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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 363
February Session, 2024
LCO No. 2379
Referred to Committee on EDUCATION
Introduced by:
(ED)
AN ACT CONCERNING ASSORTED REVISIONS TO THE EDUCATION
STATUTES.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 10-16b of the 2024 supplement to the general 1
statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof 2
(Effective July 1, 2024): 3
(a) In the public schools the program of instruction offered shall 4
include at least the following subject matter, as taught by legally 5
qualified teachers: [, the] The arts; career education; consumer 6
education; personal financial management and financial literacy; health 7
and safety, including, but not limited to, human growth and 8
development, nutrition, first aid, including cardiopulmonary 9
resuscitation training in accordance with the provisions of section 10-10
16qq, disease prevention and cancer awareness, including, but not 11
limited to, age and developmentally appropriate instruction in 12
performing self-examinations for the purposes of screening for breast 13
cancer and testicular cancer, community and consumer health, physical, 14
mental and emotional health, including youth suicide prevention, 15 Raised Bill No. 363
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substance abuse prevention, including instruction relating to opioid use 16
and related disorders, safety, which shall include the safe use of social 17
media, as defined in section 9-601, and may include the dangers of gang 18
membership, and accident prevention; language arts, including reading, 19
writing, grammar, speaking and spelling; mathematics; physical 20
education; science, which shall include the climate change curriculum 21
described in subsection (d) of this section; social studies, including, but 22
not limited to, citizenship, economics, geography, government, history 23
and Holocaust and genocide education and awareness in accordance 24
with the provisions of section 10-18f; African-American and black 25
studies in accordance with the provisions of section 10-16ss; Puerto 26
Rican and Latino studies in accordance with the provisions of section 27
10-16ss; Native American studies, in accordance with the provisions of 28
section 10-16vv; computer programming instruction; recycling and 29
renewable energy; and in addition, on at least the secondary level, one 30
or more world languages; vocational education; and the black and 31
Latino studies course in accordance with the provisions of sections 10-32
16tt and 10-16uu. For purposes of this subsection, world languages shall 33
include American Sign Language, provided such subject matter is 34
taught by a qualified instructor under the supervision of a teacher who 35
holds a certificate issued by the State Board of Education. For purposes 36
of this subsection, the "arts" means any form of visual or performing 37
arts, which may include, but not be limited to, dance, music, art and 38
theatre; and "reading" means evidence-based instruction that focuses on 39
competency in oral language, phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, 40
vocabulary, rapid automatic name or letter name fluency and reading 41
comprehension. 42
(b) If a local or regional board of education requires its pupils to take 43
a course in a world language, the parent or guardian of a pupil 44
identified as deaf or hard of hearing may request in writing that such 45
pupil be exempted from such requirement and, if such a request is 46
made, such pupil shall be exempt from such requirement. 47
(c) Each local and regional board of education shall on September 1, 48
1982, and annually thereafter at such time and in such manner as the 49 Raised Bill No. 363
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Commissioner of Education shall request, attest to the State Board of 50
Education that such local or regional board of education offers at least 51
the program of instruction required pursuant to this section, and that 52
such program of instruction is planned, ongoing and systematic. 53
(d) The State Board of Education shall make available curriculum 54
materials and such other materials as may assist local and regional 55
boards of education in developing instructional programs pursuant to 56
this section. The State Board of Education, within available 57
appropriations and utilizing available resource materials, shall assist 58
and encourage local and regional boards of education to include: (1) 59
Holocaust and genocide education and awareness; (2) the historical 60
events surrounding the Great Famine in Ireland; (3) African-American 61
and black studies; (4) Puerto Rican and Latino studies; (5) Native 62
American studies; (6) personal financial management, including, but 63
not limited to, financial literacy as developed in the plan provided under 64
section 10-16pp; (7) training in cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the 65
use of automatic external defibrillators; (8) labor history and law, 66
including organized labor, the collective bargaining process, existing 67
legal protections in the workplace, the history and economics of free 68
market capitalism and entrepreneurialism, and the role of labor and 69
