Text: SF00347 Text: SF00349 Text: SF00300 - SF00399 Text: SF Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
PAG LIN 1 1 Section 1. Section 256.39, Code 1999, is amended by 1 2 striking the section and inserting in lieu thereof the 1 3 following: 1 4 256.39 CAREER PATHWAYS PROGRAM GRANT ACTIVITIES 1 5 REPORTING. 1 6 1. The department shall develop and establish a career 1 7 pathways grant program, criteria for the formation of ongoing 1 8 career pathways consortia in each merged area, and guidelines 1 9 and a process to be used in selecting career pathways 1 10 consortium grant recipients, including a requirement that 1 11 grant recipients provide matching funds or match grant funds 1 12 with in-kind resources on a dollar-for-dollar basis. The 1 13 grant program developed and established by the department 1 14 shall also include the following components: 1 15 a. An existing partnership or organization, including a 1 16 regional school-to-work partnership, that meets the 1 17 established criteria, may be considered a consortium for grant 1 18 application purposes. One or more school districts may be 1 19 considered a consortium for grant application purposes, 1 20 provided a district can demonstrate the manner in which a 1 21 community college, area education agency, representatives from 1 22 business and labor organizations, and others as determined 1 23 within the region will be involved. Existing school-to-work 1 24 partnerships are encouraged to assist the local consortia in 1 25 developing a plan and budget. The department shall provide 1 26 assistance to consortia in planning and implementing career 1 27 pathways program efforts in assessment, and career guidance 1 28 and exploration for students. 1 29 b. A career pathways program may include, but is not 1 30 limited to, the following: 1 31 (1) Career guidance and exploration for students. 1 32 (2) Involvement and recognition of business, labor, and 1 33 community organizations as partners in the career pathways 1 34 program. 1 35 (3) Provision for program accountability. 2 1 (4) Encouragement of team teaching within the school or in 2 2 partnership with postsecondary schools, and business, labor, 2 3 community, and nonprofit organizations. 2 4 (5) Service learning opportunities for students. 2 5 c. Business, labor, and community organizations are 2 6 encouraged to market the career pathways program established 2 7 in accordance with this subsection to the local community and 2 8 provide students with mentors, shadow professionals, speakers, 2 9 field trip sites, summer jobs, internships, and job offers for 2 10 students who graduate with high performance records. Students 2 11 are encouraged to volunteer their time to community 2 12 organizations in exchange for workplace learning opportunities 2 13 that do not displace current employees. 2 14 d. In developing career pathways program efforts, each 2 15 consortium shall make every effort to cooperate with the 2 16 juvenile courts, the department of economic development, the 2 17 department of workforce development, the department of human 2 18 services, and the new Iowa schools development corporation. 2 19 e. The department shall direct and monitor the progress of 2 20 each career pathways consortium in developing career pathways 2 21 programs established in accordance with this subsection. 2 22 f. A career pathways program is a comprehensive school 2 23 transformation program under section 294A.14. 2 24 2. The department shall provide technical and professional 2 25 advice upon request to school districts and accredited 2 26 nonpublic schools that wish to implement career pathways 2 27 activities and measures to improve the employability skills of 2 28 their students. The activities and measures shall include, 2 29 but are not limited to, the following: 2 30 a. Measurement of the employability skills of students in 2 31 grades nine or ten and twelve. Employability skills shall 2 32 include, but are not limited to, reading for information, 2 33 applied mathematics, listening, and writing. Employability 2 34 skills assessments shall be considered an assessment measure 2 35 for purposes of section 256.7, subsection 21, paragraph "c". 3 1 b. Curricula designed to integrate academic and work-based 3 2 learning to achieve high employability skills by all students 3 3 related to career pathways. The curricula shall be designed 3 4 through the cooperative efforts of secondary and postsecondary 3 5 education professionals, business professionals, and community 3 6 services professionals. 3 7 c. Staff development to implement a high-standard 3 8 curriculum. These efforts may include team teaching 3 9 techniques that utilize expertise from partnership businesses 3 10 and postsecondary institutions. 