HLS 10RS-2225 ENGROSSED
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Regular Session, 2010
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON NO. 148
BY REPRESENTATIVE AUSTIN BADON
EDUCATION/PRE-K: Requests BESE to consolidate the administration and evaluation of
the LA4 and 8(g) prekindergarten programs under the state Dept. of Education and
to adopt identical standards for such programs
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON1
To urge and request the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to consolidate2
the administration and evaluation of the LA4 and 8(g) prekindergarten programs3
under the state Department of Education beginning with the 2010-2011 school year4
and to adopt identical standards for these programs.5
WHEREAS, in 1986, Louisiana voters dedicated Louisiana's federally awarded Outer6
Continental Shelf Lands Act funds to education through the Louisiana Quality Education7
Support Fund, which became known as "8(g)" funding; and8
WHEREAS, Article VII, Section 10.1 of the Constitution of Louisiana permits the9
State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) to allocate 8(g) funding to10
provide compensation to city or parish school board professional instructional employees;11
to ensure an adequate supply of superior textbooks, library books, equipment, and other12
instructional materials; to fund exemplary programs in elementary and secondary schools13
designed to improve student academic achievement or vocational-technical skills; to fund14
carefully defined research efforts, including pilot programs designed to improve student15
academic achievement; to fund school remediation programs and preschool programs; to16
fund the teaching of foreign languages in elementary and secondary schools; and to fund an17
adequate supply of teachers by providing scholarships or stipends to prospective teachers18
in academic or vocational-technical areas where there is a critical teacher shortage; and19 HLS 10RS-2225 ENGROSSED
HCR NO. 148
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WHEREAS, in 2001, the legislature enacted the LA4 prekindergarten program,1
which has become a model program due to its high standards and positive student outcomes;2
and3
WHEREAS, BESE continues to support a separate 8(g) Model Early Childhood4
Program in some local school districts; and5
WHEREAS, the LA4 program's enrollment is currently almost five times that of the6
8(g) prekindergarten program, as evidenced by an enrollment of approximately sixteen7
thousand children in LA4 and approximately three thousand five hundred children in the8
8(g) prekindergarten program during the 2009-2010 school year; and9
WHEREAS, the state appropriated more than seventy-five million dollars to support10
LA4 in Fiscal Year 2010, compared with an allocation of approximately thirteen million five11
hundred thousand dollars by BESE to local school districts for 8(g) prekindergarten12
programs; and13
WHEREAS, the LA4 and 8(g) prekindergarten programs are very similar, each14
requiring certified teachers, the same pupil-teacher ratios of ten to one, the same maximum15
class size of twenty students, appropriate materials and equipment, developmentally16
appropriate and research-based curriculum which incorporates the Louisiana Comprehensive17
Curriculum and Grade Level Expectations, professional development for teachers, the18
operation of a full school year, a minimum six-hour instructional day for students, an19
emphasis on the enrollment of "at-risk" children, the use of pre- and post-tests to gather20
student data, the provision of appropriate meals and snacks, and site visits and monitoring;21
and22
WHEREAS, the LA4 program additionally requires on-site technical assistance to23
teachers and coordinators, transportation, collaboration with other early childhood programs,24
provides for resource coordination, and offers an additional four hours of daily after-school25
enrichment activities to children; and26
WHEREAS, the LA4 program is free for all children who qualify for free or reduced27
price meals, and tuition for other students is based on ability to pay; and28
WHEREAS, the state Department of Education (DOE) and BESE employ separate29
staffs to administer the LA4 and 8(g) prekindergarten programs and conduct separate30 HLS 10RS-2225 ENGROSSED
HCR NO. 148
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evaluations of these very similar programs, rendering these functions duplicative and costly1
to the state; and2
WHEREAS, the Commission on Streamlining Government's recommendation No.3
210 was to "merge and assign the administration of the State Board of Elementary and4
Secondary Education's block grant program focused on pre-kindergarten programs for at-risk5
four-year-old children into the Department of Education's Cecil J. Picard LA4 Early6
Childhood Program"; and7
WHEREAS, the Commission on Streamlining Government elaborated on this8
recommendation by stating, "Now that the LA4 Program and its infrastructure is firmly9
established in DOE, it is not necessary for BESE to continue to administer an 8(g) preschool10
program separately. Also, BESE's role is primarily policy, whereas DOE's role is program11
administrator, so that transfer lets each entity focus on its mission".12
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby13
urge and request the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, beginning with14
the 2010-2011 school year, to consolidate the administration and evaluation of the LA4 and15
8(g) prekindergarten programs under the state Department of Education.16
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the legislature further urges and requests the17
State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to adopt identical standards for the LA418
and 8(g) prekindergarten programs in order to provide high-quality early childhood19
experiences and support services to four-year-old children to ensure that they are prepared20
for future academic and social success, as evidenced by the provision of child-centered21
programs directed toward the development of cognitive, social, emotional, communication,22
health, and physical development in a manner and at a pace consistent with the needs and23
capabilities of the individual child.24
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the25
president of the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and to the state26
superintendent of education.27 HLS 10RS-2225 ENGROSSED
HCR NO. 148
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DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
Austin Badon HCR No. 148
Requests BESE to consolidate the administration and evaluation of the LA4 and 8(g)
prekindergarten programs under the state Dept. of Education beginning with the 2010-2011
school year and to adopt identical standards for these programs.