By: Huberty, et al. (Senate Sponsor - Campbell) H.B. No. 4
(In the Senate - Received from the House April 13, 2015;
April 23, 2015, read first time and referred to Committee on
Education; May 5, 2015, reported favorably by the following vote:
Yeas 9, Nays 2; May 5, 2015, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to a high quality prekindergarten program provided by
public school districts.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 8, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 8.058 to read as follows:
Sec. 8.058. CHILD DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE TRAINING. A
regional education service center may offer to teachers employed by
school districts the training required to be awarded a Child
Development Associate (CDA) credential.
SECTION 2. Section 12.104(b), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) An open-enrollment charter school is subject to:
(1) a provision of this title establishing a criminal
offense; and
(2) a prohibition, restriction, or requirement, as
applicable, imposed by this title or a rule adopted under this
title, relating to:
(A) the Public Education Information Management
System (PEIMS) to the extent necessary to monitor compliance with
this subchapter as determined by the commissioner;
(B) criminal history records under Subchapter C,
Chapter 22;
(C) reading instruments and accelerated reading
instruction programs under Section 28.006;
(D) accelerated instruction under Section
28.0211;
(E) high school graduation requirements under
Section 28.025;
(F) special education programs under Subchapter
A, Chapter 29;
(G) bilingual education under Subchapter B,
Chapter 29;
(H) prekindergarten programs under Subchapter E
or E-1, Chapter 29;
(I) extracurricular activities under Section
33.081;
(J) discipline management practices or behavior
management techniques under Section 37.0021;
(K) health and safety under Chapter 38;
(L) public school accountability under
Subchapters B, C, D, E, F, G, and J, Chapter 39;
(M) the requirement under Section 21.006 to
report an educator's misconduct; and
(N) intensive programs of instruction under
Section 28.0213.
SECTION 3. Section 25.001(a), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) A person who, on the first day of September of any school
year, is at least five years of age and under 21 years of age, or is
at least 21 years of age and under 26 years of age and is admitted by
a school district to complete the requirements for a high school
diploma is entitled to the benefits of the available school fund for
that year. Any other person enrolled in a prekindergarten class
under Section 29.153 or Subchapter E-1, Chapter 29, is entitled to
the benefits of the available school fund.
SECTION 4. Chapter 29, Education Code, is amended by adding
Subchapter E-1 to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER E-1. HIGH QUALITY PREKINDERGARTEN PROGRAM
Sec. 29.164. DEFINITION. In this subchapter, "program"
means a high quality prekindergarten program provided free of
tuition or fees in accordance with this subchapter.
Sec. 29.165. HIGH QUALITY PREKINDERGARTEN PROGRAM. (a) From
funds appropriated for that purpose, the commissioner by rule shall
establish a funding program under which funds are awarded to school
districts and open-enrollment charter schools to implement a
prekindergarten program under this subchapter. Notwithstanding any
other provision of this subchapter, a prekindergarten program
implemented under this subchapter may operate on a full-day basis.
(b) A school district may participate in and receive funding
under the program if the district meets all program standards
required under this subchapter.
(c) A program is subject to any other requirements imposed
by law that apply to a prekindergarten program not provided in
accordance with this subchapter, except that to the extent a
conflict exists between this subchapter and any other provision of
law, this subchapter prevails.
Sec. 29.166. HIGH QUALITY PROGRAM FUNDING. (a) A school
district is eligible for half-day funding under the Foundation
School Program for each student who satisfies eligibility
requirements under Section 29.153(b) and who is enrolled in a
program class.
(b) In addition to funding under Subsection (a), a school
district is entitled to receive funding in an amount determined by
the commissioner for each qualifying student described under
Subsection (c) in average daily attendance in a program class. The
commissioner may not establish an amount of funding per qualifying
student under this subsection that exceeds $1,500.
(c) A student qualifies for additional funding under
Subsection (b) if the student:
(1) satisfies eligibility requirements under Section
29.153(b); and
(2) is four years of age on September 1 of the year the
student begins the program.
(d) A school district that receives the funding under
Subsection (b) may use the funding only to improve the quality of
the district's prekindergarten programs.
(e) The total amount of funding distributed to school
districts under Subsection (b) for the state fiscal biennium ending
August 31, 2017, may not exceed the greater of:
(1) $130 million; or
(2) the amount of the appropriation provided for the
prekindergarten program under this subchapter in H.B. No. 1, Acts
of the 84th Legislature, Regular Session, 2015, as enacted.
Sec. 29.167. HIGH QUALITY CURRICULUM AND TEACHER
REQUIREMENTS. (a) A school district shall select and implement a
curriculum for a prekindergarten program under this subchapter
that:
(1) includes the prekindergarten guidelines
established by the agency;
(2) measures the progress of students in meeting the
recommended learning outcomes; and
(3) does not use national curriculum standards
developed by the Common Core State Standards Initiative.