3 11 3. A school district or accredited nonpublic school that 3 12 adopts and administers employability skills assessment tools 3 13 as provided in this section or section 256.39A, shall develop 3 14 and integrate specific career pathways goals and activities 3 15 into the comprehensive school improvement plan required under 3 16 section 256.7, subsection 21, paragraph "a". 3 17 4. Biennially, on or about January 15, the department 3 18 shall submit to the general assembly a summary of the 3 19 activities and results of the implementation of career 3 20 pathways efforts, especially school district and accredited 3 21 nonpublic school progress on the use of employability skills 3 22 assessments. 3 23 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION. 256.39A CAREER PATHWAYS 3 24 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS ASSESSMENTS PAYMENT OF SCHOOL DISTRICT 3 25 CLAIMS APPROPRIATIONS. 3 26 1. The director of the department of education shall 3 27 identify appropriate employability skills assessment tools 3 28 that school districts shall use to meet the requirements of 3 29 section 256.39, subsection 3, and the claim reimbursement 3 30 requirements of this section. 3 31 2. A school district may submit a claim on forms provided 3 32 by the department for reimbursement. A claim submitted to the 3 33 department shall state the actual costs incurred and shall be 3 34 accompanied by an affidavit of an officer of the public school 3 35 district affirming the accuracy of the claim. 4 1 3. Employability skills assessment tools adopted and 4 2 purchased by a school district may, and shall to the extent 4 3 funds are appropriated to the department by the general 4 4 assembly for the payment of claims under this section, be made 4 5 available to students attending accredited nonpublic schools 4 6 upon request of the student or the student's parent under 4 7 comparable terms available to students attending public 4 8 schools. However, the assessment tools must be comparable to 4 9 the assessment tools of the district of attendance and cannot 4 10 exceed the per pupil cost of the assessment tools of the 4 11 district of attendance. A claim submitted under this section 4 12 that includes costs for providing accredited nonpublic school 4 13 pupils with employability skills assessment tools shall state 4 14 the actual number of nonpublic students requesting the 4 15 provision of employability skills assessment tools. 4 16 4. For each year in which an appropriation is made for the 4 17 purposes described in this section, the department of 4 18 education shall certify to the department of revenue and 4 19 finance, by February 1 and on or about June 15, the amounts of 4 20 approved claims to be paid, and the department of revenue and 4 21 finance shall draw warrants payable to school districts with 4 22 approved claims, taking into consideration the relative budget 4 23 and cash position of the state resources. 4 24 5. Moneys received under this section shall not be 4 25 commingled with state aid payments made under section 257.16 4 26 to a school district and shall be accounted for by the school 4 27 district separately from state aid payments. Payments made to 4 28 a school district under this section are miscellaneous income 4 29 for purposes of chapter 257. 4 30 6. There is appropriated from the general fund of the 4 31 state to the department of education, for purposes of 4 32 reimbursing school districts for the costs of acquiring, 4 33 using, and making available to nonpublic schools employability 4 34 skills assessment tools in accordance with this section, the 4 35 following amounts for the following fiscal years: 5 1 a. For the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1999, and ending 5 2 June 30, 2000, the amount of seven hundred fifty thousand 5 3 dollars. 5 4 b. For the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2000, and ending 5 5 June 30, 2001, the amount of one million six hundred thousand 5 6 dollars. 5 7 7. If the director of the department of education 5 8 determines that the moneys appropriated by the general 5 9 assembly for payment of claims to reimburse school districts 5 10 for the costs of acquiring and administering employability 5 11 skills assessment tools in grades nine or ten and twelve are 5 12 insufficient to pay in full all claims submitted and approved 5 13 in accordance with this section, the amounts of approved 5 14 claims to be paid shall be prorated among all school districts 5 15 with approved claims. If a school district is providing 5 16 employability skills assessments to accredited nonpublic 5 17 school pupils as provided in subsection 2, any difference 5 18 between the amount of the claim of a school district for the 5 19 cost of providing employability skills assessments to 5 20 accredited nonpublic school pupils and the amount of payment 5 21 received from the department of education, shall be paid by 5 22 the parent or guardian of the nonpublic school pupil served. 