Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HB542 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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1	1	81R365 PAM-D
2	2	By: Raymond H.B. No. 542
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to placement of public school students in Junior Reserve
8	8	Officers' Training Corps programs as an alternative in certain
9	9	circumstances to placement in disciplinary or juvenile justice
10	10	alternative education programs.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Sections 37.001(a) and (e), Education Code, are
13	13	amended to read as follows:
14	14	(a) The board of trustees of an independent school district
15	15	shall, with the advice of its district-level committee established
16	16	under Subchapter F, Chapter 11, adopt a student code of conduct for
17	17	the district. The student code of conduct must be posted and
18	18	prominently displayed at each school campus or made available for
19	19	review at the office of the campus principal. In addition to
20	20	establishing standards for student conduct, the student code of
21	21	conduct must:
22	22	(1) specify the circumstances, in accordance with this
23	23	subchapter, under which a student may be removed from a classroom,
24	24	campus, or disciplinary alternative education program;
25	25	(2) specify conditions that authorize or require a
26	26	principal or other appropriate administrator to require a student
27	27	to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program
28	28	or to transfer a student to a disciplinary alternative education
29	29	program;
30	30	(3) outline conditions under which a student may be
31	31	suspended as provided by Section 37.005 or expelled as provided by
32	32	Section 37.007;
33	33	(4) specify whether consideration is given, as a
34	34	factor in a decision to order suspension, participation in a Junior
35	35	Reserve Officers' Training Corps program, removal to a disciplinary
36	36	alternative education program, or expulsion, to:
37	37	(A) self-defense;
38	38	(B) intent or lack of intent at the time the
39	39	student engaged in the conduct;
40	40	(C) a student's disciplinary history; or
41	41	(D) a disability that substantially impairs the
42	42	student's capacity to appreciate the wrongfulness of the student's
43	43	conduct;
44	44	(5) provide guidelines for setting the length of a
45	45	term of:
46	46	(A) a removal under Section 37.006; [and]
47	47	(B) an expulsion under Section 37.007; and
48	48	(C) required participation under Section
49	49	37.0055;
50	50	(6) address the notification of a student's parent or
51	51	guardian of a violation of the student code of conduct committed by
52	52	the student that results in suspension, required participation in a
53	53	Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program, removal to a
54	54	disciplinary alternative education program, or expulsion;
55	55	(7) prohibit bullying, harassment, and making hit
56	56	lists and ensure that district employees enforce those
57	57	prohibitions; and
58	58	(8) provide, as appropriate for students at each grade
59	59	level, methods, including options, for:
60	60	(A) managing students in the classroom and on
61	61	school grounds;
62	62	(B) disciplining students; and
63	63	(C) preventing and intervening in student
64	64	discipline problems, including bullying, harassment, and making
65	65	hit lists.
66	66	(e) Except as provided by Section 37.007(e), this
67	67	subchapter does not require the student code of conduct to specify a
68	68	minimum term of required participation under Section 37.0055, a
69	69	removal under Section 37.006, or an expulsion under Section 37.007.
70	70	SECTION 2. Section 37.002, Education Code, is amended by
71	71	adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:
72	72	(e) This section is subject to Section 37.0055.
73	73	SECTION 3. Subchapter A, Chapter 37, Education Code, is
74	74	amended by adding Section 37.0055 to read as follows:
75	75	Sec. 37.0055. MANDATORY ALTERNATIVE PLACEMENT IN CERTAIN
76	76	CIRCUMSTANCES: JUNIOR RESERVE OFFICERS' TRAINING CORPS (JROTC).
77	77	(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subchapter and
78	78	except as provided by Subsection (c), a student who is otherwise
79	79	required or permitted under this subchapter to be placed in a
80	80	disciplinary alternative education program or juvenile justice
81	81	alternative education program must, instead of that placement, be
82	82	required to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training
83	83	Corps program if:
84	84	(1) the school the student attends offers the program;
85	85	and
86	86	(2) the student meets the initial eligibility
87	87	requirements for the program.
88	88	(b) A student required to participate in a Junior Reserve
89	89	Officers' Training Corps program under this section continues to
90	90	attend the student's regularly assigned classes, except that the
91	91	student's schedule may be modified to the extent necessary to
92	92	provide for required attendance in the program.
