SB1223 EngrossedLRB100 07839 MLM 17908 b

1    AN ACT concerning education.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5Accelerated Placement Act.
 
6    Section 5. Definitions. As used in this Act:
7    "Accelerated placement" means the placement of a student in
8an educational setting with curriculum that is usually reserved
9for students who are older or in higher grades than the
10student. "Accelerated placement" shall include, but need not be
11limited to, the following types of acceleration: early entrance
12to kindergarten or first grade, accelerating a student in a
13single subject, compacting curriculum, grade acceleration,
14grade telescoping, and early high school graduation.
15    "State Board" means the State Board of Education.
 
16    Section 10. School district responsibilities.
17    (a) Each school district shall have a policy that allows
18for accelerated placement that includes, but need not be
19limited to, the following components:
20        (1) a requirement that participation in accelerated
21    placement is not limited to those students who have been
22    identified as gifted and talented, but rather is open to

 

 

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1    all students who demonstrate high ability and who may
2    benefit from accelerated placement;
3        (2) a transparent process for informing all families
4    residing in the school district about the acceleration
5    policy;
6        (3) a process for referral that ensures the fair,
7    objective, and systematic evaluation of referred students
8    and allows for multiple referrers, including a student's
9    parents or legal guardians; other referrers may include a
10    teacher, an administrator, a gifted education specialist,
11    a guidance counselor, a school psychologist, the student
12    himself or herself with the written consent of a parent or
13    legal guardian, a peer through a district staff member who
14    has knowledge of the referred child's abilities, or, in the
15    case of possible early entrance, a preschool educator,
16    pediatrician, or psychologist who knows the child;
17        (4) an assessment process that includes multiple
18    valid, reliable indicators;
19        (5) a reasonable and transparent timeline for
20    evaluation for possible accelerated placement;
21        (6) a decision-making process for accelerated
22    placement that involves multiple persons, including a
23    student's parents or legal guardians, rather than a sole
24    decision-maker; other individuals involved in the
25    decision-making process may include a superintendent's
26    designee, principal or assistant principal from the

 

 

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1    child's current school, current teacher of the referred
2    student, teacher at the grade level from the school to
3    which the student may be accelerated, principal or
4    assistant principal from the child's future school, gifted
5    education specialist, gifted intervention specialist,
6    school psychologist, or guidance counselor;
7        (7) a reasonable and transparent timeline for
8    notifying parents and students about the results of an
9    accelerated placement evaluation;
10        (8) an appeals process for decisions related to
11    accelerated placement;
12        (9) a requirement that accelerated students and their
13    parents or legal guardians be provided a written plan, a
14    copy of which will be kept in the student's cumulative
15    file, which shall include the type of acceleration the
16    student will undergo and strategies to support a successful
17    transition;
18        (10) an appropriate transition period for accelerated
19    placement; and
20        (11) a process for a parent or legal guardian of a
21    student to withdraw the student from accelerated placement
22    or request a revision of the accelerated placement.
23    (b) Each school district shall report to the State Board
24the following data annually:
25        (1) the number of students evaluated for accelerated
26    placement, disaggregated by race and income status;

 

 

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1        (2) the number of students who qualified for
2    accelerated placement, disaggregated by race and income
3    status;
4        (3) the number of students evaluated for accelerated
5    placement by type of accelerated placement; and
6        (4) the number of students who qualified for
7    accelerated placement by type of accelerated placement.
 
8    Section 15. State Board Responsibilities.
9    (a) The State Board shall publish a report annually that
10includes:
11        (1) the number of students evaluated for accelerated
12    placement for each school district, disaggregated by race
13    and income status;
14        (2) the number of students who qualified for
15    accelerated placement for each school district,
16    disaggregated by race and income status;
17        (3) the number of students evaluated for accelerated
18    placement by type of accelerated placement for each school
19    district; and
20        (4) the number of students who qualified for
21    accelerated placement by type of accelerated placement for
22    each school district.
23    (b) The State Board shall develop and disseminate guidance
24to school districts regarding State testing for accelerated
25students before January 1, 2018.
 

 

 

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1    Section 20. Rules. The State Board may adopt rules to
2implement this Act.
 
3    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
4becoming law.