BILL ANALYSIS

 

 

 

C.S.H.B. 1051

By: VanDeaver

Public Education

Committee Report (Substituted)

 

 

 

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

 

It has been reported that the adult high school and industry certification pilot program has been successful in implementing a comprehensive high school and workforce development program for adults and is a critical partner in meeting the state's 60x30TX goals. C.S.H.B. 1051 therefore seeks to continue the program and make it more accessible to more students.

 

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

 

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

 

It is the committee's opinion that rulemaking authority is expressly granted to the commissioner of education in SECTION 8 of this bill.

 

ANALYSIS

 

C.S.H.B. 1051 amends the Education Code to include a student who, regardless of the student's age, participates in an adult education program provided under a high school diploma and industry certification charter school program in the definition of "student at risk of dropping out of school" for purposes of compensatory, intensive, and accelerated instruction that a public school district is required to provide to such students. The bill lowers the age at which a person is eligible to enroll in the adult education program under the adult high school diploma and industry certification charter school program from 19 years of age to 18 years of age. The bill removes the requirement that a person not have earned a high school equivalency certificate to be eligible to enroll in an adult education program under the adult high school diploma and industry certification charter school program but requires a nonprofit entity that provides an adult education program under the charter school program, in admitting students, to give priority to a person who has not earned a high school equivalency certificate.

 

C.S.H.B. 1051 requires such a nonprofit entity, if money is appropriated for a state fiscal year for expansion of the program, to submit any request for approval of an expansion amendment not later than June 30 of that state fiscal year. The bill establishes that the expansion amendment is considered approved if the commissioner of education does not provide written notice to the nonprofit entity of the disapproval of the expansion amendment on or before August 1. The bill establishes that funding for adult education programming, regardless of participant age, under the adult high school diploma and industry certification charter school program is an amount per participant through the Foundation School Program and provides for the calculation of that amount.

 

C.S.H.B. 1051 requires the adult education program under the adult high school diploma and industry certification charter school program to use an instructional model in which at least 75 percent of instruction is delivered by a teacher in an in-person, interactive classroom setting and to provide support services to students, including:

·         child care at no cost to students;

·         life coaching services, at a ratio not to exceed one life coach for every 100 students, that use strategic and holistic interventions designed to facilitate graduation planning and assist students in overcoming life obstacles to achieve academic and career goals;

·         mental health counseling; and

·         instructional support services for students with identified disabilities or impairments.

C.S.H.B. 1051 requires the commissioner by rule to require each district and open‑enrollment charter school to annually report through the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS) information regarding the number of students who are enrolled in a high school equivalency program, a dropout recovery school, or an adult education program provided under a high school diploma and industry certification charter school program provided by the district or charter school and who are at least 18 years of age and under 26 years of age, who have not previously been reported to the Texas Education Agency as dropouts, and who enroll in the program at the district or charter school after not attending school for a period of at least nine months. The bill requires such a student so enrolled to be reported through PEIMS as having previously dropped out of school. The bill requires the commissioner to exclude such a student for purposes of the computation of dropout and completion rates such as high school graduation rates and establishes that the student may not be considered to have dropped out from the district or campus in which the student was last enrolled for purposes of the computation of dropout and completion rates. The bill requires the commissioner to update PEIMS as necessary to accommodate the reporting through PEIMS of information regarding students who are at least 26 years of age and not more than 50 years of age enrolled in an adult high school diploma and industry certification charter school program for purposes of ensuring accurate funding for students enrolled in such programs and the accurate collection, analysis, and reporting of information regarding those students.

 

C.S.H.B. 1051 applies beginning with the 2019‑2020 school year. 

 

EFFECTIVE DATE

 

On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2019.

 

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE

 

While C.S.H.B. 1051 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.

 

The substitute includes requirements for the adult education program to use a specified instructional model and offer support services.

 

The substitute does not include a requirement for the commissioner of education to provide notice regarding an expansion amendment to a nonprofit entity granted a charter to provide an adult education program. The substitute establishes that an expansion amendment is considered approved if the commissioner does not provide a notice to the nonprofit entity of disapproval by a deadline.

 

The substitute expands the students who meet certain conditions and are enrolled in a high school equivalency program, a dropout recovery school, or an adult education program for which each district and charter school is required to annually report through PEIMS.

 

The substitute includes a requirement for the commissioner to update PEIMS as necessary.