Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB522 Compare Versions

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

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1	1	84R3075 PAM-D
2	2	By: Raymond H.B. No. 522
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to establishing a pilot program in designated public high
8	8	schools in certain municipalities for placement of students in
9	9	Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps programs as an alternative
10	10	to placement in disciplinary or juvenile justice alternative
11	11	education programs.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. Chapter 37, Education Code, is amended by adding
14	14	Subchapter A-1 to read as follows:
15	15	SUBCHAPTER A-1. PILOT PROGRAM IN DESIGNATED HIGH SCHOOLS IN
16	16	CERTAIN MUNICIPALITIES FOR ALTERNATIVE DISCIPLINARY PLACEMENT:
17	17	JUNIOR RESERVE OFFICERS' TRAINING CORPS (JROTC)
18	18	Sec. 37.031. ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT PROGRAM. (a) A pilot
19	19	program is established under this subchapter for placement of high
20	20	school students in Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps programs
21	21	as an alternative, in accordance with Section 37.032, to placement
22	22	in disciplinary alternative education programs or juvenile justice
23	23	alternative education programs.
24	24	(b) The pilot program applies only to a student enrolled in
25	25	a high school:
26	26	(1) located in a municipality that:
27	27	(A) has a population of 200,000 or more;
28	28	(B) is located on an international border; and
29	29	(C) has more than 20 percent of the population 18
30	30	to 24 years of age who have not graduated from high school,
31	31	according to the most recent American Community Survey five-year
32	32	estimates compiled by the United States Census Bureau; and
33	33	(2) designated by the agency under Subsection (c).
34	34	(c) The agency shall designate not more than two high
35	35	schools that are located in a municipality described by Subsection
36	36	(b)(1) and that offer Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps
37	37	programs to participate in the pilot program. The commissioner by
38	38	rule shall adopt additional criteria that promote positive student
39	39	educational outcomes for the agency to use in making designations
40	40	under this subchapter.
41	41	(d) The application of this subchapter to a student enrolled
42	42	in a high school located in a municipality described by Subsection
43	43	(b)(1) is not affected if, after the high school is designated under
44	44	Subsection (c), the high school graduation rate in the municipality
45	45	changes and the municipality no longer meets the requirements of
46	46	Subsection (b)(1)(C).
47	47	Sec. 37.032. PARTICIPATION REQUIREMENTS AND EXCEPTIONS.
48	48	(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of Subchapter A and except
49	49	as provided by Subsection (c), a student subject to this subchapter
50	50	who is otherwise required or permitted under Subchapter A to be
51	51	placed in a disciplinary alternative education program or juvenile
52	52	justice alternative education program may, instead of that
53	53	placement, be required to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers'
54	54	Training Corps program if the student meets the initial eligibility
55	55	requirements for the program.
56	56	(b) A student required to participate in a Junior Reserve
57	57	Officers' Training Corps program as authorized under this
58	58	subchapter shall continue to attend the student's regularly
59	59	assigned classes, except that the student's schedule may be
60	60	modified to the extent necessary to provide for required attendance
61	61	in the program.
62	62	(c) This subchapter does not apply if:
63	63	(1) the student is removed from class and placed into
64	64	another appropriate classroom or into in-school suspension under
65	65	Section 37.002 or is suspended under Section 37.005;
66	66	(2) the student engages in conduct described by
67	67	Section 37.006(a)(2)(B) or Section 37.007(a)(2) or (b)(2)(C);
68	68	(3) the continued presence of the student in the
69	69	regular classroom threatens the safety of other students or
70	70	teachers; or
71	71	(4) the student engages in conduct for which the
72	72	student is required to be expelled from the student's regular
73	73	campus under federal law.
74	74	Sec. 37.033. STUDENT CODE OF CONDUCT. (a) In addition to
75	75	the requirements for the student code of conduct under Section
76	76	37.001, the student code of conduct for a school district that
77	77	includes a school designated under Section 37.031(c) must,
78	78	consistent with this subchapter and as applied to the designated
79	79	school:
80	80	(1) specify conditions that authorize a principal or
81	81	other appropriate administrator to require a student to participate
82	82	in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program;
83	83	(2) specify that consideration will be given, as a
84	84	factor in each decision concerning participation in a Junior
85	85	Reserve Officers' Training Corps program, to:
86	86	(A) self-defense;
87	87	(B) intent or lack of intent at the time the
88	88	student engaged in the conduct;
89	89	(C) a student's disciplinary history; or
90	90	(D) a disability that substantially impairs the
91	91	student's capacity to appreciate the wrongfulness of the student's
92	92	conduct;
93	93	(3) provide guidelines that promote positive student
94	94	educational outcomes for determining placement in a Junior Reserve
95	95	Officers' Training Corps program as an alternative to placement in
96	96	a disciplinary alternative education program or juvenile justice
97	97	alternative education program;
98	98	(4) provide guidelines for setting the length of a
99	99	term of required participation in a Junior Reserve Officers'
100	100	Training Corps program; and
101	101	(5) address the notification of a student's parent or
102	102	guardian of a violation of the student code of conduct committed by
103	103	the student that results in required participation in a Junior
104	104	Reserve Officers' Training Corps program.
