Communication+and+Operational+Protocols

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Original Document: [|Communication Protocols.doc]

In order to facilitate more consistency in our communications and overall operations, please review the protocols listed below and disseminate to your staff.

//Internal Communications// Though communications may initially be intended for internal staff only, all communications may eventually reach external audiences, therefore we must exercise great care in what is sent to the field. //External Communications// Any communication to external publics should be shared with James Diaz and Tom Huser early in the drafting process. Either James or Tom will determine whether it needs to be cleared with legal and communications, as well as whether it needs translating. It can be difficult to separate internal from external communications. Therefore, all communications to parents, to the state, to elected officials, to advocates, to the unions and to the press, among others, should be considered external communications. Due to the wide distribution of Principals’ Weekly, all newsletters should be deemed as external in nature. Check carefully any references or recommendations to authors and internal and external websites to ensure that they are appropriate.
 * I. __Communications__**
 * Department heads should review and approve all written communications to internal publics.
 * There should not be direct communication with members of the Senior Leadership Team unless you are responding to their email or you have consulted with Dr. Lyles. If an SLT member communicates with you directly, please loop Dr. Lyles into the conversation, ideally before you respond.
 * All communications that apply to all LSOs and/or signal changes in policy and/or practice should be shared with Dr. Lyles in advance of communication.
 * All written communications relating to DOE policy changes and/or practice, which are directed to Network leaders, instructional specialists, SAFs, liaisons, Principals, Assistant Principals, Parent Coordinators, etc., must first be approved by Dr. Lyles before being sent to LSO CEOs and Deputy CEOs. Direct written communications with Principals, Assistant Principals, and/or Teachers should not occur unless approved.
 * Written communications are to be directed, to the greatest extent possible, through Principals’ Weekly, and managed by Tom Huser.
 * As you are aware, all e-mails are subject to foil requests. Consequently, please remind your staff to be conscientious regarding any written communications.
 * **Data should never be sent to any internal entity without Dr. Lyles’s approval. Also, please copy Melissa Hamann on all data communications.**
 * The department heads must review and approve all communications to external publics.
 * Please request approval from Dr. Lyles before accepting an invitation to make a presentation (except for professional development).
 * Please inform Dr. Lyles, James Diaz and Tom Huser of any press inquiries, or any requests for submissions to or participation in any publications or media outlets. Copy Dr. Lyles, James Diaz and Tom Huser in any written communications to the press. Maibe Fuentes Gonzalez is our liaison in communications.
 * Share with James Diaz and Tom Huser all responses to such media inquiry and requests sufficiently in advance to allow time for consultation with the communications office and others.
 * Please share with Tom Huser all requested postings for Principals’ Weekly by COB on Thursday, which is one and a half business days prior to Monday noon deadline for submission. Please:
 * Verify all links in the submissions work
 * Ensure that any vulnerability is flagged
 * Please report any activity or event undertaken by your department which may be noted by parties outside of the DOE on your weekly Communication Liaison Update. These should be submitted to Tom Huser by COB on Tuesday of each week on the template Tom previously distributed to you.
 * Inform Dr. Lyles and cc Lisa Dare immediately with any FOIL requests, as well as letters and communications from SED, and from the union. Please provide the responses at least a week before they are due. They must be cleared with the legal department, the communications office and the External Committee of the Senior Leadership Team.
 * Contact James with requests for information from advocacy groups and/or foreign inquiries, as he will direct.
 * Please allow for a minimum of three days for sign off on any document, even if it’s not supposed to go to other departments. Provide a minimum of a week for any document that is longer than 20 pages.
 * Please let Dr. Lyles and James know immediately of any communications from elected officials. Erin Stevens should also be copied, who will advise on the response.
 * **Data should never be sent to any external entity without Dr. Lyles’s approval. Also, please copy Melissa Hamann on all data communications.**

//Public Appearance Protocol// If you are a planning a public event as a DOE representative, e-mail **&external@schools.nyc.gov** with the information (such as a panel discussion, a community board meeting, a CEC meeting, or a hearing), and copy James. Please remember to e-mail as soon as you know about an event. The people on the **&external** list are David Cantor, Chris Cerf, Stephanie Dua, Brian Ellner, Kristen Kane, Julia Levy, Elyssa Siminerio, and Terence Tolbert. ü As soon as you decide to speak at a public event, e-mail **&external and copy James** ü If you decide to attend a “private meeting,” please e-mail **&external and copy James** if you think your appearance could attract citywide or community attention ü If you //decline// an invitation to speak to a key stakeholder group (CECs, CPAC, City Council, State Assembly, etc.), e-mail **&external and copy James** ü If you have any concerns or questions about an upcoming or potential event, please e-mail **&external and copy James** ü This applies to **all members** of the SLT as well as other DOE representatives who speak to public groups
 * The rules:**

