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Texas House Bill HB2566

Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2566 Compare Versions

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11 84R25713 CAE-F
22 By: VanDeaver H.B. No. 2566
33 Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2566:
44 By: Aycock C.S.H.B. No. 2566
55
66
77 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
88 AN ACT
99 relating to educator preparation programs.
1010 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1111 SECTION 1. Section 21.035, Education Code, is amended to
1212 read as follows:
1313 Sec. 21.035. DELEGATION AUTHORITY; ADMINISTRATION BY
1414 AGENCY. (a) The board is permitted to make a written delegation of
1515 authority to the commissioner or the agency to informally dispose
1616 of a contested case involving educator certification.
1717 (b) The agency [Texas Education Agency] shall provide the
1818 board's administrative functions and services.
1919 SECTION 2. Section 21.044(b), Education Code, is amended to
2020 read as follows:
2121 (b) Any minimum academic qualifications for a certificate
2222 specified under Subsection (a) that require a person to possess a
2323 bachelor's degree must also require that the person receive, as
2424 part of the training required to obtain that certificate
2525 [curriculum for that degree], instruction in detection and
2626 education of students with dyslexia. [This subsection does not
2727 apply to a person who obtains a certificate through an alternative
2828 certification program adopted under Section 21.049.]
2929 SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 21, Education Code, is
3030 amended by adding Section 21.0443 to read as follows:
3131 Sec. 21.0443. EDUCATOR PREPARATION PROGRAM APPROVAL AND
3232 RENEWAL. (a) The board shall propose rules to establish standards
3333 to govern the approval or renewal of approval of:
3434 (1) educator preparation programs; and
3535 (2) certification fields authorized to be offered by
3636 an educator preparation program.
3737 (b) To be eligible for approval or renewal of approval, an
3838 educator preparation program must adequately prepare candidates
3939 for educator certification and meet the standards and requirements
4040 of the board.
4141 (c) The board shall require that each educator preparation
4242 program be reviewed for renewal of approval at least every five
4343 years. The board shall adopt an evaluation process to be used in
4444 reviewing an educator preparation program for renewal of approval.
4545 SECTION 4. Section 21.045, Education Code, is amended to
4646 read as follows:
4747 Sec. 21.045. ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEM FOR EDUCATOR
4848 PREPARATION PROGRAMS. (a) The board shall propose rules necessary
4949 to establish [establishing] standards to govern the [approval and]
5050 continuing accountability of all educator preparation programs
5151 based on the following information that is disaggregated with
5252 respect to race, sex, and ethnicity:
5353 (1) results of the certification examinations
5454 prescribed under Section 21.048(a);
5555 (2) performance based on the appraisal system for
5656 beginning teachers adopted by the board;
5757 (3) achievement, including improvement in
5858 achievement, of students taught by beginning teachers for the first
5959 three years following certification, to the extent practicable;
6060 [and]
6161 (4) compliance with board requirements regarding the
6262 frequency, duration, and quality of structural guidance and ongoing
6363 support provided by field supervisors to candidates completing
6464 student teaching, clinical teaching, or an internship; and
6565 (5) results from a teacher satisfaction survey,
6666 developed by the board with stakeholder input, of new teachers
6767 performed at the end of the teacher's first year of teaching after
6868 completing an educator preparation program [beginning teachers
6969 during their first year in the classroom].
7070 (b) Each educator preparation program shall submit data
7171 elements as required by the board for an annual performance report
7272 to ensure access and equity. At a minimum, the annual report must
7373 contain:
7474 (1) the performance data from Subsection (a), other
7575 than the data required for purposes of Subsection (a)(3);
7676 (2) data related to the program's compliance with
7777 requirements for field supervision of candidates during their
7878 clinical teaching and internship experiences; [,] and
7979 (3) the following information, disaggregated by race,
8080 sex, and ethnicity:
8181 (A) [(1)] the number of candidates who apply;
8282 (B) [(2)] the number of candidates admitted;
8383 (C) [(3)] the number of candidates retained;
8484 (D) [(4)] the number of candidates completing
8585 the program;
8686 (E) [(5)] the number of candidates employed in
8787 the profession after completing the program;
8888 (F) [(6)] the number of candidates retained in
8989 the profession; and
9090 (G) [(7)] any other information required by
9191 federal law.
9292 (c) The board shall propose rules necessary to establish
9393 [establishing] performance standards for the Accountability System
9494 for Educator Preparation for accrediting educator preparation
9595 programs. At a minimum, performance standards must be based on
9696 Subsection (a). [The board may propose rules establishing minimum
9797 standards for approval or renewal of approval of:
9898 [(1) educator preparation programs; or
9999 [(2) certification fields authorized to be offered by
100100 an educator preparation program.]
