S.F. 2181 Section 1. Section 256.7, subsection 21, paragraph b, 1 subparagraphs (2) and (3), Code 2014, are amended to read as 2 follows: 3 (2) Notwithstanding subparagraph (1), for the school year 4 beginning July 1, 2016, and each succeeding school year, the 5 rules shall provide that all students enrolled in school 6 districts in grades three through eleven shall be administered 7 an assessment during the last quarter of the school year 8 that at a minimum assesses the indicators identified in 9 this paragraph “b” ; is aligned with the Iowa common core 10 standards excellence academic standard in both content and 11 rigor; accurately describes student achievement and growth 12 for purposes of the school, the school district, and state 13 accountability systems; and provides valid, reliable, and 14 fair measures of student progress toward college or career 15 readiness. 16 (3) The director shall establish an assessment task force 17 to review and make recommendations for a statewide assessment 18 of student progress on the indicators identified pursuant 19 to this paragraph “b” . The task force shall recommend a 20 statewide assessment that is aligned to the Iowa common core 21 standards excellence academic standard and is, at a minimum, 22 valid, reliable, tested, and piloted in Iowa. In addition, 23 in developing recommendations, the task force shall consider 24 the costs to school districts and the state in providing and 25 administering such an assessment and the technical support 26 necessary to implement the assessment. The task force shall 27 submit its recommendations in a report to the director, the 28 state board, and the general assembly by January 1, 2015. 29 The task force shall assist with the final development and 30 implementation of the assessment administered pursuant to 31 subparagraph (2). The task force members shall include but 32 not be limited to teachers, school administrators, business 33 leaders, representatives of state agencies, and members of the 34 general public. This subparagraph is repealed July 1, 2020. 35 -1- LSB 6017XS (2) 85 kh/rj 1/ 12

S.F. 2181 Sec. 2. Section 256.7, subsection 21, paragraph c, Code 1 2014, is amended to read as follows: 2 c. A requirement that all school districts and accredited 3 nonpublic schools annually report to the department and the 4 local community the district-wide progress made in attaining 5 student achievement goals on the academic and other core 6 indicators and the district-wide progress made in attaining 7 locally established student learning goals. The school 8 districts and accredited nonpublic schools shall demonstrate 9 the use of multiple assessment measures in determining student 10 achievement levels. The school districts and accredited 11 nonpublic schools shall also report the number of students 12 who graduate; the number of students who drop out of school; 13 the number of students who are tested and the percentage 14 of students who are so tested annually; and the percentage 15 of students who graduated during the prior school year 16 and who completed a core curriculum the Iowa excellence 17 academic standard . The board shall develop and adopt uniform 18 definitions consistent with the federal No Child Left Behind 19 Act of 2001, Pub. L. No. 107-110 and any federal regulations 20 adopted pursuant to the federal Act. The school districts 21 and accredited nonpublic schools may report on other locally 22 determined factors influencing student achievement. The school 23 districts and accredited nonpublic schools shall also report 24 to the local community their results by individual attendance 25 center. 26 Sec. 3. Section 256.7, subsection 26, paragraph a, 27 unnumbered paragraph 1, Code 2014, is amended to read as 28 follows: 29 Adopt rules that establish a core curriculum and the Iowa 30 excellence academic standard. The state board shall also adopt 31 high school graduation requirements for all students in school 32 districts and accredited nonpublic schools that include at a 33 minimum satisfactory completion of four years of English and 34 language arts, three years of mathematics, three years of 35 -2- LSB 6017XS (2) 85 kh/rj 2/ 12

S.F. 2181 science, and three years of social studies. 1 Sec. 4. Section 256.7, subsection 26, paragraph a, 2 subparagraph (3), Code 2014, is amended to read as follows: 3 (3) The rules establishing a core curriculum the Iowa 4 excellence academic standard shall address the core content 5 assessment standards in subsection 28 and the skills and 6 knowledge students need to be successful in the twenty-first 7 century. The core curriculum Iowa excellence academic standard 8 shall include social studies and twenty-first century learning 9 skills which include but are not limited to civic literacy, 10 health literacy, technology literacy, financial literacy, and 11 employability skills; and shall address the curricular needs of 12 students in kindergarten through grade twelve in those areas. 13 The department shall further define the twenty-first century 14 learning skills components by rule. 15 Sec. 5. Section 256.7, subsection 26, paragraph a, Code 16 2014, is amended by adding the following new subparagraph: 17 NEW SUBPARAGRAPH . (4) In developing or modifying the Iowa 18 excellence academic standard, the state board shall seek and 19 review and consider public comment as well as comment from 20 school district practitioners and board members; shall review 21 other nationally and internationally recognized academic 22 standards; and shall consider the impact the proposed standards 23 will have on student achievement. 24 Sec. 6. Section 256.7, subsection 26, paragraph b, Code 25 2014, is amended by striking the paragraph. 26 Sec. 7. Section 256.7, subsection 26, paragraph c, Code 27 2014, is amended to read as follows: 28 c. Neither the state board nor the department shall require 29 school districts or accredited nonpublic schools to adopt a 30 specific textbook, textbook series, or specific instructional 31 methodology, or acquire specific textbooks, curriculum 32 materials, or educational products from a specific vendor in 33 order to meet the core curriculum Iowa excellence academic 34 standard requirements of this subsection or the core content 35 -3- LSB 6017XS (2) 85 kh/rj 3/ 12

