By Harris S.B. No. 854
77R5532 CAS-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to public school accountability.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 7, Education Code, is
1-5 amended by adding Section 7.006 to read as follows:
1-6 Sec. 7.006. COORDINATION OF RECORDS. The commissioner of
1-7 education and the commissioner of higher education shall ensure
1-8 that records relating to student performance held by the Texas
1-9 Education Agency and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
1-10 are coordinated and maintained in standardized, compatible formats
1-11 that permit:
1-12 (1) the exchange of information between the agencies;
1-13 and
1-14 (2) the matching of individual student records so that
1-15 a student's academic performance may be assessed throughout the
1-16 student's educational career.
1-17 SECTION 2. Section 39.023, Education Code, is amended by
1-18 adding Subsection (d) and amending Subsections (e) and (i) to read
1-19 as follows:
1-20 (d) The commissioner may participate in multistate efforts
1-21 to develop voluntary standardized end-of-course assessment
1-22 instruments. The commissioner by rule may require a school
1-23 district to administer an end-of-course assessment instrument
1-24 developed through the multistate efforts. The admission, review,
2-1 and dismissal committee of a student in a special education program
2-2 under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, shall determine whether any
2-3 allowable modification is necessary in administering to the student
2-4 an end-of-course assessment instrument or whether the student
2-5 should be exempted under Section 39.027(a)(2).
2-6 (e) Under rules adopted by the State Board of Education, the
2-7 agency shall release the questions and answer keys to each
2-8 assessment instrument administered under Subsection (a), (b), (c),
2-9 (d), or (l) after the last time the instrument is administered for
2-10 a school year. To ensure a valid bank of questions for use each
2-11 year, the agency is not required to release a question that is
2-12 being field-tested and was not used to compute the student's score
2-13 on the instrument. The agency shall also release, under board
2-14 rule, each question that is no longer being field-tested and that
2-15 was not used to compute a student's score.
2-16 (i) The provisions of this section, except Subsection (d),
2-17 are subject to modification by rules adopted under Section 39.022.
2-18 Each assessment instrument adopted under those rules and each
2-19 assessment instrument required under Subsection (d) must be
2-20 reliable and valid and must meet any applicable federal
2-21 requirements for measurement of student progress.
2-22 SECTION 3. (a) Subchapter D, Chapter 39, Education Code, is
2-23 amended by adding Section 39.0721 to read as follows:
2-24 Sec. 39.0721. VOLUNTARY GOLD PERFORMANCE RATING PROGRAM. (a)
2-25 In addition to district and campus performance ratings reported
2-26 under Section 39.072, the commissioner, in consultation with an
2-27 advisory committee appointed under this section, shall develop a
3-1 voluntary gold performance rating program based on enhanced
3-2 performance. The agency shall administer the program.
3-3 (b) Under the voluntary gold performance rating program, a
3-4 district or campus rated exemplary under Section 39.072 may apply
3-5 to the agency for an exemplary gold rating, a district or campus
3-6 rated recognized may apply for a recognized gold rating, and a
3-7 district or campus rated academically acceptable may apply for an
3-8 academically acceptable gold rating.
3-9 (c) The performance standards on which a voluntary gold
3-10 performance rating is based should include:
3-11 (1) student proficiency on:
3-12 (A) assessment instruments administered under
3-13 Sections 39.023(a), (c), and (l); and
3-14 (B) other measures of proficiency determined by
3-15 the commissioner;
3-16 (2) student performance on one or more nationally
3-17 recognized norm-referenced assessment instruments;
3-18 (3) improvement in student performance;
3-19 (4) in the case of middle or junior high school
3-20 campuses, student proficiency in mathematics, including algebra;
3-21 and
3-22 (5) in the case of high school campuses:
3-23 (A) the extent to which graduating students are
3-24 academically prepared to attend institutions of higher education;
3-25 and
3-26 (B) the percentage of students who take advanced
3-27 placement tests and student performance on those tests.