93	93	(c) This section does not apply if:
94	94	(1) the student is removed from class and placed into
95	95	another appropriate classroom or into in-school suspension under
96	96	Section 37.002 or is suspended under Section 37.005;
97	97	(2) the student engages in conduct described by
98	98	Section 37.006(a)(2)(B) or Section 37.007(a)(2) or (b)(2)(C);
99	99	(3) the continued presence of the student in the
100	100	regular classroom threatens the safety of other students or
101	101	teachers; or
102	102	(4) the student engages in conduct for which the
103	103	student is required to be expelled from the student's regular
104	104	campus under federal law.
105	105	(d) Section 37.006(e) applies to this section. Not later
106	106	than the third class day after the date a student is required to
107	107	participate in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program
108	108	under this section, the school district shall notify the student's
109	109	parent or guardian of the student's placement. The notice must
110	110	include the reason for the placement.
111	111	(e) The board of trustees of the school district or the
112	112	board's designee shall set a term for a student's required
113	113	participation in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program
114	114	under this section. The term must be for a period consistent with
115	115	the guidelines adopted under the student code of conduct in
116	116	accordance with Section 37.001(a)(5)(C). If the period of
117	117	placement is inconsistent with the guidelines adopted under the
118	118	student code of conduct, the notice under Subsection (d) must
119	119	provide an explanation of the inconsistency.
120	120	(f) Notwithstanding Section 7.057(e), the decision to
121	121	require a student to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers'
122	122	Training Corps program under this section may be appealed by the
123	123	student or the student's parent or guardian to the commissioner as
124	124	provided by Sections 7.057(b), (c), (d), and (f).
125	125	(g) Before a student may be required to participate in a
126	126	Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program under this section
127	127	for a period that extends beyond the end of a school year, the board
128	128	of trustees or the board's designee must determine that the student
129	129	has engaged in serious or persistent misbehavior that violates the
130	130	district's student code of conduct. The period of required
131	131	participation may not exceed one year unless, after review, the
132	132	board or the board's designee determines that extended placement is
133	133	in the best interest of the student.
134	134	(h) The board of trustees shall inform each educator who has
135	135	responsibility for, or is under the direction and supervision of an
136	136	educator who has responsibility for, the instruction of a student
137	137	who is required to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers'
138	138	Training Corps program under this section. Each educator shall
139	139	keep the information received under this subsection confidential
140	140	from any person not entitled to the information under this
141	141	subsection, except that the educator may share the information with
142	142	the student's parent or guardian as provided for by state or federal
143	143	law. The State Board for Educator Certification may revoke or
144	144	suspend the certification of an educator who intentionally violates
145	145	this subsection or Subsection (i).
146	146	(i) If a student required to participate in a Junior Reserve
147	147	Officers' Training Corps program under this section enrolls in
148	148	another school district before the expiration of the period of
149	149	required participation, the board of trustees of the school
150	150	district requiring the participation shall provide to the district
151	151	in which the student enrolls, at the same time other records of the
152	152	student are provided, a copy of the placement order. The district
153	153	in which the student enrolls shall inform each educator who will
154	154	have responsibility for, or will be under the direction and
155	155	supervision of an educator who will have responsibility for, the
156	156	instruction of the student of the contents of the placement order.
157	157	Each educator shall keep the information received under this
158	158	subsection confidential from any person not entitled to the
159	159	information under this subsection, except that the educator may
160	160	share the information with the student's parent or guardian as
161	161	provided for by state or federal law. The district in which the
162	162	student enrolls may continue the Junior Reserve Officers' Training
163	163	Corps program placement under the terms of the order or may allow
164	164	the student to attend regular classes without completing the period
165	165	of required participation. If the school the student attends in the
166	166	district in which the student enrolls does not offer a Junior
167	167	Reserve Officers' Training Corps program, the student may be placed
168	168	in a disciplinary alternative education program or a juvenile
169	169	justice alternative education program under the procedures
170	170	provided by this subchapter for the remainder of the term set under
171	171	Subsection (e).
172	172	(j) A student required to participate in a Junior Reserve
173	173	Officers' Training Corps program under this section is subject to
174	174	the provisions of this subchapter relating to removal from class
175	175	and placement in a disciplinary alternative education program or
176	176	juvenile justice alternative education program if the student,
177	177	after any required participation in a Junior Reserve Officers'
178	178	Training Corps program under this section, engages in subsequent
179	179	conduct requiring or permitting the student to be removed from
180	180	class and placed in a disciplinary alternative education program or
181	181	juvenile justice alternative education program under this
182	182	subchapter.
183	183	SECTION 4. Section 37.006, Education Code, is amended by
184	184	adding Subsection (p) to read as follows:
185	185	(p) This section is subject to Section 37.0055.