(b) Each teacher for a prekindergarten program class must:
(1) be certified under Subchapter B, Chapter 21; and
(2) have one of the following additional
qualifications:
(A) a Child Development Associate (CDA)
credential;
(B) certification offered through a training
center associated with Association Montessori Internationale or
through the Montessori Accreditation Council for Teacher
Education;
(C) at least eight years' experience of teaching
in a nationally accredited child care program; or
(D) an equivalent qualification.
(c) A school district may allow a teacher employed by the
district to receive the training required to be awarded a Child
Development Associate (CDA) credential from a regional education
service center that offers the training in accordance with Section
8.058.
Sec. 29.168. FAMILY ENGAGEMENT PLAN. (a) A school district
shall develop and implement a family engagement plan to assist the
district in achieving and maintaining high levels of family
involvement and positive family attitudes toward education. The
family engagement plan must be based on family engagement
strategies established under Subsection (b).
(b) The agency shall collaborate with other state agencies,
including the Health and Human Services Commission, that provide
services for children from birth through five years of age to
establish prioritized family engagement strategies to be included
in a school district's family engagement plan. A parent-teacher
organization, community group, or faith-based institution may
submit to the agency recommendations regarding the establishment of
family engagement strategies, and the agency, in establishing the
family engagement strategies, shall consider any received
recommendations. The engagement strategies must be:
(1) based on empirical research; and
(2) proven to demonstrate significant positive
short-term and long-term outcomes for early childhood education.
Sec. 29.169. PROGRAM EVALUATION. (a) A school district
shall:
(1) select and implement appropriate methods for
evaluating the district's program classes by measuring student
progress; and
(2) make data from the results of program evaluations
available to parents.
(b) A school district may administer diagnostic assessments
to students in a program class to evaluate student progress as
required by Subsection (a) but may not administer a state
standardized assessment instrument.
(c) An assessment instrument administered to a
prekindergarten program class must be selected from a list of
appropriate prekindergarten assessment instruments identified by
the commissioner.
Sec. 29.170. PROGRAM FUNDING EVALUATION. (a) The
commissioner shall evaluate the use and effectiveness of funding
provided under this subchapter in improving student learning. The
commissioner shall identify effective instruction strategies
implemented by school districts under this subchapter.
(b) Beginning in 2018, not later than December 1 of each
even-numbered year, the commissioner shall deliver a report to the
legislature containing the results of the evaluation.
(c) This section expires December 31, 2024.
Sec. 29.171. REPORT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION REQUIRED. In
addition to information reported under Section 29.1532(c), a school
district that offers a prekindergarten program under this
subchapter shall include the following information in the
district's Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS)
report:
(1) the class size and ratio of instructional staff to
students for each prekindergarten program class offered by the
district;
(2) each type of assessment instrument administered to
students enrolled in district prekindergarten program classes and
the results of each type of assessment instrument;
(3) student demographic information for the district's
prekindergarten program classes;
(4) funding sources for the district's prekindergarten
program classes; and
(5) curricula used in the district's prekindergarten
program classes.
Sec. 29.172. ELIGIBLE PRIVATE PROVIDERS. (a) A school
district participating in the program under this subchapter may
enter into a contract with an eligible private provider to provide
services or equipment for the program.
(b) To be eligible to contract with a school district to
provide a program or part of a program, a private provider must be
licensed by and in good standing with the Department of Family and
Protective Services. For purposes of this section, a private
provider is in good standing with the Department of Family and
Protective Services if the department has not taken an action
against the provider's license under Section 42.071, 42.072, or
42.078, Human Resources Code, during the 24-month period preceding
the date of a contract with a school district. The private provider
must also:
(1) be accredited by a research-based, nationally
recognized, and universally accessible accreditation system
approved by the commissioner;
(2) be a Texas Rising Star Program provider with a
three-star certification or higher;
(3) be a Texas School Ready! participant;
(4) have an existing partnership with a school
district to provide a prekindergarten program not provided under
this subchapter; or
(5) be accredited by an organization that is
recognized by the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission.
(c) A prekindergarten program provided by a private
provider under this section is subject to the requirements of this
subchapter.
Sec. 29.173. RULES. The commissioner may adopt rules
necessary to implement this subchapter.
SECTION 5. Section 42.003(b), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) A student to whom Subsection (a) does not apply is
entitled to the benefits of the Foundation School Program if the
student is enrolled in a prekindergarten class under Section 29.153
or Subchapter E-1, Chapter 29.
SECTION 6. (a) Section 29.167(b), Education Code, as added
by this Act, requiring a prekindergarten teacher to have been
awarded a Child Development Associate (CDA) credential, applies
beginning with the 2016-2017 school year.
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (a) of this section,
this Act applies beginning with the 2015-2016 school year.
SECTION 7. 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, 2015.
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