Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1412 Latest Draft

Bill / Comm Sub Version Filed 05/17/2019

                            86R33783 SOS-D
 By: Perry, et al. S.B. No. 1412
 (Burrows)
 Substitute the following for S.B. No. 1412:  No.


 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 AN ACT
 relating to accountability intervention provisions applicable to
 school district campuses, including the creation of accelerated
 campus excellence turnaround plans and the conditions under which a
 closed campus may be repurposed to serve students at that campus
 location.
 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 SECTION 1.  Section 39A.105, Education Code, is amended to
 read as follows:
 Sec. 39A.105.  CONTENTS OF CAMPUS TURNAROUND PLAN. (a) A
 campus turnaround plan must include:
 (1)  details on the method for restructuring,
 reforming, or reconstituting the campus;
 (2)  a detailed description of the academic programs to
 be offered at the campus, including:
 (A)  instructional methods;
 (B)  length of school day and school year;
 (C)  academic credit and promotion criteria; and
 (D)  programs to serve special student
 populations;
 (3)  if a district charter is to be granted for the
 campus under Section 12.0522:
 (A)  the term of the charter; and
 (B)  information on the implementation of the
 charter;
 (4)  written comments from:
 (A)  the campus-level committee established under
 Section 11.251, if applicable;
 (B)  parents; and
 (C)  teachers at the campus; and
 (5)  a detailed description of the budget, staffing,
 and financial resources required to implement the plan, including
 any supplemental resources to be provided by the school district or
 other identified sources.
 (b)  A campus may submit an accelerated campus excellence
 turnaround plan as provided by this subsection. The plan must
 provide:
 (1)  the assignment of a principal to the campus who has
 demonstrated a history of improvement in student academic growth at
 campuses in which the principal has previously worked;
 (2)  that the principal has final authority over
 personnel decisions at the campus;
 (3)  that at least 80 percent of the classroom teachers
 assigned to the campus be teachers who performed in the top quartile
 of teachers in the district that employed the teacher during the
 previous school year, with performance determined by:
 (A)  for a teacher who taught in the district
 during the previous school year:
 (i)  the teacher's impact on student growth;
 and
 (ii)  an evaluation of the teacher based on
 classroom observation; and
 (B)  for a teacher who did not teach in the
 district during the previous school year, data and other evidence
 indicating that if the teacher had taught in the district during the
 previous school year, the teacher would have performed in the top
 quartile of teachers in the district;
 (4)  a detailed description of the employment and
 compensation structures for the principal and classroom teachers,
 which must include:
 (A)  significant incentives for a high-performing
 principal or teacher to remain at the campus; and
 (B)  a three-year commitment by the district to
 continue incentives for the principal and teachers;
 (5)  policies and procedures for the implementation of
 best practices at the campus, including:
 (A)  data-driven instructional practices;
 (B)  a system of observation of and feedback for
 classroom teachers;
 (C)  positive student culture on the campus;
 (D)  family and community engagement, including
 partnerships with parent and community groups;
 (E)  extended learning opportunities for
 students, which may include service or workforce learning
 opportunities; and
 (F)  providing student services before or after
 the instructional day that improve student performance, which may
 include tutoring, extracurricular activities, counseling services,
 and offering breakfast, lunch, and dinner to all students at the
 campus; and
 (6)  assistance by a third-party provider that is
 approved by the commissioner in the development and implementation
 of the district's plan.
 (c)  The commissioner may provide guidance to districts as
 necessary to implement an accelerated campus excellence turnaround
 plan under Subsection (b).
 SECTION 2.  Section 39A.107, Education Code, is amended by
 adding Subsection (a-3) to read as follows:
 (a-3)  Notwithstanding Subsection (a), the commissioner
 shall approve a campus turnaround plan that the commissioner
 determines meets the requirements for an accelerated campus
 excellence turnaround plan under Section 39A.105(b).
 SECTION 3.  Section 39A.113, Education Code, is amended by
 amending Subsections (a) and (b) and adding Subsection (a-1) to
 read as follows:
 (a)  If the commissioner orders the closure of a campus under
 this subchapter, that campus may be repurposed to serve students at
 that campus location only if the commissioner:
 (1)  finds that the repurposed campus [:
 [(A)] offers a distinctly different academic
 program[;] and:
 (A) [(B)]  serves a majority of grade levels not
 served at the original campus; or [and]
 (B)  is operated under a contract, approved by the
 school district board of trustees, with a nonprofit organization
 exempt from federal taxation under Section 501(c)(3), Internal
 Revenue Code of 1986, that:
 (i)  has a governing board that is
 independent of the district;
 (ii)  has a successful history of operating
 school district campuses or open-enrollment charter schools:
 (a)  that cumulatively serve 10,000 or
 more students; and
 (b)  a majority of which have been
 assigned an overall performance rating of B or higher under Section
 39.054 for the preceding school year; and
 (iii)  has been assigned an overall
 performance rating of B or higher under Section 39.054 for the
 preceding school year; and
 (2)  approves a new campus identification number for
 the repurposed campus.
 (a-1)  A contract described by Subsection (a)(1)(B) must
 provide that a student residing in the attendance zone of the campus
 immediately before the campus was repurposed shall be admitted for
 enrollment at the repurposed campus.
 (b)  The majority of students assigned to a campus that has
 been closed and repurposed under Subsection (a)(1)(A) may not have
 attended that campus in the previous school year.
 SECTION 4.  Subchapter C, Chapter 39A, Education Code, is
 amended by adding Section 39A.116 to read as follows:
 Sec. 39A.116.  COMMISSIONER AUTHORITY. A decision by the
 commissioner under this subchapter is final and may not be
 appealed.
 SECTION 5.  (a) The commissioner of education shall select
 one campus that received an unacceptable rating for the 2017-2018
 school year, regardless of the number of consecutive years the
 campus has received an unacceptable rating, to submit an
 accelerated campus excellence turnaround plan as provided by
 Section 39A.105(b), Education Code, as added by this Act, for the
 2019-2020 school year. The commissioner may adjust timelines
 established under Chapter 39A, Education Code, for the campus
 selected by the commissioner under this section for purposes of
 developing and implementing the accelerated campus excellence
 turnaround plan.
 (b)  Except as provided by Subsection (a) of this section,
 Sections 39A.105 and 39A.107, Education Code, as amended by this
 Act, and Section 39A.116, Education Code, as added by this Act,
 apply beginning with the 2020-2021 school year.
 SECTION 6.  The commissioner of education may adopt rules
 necessary to implement this Act.
 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, 2019.