The board of trustees of each school district, including any specially chartered district, shall have the following powers and duties:
1. To employ professional personnel, on written contract in form approved by the state superintendent of public instruction, conditioned upon a valid certificate being held by such professional personnel at the time of entering upon the duties thereunder. Should the board of trustees fail to enter into written contract for the employment of any such person, the state superintendent of public instruction shall withhold ensuing apportionments until such written contract be entered into. When the board of trustees has delivered a proposed contract for the next ensuing year to any such person, such person shall have a period of time to be determined by the board of trustees in its discretion, but in no event less than ten (10) calendar days from the date the contract is delivered, in which to sign the contract and return it to the board. If the board of trustees does not make a determination as to how long the person has to sign and return the contract, the default time limit shall be twenty-one (21) calendar days after the contract is delivered to the person. Delivery of a contract may be made only in person or by certified mail, return receipt requested or electronically, return receipt requested. When delivery is made in person, delivery of the contract must be acknowledged by a signed receipt. When delivery is made by certified mail or electronically, delivery must be acknowledged by the return of the certified mail receipt or return electronic receipt from the person to whom the contract was sent. If the delivery is made electronically, with return electronic receipt, and the district has not received a return of a signed contract and has not received an electronic read receipt from the employee, the district shall then resend the original electronically delivered contract to the employee via certified mail, return receipt requested, and provide such individual with a new date for contract return. Should the person willfully refuse to acknowledge receipt of the contract or the contract is not signed and returned to the board in the designated period of time or if no designated period of time is set by the board, the default time, the board or its designee may declare the position vacant. The board of trustees shall withhold the salary of any teacher who does not hold a teaching certificate valid in this state. It shall not contract to require any teacher to make up time spent in attending any meeting called by the state board of education or by the state superintendent of public instruction; nor while attending regularly scheduled official meetings of the state teachers association.
No contract shall be issued for the next ensuing year until such time as the employee's formal written performance evaluation has been completed.
If applicable student data relating to Idaho's standards achievement test has not been received by the district within thirty (30) days of the deadline to complete the formal written performance evaluation for district employees, the school district or charter school shall utilize one (1) of the other objective measures of growth in student achievement as determined by the board of trustees or governing board, not including Idaho's standards achievement test, in order to complete the required student achievement component of performance evaluations.