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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 5213
February Session, 2024
LCO No. 1781
Referred to Committee on EDUCATION
Introduced by:
(ED)
AN ACT CONCERNING DISCONNECTED YOUTH.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (Effective from passage) (a) As used in this section: 1
(1) "At-risk student" means a student who is enrolled in high school 2
and is in danger of not graduating due to (A) not earning sufficient 3
credits to meet the high school graduation requirements under section 4
10-221a of the general statutes, (B) being a chronically absent child, and 5
(C) behavioral and other disciplinary issues, such as suspensions and 6
expulsions; 7
(2) "Chronically absent child" has the same meaning as provided in 8
section 10-198c of the general statutes; and 9
(3) "Disconnected youth" means an individual who is fourteen to 10
twenty-six years of age, inclusive, and (A) holds a high school diploma 11
but is neither employed nor attending an institution of higher education 12
or otherwise pursuing secondary education, (B) does not hold a high 13
school diploma and is employed, (C) does not hold a high school 14
diploma and is not employed, or (D) is incarcerated. 15 Raised Bill No. 5213
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(b) The Two-Generational Advisory Board, established pursuant to 16
section 17b-112l of the general statutes, shall develop a plan to address 17
strategies to assist at-risk students and reengage individuals identified 18
as disconnected youth. Such plan shall include, but need not be limited 19
to, (1) ways in which to identify and address the needs of individuals 20
who are defined as disconnected youth, (2) identify opportunities for 21
interagency and cross-branch collaboration and streamlining of 22
resources at the state and local level, (3) the state-wide expansion and 23
enhancement of a shared data platform, in collaboration with the 24
Compass Youth Collaborative, to provide a streamlined way for 25
community-based providers in the state that serve disconnected youth 26
to access and share individual-level de-identified data to improve 27
collaboration, communication, efficiency, transparency and outcomes 28
over time, and (4) recommendations for improvement to the 29
Connecticut Preschool through Twenty and Workforce Information 30
Network, established pursuant to section 10a-57g of the general statutes, 31
to promote data sharing and the retention of data models for purposes 32
of future comparisons. The advisory board shall collaborate with the 33
Connecticut Conference of Municipalities and the Connecticut Council 34
of Small Towns in the development of the plan. 35
(c) Not later than January 1, 2025, the advisory board shall submit the 36
plan, and any recommendations, to the joint standing committee of the 37
General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education, 38
in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes. 39
Sec. 2. (Effective July 1, 2024) (a) The School of Public Policy at The 40
University of Connecticut shall conduct a study and comprehensive 41
asset and capacity mapping for nonprofit organizations in this state to 42
help support the sharing of information and collaboration between such 43
nonprofit organizations and the communities they serve. The School of 44
Public Policy at The University of Connecticut may consult with 45
nonprofit organizations and philanthropy associations in the state while 46
conducting such study and mapping. 47
(b) Such study and mapping shall (1) assess the capacity of such 48 Raised Bill No. 5213
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nonprofit organizations to assist the state in addressing public needs 49
and identifying the availability and strength of assets and gaps or 50
weaknesses of service, (2) provide an effective tool for sharing data, 51
documents and communication among and between such nonprofit 52
organizations for the purpose of strengthening such nonprofit 53
organizations' capacity to serve the residents of the state, (3) provide a 54
resource for policy makers to determine gaps in services and capacity 55
and enhance collaboration among different nonprofit organizations 56
working in the same geographic areas and serving the same target 57
population, (4) provide information to policy makers on ways in which 58
to ensure that resources are being invested in areas and populations 59
with the greatest need, and (5) present data by town, county and state-60
wide, as well as by each regional council of government, and include a 61
summary of the available resources, including nonprofit organizations 62
and state agencies, to create a database of the state's nonprofit 63
organizations by target service population, mission and geography. 64
(c) The Department of Consumer Protection and the Secretary of State 65
shall, upon request of The School of Public Policy at The University of 66
Connecticut, provide to said school any data necessary to conduct such 67
study and mapping. 68
(d) (1) Not later than October 1, 2024, The School of Public Policy at 69
The University of Connecticut shall submit a preliminary report on such 70
study and mapping to the joint standing committee of the General 71
Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education, in 72
accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes. 73
(2) Not later than June 30, 2025, The School of Public Policy at The 74
University of Connecticut shall submit a final report on such study and 75
mapping to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly 76
having cognizance of matters relating to education, in accordance with 77
