H.B. No. 22
AN ACT
relating to public school accountability.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 11.252(a), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) Each school district shall have a district improvement
plan that is developed, evaluated, and revised annually, in
accordance with district policy, by the superintendent with the
assistance of the district-level committee established under
Section 11.251. The purpose of the district improvement plan is to
guide district and campus staff in the improvement of student
performance for all student groups in order to attain state
standards in respect to the achievement indicators adopted under
Section 39.053(c) [Sections 39.053(c)(1)-(4)]. The district
improvement plan must include provisions for:
(1) a comprehensive needs assessment addressing
district student performance on the achievement indicators, and
other appropriate measures of performance, that are disaggregated
by all student groups served by the district, including categories
of ethnicity, socioeconomic status, sex, and populations served by
special programs, including students in special education programs
under Subchapter A, Chapter 29;
(2) measurable district performance objectives for
all appropriate achievement indicators for all student
populations, including students in special education programs
under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, and other measures of student
performance that may be identified through the comprehensive needs
assessment;
(3) strategies for improvement of student performance
that include:
(A) instructional methods for addressing the
needs of student groups not achieving their full potential;
(B) methods for addressing the needs of students
for special programs, including:
(i) suicide prevention programs, in
accordance with Subchapter O-1, Chapter 161, Health and Safety
Code, which includes a parental or guardian notification procedure;
(ii) conflict resolution programs;
(iii) violence prevention programs; and
(iv) dyslexia treatment programs;
(C) dropout reduction;
(D) integration of technology in instructional
and administrative programs;
(E) discipline management;
(F) staff development for professional staff of
the district;
(G) career education to assist students in
developing the knowledge, skills, and competencies necessary for a
broad range of career opportunities; and
(H) accelerated education;
(4) strategies for providing to middle school, junior
high school, and high school students, those students' teachers and
school counselors, and those students' parents information about:
(A) higher education admissions and financial
aid opportunities;
(B) the TEXAS grant program and the Teach for
Texas grant program established under Chapter 56;
(C) the need for students to make informed
curriculum choices to be prepared for success beyond high school;
and
(D) sources of information on higher education
admissions and financial aid;
(5) resources needed to implement identified
strategies;
(6) staff responsible for ensuring the accomplishment
of each strategy;
(7) timelines for ongoing monitoring of the
implementation of each improvement strategy;
(8) formative evaluation criteria for determining
periodically whether strategies are resulting in intended
improvement of student performance; and
(9) the policy under Section 38.0041 addressing sexual
abuse and other maltreatment of children.
SECTION 2. Section 11.253(c), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(c) Each school year, the principal of each school campus,
with the assistance of the campus-level committee, shall develop,
review, and revise the campus improvement plan for the purpose of
improving student performance for all student populations,
including students in special education programs under Subchapter
A, Chapter 29, with respect to the achievement indicators adopted
under Section 39.053(c) [Sections 39.053(c)(1)-(4)] and any other
appropriate performance measures for special needs populations.
SECTION 3. Section 12.1013(c), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(c) The report must include the performance of each public
school in each class described by Subsection (b) as measured by the
achievement indicators adopted under Section 39.053(c) [Sections
39.053(c)(1)-(4)] and student attrition rates.
SECTION 4. Section 29.062(a), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) The legislature recognizes that compliance with this
subchapter is an imperative public necessity. Therefore, in
accordance with the policy of the state, the agency shall evaluate
the effectiveness of programs under this subchapter based on the
achievement indicators adopted under Section 39.053(c) [Sections
39.053(c)(1)-(4)], including the results of assessment
instruments. The agency may combine evaluations under this section
with federal accountability measures concerning students of
limited English proficiency.
SECTION 5. Section 29.202(a), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) A student is eligible to receive a public education
grant or to attend another public school in the district in which
the student resides under this subchapter if the student is
assigned to attend a public school campus assigned an unacceptable
performance rating that is made publicly available under Section
39.054 for:
(1) the student achievement domain under Section
39.053(c)(1) [at which 50 percent or more of the students did not
perform satisfactorily on an assessment instrument administered
under Section 39.023(a) or (c) in any two of the preceding three
years]; and [or]
(2) the school progress domain under Section
39.053(c)(2) [that, at any time in the preceding three years,
failed to satisfy any standard under Section 39.054(e)].