S.F. 2181 assessment standards adopted pursuant to subsection 28 . Each 1 school district and accredited nonpublic school is encouraged 2 to develop local methods and materials to assist students in 3 reaching the requirements set forth under the Iowa excellence 4 academic standard. 5 Sec. 8. Section 256.7, subsection 28, Code 2014, is amended 6 to read as follows: 7 28. Adopt a set of core content assessment standards 8 applicable to all students in kindergarten through grade twelve 9 in every school district and accredited nonpublic school. For 10 purposes of this subsection , “ core content assessment standards” 11 includes reading, mathematics, and science. The core content 12 assessment standards shall be identical to the core content 13 assessment standards included in Iowa’s approved 2006 standards 14 and assessment system under Tit. I of the federal Elementary 15 and Secondary Education Act of 1965, 20 U.S.C. § 6301 et 16 seq., as amended by the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 17 2001, Pub. L. No. 107-110. School districts and accredited 18 nonpublic schools shall include, at a minimum, the core content 19 assessment standards adopted pursuant to this subsection in any 20 set of locally developed content standards. School districts 21 and accredited nonpublic schools are strongly encouraged to set 22 higher expectations in local standards. As changes in federal 23 law or regulation occur, the state board is authorized to amend 24 the core content standards as appropriate. 25 Sec. 9. Section 256.7, Code 2014, is amended by adding the 26 following new subsection: 27 NEW SUBSECTION . 33. Adopt rules prohibiting the department 28 from entering into a contract or a memorandum of understanding 29 with another state or national organization for the development 30 or implementation of statewide content or assessment standards 31 unless the state board submits the contract or memorandum 32 of understanding to the general assembly while the general 33 assembly is in session or the director appears before the 34 standing committees of the senate and house of representatives 35 -4- LSB 6017XS (2) 85 kh/rj 4/ 12

S.F. 2181 having jurisdiction over education to report on the proposed 1 contract or memorandum of understanding. The rules may only 2 allow the department to adopt and implement the Iowa excellence 3 academic standard content and assessment standards identified 4 or developed by Iowa educators. 5 Sec. 10. Section 256.9, subsection 53, paragraph a, Code 6 2014, is amended to read as follows: 7 a. Develop and distribute, in collaboration with the area 8 education agencies, core curriculum Iowa excellence academic 9 standard technical assistance and implementation strategies 10 that school districts and accredited nonpublic schools shall 11 may utilize, including but not limited to the development and 12 delivery of formative and end-of-course model assessments 13 classroom teachers may use to measure student progress on the 14 core curriculum Iowa excellence academic standard adopted 15 pursuant to section 256.7, subsection 26 . The department 16 shall, in collaboration with the advisory group convened in 17 accordance with paragraph “b” and educational assessment 18 providers, identify and make available to school districts 19 end-of-course and additional model end-of-course and additional 20 assessments to align with the expectations included in the Iowa 21 core curriculum Iowa excellence academic standard . The model 22 assessments shall be suitable to meet the multiple assessment 23 measures requirement specified in section 256.7, subsection 21 , 24 paragraph “c” . 25 Sec. 11. Section 256.9, subsection 54, Code 2014, is amended 26 to read as follows: 27 54. Submit an annual report to the general assembly by 28 January 1 regarding activities, findings, and student progress 29 under the core curriculum Iowa excellence academic standard 30 established pursuant to section 256.7, subsection 26 . The 31 annual report shall include the state board’s findings and 32 recommendations. 33 Sec. 12. Section 256.40, subsection 2, paragraph e, Code 34 2014, is amended to read as follows: 35 -5- LSB 6017XS (2) 85 kh/rj 5/ 12

