81R365 PAM-D

By: Raymond H.B. No. 542

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to placement of public school students in Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps programs as an alternative in certain circumstances to placement in disciplinary or juvenile justice alternative education programs.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Sections 37.001(a) and (e), Education Code, are amended to read as follows:

(a) The board of trustees of an independent school district shall, with the advice of its district-level committee established under Subchapter F, Chapter 11, adopt a student code of conduct for the district. The student code of conduct must be posted and prominently displayed at each school campus or made available for review at the office of the campus principal. In addition to establishing standards for student conduct, the student code of conduct must:

(1) specify the circumstances, in accordance with this subchapter, under which a student may be removed from a classroom, campus, or disciplinary alternative education program;

(2) specify conditions that authorize or require a principal or other appropriate administrator to require a student to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program or to transfer a student to a disciplinary alternative education program;

(3) outline conditions under which a student may be suspended as provided by Section 37.005 or expelled as provided by Section 37.007;

(4) specify whether consideration is given, as a factor in a decision to order suspension, participation in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program, removal to a disciplinary alternative education program, or expulsion, to:

(A) self-defense;

(B) intent or lack of intent at the time the student engaged in the conduct;

(C) a student's disciplinary history; or

(D) a disability that substantially impairs the student's capacity to appreciate the wrongfulness of the student's conduct;

(5) provide guidelines for setting the length of a term of:

(A) a removal under Section 37.006; [and]

(B) an expulsion under Section 37.007; and

(C) required participation under Section 37.0055;

(6) address the notification of a student's parent or guardian of a violation of the student code of conduct committed by the student that results in suspension, required participation in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program, removal to a disciplinary alternative education program, or expulsion;

(7) prohibit bullying, harassment, and making hit lists and ensure that district employees enforce those prohibitions; and

(8) provide, as appropriate for students at each grade level, methods, including options, for:

(A) managing students in the classroom and on school grounds;

(B) disciplining students; and

(C) preventing and intervening in student discipline problems, including bullying, harassment, and making hit lists.

(e) Except as provided by Section 37.007(e), this subchapter does not require the student code of conduct to specify a minimum term of required participation under Section 37.0055, a removal under Section 37.006, or an expulsion under Section 37.007.

SECTION 2. Section 37.002, Education Code, is amended by adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:

(e) This section is subject to Section 37.0055.

SECTION 3. Subchapter A, Chapter 37, Education Code, is amended by adding Section 37.0055 to read as follows:

Sec. 37.0055. MANDATORY ALTERNATIVE PLACEMENT IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES: JUNIOR RESERVE OFFICERS' TRAINING CORPS (JROTC). (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subchapter and except as provided by Subsection (c), a student who is otherwise required or permitted under this subchapter to be placed in a disciplinary alternative education program or juvenile justice alternative education program must, instead of that placement, be required to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program if:

(1) the school the student attends offers the program; and

(2) the student meets the initial eligibility requirements for the program.

(b) A student required to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under this section continues to attend the student's regularly assigned classes, except that the student's schedule may be modified to the extent necessary to provide for required attendance in the program.

(c) This section does not apply if:

(1) the student is removed from class and placed into another appropriate classroom or into in-school suspension under Section 37.002 or is suspended under Section 37.005;

(2) the student engages in conduct described by Section 37.006(a)(2)(B) or Section 37.007(a)(2) or (b)(2)(C);

(3) the continued presence of the student in the regular classroom threatens the safety of other students or teachers; or

(4) the student engages in conduct for which the student is required to be expelled from the student's regular campus under federal law.

(d) Section 37.006(e) applies to this section. Not later than the third class day after the date a student is required to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under this section, the school district shall notify the student's parent or guardian of the student's placement. The notice must include the reason for the placement.

(e) The board of trustees of the school district or the board's designee shall set a term for a student's required participation in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under this section. The term must be for a period consistent with the guidelines adopted under the student code of conduct in accordance with Section 37.001(a)(5)(C). If the period of placement is inconsistent with the guidelines adopted under the student code of conduct, the notice under Subsection (d) must provide an explanation of the inconsistency.

(f) Notwithstanding Section 7.057(e), the decision to require a student to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under this section may be appealed by the student or the student's parent or guardian to the commissioner as provided by Sections 7.057(b), (c), (d), and (f).