SECTION 6. Chapter 39, Education Code, is amended by adding
Subchapter A to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 39.001. RULES. (a) The commissioner shall adopt rules
as necessary to administer this chapter.
(b) In adopting a rule under this chapter, the commissioner
shall solicit input statewide from persons who would likely be
affected by the proposed rule, including school district boards of
trustees, administrators and teachers employed by school
districts, parents of students enrolled in school districts, and
other interested stakeholders.
Sec. 39.002. ADVISORY COMMITTEE. An advisory committee
appointed under this chapter is not subject to Chapter 2110,
Government Code.
SECTION 7. Section 39.052(b), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) In determining the accreditation status of a school
district, the commissioner:
(1) shall evaluate and consider:
(A) performance on achievement indicators
described by Section 39.053 [39.053(c)]; and
(B) performance under the financial
accountability rating system developed under Subchapter D; and
(2) may evaluate and consider:
(A) the district's compliance with statutory
requirements and requirements imposed by rule of the commissioner
or State Board of Education under specific statutory authority that
relate to:
(i) reporting data through the Public
Education Information Management System (PEIMS) or other reports
required by state or federal law or court order;
(ii) the high school graduation
requirements under Section 28.025; or
(iii) an item listed under Sections
7.056(e)(3)(C)-(I) that applies to the district;
(B) the effectiveness of the district's programs
for special populations; and
(C) the effectiveness of the district's career
and technology program.
SECTION 8. Section 39.053, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a), (a-1), (b), (c), (d-1), (f), (g), (g-1),
(g-2), and (i) and adding Subsections (c-3) and (e) to read as
follows:
(a) The commissioner shall adopt a set of indicators of the
quality of learning and achievement, including the indicators under
Subsection (c). The commissioner periodically [biennially] shall
review the indicators for the consideration of appropriate
revisions.
(a-1) The indicators adopted by the commissioner under
Subsection (a)[, including the indicators identified under
Subsection (c),] must measure and evaluate school districts and
campuses with respect to:
(1) improving student preparedness for success in:
(A) subsequent grade levels; and
(B) entering the workforce, the military, or
postsecondary education;
(2) reducing, with the goal of eliminating, student
academic achievement differentials among students from different
racial and ethnic groups and socioeconomic backgrounds; and
(3) informing parents and the community regarding
campus and district performance [in the domains described by
Subsection (c) and, for the domain described by Subsection (c)(5),
in accordance with local priorities and preferences].
(b) Performance on the achievement indicators adopted under
Subsection (c) [Subsections (c)(1)-(4)] shall be compared to
state-established standards. The indicators must be based on
information that is disaggregated by race, ethnicity, and
socioeconomic status.
(c) School districts and campuses must be evaluated based on
three [five] domains of indicators of achievement adopted under
this section that include:
(1) in the student achievement [first] domain,
indicators of student achievement that must include [the results
of]:
(A) for evaluating the performance of districts
and campuses generally:
(i) an indicator that accounts for the
results of assessment instruments required under Sections
39.023(a), (c), and (l), as applicable for the district and campus,
including the results of assessment instruments required for
graduation retaken by a student, aggregated across grade levels by
subject area, including:
(a) [(i)] for the performance
standard determined by the commissioner under Section 39.0241(a),
the percentage of students who performed satisfactorily on the
assessment instruments, aggregated across grade levels by subject
area; and
(b) [(ii)] for the college readiness
performance standard as determined under Section 39.0241, the
percentage of students who performed satisfactorily on the
assessment instruments, aggregated across grade levels by subject
area; and
(ii) [(B)] an indicator that accounts for
the results of assessment instruments required under Section
39.023(b), as applicable for the district and campus, [aggregated
across grade levels by subject area,] including the percentage of
students who performed satisfactorily on the assessment
instruments, as determined by the performance standard adopted by
the agency, aggregated across grade levels by subject area; and
(B) for evaluating the performance of high school
campuses and districts that include high school campuses,
indicators that account for:
(i) students who satisfy the Texas Success
Initiative (TSI) college readiness benchmarks prescribed by the
Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board under Section 51.3062(f)
on an assessment instrument in reading or mathematics designated by
the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board under Section
51.3062(c);
(ii) students who satisfy relevant
performance standards on advanced placement tests or similar
assessments;
(iii) students who earn dual course credits
in the dual credit courses;
(iv) students who enlist in the armed
forces of the United States;
(v) students who earn industry
certifications;
(vi) students admitted into postsecondary
industry certification programs that require as a prerequisite for
entrance successful performance at the secondary level;
(vii) students whose successful completion
of a course or courses under Section 28.014 indicates the student's
preparation to enroll and succeed, without remediation, in an
entry-level general education course for a baccalaureate degree or
associate degree;
(viii) students who successfully met
standards on a composite of indicators that through research
indicates the student's preparation to enroll and succeed, without
remediation, in an entry-level general education course for a
baccalaureate degree or associate degree;
(ix) high school graduation rates, computed
in accordance with standards and definitions adopted in compliance
with the Every Student Succeeds Act (20 U.S.C. Section 6301 et seq.)