the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes. Such final report 78
shall include recommendations, including a model to enhance 79
collaboration among nonprofit organizations to ensure that state 80
investments are addressing gaps in services and not contributing to 81 Raised Bill No. 5213
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duplicative efforts or competition among nonprofit organizations. 82
Sec. 3. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2024) (a) As used in this section: 83
(1) "Education records" has the same meaning as provided in 30 CFR 84
99.3, as amended from time to time; 85
(2) "Personally identifiable information" has the same meaning as 86
provided in 30 CFR 99.3, as amended from time to time; 87
(3) "Data sharing agreement" means a contract between a local and 88
regional board of education and a youth service bureau, established 89
pursuant to section 10-19m of the general statutes, or a juvenile review 90
board, that establishes the processes and procedures that govern the 91
sharing and use of education records and personally identifiable 92
information of students who attend a school under the jurisdiction of 93
such local or regional board of education for the purpose of engaging in 94
data analysis of long-term outcomes of students to help improve 95
available programming, instruction and services; and 96
(4) "Required student data" means information for each student that 97
includes, but is not limited to, (A) a student's state-assigned student 98
identifier, (B) the first, middle and last name of a student, (C) a student's 99
date of birth, (D) demographic information of a student, including, but 100
not limited to, race, ethnicity and gender, (E) whether a student is (i) a 101
multilingual learner, (ii) a homeless child or youth, as defined in 42 USC 102
11434a, as amended from time to time, or (iii) receiving special 103
education or related services, (F) a student's grade level, (G) a student's 104
current enrollment status, including active registration, transfer and 105
withdrawal data, (H) a student's date of graduation or anticipated 106
graduation year, (I) a student's attendance records, including whether 107
the student's absences were excused or unexcused, (J) a student's 108
disciplinary history, including, but not limited to, the type, number and 109
nature of disciplinary actions, and (K) any additional student 110
information or data necessary for youth service bureaus to comply with 111
the provisions of section 10-19m of the general statutes. 112 Raised Bill No. 5213
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(b) Not later than October 1, 2024, each local and regional board of 113
education shall enter into a data sharing agreement with each youth 114
service bureau, established pursuant to section 10-19m of the general 115
statutes, or juvenile review board that serves the municipality in which 116
any student enrolled in a school under the jurisdiction of such board 117
resides. 118
(c) Each data sharing agreement entered into under this section shall 119
(1) require the board to provide required student data to the youth 120
service bureau or juvenile review board on a monthly basis, (2) stipulate 121
that any disclosure of the education records and personally identifiable 122
information of a student without the consent of the parent or guardian 123
of such student is permissible under the data sharing agreement under 124
the provisions of 34 CFR 99.31(a)(6), as amended from time to time, 125
provided the purpose of such disclosure is to allow a youth service 126
bureau or juvenile review board to conduct a study to improve 127
instruction and assess the effectiveness of state and federally funded 128
education programs, and (3) allow a youth service bureau or juvenile 129
review board to (A) share the results of any study described in 130
subdivision (2) of this subsection with the local or regional board of 131
education, and (B) utilize the data in such study to help assess long-term 132
outcomes of the students served by the youth service bureau or juvenile 133
review board for the purposes of evaluating such youth service bureau's 134
or juvenile review board's program and service effectiveness, improving 135
instruction and identifying areas for program improvement. 136
(d) Any data sharing agreement entered into under this section shall 137
be in accordance with federal and state law, including, but not limited 138
to, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, 20 USC 139
1232g, as amended from time to time, and 34 CFR 99.1 et seq. 140
Sec. 4. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2024) Not later than September 1, 2024, 141
the Commissioner of Education shall develop a model data sharing 142
agreement for use by local and regional boards of education, youth 143
service bureaus established pursuant to section 10-19m of the general 144
statutes and juvenile review boards. Such model data sharing 145 Raised Bill No. 5213
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agreement shall be in accordance with the provisions of section 3 of this 146
act. The commissioner shall make such model data sharing agreement 147
available upon request and on the Internet web site of the Department 148
of Education. 149
Sec. 5. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2024) Each local and regional board of 150
education shall include individuals designated by the appropriate 151
youth service bureau, established pursuant to section 10-19m of the 152
general statutes, or juvenile review board for which such board has 153
entered into a data sharing agreement under section 3 of this act, in 154
school level support meetings and on any attendance review team, 155
