SENATE FILE 170

BY  McKINLEY

A BILL FOR

An Act establishing a deregulated schools pilot program for certain public and nonpublic schools.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

   Section 1.  NEW SECTION.  256F.12  Deregulated schools pilot program.
   1.  Program established.  A deregulated schools pilot program is established to provide public and nonpublic schools with greater flexibility. By January 1, 2012, the department shall select not more than six public school pilot project proposals and not more than six nonpublic school pilot project proposals submitted in accordance with subsection 3. School districts and nonpublic schools selected to implement pilot projects pursuant to this section may continue the projects through the 2016-2017 school year.
   2.  Program purposes.  The purposes of the deregulated schools pilot program shall be to accomplish the following:
   a.  Improve student learning.
   b.  Increase learning opportunities for all students, with special emphasis on expanded learning experiences for students identified as academically low-achieving.
   c.  Encourage different and innovative methods to address various learning styles.
   d.  Encourage different and innovative methods of teaching.
   e.  Increase choice of learning opportunities for children.
   f.  Establish a new form of accountability for schools.
   g.  Create innovative measurement tools for measuring learning outcomes.
   h.  Make the school the unit for improvement.
   i.  Relieve schools of paperwork and procedures that are otherwise required by the state, except those required for purposes of health, safety, fiscal accountability, and documentation of student achievement.
   3.  Project proposal —— elements.  
   a.  The board of directors of a school district and the authorities in charge of a nonpublic school may submit a proposal for a deregulated school to the department not later than October 1, 2011. The department may provide technical assistance to a pilot project applicant upon written request. The terms and conditions for the operation of a deregulated school shall be set forth in the proposal.
   b.  The proposal shall address, and criteria for approval of the proposal shall be based on, the following:
   (1)  The school’s budget in detail.
   (2)  The methods by which academic achievement will be measured.
   (3)  The measures that will be used to assure that at least ninety-five percent of the students enrolled in the school will demonstrate a minimum of one year of academic growth for each year of instruction.
   (4)  Assurance that the deregulated school shall, at a minimum, administer the Iowa test of basic skills and the Iowa tests of educational development in the manner and frequency used by the majority of school districts in this state.
   (5)  The method to be used for resolving conflicts between the school and the school district or the authorities in charge of the school, as appropriate.
   (6)  The admissions procedures and dismissal procedures to be employed, including the school’s code of student conduct.
   (7)  The ways by which the school’s racial and ethnic balance reflects the community it serves or reflects the racial and ethnic range of other schools located within the boundaries of the school district in which the school is located.
   (8)  The proposed financial and administrative management of the school including a statement of the areas in which the school will have administrative and fiscal autonomy and, in the case of a deregulated public school, the areas in which the school will follow district school board fiscal and administrative policies.
   (9)  The manner in which the school will be insured, the amounts of coverage, whether the school will be required to have liability insurance and, if so, the terms and conditions of the liability insurance.
   (10)  The qualifications to be required of the teachers.
   c.  The proposal shall be innovative but consistent with the educational goals adopted by the state board pursuant to section 256.7, subsection 4.
   4.  Eligible students.  A deregulated school shall be open to all students residing in the school district’s boundaries or within the nonpublic school’s attendance boundaries. The deregulated school shall have maximum flexibility to enroll students.
   5.  Requirements.  A deregulated public school shall be free of tuition or fees, except those fees normally charged by other public schools. Any deregulated school shall meet all applicable state and local health and safety requirements.
   6.  Discrimination prohibited.  A deregulated school shall not discriminate in its student admissions policies or practices on the basis of a student’s intellectual or athletic ability, measures of achievement or aptitude, or status as a person with a disability. However, a deregulated school may limit admission to students who are within a particular range of ages or grade levels or on any other basis that would be legal if initiated by a school district.
   7.  Reports.  
   a.  The deregulated school shall make an annual progress report to the school district or the authorities in charge of the school, as appropriate, and to the department by a date specified by the department. The report shall contain at least the following information:
   (1)  The school’s progress toward achieving the goals outlined in its pilot project proposal.
