79S30950 SLO-F
By: Delisi H.B. No. 101
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to an awards for student achievement program at certain
public school campuses.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 21, Education Code, is amended by adding
Subchapter N to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER N. AWARDS FOR STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT PROGRAM
Sec. 21.651. DEFINITION. In this subchapter, "program"
means the awards for student achievement program.
Sec. 21.652. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM. (a) The
commissioner by rule shall establish an awards for student
achievement program under which an eligible campus may receive a
grant from the agency in the manner provided by this subchapter.
(b) In establishing the program, the commissioner shall
adopt program guidelines in accordance with this subchapter for a
campus to follow in developing a campus incentive plan under
Section 21.654.
Sec. 21.653. CAMPUS ELIGIBILITY. (a) Except as provided by
Subsection (b), a campus is eligible to apply for and may receive a
program grant if the campus:
(1) is ranked by the agency in the top half of this
state's elementary school campuses, middle or junior high school
campuses, high school campuses, or campuses for students of all
grade levels, as applicable, in the percentage of educationally
disadvantaged students enrolled at the campus; and
(2) is rated exemplary or recognized under Section
39.072 or ranked in the top quartile of campuses in comparable
improvement, as defined by Section 39.051(c), in mathematics or
reading.
(b) This subsection applies only to a registered
alternative education campus that has a student enrollment of at
least 30 students and is rated under alternative education
accountability procedures. A campus to which this subsection
applies is eligible to apply for and may receive a program grant if
the campus is ranked by the agency in the top third of elementary
school campuses, middle or junior high school campuses, high school
campuses, or campuses for students of all grade levels, as
applicable, in the percentage of educationally disadvantaged
students enrolled at the campus who perform successfully, as
determined under Section 39.024, on assessment instruments
administered under Section 39.023.
Sec. 21.654. CAMPUS INCENTIVE PLAN. (a) A campus-level
decision-making body, such as the campus-level planning and
decision-making committee established under Subchapter F, Chapter
11, for each eligible campus that intends to participate in the
program shall develop a campus incentive plan for the campus that:
(1) is designed to reward teachers who have a positive
impact on improving student achievement;
(2) meets all program guidelines adopted by the
commissioner under Section 21.652; and
(3) describes how grant funds will be distributed.
(b) A district-level committee, such as the district-level
planning and decision-making committee established under
Subchapter F, Chapter 11:
(1) must approve the campus incentive plan developed
under Subsection (a) before the plan is submitted to the agency; and
(2) shall approve the plan if the district-level
committee determines that the plan meets program guidelines adopted
by the commissioner under Section 21.652.
(c) A school district shall, on behalf of an eligible
campus, submit a campus incentive plan to the agency for approval.
The plan must be submitted together with:
(1) evidence of significant classroom teacher
involvement in the development of the plan presented through the
campus-level decision-making body's meeting attendance records or
minutes or other appropriate means;
(2) letters from at least three classroom teachers
assigned to the eligible campus describing the teachers' support
for and involvement in developing the plan; and
(3) evidence that the plan:
(A) has been made available for public viewing;
and
(B) has been presented to the public at a
regularly scheduled board of trustees meeting or will be presented
at a regularly scheduled board meeting on a date specified, as
applicable.
(d) The agency may approve only a campus incentive plan that
meets program guidelines adopted by the commissioner under Section
21.652 and satisfies this section. The agency may negotiate with a
school district to ensure that activities proposed in the campus
incentive plan the district submits meet program guidelines.
Sec. 21.655. AMOUNT OF PROGRAM GRANT AWARD. (a) Each
eligible campus whose campus incentive plan is approved by the
agency under Section 21.654 is entitled to a grant award in an
amount determined by the commissioner.
(b) Grants from funds appropriated for the program shall be
awarded beginning with the 2006-2007 school year and may not exceed
$100 million in the 2006-2007 school year except as expressly
authorized by the General Appropriations Act or other law. This
subsection expires September 1, 2007.
Sec. 21.656. INCENTIVE PAYMENTS TO CLASSROOM TEACHERS. (a)
An eligible campus must use 75 percent of a grant award received
under Section 21.655 to provide incentive payments to classroom
teachers assigned to the campus. To the extent practicable, the
campus shall pay a classroom teacher an incentive payment in an
amount of not less than $3,000 or more than $10,000.