101101 SECTION 5. The heading to Section 21.0451, Education Code,
102102 is amended to read as follows:
103103 Sec. 21.0451. SANCTIONS [UNDER ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEM] FOR
104104 EDUCATOR PREPARATION PROGRAMS.
105105 SECTION 6. Sections 21.0451(a), (c), and (d), Education
106106 Code, are amended to read as follows:
107107 (a) The board shall propose rules necessary for the sanction
108108 of educator preparation programs that do not meet accountability
109109 standards or comply with state law or rules and shall at least
110110 annually review the accreditation status of each educator
111111 preparation program. The rules:
112112 (1) shall provide for the assignment of the following
113113 accreditation statuses:
114114 (A) not rated;
115115 (B) accredited;
116116 (C) accredited-warned;
117117 (D) accredited-probation; and
118118 (E) not accredited-revoked;
119119 (2) may provide for the agency to take any necessary
120120 action, including one or more of the following actions:
121121 (A) requiring the program to obtain technical
122122 assistance approved by the agency or board;
123123 (B) requiring the program to obtain professional
124124 services under contract with another person;
125125 (C) appointing a monitor to participate in and
126126 report to the board on the activities of the program; and
127127 (D) [if a program has been rated as
128128 accredited-probation under the Accountability System for Educator
129129 Preparation for a period of at least one year,] revoking the
130130 approval of the program and ordering the program to be closed,
131131 provided that the board or agency has provided [must provide] the
132132 opportunity for a contested case hearing [before the effective date
133133 of the closure]; and
134134 (3) shall provide for the agency to revoke the
135135 approval of the program and order the program to be closed if the
136136 program has been rated as accredited-probation [under the
137137 Accountability System for Educator Preparation] for three
138138 consecutive years, provided that the board or agency has provided
139139 [must provide] the opportunity for a contested case hearing [before
140140 the effective date of the closure].
141141 (c) A [permissive] revocation [under Subsection (a)(2) or
142142 required revocation under Subsection (a)(3)] must be effective for
143143 a period of at least two years. After two years, the program may
144144 seek renewed approval to prepare educators for state certification.
145145 (d) The costs of technical assistance required under
146146 Subsection (a)(2)(A) or the costs associated with the appointment
147147 of a monitor under Subsection (a)(2)(C) shall be paid by the
148148 [sponsor of the] educator preparation program.
149149 SECTION 7. Subchapter B, Chapter 21, Education Code, is
150150 amended by adding Section 21.04511 to read as follows:
151151 Sec. 21.04511. SPECIAL ACCREDITATION INVESTIGATION. (a)
152152 The board shall propose rules necessary to implement this section.
153153 (b) The board may authorize an investigation of an educator
154154 preparation program if:
155155 (1) the risk factors adopted in accordance with
156156 Section 21.0454 indicate that an educator preparation program
157157 presents a significant level of risk; or
158158 (2) a complaint, including a complaint received under
159159 the process established under Section 21.0455, indicates that an
160160 educator preparation program may have violated a provision of this
161161 chapter or a rule adopted under this chapter.
162162 (c) If the board investigates a complaint against an
163163 educator preparation program as provided by Subsection (b)(2), the
164164 board may consider:
165165 (1) the seriousness of the alleged violation;
166166 (2) the timeliness of the complaint;
167167 (3) the program's history of compliance with board
168168 rules and complaints filed against the program;
169169 (4) the source of the complaint;
170170 (5) the feasibility of investigating the complaint;
171171 and
172172 (6) any other reasonable matter considered
173173 appropriate.
174174 (d) Based on the results of an investigation, the board may
175175 take any action regarding the educator preparation program allowed
176176 under Section 21.0451(a)(2) or another provision of this chapter,
177177 including:
178178 (1) revoking approval or denying renewal of approval;
179179 (2) lowering the program's accreditation status;
180180 (3) requiring the program to obtain technical
181181 assistance approved by the agency or board;
182182 (4) requiring the program to obtain professional
183183 services under contract with another person; and
184184 (5) appointing a monitor to participate in and report
185185 to the board on the activities of the program.
186186 (e) Any action authorized or required to be taken against an
187187 educator preparation program under this section may also be taken
188188 with regard to a particular field of certification that the program
189189 is authorized to offer.