subject to the exclusions provided by Subsections (g), (g-1),
(g-2), and (g-3);
(x) students who successfully completed an
OnRamps dual enrollment course; and
(xi) students who are awarded an
associate's degree;
(2) in the school progress [second] domain, indicators
for effectiveness in promoting student learning, which must
include:
(A) for assessment instruments, including
assessment instruments under Subdivisions (1)(A)(i) and (ii)
[under Subdivision (1)(A):
[(i) for the performance standard
determined by the commissioner under Section 39.0241(a)], the
percentage of students who met the standard for [annual]
improvement [on the assessment instruments], as determined by the
commissioner [by rule or by the method for measuring annual
improvement under Section 39.034, aggregated across grade levels by
subject area; and
[(ii) for the college readiness performance
standard as determined under Section 39.0241, the percentage of
students who met the standard for annual improvement on the
assessment instruments, as determined by the commissioner by rule
or by the method for measuring annual improvement under Section
39.034, aggregated across grade levels by subject area]; and
(B) for evaluating relative performance, the
performance of districts and campuses compared to similar districts
or campuses [for assessment instruments under Subdivision (1)(B),
the percentage of students who met the standard for annual
improvement on the assessment instruments, as determined by the
commissioner by rule or by the method for measuring annual
improvement under Section 39.034, aggregated across grade levels by
subject area;
[(3) in the third domain, the student academic
achievement differentials among students from different racial and
ethnic groups and socioeconomic backgrounds;
[(4) in the fourth domain:
[(A) for evaluating the performance of high
school campuses and districts that include high school campuses:
[(i) 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;
[(ii) high school graduation rates,
computed in accordance with standards and definitions adopted in
compliance with the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (20 U.S.C.
Section 6301 et seq.);
[(iii) the percentage of students who
successfully completed the curriculum requirements for the
distinguished level of achievement under the foundation high school
program;
[(iv) the percentage of students who
successfully completed the curriculum requirements for an
endorsement under Section 28.025(c-1);
[(v) the percentage of students who
completed a coherent sequence of career and technical courses;
[(vi) the percentage of students who
satisfy the Texas Success Initiative (TSI) college readiness
benchmarks prescribed by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating
Board under Section 51.3062(f) on an assessment instrument in
reading, writing, or mathematics designated by the Texas Higher
Education Coordinating Board under Section 51.3062(c);
[(vii) the percentage of students who earn
at least 12 hours of postsecondary credit required for the
foundation high school program under Section 28.025 or to earn an
endorsement under Section 28.025(c-1);
[(viii) the percentage of students who have
completed an advanced placement course;
[(ix) the percentage of students who enlist
in the armed forces of the United States; and
[(x) the percentage of students who earn an
industry certification;
[(B) for evaluating the performance of middle and
junior high school and elementary school campuses and districts
that include those campuses:
[(i) student attendance; and
[(ii) for middle and junior high school
campuses:
[(a) dropout rates, computed in the
manner described by Paragraph (A)(i); and
[(b) the percentage of students in
grades seven and eight who receive instruction in preparing for
high school, college, and a career that includes information
regarding the creation of a high school personal graduation plan
under Section 28.02121, the distinguished level of achievement
described by Section 28.025(b-15), each endorsement described by
Section 28.025(c-1), college readiness standards, and potential
career choices and the education needed to enter those careers; and
[(C) any additional indicators of student
achievement not associated with performance on standardized
assessment instruments determined appropriate for consideration by
the commissioner in consultation with educators, parents, business
and industry representatives, and employers]; and
(3) [(5)] in the closing the gaps [fifth] domain, the
use of disaggregated data to demonstrate the differentials among
students from different racial and ethnic groups, socioeconomic
backgrounds, and other factors, including:
(A) students formerly receiving special
education services;
(B) students continuously enrolled; and
(C) students who are mobile [three programs or
specific categories of performance related to community and student
engagement locally selected and evaluated as provided by Section
39.0546].