capitalism in the development of the American and world economies; 70
(9) climate change consistent with the Next Generation Science 71
Standards; (10) topics approved by the state board upon the request of 72
local or regional boards of education as part of the program of 73
instruction offered pursuant to subsection (a) of this section; [and] (11) 74
instruction relating to the Safe Haven Act, sections 17a-57 to 17a-61, 75
inclusive; and (12) recycling and renewable energy, including, but not 76
limited to, protocols for recycling and reducing food waste. The 77
Department of Energy and Environmental Protection shall be available 78
to each local and regional board of education for the development of 79
curriculum on climate change as described in this subsection. 80
Sec. 2. Section 10-16b of the 2024 supplement to the general statutes, 81
as amended by section 32 of public act 22-80, section 3 of public act 23-82
21, section 7 of public act 23-150 and section 19 of public act 23-160, is 83 Raised Bill No. 363
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repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 84
2025): 85
(a) In the public schools the program of instruction offered shall 86
include at least the following subject matter, as taught by legally 87
qualified teachers: [, the] The arts; career education; consumer 88
education; personal financial management and financial literacy; health 89
and safety, including, but not limited to, human growth and 90
development, nutrition, first aid, including cardiopulmonary 91
resuscitation training in accordance with the provisions of section 10-92
16qq, disease prevention and cancer awareness, including, but not 93
limited to, age and developmentally appropriate instruction in 94
performing self-examinations for the purposes of screening for breast 95
cancer and testicular cancer, community and consumer health, physical, 96
mental and emotional health, including youth suicide prevention, 97
substance abuse prevention, including instruction relating to opioid use 98
and related disorders, safety, which shall include the safe use of social 99
media, as defined in section 9-601, and may include the dangers of gang 100
membership, and accident prevention; language arts, including reading, 101
writing, grammar, speaking and spelling; mathematics; physical 102
education; science, which may include the climate change curriculum 103
described in subsection (d) of this section; social studies, including, but 104
not limited to, civics and media literacy, citizenship, economics, 105
geography, government, history and Holocaust and genocide education 106
and awareness in accordance with the provisions of section 10-18f; 107
African-American and black studies in accordance with the provisions 108
of section 10-16ss; Puerto Rican and Latino studies in accordance with 109
the provisions of section 10-16ss; Native American studies, in 110
accordance with the provisions of section 10-16vv; Asian American and 111
Pacific Islander studies, in accordance with the provisions of section [10-112
66ww] 10-16ww; computer programming instruction; recycling and 113
renewable energy; and in addition, on at least the secondary level, one 114
or more world languages; vocational education; and the black and 115
Latino studies course in accordance with the provisions of sections 10-116
16tt and 10-16uu. For purposes of this subsection, world languages shall 117 Raised Bill No. 363
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include American Sign Language, provided such subject matter is 118
taught by a qualified instructor under the supervision of a teacher who 119
holds a certificate issued by the State Board of Education. For purposes 120
of this subsection, the "arts" means any form of visual or performing 121
arts, which may include, but not be limited to, dance, music, art and 122
theatre; and "reading" means evidence-based instruction that focuses on 123
competency in oral language, phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, 124
vocabulary, rapid automatic name or letter name fluency and reading 125
comprehension. 126
(b) If a local or regional board of education requires its pupils to take 127
a course in a world language, the parent or guardian of a pupil 128
identified as deaf or hard of hearing may request in writing that such 129
pupil be exempted from such requirement and, if such a request is 130
made, such pupil shall be exempt from such requirement. 131
(c) Each local and regional board of education shall on September 1, 132
1982, and annually thereafter at such time and in such manner as the 133
Commissioner of Education shall request, attest to the State Board of 134
Education that such local or regional board of education offers at least 135
the program of instruction required pursuant to this section, and that 136
such program of instruction is planned, ongoing and systematic. 137
(d) The State Board of Education shall make available curriculum 138
materials and such other materials as may assist local and regional 139
boards of education in developing instructional programs pursuant to 140
this section. The State Board of Education, within available 141
appropriations and utilizing available resource materials, shall assist 142