(g) Before a student may be required to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under this section for a period that extends beyond the end of a school year, the board of trustees or the board's designee must determine that the student has engaged in serious or persistent misbehavior that violates the district's student code of conduct. The period of required participation may not exceed one year unless, after review, the board or the board's designee determines that extended placement is in the best interest of the student.

(h) The board of trustees shall inform each educator who has responsibility for, or is under the direction and supervision of an educator who has responsibility for, the instruction of a student who is required to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under this section. Each educator shall keep the information received under this subsection confidential from any person not entitled to the information under this subsection, except that the educator may share the information with the student's parent or guardian as provided for by state or federal law. The State Board for Educator Certification may revoke or suspend the certification of an educator who intentionally violates this subsection or Subsection (i).

(i) If a student required to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under this section enrolls in another school district before the expiration of the period of required participation, the board of trustees of the school district requiring the participation shall provide to the district in which the student enrolls, at the same time other records of the student are provided, a copy of the placement order. The district in which the student enrolls shall inform each educator who will have responsibility for, or will be under the direction and supervision of an educator who will have responsibility for, the instruction of the student of the contents of the placement order. Each educator shall keep the information received under this subsection confidential from any person not entitled to the information under this subsection, except that the educator may share the information with the student's parent or guardian as provided for by state or federal law. The district in which the student enrolls may continue the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program placement under the terms of the order or may allow the student to attend regular classes without completing the period of required participation. If the school the student attends in the district in which the student enrolls does not offer a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program, the student may be placed in a disciplinary alternative education program or a juvenile justice alternative education program under the procedures provided by this subchapter for the remainder of the term set under Subsection (e).

(j) A student required to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under this section is subject to the provisions of this subchapter relating to removal from class and placement in a disciplinary alternative education program or juvenile justice alternative education program if the student, after any required participation in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under this section, engages in subsequent conduct requiring or permitting the student to be removed from class and placed in a disciplinary alternative education program or juvenile justice alternative education program under this subchapter.

SECTION 4. Section 37.006, Education Code, is amended by adding Subsection (p) to read as follows:

(p) This section is subject to Section 37.0055.

SECTION 5. Section 37.007, Education Code, is amended by adding Subsection (j) to read as follows:

(j) This section is subject to Section 37.0055.

SECTION 6. Section 37.0091(a), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) A noncustodial parent may request in writing that a school district or school, for the remainder of the school year in which the request is received, provide that parent with a copy of any written notification relating to alternative placement under Section 37.0055 or student misconduct under Section 37.006 or 37.007 that is generally provided by the district or school to a student's parent or guardian.

SECTION 7. Section 37.020, Education Code, is amended by adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:

(d) For each placement in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under Section 37.0055, the district shall report:

(1) information identifying the student, including the student's race, sex, and date of birth, that will enable the agency to compare placement data with information collected through other reports;

(2) information indicating whether the placement was based on:

(A) conduct violating the student code of conduct adopted under Section 37.001;

(B) conduct for which placement in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program is required or permitted by Section 37.0055; or

(C) conduct occurring while a student was enrolled in another district and for which placement in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program is permitted by Section 37.0055(i);

(3) the number of full or partial days the student was assigned to the program and the number of full or partial days the student attended the program; and

(4) the number of placements that were inconsistent with the guidelines included in the student code of conduct under Section 37.001(a)(5)(C).

SECTION 8. Section 39.182(a), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) Not later than December 1 of each year, the agency shall prepare and deliver to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, each member of the legislature, the Legislative Budget Board, and the clerks of the standing committees of the senate and house of representatives with primary jurisdiction over the public school system a comprehensive report covering the preceding school year and containing:

(1) an evaluation of the achievements of the state educational program in relation to the statutory goals for the public education system under Section 4.002;

(2) an evaluation of the status of education in the state as reflected by the academic excellence indicators adopted under Section 39.051;

(3) a summary compilation of overall student performance on academic skills assessment instruments required by Section 39.023 with the number and percentage of students exempted from the administration of those instruments and the basis of the exemptions, aggregated by grade level, subject area, campus, and district, with appropriate interpretations and analysis, and disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status;

(4) a summary compilation of overall performance of students placed in a disciplinary alternative education program established under Section 37.008 on academic skills assessment instruments required by Section 39.023 with the number of those students exempted from the administration of those instruments and the basis of the exemptions, aggregated by district, grade level, and subject area, with appropriate interpretations and analysis, and disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status;