The external communications team will use information about your appearances to create a detailed calendar that will be shared at the SLT meeting. Copying James on emails will allow for greater internal coordination and communications within Teaching and Learning. Overall, this process will help David, Brian, Julia, and Terence capitalize on the expertise of the entire SLT to ensure that DOE representatives are fully prepared and supported for their public appearances, and it will help them think strategically about how the DOE is publicly presenting itself.
 * Why this is important:**


 * The following groups should prompt alerts:**
 * **Unions** ||
 * UFT ||
 * DC37 ||
 * CSA ||
 * **Parent Groups** ||
 * Chancellor's Parent Advisory Council (CPAC) ||
 * Community Education Councils (CECs) ||
 * Citywide Council on Special Education ||
 * Citywide Council on High Schools ||
 * Presidents' Councils ||
 * Title I Citywide Parent Committee ||
 * Other Parent Groups ||
 * **Intergovernmental-Local** ||
 * City Council Committee on Education ||
 * Individual City Council members ||
 * Borough Presidents ||
 * Community Boards (or subcommittees) ||
 * City Agency Heads ||
 * **Intergovernmental-State** ||
 * Board of Regents ||
 * Commissioner Richard Mills ||
 * Sheila Evans Tranum ||
 * State Legislators ||
 * Statewide elected officials ||
 * Governor's Office ||
 * **Intergovernmental-Federal** ||
 * NY Senators ||
 * NY Congressmen ||
 * US Department of Education ||
 * **Other Organizations** ||
 * Community Groups convened to discuss specific issues (such as a new school or class size) ||
 * Non-profits or other organizations (you do not need to alert us about one-on-one confidential meetings, but anything that might become public should prompt an e-mail.) ||
 * Groups of business and thought leaders ||
 * Conferences and Panels ||
 * City Agency Heads ||
 * **Intergovernmental-State** ||
 * Board of Regents ||
 * Commissioner Richard Mills ||
 * Sheila Evans Tranum ||
 * State Legislators ||
 * Statewide elected officials ||
 * Governor's Office ||
 * **Intergovernmental-Federal** ||
 * NY Senators ||
 * NY Congressmen ||
 * US Department of Education ||
 * **Other Organizations** ||
 * Community Groups convened to discuss specific issues (such as a new school or class size) ||
 * Non-profits or other organizations (you do not need to alert us about one-on-one confidential meetings, but anything that might become public should prompt an e-mail.) ||
 * Groups of business and thought leaders ||
 * Conferences and Panels ||
 * NY Senators ||
 * NY Congressmen ||
 * US Department of Education ||
 * **Other Organizations** ||
 * Community Groups convened to discuss specific issues (such as a new school or class size) ||
 * Non-profits or other organizations (you do not need to alert us about one-on-one confidential meetings, but anything that might become public should prompt an e-mail.) ||
 * Groups of business and thought leaders ||
 * Conferences and Panels ||
 * Community Groups convened to discuss specific issues (such as a new school or class size) ||
 * Non-profits or other organizations (you do not need to alert us about one-on-one confidential meetings, but anything that might become public should prompt an e-mail.) ||
 * Groups of business and thought leaders ||
 * Conferences and Panels ||
 * Groups of business and thought leaders ||
 * Conferences and Panels ||
 * Conferences and Panels ||
 * Conferences and Panels ||

//Newsletters and Policy Guides or Manuals// Please remember the cross-functional and public nature of these documents: · Please let Tom Huser know of any newsletters and expected time of publication at inception. Tom must review final submissions. o Please include Tom Huser and James Diaz on plans to publish and/or modify policy guides or manuals and the expected time of publication at inception. Dr. Lyles must approve final submission. o As always, be sure to involve other departments in the creation of these documents, especially to the extent that there is overlap in responsibilities. o Maria Santos and Linda Wernikoff should be part of all discussions from the start. o Jennifer Bell-Ellwanger needs to be included on any reference to numbers and/or testing results and/or requirements as early as possible. o Lori Bennett is involved in any discussion that involves middle school students o Evelyn Castro needs to weigh in and give guidance for anything in Early Childhood o Sharon Dunn should be part of all and any issues involving the Arts. o Please ensure that Martine Guerrier (or her representative) participate in discussions that encompasses communications to parents and involvement of parent coordinators. o The CAO needs to contribute to any discussion that involves curriculum and instruction and professional development (i.e. EVERYTHING!) as well as special areas such as gifted and talented, interventions, library, and technology. · Please consider if there are cross-functional implications that extend outside of Teaching and Learning, and inform James Diaz and/or Lisa Dare, so that we can communicate to other departments. · All critical communications MUST be translated into 8 languages (Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Haitian-Creole, Korean, Russian, Spanish and Urdu). **There is no exception**. Please build sufficient time into time lines to allow for this, after consultation with Kleber Palma. **We cannot publish these documents in English and THEN issue translations sequentially.**
 * All newsletters and policy guides and/or manuals must be approved by Dr. Lyles before dissemination. Please copy James Diaz and Lisa Dare. Allow for a minimum of a week before dissemination if any of these documents is longer than 20 pages.

