Terms Used In Iowa Code > Chapter 284 - Teacher Performance, Compensation, and Career Development

• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
• Beginning teacher: includes an individual who is an initial teacher. See Iowa Code 284.2
• Child: includes child by adoption. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Comprehensive evaluation: means a summative evaluation of a beginning teacher conducted by an evaluator for purposes of determining a beginning teacher's level of competency, for recommendation for licensure based upon the Iowa teaching standards, and to determine whether the teacher's practice meets the school district expectations for a career teacher. See Iowa Code 284.2
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Department: means the department of education. See Iowa Code 284.2
• Director: means the director of the department of education. See Iowa Code 284.2
• Evaluator: means an administrator or other practitioner who successfully completes an evaluator training program pursuant to section 284. See Iowa Code 284.2
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• following: when used by way of reference to a chapter or other part of a statute mean the next preceding or next following chapter or other part. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Intensive assistance: means the provision of organizational support and technical assistance to teachers, other than beginning teachers, for the remediation of identified teaching and classroom management concerns for a period not to exceed twelve months. See Iowa Code 284.2
• Mentor: means an individual employed by a school district or area education agency as a teacher or a retired teacher who holds a valid license issued under chapter 256, subchapter VII, part 3. See Iowa Code 284.2
• Performance review: means a summative evaluation of a teacher other than a beginning teacher that is used to determine whether the teacher's practice meets school district expectations and the Iowa teaching standards in accordance with section 284. See Iowa Code 284.2
• person: means individual, corporation, limited liability company, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership or association, or any other legal entity. See Iowa Code 4.1
• Rule: includes "regulation". See Iowa Code 4.1
• School: means an agency of the state or political subdivision of the state, individual, partnership, company, firm, society, trust, association, corporation, or any combination which meets any of the following criteria:
   a. See Iowa Code 261B.2
• School board: means the board of directors of a school district, a collaboration of boards of directors of school districts, or the board of directors of an area education agency, as the context requires. See Iowa Code 284.2
• state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories, and the words "United States" may include the said district and territories. See Iowa Code 4.1
• State board: means the state board of education. See Iowa Code 284.2
• Student: means a person who enrolls in or seeks to enroll in a course of instruction offered or conducted by a school. See Iowa Code 261B.2
• Teacher: means an individual who holds a practitioner's license issued under chapter 256, subchapter VII, part 3, or a statement of professional recognition issued under chapter 256, subchapter VII, part 3, who is employed in a nonadministrative position by a school district or area education agency pursuant to a contract issued by a board of directors under section 279. See Iowa Code 284.2
• year: means twelve consecutive months. See Iowa Code 4.1