoidance).

Academic ROI is used to show the non-monetary outcomes, such as student

achievement, associated with expenditures in a school division.

Social ROI evaluates a combination of monetary, academic, and community

outcomes1 to assess the full impact of funds spent.

Continuum of ROI Analyses

1 Monetary outcomes include benefits i cost savings or cost avoidance, for example, the benefit of early childhood expenditures on reducing special education costs. Academic outcomes include those non-monetary benefits to the

school division, such as increasing high school graduation rates or operational efficiencies. Community outcomes include those benefits to others outside the school division, such as a decreasing welfare dependence.

Exceptional Employees

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Overview

What FCPS will recruit, hire, and retain exceptional employees.

How Strengthen divisionwide use of fair and consistent practices to recruit, hire, and retain a diverse

workforce.

SY 2017-18 Performance

Aspiration: Every open teaching position will have at least five highly qualified applicants

Metric:

Average number of qualified applicants per teaching position

No Progress

During this

Reporting Period

Aspiration: All teaching positions will be filled by July 1

Metric:

Percent of teaching positions filled by July 1

Met or Exceeded

Target

Aspiration: Employee retention rates will be within the National Average

Metric:

FCPS employee retention rates

Met or Exceeded

Target

Aspiration: The diversity of qualified teacher applicants will match the diversity of Fairfax County

residents.

Metric:

Diversity of qualified teacher applicants compared to the diversity of

Fairfax County residents

Progressed

Toward Target

Aspiration: The diversity of hired teachers will match the diversity of qualified teacher applicants

Metric:

Diversity of hired teachers compared to the diversity of qualified

applicants

No Progress

During this

Reporting Period


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Detail

Reporting on the Exceptional Employees outcome is divided into three sections: recruitment, hiring,

and retention.

Recruitment

SY 2017-18 Outcomes

During this reporting period, FCPS did not make progress toward the target for increasing the

average number of qualified applicants per teaching position.

In SY 2017-18, the average number of qualified applicants per teaching position was lower

than at baseline (3.1 in 2017-18 versus 3.4 at baseline). Therefore, FCPS did not make progress

toward the SY 2018-20 Target of 3.9 applicants per position. Importantly, lower teacher applicant

counts may be a function of the shortage of individuals graduating from teacher preparation programs

throughout the nation. Recruitment efforts for teaching positions will be examined to make progress in

subsequent years.

Aspirational Value 5.0 Overall Progress

SYs 18-20 Target 3.9 No Progress During

this Reporting Period SY 17-18 Performance 3.1

3-Year Baseline 3.4


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2 Note: Some applicants and hires did not disclose their race/ethnicity. Baseline data for the qualified applicants showed that 4%

(n=282) did not disclose their race. For SY 2017-18, 4% (n=254) of applicants did not disclose their race.

FCPS made some progress in increasing the diversity of qualified teaching applicants.

FCPS either maintained or slightly increased the ethnic and gender diversity of FCPS qualified

applicants. Specifically, the ratio of ethnic diversity showed a slightly lowered gap compared to

baseline, whereas the ratio of gender diversity showed the same gap compared to baseline. FCPS

needs to continue recruitment efforts towards increasing the diversity of qualified teaching applicants

to meet the performance target by SY 2019-20.

Ethnic Diversity (non-white)2 Gender Diversity (Male) Overall

Performance

Aspirational

Value 44% diverse applicants

Equal to Fairfax County residents 44% male applicants

Equal to Fairfax County residents

Progressed

Toward

Target

SYs 18-20

Target

31% diverse applicants

Below Fairfax County residents by 12

points

31% male applicants


points

SY 17-18

Performance


(diverse n=1,572; white n=3,917)


points

25% male applicants

(male n=1,599; female n=4,910)


points

3-Year

Baseline


(diverse n=1,659, white n=4,323)


points

23% male applicants

(male n=1,402, female n=4,545)


points


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SY 2017-18 Actions

The following efforts were undertaken during SY 2017-18 to improve recruitment in general:

Expanded general recruitment efforts

FCPS has built relationships with community organizations to recruit for all types of positions

within FCPS. Additionally, FCPS continues to engage in community events and networking

efforts, such as information sessions to build and maintain relationships with individuals in the

community.