//Web Content// There is no other external channel for communication beyond our website. It is imperative that web content be __current__, __accurate__, __comprehensive__ and __easy to read and understand__.
 * The head of each office is responsible for the content of that office’s website, and for keeping information current and accurate. Please work with Tom Huser and Jason Dispinziere when website updates are needed.
 * Please review all content and ensure that outdated information is deleted from the website. Please keep electronic copies of the deleted information so that it can be retrieved if it becomes an issue.
 * Each office must work with Content Managed Services to ensure that they have the capacity necessary to update and maintain web content.
 * Please assign a person from your office to ensure that the web content is current on a **weekly** basis. You should review and approve any new content or changes to existing content.
 * Please copy Tom Huser on any proposed changes to the content of the website. Allow sufficient time for review of the changes. If the document(s) and information posted has been previously approved and made public, please allow a minimum of three days before posting the changes. If the content is new, please allow for a minimum of a week in order to secure sign off by other departments.
 * Expect that we will need to translate the content of our website, so begin to work with Kleber Palma to do this.

//Committees, Think Tanks and Advisories// I encourage every office to work with the field and with trusted experts in planning new initiatives to address our needs, as well as in reviewing areas of practice. Having a variety of viewpoints and experience in these bodies ensures that we think through all the dimensions of the theoretical and implementation issues we face. Remember the following principles in forming these committees:
 * Guard against “group think” in forming these bodies. You do not have to include our worst critics in these deliberations, but try to ensure that there is representation of different points of view, as well as different levels of experience.
 * Think about geographical representation. Our system is so vast that it is important that all regions of the city be represented in discussions, since the issues play so differently in different parts of the city.
 * Unless the group is addressing a specific grade span, make sure that all grade spans are represented.
 * Remember to include the needs of special education and English Language Learners in every discussion.
 * Do not lose sight of our focus. We cannot go in different directions. Everything you do must relate back to our ongoing and new initiatives.
 * Begin with a clear sense of your goals, and make sure that the group understands the parameters of their charge.
 * Be very mindful of the appearance of potential conflicts of interests. Make sure that you flag any contractual relationships or potential commitments.
 * Please provide Dr. Lyles (cc James Diaz) with the proposed names and a summary of what each person represents or brings to the table. Dr. Lyles needs to approve the membership of any group before any first meeting or communications.
 * Please send James Diaz an agenda of the meetings before they take place. Copy Dr. Lyles.

//Final Note on Communications// __Please ensure that these documents and communications meet standards of spelling, syntax and grammar. The approval process might seem cumbersome. We know from past practice that it is necessary. Please PLAN for it.__

There will be a monthly meeting to discuss budget, staffing, spending and procurement. Templates will be distributed which will allow Lisa Dare to track the progress of your contracts and HR transactions and more effectively manage them. //Budget and Spending//
 * II. __Budget, Procurement and Staffing__**
 * Each office should maintain an accurate and current budget based on all available information. This should include a current budget plan, the funding source for planned spending, and a record of spending and any current and planned pre-encumbering. These records should match the categories used by DBOR in its variance and encumbrances reports. Though the system maintains records of your spending, you should be tracking your program area’s expenditures against your own budget as well.
 * Any initiative must be funded from the existing budget. Please make sure that you understand the limitations on funding, and that you consider all implications and costs, including the restrictions on categorical funding, as well as the need to think of hidden costs such as fringe benefits, transportation, etc. when planning. Please do not commit to any new initiatives before discussing with Lisa Dare and Dr. Lyles, who must approve all budget plans.
 * It is essential that you track not only the encumbrances but the payments. Once the funds have been encumbered and the services rendered, be sure to collect an invoice from the vendor, sign it, and submit it to 65 Court, Rm 1301, Brooklyn, NY for processing. You should also go into the FAMIS portal and certify delivery of the goods/services.
 * Open encumbrances tie up your budget. You should be systematically looking at your open encumbrances to see what can liquidated to free up funds that weren’t needed for a given procurement. It is also essential that you respond to DBOR’s requests for updates on open encumbrances at the close of the fiscal year. Open encumbrances from prior years are held as a liability against the current year and therefore need to be actively resolved.
 * You should begin planning for new needs for FY09 as early as possible. Please be aware that many decisions about funding are made by the beginning of February, as a result of time lines that involve approval of restructuring proposals, as well as planning for school budgets for the following year. Therefore, you MUST begin planning for new initiatives for next year and communicate funding needs as early as possible; and have a draft proposal for new needs and next year’s budget by __no later than the end of January__..