and encourage local and regional boards of education to include: (1) 143
Holocaust and genocide education and awareness; (2) the historical 144
events surrounding the Great Famine in Ireland; (3) African-American 145
and black studies; (4) Puerto Rican and Latino studies; (5) Native 146
American studies; (6) Asian American and Pacific Islander studies; (7) 147
personal financial management, including, but not limited to, financial 148
literacy as developed in the plan provided under section 10-16pp; (8) 149
training in cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the use of automatic 150 Raised Bill No. 363
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external defibrillators; (9) labor history and law, including organized 151
labor, the collective bargaining process, existing legal protections in the 152
workplace, the history and economics of free market capitalism and 153
entrepreneurialism, and the role of labor and capitalism in the 154
development of the American and world economies; (10) climate change 155
consistent with the Next Generation Science Standards; (11) topics 156
approved by the state board upon the request of local or regional boards 157
of education as part of the program of instruction offered pursuant to 158
subsection (a) of this section; [and] (12) instruction relating to the Safe 159
Haven Act, sections 17a-57 to 17a-61, inclusive; and (13) recycling and 160
renewable energy, including, but not limited to, protocols for recycling 161
and reducing food waste. The Department of Energy and 162
Environmental Protection shall be available to each local and regional 163
board of education for the development of curriculum on climate 164
change as described in this subsection. 165
Sec. 3. Section 10-211f of the 2024 supplement to the general statutes 166
is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 167
1, 2024): 168
For the school year commencing July 1, 2024, and each school year 169
thereafter, each local and regional board of education shall annually 170
approve and provide professional development programs or activities 171
for all school nurses and nurse practitioners appointed by or under 172
contract with such board. [Each board shall provide] As part of such 173
professional development programs or activities [related to] provided 174
by each local and regional board of education under this section, each 175
new school nurse or nurse practitioner shall receive and complete (1) 176
training and instruction in the implementation of individualized 177
education programs and plans pursuant to Section 504 of the 178
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended from time to time, [to any new 179
school nurse or nurse practitioner] not later than thirty days after such 180
school nurse or nurse practitioner has been appointed by or entered into 181
a contract with such board, and (2) an orientation to school health 182
services, developed by an association that represents nurses in the state, 183
not later than six months after such nurse or nurse practitioner has been 184 Raised Bill No. 363
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appointed by or entered into a contract with such board. 185
Sec. 4. Section 10-227 of the 2024 supplement to the general statutes 186
is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 187
1, 2024): 188
(a) Each board of education shall cause the superintendent to make 189
returns not later than September first of each year to the Commissioner 190
of Education of the receipts, expenditures and statistics, as prescribed 191
by the commissioner, provided each such board may submit revisions 192
to the returns in such form and with such documentation as required by 193
the commissioner [no] not later than [December] January thirty-first of 194
each year following the September submission. Such reports or returns 195
required shall be filed in accordance with the instructions furnished by 196
the commissioner, shall be certified [no] not later than [December] 197
January thirty-first of each year by the independent public accountant 198
selected pursuant to section 7-392 for the purpose of auditing municipal 199
accounts, and shall be subject to Department of Education verification. 200
If the returns and statistics and revisions called for by said commissioner 201
are not filed on or before the days specified in this section or if the 202
returns are not certified as required by the commissioner on or before 203
[December] January thirty-first, each local and regional board of 204
education required by law to make separate returns, whose returns and 205
statistics or revisions are delayed until after those days, shall forfeit of 206
the total sum which is paid for such board of education from the State 207
Treasurer an amount to be determined by the State Board of Education, 208
which amount shall be not less than one thousand dollars nor more than 209
ten thousand dollars. The amount so forfeited shall be withheld from a 210
subsequent grant payment as determined by the commissioner. 211
Notwithstanding the penalty provision of this section, the 212
Commissioner of Education may waive said forfeiture for good cause. 213
(b) Not later than [February 15, 2024] March 15, 2025, and annually 214