Nurtured student teacher placement programs in the Fairfax County Public Schools that pair

student teachers with highly skilled expert teachers.

Engaged in social media outreach to ensure wide-knowledge of job vacancies (Facebook,

Instagram, Twitter).

Continued to ensure FCPS is visible in the job seeker market. In addition to widening our

presence through online job boards/advertisements and in-person job fairs/community events,

we have also increased our presence on social media. Through these platforms, FCPS is able

to educate job seekers about all of our operational needs, which are sometimes overlooked by

individuals who focus on a school system’s greatest need, teachers.

Increased the number of FCPS sponsored job fairs.

o During the past recruiting cycle, FCPS increased the number of job fairs hosted here in

Fairfax County from three to four. This new event, offered in May, provided schools

with an opportunity to meet with candidates in an open format followed by individual

interviews.

Expanded recruitment efforts for hard-to-staff positions

FCPS attended more events well known for producing exceptional special education teachers

and speech-language pathologists.

o These events included: The Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) convention, the

American Speech Language Association Conference, the Pennsylvania Speech-

Language-Hearing Association Conference, recruitment event at the University of

Kansas, and recruitment event at the University of Texas.

Expanded pipelines for teaching and hard-to-staff positions

FCPS, in collaboration with Virginia Commonwealth University/COVE, has designed an online

program to allow selected instructional assistants a pathway to complete the required

coursework to obtain a special education teaching licensing.

o Upon completion of the first course, cohort members are eligible to apply for a

provisional special education teaching license. In exchange for a four-year teaching

commitment, cohort participants are offered tuition reimbursement. Each cohort is

limited to 25 participants.


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o During SY 2017-18, the second cohort was selected for participation. Forty-five percent

of the individuals participating in the two cohorts are people of color.

The following efforts were undertaken during SY 2017-18 to improve diversity of recruited applicants:

Expanded pipelines of diverse individuals and organizations into FCPS employment.

Created local pipelines into the profession, such as high school career pathways (Teachers for

Tomorrow) and other “Grow Your Own” models that recruit talented individuals from our

schools to a career in teaching and support them as they prepare for the profession.

In SY 2017-18, FCPS high schools utilized a school-to-career program that engaged students

with educational career aspirations. In the subsequent years, FCPS Human Resources

Department plans to expand the program by participating in Today’s Students Tomorrow’s

Teachers (TSTT) to result in a division-wide effort implemented in all high schools. TSTT is an

organization that provides mentoring and career development to support high school students

in becoming educators, especially those of color.

Early hiring of Teachers for Tomorrow Students is an opportunity for current high school

seniors enrolled in a level 1 or level 2 Teachers for Tomorrow Class to apply for a recruitment

contract with Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS). A recruitment contract is a commitment

from FCPS to offer a full-time teaching position upon successful completion of a teacher

preparation program that leads to teacher licensure in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Over the past 2 years, FCPS built relationships with minority-serving institutions as the first

step to increasing the diversity of the interview pool, including Historically Black Colleges and

Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs) an Asian American and Native

American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions (ANAAPISIs) from the east coast, as well as

additional recruitment sites in the Midwest. Specifically,

o FCPS used university alumni to serve as minority liaisons to recruit specific groups at

recruitment events to demonstrate that FCPS has an inclusive culture, answer pertinent

questions, and discuss the benefits of being a minority employed in the division.

o FCPS held resume workshops and conducted mock interviews to help students in

minority-serving institutions apply for jobs within FCPS.

o Conducted networking and information sessions to fill administrator positions with

diverse candidates.

o Enhanced recruitment efforts for school-based administrators by improving internal

networking.

o Conducted information sessions for both internal and external applicants to learn about

the application process and about FCPS.

FCPS staff built and maintained relationships with potential applicants they met

at an event held for future school-based administrators.

Developed new marketing materials.