   (2)  The information school districts and accredited nonpublic schools are required to submit pursuant to section 256.7, subsection 21, paragraph “c”.
   (3)  Financial records of the school, including revenues and expenditures.
   (4)  Salary and benefit levels of school employees.
   b.  Upon receipt of the annual progress reports submitted pursuant to paragraph “a”, the department shall provide the general assembly with a copy of each report and an analysis and comparison of the overall performance of students, including a comparison of the Iowa test of basic skills and Iowa tests of educational development results for all students in deregulated schools with the results for all public school students enrolled in the same grade levels in the school district in which the deregulated school is located.
   8.  Applicability of statutes.  
   a.  A deregulated school shall operate in accordance with its pilot project proposal and shall be exempt from statutes and administrative rules otherwise applicable to school districts and accredited nonpublic schools, except those statutes and rules relating to student health, safety, and welfare, or as otherwise required by this section.
   b.  A deregulated public school shall be subject to the following:
   (1)  The open meetings and open records requirements of chapters 21 and 22.
   (2)  The same financial audits, audit procedures, and audit requirements as a school district consistent with the requirements of sections 11.6, 11.14, 11.19, 256.9, subsection 19, and section 279.29.
   (3)  The initial background investigation requirements set forth in section 279.13, subsection 1, paragraph “b”.
   9.  Funding.  The cost of educating students enrolled in a deregulated public school shall be paid in the same manner as for students enrolled in school districts as provided in section 273.9, and chapters 256B and 257.
   10.  Length of school year.  A deregulated school shall provide instruction for at least the number of days required by section 279.10, or the equivalent number of hours, and may provide instruction for a number of days in addition to that required in section 279.10.
   11.  Facilities.  A deregulated school shall utilize facilities that comply with the state building code adopted pursuant to section 103A.7 and with the rules adopted for schools by the fire marshal pursuant to section 100.35.
   12.  Repeal.  This section is repealed January 1, 2018.
EXPLANATION
   This bill establishes a deregulated schools pilot program to provide selected public and nonpublic schools with greater flexibility. The bill directs the department of education to select from the applications submitted six public and six nonpublic deregulated school pilot projects. The bill exempts the deregulated schools from statutes and administrative rules otherwise applicable to school districts and accredited nonpublic schools, except those relating to student health, safety, and welfare, and, for deregulated public schools, open meetings and records, financial audits, and initial background investigations of new teachers. The pilot projects may continue through the 2016-2017 school year.
   The bill sets forth the program purposes and the pilot project proposal requirements. The terms and conditions for the operation of a deregulated school must be set forth in the proposal. The bill lists the issues proposals must address and the criteria for approval of the proposals.
   A deregulated school must be open to all students residing within the school district or nonpublic school attendance boundaries. It must not discriminate, and in the case of deregulated public schools, shall be free of tuition and fees, except those fees a school district is authorized to charge. A deregulated school may limit admission to students who are within a particular range of ages or grade levels or on any other basis that would be legal if initiated by a school district.
   Deregulated schools shall, at a minimum, administer the Iowa test of basic skills (ITBS) and the Iowa tests of educational development (ITED) in the manner and frequency used by the majority of school districts in this state.
   The school must make an annual progress report to the school district or the authorities in charge of the school, as appropriate, and to the department of education. Upon receipt of the reports, the department must provide the general assembly with a copy of each report and an analysis and comparison of the overall performance of students, including a comparison of the results of the annual ITBS and ITED results for all students in deregulated schools with the results for all public school students in the same grade in the school district in which the deregulated school is located.
   The cost of educating students enrolled in a deregulated public school shall be paid in the same manner as for students enrolled in school districts.
   A deregulated school must provide instruction for at least the statutorily required 180 days, or the equivalent number of hours, and may provide instruction for additional days.
   A deregulated school must utilize facilities that comply with the state building code and must comply with the rules adopted for schools by the fire marshal.
   The deregulated schools pilot program is repealed January 1, 2018.