S.F. 2181 e. Integrate services provided through the program with 1 other career exploration-related activities such as the student 2 core curriculum plan to complete the Iowa excellence academic 3 standard and the career information and decision-making 4 system developed and administered under section 279.61 , where 5 appropriate. 6 Sec. 13. Section 256.42, subsection 6, Code 2014, is amended 7 to read as follows: 8 6. Coursework offered under the initiative shall be 9 rigorous and high quality, and the department shall annually 10 evaluate the quality of the courses and ensure that coursework 11 is aligned with the state’s core curriculum and core content 12 requirements Iowa excellence academic standard and the 13 assessment standards, as well as national standards of quality 14 for online courses issued by an internationally recognized 15 association for kindergarten through grade twelve online 16 learning. 17 Sec. 14. Section 257.11, subsection 11, Code 2014, is 18 amended to read as follows: 19 11. Shared classes and curriculum standards. A school 20 district shall ensure that any course made available to a 21 student through any sharing agreement between the school 22 district and a community college or any other entity providing 23 course programming pursuant to this section to students 24 enrolled in the school district meets the expectations 25 contained in the core curriculum adopted pursuant to section 26 256.7, subsection 26 . The school district shall ensure that 27 any course that has the capacity to generate college credit 28 shall be equivalent to college-level work. 29 Sec. 15. Section 258.4, subsection 8, Code 2014, is amended 30 to read as follows: 31 8. Establish a minimum set of competencies and core 32 curriculum standards, in accordance with section 256.7, 33 subsection 26, for approval of a vocational program sequence 34 that addresses the following: new and emerging technologies; 35 -6- LSB 6017XS (2) 85 kh/rj 6/ 12

S.F. 2181 job-seeking, job-keeping, and other employment skills, 1 including self-employment and entrepreneurial skills, that 2 reflect current industry standards, leadership skills, 3 entrepreneurial, and labor-market needs; and the strengthening 4 of basic academic skills. 5 Sec. 16. Section 260C.14, subsection 22, paragraph b, Code 6 2014, is amended to read as follows: 7 b. Collaborate with the state board of regents to meet 8 the requirements specified in section 262.9, subsection 33 , 9 including but not limited to developing a systematic process 10 for expanding academic discipline and meetings between the 11 community college faculty and faculty of the institutions 12 of higher education governed by the state board of regents, 13 developing criteria to prioritize core curriculum Iowa 14 excellence academic standard areas, promoting greater awareness 15 of articulation-related activities, facilitating additional 16 opportunities for individual institutions to pursue program 17 articulation agreements for career and technical educational 18 programs, and developing and implementing a process to 19 examine a minimum of eight new associate of applied science 20 degree programs for which articulation agreements would serve 21 students’ continued academic success in those degree programs. 22 Sec. 17. Section 261E.4, subsection 4, Code 2014, is amended 23 to read as follows: 24 4. A school district shall establish prerequisite 25 coursework for each advanced placement course offered and shall 26 describe the prerequisites in the course registration handbook, 27 which shall be provided to every junior high school or middle 28 school student prior to the development of a core curriculum 29 an Iowa excellence academic standard plan pursuant to section 30 279.61 . 31 Sec. 18. Section 261E.6, subsection 2, Code 2014, is amended 32 to read as follows: 33 2. Notification. The availability and requirements of this 34 program shall be included in each school district’s student 35 -7- LSB 6017XS (2) 85 kh/rj 7/ 12

S.F. 2181 registration handbook. Information about the program shall be 1 provided to the student and the student’s parent or guardian 2 prior to the development of the student’s core curriculum Iowa 3 excellence academic standard plan under section 279.61 . The 4 school district shall establish a process by which students may 5 indicate interest in and apply for enrollment in the program. 6 Sec. 19. Section 261E.8, subsection 1, Code 2014, is amended 7 to read as follows: 8 1. A district-to-community college sharing or concurrent 9 enrollment program is established to be administered by the 10 department to promote rigorous academic or career and technical 11 pursuits and to provide a wider variety of options to high 12 school students to enroll part-time in eligible nonsectarian 13 courses at or through community colleges established under 14 chapter 260C . The program shall be made available to all 15 resident students in grades nine through twelve. Notice of 16 the availability of the program shall be included in a school 17 district’s student registration handbook and the handbook shall 18 identify which courses, if successfully completed, generate 19 college credit under the program. A student and the student’s 20 parent or legal guardian shall also be made aware of this 21 program as a part of the development of the student’s core 22 curriculum Iowa excellence academic standard plan in accordance 23 with section 279.61 . 24 Sec. 20. Section 261E.9, subsection 2, paragraph b, Code 25 2014, is amended to read as follows: 26 b. A regional academy may include in its curriculum virtual 27 or internet-based coursework and courses delivered via the 28 Iowa communications network, career and technical courses, 29 core curriculum Iowa excellence academic standard coursework, 30 courses required pursuant to section 256.7, subsection 26 , or 31 section 256.11, subsections 4 and 5 , and asynchronous learning 32 networks. 33 Sec. 21. Section 261E.9, subsection 4, Code 2014, is amended 34 to read as follows: 35 -8- LSB 6017XS (2) 85 kh/rj 8/ 12