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In SY 2017-18, FCPS rebranded their marketing materials and website to represent a diverse

employee and student population. Photos used in marketing materials, at recruitment events,

and on the website show diverse staff at all job levels and a diverse student body. The

rebranding effort provides evidence that FCPS includes many unique individuals from diverse

backgrounds at all levels of the organization.


FCPS devoted $45,505 in FY18 toward strategic activities that aimed to increase diversity of

employees.

The total of $45,505 represents funds expended on the following 2 activities:

o $42,356 was spent to recruit teachers at historically minority serving institutions (Historically

Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic Serving Institutions, Asian American Native

American Pacific Islanders Serving Institutions).

o $3,149 was spent to conduct networking and information sessions to fill administrator positions

with diverse candidates.

As a whole these investments were related to increases in the proportion of Black and male

hires. While the funds spent toward recruitment efforts at minority serving institutions were not

associated with a more diverse pool of qualified applicants overall in the reporting year, it may in

future years as the relationships with minority serving colleges and universities grow stronger, and

graduates see FCPS as an interested employer with a diverse student body.

The current ROI is based on the information available. In the future, more robust calculations and

judgement will be made about ROI as staff begin to intentionally align Action Plans and related

activities toward the newly approved metrics.

Data Analysis and Conclusions

In SY 2017-18, FCPS recruitment efforts did not yield a greater increase in the number of applicants

per position or more diverse pool overall. Although many of the actions described in the actions

narrative are best practice according to the literature and common practice of school districts and

organizations, the division will need to engage in expanded or additional recruiting activities to meet

its targets. Recruitment efforts are especially important in the current environment where national and

local trends reflect a teacher shortage. Regardless of the root cause, it is important for FCPS to

continue to monitor and improve efforts to yield a larger and more diverse pool of qualified applicant.


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Moving forward into school year 2018-19 and beyond, FCPS is implementing or making plans to

implement the following improvements targeting improved recruitment:

• Continue to expand networking and pipelines to increase the breadth of the applicant pool.

For example, FCPS’ Back2Fairfax event for FCPS graduates who want to learn more about

how to navigate the hiring process, employee resources, and tips to be a successful educator

should encourage continued interest in teaching in FCPS.

• Make use of pipelines for positions besides teaching.

• Review current recruitment processes to see where to focus enhancements.


implement the following improvements to expand the diversity of recruited applicants:

• Employ the Teachers for Tomorrow (TSTT) program as a pipeline to ensure minority FCPS

students are aware of and involved in the school-to-career pipeline. Currently, the Teachers

for Tomorrow class is offered at five FCPS high school sites (Centerville High School,

Chantilly Academy, Edison Academy, Falls Church High School, Lake Braddock Secondary

School and Mount Vernon High School) with expansion schools slated for the 2019-20 school

year. Students interested in pursuing this opportunity complete an application packet in late

winter. This year, FCPS recruitment contracts will be awarded to students at the Teachers for

Tomorrow End of Year Ceremony held on Friday, April 5, 2019, at Lake Braddock Secondary

School.

• Get to Know HR/Building Connections. Members of the Talent Acquisition & Management

leadership team are visiting with students enrolled in the level 1 and level 2 Teachers for

Tomorrow classes. During the visit, the HR team is spending time learning more about the

students, their future career desires, and the experiences they are having during their

internships at local elementary or middle schools. Time is spent giving guidance on what

students can do now and in college to prepare to be a teacher, résumé development, and

preparing for a job interview. The team also provides information about the great benefits and

perks of being an FCPS employee.

• Strategically engage in networking efforts based on demographic data from previous

applicant pools, focusing expansions on underrepresented groups.

• Specifically reference diversity in the Division and how FCPS supports inclusion of diverse

staff (e.g., supports for career advancement, networking groups, and mentorship).


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Hiring

SY 2017-18 Outcomes

FCPS was successful at hiring a large percentage of teachers by July 1.

FCPS exceeded the performance target for the aspiration that all teaching positions will be

filled by July 1. Specifically, in SY 2017-18, the percent of teaching positions filled by July 1 was

97.8%, above the SY 2018-20 Target is set at 97.5%. This means that FCPS has fulfilled the

performance target for this metric two years ahead of time. FCPS will continue efforts to reach the

Aspirational Value of 100%.