186	186	SECTION 5. Section 37.007, Education Code, is amended by
187	187	adding Subsection (j) to read as follows:
188	188	(j) This section is subject to Section 37.0055.
189	189	SECTION 6. Section 37.0091(a), Education Code, is amended
190	190	to read as follows:
191	191	(a) A noncustodial parent may request in writing that a
192	192	school district or school, for the remainder of the school year in
193	193	which the request is received, provide that parent with a copy of
194	194	any written notification relating to alternative placement under
195	195	Section 37.0055 or student misconduct under Section 37.006 or
196	196	37.007 that is generally provided by the district or school to a
197	197	student's parent or guardian.
198	198	SECTION 7. Section 37.020, Education Code, is amended by
199	199	adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:
200	200	(d) For each placement in a Junior Reserve Officers'
201	201	Training Corps program under Section 37.0055, the district shall
202	202	report:
203	203	(1) information identifying the student, including
204	204	the student's race, sex, and date of birth, that will enable the
205	205	agency to compare placement data with information collected through
206	206	other reports;
207	207	(2) information indicating whether the placement was
208	208	based on:
209	209	(A) conduct violating the student code of conduct
210	210	adopted under Section 37.001;
211	211	(B) conduct for which placement in a Junior
212	212	Reserve Officers' Training Corps program is required or permitted
213	213	by Section 37.0055; or
214	214	(C) conduct occurring while a student was
215	215	enrolled in another district and for which placement in a Junior
216	216	Reserve Officers' Training Corps program is permitted by Section
217	217	37.0055(i);
218	218	(3) the number of full or partial days the student was
219	219	assigned to the program and the number of full or partial days the
220	220	student attended the program; and
221	221	(4) the number of placements that were inconsistent
222	222	with the guidelines included in the student code of conduct under
223	223	Section 37.001(a)(5)(C).
224	224	SECTION 8. Section 39.182(a), Education Code, is amended to
225	225	read as follows:
226	226	(a) Not later than December 1 of each year, the agency shall
227	227	prepare and deliver to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the
228	228	speaker of the house of representatives, each member of the
229	229	legislature, the Legislative Budget Board, and the clerks of the
230	230	standing committees of the senate and house of representatives with
231	231	primary jurisdiction over the public school system a comprehensive
232	232	report covering the preceding school year and containing:
233	233	(1) an evaluation of the achievements of the state
234	234	educational program in relation to the statutory goals for the
235	235	public education system under Section 4.002;
236	236	(2) an evaluation of the status of education in the
237	237	state as reflected by the academic excellence indicators adopted
238	238	under Section 39.051;
239	239	(3) a summary compilation of overall student
240	240	performance on academic skills assessment instruments required by
241	241	Section 39.023 with the number and percentage of students exempted
242	242	from the administration of those instruments and the basis of the
243	243	exemptions, aggregated by grade level, subject area, campus, and
244	244	district, with appropriate interpretations and analysis, and
245	245	disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic
246	246	status;
247	247	(4) a summary compilation of overall performance of
248	248	students placed in a disciplinary alternative education program
249	249	established under Section 37.008 on academic skills assessment
250	250	instruments required by Section 39.023 with the number of those
251	251	students exempted from the administration of those instruments and
252	252	the basis of the exemptions, aggregated by district, grade level,
253	253	and subject area, with appropriate interpretations and analysis,
254	254	and disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic
255	255	status;
256	256	(5) a summary compilation of overall performance of
257	257	students at risk of dropping out of school, as defined by Section
258	258	29.081(d), on academic skills assessment instruments required by
259	259	Section 39.023 with the number of those students exempted from the
260	260	administration of those instruments and the basis of the
261	261	exemptions, aggregated by district, grade level, and subject area,
262	262	with appropriate interpretations and analysis, and disaggregated
263	263	by race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status;
264	264	(6) an evaluation of the correlation between student
265	265	grades and student performance on academic skills assessment
266	266	instruments required by Section 39.023;
267	267	(7) a statement of the dropout rate of students in
268	268	grade levels 7 through 12, expressed in the aggregate and by grade
269	269	level, and a statement of the completion rates of students for grade
270	270	levels 9 through 12;
271	271	(8) a statement of:
272	272	(A) the completion rate of students who enter
273	273	grade level 9 and graduate not more than four years later;
274	274	(B) the completion rate of students who enter
275	275	grade level 9 and graduate, including students who require more
276	276	than four years to graduate;
277	277	(C) the completion rate of students who enter
278	278	grade level 9 and not more than four years later receive a high
279	279	school equivalency certificate;
280	280	(D) the completion rate of students who enter
