S.B. 72
- *SB72*
SENATE BILL NO. 72–COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
(ON BEHALF OF THE JOINT INTERIM STANDING
COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION)
PREFILED JANUARY 23, 2023
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Referred to Committee on Education
SUMMARY—Directs the Joint Interim Standing Committee on
Education to conduct certain studies during the
2023-2024 interim. (BDR S-441)
FISCAL NOTE: Effect on Local Government: No.
Effect on the State: Yes.
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EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.
AN ACT relating to education; directing the Joint Interim Standing
Committee on Education to conduct certain studies during
the 2023-2024 interim and report its findings to the
Legislature; and providing other matters properly relating
thereto.
Legislative Counsel’s Digest:
Existing law creates the Joint Interim Standing Committee on Education. (NRS 1
218E.320) Existing law authorizes the Committee to: (1) evaluate, review and 2
comment upon issues related to education in Nevada; (2) conduct investigations 3
and hold hearings; (3) conduct studies as directed by the Legislature or the 4
Legislative Commission; and (4) make certain recommendations to the Legislature. 5
(NRS 218E.330, 218E.615) This bill directs the Committee to conduct five separate 6
studies during the 2023-2024 interim and report its findings for each study to the 7
Legislature. Specifically, this bill directs the Committee to study: (1) the mental 8
health and wellness of pupils; (2) the workload of teachers, including any relevant 9
statutory and regulatory requirements; (3) requirements governing the licensing of 10
teachers and the effect of such requirements on the diversity and effectiveness of 11
teachers and the recruitment of local teachers; (4) trends in graduation and 12
achievement of pupils enrolled in high school and any divergence between those 13
trends; and (5) groups of pupils that may require additional resources, and policies 14
and strategies that may address the needs of such groups. 15
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THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN
SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. 1. The Joint Interim Standing Committee on 1
Education shall, during the 2023-2024 interim: 2
(a) Conduct a study concerning the mental health and wellness 3
of pupils in this State and programs to improve the mental health 4
and wellness of such pupils, including, without limitation, evidence-5
based mental health therapies and practices. 6
(b) Conduct a study concerning the workload of teachers in this 7
State, including, without limitation, provisions of law and 8
regulations that affect the workload of teachers in this State, to 9
better understand and evaluate the workload of teachers in this State. 10
(c) Conduct a study concerning requirements governing the 11
licensing of teachers in this State, including, without limitation, any 12
requirement that an applicant for a license as a teacher must pass the 13
“Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators” examination in 14
reading, mathematics and writing, prepared and administered by the 15
Educational Testing Service, to: 16
(1) Identify whether such requirements are barriers to 17
increasing the diversity of teachers in this State and increasing the 18
number of pupils in the public schools in this State and students at 19
institutions of higher education in this State who eventually become 20
teachers in this State; and 21
(2) Ensure that requirements concerning the competency of 22
applicants for a license as a teacher are reasonable indicators of the 23
future effectiveness of such an applicant as a teacher. 24
(d) Conduct a study concerning: 25
(1) Trends in the graduation rates of, and the types of 26
diplomas awarded to, pupils enrolled in high school in this State, 27
based on the information included in the annual report of 28
accountability pursuant to NRS 385A.260; 29
(2) Trends in achievement of pupils enrolled in high school 30
in this State, including, without limitation, information relating to 31
such trends that is included in the annual report of accountability 32
pursuant to NRS 385A.200; 33
(3) A comparison of the trends described in subparagraphs 34
(1) and (2); and 35
(4) Any factors which may be responsible for the trends 36
described in subparagraphs (1) and (2) and any divergence between 37
the trends described in subparagraph (1) and the trends described in 38
subparagraph (2). 39
(e) Conduct a study concerning: 40
(1) Groups of pupils who may require additional resources to 41
receive a reasonably equal educational opportunity; 42
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(2) The specific educational needs of such groups of pupils; 1
(3) Policies and strategies that target such groups of pupils, 2
address specific needs and provide specific interventions, including, 3
without limitation, policies and strategies to increase enrollment in 4
postsecondary education or vocational training; and 5
(4) Long-term strategies to fund and implement such policies 6
and programs. 7
2. On or before February 1, 2025, for each study listed in 8
subsection 1, the Joint Interim Standing Committee on Education 9
shall submit a report of its findings and any recommendations for 10
legislation to the Director of the Legislative Counsel Bureau for 11
transmittal to the 83rd Session of the Legislature. 12
Sec. 2. This act becomes effective on July 1, 2023. 13
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