190190 (f) An educator preparation program must have the
191191 opportunity for a contested case hearing if the board revokes
192192 approval or denies renewal of approval for:
193193 (1) the educator preparation program; or
194194 (2) a particular field of certification that the
195195 educator preparation program is authorized to offer.
196196 (g) The board may take action under this section regardless
197197 of an educator preparation program's performance on the measures
198198 listed in Section 21.045 or accreditation status under Section
199199 21.0451.
200200 SECTION 8. Section 21.0452(b), Education Code, is amended
201201 to read as follows:
202202 (b) The board shall make available at least the following
203203 information regarding each educator preparation program:
204204 (1) the information specified in Sections 21.045(a)
205205 and (b);
206206 (2) in addition to any other appropriate information
207207 indicating the quality of persons admitted to the program, the
208208 average academic qualifications possessed by persons admitted to
209209 the program, including:
210210 (A) average overall grade point average and
211211 average grade point average in specific subject areas; and
212212 (B) average scores on the Scholastic Assessment
213213 Test (SAT), the American College Test (ACT), or the Graduate Record
214214 Examination (GRE), as applicable;
215215 (3) the degree to which persons who complete the
216216 program are successful in obtaining teaching positions;
217217 (4) the extent to which the program prepares teachers,
218218 including general education teachers and special education
219219 teachers, to effectively teach:
220220 (A) students with disabilities; and
221221 (B) students of limited English proficiency, as
222222 defined by Section 29.052;
223223 (5) the activities offered by the program that are
224224 designed to prepare teachers to:
225225 (A) integrate technology effectively into
226226 curricula and instruction, including activities consistent with
227227 the principles of universal design for learning; and
228228 (B) use technology effectively to collect,
229229 manage, and analyze data to improve teaching and learning for the
230230 purpose of increasing student academic achievement;
231231 (6) the perseverance of beginning teachers in the
232232 profession, as determined on the basis of the number of beginning
233233 teachers who maintain status as active contributing members in the
234234 Teacher Retirement System of Texas for at least three years after
235235 certification in comparison to similar programs;
236236 (7) the results of exit surveys given to program
237237 participants on completion of the program that involve evaluation
238238 of the program's effectiveness in preparing participants to succeed
239239 in the classroom; [and]
240240 (8) the results of surveys given to school principals
241241 that involve evaluation of the program's effectiveness in preparing
242242 participants to succeed in the classroom, based on experience with
243243 employed program participants; and
244244 (9) the results of teacher satisfaction surveys
245245 developed under Section 21.045 and given to program participants at
246246 the end of the first year of teaching.
247247 SECTION 9. Subchapter B, Chapter 21, Education Code, is
248248 amended by adding Sections 21.0454 and 21.0455 to read as follows:
249249 Sec. 21.0454. RISK FACTORS FOR EDUCATOR PREPARATION
250250 PROGRAMS; RISK-ASSESSMENT MODEL. (a) The board shall propose
251251 rules necessary to develop a set of risk factors to use in assessing
252252 the overall risk level of each educator preparation program. The
253253 set of risk factors must include:
254254 (1) a history of the program's compliance with state
255255 law and board rules, standards, and procedures; and
256256 (2) whether the program meets the accountability
257257 standards under Section 21.045.
258258 (b) The set of risk factors developed by the board may
259259 include whether an educator preparation program is accredited by
260260 other organizations.
261261 (c) The board shall use the set of risk factors to guide the
262262 agency in conducting monitoring, inspections, and compliance
263263 audits of educator preparation programs, including evaluations
264264 associated with renewals under Section 21.0443.
265265 Sec. 21.0455. COMPLAINTS REGARDING EDUCATOR PREPARATION
266266 PROGRAMS. (a) The board shall propose rules necessary to establish
267267 a process for a candidate for teacher certification to direct a
268268 complaint against an educator preparation program to the agency.
269269 (b) The board by rule shall require an educator preparation
270270 program to notify candidates for teacher certification of the
271271 complaint process adopted under Subsection (a). The notice must
272272 include the name, mailing address, telephone number, and Internet
273273 website address of the agency for the purpose of directing
274274 complaints to the agency. The educator preparation program shall
275275 provide for that notification:
276276 (1) on the Internet website of the educator
277277 preparation program, if the program maintains a website; and
278278 (2) on a sign prominently displayed in program
279279 facilities.
280280 (c) The board shall post the complaint process adopted under
281281 Subsection (a) on the agency's Internet website.
282282 (d) The board has no authority to arbitrate or resolve
283283 contractual or commercial issues between an educator preparation
284284 program and a candidate for teacher certification.
285285 SECTION 10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.