Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB880 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R3419 MLH-F
2	2	By: Lucio S.B. No. 880
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to authorizing a dropout recovery competency-based
8	8	educational pilot program provided through a campus or campus
9	9	program charter or open-enrollment charter school.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Chapter 12, Education Code, is amended by adding
12	12	Subchapter F to read as follows:
13	13	SUBCHAPTER F. DROPOUT RECOVERY COMPETENCY-BASED EDUCATIONAL
14	14	PILOT PROGRAM
15	15	Sec. 12.201. DEFINITION. In this subchapter, "program"
16	16	means a dropout recovery competency-based educational pilot
17	17	program authorized under this subchapter.
18	18	Sec. 12.202. PROGRAM AUTHORIZATION. (a) For the purpose of
19	19	offering during the 2022-2023 school year a dropout recovery
20	20	competency-based educational pilot program to serve eligible
21	21	students described by Section 12.203, the commissioner, subject to
22	22	Subsection (b), may:
23	23	(1) on the basis of an application submitted, grant a
24	24	charter to an eligible entity for an open-enrollment charter school
25	25	under Subchapter D to provide the program;
26	26	(2) authorize an open-enrollment charter school to
27	27	provide the program; or
28	28	(3) authorize a campus or campus program that has been
29	29	granted a charter under Subchapter C to provide the program.
30	30	(b) To qualify for authorization under this subchapter, a
31	31	program must:
32	32	(1) serve students in grades 9 through 12 and have an
33	33	enrollment of which at least 50 percent of the students are 17 years
34	34	of age or older as of September 1 of the school year as reported for
35	35	the fall semester Public Education Information Management System
36	36	(PEIMS) submission; and
37	37	(2) meet the eligibility requirements for and register
38	38	under alternative education accountability procedures adopted by
39	39	the commissioner.
40	40	Sec. 12.203. ELIGIBLE STUDENT. A student is eligible to
41	41	enroll in a program offered under this subchapter if the student is
42	42	at least 14 years of age and under 26 years of age on September 1 of
43	43	the school year and meets one or more of the following criteria:
44	44	(1) the student was reported through the Public
45	45	Education Information Management System (PEIMS) or in another state
46	46	to have dropped out of school, including a student who has
47	47	previously dropped out of school;
48	48	(2) the student is a student at risk of dropping out of
49	49	school under the circumstances described by Section
50	50	29.081(d)(1)(A), (B), (C), (E), or (J);
51	51	(3) the student has been placed in a disciplinary
52	52	alternative education program under Section 37.006 during the
53	53	previous or current school year based on the Public Education
54	54	Information Management System (PEIMS) submissions or other
55	55	supporting documentation;
56	56	(4) the student has been expelled under Section 37.007
57	57	during the previous four school years or the current school year;
58	58	(5) the student is currently on parole, probation,
59	59	deferred prosecution, deferred adjudication, or other conditional
60	60	release;
61	61	(6) the student is currently in the custody or care of
62	62	the Department of Family and Protective Services or has been
63	63	referred to the department during the previous or current school
64	64	year by a school official, officer of a juvenile court, or law
65	65	enforcement official;
66	66	(7) the student has been previously or is currently
67	67	homeless as defined by 42 U.S.C. Section 11302 or within the meaning
68	68	of the term "homeless children and youths" under 42 U.S.C. Section
69	69	11434a, as applicable;
70	70	(8) the student resided at any time or currently
71	71	resides in a residential care facility, including a detention
72	72	facility, substance abuse treatment facility, emergency shelter,
73	73	psychiatric hospital, halfway house, cottage home operation,
74	74	specialized child-care home, or general residential operation;
75	75	(9) the student is employed and working for pay at
76	76	least 15 hours or more each week to provide individual support or to
77	77	support the student's family;
78	78	(10) the student is ordered by a court to attend a high
79	79	school equivalency certificate program but has not yet earned the
80	80	certificate or a high school diploma;
81	81	(11) the student has previously been placed on a
82	82	personal graduation plan under Section 28.0212 or an intensive
83	83	program of instruction under Section 28.0213; or
84	84	(12) the student or the parent of or person standing in
85	85	parental relation to the student certifies to the school that the
86	86	student would benefit from the program to otherwise avoid dropping
87	87	out of school due to extenuating family circumstances or
88	88	responsibilities, including to provide medical or caregiving
89	89	services to a family member or to provide individual support or to
90	90	support the student's family.
91	91	Sec. 12.204. ELIGIBILITY FOR DIPLOMA. (a) A student
92	92	enrolled in a program under this subchapter may earn high school
93	93	course credits and receive a high school diploma if the student
94	94	successfully completes the curriculum requirements described under
95	95	Section 28.025.
96	96	(b) The commissioner by rule shall establish the
97	97	requirements to demonstrate satisfactory completion of the
98	98	program, including:
99	99	(1) successful completion of coursework to satisfy
100	100	curriculum requirements under the program; and
101	101	(2) successful performance on an examination under
102	102	Section 28.023 to demonstrate mastery of the curriculum.
103	103	Sec. 12.205. OPERATION OF PROGRAM. (a) An entity
104	104	authorized to operate a program under this subchapter shall create
105	105	an educational calendar and class schedule for the program's
106	106	operation that provides for flexibility in class scheduling and
107	107	student attendance. The commissioner shall approve reasonable
108	108	exceptions to accommodate program scheduling and achieve the
109	109	program's purpose.
110	110	(b) An entity authorized to operate a program under this
111	111	subchapter shall have an audit of the operations of the program,
112	112	including the financial operations, conducted at the entity's
113	113	expense. The audit must be conducted by an independent certified
114	114	public accountant.
