81R3055 CAS-F
By: Olivo H.B. No. 2476
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to discipline management in public schools.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 21.451, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsection (c-1) to read as
follows:
(c-1) The staff development must include training in
discipline strategies and must address:
(1) classroom management;
(2) the school district's discipline policies; and
(3) the student code of conduct adopted under Section
37.001.
(d) The staff development may:
(1) include training in:
(A) technology; and
(B) conflict resolution; and
[(C) discipline strategies, including classroom
management, district discipline policies, and the student code of
conduct adopted under Section 37.001 and Chapter 37;]
(2) include training that:
(A) relates to instruction of students with
disabilities; and
(B) is designed for educators who work primarily
outside the area of special education; and
(3) include instruction as to what is permissible
under law, including opinions of the United States Supreme Court,
regarding prayer in public school.
SECTION 2. Section 21.453(b), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) The commissioner may allocate funds from the account to
regional education service centers to provide staff development
resources to school districts that:
(1) are rated academically unacceptable;
(2) have one or more campuses rated as academically
unacceptable; or
(3) are otherwise in need of assistance as indicated
by the academic performance or disciplinary records of students, as
determined by the commissioner.
SECTION 3. Subchapter J, Chapter 21, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 21.4552 to read as follows:
Sec. 21.4552. DISCIPLINE MANAGEMENT TRAINING PROGRAM. (a)
The commissioner shall develop a discipline management training
program for teachers and, to the extent authorized under this
section, make the training available to teachers at all grade
levels.
(b) The discipline management training program developed
under this section must include training for teachers in
age-appropriate:
(1) conflict resolution techniques;
(2) positive behavior management;
(3) classroom management; and
(4) intervention strategies for students exhibiting
behavioral difficulties.
(c) On request of the commissioner, regional education
service centers shall assist in developing the discipline
management training program or providing the training. The
commissioner also may solicit assistance from another public entity
or from a private entity.
(d) Each teacher assigned to a campus that is considered
academically unacceptable under Section 39.132 based on the
percentage of students placed in a disciplinary alternative
education program under Section 37.008 shall participate in
discipline management training under this section. The
commissioner shall adopt a rule establishing criteria for selecting
other teachers who may participate in the training.
(e) From funds appropriated for the purpose, a teacher who
participates in discipline management training under this section
is entitled to receive a stipend in a reasonable amount established
by commissioner rule. The stipend is not considered in determining
whether a district is paying the teacher the minimum monthly salary
under Section 21.402.
(f) From funds appropriated for purposes of this section,
the commissioner shall conduct or contract with a qualified public
or private entity to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the
discipline management training program developed under this
section, including implementation of the program. The evaluation
must:
(1) use qualitative, quantitative, and expert review
methodologies, including:
(A) direct observations;
(B) interviews with and surveys of teachers who
have participated in the training;
(C) surveys of administrators supervising
teachers who have participated in the training; and
(D) analysis of student data submitted through
the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS) to
compare the percentages of disciplinary removals under Section
37.002 by teachers who have participated in the training with the
percentages of such removals by teachers who have not participated
in the training; and
(2) include an analysis of financial data to assess
the cost-effectiveness of providing the training.
(g) Not later than December 1, 2014, the commissioner shall
prepare and deliver to each member of the legislature a report
describing the results of the evaluation required by Subsection
(f). Subsection (f) and this subsection expire September 1, 2015.
SECTION 4. Section 37.008(m), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(m) The commissioner shall adopt rules necessary to
evaluate annually the performance of each district's disciplinary
alternative education program established under this subchapter.
The evaluation required by this section shall be based on
indicators defined by the commissioner, but must include student
performance on assessment instruments required under Sections
39.023(a) and (c) and student dropout rates. Academically, the
mission of disciplinary alternative education programs shall be to
enable students to perform at grade level and, notwithstanding
Subsection (l), to graduate from high school.
SECTION 5. Section 37.009, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (k) to read as
follows:
(b) If a student's placement in a disciplinary alternative
education program is based on conduct other than conduct for which
placement in a disciplinary alternative education program is
required by Section 37.006, or if the student's placement in a
disciplinary alternative education program is to extend beyond 60
days or the end of the next grading period, whichever is earlier, a
student's parent or guardian is entitled to notice of and an
opportunity to participate in a proceeding before the board of
trustees of the school district or the board's designee, as
provided by policy of the board of trustees of the district. Any
decision of the board or the board's designee under this subsection
is final and may not be appealed.