(b) In distributing incentive payments to classroom
teachers under this section, an eligible campus:
(1) may distribute an incentive payment only to a
classroom teacher who:
(A) demonstrates success in improving student
achievement using objective, quantifiable measures, such as local
benchmarking systems, portfolio assessments, end-of-course
assessments, and value-added assessments; and
(B) successfully collaborates with other faculty
and with staff in a manner that contributes to improving overall
student achievement at the campus; and
(2) may consider a classroom teacher's:
(A) assignment to teach a subject that:
(i) has been designated by the commissioner
as a subject historically experiencing a critical shortage of
teachers or a high teacher turnover rate; or
(ii) is a subject for which the district in
which the campus is located has a shortage of teachers; or
(B) demonstration of ongoing initiative,
commitment, professionalism, and involvement in an activity that
directly results in improved student achievement, including
working with students outside of assigned class hours, creating a
program that involves parents, and personalizing the learning
environment for each student.
Sec. 21.657. DISTRIBUTION OF OTHER PROGRAM FUNDS. (a) An
eligible campus must use 25 percent of a grant award received under
Section 21.655 to provide for:
(1) incentive payments to campus employees other than
classroom teachers, such as principals, assistant principals,
teachers who are not eligible for an incentive payment under
Section 21.656, counselors, speech therapists, instructional
coaches, teacher's aides, nurses, librarians, members of the
custodial staff, or other campus employees who have contributed to
improved student achievement;
(2) professional development for classroom teachers
who:
(A) do not receive an incentive payment under
Section 21.656; and
(B) would benefit from professional development
to develop or enhance skills and behaviors described under Section
21.656(b);
(3) reimbursement or funding for a professional
development activity that directly contributes to improved
classroom instruction and student achievement;
(4) signing bonuses for classroom teachers new to the
campus who are teaching subjects that have been designated by the
commissioner as historically experiencing a critical shortage of
teachers;
(5) a teacher mentoring program;
(6) an activity that supports new teacher induction
programs, including:
(A) common planning time and collaboration;
(B) a professional development activity; and
(C) standards-based evaluations;
(7) an activity that supports common planning time and
curriculum development;
(8) a program that has been proven to recruit and
retain highly effective teachers;
(9) an activity that creates or furthers the goals of
an incentive system designed to improve student achievement;
(10) stipends for teachers who participate in an
after-school or Saturday program that directly contributes to
improved classroom instruction and student achievement;
(11) additional funding for feeder campuses that,
because they are not assigned performance ratings under Chapter 39,
do not qualify to participate in the program, such as campuses that
serve kindergarten through grade two, to implement an activity
described by this section; and
(12) any other program that directly contributes to
improved student achievement.
(b) A campus may not use any of a grant award received under
Section 21.655 to provide for an incentive payment to an employee
whose primary responsibility, as determined in accordance with
commissioner rule, is supervision of an athletic activity.
Sec. 21.658. RULES. The commissioner shall adopt rules
necessary to administer this subchapter.
SECTION 2. Section 822.201(b), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) "Salary and wages" as used in Subsection (a) means:
(1) normal periodic payments of money for service the
right to which accrues on a regular basis in proportion to the
service performed;
(2) amounts by which the member's salary is reduced
under a salary reduction agreement authorized by Chapter 610;
(3) amounts that would otherwise qualify as salary and
wages under Subdivision (1) but are not received directly by the
member pursuant to a good faith, voluntary written salary reduction
agreement in order to finance payments to a deferred compensation
or tax sheltered annuity program specifically authorized by state
law or to finance benefit options under a cafeteria plan qualifying
under Section 125, [of the] Internal Revenue Code of 1986, if:
(A) the program or benefit options are made
available to all employees of the employer; and
(B) the benefit options in the cafeteria plan are
limited to one or more options that provide deferred compensation,
group health and disability insurance, group term life insurance,
dependent care assistance programs, or group legal services plans;
(4) performance pay awarded to an employee by a school
district as part of a total compensation plan approved by the board
of trustees of the district and meeting the requirements of
Subsection (e);
(5) the benefit replacement pay a person earns under
Subchapter H, Chapter 659, except as provided by Subsection (c);
(6) stipends paid to teachers in accordance with
Section 21.410, 21.411, 21.412, or 21.413, Education Code;
(7) amounts by which the member's salary is reduced or
that are deducted from the member's salary as authorized by
Subchapter J, Chapter 659; [and]
(8) a merit salary increase made under Section 51.962,
Education Code; and
(9) amounts received under the awards for student
achievement program under Subchapter N, Chapter 21, Education Code.
SECTION 3. As soon as practicable after the effective date
of this Act, the commissioner of education shall adopt rules for
establishing and administering the awards for student achievement
program under Subchapter N, Chapter 21, Education Code, as added by
this Act. The commissioner shall make the awards for student
achievement program available for campus participation not later
than the 2006-2007 school year.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect on the 91st day after the last day of the
legislative session.