By: Zaffirini S.B. No. 1119 73R4190 CAE-F A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to the educational rights of children who are deaf or hard 1-3 of hearing. 1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-5 SECTION 1. Chapter 21, Education Code, is amended by adding 1-6 Subchapter W to read as follows: 1-7 SUBCHAPTER W. EDUCATIONAL RIGHTS OF CHILDREN WHO ARE DEAF OR 1-8 HARD OF HEARING 1-9 Sec. 21.801. FINDINGS. (a) The legislature finds that it 1-10 is essential for the well-being and growth of deaf or hard of 1-11 hearing children that educational programs recognize the unique 1-12 nature of deafness and ensure that all deaf or hard of hearing 1-13 children have appropriate, ongoing, and fully accessible 1-14 educational opportunities. Children who are deaf use a variety of 1-15 language modes and languages, including oral and manual-visual 1-16 language. Deaf or hard of hearing children may communicate through 1-17 the language of the deaf community, American Sign Language, or 1-18 through any of a number of English-based manual-visual languages. 1-19 Deaf or hard of hearing children may use a combination of oral and 1-20 manual-visual language, sometimes referred to as total 1-21 communication, or may rely exclusively on oral-aural language. 1-22 (b) The legislature recognizes that deaf or hard of hearing 1-23 children should have the opportunity to develop proficiency in 1-24 English, whether spoken or visually represented, and American Sign 2-1 Language. 2-2 Sec. 21.802. UNIQUE COMMUNICATION. Deaf or hard of hearing 2-3 children must have an education in which their unique communication 2-4 mode is respected, utilized, and developed to an appropriate level 2-5 of proficiency. 2-6 Sec. 21.803. QUALIFICATIONS OF PERSONNEL. (a) Deaf or hard 2-7 of hearing children must have an education in which teachers, 2-8 psychologists, speech therapists, progress assessors, 2-9 administrators, and others involved in education understand the 2-10 unique nature of deafness and have been certified to work with deaf 2-11 or hard of hearing pupils. Deaf or hard of hearing children must 2-12 have an education in which their teachers are proficient in 2-13 appropriate language modes. 2-14 (b) Appropriate qualified staff shall be employed with 2-15 proficient communication skills, consistent with credentialing 2-16 requirements, to fulfill the responsibilities of the local school 2-17 district, and positive efforts must be made to employ qualified 2-18 individuals with disabilities. 2-19 (c) Regular and special personnel who work with deaf or hard 2-20 of hearing children must be adequately prepared to provide 2-21 educational instruction and services to those children. 2-22 Sec. 21.804. LANGUAGE MODE PEERS. Deaf or hard of hearing 2-23 children must have an education in the company of a sufficient 2-24 number of peers using the same language mode and with whom they can 2-25 communicate directly. The peers should be of the same, or 2-26 approximately the same, age and ability. 2-27 Sec. 21.805. PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT. Deaf or hard of hearing 3-1 children must have an education in which their parents and deaf or 3-2 hard of hearing people are involved in determining the extent, 3-3 content, and purpose of programs. 3-4 Sec. 21.806. ROLE MODELS. Deaf or hard of hearing children 3-5 shall be exposed to deaf or hard of hearing role models. 3-6 Sec. 21.807. ACCESS TO EDUCATIONAL PROCESS. Deaf or hard of 3-7 hearing children must have programs in which they have direct and 3-8 appropriate access to all components of the educational process, 3-9 including recess, lunch, and extracurricular social and athletic 3-10 activities. 3-11 Sec. 21.808. PROVISION FOR VOCATIONAL NEEDS. Deaf or hard 3-12 of hearing children must have programs in which their unique 3-13 vocational needs are provided for, including appropriate research, 3-14 curricula, programs, staff, and outreach. 3-15 Sec. 21.809. LEAST RESTRICTIVE ENVIRONMENT. Deaf or hard of 3-16 hearing children must have a determination of the least restrictive 3-17 environment. The determination must take into consideration this 3-18 subchapter and any policy of the United States Department of 3-19 Education. 