(c-3) Any standard for improvement determined by the
commissioner as described by Subsection (c)(2)(A) must allow for
appropriately crediting a student for growth if the student
performs at the highest achievement standard in the previous and
current school year.
(d-1) In aggregating results of assessment instruments
across grade levels by subject in accordance with Subsection
(c)(1)(A)(i) [Subsection (c)(1)], the performance of a student
enrolled below the high school level on an assessment instrument
required under Section 39.023(c) is included with results relating
to other students enrolled at the same grade level.
(e) For purposes of Subsection (c)(3)(A), a student
formerly receiving special education services means a student whose
enrollment information:
(1) for the preceding school year, as reported through
the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS),
indicates the student was enrolled at the campus and was
participating in a special education program; and
(2) for the current school year, as reported through
the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS) and as
reported on assessment instruments administered to the student
under Section 39.023, indicates the student is enrolled at the
campus and is not participating in a special education program.
(f) Annually, the commissioner shall define the state
standard for the current school year for each achievement indicator
adopted under this section. In consultation with educators,
parents, and business and industry representatives, as necessary,
the commissioner shall establish and modify standards to
continuously improve student performance to achieve the goals of
eliminating achievement gaps based on race, ethnicity, and
socioeconomic status and to ensure this state is a national leader
in preparing students for postsecondary success [described by
Subsections (c)(1)-(4) and shall project the state standards for
each indicator for the following two school years. The
commissioner shall periodically raise the state standards for the
college readiness achievement indicator described by Subsection
(c)(1)(A)(ii) for accreditation as necessary to reach the goals of
achieving, by not later than the 2019-2020 school year:
[(1) student performance in this state, disaggregated
by race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status, that ranks nationally
in the top 10 states in terms of college readiness; and
[(2) student performance with no significant
achievement gaps by race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status].
(g) In computing [defining the required state standard for
the] dropout and completion rates such as high school graduation
rates under Subsection (c)(1)(B)(ix) [rate indicator described by
Subsections (c)(4)(A)(i) and (B)(ii)(a)], the commissioner may not
consider as a dropout a student whose failure to attend school
results from:
(1) the student's expulsion under Section 37.007; and
(2) as applicable:
(A) adjudication as having engaged in delinquent
conduct or conduct indicating a need for supervision, as defined by
Section 51.03, Family Code; or
(B) conviction of and sentencing for an offense
under the Penal Code.
(g-1) In computing dropout and completion rates such as high
school graduation rates under Subsection (c)(1)(B)(ix)
[Subsections (c)(4)(A)(i) and (B)(ii)(a)], the commissioner shall
exclude:
(1) students who are ordered by a court to attend a
high school equivalency certificate program but who have not yet
earned a high school equivalency certificate;
(2) students who were previously reported to the state
as dropouts, including a student who is reported as a dropout,
reenrolls, and drops out again, regardless of the number of times of
reenrollment and dropping out;
(3) students in attendance who are not in membership
for purposes of average daily attendance;
(4) students whose initial enrollment in a school in
the United States in grades 7 through 12 was as an unschooled asylee
[refugees] or refugee [asylees] as defined by Section 39.027(a-1);
(5) students who are in the district exclusively as a
function of having been detained at a county detention facility but
are otherwise not students of the district in which the facility is
located; and
(6) students who are incarcerated in state jails and
federal penitentiaries as adults and as persons certified to stand
trial as adults.