thereafter, the Department of Education shall publish on its Internet 215
web site the data contained in the reports and returns filed pursuant to 216
subsection (a) of this section by education program type, expense 217 Raised Bill No. 363
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function, expense object and funding source, including, but not limited 218
to, federal, combined state and local and combined private and other 219
sources for the school and district level. The department shall develop 220
and publish a guide that contains definitions for each category of 221
expenditure and funding source. 222
(c) Not later than [February] March 15, 2025, and annually thereafter, 223
the Department of Education shall develop and publish the data 224
contained in the reports and returns filed pursuant to subsection (a) of 225
this section in a format that allows financial comparisons between 226
school districts and schools, including student enrollment and 227
demographic statistics as of October first of the school year in which 228
such reports and returns were filed. 229
Sec. 5. Subsection (d) of section 10-76d of the 2024 supplement to the 230
general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 231
thereof (Effective July 1, 2024): 232
(d) To meet its obligations under sections 10-76a to 10-76g, inclusive, 233
any local or regional board of education may make agreements with 234
another such board or subject to the consent of the parent or guardian 235
of any child affected thereby, make agreements, or on and after July 1, 236
2019, enter into a contract with any private provider of special education 237
services, as defined in section 10-91g, private school, or public or private 238
agency or institution, including a group home to provide the necessary 239
programs or services, but no expenditures made pursuant to a contract 240
with a private provider of special education services, private school, 241
agency or institution for such special education shall be paid under the 242
provisions of section 10-76g, unless (1) such contract includes a 243
description of the educational program and other treatment the child is 244
to receive, a statement of minimal goals and objectives which it is 245
anticipated such child will achieve, an estimated time schedule for 246
returning the child to the community or transferring such child to 247
another appropriate facility, and an explanation of how the tuition or 248
costs for services provided under the agreement or contract are to be 249
calculated, (2) subject to the provisions of this subsection, the 250 Raised Bill No. 363
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educational needs of the child for whom such special education is being 251
provided cannot be met by public school arrangements in the opinion 252
of the commissioner who, before granting approval of such contract for 253
purposes of payment, shall consider such factors as the particular needs 254
of the child, the appropriateness and efficacy of the program offered by 255
such private school, agency or institution, and the economic feasibility 256
of comparable alternatives, and (3) commencing with the 1987-1988 257
school year and for each school year thereafter, each such private 258
provider of special education services, private school, agency or 259
institution has been approved for special education by the 260
Commissioner of Education or by the appropriate agency for facilities 261
located out of state, except as provided in subsection (b) of this section. 262
Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (2) of this subsection or 263
any regulations adopted by the State Board of Education setting 264
placement priorities, placements pursuant to this section and payments 265
under section 10-76g may be made pursuant to such a contract if the 266
public arrangements are more costly than the private provider of special 267
education services, private school, institution or agency, provided the 268
private provider of special education services, private school, institution 269
or agency meets the educational needs of the child and its program is 270
appropriate and efficacious. Payment pursuant to the provisions of 271
section 10-76g for any contract that meets the requirements of this 272
subsection shall commence at the start of the school year in which such 273
private provider of special education services, private school, agency or 274
institution is approved by the Commissioner of Education and is 275
providing such special education services. Notwithstanding the 276
provisions of this subsection to the contrary, nothing in this subsection 277
shall (A) require the removal of a child from a nonapproved facility if 278
the child was placed there prior to July 7, 1987, pursuant to the 279
determination of a planning and placement team that such a placement 280
was appropriate and such placement was approved by the 281
Commissioner of Education, or (B) prohibit the placement of a child at 282
a nonapproved facility if a planning and placement team determines 283
prior to July 7, 1987, that the child be placed in a nonapproved facility 284
for the 1987-1988 school year. Each child placed in a nonapproved 285 Raised Bill No. 363