(5) a summary compilation of overall performance of students at risk of dropping out of school, as defined by Section 29.081(d), on academic skills assessment instruments required by Section 39.023 with the number of those students exempted from the administration of those instruments and the basis of the exemptions, aggregated by district, grade level, and subject area, with appropriate interpretations and analysis, and disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status;

(6) an evaluation of the correlation between student grades and student performance on academic skills assessment instruments required by Section 39.023;

(7) a statement of the dropout rate of students in grade levels 7 through 12, expressed in the aggregate and by grade level, and a statement of the completion rates of students for grade levels 9 through 12;

(8) a statement of:

(A) the completion rate of students who enter grade level 9 and graduate not more than four years later;

(B) the completion rate of students who enter grade level 9 and graduate, including students who require more than four years to graduate;

(C) the completion rate of students who enter grade level 9 and not more than four years later receive a high school equivalency certificate;

(D) the completion rate of students who enter grade level 9 and receive a high school equivalency certificate, including students who require more than four years to receive a certificate; and

(E) the number and percentage of all students who have not been accounted for under Paragraph (A), (B), (C), or (D);

(9) a statement of the projected cross-sectional and longitudinal dropout rates for grade levels 9 through 12 for the next five years, assuming no state action is taken to reduce the dropout rate;

(10) a description of a systematic, measurable plan for reducing the projected cross-sectional and longitudinal dropout rates to five percent or less for the 1997-1998 school year;

(11) a summary of the information required by Section 29.083 regarding grade level retention of students and information concerning:

(A) the number and percentage of students retained; and

(B) the performance of retained students on assessment instruments required under Section 39.023(a);

(12) information, aggregated by district type and disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, [and] socioeconomic status, and program type, on:

(A) the number of students placed in a disciplinary alternative education program established under Section 37.008 or a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under Section 37.0055;

(B) the average length of a student's placement in a disciplinary alternative education program established under Section 37.008 or a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under Section 37.0055;

(C) the academic performance of students on assessment instruments required under Section 39.023(a) during the year preceding and during the year following placement in a disciplinary alternative education program or a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under Section 37.0055; and

(D) the dropout rates of students who have been placed in a disciplinary alternative education program established under Section 37.008 or a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under Section 37.0055;

(13) a list of each school district or campus that does not satisfy performance standards, with an explanation of the actions taken by the commissioner to improve student performance in the district or campus and an evaluation of the results of those actions;

(14) an evaluation of the status of the curriculum taught in public schools, with recommendations for legislative changes necessary to improve or modify the curriculum required by Section 28.002;

(15) a description of all funds received by and each activity and expenditure of the agency;

(16) a summary and analysis of the instructional expenditures ratios and instructional employees ratios of school districts computed under Section 44.0071;

(17) a summary of the effect of deregulation, including exemptions and waivers granted under Section 7.056 or 39.112;

(18) a statement of the total number and length of reports that school districts and school district employees must submit to the agency, identifying which reports are required by federal statute or rule, state statute, or agency rule, and a summary of the agency's efforts to reduce overall reporting requirements;

(19) a list of each school district that is not in compliance with state special education requirements, including:

(A) the period for which the district has not been in compliance;

(B) the manner in which the agency considered the district's failure to comply in determining the district's accreditation status; and

(C) an explanation of the actions taken by the commissioner to ensure compliance and an evaluation of the results of those actions;

(20) a comparison of the performance of open-enrollment charter schools and school districts on the academic excellence indicators specified in Section 39.051(b) and accountability measures adopted under Section 39.051(g), with a separately aggregated comparison of the performance of open-enrollment charter schools predominantly serving students at risk of dropping out of school, as defined by Section 29.081(d), with the performance of school districts;

(21) a summary of the information required by Section 38.0141 regarding student health and physical activity from each school district;

(22) a summary compilation of overall student performance under the assessment system developed to evaluate the longitudinal academic progress as required by Section 39.027(e), disaggregated by bilingual education or special language program instructional model, if any; and

(23) any additional information considered important by the commissioner or the State Board of Education.

SECTION 9. This Act applies beginning with the 2009-2010 school year.

SECTION 10. 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 September 1, 2009.