4-1 (d) The advisory committee assisting the commissioner in
4-2 developing the voluntary gold performance rating program consists
4-3 of seven members appointed by the commissioner as follows:
4-4 (1) two public school teachers;
4-5 (2) two public school administrators; and
4-6 (3) three persons with experience in the area of
4-7 public school accountability.
4-8 (e) The commissioner may adopt rules as necessary to
4-9 implement and administer this section, including rules establishing
4-10 a procedure and form a district or campus must use in applying to
4-11 the agency for a voluntary rating.
4-12 (b) Not later than March 1, 2002, the commissioner of
4-13 education shall appoint members to the advisory committee for the
4-14 voluntary gold performance rating program as provided by Section
4-15 39.0721(d), Education Code, as added by Subsection (a) of this
4-16 section.
4-17 (c) Not later than March 30, 2006, the commissioner of
4-18 education shall complete development of the voluntary gold
4-19 performance rating system as provided by Section 39.0721, Education
4-20 Code, as added by Subsection (a) of this section, and shall adopt
4-21 any rules necessary for implementation and administration of
4-22 Section 39.0721, Education Code.
4-23 (d) Beginning with the 2006-2007 school year or an earlier
4-24 school year, the Texas Education Agency shall implement the
4-25 voluntary gold performance rating program under Section 39.0721,
4-26 Education Code, as added by Subsection (a) of this section.
4-27 SECTION 4. Sections 39.131(b) and (c), Education Code, are
5-1 amended to read as follows:
5-2 (b) If a campus performance is below any standard under
5-3 Section 39.073(b), the campus is considered a low-performing campus
5-4 and the commissioner may either authorize the board of trustees of
5-5 the district in which the campus is located to declare emergency
5-6 status at the campus as provided by Section 39.132 or take any of
5-7 the following actions, listed in order of severity, to the extent
5-8 the commissioner determines necessary:
5-9 (1) issue public notice of the deficiency to the board
5-10 of trustees;
5-11 (2) order a hearing conducted by the board of trustees
5-12 at the campus for the purpose of notifying the public of the
5-13 unacceptable performance, the improvements in performance expected
5-14 by the agency, and the sanctions that may be imposed under this
5-15 section if the performance does not improve within a designated
5-16 period of time and of soliciting public comment on the initial
5-17 steps being taken to improve performance;
5-18 (3) order the preparation of a report regarding the
5-19 parental involvement program at the campus and a plan describing
5-20 strategies for improving parental involvement at the campus;
5-21 (4) order the preparation of a report regarding the
5-22 effectiveness of the district- and campus-level planning and
5-23 decision-making committees established under Subchapter F, Chapter
5-24 11, and a plan describing strategies for improving the
5-25 effectiveness of those committees;
5-26 (5) order the preparation of a student achievement
5-27 improvement plan that addresses each academic excellence indicator
6-1 for which the campus's performance is unacceptable, the submission
6-2 of the plan to the commissioner for approval, and implementation of
6-3 the plan;
6-4 (6) order a hearing to be held before the commissioner
6-5 or the commissioner's designee at which the president of the board
6-6 of trustees, the superintendent, and the campus principal shall
6-7 appear and explain the campus's low performance, lack of
6-8 improvement, and plans for improvement;
6-9 (7) appoint a special campus intervention team to:
6-10 (A) conduct a comprehensive on-site evaluation
6-11 of each low-performing campus to determine the cause for the
6-12 campus's low performance and lack of progress;
6-13 (B) recommend actions, including reallocation of
6-14 resources and technical assistance, changes in school procedures or
6-15 operations, staff development for instructional and administrative
6-16 staff, intervention for individual administrators or teachers,
6-17 waivers from state statute or rule, or other actions the team
6-18 considers appropriate;
6-19 (C) assist in the development of a campus plan
6-20 for student achievement; and
6-21 (D) assist the commissioner in monitoring the
6-22 progress of the campus in implementing the campus plan for
6-23 improvement of student achievement;
6-24 (8) if a campus has been a low-performing campus for a
6-25 period of one year or more, appoint a board of managers composed of
6-26 residents of the district to exercise the powers and duties of the
6-27 board of trustees of the district in relation to the campus; or
7-1 (9) if a campus has been a low-performing campus for a
7-2 period of two years or more, order closure of the school program on
7-3 the campus.