(g-2) In computing completion rates such as high school
graduation rates under Subsection (c)(1)(B)(ix) [(c)(2)], the
commissioner shall exclude students who:
(1) are at least 18 years of age as of September 1 of
the school year as reported for the fall semester Public Education
Information Management System (PEIMS) submission and have
satisfied the credit requirements for high school graduation;
(2) have not completed their individualized education
program under 19 T.A.C. Section 89.1070(b)(2) and the Individuals
with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section 1400 et seq.);
and
(3) are enrolled and receiving individualized
education program services.
(i) Each school district shall submit the data required for
the indicators adopted under this section to the [The] commissioner
[by rule shall adopt accountability measures to be used in
assessing the progress of students who have failed to perform
satisfactorily as determined by the commissioner under Section
39.0241(a) or under the college readiness standard as determined
under Section 39.0241 in the preceding school year on an assessment
instrument required under Section 39.023(a), (c), or (l)].
SECTION 9. Subchapter C, Chapter 39, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 39.0533 to read as follows:
Sec. 39.0533. EXTRACURRICULAR AND COCURRICULAR STUDENT
ACTIVITY INDICATOR. (a) The commissioner shall study the
feasibility of incorporating for evaluating school district and
campus performance under this subchapter an indicator that accounts
for extracurricular and cocurricular student activity. If the
commissioner determines that an extracurricular and cocurricular
student activity indicator is appropriate, the commissioner may
adopt the indicator.
(b) To determine the feasibility of adopting an indicator
under this section, the commissioner may require a school district
or campus to report requested information relating to
extracurricular and cocurricular student activity.
(c) The commissioner may establish an advisory committee to
assist in determining the feasibility of incorporating an
extracurricular and cocurricular student activity indicator for
evaluating school district and campus performance.
(d) Not later than December 1, 2022, the commissioner shall
report to the legislature on the feasibility of incorporating an
extracurricular and cocurricular student activity indicator,
unless the commissioner adopts an indicator under this section
before that date.
(e) This section expires September 1, 2023.
SECTION 10. Sections 39.054(a), (a-1), (a-2), (a-3), and
(e), Education Code, as effective on September 1, 2017, are amended
to read as follows:
(a) The commissioner shall adopt rules to evaluate school
district and campus performance and assign each district and campus
an overall performance rating of A, B, C, D, or F. In addition to the
overall performance rating, the commissioner shall assign each
district and campus a separate domain performance rating of A, B, C,
D, or F for each domain under Section 39.053(c) [Sections
39.053(c)(1)-(4)]. An overall or domain performance rating of A
reflects exemplary performance. An overall or domain performance
rating of B reflects recognized performance. An overall or domain
performance rating of C reflects acceptable performance. An
overall or domain performance rating of D reflects performance that
needs improvement. An overall or domain performance rating of [or]
F reflects unacceptable performance. A district may not receive an
overall or domain performance rating of A if the district includes
any campus with a corresponding overall or domain performance
rating of D or F. If a school district has been approved under
Section 39.0544 to assign campus performance ratings and the
commissioner has not assigned a campus an overall performance
rating of D or F, the commissioner shall assign the campus an
overall performance rating based on the school district assigned
performance rating under Section 39.0544. A reference in law to an
acceptable rating or acceptable performance includes an overall or
domain performance rating of A, B, [or] C, or D or performance that
is exemplary, recognized, or acceptable performance or performance
that needs improvement.
(a-1) For purposes of assigning an overall performance
rating for a district or campus under Subsection (a), the
commissioner shall:
(1) consider either the district's or campus's
performance rating under the student achievement domain under
Section 39.053(c)(1) or the school progress domain under Section
39.053(c)(2), whichever performance rating is higher, unless the
district or campus received a performance rating of F in either
domain, in which case the district or campus may not be assigned a
performance rating higher than a B for the composite for the two
domains; and
(2) attribute not less than 30 percent of the
performance rating to the closing the gaps domain under Section
39.053(c)(3) [an overall performance rating under Subsection (a),
the commissioner shall attribute:
[(1) 55 percent of the performance evaluation to the
achievement indicators for the first, second, and third domains
under Sections 39.053(c)(1)-(3);
[(2) for middle and junior high school and elementary
campuses and districts that include only those campuses, 35 percent
of the performance evaluation to the applicable achievement
indicators for the fourth domain under Section 39.053(c)(4);
[(3) for high school campuses and districts that
include those campuses:
[(A) 10 percent of the performance evaluation to
the high school graduation rate achievement indicator described by
Section 39.053(c)(4)(A)(ii); and
[(B) 25 percent to the remaining applicable
achievement indicators for the fourth domain under Section
39.053(c)(4); and
[(4) 10 percent of the performance evaluation to the
locally selected and evaluated achievement indicators provided for
under the fifth domain under Section 39.053(c)(5)].