(k) Each school district shall establish a disciplinary
conference oversight committee to ensure that a conference or
hearing held under this section is consistent with this chapter and
the student code of conduct adopted under Section 37.001.
SECTION 6. Section 39.051(b), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) Performance on the indicators adopted under this
section shall be compared to state-established standards. The
degree of change from one school year to the next in performance on
each indicator adopted under this section shall also be
considered. The indicators must be based on information that is
disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status
and must include:
(1) the results of assessment instruments required
under Sections 39.023(a), (c), and (l), aggregated by grade level
and subject area;
(2) dropout rates, including dropout rates and
district completion rates for grade levels 9 through 12, computed
in accordance with standards and definitions adopted by the
National Center for Education Statistics of the United States
Department of Education;
(3) high school graduation rates, computed in
accordance with standards and definitions adopted in compliance
with the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (Pub. L. No. 107-110);
(4) student attendance rates;
(5) the percentage of graduating students who attain
scores on the questions developed for end-of-course assessment
instruments under Section 39.0233(a) that are equivalent to a
passing score on the assessment instrument required under Section
51.3062;
(6) the percentage of graduating students who meet the
course requirements established for the recommended high school
program by State Board of Education rule;
(7) the results of the Scholastic Assessment Test
(SAT), the American College Test (ACT), articulated postsecondary
degree programs described by Section 61.852, and certified
workforce training programs described by Chapter 311, Labor Code;
(8) the percentage of students, aggregated by grade
level, provided accelerated instruction under Section 28.0211(c),
the results of assessments administered under that section, the
percentage of students promoted through the grade placement
committee process under Section 28.0211, the subject of the
assessment instrument on which each student failed to perform
satisfactorily, and the performance of those students in the school
year following that promotion on the assessment instruments
required under Section 39.023;
(9) the percentage of students, aggregated by age,
grade level, ethnicity, and gender, placed in a disciplinary
alternative education program under Section 37.008, and the number
of those placements required to be reported under Section
37.020(b)(2) and the number required to be reported under Section
37.020(b)(4);
(10) for students who have failed to perform
satisfactorily on an assessment instrument required under Section
39.023(a) or (c), the numerical progress of those students grouped
by percentage on subsequent assessment instruments required under
those sections, aggregated by grade level and subject area;
(11) [(10)] the percentage of students exempted, by
exemption category, from the assessment program generally
applicable under this chapter;
(12) [(11)] the percentage of students of limited
English proficiency exempted from the administration of an
assessment instrument under Sections 39.027(a)(3) and (4);
(13) [(12)] the percentage of students in a special
education program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, assessed through
assessment instruments developed or adopted under Section
39.023(b);
(14) [(13)] the measure of progress toward
preparation for postsecondary success; and
(15) [(14)] the measure of progress toward dual
language proficiency under Section 39.034(b), for students of
limited English proficiency, as defined by Section 29.052.
SECTION 7. Section 39.052(b), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) The report card shall include the following
information:
(1) where applicable, the academic excellence
indicators adopted under Sections 39.051(b)(1) through (11)
[(10)];
(2) average class size by grade level and subject;
(3) the administrative and instructional costs per
student, computed in a manner consistent with Section 44.0071; and
(4) the district's instructional expenditures ratio
and instructional employees ratio computed under Section 44.0071,
and the statewide average of those ratios, as determined by the
commissioner.
SECTION 8. Sections 39.072(b) and (c), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(b) The academic excellence indicators adopted under
Sections 39.051(b)(1) through (9) [(8)] and the district's current
special education compliance status with the agency shall be the
main considerations of the agency in the rating of the district
under this section. Additional criteria in the rules may include
consideration of:
(1) compliance with statutory requirements and
requirements imposed by rule of the State Board of Education under
specific statutory authority that relate to:
(A) reporting data through the Public Education
Information Management System (PEIMS);
(B) the high school graduation requirements
under Section 28.025; or
(C) an item listed in Sections
7.056(e)(3)(C)-(I) that applies to the district;
(2) the effectiveness of the district's programs for
special populations; and
(3) the effectiveness of the district's career and
technology programs.
