Introduction to the
Nevada Educator Performance Framework (NEPF)

Introduction to the Nevada Educator Performance Framework

In 2011, legislation passed that required the development of a statewide performance evaluation system for teachers and school administrators. The Teachers and Leaders Council (TLC) was created to develop the Nevada Educator Performance Framework (NEPF). The first task of the Council was to establish guiding beliefs and goals for this evaluation system, now known as the Nevada Educator Performance Framework (outlined below). The NEPF was not fully implemented until 2015, and it has undergone a series of changes every year primarily as a result of legislation. 

TLC Beliefs

To promote educator effectiveness and ensure all students attain essential skills to graduate high school ready for college and career success:

• All educators* (see definition in the Glossary) can improve through effective, targeted professional development, as identified through the evaluation process and connected to district improvement plans and goals designed to inform and transform practice;

• An effective evaluation system must include clear expectations for both professional practice and student growth as well as fair, meaningful, and timely feedback;

• A consistent and supportive teacher and administrator evaluation system includes opportunities for self-reflection and continuous, measurable feedback to improve the performance of students, teachers, administrators, and the system; and

• The evaluation system must be part of a larger professional growth system that consistently evolves and improves to support the teachers and administrators that it serves.

Evaluation System Goals

The Nevada Educator Performance Framework (NEPF) Goals:

Goal 1:    Foster student learning and growth

Goal 2:    Improve educators’ effective instructional practices

Goal 3:    Inform human capital decisions based on a professional growth system

Goal 4:    Engage stakeholders in the continuous improvement and monitoring of a professional growth system

The system based on these guiding beliefs and goals, the foundation on which the NEPF was created, should ensure that educators: 

• Positively impact the achievement of students in Nevada;

• Grow professionally through targeted, sustained professional development and other supports;

• Monitor student growth, identify and develop quality instructional practices, and share effective educational methods with colleagues;

• Reflect upon practice and take ownership for their professional growth; and

• Participate in constructive dialogue and obtain specific, supportive feedback from evaluators.

Main Purposes of the Evaluation Framework

The overall purpose of Nevada’s Educator Performance Framework (NEPF) is to identify effective instruction and leadership and to establish criteria to determine:  

• The professional development needs of educators (goals 1, 2, 3, and 4);

• Information on which to base human capital decisions including rewards and consequences (goal 3); and

• Whether educators are:

  • • Using data to inform decision making (goals 1, 2, and 4),

    • Helping students meet achievement targets and performance expectations (goals 1and 4),

    • Effectively engaging families (goals 1 and 2), and

    • Collaborating effectively (goals 1, 2, and 3).

The NEPF for Other Licensed Educational Personnel

The 2017 Legislative session introduced NRS 391.675 which states, “the State Board may provide for evaluations of counselors, librarians, and other licensed educational personnel, except for teachers and administrators, and determine the manner in which to measure the performance of such personnel, including, without limitation, whether to use pupil achievement data as part of the evaluation” (Added to NRS by 2013, 3169; A 2015, 2404) — (Substituted in revision for NRS 391.3123).

The Department of Education assembled workgroups of individuals from the respective Other Licensed Educational Personnel (OLEP) fields to develop Standards and Indicators based on their respective state and national associations. These were piloted by the same professional groups and adopted as the state NEPF frameworks. SB 475, passed during the 80th Legislative session, ensured that evaluations of OLEP would be conducted “in a similar manner to the evaluations of teachers conducted pursuant to NRS 391.680 to 391.695, inclusive.”

There are seven separate frameworks for each of the OLEP educator groups:

• Educational Audiologist: holds a valid Nevada license issued by the Superintendent of Public Instruction with an endorsement in audiological services and is working in that position.

• School Counselor: holds a valid Nevada license issued by the Superintendent of Public Instruction with an endorsement as a School Counselor and is working in that position.

• School Nurse: holds a valid Nevada license issued by the Superintendent of Public Instruction with a school nurse endorsement (professional school nurse - BS/RN) and is working in that position.

• School Psychologist: holds a valid Nevada license issued by the Superintendent of Public Instruction with an endorsement as a School Psychologist and is working in that position.

• School Social Worker: holds a valid Nevada license issued by the Superintendent of Public Instruction with a School Social Work endorsement and is working in that position.

• Speech-Language Pathologist: holds a valid Nevada license issued by the Superintendent of Public Instruction with an endorsement for Speech and Language Impairments. 

• Teacher-Librarian: holds a valid teaching license with a school library media specialist endorsement and is working in that position.

Please see the Nevada Department of Education’s Nevada Educator Performance Framework (NEPF) webpage for current tools, protocols, and resources.