7-4 (c) The commissioner shall review annually the performance
7-5 of a district or campus subject to this section to determine the
7-6 appropriate actions to be implemented under this section. The
7-7 commissioner must review at least annually the performance of a
7-8 district for which the accreditation rating has been lowered due to
7-9 unacceptable student performance and may not raise the rating until
7-10 the district has demonstrated improved student performance. If the
7-11 review reveals a lack of improvement, the commissioner shall
7-12 increase the level of state intervention and sanction unless the
7-13 commissioner finds good cause for maintaining the current status.
7-14 This subsection does not apply to a campus at which emergency
7-15 status is declared under Section 39.132.
7-16 SECTION 5. Subchapter G, Chapter 39, is amended by adding
7-17 Section 39.132 to read as follows:
7-18 Sec. 39.132. DECLARATION OF EMERGENCY STATUS AT
7-19 LOW-PERFORMING CAMPUSES. (a) The board of trustees of a school
7-20 district may apply to the commissioner for authorization for the
7-21 board to declare emergency status at any low-performing campus in
7-22 the district.
7-23 (b) A campus at which emergency status is declared is
7-24 subject to federal and state laws and rules governing public
7-25 schools, except that in order to overcome impediments to efforts to
7-26 aggressively address the problems at the campus, the commissioner
7-27 may exempt the campus from this code and rules adopted under this
8-1 code.
8-2 (c) The commissioner shall prescribe the form and content of
8-3 an application for a declaration of emergency status.
8-4 (d) If the commissioner objects to an application for a
8-5 declaration of emergency status, the commissioner must notify the
8-6 board of trustees in writing that the application is denied not
8-7 later than the 30th day after the date the application is received.
8-8 If the commissioner does not notify the board of an objection
8-9 within that time, the application is considered granted.
8-10 (e) The commissioner may not approve emergency status at a
8-11 campus under this section for a period of longer than two years,
8-12 except that the board of trustees may submit a written application
8-13 to the commissioner for an extension of the emergency status for a
8-14 period of not longer than one year. The application must explain
8-15 the reason an extension is necessary.
8-16 (f) The commissioner may adopt rules to administer this
8-17 section.
8-18 SECTION 6. Subchapter C, Chapter 42, Education Code, is
8-19 amended by adding Section 42.159 to read as follows:
8-20 Sec. 42.159. CAMPUS BONUS ALLOTMENT. (a) A school district
8-21 is entitled to an annual allotment of $3,000 for each full-time
8-22 equivalent teacher at a school campus determined by the
8-23 commissioner to have shown extraordinary improvement in the
8-24 preceding school year. A school district is entitled to an annual
8-25 allotment of $1,000 for each full-time equivalent teacher at a
8-26 school campus determined by the commissioner to have shown
8-27 significant improvement in the preceding school year.
9-1 (b) An allotment under this section may be used only to
9-2 provide additional funding to the campus for which the allotment
9-3 was made. The campus-level committee established under Subchapter
9-4 F, Chapter 11, for a campus for which an allotment under this
9-5 section was made shall determine the manner in which the allotment
9-6 is used.
9-7 (c) The commissioner may adopt rules to administer this
9-8 section.
9-9 SECTION 7. Sections 39.131(b) and (c), Education Code, as
9-10 amended by this Act, and Section 39.132, Education Code, as added
9-11 by this Act apply beginning with the 2001-2002 school year.
9-12 SECTION 8. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this
9-13 section, this Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of
9-14 two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by
9-15 Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not
9-16 receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes
9-17 effect September 1, 2001.
9-18 (b) Section 6 of this Act take effect September 1, 2001.