Senate File 2 - Introduced SENATE FILE 2 BY JOHNSON A BILL FOR An Act relating to parent empowerment petitions for 1 implementation of school intervention models by school 2 districts. 3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 4 TLSB 1139XS (3) 85 kh/rj

S.F. 2 Section 1. NEW SECTION . 279.69 Parent empowerment petition 1 —— school intervention model implementation. 2 1. a. A school district attendance center is subject to 3 this section if the attendance center is not identified as 4 a persistently lowest-achieving school by the department of 5 education, but has been subject to corrective action pursuant 6 to the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, 7 20 U.S.C. § 6301 et seq., as amended by the federal No Child 8 Left Behind Act of 2001, Pub. L. No. 107-110, 20 U.S.C. § 9 6316(b)(7), and continues to fail to make adequate yearly 10 progress. 11 b. If a school district attendance center meets the 12 requirements of paragraph “a” and at least fifty percent of 13 the parents or guardians of students attending the attendance 14 center, or a combination of at least one-half of the parents 15 or guardians of students attending the attendance center and 16 the elementary or middle school who normally matriculate into 17 the middle or high school, as applicable, signs and submits 18 to the board of directors of the school district in which the 19 attendance center is located a petition requesting the board of 20 directors of the school district to implement one or more of 21 the four school intervention models identified by the United 22 States department of education for school improvement grants 23 under 75 Fed. Reg. § 66363, the school district shall implement 24 the school intervention model requested and identified in the 25 petition unless, after a regularly scheduled public hearing 26 conducted by the school board, the school board by resolution 27 states the reason the school board cannot implement the 28 specific requested intervention model and designates in writing 29 which of the other school intervention models it deems has 30 substantial promise of enabling the attendance center to make 31 at least adequate yearly progress, as defined in the federally 32 mandated state plan under the federal Elementary and Secondary 33 Education Act of 1965, 20 U.S.C. § 6301 et seq., as amended 34 by the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, Pub. L. No. 35 -1- LSB 1139XS (3) 85 kh/rj 1/ 5

S.F. 2 107-110, and which the school board resolves to implement in 1 the subsequent school year. A parent or guardian who signs a 2 petition in accordance with this subsection must be eligible 3 to vote in the school district. 4 2. The board of directors of the school district shall 5 notify the state board of education and the director of the 6 department of education upon receipt of a petition submitted in 7 accordance with subsection 1 and the school board shall submit 8 its final disposition of the petition and any written findings 9 electronically to the state board and the director as soon as 10 practicable. 11 3. A school district shall not be required to implement the 12 school intervention model requested by the petition submitted 13 in accordance with subsection 1 if the request is submitted for 14 reasons other than improving academic achievement or student 15 safety. 16 4. A school district shall notify the parents and guardians 17 of students enrolled in a school district attendance center 18 that meets the requirements of subsection 1, paragraph “a” that 19 the attendance center is eligible for a parent empowerment 20 petition. The notice shall include information about how 21 parents and guardians may initiate or sign a petition in 22 accordance with subsection 1. 23 5. a. The director of the department of education shall 24 recommend rules to the state board of education for the orderly 25 administration of this section. The director shall annually 26 list on the department’s internet site the names of all school 27 district attendance centers that meet the requirements of 28 subsection 1, paragraph “a” . 29 b. The state board of education shall adopt rules as needed 30 for the administration of this section. 31 Sec. 2. STATE MANDATE FUNDING SPECIFIED. In accordance 32 with section 25B.2, subsection 3, the state cost of requiring 33 compliance with any state mandate included in this Act shall 34 be paid by a school district from state school foundation aid 35 -2- LSB 1139XS (3) 85 kh/rj 2/ 5

S.F. 2 received by the school district under section 257.16. This 1 specification of the payment of the state cost shall be deemed 2 to meet all of the state funding-related requirements of 3 section 25B.2, subsection 3, and no additional state funding 4 shall be necessary for the full implementation of this Act 5 by and enforcement of this Act against all affected school 6 districts. 7 EXPLANATION 8 This bill provides for a parent empowerment petition 9 that under certain conditions requires a school district to 10 implement one or more school intervention models. 11 Under the bill, a school district must implement one or more 12 school intervention models if a school district attendance 13 center in the district is not identified as a persistently 14 lowest-achieving school by the department of education, but 15 has been subject to corrective action pursuant to the federal 16 law, continues to fail to make adequate yearly progress, and 17 at least 50 percent of the parents or guardians of students 18 attending the attendance center, or a combination of at least 19 one-half of the parents or guardians of students attending 20 the attendance center and the elementary or middle school 21 who normally matriculate into the middle or high school, as 22 applicable, signs and submits to the board of directors of the 23 school district in which the attendance center is located a 24 petition requesting that the school board implement one or more 25 of the four school intervention models identified by the U.S. 26 department of education. 27 The four school intervention models include the turnaround 28 model, in which the principal is replaced, no more than 29 half the teachers may be rehired, and new strategies are 30 implemented; the restart model, in which the attendance 31 center is converted to a charter school; school closure, 32 in which the attendance center is closed and its students 33 sent to higher-achieving schools in the district; and the 34 transformation model, in which the principal is replaced and 35 -3- LSB 1139XS (3) 85 kh/rj 3/ 5

S.F. 2 comprehensive curriculum reform and other strategies are 1 implemented. 2 The petition must identify which of the intervention models 3 the school district must implement in the subsequent school 4 year. However, the school district may implement a model 5 other than the requested model if, after a regularly scheduled 6 public hearing, the school board states in a resolution the 7 reason it cannot implement the requested intervention model and 8 designates in writing which of the other school intervention 9 models it deems has substantial promise of enabling the 10 attendance center to make at least adequate yearly progress. 11 A school district must notify parents and guardians when 12 a school district attendance center is eligible for a parent 13 empowerment petition. The notice shall include information 14 about how parents and guardians may initiate or sign a 15 petition. 16 The school district is not required to implement the school 17 intervention model requested by petition if the request is 18 submitted for reasons other than improving academic achievement 19 or student safety. 20 The school board shall notify the state board of education 21 and the director of the department of education upon receipt 22 of a petition and must submit its final disposition of the 23 petition and any written findings electronically to the state 24 board and the director. 25 The director of the department of education shall annually 26 list on the department’s internet site the names of all school 27 district attendance centers that are eligible for a parent 28 empowerment petition. 29 This bill may include a state mandate as defined in Code 30 section 25B.3. The bill requires that the state cost of 31 any state mandate included in the bill be paid by a school 32 district from state school foundation aid received by the 33 school district under Code section 257.16. The specification 34 is deemed to constitute state compliance with any state mandate 35 -4- LSB 1139XS (3) 85 kh/rj 4/ 5

S.F. 2 funding-related requirements of Code section 25B.2. The 1 inclusion of this specification is intended to reinstate the 2 requirement of political subdivisions to comply with any state 3 mandates included in the bill. 4 -5- LSB 1139XS (3) 85 kh/rj 5/ 5