established pursuant to section 10-198c of the general statutes. As used 156
in this section, "school level support meetings" means a scheduled 157
meeting of school administrators, teachers, social workers, school 158
counselors or other school officials to review and discuss student data 159
related to absenteeism, discipline or mental and behavioral health. 160
Sec. 6. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2024) Not later than October 1, 2024, 161
the State Board of Education shall enter into a data sharing agreement, 162
as defined in section 12 of this act, with an association that represents a 163
network of youth service bureaus in the state to provide required 164
student data, as defined in section 3 of this act. Such data sharing 165
agreement shall require the state board to provide such required student 166
data not later than thirty days after the state board receives such 167
required student data from each local or regional board of education. 168
Sec. 7. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2024) Any student enrolled in a public 169
school located in a priority school district, as defined in section 10-266p 170
of the general statutes, shall be exempt from payment of the lawful 171
charge for state-owned or state-controlled bus public transportation 172
service during the two-hour period before the start of the regular school 173
day and during the four-hour period immediately following the end of 174
the regular school day, provided such person presents to the fare 175
inspector, as defined in section 13b-2 of the general statutes, or the 176
driver of such bus, as applicable, a student identification card issued by 177
the local or regional board of education for the priority school district in 178 Raised Bill No. 5213
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which such student is enrolled, indicating such person's status as a 179
student. 180
Sec. 8. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2024) (a) As used in this section: 181
(1) "Dual credit course" means a concurrent enrollment course or a 182
dual enrollment course for which credit is offered by a local or regional 183
board of education to students in grades nine to twelve, inclusive, and 184
for which high school and college credit is awarded; 185
(2) "Concurrent enrollment course" means a dual credit course that is 186
delivered at a high school by a certified educator employed by a local or 187
regional board of education; and 188
(3) "Dual enrollment course" means a dual credit course that is 189
delivered at a public or independent institution of higher education by 190
a member of the faculty of such institution of higher education. 191
(b) Prior to the establishment of a dual credit course, a local or 192
regional board of education and a public or independent institution of 193
higher education shall enter into a memorandum of understanding for 194
the delivery and awarding of credit for such dual credit course. Such 195
memorandum of understanding shall ensure that (1) any such dual 196
credit course aligns with the standards developed by the National 197
Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships, (2) the educator 198
employed by a local or regional board of education or faculty member 199
of such institution of higher education that is teaching such dual credit 200
course meets the qualifications set forth by the National Alliance of 201
Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships, (3) the superintendent of schools 202
attests to the institution of higher education that the educator employed 203
by the local or regional board of education meets such qualifications 204
prior to assigning such educator to teach such dual credit course, (4) 205
such educator completes the same professional development training 206
that is commensurate with the professional development that a faculty 207
member at such institution of higher education would complete for such 208
dual credit course offered at such institution, (5) such institution of 209
higher education may conduct an evaluation of such dual credit course 210 Raised Bill No. 5213
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or the professional development associated with such dual credit 211
course, (6) students enrolled in such dual credit course complete an 212
orientation program offered by such institution of higher education, and 213
(7) any student enrolled in such dual credit course meets the 214
prerequisites for such dual credit course. 215
Sec. 9. Subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 10-223e of the 216
general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 217
thereof (Effective July 1, 2024): 218
(1) "Accountability index" means the score resulting from multiple 219
student, school or district-level measures, as weighted by the 220
Department of Education, that (A) shall include the performance index 221
score and high school graduation rates, including the availability of a 222
credit recovery program and the number of students who earn credit 223
and graduate as a result of participation in a credit recovery program, 224
and (B) may include, but need not be limited to, academic growth over 225
time, attendance and chronic absenteeism, postsecondary education 226
and career readiness, enrollment in and graduation from institutions of 227
higher education and postsecondary education programs, civics and 228
arts education and physical fitness. 229
Sec. 10. Section 10-74j of the general statutes is repealed and the 230
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2024): 231
(a) As used in this section, "alternative education" means a school or 232
program maintained and operated by a local or regional board of 233