Aspirational Value 100% Overall Progress

SYs 18-20 Target 97.5% Met or Exceeded

the Target SY 17-18 Performance 97.8% n=15,493

3-Year Baseline 96.3% n=15,175

Overall, FCPS did not make progress in matching the diversity of hired teachers and qualified teacher

applicants.

In SY 2017-18, FCPS hired more qualified Male and Black applicants compared to the baseline,

and the baseline was maintained for Asian and White hired teachers. A gap appeared for the

Hispanic subgroup in this reporting period, while at baseline there was none. Continued efforts will

need to be made to meet the 2018-20 Targets for each of the ethnic and gender groups.


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3 Note: The total percent across the four ethnic groups will not sum to 100% because some applicants and hires either did not

disclose their race/ethnicity or provided responses that fell outside the four groups reported on here. . Baseline data for the qualified applicants showed that 4% (n=282) did not disclose their race and 4% (n=285) reported races that fell outside of the four groups reported. For SY 2017-18, the data were 4% (n=254) and 5% (n=287), respectively. Baseline data for the hired teachers showed that 4% (n=75) of the hired teachers reported races that fell outside of the four groups. For 2017-18, the data for hired teachers showed that 4% (n=74) reported races that fell outside the four groups.

Baseline Diversity 2017-18 Diversity3 Overall

Performance Asian Equally represented (100%)

7% hires (n=127) and 7% applicants (n=481)

Equally represented (100%)


No Progress

During this

Reporting

Period

Black Underrepresented (67%)

8% hires (n=150) and 12% applicants

(n=789)

Underrepresented (75%)


(n=744)

Hispanic Equally represented (100%)




White Overrepresented (114%)

75% hires (n=1,471) and 66% applicants

(n=4,323)

Overrepresented (114%)


(n=3,917)

Male Underrepresented (63%)


(n=1,599)



(n=1,402)

Female Overrepresented (113%)


(n=4,910)

Overrepresented (109%)


(n=4,545)

SY 2017-18 Actions

FCPS undertook the following actions during SY 2017-18 to improve hiring and the diversity of hired

staff.

Adjusted hiring timeline

Hiring earlier for specific school vacancies.

Hiring for the 2018-19 school year began in February 2018. Schools were able to begin hiring

candidates directly earlier than ever before, on March 14, 2018.


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Looking ahead, hiring for the 2019/-20 school year kicked off in February 2019. Schools were

able to begin hiring for known vacancies starting February 4, 2019.

Improved applicant pool processes

Implemented new procedures for Brass Ring, the applicant tracking system.

Added functionality to the applicant tracking system to allow principals to easily search for

qualified applicants and ensured all applicants had an equal chance of being reviewed for a

position.

Implemented new principal hiring pool system.

Created a pool of principal interview candidates for the Region Assistant Superintendents

(RAS) to interview for open positions. The process for placing an applicant into the principal

pool is highly structured and involves HR sign-off on the candidates. As such, HR has the

opportunity to review how equitable the process is and how diverse the candidates are before

they complete the final series of interviews that lead to placing a candidate in the principal

pool. Although this process allows for more HR monitoring, it still relies on recruitment efforts

to bring diverse candidates to the pool.

Improved interview procedures

HR developed guidance that was shared with principals and assistant principals to enhance

consistency across school in the teacher hiring process. Schools are guided to interview a

minimum of three qualified applicants from the pool (with exceptions for hard to staff positions

with few applicants in the pool) and to include a minority person on the interview panel.


The $165,192 spent by FCPS in FY18 to improve diversity of hired staff was not associated

with an increase in the diversity of the Division’s hires.

The total of $165,192 represents funds expended on the following activities:

o $120,775 was spent toward improving the applicant tracking system (Brass Ring) functionality

and training administrators on teacher hiring practices to increase equity in candidate selection

and hiring.

o $44,417 was spent toward implementing a new principal hiring pool system designed to

increase equity in hiring.