(a-2) The commissioner by rule may [shall] adopt procedures
to ensure that a repeated performance rating of D or F or
unacceptable in one domain, particularly performance that is not
significantly improving, is reflected in the overall performance
rating of a district or campus under this section or a campus under
Section 39.0544 and is not compensated for by a performance rating
of A, B, or C in another domain.
(a-3) Not later than August 15 of each year, the performance
ratings of each district and campus shall be made publicly
available as provided by rules adopted under this section. [If a
district or campus received an overall or domain performance rating
of D or F for the preceding school year, the commissioner shall
notify the district of a subsequent such designation on or before
June 15.]
(e) Each annual performance review under this section shall
include an analysis of the achievement indicators adopted under
Section 39.053, including Subsection (c) of that section, [Sections
39.053(c)(1)-(4)] to determine school district and campus
performance in relation to standards established for each
indicator.
SECTION 11. Section 39.054, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subsections (a-4) and (b) to read as follows:
(a-4) For performance ratings issued in August 2018 for the
2017-2018 school year for campus performance, the commissioner
shall issue only a rating of improvement required or met standard,
as applicable, to a campus. This subsection expires January 1,
2019.
(b) For purposes of assigning school districts and campuses
an overall and a domain performance rating under Subsection (a),
the commissioner shall ensure that the method used to evaluate
performance is implemented in a manner that provides the
mathematical possibility that all districts and campuses receive an
A rating.
SECTION 12. Section 39.054(f), Education Code, as effective
September 1, 2017, is transferred to Section 39.053, Education
Code, redesignated as Section 39.053(g-3), Education Code, and
amended to read as follows:
(g-3) [(f)] In the computation of dropout and completion
rates such as high school graduation rates under Subsection
(c)(1)(B)(ix) [Sections 39.053(c)(4)(A)(i) and (B)(ii)(a)], a
student who is released from a juvenile pre-adjudication secure
detention facility or juvenile post-adjudication secure
correctional facility and fails to enroll in school or a student who
leaves a residential treatment center after receiving treatment for
fewer than 85 days and fails to enroll in school may not be
considered to have dropped out from the school district or campus
serving the facility or center unless that district or campus is the
one to which the student is regularly assigned. The agency may not
limit an appeal relating to dropout computations under this
subsection.
SECTION 13. Subchapter C, Chapter 39, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 39.0541 to read as follows:
Sec. 39.0541. ADOPTION OF INDICATORS AND STANDARDS. The
commissioner may adopt indicators and standards under this
subchapter at any time during a school year before the evaluation of
a school district or campus.
SECTION 14. Subchapter C, Chapter 39, Education Code, is
amended by adding Sections 39.0542 and 39.0544 to read as follows:
Sec. 39.0542. EXPLANATORY MATERIALS FOR ACCOUNTABILITY
RATING SYSTEM. (a) Each school year, the commissioner shall
provide each school district a document in a simple, accessible
format that explains the accountability performance measures,
methods, and procedures that will be applied for that school year in
assigning each school district and campus a performance rating
under Section 39.054.
(b) The document provided under Subsection (a) must be
provided in a format that a school district is able to easily
distribute to parents of students enrolled in the district and
other interested members of the public.
(c) The commissioner, in collaboration with interested
stakeholders, shall develop standardized language for each domain
that does not exceed 250 words and that clearly describes the annual
status of a district and campus relating to district and campus
performance on the indicators used for that domain to determine the
letter performance rating assigned to a district and campus.