281	281	grade level 9 and receive a high school equivalency certificate,
282	282	including students who require more than four years to receive a
283	283	certificate; and
284	284	(E) the number and percentage of all students who
285	285	have not been accounted for under Paragraph (A), (B), (C), or (D);
286	286	(9) a statement of the projected cross-sectional and
287	287	longitudinal dropout rates for grade levels 9 through 12 for the
288	288	next five years, assuming no state action is taken to reduce the
289	289	dropout rate;
290	290	(10) a description of a systematic, measurable plan
291	291	for reducing the projected cross-sectional and longitudinal
292	292	dropout rates to five percent or less for the 1997-1998 school year;
293	293	(11) a summary of the information required by Section
294	294	29.083 regarding grade level retention of students and information
295	295	concerning:
296	296	(A) the number and percentage of students
297	297	retained; and
298	298	(B) the performance of retained students on
299	299	assessment instruments required under Section 39.023(a);
300	300	(12) information, aggregated by district type and
301	301	disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, [and] socioeconomic
302	302	status, and program type, on:
303	303	(A) the number of students placed in a
304	304	disciplinary alternative education program established under
305	305	Section 37.008 or a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program
306	306	under Section 37.0055;
307	307	(B) the average length of a student's placement
308	308	in a disciplinary alternative education program established under
309	309	Section 37.008 or a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program
310	310	under Section 37.0055;
311	311	(C) the academic performance of students on
312	312	assessment instruments required under Section 39.023(a) during the
313	313	year preceding and during the year following placement in a
314	314	disciplinary alternative education program or a Junior Reserve
315	315	Officers' Training Corps program under Section 37.0055; and
316	316	(D) the dropout rates of students who have been
317	317	placed in a disciplinary alternative education program established
318	318	under Section 37.008 or a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps
319	319	program under Section 37.0055;
320	320	(13) a list of each school district or campus that does
321	321	not satisfy performance standards, with an explanation of the
322	322	actions taken by the commissioner to improve student performance in
323	323	the district or campus and an evaluation of the results of those
324	324	actions;
325	325	(14) an evaluation of the status of the curriculum
326	326	taught in public schools, with recommendations for legislative
327	327	changes necessary to improve or modify the curriculum required by
328	328	Section 28.002;
329	329	(15) a description of all funds received by and each
330	330	activity and expenditure of the agency;
331	331	(16) a summary and analysis of the instructional
332	332	expenditures ratios and instructional employees ratios of school
333	333	districts computed under Section 44.0071;
334	334	(17) a summary of the effect of deregulation,
335	335	including exemptions and waivers granted under Section 7.056 or
336	336	39.112;
337	337	(18) a statement of the total number and length of
338	338	reports that school districts and school district employees must
339	339	submit to the agency, identifying which reports are required by
340	340	federal statute or rule, state statute, or agency rule, and a
341	341	summary of the agency's efforts to reduce overall reporting
342	342	requirements;
343	343	(19) a list of each school district that is not in
344	344	compliance with state special education requirements, including:
345	345	(A) the period for which the district has not
346	346	been in compliance;
347	347	(B) the manner in which the agency considered the
348	348	district's failure to comply in determining the district's
349	349	accreditation status; and
350	350	(C) an explanation of the actions taken by the
351	351	commissioner to ensure compliance and an evaluation of the results
352	352	of those actions;
353	353	(20) a comparison of the performance of
354	354	open-enrollment charter schools and school districts on the
355	355	academic excellence indicators specified in Section 39.051(b) and
356	356	accountability measures adopted under Section 39.051(g), with a
357	357	separately aggregated comparison of the performance of
358	358	open-enrollment charter schools predominantly serving students at
359	359	risk of dropping out of school, as defined by Section 29.081(d),
360	360	with the performance of school districts;
361	361	(21) a summary of the information required by Section
362	362	38.0141 regarding student health and physical activity from each
363	363	school district;
364	364	(22) a summary compilation of overall student
365	365	performance under the assessment system developed to evaluate the
366	366	longitudinal academic progress as required by Section 39.027(e),
367	367	disaggregated by bilingual education or special language program
368	368	instructional model, if any; and
369	369	(23) any additional information considered important
370	370	by the commissioner or the State Board of Education.
371	371	SECTION 9. This Act applies beginning with the 2009-2010
372	372	school year.
373	373	SECTION 10. This Act takes effect immediately if it
374	374	receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
375	375	house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
376	376	If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
377	377	effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2009.