In SY 2017-18, FCPS engaged in early hiring and was able to meet the SY 2018-20 performance

target for the percent of teachers hired by July 1. Additionally, the diversity of the Black teacher hires


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more closely matched the diversity of the qualified applicant pool. Thus, the efforts in SY 2017-18

described in the Actions narrative were fruitful. In particular, the focus on strengthening partnerships

with minority serving institutions, like Howard University, and holding resume writing workshops have

been successful. These efforts, paired with principals training on equitable hiring practices, have

resulted in hiring more minority and male applicants. In subsequent years, FCPS will continue to

focus on both general hiring efforts as well as those to expand diversity in FCPS hires.


implement the following improvements to its overall hiring processes:

• Put structures in place to monitor implementation for the revised principal and teacher hiring

processes with the intent to engage in cycles of continuous improvement.

In school year 2018-19 and beyond, FCPS will focus on the following improvements to increase the

diversity of its hires and achieve its targets in this area:

Mandate that all school-based hiring managers complete the new training on teacher hiring.

Review the cultural proficiency professional development offered by the county to see if it

addresses bias in the hiring process. If not, either develop an additional module or a separate

training to address it.

Put structures in place to monitor the percent of diverse applicants selected for interviews and

the percent of diverse applicants hired.

Retention

SY 2017-18 Outcomes

In SY 2017-18, FCPS retained teachers, administrators, and support personnel at levels exceeding

its aspiration.

In SY 2017-18, 93% of teachers, 96% of administrators, and 95% of support personnel were

retained in FCPS, exceeding the performance target approximately two years ahead of schedule.

Retention was defined as the percentages of employees who were not terminated; therefore, this

percentage does not reflect employees who retired or transferred locations.


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Teachers Administrators Operational Overall

Performance

Aspirational Value At or above 85% At or above 85% At or above 85%

Met or

Exceeded

Target

SYs 18-20 Target At or above 85% At or above 85% At or above 85%

SY 17-18 Performance 93%; n= 14,210 96%; n=646 95%; n=10,963

3-Year Baseline 93%; n=13,911 95%; n=636 95%; n=10,741

SY 2017-18 Actions

FCPS engaged in the following activites in support of staff retention during SY 2017-18:

Increased support for staff

Virginia Pre-School Program-Provisionally Licensed Teacher Incentive Program (Grant)

o To support high quality instruction in VPI classrooms, the Virginia General Assembly

has dedicated funding to supporting VPI teachers to become fully licensed. Through a

competitive grant process, FCPS was awarded $24,571 “to offer financial incentives to

provisionally licensed teachers who are actively engaged in coursework with the goal of

becoming fully licensed to teach young learners.”

Continue to improve our high-quality induction and onboarding programs to assist in the

transition to the profession.

Identified areas for career advancement opportunities that provide increased compensation,

responsibility, and recognition.


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Future Considerations

Budget

Provide resources for greater external recruitment efforts to ensure that FCPS recruits the

best and the brightest.

Fund the partnership with the Today’s Students Tomorrow’s Teachers in FCPS’ most diverse

schools.

Fund FCPS’ Back2Fairfax program.

Policy

No policy considerations at this time related to the Exceptional Employees outcome.

Strategic Concerns

No strategic concerns at this time related to the Exceptional Employees outcome.

Expanded continuous improvement practices

Built a system to monitor and address teacher turnover.

Collaborated with our teacher associations to problem-solve and strategize ideas for improving

working conditions and the overall employment experience.

Return on Investment (ROI)

No ROI information available is available on retention activities for this reporting period.


The actions taken in SY 2017-18 yielded retention of FCPS employees, beyond the national average

of 85 percent. Thus, FCPS plans to continue the actions laid out in the actions narrative to retain

employees generally but will add the following actions to ensure retention of our diverse employees.

In school year 2018-19 and beyond, FCPS will focus on the following improvements to ensure it

retains a diverse staff:

Provide the Superintendent with annual reviews of practices and supports for inclusion and

diversity across the Division using an assessment such as the one described in this report.

Include data on the diversity in recruitment and hiring in the Division’s upcoming equity

scorecard.

Market-Competitive Compensation

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Overview

What FCPS will offer market-competitive compensation packages.