Sec. 39.0544. LOCAL ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEM. (a) The
commissioner shall adopt rules regarding the assignment of campus
performance ratings by school districts and open-enrollment
charter schools. The rules:
(1) must require a district or school, in assigning an
overall performance rating for a campus, to incorporate:
(A) domain performance ratings assigned by the
commissioner under Section 39.054; and
(B) performance ratings based on locally
developed domains or sets of accountability measures;
(2) may permit a district or school to assign weights
to each domain or set of accountability measures described in
Subdivision (1), as determined by the district or school, provided
that the domains specified in Subdivision (1)(A) must in the
aggregate account for at least 50 percent of the overall
performance rating;
(3) must require that each locally developed domain or
set of accountability measures:
(A) contains levels of performance that allow for
differentiation, with assigned standards for achieving the
differentiated levels;
(B) provides for the assignment of a letter grade
of A, B, C, D, or F; and
(C) meets standards for reliability and
validity;
(4) must require that calculations for overall
performance ratings and each locally developed domain or set of
accountability measures be capable of being audited by a third
party;
(5) must require that a district or school produce a
campus score card that may be displayed on the agency's website; and
(6) must require that a district or school develop and
make available to the public an explanation of the methodology used
to assign performance ratings under this section.
(b) The commissioner shall develop a process to approve a
request by a school district or open-enrollment charter school to
assign campus performance ratings in accordance with this section.
Under that process, a district or school must obtain approval of a
local accountability plan submitted by the district or school to
the agency. A plan may be approved only if:
(1) after review, the agency determines the plan meets
the minimum requirements under this section and agency rule;
(2) at the commissioner's discretion, an audit
conducted by the agency verifies the calculations included in the
plan; and
(3) subject to Subsection (d), a review panel
appointed under Subsection (c) approves the plan.
(c) The commissioner shall appoint a review panel for
purposes of Subsection (b)(3) that includes a majority of members
who are superintendents or members of the board of trustees or
governing body of school districts or open-enrollment charter
schools with approved local accountability plans.
(d) The requirement under Subsection (b)(3) applies only
after performance ratings are issued in August 2019 and only if at
least 10 school districts or open-enrollment charter schools have
obtained approval of locally developed accountability plans.
(e) A school district or open-enrollment charter school
authorized under this section to assign campus performance ratings
shall evaluate the performance of each campus as provided by this
section and assign each campus a performance rating of A, B, C, D,
or F for overall performance and for each locally developed domain
or set of accountability measures. Not later than a date
established by the commissioner, the district or school shall:
(1) report the performance ratings to the agency; and
(2) make the performance ratings available to the
public as provided by commissioner rule.
SECTION 15. Sections 39.0548(b), (c), and (d), Education
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(b) Notwithstanding Section 39.053(c)(1)(B)(ix)
[39.053(c)(4)(A)(i)], the commissioner shall use the alternative
completion rate under this subsection to determine the graduation
[dropout] rate indicator under Section 39.053(c)(1)(B)(ix)
[39.053(c)(4)(A)(i)] for a dropout recovery school. The
alternative completion rate shall be the ratio of the total number
of students who graduate, continue attending school into the next
academic year, or receive a high school equivalency certificate to
the total number of students in the longitudinal cohort of
students.
(c) Notwithstanding Section 39.053(c)(1)(B)(ix)
[39.053(c)(4)(A)(i)], in determining the performance rating under
Section 39.054 of a dropout recovery school, the commissioner shall
include any student described by Section 39.053(g-1) who graduates
or receives a high school equivalency certificate.
(d) Notwithstanding Section 39.053(c), for purposes of
evaluating a dropout recovery school under the accountability
procedures adopted by the commissioner to determine the performance
rating of the school under Section 39.054,[:
[(1)] only the best result from the primary
administration or any retake of an assessment instrument
administered to a student in the school year evaluated may be
considered[; and
[(2) only a student enrolled continuously for at least
90 days during the school year evaluated may be considered].
SECTION 16. Section 39.055, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 39.055. STUDENT ORDERED BY A JUVENILE COURT OR STUDENT
IN RESIDENTIAL FACILITY NOT CONSIDERED FOR ACCOUNTABILITY
PURPOSES. Notwithstanding any other provision of this code except
to the extent otherwise provided under Section 39.053(g-3)
[39.054(f)], for purposes of determining the performance of a
school district, campus, or open-enrollment charter school under
this chapter, a student ordered by a juvenile court into a
residential program or facility operated by or under contract with
the Texas Juvenile Justice Department, a juvenile board, or any
other governmental entity or any student who is receiving treatment
in a residential facility is not considered to be a student of the
school district in which the program or facility is physically
located or of an open-enrollment charter school, as
applicable. The performance of such a student on an assessment
instrument or other achievement indicator adopted under Section
39.053 or reporting indicator adopted under Section 39.301 shall be
determined, reported, and considered separately from the
performance of students attending a school of the district in which
the program or facility is physically located or an open-enrollment
charter school, as applicable.