//Procurement//

Last year, a new rule, Directive 24, was implemented by the City which prevents payment on any contracts until that contract is fully executed. You must pay even more attention this year, therefore, to procurement questions such as: “Is the vendor approved under an existing contract?” “Does the existing contract encompass the services being discussed?” “Does the amount involved fall within the parameters of the contract?” “Do the amounts involved allow for sign off by OPM without going through an Exception to Bid?”
 * Spending and procurement must follow the DOE’s Standard Operating Procedure Manual. That manual can be found at http://schools.nyc.gov/Offices/DFO/default.htm. Please note the procurement thresholds and be sure that you are complying with them. Before you make a commitment to any consultant, please understand fully the rules for competitive bidding, as well as the availability of funding. If the consultant is not an approved vendor under an existing contract, let Lisa Dare know right away, before any commitment on our part.
 * The head of each office is responsible for issuing requests for proposals, reviewing proposals, making awards, working with legal to finalize contracts, and ensuring contract compliance. Please work with Lisa Dare and the Division of Contracts and Purchasing (DCP) early in the planning process to ensure that you are following all procurement rules.
 * Review all existing contracts, track their duration, and flag the expiration date on those contracts, as well as any that you feel need modification in moving forward. The head of each office is responsible for ensuring continuous service to central, LSOs and schools before needed contracts expire. As you all know, the contractual process is lengthy and torturous, so PLAN now for what needs to happen later in the year and during next summer. RFPs generally need approximately one full year to complete. Please consult with Lisa Dare on all contractual matters, and copy her on all communications with DCP.
 * No request for proposals should move forward without Dr. Lyles’ approval. Please copy Lisa Dare early in the planning process. The presumption should be “No Exceptions to Bid.”
 * Purchase orders must be approved by the executive manager of each office. Those over $2500 should be sent to Lisa Dare for her approval. Unapproved purchase orders will be returned to the head of the appropriate office. Please allow five business days for approval.

//Staffing// The head of each office is responsible for filling vacancies, evaluating staff, managing consultant and temporary employees, and ensuring each employee is fulfilling the duties and responsibilities of their employment. Please understand the following:


 * The Chancellor’s Exception to Freeze is still in place, though the process will be adjusted. Lisa Dare will send out an update on the new process once it is released by DHR.
 * Please have someone in your office understand present hiring rules and needed approval forms fully. There should be no offers made to a person until it is clear that a position exists, that the person has the necessary qualification, that the amount to be paid has been approved and is within the budget, and that the funding for the position is allowable under the sources of the funding. Please inform Dr. Lyles and Lisa Dare before an offer is made.
 * The head of each office must work directly with Lisa Dare, who will coordinate with the human resources department in the Tweed business office to properly fill and process approved positions.
 * Do not make commitments to people about starting times until a seat exists. Place your seating requests with Lisa Dare who will work it into the overall seating plan.

//Travel//


 * Requests to travel for business must be approved by Dr. Lyles (cc Lisa Dare).
 * OP221 forms should be signed by Lisa Dare at least two weeks prior to your travel. Requests for international travel should be made at least __two months__ prior to travel.
 * All travel arrangements should be made through Omega, our contracted travel agent. All travel expenditures must comply with SOPM guidelines (i.e. maximum hotel expense is $150/night). Exceptions to exceed SOPM guidelines should be submitted to Lisa Dare.

//Annual Leave//
 * Requests for annual leave should be submitted to Theresa Argudo during (or before) the first week of each quarter. The request will need to be approved by either Lisa Dare or Dr. Lyles.
 * Please send Theresa Argudo the name(s) of the person(s) who should be contacted in your absence.

//Other//
 * Requests for meetings with Dr. Lyles should be made to Theresa Argudo, not directly to Dr. Lyles.

Thank you for paying close attention to these protocols.