education that is offered to students in a nontraditional educational 234
setting and addresses the social, emotional, behavioral and academic 235
needs of such students. 236
(b) A local or regional board of education may provide alternative 237
education to students, in accordance with guidelines established by the 238
State Board of Education pursuant to section 10-74k. A local or regional 239
board of education may use space in an existing school or establish a 240
new school for the purposes of providing alternative education to 241
students. Alternative education shall be provided in accordance with 242 Raised Bill No. 5213
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the provisions of sections 10-15 and 10-16 and shall be subject to all 243
federal and state laws governing public schools. 244
(c) Each local and regional board of education shall make available 245
on its Internet web site information relating to alternative education 246
offered under this section, including, but not limited to, the purpose, 247
location, contact information, staff directory and enrollment criteria for 248
such alternative education. 249
(d) For the school year commencing July 1, 2024, and each school year 250
thereafter, any local or regional board of education that includes a credit 251
recovery program as part of its alternative education provided under 252
this section shall permit any student enrolled in a traditional school 253
program offered by such board and who is at risk of not graduating to 254
enroll in such credit recovery program while still enrolled in the 255
traditional school program. 256
Sec. 11. Section 4-124ll of the general statutes is repealed and the 257
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2024): 258
(a) On or before July 1, 2023, the Chief Workforce Officer, in 259
consultation with the Commissioner of Education, the executive 260
director of the Technical Education and Career System and the Labor 261
Commissioner, shall develop a model student work release policy. Not 262
later than July 1, 2023, the Chief Workforce Officer shall report, in 263
accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a, regarding such model 264
student work release policy to the joint standing committees of the 265
General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education, 266
commerce and labor. 267
(b) The Chief Workforce Officer, in consultation with the 268
Commissioner of Education, may update the model student work 269
release policy developed pursuant to subsection (a) of this section as 270
needed. The Chief Workforce Officer shall notify each local and regional 271
board of education of such updated model student work release policy. 272
(c) For the school year commencing July 1, 2024, and each school year 273 Raised Bill No. 5213
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thereafter, each local and regional board of education shall adopt the 274
model student work release policy developed pursuant to subsection (a) 275
of this section or the most recent updated model student work release 276
policy developed pursuant to subsection (b) of this section. 277
Sec. 12. Section 10-66u of the general statutes is repealed and the 278
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2024): 279
For the fiscal [years] year ending June 30, 2023, and [June 30, 2024] 280
each fiscal year thereafter, each regional educational service center shall 281
[hire] employ an individual to serve as the regional trauma coordinator 282
for such center. Such individual shall have significant trauma-informed 283
experience and have completed specific professional training focused 284
on trauma. The regional trauma coordinator for each such center shall 285
be responsible for: (1) Developing a trauma-informed care training 286
program in accordance with the provisions of section 10-66v, (2) 287
implementing the trauma-informed care training program, (3) 288
providing technical assistance to the local and regional boards of 289
education that are members of the regional educational service center in 290
implementing the trauma-informed care training program, (4) training 291
school mental health specialists, as defined in section 12 of public act 22-292
47, to be the trainers under the trauma-informed care training program, 293
and (5) ensuring that such trainers are properly training teachers, 294
administrators, school staff and coaches under the trauma-informed 295
care training program. 296
Sec. 13. (Effective July 1, 2024) (a) The executive director of the 297
Connecticut Association of Boards of Education, or the executive 298
director's designee, may convene a working group to conduct a review 299
of and make recommendations regarding the high school graduation 300
requirements, described in section 10-221a of the general statutes, for 301
the purpose of identifying those requirements that have the effect of 302
limiting or restricting the provision of instruction or services to students. 303
(b) The working group shall consist of the following members: 304
(1) A representative from each of the following organizations, 305 Raised Bill No. 5213
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designated by each such organization: 306
(A) The Connecticut Association of Boards of Education; 307
(B) The Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents; 308
(C) The Connecticut PTA; 309
(D) The American Federation of Teachers-Connecticut; 310
(E) The Connecticut Education Association; 311
(F) The Connecticut Association of Schools; 312
(G) The Connecticut Federation of School Administrators; 313
(H) The Connecticut School Counselor Association; and 314
(I) The Connecticut Association for Health, Physical Education, 315