SECTION 17. Subchapter E, Chapter 39, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 39.101 to read as follows:
Sec. 39.101. NEEDS IMPROVEMENT RATING. (a)
Notwithstanding any other law, if a school district or campus is
assigned an overall or domain performance rating of D:
(1) the commissioner shall order the district or
campus to develop and implement a targeted improvement plan
approved by the board of trustees of the district; and
(2) the interventions and sanctions provided by this
subchapter based on failure to satisfy performance standards under
Section 39.054(e) apply to the district or campus only as provided
by this section.
(b) The interventions and sanctions provided by this
subchapter based on failure to satisfy performance standards under
Section 39.054(e) apply to a district or campus ordered to develop
and implement a targeted improvement plan under Subsection (a) only
if the district or campus is assigned:
(1) an overall or domain performance rating of F; or
(2) an overall performance rating of D as provided by
Subsection (c).
(c) If a school district or campus is assigned an overall
performance rating of D for a school year after the district or
campus is ordered to develop and implement a targeted improvement
plan under Subsection (a), the commissioner shall implement
interventions and sanctions that apply to an unacceptable campus
and those interventions and sanctions shall continue for each
consecutive school year thereafter in which the campus is assigned
an overall performance rating of D.
(d) The commissioner shall adopt rules as necessary to
implement this section.
SECTION 18. Section 39.301(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) Performance on the indicators adopted under this
section shall be evaluated in the same manner provided for
evaluation of the achievement indicators under Section 39.053(c)
[Sections 39.053(c)(1)-(4)].
SECTION 19. The following provisions of the Education Code
are repealed:
(1) Section 39.054(c), as effective September 1, 2017;
and
(2) Sections 39.0545 and 39.0546.
SECTION 20. If H.B. 1500, 85th Legislature, Regular
Session, 2017, becomes law, that law has no effect.
SECTION 21. Not later than January 1, 2019, the
commissioner of education shall submit a report to the standing
committees of the legislature having primary jurisdiction over
primary and secondary education that provides for a preliminary
evaluation of campuses under Section 39.054, Education Code, as
amended by this Act. The report must include:
(1) the overall and domain performance rating each
campus would have received under Section 39.054, Education Code, as
amended by this Act, for the 2017-2018 school year if the indicators
adopted by the commissioner of education under Section 39.053,
Education Code, as amended by this Act, existed during the
2017-2018 school year; and
(2) the correlation between each designated letter
performance rating the campus would have received and the
percentage of students at each campus:
(A) qualifying for the free or reduced-price
breakfast under the national school breakfast programs provided for
by the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. Section 1773);
(B) that are students of limited English
proficiency as defined by Section 29.052, Education Code; and
(C) disaggregated by race, ethnicity, and
socioeconomic status used to assign ratings in the system.
SECTION 22. This Act applies beginning with the 2017-2018
school year.
SECTION 23. 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, 2017.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 22 was passed by the House on May 4,
2017, by the following vote: Yeas 146, Nays 0, 2 present, not
voting; that the House refused to concur in Senate amendments to
H.B. No. 22 on May 26, 2017, and requested the appointment of a
conference committee to consider the differences between the two
houses; and that the House adopted the conference committee report
on H.B. No. 22 on May 28, 2017, by the following vote: Yeas 140,
Nays 0, 1 present, not voting, and that the House adopted H.C.R. No.
165 authorizing certain corrections in H.B. No. 22 on May 29, 2017,
by the following vote: Yeas 147, Nays 0, 1 present, not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 22 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on May 24, 2017, by the following vote: Yeas 28, Nays
3; at the request of the House, the Senate appointed a conference
committee to consider the differences between the two houses; and
that the Senate adopted the conference committee report on H.B. No.
22 on May 28, 2017, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0, and
that the Senate adopted H.C.R. No. 165 authorizing certain
corrections in H.B. No. 22 on May 29, 2017, by the following vote:
Yeas 31, Nays 0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________
Date
__________________
Governor