Two more training events will be held on consecutive days in June. Get a Grip on Family and Medical Leave will be held at TASB on June 2 and M.I.A.—Managing Inevitable Absences will be held on June 3. You can register on line 
now.
The District Awards for Teacher Excellence (DATE) Technical Assistance Center will hold its first conference to share lessons learned about incentive pay for educators. The event takes place June 28–30 in San Antonio and there is no registration fee. Attendees will hear from school districts that have designed and implemented educator incentive and award programs. For more information or to register, go to the Texas Educator Performance Awards Web site .
You asked for it and you will have it in May. The annual update to the Model Employee Handbook will include guidelines developed by TASB Legal Division attorneys for use of electronic media with students and for personal use. Electronic media is defined as all forms of electronic communication, including text messaging, e-mail, blogs, and social networks. Districts may modify the guidelines to reflect how little or how much they choose to restrict electronic communications between teachers and students (see “Districts wrestle with limits on employee use of electronic media” in this issue). Program contacts will be notified when the update is posted in the HR Library.
The March HR Exchange Quick Poll asked whether districts use a paperless system to process employee contracts. Only 14 percent of all respondents said yes.
Consultants in HR Services have been busy the past few months conducting and analyzing employee opinion surveys for 20 districts; conducting staffing reviews for 20 districts, providing pay system maintenance services for 46 districts, and conducting detailed pay studies for another 39 districts. If your district needs extra help in any of these areas, call 800-580-7782 to get a price quote for next year’s budget.