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facility as described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subdivision (3) of 286
this subsection may continue at the facility provided the planning and 287
placement team or hearing officer appointed pursuant to section 10-76h 288
determines that the placement is appropriate. Expenditures incurred by 289
any local or regional board of education to maintain children in 290
nonapproved facilities as described in said subparagraphs (A) and (B) 291
shall be paid pursuant to the provisions of section 10-76g. Any local or 292
regional board of education may enter into a contract with the owners 293
or operators of any sheltered workshop or rehabilitation center for 294
provision of an education occupational training program for children 295
requiring special education who are at least sixteen years of age, 296
provided such workshop or institution shall have been approved by the 297
appropriate state agency. Whenever any child is identified by a local or 298
regional board of education as a child requiring special education and 299
such board of education determines that the requirements for special 300
education could be met by a program provided within the district or by 301
agreement with another board of education except for the child's need 302
for services other than educational services such as medical, psychiatric 303
or institutional care or services, such board of education may meet its 304
obligation to furnish special education for such child by paying the 305
reasonable cost of special education instruction in a private provider of 306
special education services, private school, hospital or other institution 307
provided such board of education or the commissioner concurs that 308
placement in such institution is necessary and proper and no state 309
institution is available to meet such child's needs. Any such private 310
provider of special education services, private school, hospital or other 311
institution receiving such reasonable cost of special education 312
instruction by such board of education shall submit all required 313
documentation to such board of education for purposes of submitting 314
claims to the Medicaid School Based Child Health Program 315
administered by the Department of Social Services. 316
Sec. 6. Section 10-357e of the general statutes is repealed and the 317
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2024): 318
The Commissioner of Education [may] shall allocate funds to allow 319 Raised Bill No. 363
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the State Education Resource Center, established pursuant to section 10-320
357a, to provide professional development services, technical assistance 321
and evaluation activities, policy analysis and other forms of assistance 322
to local and regional boards of education, the Department of Education, 323
state and local charter schools, as defined in section 10-66aa, the 324
Technical Education and Career System, established pursuant to section 325
10-95, providers of school readiness programs, as defined in section 10-326
16p, and other educational entities and providers. The State Education 327
Resource Center shall expend such funds in accordance with procedures 328
and conditions prescribed by the commissioner. 329
Sec. 7. Section 10-145aa of the 2024 supplement to the general statutes 330
is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 331
1, 2024): 332
[On and after July 1, 2022, the] The preservice performance 333
assessment, edTPA, as adopted by the State Board of Education on 334
December 7, 2016, shall be used exclusively as an accountability tool for 335
teacher preparation programs, as defined in section 10-10a, offered at 336
institutions of higher education in the state. The results of such 337
preservice performance assessment shall not be used by (1) the State 338
Board of Education to deny an application for the issuance of an initial 339
educator certificate under section 10-145b, or (2) an institution of higher 340
education to deny successful completion of a teacher preparation 341
program. 342
Sec. 8. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2024) Each local and regional board of 343
education shall conform the design of any school playground designed 344
on or after July 1, 2024, to the principles of universal design. Such 345
playgrounds shall include, at a minimum, (1) play spaces that appeal to 346
a variety of senses and allow multiple forms of play, (2) landform 347
designed to encourage unstructured play, (3) multiple options for 348
accessing play spaces and equipment that allow for varying levels of 349
ability, and (4) sensory-engaging materials and use of trees and other 350
plantings. As used in this section, "universal design" means a concept of 351
designing spaces with the goal of maximizing usability and access, 352 Raised Bill No. 363
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without the need for adaptation or specialized design. 353
Sec. 9. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2024) (a) Not later than January 1, 2025, 354
each regional board of education shall establish a parent council for each 355