3-20 Sec. 21.810. REGIONAL PROGRAMS. Regional programs for deaf 3-21 or hard of hearing children without multiple disabilities shall 3-22 meet the unique communication needs of students who can benefit 3-23 from those programs. Appropriate funding for those programs shall 3-24 be consistent with federal and state law, and money appropriated to 3-25 school districts for educational programs and services for deaf or 3-26 hard of hearing children may not be allocated or used for any other 3-27 program or service. 4-1 Sec. 21.811. APPROPRIATE EDUCATION. Each deaf or hard of 4-2 hearing child with exceptional needs is assured an education 4-3 appropriate to the child's needs in publicly supported programs 4-4 through completion of the child's prescribed course of study or 4-5 until the time the child has met proficiency standards prescribed 4-6 under this code. 4-7 Sec. 21.812. EARLY EDUCATION. (a) Early educational 4-8 opportunities shall be available and encouraged for all deaf or 4-9 hard of hearing children between birth and the age of five. 4-10 (b) Early educational opportunities may be made available to 4-11 parents and their deaf or hard of hearing children younger than 4-12 three years of age who have other disabling conditions. An 4-13 outreach parental support system must be in place for parents of 4-14 deaf or hard of hearing children, which will provide support and 4-15 information about resources and programs available for deaf or hard 4-16 of hearing children and their families. This support system shall 4-17 be made available as early as possible to the parents of deaf or 4-18 hard of hearing infants. 4-19 (c) A deaf or hard of hearing child younger than five years 4-20 who is potentially eligible for special education needs shall be 4-21 afforded the protections provided by this code and by federal law 4-22 beginning with the child's referral for special educational and 4-23 instructional services. 4-24 Sec. 21.813. LOCAL DISTRICT PLAN. (a) Education programs 4-25 for deaf or hard of hearing children must be provided under a local 4-26 school district plan that states the elements of the programs in 4-27 accordance with this code. 5-1 (b) The plan required by this section shall be developed 5-2 cooperatively by the district and a community advisory committee 5-3 comprised of persons who are deaf and use American Sign Language 5-4 and parents of deaf or hard of hearing children. The majority of 5-5 the members must be deaf. The board of trustees of the school 5-6 district shall appoint the committee. 5-7 Sec. 21.814. SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES. A deaf or hard of 5-8 hearing child shall be transferred from a special education program 5-9 when special education services are no longer needed. 5-10 Sec. 21.815. MATERIALS FOR ASSESSMENT AND PLACEMENT. (a) 5-11 Procedures and materials for assessment and placement of deaf or 5-12 hard of hearing children shall be selected and administered so as 5-13 not to be racially, culturally, or sexually discriminatory. 5-14 (b) A single assessment instrument may not be the sole 5-15 criterion for determining the placement of a child. 5-16 (c) The procedures and materials for the assessment and 5-17 placement of a deaf or hard of hearing child shall be in the 5-18 child's preferred mode of communication. All other procedures and 5-19 materials used with any deaf or hard of hearing child who has 5-20 limited English proficiency shall be in the child's preferred mode 5-21 of communication. 5-22 Sec. 21.816. EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS. (a) Educational 5-23 programs for deaf or hard of hearing children must be coordinated 5-24 with other public and private agencies, including: 5-25 (1) preschools; 5-26 (2) child development programs; 5-27 (3) nonpublic, nonsectarian schools; 6-1 (4) regional occupational centers and programs; and 6-2 (5) the Texas School for the Deaf. 6-3 (b) As appropriate, the programs must also be coordinated 6-4 with postsecondary and adult programs for persons who are deaf or 6-5 hard of hearing. 6-6 Sec. 21.817. PSYCHOLOGICAL AND HEALTH SERVICES. Appropriate 6-7 psychological and health services for a student who is deaf or hard 6-8 of hearing shall be made available at the child's school site in 6-9 the child's primary mode of communication. 6-10 Sec. 21.818. EVALUATION OF PROGRAMS. Each school district 6-11 must provide continuous evaluation of the effectiveness of programs 6-12 of the district for children who are deaf or hard of hearing. 