Recreation and Dance; 316
(2) The chairpersons and ranking members of the joint standing 317
committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters 318
relating to education, or the chairpersons' and ranking members' 319
designees; and 320
(3) The Commissioner of Education, or the commissioner's designee. 321
(c) All initial appointments to the working group shall be made not 322
later than thirty days after the effective date of this section. Any vacancy 323
shall be filled by the appointing authority. 324
(d) The executive director of the Connecticut Association of Boards 325
of Education, or the executive director's designee, shall serve as the 326
chairperson of the working group. The chairperson shall schedule the 327
first meeting of the working group, which shall be held not later than 328
sixty days after the effective date of this section. 329
(e) The working group may provide an opportunity for public 330
comment or seek input from students, parents, educators, boards of 331 Raised Bill No. 5213
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education and other education stakeholders while conducting the 332
review and developing its recommendations under this section. 333
(f) Not later than January 1, 2026, the working group shall submit a 334
report on its review of such graduation requirements and its 335
recommendations for revisions to such graduation requirements to the 336
joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of 337
matters relating to education, in accordance with the provisions of 338
section 11-4a of the general statutes. The working group shall terminate 339
on the date that it submits such report or July 1, 2026, whichever is later. 340
Sec. 14. (Effective July 1, 2024) (a) The president of the Connecticut 341
Education Association, or the president's designee, and the president of 342
the American Federation of Teachers-Connecticut, or the president's 343
designee, may jointly convene a working group to (1) conduct a review 344
of (A) high school grading policies in use by local and regional boards 345
of education, and (B) the accountability index, as defined in section 10-346
223e of the general statutes, as amended by this act, and the information 347
and data selected by the Department of Education in the calculation of 348
accountability index scores for school districts. 349
(b) The working group shall consist of the following members: 350
(1) A representative from each of the following organizations, 351
designated by each such organization: 352
(A) The Connecticut Association of Boards of Education; 353
(B) The Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents; 354
(C) The Connecticut PTA; 355
(D) The American Federation of Teachers-Connecticut; 356
(E) The Connecticut Education Association; 357
(F) The Connecticut Association of Schools; 358
(G) The Connecticut Federation of School Administrators; 359 Raised Bill No. 5213
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(H) The Connecticut School Counselor Association; and 360
(I) The Connecticut Association for Health, Physical Education, 361
Recreation and Dance; 362
(2) The chairpersons and ranking members of the joint standing 363
committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters 364
relating to education, or the chairpersons' and ranking members' 365
designees; and 366
(3) The Commissioner of Education, or the commissioner's designee. 367
(c) All initial appointments to the working group shall be made not 368
later than thirty days after the effective date of this section. Any vacancy 369
shall be filled by the appointing authority. 370
(d) The president of the Connecticut Education Association, or the 371
president's designee, and the president of the American Federation of 372
Teachers-Connecticut, or the president's designee, shall serve as the 373
cochairpersons of the working group. The cochairpersons shall jointly 374
schedule the first meeting of the working group, which shall be held not 375
later than sixty days after the effective date of this section. 376
(e) The working group may provide an opportunity for public 377
comment or seek input from students, parents, educators, boards of 378
education and other education stakeholders while conducting the 379
review and developing its recommendations under this section. 380
(f) Not later than January 1, 2026, the working group shall submit a 381
report on its review of such mandates and its recommendations for the 382
repeal of or amendment to any state mandates and development of a 383
biennial review process to the joint standing committee of the General 384
Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education, in 385
accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes. 386
The working group shall terminate on the date that it submits such 387
report or July 1, 2026, whichever is later. 388 Raised Bill No. 5213
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This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 from passage New section
Sec. 2 July 1, 2024 New section
Sec. 3 July 1, 2024 New section
Sec. 4 July 1, 2024 New section
Sec. 5 July 1, 2024 New section
Sec. 6 July 1, 2024 New section
Sec. 7 July 1, 2024 New section
Sec. 8 July 1, 2024 New section
Sec. 9 July 1, 2024 10-223e(a)(1)
Sec. 10 July 1, 2024 10-74j
Sec. 11 July 1, 2024 4-124ll
Sec. 12 July 1, 2024 10-66u
Sec. 13 July 1, 2024 New section
Sec. 14 July 1, 2024 New section
Statement of Purpose:
To improve school district data systems and practices to identify and
support at-risk students and to establish coalitions and partnerships
focused on supporting at-risk and disconnected youth.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]