ISACS Principles of Good Practice

ISACS Accreditation Guide, 15th Edition

APPENDIX B: Principles of Good Practice in Admissions and Employment

PRINCIPLES OF GOOD PRACTICE FOR INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS

APPROVED BY THE ISACS BOARD: November 7, 1985

Ratified BY THE ISACS MEMBERSHIP: November 8, 1985

Modified by ISACS Board of Trustees: August 19, 1988

The unqualified approval for full membership and accreditation by ISACS of any member school shall imply that school's observance, in spirit as well as in deed, of high professional and ethical standards in its relations with its students, faculty, and employees and with other schools, particularly when there may be overlapping interests between schools with respect to faculty employment, student enrollment, and the recruitment of both faculty and students. The following guidelines are based on the concept that our strength as independent schools is derived both from the diversity that exists among us and from the support and cooperation that we can give each other.

Employment

A school should recognize the right of its faculty to consider other professional opportunities that may become available after the expiration of a current contract period and to conduct preliminary discussions regarding employment without notifying the present school. It should also recognize the right of another school to advertise its forthcoming vacancies. A school should not itself initiate contact, however, with an employee under contract to another independent school, but may of course respond to contact initiated by the employee seeking a change in employment.

Before making formal application, however, the candidate should advise the present head that discussions are in progress and authorize, preferably in writing, the release of a confidential performance evaluation at the request of the head considering the applicant. A faculty member should, of course, have the right to expect an evaluation that is thorough, honest, and fair.

Before a contract is tendered, the head of the school considering the candidate should consult the head of the candidate's present school to secure an Evaluation statement.

No head should hire an applicant for a contract period for which the applicant is under contract to another school.

If it develops that, to secure employment with another school, an employee wishes release from a contract for a current year or for an ensuing year, the employee should request the present head to grant such release, and the two heads should confer in the hope of reaching an agreement which will serve the best interests of both the schools and the employee. In cases where such agreement is not achieved, the preexisting contract should be honored.