How Increase competitiveness of salaries for all employees.

SY 2017-18 Performance

Aspiration: FCPS will maintain all pay scales within 95 to 105 percent of market pay.

Metric:

Percent of pay scales within 95 to 105 percent of market pay

Progressed

Toward Target


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Detail

SY 2017-18 Outcomes

In school year (SY) 2017-18, 29 percent of the pay scales (2 of 7) in the initial compensation

study were within 95 to 105 percent of the market pay. This means that FCPS is making progress

toward its desired outcome to offer market-competitive compensation packages. FCPS has already

adopted FY 2019 salary enhancements that bring more of the scales in alignment with the market.

With the adoption of FY2020 enhancements in the proposed budget, FCPS should have all scales

fully aligned to the market.

Overall Performance

Aspirational Value 100%

Progressed Toward

Target

SYs 18-20 Target 100%

SY 17-18 Performance 29% (2 out of 7)

3-Year Baseline N/A

SY 2017-18 Actions

History

Beginning in 2015, FCPS initiated a compensation study with the goal of developing salary scales to

provide market competitive salaries and help attract and retain employees. This work was a key

piece to achieving a premier workforce.

29%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

FY 2020 Proposedbudget

SY 2017-18performance


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In the first phase of the compensation study, a marketplace compensation comparison was

completed. A comprehensive survey was created and distributed to benchmark the total

compensation of teachers, instructional assistants, and a sampling of Unified Scale positions against

local school districts, local governments, the federal government, and private sector. The

benchmarked positions within the survey were selected to represent all levels of responsibility and

included positions that could be matched in both school and non-school environments. Findings

related to teacher compensation were presented to the School Board in December 2015, with market

findings for Instructional Assistants, School-based Administrators, and Unified Scale staff presented

in February 2016.

In the second phase of the project, various compensation approaches were explored, evaluated, and

vetted for strategic compensation model design. In early spring 2016, employees were surveyed to

gather opinions and preferences regarding compensation program options. The employee survey

was followed by focus groups with representatives from various employee groups and other relevant

stakeholders to discuss the employee survey findings and gather additional information regarding the

priorities of employees. A report summarizing employee feedback from the survey and focus groups

was presented to the Board in March of 2016. The report recommended that to stay market

competitive the Division must make adjustments to its salary scales, especially at the beginning steps

where salaries were most notably below market among many employee groups.

In July 2016, Teacher and School-based Administrator Pay Scale recommendations were presented

to the School Board and summarized in the 2016 – 2017 Goal 3 report. In December 2016,

recommendations were made for a new Classroom Instructional Support scale to provide pay lanes

for Public Health Attendants, Public Health Training Assistants and Instructional Assistants. In April

2017, proposed modifications to the Unified Scale were introduced. The proposed changes included

deconstructing the single unified scale into four separate schedules to better align compensation to

the market, providing employees more appropriate salary structures.

Investments into the teacher scale began in FY 2017, with a $40 million infusion into the 2017 scale.

In FY 2018, following the adoption of the new teacher scale structure, the Board approved a $26.6

million investment to implement that structure. Along with the new teacher scale, the FY 2018

Approved Budget included $2.0 million to implement the new Classroom Instructional Support pay

scale for instructional assistants, public health attendants and public health training assistants and a

new Schedule H for food service workers and bus drivers and attendants. With this expenditure, both

of these scales were brought into the range of being within 95 to 105 percent of market.

Implementation of the remaining scales, which included the Unified Scale – Schedules A, B and C,

as well as the School Based Administrator scale was scheduled for FY 2019. Recommendations for

the structure of those scales was shared with the Board in April 2018.

SY 2017-18 Activities

Below is a list of the high-level actions and related activities conducted by staff during SY 2017-18 to

make progress toward the Market Competitive Compensation outcome. All actions focused around

enhancing FCPS’ compensation packages to maintain market competitiveness.


