1.1 A bill for an act
1.2 relating to education; codifying the framework for MTSS and COMPASS from
1.3 session law to statutes; amending Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 121A.201.
1.4BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.5 Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 121A.201, is amended to read:
1.6 121A.201 MTSS AND COLLABORATIVE MINNESOTA PARTNERSHIPS TO
1.7ADVANCE STUDENT SUCCESS (COMPASS).
1.8 Subdivision 1.Definitions.For the purposes of this section, the following terms have
1.9the meanings given:
1.10 (1) "COMPASS" means the Collaborative Minnesota Partnership to Advance Student
1.11Success; and
1.12 (2) "MTSS" means Multitiered System of Support.
1.13 Subd. 2.COMPASS.Beginning July 1, 2023, all Minnesota school districts and charter
1.14schools must be offered training and support in implementing MTSS through the Department
1.15of Education COMPASS team and the Department of Education's regional partners, the
1.16Minnesota Service Cooperatives. COMPASS is the state Minnesota's school improvement
1.17model providing a statewide system through which all districts and schools may receive
1.18support in the areas of literacy, math, social-emotional learning, and mental health within
1.19the MTSS framework.
1.20 Subd. 3.MTSS.The MTSS framework is the state's systemic, continuous school
1.21improvement framework for ensuring positive social, emotional, behavioral, developmental,
1.22and academic outcomes for every student. MTSS provides access to layered tiers of culturally
1Section 1.
REVISOR CR/MI 25-0394602/19/25
State of Minnesota
This Document can be made available
in alternative formats upon request
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
H. F. No. 2194
NINETY-FOURTH SESSION
Authored by Clardy03/12/2025
The bill was read for the first time and referred to the Committee on Education Policy 2.1and linguistically responsive, evidence-based practices. The MTSS framework relies on the
2.2understanding and belief that every student can learn and thrive, and it engages an anti-bias
2.3and socially just approach to examining policies and practices and ensuring equitable
2.4distribution of resources and opportunity. The MTSS systemic framework requires:
2.5 (1) a district-wide infrastructure consisting of effective leaders, collective efficacy among
2.6staff, positive school climate, linked teams, and professional learning that supports continuous
2.7improvement;
2.8 (2) authentic engagement with families and communities to develop reciprocal
2.9relationships and build new opportunities for students together;
2.10 (3) multilayered tiers of culturally and linguistically responsive instruction and support
2.11that allows every student the support they need to reach meaningful and rigorous learning
2.12standards. Tiers of support include core (Tier 1), supplemental (Tier 2), and intensive (Tier
2.133) instruction levels;
2.14 (4) valid and reliable assessment tools and processes to assess student and system
2.15performance and inform necessary changes; and
2.16 (5) a data-based decision-making approach in which problems are precisely defined and
2.17analyzed, solutions address root causes, and implementation is monitored to ensure success.
2.18The data-based problem-solving component of the MTSS framework consists of three major
2.19subcomponents: accessible and integrated data, decision-making process, and system
2.20performance.
2.21 Subd. 4.Training and support provided.The Department of Education COMPASS
2.22team and the department's regional partners, the Minnesota Service Cooperatives, must
2.23offer Minnesota school districts and charter schools training and support in implementing
2.24MTSS.
2.25 Subd. 5.COMPASS and MTSS support.Support for school districts, charter schools,
2.26and cooperative units under this subdivision may include but is not limited to:
2.27 (1) partnering with the Minnesota Service Cooperatives to support districts in
2.28implementing COMPASS to support schools in the areas of literacy, math, social-emotional
2.29learning, mental health, and graduation using the MTSS framework;
2.30 (2) providing support to districts and charter schools identified under section 120B.11;
2.31 (3) providing support to districts and charter schools in streamlining various applications,
2.32reports, and submissions to the Department of Education through One Plan;
2Section 1.
REVISOR CR/MI 25-0394602/19/25 3.1 (4) providing training, guidance, and implementation resources for MTSS, including a
3.2universal screening process approved by the Department of Education to identify students
3.3who may be at risk of experiencing academic, behavioral, and social-emotional development
3.4difficulties, including an early warning indicator of being off track for graduation by the
3.5end of grade 9;
3.6 (5) providing guidance to convene school-based teams to analyze data provided by
3.7screenings and resources for related identification, instruction, and intervention methods;
3.8 (6) providing dyslexia screening and intervention that are evidence-based;
3.9 (7) requiring school districts and charter schools to provide parents of students identified
3.10in screenings with notice of screening findings and related support information;
3.11 (8) requiring districts and charter schools to provide at-risk students with interventions
3.12and to monitor the effectiveness of these interventions and student progress, including
3.13progress toward graduation; and
3.14 (9) developing and annually reporting findings regarding the implementation of MTSS.
3.15 Subd. 6.Funding.State funding for COMPASS must be used for the following purposes:
3.16 (1) to support implementation of MTSS and COMPASS. Funding must be used to support
3.17increased capacity at the Department of Education and the Minnesota Service Cooperatives
3.18for implementation supports;
3.19 (2) to provide grants to school districts, charter schools, and cooperative units as defined
3.20in section 123A.24, subdivision 2, for implementation of MTSS, including: (i) hiring local
3.21MTSS coordinators; (ii) deferring costs for personnel to participate in cohort activities and
3.22professional learning; and (iii) piloting a Department of Education One Plan, the
3.23consolidation of multiple reporting structures to streamline various applications, reports,
3.24and submissions by school districts and charter schools;
3.25 (3) to develop a regional network focusing on mathematics to provide dedicated
3.26mathematics trainers and coaches to train regional support staff from the Minnesota Service
3.27Cooperatives to support school leaders and teachers to implement evidence-based
3.28instructional strategies in mathematics. Funding may also be used to host an annual
3.29Mathematics Standards-Based Instructional Institute; and
3.30 (4) for the University of Minnesota Center for Applied Research and Educational
3.31Improvement to support implementation and evaluation of the MTSS framework.
3Section 1.
REVISOR CR/MI 25-0394602/19/25