5 23 8. A school district and, an accredited nonpublic school 5 24 if its pupils are provided with employability skills 5 25 assessment tools under the provisions of this section, shall 5 26 meet the requirements in section 256.39, subsection 2. 5 27 Sec. 3. FISCAL YEAR 1999-2000 EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS 5 28 ASSESSMENT REQUIREMENTS. Notwithstanding section 256.39A, for 5 29 the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1999, and ending June 30, 5 30 2000, the department of education shall reimburse only the 5 31 claims submitted for reimbursement of a school district's 5 32 costs of acquiring, using, and making available to accredited 5 33 nonpublic schools employability skills assessment tools for 5 34 students enrolled in grade twelve. If moneys appropriated for 5 35 purposes of claims reimbursement for fiscal year 1999-2000 are 6 1 insufficient to pay the claims received in full, the 6 2 provisions of section 256.39A, subsection 6, shall apply. 6 3 EXPLANATION 6 4 This bill strikes the current Code section creating the 6 5 career pathways program, and replaces it with a section that 6 6 retains much of the current language, but adds provisions 6 7 relating to employability skills assessments. 6 8 The bill also establishes a procedure by which school 6 9 districts may submit a claim to the department of education 6 10 for reimbursement of the costs of acquiring and using 6 11 employability skills assessment tools for grades nine or 10 6 12 and 12, and appropriates $750,000 for FY 1999-2000, and $1.6 6 13 million for FY 2000-2001 for that purpose. 6 14 Under the bill, a school district that adopts and purchases 6 15 employability skills assessment tools may, and shall to the 6 16 extent funds are appropriated to the department of education 6 17 by the general assembly for the payment of claims, be made 6 18 available to pupils attending accredited nonpublic schools 6 19 upon request of the pupil or the pupil's parent under 6 20 comparable terms available to pupils attending public schools. 6 21 The bill requires the department to provide technical and 6 22 professional advice upon request to school districts and 6 23 accredited nonpublic schools that wish to implement career 6 24 pathways activities and measures to improve the employability 6 25 skills of their students. The activities and measures include 6 26 measurement of the employability skills of students in grades 6 27 nine or 10 and 12, curricula designed to integrate academic 6 28 and work-based learning to achieve high employability skills 6 29 by all students related to career pathways, and staff 6 30 development to implement a high-standard curriculum. 6 31 The bill requires a school district or accredited nonpublic 6 32 school that adopts and administers employability skills 6 33 assessment tools to develop and integrate specific career 6 34 pathways goals and activities into the comprehensive school 6 35 improvement plan that the district or school is required under 7 1 Code section 256.7 to submit annually to the department. 7 2 The department is directed to biennially submit to the 7 3 general assembly a summary of the activities and results of 7 4 the implementation of career pathways efforts, especially 7 5 school district and accredited nonpublic school progress on 7 6 the use of employability skills assessments. 7 7 The department is also required under the bill to identify 7 8 appropriate employability skills assessment tools that school 7 9 districts must use in order to qualify for a reimbursement. 7 10 If the appropriation is insufficient to pay in full the claims 7 11 submitted, the bill provides that school districts will 7 12 receive a prorated reimbursement amount. If a district is 7 13 providing employability skills assessment tools to accredited 7 14 nonpublic school pupils, parents, or guardians of those pupils 7 15 are required to pay the difference between the cost of 7 16 providing the employability skills assessment tools to their 7 17 children and the amount reimbursed to the district by the 7 18 department of education. 7 19 For fiscal year 1999-2000 only, the bill provides that only 7 20 the claims for the costs of acquiring and using employability 7 21 skills assessment tools at the 12th grade level will be 7 22 reimbursed, and the reimbursement amount will be prorated if 7 23 the appropriation made by the general assembly is insufficient 7 24 to pay in full the claims received. 7 25 LSB 2274XS 78 7 26 kh/cf/24.3
Text: SF00347 Text: SF00349 Text: SF00300 - SF00399 Text: SF Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
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