105	105	(b) This section does not require the student code of
106	106	conduct to specify a minimum term of required participation in a
107	107	Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program.
108	108	Sec. 37.034. DETERMINATION REGARDING CERTAIN CONDUCT.
109	109	Section 37.006(e) applies to this subchapter.
110	110	Sec. 37.035. NOTICE TO PARENTS. (a) Not later than the
111	111	third class day after the date a student is required to participate
112	112	in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program as authorized
113	113	under this subchapter, the school district shall notify the
114	114	student's parent or guardian of the student's placement. The notice
115	115	must include the reason for the placement.
116	116	(b) A noncustodial parent may request in writing that a
117	117	school district or school, for the remainder of the school year in
118	118	which the request is received, provide that parent with a copy of
119	119	any written notification relating to the student's placement as
120	120	authorized under this subchapter that is generally provided by the
121	121	district or school to a student's parent or guardian.
122	122	Sec. 37.036. TERM OF PLACEMENT. (a) The board of trustees
123	123	of the school district or the board's designee shall set a term for
124	124	a student's required participation in a Junior Reserve Officers'
125	125	Training Corps program as authorized under this subchapter. The
126	126	term must be for a period consistent with the guidelines adopted
127	127	under the student code of conduct in accordance with Section
128	128	37.033(a)(4). If the period of placement is inconsistent with the
129	129	guidelines adopted under the student code of conduct, the notice
130	130	under Section 37.035(a) must provide an explanation of the
131	131	inconsistency.
132	132	(b) Before a student may be required to participate in a
133	133	Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program as authorized under
134	134	this subchapter for a period that extends beyond the end of a school
135	135	year, the board of trustees or the board's designee must determine
136	136	that the student has engaged in serious or persistent misbehavior
137	137	that violates the district's student code of conduct. The period of
138	138	required participation may not exceed one year unless, after
139	139	review, the board or the board's designee determines that extended
140	140	placement is in the best interest of the student.
141	141	Sec. 37.037. APPEAL. Notwithstanding Section 7.057(e),
142	142	the decision to require a student to participate in a Junior Reserve
143	143	Officers' Training Corps program as authorized under this
144	144	subchapter may be appealed by the student or the student's parent or
145	145	guardian as provided by Sections 7.057(b), (c), (d), and (f).
146	146	Sec. 37.038. NOTICE TO EDUCATORS. (a) The board of
147	147	trustees of the school district shall inform each educator who has
148	148	responsibility for, or is under the direction and supervision of an
149	149	educator who has responsibility for, the instruction of a student
150	150	who is required to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers'
151	151	Training Corps program as authorized under this subchapter.
152	152	(b) Each educator shall keep the information received under
153	153	this section confidential from any person not entitled to the
154	154	information under this section, except that the educator may share
155	155	the information with the student's parent or guardian as provided
156	156	for by state or federal law.
157	157	(c) The State Board for Educator Certification may revoke or
158	158	suspend the certification of an educator who intentionally violates
159	159	this section or Section 37.039.
160	160	Sec. 37.039. TRANSFER OF STUDENT UNDER PILOT PROGRAM. (a)
161	161	If a student required to participate in a Junior Reserve Officers'
162	162	Training Corps program as authorized under this subchapter enrolls
163	163	in another school district before the expiration of the period of
164	164	required participation, the board of trustees of the school
165	165	district requiring the participation shall provide to the district
166	166	in which the student enrolls, at the same time other records of the
167	167	student are provided, a copy of the placement order. The district
168	168	in which the student enrolls shall inform each educator who will
169	169	have responsibility for, or will be under the direction and
170	170	supervision of an educator who will have responsibility for, the
171	171	instruction of the student of the contents of the placement order.
172	172	(b) Each educator shall keep the information received under
173	173	this section confidential from any person not entitled to the
174	174	information under this section, except that the educator may share
175	175	the information with the student's parent or guardian as provided
176	176	for by state or federal law.