6-13 Evaluations shall follow program excellence indicators established 6-14 by the Central Education Agency. 6-15 Sec. 21.819. ADMISSION REVIEW AND DISMISSAL PLAN. (a) Each 6-16 deaf or hard of hearing child with an exceptional need shall have 6-17 the child's educational goals, objectives, special education, and 6-18 related services specified in a written admission review and 6-19 dismissal plan. 6-20 (b) The superintendent of a school district shall appoint an 6-21 individualized education program team for each deaf or hard of 6-22 hearing child in the district. 6-23 (c) The plan is a written statement determined in a meeting 6-24 of the individualized education program team. The plan must 6-25 include: 6-26 (1) an assessment of the present level of the pupil's 6-27 educational performance; 7-1 (2) a statement of the annual goals, including 7-2 short-term instructional objectives; 7-3 (3) a description of the specific special educational 7-4 instruction and related services required by the pupil; 7-5 (4) a determination of the extent to which the pupil 7-6 will be able to participate in regular educational programs and an 7-7 estimate of the date for initiation and duration of those programs 7-8 and services; and 7-9 (5) a description of the appropriate objective 7-10 criteria, evaluation procedures, and schedules for determining, at 7-11 least annually, whether the short-term instructional objectives are 7-12 being achieved. 7-13 (d) If appropriate, the plan must also include: 7-14 (1) a statement of prevocational career education for 7-15 a pupil in kindergarten or first through sixth grade or comparable 7-16 chronological age; 7-17 (2) a statement of vocational education, career 7-18 education, or work experience education, or any combination of 7-19 these educational opportunities, in preparation for remunerative 7-20 employment, including independent living skill training for a pupil 7-21 in seventh through 12th grade or comparable chronological age, who 7-22 requires differential proficiency standards under this code; 7-23 (3) a description of any alternative means and modes 7-24 necessary for a pupil in seventh through 12th grade to complete the 7-25 district's prescribed course of study and to meet or exceed 7-26 proficiency standards for graduation in accordance with this code; 7-27 (4) a statement of appropriate goals, objectives, 8-1 programs, and services in both American Sign Language and English; 8-2 (5) a statement of extended school year services, if 8-3 needed, as determined by the child's individualized education 8-4 program team; 8-5 (6) provision for the transition into a regular class 8-6 program if the pupil is to be transferred from a special class or 8-7 center, or nonpublic, nonsectarian school into a regular class in a 8-8 public school for any part of the school day, including: 8-9 (A) a description of activities provided to 8-10 integrate the pupil into the regular education program that 8-11 indicates the nature of each activity and the time spent on the 8-12 activity each day; and 8-13 (B) a description of the activities provided to 8-14 support the transition of the pupil from the special education 8-15 program into the regular education program; and 8-16 (7) for pupils without multiple disabilities, a 8-17 description of specialized services, materials, and equipment 8-18 consistent with guidelines established under this code. 8-19 Sec. 21.820. UNIQUE OR APPROPRIATE COMMUNICATION. Deaf or 8-20 hard of hearing children must have the opportunity to develop 8-21 proficiency in English, whether spoken or visually represented, and 8-22 American Sign Language. If this code refers to unique or 8-23 appropriate communication or language modes, it includes American 8-24 Sign Language and English. 8-25 SECTION 2. (a) This Act applies beginning with the 8-26 1993-1994 school year. 8-27 (b) Section 21.812, Education Code, as added by this Act, 9-1 shall be fully implemented on or before June 30, 1994. 9-2 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 9-3 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 9-4 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 9-5 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 9-6 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended, 9-7 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its 9-8 passage, and it is so enacted.