9. ASSOCIATION RIGHTS

9.1 EXCLUSIVITY OF ASSOCIATION RIGHTS

9.1.1 All rights granted in this section (Section 9, Association Rights) shall apply only to the Hillsborough Classroom Teachers Association as the exclusive bargaining agent for teachers. Any such rights or privileges shall not be granted to any other teacher association, union, group or individual.

9.2 ASSOCIATION MEETINGS

9.2.1 The Association's building unit shall be permitted the use of school buildings without cost for the purpose of conducting professional meetings. The Association may use school buildings for the purpose of holding professional meetings provided that the Association bears the cost of paying personnel for services rendered.

9.2.2 The Association shall be allowed a maximum of one meeting per month during the workday as long as the meeting does not interfere with student contact time. Double session schools shall be allowed one meeting per session. Such meetings shall not exceed 60 minutes during the workday. The building unit shall be allowed one additional meeting during both pre- and post-planning, neither of which shall exceed 60 minutes. The building representative shall clear the scheduling of such meetings with the building administrator.

9.3 BULLETIN BOARD SPACE

9.3.1 The Association shall be provided with bulletin board space in each school building for the purpose of posting notices and other related items. Site selection within teacher access areas shall be the prerogative of the Association Representative.

9.4 SCHOOL MAIL

9.4.1 The Association shall be provided with school mail service. The Association will have the right to place Association materials in teachers' mail boxes. Copies of all generally distributed materials placed in teachers' boxes shall normally be furnished to the principal.

9.5 MATERIAL DISTRIBUTION

9.5.1 Authorized representatives of the Association will assume responsibility for posting or distributing material for the Association.

9.6 ASSOCIATION ANNOUNCEMENTS

9.6.1 The Association senior building representative shall have the right to announce the time, place, and subject of the Association meetings via available media resources and at meetings.

9.7 EDUCATION PRACTICES COMMISSION

9.7.1 The Board shall notify the Association when a teacher's name has been submitted to the Education Practices Commission.

9.8 ASSOCIATION LEAVE

9.8.1 A maximum of two teachers, during any school year, shall be allowed to take one full year of professional leave to work for the Association on a full-time basis. Said leave shall be renewable. Any person who requests a third year of professional leave will be assigned to the county pool for placement. Teachers granted such leave shall remain on the District's payroll. The Association shall reimburse the District for all such payroll costs.

9.9 PAYROLL DEDUCTION

9.9.1 The Board agrees to deduct from teachers' salaries an amount to cover dues for the Association, as the teachers individually and voluntarily authorize the Board to deduct and to transmit the amount so authorized to the office of the Association. Teachers may individually and voluntarily authorize the Board and the Association to discontinue such deductions with a thirty day notice.

9.9.2 The Board agrees to provide one payroll deduction per teacher per pay period for the Association's economic services program. The Association agrees to bear the cost that the establishment and maintenance of the program would entail. The Association will make available those same insurance products to any Board employees who requests them of the Association.

9.10 SUPERINTENDENT'S ADMINISTRATIVE COUNCIL MEETINGS

9.10.1 The Association shall be provided copies of all minutes taken at Superintendent's Administrative Council (S.A.C.) meetings.

9.11 SCHOOL BOARD MEETINGS

9.11.1 The Superintendent shall notify the Association of the date, place, and hour of all Board meetings and provide the Association with a complete agenda and supporting data on the Friday morning prior to all regular meetings. The Association shall be notified of any incomplete or further anticipated agenda items. Any materials absent from the package shall be provided to the Association upon release to the School Board.

9.11.2 Completed committee reports sent to the Board shall be available to the Association. The Association shall have the right to present its position on said reports prior to the Board's action.

9.12 CLASSROOM TEACHERS ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT

9.12.1 The President of the Association, who is also an employee of the Board, shall be given full-time duty by the Board different from his/her normal classroom duties and from his/her normal location of duty. This duty shall be for the purpose of performing other educational and related services and for attending meetings related to said services. This duty shall be considered by the Board as being equal to classroom teacher duties.

9.12.2 The individual performing this duty shall continue to be a continuous employee of the Board for all purposes and shall not be considered as being on leave when performing this duty. This duty assignment shall be a regularly established position of the Board and shall have continuous existence. The employee shall be compensated at the employee's same rate of pay as if he/she was performing full-time classroom teaching. The Association shall inform the Board of the date of the President's term of office.

9.13 CONVENTIONS

9.13.1 The Board shall grant the Association members professional leave for the purpose of attending the Association's FEA convention in accordance with the following:

A. Thirty association members, with a limit of two per site, shall receive two days professional leave for the purpose of attending the FEA convention.

B. Other delegates of the Association shall be selected on the basis of one delegate for every twenty-five Association members and shall receive one day professional leave for the purpose of attending the FEA convention.

C. The Association shall provide a list of delegates to the Division of Human Resources no later than one week prior to the professional leave dates.

D. Substitutes shall be provided for convention delegates as requested by the Association. The Association shall reimburse the Board for the substitute teachers' salary.

9.13.2 The Classroom Teachers Association may designate up to five association members to receive a Leave of Absence in order to serve as official delegates to the NEA convention in July. These association members will be allowed a maximum of five days unpaid leave from the extended year program or 12-month position. The Association may request additional delegates which must be approved by the Superintendent.

9.14 LEGISLATIVE/PROFESSIONAL DAYS

9.14.1 The Association may request leave for members to engage in legislative or professional activity up to the cumulative Association total of sixty (60) days per year. Such leave shall be granted by the Board and said members will be considered to be on paid professional leave. The Association will pay substitute costs. The Association may request additional days which must be approved by the Superintendent.

9.15 BARGAINING TEAM

9.15.1 Substitutes shall be provided for all members of the Association's bargaining team when bargaining sessions occur during the school day.

9.16 MEMBERSHIP SOLICITATION

9.16.1 The Association shall have the right to form, organize and solicit membership as the exclusive bargaining agent certified to represent all employees within the bargaining unit at any duty-free time during the school day provided solicitation does not interfere with the official duties of employees and the operation of schools. The Association representative shall notify the building administrator when reporting to a work site.