115	115	(c) For purposes of conducting an audit under this section,
116	116	the commissioner by rule shall establish requirements for verifying
117	117	course credits earned by program students.
118	118	Sec. 12.206. ACCOUNTABILITY. A program under this
119	119	subchapter shall be evaluated under Section 39.0548 and as provided
120	120	by commissioner rule.
121	121	Sec. 12.207. FUNDING. (a) An entity authorized to operate
122	122	a program under this subchapter is entitled to receive full state
123	123	funding as provided by Section 12.106, provided that, for purposes
124	124	of this subchapter, the commissioner shall by rule determine a
125	125	method to calculate average daily attendance based on:
126	126	(1) a student's successful completion of a number of
127	127	courses as determined by commissioner rule; and
128	128	(2) a student's hours of contact time with the school.
129	129	(b) The method under Subsection (a) must provide for a
130	130	proportionate reduction in funding if a student fails to
131	131	successfully complete the number of courses determined under
132	132	Subsection (a)(1).
133	133	(c) An entity authorized to operate a program under this
134	134	subchapter may receive additional funds appropriated by the
135	135	legislature for:
136	136	(1) an intensive program of instruction to the same
137	137	extent as a program under Section 28.0213; or
138	138	(2) accelerated instruction to the same extent as a
139	139	program under Section 28.0217.
140	140	Sec. 12.208. PROGRAM REPORTING SYSTEM. (a) The
141	141	commissioner by rule shall develop:
142	142	(1) a system for each entity authorized to operate a
143	143	program under this subchapter to report information relating to the
144	144	program as directed by the commissioner; and
145	145	(2) to the extent practicable, a monthly funding
146	146	schedule.
147	147	(b) Before developing the system and schedule under
148	148	Subsection (a) and in an effort to best serve the interests and
149	149	needs of eligible students under this subchapter, the commissioner
150	150	shall solicit input from approved charter schools that currently
151	151	operate dropout recovery programs.
152	152	Sec. 12.209. RULES; WAIVERS. (a) The commissioner shall
153	153	adopt rules necessary to implement and administer this subchapter.
154	154	(b) The commissioner may waive any requirement under this
155	155	code to facilitate the purposes of this subchapter.
156	156	Sec. 12.210. REPORT. Not later than December 1, 2023, the
157	157	commissioner shall submit to the legislature a report that:
158	158	(1) evaluates the implementation of this subchapter;
159	159	and
160	160	(2) makes recommendations regarding any legislative
161	161	or other action.
162	162	Sec. 12.211. EXPIRATION. This subchapter expires December
163	163	1, 2023.
164	164	SECTION 2. Section 29.081(d), Education Code, as amended by
165	165	Chapters 403 (S.B. 1746), 597 (S.B. 668), and 1060 (H.B. 1051), Acts
166	166	of the 86th Legislature, Regular Session, 2019, is reenacted and
167	167	amended to read as follows:
168	168	(d) For purposes of this section, "student at risk of
169	169	dropping out of school" includes each student who:
170	170	(1) is under 26 years of age and who:
171	171	(A) was not advanced from one grade level to the
172	172	next for one or more school years;
173	173	(B) if the student is in grade 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, or
174	174	12, did not maintain an average equivalent to 70 on a scale of 100 in
175	175	two or more subjects in the foundation curriculum during a semester
176	176	in the preceding or current school year or is not maintaining such
177	177	an average in two or more subjects in the foundation curriculum in
178	178	the current semester;
179	179	(C) did not perform satisfactorily on an
180	180	assessment instrument administered to the student under Subchapter
181	181	B, Chapter 39, and who has not in the previous or current school
182	182	year subsequently performed on that instrument or another
183	183	appropriate instrument at a level equal to at least 110 percent of
184	184	the level of satisfactory performance on that instrument;
185	185	(D) if the student is in prekindergarten,
186	186	kindergarten, or grade 1, 2, or 3, did not perform satisfactorily on
187	187	a readiness test or assessment instrument administered during the
188	188	current school year;
189	189	(E) is pregnant or is a parent;
190	190	(F) has been placed in an alternative education
191	191	program in accordance with Section 37.006 during the preceding or
192	192	current school year;
193	193	(G) has been expelled in accordance with Section
194	194	37.007 during the preceding or current school year;
195	195	(H) is currently on parole, probation, deferred
196	196	prosecution, or other conditional release;
197	197	(I) was previously reported through the Public
198	198	Education Information Management System (PEIMS) to have dropped out
199	199	of school;
200	200	(J) is a student of limited English proficiency,
201	201	as defined by Section 29.052;
202	202	(K) is in the custody or care of the Department of
203	203	Family and Protective Services or has, during the current school
204	204	year, been referred to the department by a school official, officer
205	205	of the juvenile court, or law enforcement official;
206	206	(L) is homeless;
207	207	(M) resided in the preceding school year or
208	208	resides in the current school year in a residential placement
209	209	facility in the district, including a detention facility, substance
210	210	abuse treatment facility, emergency shelter, psychiatric hospital,
211	211	halfway house, cottage home operation, specialized child-care
212	212	home, or general residential operation; or
213	213	(N) [(14)] has been incarcerated or has a parent
214	214	or guardian who has been incarcerated, within the lifetime of the
215	215	student, in a penal institution as defined by Section 1.07, Penal
216	216	Code; or
217	217	(2) regardless of the student's age, participates in
218	218	an adult education program provided under a high school diploma and
219	219	industry certification charter school program under Section
220	220	29.259.
221	221	SECTION 3. This Act applies beginning with the 2022-2023
222	222	school year.
223	223	SECTION 4. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
224	224	over another Act of the 87th Legislature, Regular Session, 2021,
225	225	relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
226	226	codes.
227	227	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.