Performance Evaluations

Dear Karen: I am interviewing candidates for sales vice president at my firm but realized I don't have a way to measure my new executive's success other than quarterly reports. I've heard about 30-60-90-day sales plans. Can you explain how they work? Answer: A 30-60-90 day sales plan, with a weekly "client pipeline review," is a method for setting specific sales goals and monitoring progress toward those goals, said Rob Hubsher, principal of New York-based consultancy Sales Optimization Group.

Now that most states have received or applied for relief from the No Child Left Behind Act, California is submitting its own proposal . And in true California fashion, it's - different. The state has long been at odds with the U.S. Education Department over the waiver process. Both sides agree that the federal law is flawed to the point of being counterproductive. But California won't agree to do what other states have promised to get out from under the law's most punitive measures: include standardized test scores as a significant component in the performance evaluations of individual teachers.

Now that most states have received or applied for relief from the No Child Left Behind Act, California is submitting its own proposal . And in true California fashion, it's - different. The state has long been at odds with the U.S. Education Department over the waiver process. Both sides agree that the federal law is flawed to the point of being counterproductive. But California won't agree to do what other states have promised to get out from under the law's most punitive measures: include standardized test scores as a significant component in the performance evaluations of individual teachers.

For Drew Doughty , the weekend reviews were almost as expected after having missed two weeks because of an injured right shoulder. The defenseman played at Phoenix on Saturday and at Colorado the following day and was a minus-two and had one assist in the Kings' loss to the Avalanche. "Drew has played with a great deal of 'I-want-to-do-it,' " Coach Terry Murray said after practice Tuesday. "And he wants to make a difference every time he is on the ice every shift, and sometimes you can get yourself into a little bit of a jackpot when you go into that with that attitude.

As a teacher in an impoverished, gang-ridden area of South Los Angeles, Rigoberto Ruelas always reached out to the toughest kids. He would tutor them on weekends and after school, visit their homes, encourage them to aim high and go to college. The fifth-grade teacher at Miramonte Elementary School was so passionate about his mission that, school authorities say, he had near perfect attendance in 14 years on the job. So when Ruelas, 39, failed to show up for work last week, his colleagues instantly began to worry.

The first thing a visitor notices about Los Angeles International Charter High School is its campus, a leafy, hilltop aerie that looks like the private school it once was. Then there are the students, preppy in white shirts and ties, their black sweater vests emblazoned with the school seal. Appearances aren't necessarily deceiving: L.A. International does have an exceptional campus, perched on a bluff in the tiny community of Hermon, overlooking Highland Park. It formerly was the campus of the now-defunct Pacific Christian High School.

D o you have a question about an on-the-job situation? If so, please mail it to Shop Talk, Los Angeles Times, P.O. Box 2008, Costa Mesa, Calif. 92626. Or call (714) 966-7873 and leave a voice mail message. Questions of general interest will be answered in this column on Mondays. Question: My boss won't let more than two people at a time take vacation in our department, although we manage just fine when a lot more than that are out with flu, vacations or sick children.

About one in six of Ventura County's 197 public schools have been flagged by the state as underperforming, officials said last week. The 31 schools are about half as many as were identified in 1999, when the state launched a package of reforms meant to improve student test scores. But it's also 50% more than the number of local underperforming schools identified last year. County schools Supt. Charles Weis said he was disappointed.

Q: Some companies, such as Federal Express, use an evaluation process that allows the lower levels of staff to evaluate their managers' performance, giving them a rating of how effective they are as managers. Is this type of reciprocal evaluation, which is forwarded to the higher mangers, more effective than having the evaluations done by their supervisors? What are the reasons that some companies use this method, and how successful is it? --S.K.

California's top education official sought Tuesday to counter federal criticism of the state's reluctance to use student test scores to evaluate teachers, paying a visit to Long Beach to highlight one of the few California school districts to make extensive use of such data. The Long Beach Unified School District's use of student scores to assess the effectiveness of programs, instructional strategies and teachers is a rarity in California, and state Supt.

As a teacher in an impoverished, gang-ridden area of South Los Angeles, Rigoberto Ruelas always reached out to the toughest kids. He would tutor them on weekends and after school, visit their homes, encourage them to aim high and go to college. The fifth-grade teacher at Miramonte Elementary School was so passionate about his mission that, school authorities say, he had near perfect attendance in 14 years on the job. So when Ruelas, 39, failed to show up for work last week, his colleagues instantly began to worry.

Over the last several weeks, in what has become a dismal rite of spring, nearly 30,000 teachers throughout California received layoff notices. Knowing how crucial teachers are to student success, you might wonder how schools make the difficult decision of which teachers to cut. After all, if layoffs are unavoidable, you would think that it would be in the interest of everyone to keep the best teachers and cut those who are least effective. Unfortunately, the only tool that California schools can use to make these decisions is a calendar.

The first thing a visitor notices about Los Angeles International Charter High School is its campus, a leafy, hilltop aerie that looks like the private school it once was. Then there are the students, preppy in white shirts and ties, their black sweater vests emblazoned with the school seal. Appearances aren't necessarily deceiving: L.A. International does have an exceptional campus, perched on a bluff in the tiny community of Hermon, overlooking Highland Park. It formerly was the campus of the now-defunct Pacific Christian High School.

Los Angeles-area charter schools have won a $60-million grant to develop a teacher-evaluation system based at least partly on student test scores. The grant, part of $335 million in related awards announced Thursday by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, represents the largest private funding for an initiative of this sort. "Teachers matter more to student achievement, more than any other factor inside our school building," Melinda Gates said. "This is something we know absolutely for certain at this point."

California's top education official sought Tuesday to counter federal criticism of the state's reluctance to use student test scores to evaluate teachers, paying a visit to Long Beach to highlight one of the few California school districts to make extensive use of such data. The Long Beach Unified School District's use of student scores to assess the effectiveness of programs, instructional strategies and teachers is a rarity in California, and state Supt.

The country's top education official challenged teachers unions Thursday to embrace historically controversial ways of promoting teacher effectiveness, including offering merit pay and evaluating instructors based on student test scores. "You must become full partners and leaders in education reform. You must be willing to change," U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan told the National Education Assn. at its annual meeting in San Diego.

Under pressure from human rights groups, the Bush administration announced plans Wednesday to improve the performance of immigration judges, responding to reports of intemperate and abusive jurists and complaints about how the system has dealt with a growing backlog of cases. The moves, announced by U.S. Atty. Gen. Alberto R. Gonzales, include establishing periodic performance evaluations and implementing proficiency exams for judges who are appointed after Dec. 31.

Three hospitals in Los Angeles County -- County-USC Medical Center, Citrus Valley Medical Center/Inter-Community Campus in Covina and Torrance Memorial Medical Center -- had the highest mortality rates in California for coronary bypass surgery in 2005, according to a statewide analysis scheduled to be released today.

Ending a yearlong power struggle, a judge ruled this week that former Los Angeles City Controller Laura Chick lacked legal authority to conduct performance audits of programs managed by City Atty. Rocky Delgadillo. Less than 10 days before Delgadillo is slated to leave office because of term limits, L.A. County Superior Court Judge Mark V. Mooney found that the City Charter did not grant Chick the power to evaluate Delgadillo's handling of workers' compensation issues.

As President Obama prepares to mark his 100th day in the White House, he acknowledged Monday that the nation might not reach one of his major environmental goals for a while longer: 15,000 days, or 41 years. That's how long it could take for the nation to cut its carbon emissions by 80%, Obama said during an appearance at the National Academy of Sciences. His caution plays into the administration's efforts to deflate expectations about what he reasonably could have solved by Wednesday.