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Provided market scale adjustments and salary enhancements to the following staff:

o Teacher Scale – The FY 2018 Approved Budget included $26.6 million as part of the

multi-year investment to implement the recommended future teacher scale.

o Classroom Instructional Support Scale – The FY 2018 Approved Budget included $2.0

million to implement the new Classroom Instructional Support pay scale for instructional

assistants, public health attendants and public health training assistants and a new

Schedule H for food service workers and bus drivers and attendants.

o Unified Scale - Schedule H - The FY 2018 Approved Budget included $2.0 million to

implement the new Classroom Instructional Support pay scale for instructional

assistants, public health attendants and public health training assistants and a new

Schedule H for food service workers and bus drivers and attendants.

o FY 2018 Budget included $44.0 million for an average step increase of 2.5 percent for

all eligible employees.

Undertook a study of the Superintendent’s Leadership Team to summarize, analyze, and

propose opportunites for change in FY20.

Convened BA Lanes Workgroup

o The 2016 redesign of teacher salary scales resulted in lost earning potential for

teachers on the top of the Bachelor’s lanes. The BA Lanes workgroup, comprising

teacher association representatives and central office staff, worked collaboratively to

review the market, scale structure, and impact over time, and to propose adjustments

that were fiscally appropriate and accurately reflected market conditions. Throughout

SY2017-18 and continuing in the fall of 2018, the BA Lanes Workgroup took the

following actions to ensure an equitable solution.

Established assumptions for future market scale adjustments and market

conditions;

Extrapolated past FY17 scale and current scale to examine examples of step

progression and salary growth for employees;

Identified options and cost;

Presented cost for options and recommendation to Cabinet, Leadership Team,

and School Board Work Session (Summer 2018);

Engaged in follow-up discussions and revised scales per recommendations from

School Board (Summer 2018).


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Return on Investment (ROI)

FCPS devoted $29 million in total for salary enhancements in FY18 to achieve pay scales comparable to the local market for two of FCPS’ seven pay scales in the initial compensation study.

The total of $29 million represents the following initiatives:

Teacher salary enhancements: average cost per employee of $1,930 (13,781 employees).

Classroom Instructional Support (CIS) and Schedule H employees: average cost per

employee of $567 (3,530 employees).

The infusion of enhancements into the CIS and Schedule H employee scales resulted in two of seven

pay scales in the initial compensation study being comparable to the local market. The infusion of

enhancements into the teacher scale represented the first phase of planned infusions to bring that

scale fully into line with the market. This demonstrates that FCPS had made incremental progress by

the end of FY18 toward meeting market pay for all employees. The remaining five pay scales

(teachers, school-based administrators, and Schedules A, B, and C) were largely brought in line with

market during FY19, with the final infusion in the FY20 budget. Moving forward, to develop a fuller

understanding of the effects of paying staff at or above market, future ROI analyses may consider

whether the investment required to keep salaries at market contribute to FCPS meeting its other

Premier Workforce outcomes of recruiting more and more diverse applicants, as well as hiring and

retaining quality employees.


The actions laid out in the actions narrative in SY 2017-18 led to market competitive compensation

for two of seven pay scales, allowing FCPS to make progress toward meeting its goal. FCPS is on

target to meet its goal with the implementation of the salary enhancements for the remaining scales

(Unified Scale – Schedules A, B and C, and the School Based Administrators) during FY19 and

completion of the teacher scale enhancements for FY20. The move from cost of living adjustments

to market scale adjustments that was undertaken starting in SY 2017-18 should allow FCPS to

maintain its competitiveness in a tightening recruitment and hiring environment.

Future Considerations

Budget

The School Board will need to continue to allocate sufficient resources in future years to

ensure all pay scales remain market competitive, including those that are part of the FY20

budget.


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Strategic Concerns

The School Board should consider a review of FCPS’ definition of market competitiveness as

95 to 105 percent of the market.

Should the School Board maintain the current approach that defines market competitiveness

at 95 to 105 percent of market, consider removing the Market Competitive Compensation

outcome as a strategic outcome since it will have been achieved. The current metric used for

Market Competitive Compensation could then be included in the Exceptional Employees

outcome so that FCPS can continue to monitor maintenance of market competitive pay scales.

strategic plan report: premier workforce€¦ · actions narrative highlights individual activities...

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