(c) The agency shall evaluate against state standards and
shall, not later than August 1 of each year, report the performance
of each campus in a district and each open-enrollment charter
school on the basis of the campus's performance on the indicators
adopted under Sections 39.051(b)(1) through (9)
[(8)]. Consideration of the effectiveness of district programs
under Subsection (b)(2) or (3) must be based on data collected
through the Public Education Information Management System for
purposes of accountability under this chapter and include the
results of assessments required under Section 39.023.
SECTION 9. Sections 39.073(a) and (b), Education Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) The agency shall annually review the performance of each
district and campus on the indicators adopted under Sections
39.051(b)(1) through (9) [(8)] and determine if a change in the
accreditation status of the district is warranted. The
commissioner may determine how all indicators adopted under Section
39.051(b) may be used to determine accountability ratings and to
select districts and campuses for acknowledgment.
(b) Each annual review shall include an analysis of the
indicators under Sections 39.051(b)(1) through (9) [(8)] to
determine district and campus performance in relation to:
(1) standards established for each indicator;
(2) required improvement as defined under Section
39.051(c); and
(3) comparable improvement as defined by Section
39.051(c).
SECTION 10. Section 39.074(e), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(e) If an annual review indicates low performance on one or
more of the indicators under Sections 39.051(b)(1) through (9)
[(8)] of one or more campuses in a district, the agency may conduct
an on-site evaluation of those campuses only.
SECTION 11. Section 39.114(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) A school district may use funds allocated under Section
42.2516(b)(3) on any instructional program in grades six through 12
other than an athletic program if:
(1) the district is recognized as exceptional by the
commissioner under the academic accountability indicator adopted
under Section 39.051(b)(14) [(13)]; and
(2) the district's completion rates for grades nine
through 12 meet or exceed completion rate standards required by the
commissioner to achieve a rating of exemplary under Section 39.072.
SECTION 12. Section 822.201(b), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) "Salary and wages" as used in Subsection (a) means:
(1) normal periodic payments of money for service the
right to which accrues on a regular basis in proportion to the
service performed;
(2) amounts by which the member's salary is reduced
under a salary reduction agreement authorized by Chapter 610;
(3) amounts that would otherwise qualify as salary and
wages under Subdivision (1) but are not received directly by the
member pursuant to a good faith, voluntary written salary reduction
agreement in order to finance payments to a deferred compensation
or tax sheltered annuity program specifically authorized by state
law or to finance benefit options under a cafeteria plan qualifying
under Section 125, [of the] Internal Revenue Code of 1986, if:
(A) the program or benefit options are made
available to all employees of the employer; and
(B) the benefit options in the cafeteria plan are
limited to one or more options that provide deferred compensation,
group health and disability insurance, group term life insurance,
dependent care assistance programs, or group legal services plans;
(4) performance pay awarded to an employee by a school
district as part of a total compensation plan approved by the board
of trustees of the district and meeting the requirements of
Subsection (e);
(5) the benefit replacement pay a person earns under
Subchapter H, Chapter 659, except as provided by Subsection (c);
(6) stipends paid to teachers in accordance with
Section 21.410, 21.411, 21.412, [or] 21.413, or 21.4552, Education
Code;
(7) amounts by which the member's salary is reduced or
that are deducted from the member's salary as authorized by
Subchapter J, Chapter 659;
(8) a merit salary increase made under Section 51.962,
Education Code;
(9) amounts received under the relevant parts of the
awards for student achievement program under Subchapter N, Chapter
21, Education Code, the educator excellence awards program under
Subchapter O, Chapter 21, Education Code, or a mentoring program
under Section 21.458, Education Code, that authorized compensation
for service; and
(10) salary amounts designated as health care
supplementation by an employee under Subchapter D, Chapter 22,
Education Code.
SECTION 13. Not later than January 1, 2010, the
commissioner of education shall complete development of and make
available to public school teachers the discipline management
training program required by Section 21.4552, Education Code, as
added by this Act.
SECTION 14. This Act, other than Section 21.4552, Education
Code, as added by this Act, applies beginning with the 2009-2010
school year.
SECTION 15. This Act takes effect immediately if it
receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2009.