Teacher and Principal Practice Rubric Variance Process
Rubric Variance Application
The New York State Education Department (NYSED or Department), as part of its implementation of Education Law §3012-c regarding annual professional performance reviews of classroom teachers and building principals, strongly encourages local educational agencies (LEAs) to select teacher and principal practice rubrics from the Department’s List of Approved Teacher and Principal Practice Rubrics ("Approved List"). In limited circumstances, however, LEAs may apply for a variance to use a teacher and/or principal practice rubric other than those that are currently on the Approved List.
The intent and purpose of this application process is to provide LEAs with the option to request a variance to use: (1) an existing rubric that is self-developed, developed by a third party, or an adaptation of a rubric on the Department’s Approved List; or (2) a new, innovative rubric that will support their professional capacity to successfully implement teacher and principal evaluations. If an LEA’s variance application is approved, the LEA may use the practice rubric to implement teacher and principal evaluations in accordance with Education Law §3012-c.
Variance application 
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Submissions will be reviewed on a continuous and ongoing basis, and districts will receive notification of receipt. We anticipate rendering a determination no later than 8 weeks after receipt of a variance request.
Any questions concerning this variance application must be emailed to Rubricvar@mail.nysed.gov.
(Note: This email address is for questions only; do not submit application materials to this address.) Questions and responses will be posted on a continuous and ongoing basis at: http://usny.nysed.gov/rttt/. No individual written responses will be provided.
Existing Rubric
If applying to use an existing rubric (a rubric that is already in use by the LEA) that is self-developed, developed by a third party, or an adaptation of a rubric on the Department’s Approved List, applicants will need to meet all the approval criteria outlined in §30-2.7 of the Rules of the Board of Regents. In addition, applicants will need to demonstrate:
- evidence that the LEA has made a significant investment in the rubric, particularly in training and implementation; and
- evidence that the LEA has a history of use that would justify continued use of that rubric. This includes evidence that:
- the LEA’s use of the rubric to date has generated differentiated ratings and assessments of educators’ skill and proficiency; and
- the degree of differentiation in the ratings is justified by student achievement results.
In general, the Department discourages LEAs from making any adaptations to other providers’ rubrics. Any change by an LEA to the content of a rubric on the Department’s Approved List (including deletions, additions, or other edits) constitutes an adaptation for which a variance would be required.
An LEA is NOT required to request a variance for procedural differences in implementation of a rubric on the Department’s Approved List. Procedural differences include but are not limited to:
- providing additional or more detailed guidance on how to implement the rubric that is not available from the original rubric provider; or
- maintaining all components of the rubric but choosing to emphasize certain components of the rubric over others.
The use of an existing rubric will be approved for a period of three years, at which time an LEA will have to request a renewal if they wish to continue to use the rubric. Details for the renewal process will be provided at a future date.
New, Innovative Rubric
If applying to use a new, innovative rubric, that is newly developed, applicants must establish that the proposed rubric meets ALL of the approval criteria outlined in §30-2.7 of the Rules of the Board of Regents. In addition, applicants will need to provide:
- a training and implementation plan including, but not limited to, the LEA’s plan for ensuring inter-rater reliability; and
- a plan for collecting evidence that demonstrates:
- the LEA’s use of the rubric generates differentiated ratings and assessments of educator skill and proficiency; and
- the degree of differentiation in the ratings is justified by student achievement results.
The use of a new, innovative rubric will be provisionally approved for a two-year period. Thereafter, if an LEA wishes to continue to use the rubric, it must provide:
- evidence that the LEA’s use of the rubric has supported its professional capacity to successfully implement teacher and principal evaluations;
- evidence that the LEA’s use of the rubric to date has generated differentiated ratings and assessments of educator skill and proficiency, using rating categories are aligned (or easily convertible) to the four (4) ratings categories that the NYSED has adopted (Highly Effective, Effective, Developing, and Ineffective); and
- an analysis demonstrating that the degree of differentiation in the ratings is justified by student achievement results.