SB2793 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB098 17391 NHT 52489 b

98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2013 and 2014
SB2793

Introduced 1/30/2014, by Sen. Toi W. Hutchinson

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

105 ILCS 5/10-17a

from Ch. 122, par. 10-17a

Amends the School Code. As part of the annual school report card, requires every school to provide (i) data on the issuance of out-of-school suspensions, expulsions, and removals to alternative settings, disaggregated by race and ethnicity, gender, age, grade level, limited English proficiency status, length of exclusion, reason for exclusion, and whether alternative educational options were provided; (ii) data on the use of arrests or criminal citations, disaggregated by race and ethnicity, gender, age, grade level, disability status, limited English proficiency status, and alleged criminal offense; and (iii) data on student retention during and between academic years, disaggregated by race and ethnicity, gender, age, grade level, disability status, limited English proficiency status, and the reason for the student's departure. Sets forth requirements and exemptions concerning the data, including requiring the State Board of Education to analyze the data on an annual basis and determine the top quartile of school districts for specified metrics. Requires certain districts identified by the State Board to submit a school discipline improvement plan identifying the strategies it will implement to reduce the use of harsh disciplinary practices or reduce the disproportionality evident in its disciplinary practices; sets forth other requirements.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

STATE MANDATES ACT MAY REQUIRE REIMBURSEMENT

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning education.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section 10-17a as follows:

(105 ILCS 5/10-17a) (from Ch. 122, par. 10-17a)

Sec. 10-17a. State, school district, and school report cards.

(1) By October 31, 2013 and October 31 of each subsequent school year, the State Board of Education, through the State Superintendent of Education, shall prepare a State report card, school district report cards, and school report cards, and shall by the most economic means provide to each school district in this State, including special charter districts and districts subject to the provisions of Article 34, the report cards for the school district and each of its schools.

(2) In addition to any information required by federal law, the State Superintendent shall determine the indicators and presentation of the school report card, which must include, at a minimum, the most current data possessed by the State Board of Education related to the following:

(A) school characteristics and student demographics, including average class size, average teaching experience, student racial/ethnic breakdown, and the percentage of students classified as low-income; the percentage of students classified as limited English proficiency; the percentage of students who have individualized education plans or 504 plans that provide for special education services; the percentage of students who annually transferred in or out of the school district; the per-pupil operating expenditure of the school district; and the per-pupil State average operating expenditure for the district type (elementary, high school, or unit);

(B) curriculum information, including, where applicable, Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate or equivalent courses, dual enrollment courses, foreign language classes, school personnel resources (including Career Technical Education teachers), before and after school programs, extracurricular activities, subjects in which elective classes are offered, health and wellness initiatives (including the average number of days of Physical Education per week per student), approved programs of study, awards received, community partnerships, and special programs such as programming for the gifted and talented, students with disabilities, and work-study students;

(C) student outcomes, including, where applicable, the percentage of students meeting as well as exceeding State standards on assessments, the percentage of students in the eighth grade who pass Algebra, the percentage of students enrolled in post-secondary institutions (including colleges, universities, community colleges, trade/vocational schools, and training programs leading to career certification within 2 semesters of high school graduation), the percentage of students graduating from high school who are college ready, the percentage of students graduating from high school who are career ready, and the percentage of graduates enrolled in community colleges, colleges, and universities who are in one or more courses that the community college, college, or university identifies as a remedial course;

(D) student progress, including, where applicable, the percentage of students in the ninth grade who have earned 5 credits or more without failing more than one core class, a measure of students entering kindergarten ready to learn, a measure of growth, and the percentage of students who enter high school on track for college and career readiness; and

(E) the school environment, including, where applicable, the percentage of students with less than 10 absences in a school year, the percentage of teachers with less than 10 absences in a school year for reasons other than professional development, leaves taken pursuant to the federal Family Medical Leave Act of 1993, long-term disability, or parental leaves, the 3-year average of the percentage of teachers returning to the school from the previous year, the number of different principals at the school in the last 6 years, 2 or more indicators from any school climate survey developed by the State and administered pursuant to Section 2-3.153 of this Code, and the combined percentage of teachers rated as proficient or excellent in their most recent evaluation.

The school report card shall also provide information that allows for comparing the current outcome, progress, and environment data to the State average, to the school data from the past 5 years, and to the outcomes, progress, and environment of similar schools based on the type of school and enrollment of low-income, special education, and limited English proficiency students.

(3) At the discretion of the State Superintendent, the school district report card shall include a subset of the information identified in paragraphs (A) through (E) of subsection (2) of this Section, as well as information relating to the operating expense per pupil and other finances of the school district, and the State report card shall include a subset of the information identified in paragraphs (A) through (E) of subsection (2) of this Section.

(3.5) As part of the annual school report card, every school shall provide the following:

(A) data on the issuance of out-of-school suspensions, expulsions, and removals to alternative settings, disaggregated by race and ethnicity, gender, age, grade level, limited English proficiency status, length of exclusion, reason for exclusion, and whether alternative educational options were provided;

(B) data on the use of arrests or criminal citations, disaggregated by race and ethnicity, gender, age, grade level, disability status, limited English proficiency status, and alleged criminal offense; and

(C) data on student retention during and between academic years, disaggregated by race and ethnicity, gender, age, grade level, disability status, limited English proficiency status, and the reason for the student's departure. The disaggregation of this data must allow for cross tabulation. In school districts in which the number of students in category (A), (B), or (C) of this subsection (3.5) is so small that to publish data for the category would serve to identify the individual student or students involved, a school district is exempt from data publishing requirements for that category. However, the school district is still required to collect all the data required in categories (A) through (C) of this subsection (3.5).

The State Board of Education shall analyze the data provided under this subsection (3.5) on an annual basis and determine the top quartile of school districts for both of the following metrics:

(i) Total number of instructional days on which students were excluded, divided by the total student population.

(ii) Total number of student arrests or criminal citations, divided by the total student population. The State Board of Education shall also determine the top quartile of school districts for racial disproportionality in these 2 metrics. Each of the school districts identified in one or more of these quartiles shall be required to submit a school discipline improvement plan identifying the strategies it will implement to reduce the use of harsh disciplinary practices or reduce the disproportionality evident in its disciplinary practices. The State Board of Education shall provide the districts so identified with technical assistance in adopting alternative disciplinary policies and practices. Within 12 months after being identified, each district shall provide the State Board of Education with a progress report describing the implementation of the school discipline improvement plan and the results achieved.

(4) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Section, in consultation with key education stakeholders, the State Superintendent shall at any time have the discretion to amend or update any and all metrics on the school, district, or State report card.

(5) Annually, no more than 30 calendar days after receipt of the school district and school report cards from the State Superintendent of Education, each school district, including special charter districts and districts subject to the provisions of Article 34, shall present such report cards at a regular school board meeting subject to applicable notice requirements, post the report cards on the school district's Internet web site, if the district maintains an Internet web site, make the report cards available to a newspaper of general circulation serving the district, and, upon request, send the report cards home to a parent (unless the district does not maintain an Internet web site, in which case the report card shall be sent home to parents without request). If the district posts the report card on its Internet web site, the district shall send a written notice home to parents stating (i) that the report card is available on the web site, (ii) the address of the web site, (iii) that a printed copy of the report card will be sent to parents upon request, and (iv) the telephone number that parents may call to request a printed copy of the report card.

(Source: P.A. 97-671, eff. 1-24-12; 98-463, eff. 8-16-13.)