177	177	(c) Subject to Subsection (d), the school district in which
178	178	the student enrolls may continue the Junior Reserve Officers'
179	179	Training Corps program placement under the terms of the order or may
180	180	allow the student to attend regular classes without completing the
181	181	period of required participation.
182	182	(d) If the school the student attends in the school district
183	183	in which the student enrolls does not offer a Junior Reserve
184	184	Officers' Training Corps program, the student may be placed in a
185	185	disciplinary alternative education program or a juvenile justice
186	186	alternative education program under the procedures provided by this
187	187	subchapter for the remainder of the term set under Section 37.036.
188	188	Sec. 37.040. PROCEDURE FOR ADDRESSING SUBSEQUENT CONDUCT
189	189	AFTER PROGRAM PARTICIPATION. A student required to participate in
190	190	a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program as authorized
191	191	under this subchapter is subject to the provisions of Subchapter A
192	192	relating to removal from class and placement in a disciplinary
193	193	alternative education program or juvenile justice alternative
194	194	education program if the student, after completion of any required
195	195	participation in a Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps program
196	196	as authorized under this subchapter, engages in subsequent conduct
197	197	requiring or permitting the student to be removed from class and
198	198	placed in a disciplinary alternative education program or juvenile
199	199	justice alternative education program under Subchapter A.
200	200	Sec. 37.041. APPLICABILITY TO SUBCHAPTER A. Sections
201	201	37.002, 37.006, and 37.007 are subject to this subchapter.
202	202	Sec. 37.042. REVIEW OF PROGRAM; REPORT. Not later than
203	203	January 1, 2017, the commissioner shall review the pilot program
204	204	established under this subchapter and submit to the governor, the
205	205	lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of representatives,
206	206	and the presiding officer of each legislative standing committee
207	207	with primary jurisdiction over primary and secondary education a
208	208	written report regarding the progress made by the pilot program in
209	209	improving student educational outcomes.
210	210	Sec. 37.043. EXPIRATION. This subchapter expires September
211	211	1, 2017.
212	212	SECTION 2. Section 37.020, Education Code, is amended by
213	213	adding Subsections (d) and (e) to read as follows:
214	214	(d) For each placement in a Junior Reserve Officers'
215	215	Training Corps program under Subchapter A-1, the district shall
216	216	report:
217	217	(1) information identifying the student, including
218	218	the student's race, sex, and date of birth, that will enable the
219	219	agency to compare placement data with information collected through
220	220	other reports;
221	221	(2) information indicating whether the placement was
222	222	based on:
223	223	(A) conduct violating the student code of conduct
224	224	adopted under Section 37.001;
225	225	(B) conduct for which placement in a disciplinary
226	226	alternative education program or juvenile justice alternative
227	227	education program is otherwise required or permitted by this
228	228	subchapter; or
229	229	(C) conduct occurring while a student was
230	230	enrolled in another district and for which placement in a Junior
231	231	Reserve Officers' Training Corps program is permitted by Section
232	232	37.039;
233	233	(3) the number of full or partial days the student was
234	234	assigned to the program and the number of full or partial days the
235	235	student attended the program;
236	236	(4) the number of placements that were inconsistent
237	237	with the guidelines included in the student code of conduct under
238	238	Section 37.033(a)(4);
239	239	(5) information regarding the academic performance of
240	240	the student on assessment instruments required under Section
241	241	39.023(a), as applicable, during the year preceding, during the
242	242	year of, and during the year following placement in the program, to
243	243	the extent available; and
244	244	(6) information indicating whether the student
245	245	dropped out of school, to the extent available.
246	246	(e) Subsection (d) and this subsection expire September 1,
247	247	2017.
248	248	SECTION 3. (a) Not later than December 1, 2015, the
249	249	commissioner of education shall adopt rules for the Texas Education
250	250	Agency to use to designate public high schools to participate in the
251	251	pilot program established under Subchapter A-1, Chapter 37,
252	252	Education Code, as added by this Act.
253	253	(b) Not later than January 1, 2016, the Texas Education
254	254	Agency shall designate not more than two public high schools to
255	255	participate in the pilot program established under Subchapter A-1,
256	256	Chapter 37, Education Code, as added by this Act.
257	257	(c) The pilot program established under Subchapter A-1,
258	258	Chapter 37, Education Code, as added by this Act, shall be
259	259	implemented in each high school designated under that subchapter
260	260	beginning with the spring semester of the 2015-2016 school year.
261	261	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
262	262	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
263	263	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
264	264	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
265	265	Act takes effect September 1, 2015.