school under such board's governance with a sufficient number of 356
parents or guardians of a student enrolled in such schools on such 357
council to adequately represent each town served by such board. 358
(b) Parents or guardians shall be elected to the council by the parents 359
or guardians of students attending such school who reside in the same 360
town as the elected parent or guardian. Each parent or guardian elected 361
to a parent council pursuant to this section shall serve a term of two 362
years from the date of election and no parent or guardian shall serve 363
more than four terms on the council. 364
(c) The parent council shall have the following responsibilities: (1) 365
Analyzing school achievement data and school needs; (2) reviewing the 366
fiscal objectives of the draft budget for the school and providing advice 367
to the principal of the school; (3) participating in the hiring process for 368
the school principal or other administrators of the school by conducting 369
interviews of candidates and reporting on such interviews to the 370
superintendent of schools for the school district and the regional board 371
of education; (4) assisting the principal of the school in making 372
programmatic and operational changes for improving the school's 373
achievement, including program changes, adjustments to school hours 374
and days of operation and enrollment goals for the school; (5) working 375
with the school administration to develop and approve a school 376
compact for parents, guardians and students that includes an outline of 377
the criteria and responsibilities for enrollment and school membership 378
consistent with the school's goals and academic focus, and the ways that 379
parents, guardians and school personnel can build a partnership to 380
improve student learning; (6) developing and approving a written 381
parent involvement policy that outlines the role of parents and 382
guardians in the school; (7) utilizing records relating to information 383
about parents and guardians of students maintained by the regional 384
board of education for the sole purpose of the election described in 385 Raised Bill No. 363
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subsection (b) of this section. Such information shall be confidential and 386
shall only be disclosed as provided in this subdivision and shall not be 387
further disclosed; (8) working with the principal of the school to 388
develop, conduct and report the results of an annual survey of parents, 389
guardians and teachers on issues related to the school climate and 390
conditions; and (9) providing advice on any other major policy matters 391
affecting the school to the principal of the school, except on any matters 392
relating to provisions of any collective bargaining agreement between 393
the exclusive bargaining unit for teachers pursuant to section 10-153b of 394
the general statutes and the regional board of education. 395
(d) A regional board of education shall provide appropriate training 396
and instruction to parents and guardians on the parent council at each 397
school to aid such parents and guardians in the execution of their duties. 398
Sec. 10. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2024) Each local and regional board of 399
education shall permit any student of an interdistrict magnet school 400
who resides in the school district governed by such board to participate 401
in any intramural or interscholastic athletics, as defined in section 10-402
149h of the general statutes, sponsored or sanctioned by such board, 403
regardless of whether such interdistrict magnet school sponsors or 404
sanctions any intramural or interscholastic athletics. 405
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2024 10-16b
Sec. 2 July 1, 2025 10-16b
Sec. 3 July 1, 2024 10-211f
Sec. 4 July 1, 2024 10-227
Sec. 5 July 1, 2024 10-76d(d)
Sec. 6 July 1, 2024 10-357e
Sec. 7 July 1, 2024 10-145aa
Sec. 8 July 1, 2024 New section
Sec. 9 July 1, 2024 New section
Sec. 10 July 1, 2024 New section
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Statement of Purpose:
To (1) require a curriculum on recycling and renewable energy, (2)
require new school nurses to complete an orientation, (3) extend the
dates by one month by which an annual audit is required of school
district receipts, expenditures and statistics and by which the
Department of Education posts data from such report, (4) require
payments for special education services provided by a private provider
to commence from the start of the school year in which such provider is
approved by the Department of Education, (5) require the Department
of Education to fund the State Education Resource Center, (6) prohibit
institutions of higher education from using edTPA scores as a condition
of successful completion of a teacher preparation program, (7) require
school playgrounds designed after July 1, 2024, to comply with the
principles of universal design, (8) require regional boards of education
to establish a parent council for each school under its governance, and
(9) allow magnet school students to participate in intramural or
interscholastic athletics in the school district in which such student
resides.
[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.]