S.F. 2181 4. Information regarding regional academies shall be 1 provided to a student and the student’s parent or guardian 2 prior to the development of the student’s core curriculum Iowa 3 excellence academic standard plan under section 279.61 . 4 Sec. 22. Section 261E.10, subsection 4, Code 2014, is 5 amended to read as follows: 6 4. Information regarding career academies shall be provided 7 by the school district to a student and the student’s parent 8 or guardian prior to the development of the student’s core 9 curriculum Iowa excellence academic standard plan under section 10 279.61 . 11 Sec. 23. Section 262.9, subsection 33, paragraph c, Code 12 2014, is amended to read as follows: 13 c. Develop criteria to prioritize core curriculum areas 14 the Iowa excellence academic standard and create or review 15 transition guides for the core curriculum areas Iowa excellence 16 academic standard . 17 Sec. 24. Section 279.61, Code 2014, is amended to read as 18 follows: 19 279.61 Student plan for progress toward university admissions 20 —— report. 21 1. For the school year beginning July 1, 2008 2014 , and 22 each succeeding school year, the board of directors of each 23 school district shall cooperate with each student enrolled 24 in grade eight to develop for the student a core curriculum 25 plan to guide the student toward the goal of successfully 26 completing, at a minimum, the core curriculum developed Iowa 27 excellence academic standard and graduation requirements 28 adopted by the state board of education pursuant to section 29 256.7, subsection 26 , by the time the student graduates from 30 high school. The plan shall include career options and shall 31 identify the coursework needed in grades nine through twelve 32 to support the student’s postsecondary education and career 33 options. Additionally, the plan shall include a timeline for 34 each student to successfully complete, prior to graduation, 35 -9- LSB 6017XS (2) 85 kh/rj 9/ 12

S.F. 2181 all components of the state-designated career information 1 and decision-making system administered by the department in 2 accordance with section 118 of the federal Carl D. Perkins 3 Career and Technical Education Improvement Act of 2006, Pub. L. 4 No. 109-270. The student’s parent or guardian shall sign the 5 core curriculum plan developed with the student and the signed 6 plan shall be included in the student’s cumulative records. 7 2. For the school year beginning July 1, 2008 2015 , and each 8 succeeding school year, the board of directors of each school 9 district shall report annually to each student enrolled in 10 grades nine through twelve in the school district, and, if the 11 student is under the age of eighteen, to each student’s parent 12 or guardian, the student’s progress toward meeting the goal of 13 successfully completing the core curriculum and Iowa excellence 14 academic standard and high school graduation requirements 15 adopted by the state board of education pursuant to section 16 256.7, subsection 26 . 17 Sec. 25. Section 280.3, subsection 3, Code 2014, is amended 18 by striking the subsection. 19 Sec. 26. STATE MANDATE FUNDING SPECIFIED. In accordance 20 with section 25B.2, subsection 3, the state cost of requiring 21 compliance with any state mandate included in this Act shall 22 be paid by a school district from state school foundation aid 23 received by the school district under section 257.16. This 24 specification of the payment of the state cost shall be deemed 25 to meet all of the state funding-related requirements of 26 section 25B.2, subsection 3, and no additional state funding 27 shall be necessary for the full implementation of this Act 28 by and enforcement of this Act against all affected school 29 districts. 30 EXPLANATION 31 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 32 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 33 This bill continues to direct the state board of education 34 to adopt sets of academic and assessment standards, but amends 35 -10- LSB 6017XS (2) 85 kh/rj 10/ 12

S.F. 2181 the terms used to describe the standards for use by school 1 districts and accredited nonpublic schools. The bill directs 2 the state board to adopt rules to prohibit the department from 3 entering into a contract or memorandums of understanding with 4 another state or national organization for the development or 5 implementation of statewide content or assessment standards 6 unless the contract or memorandum is presented before the 7 general assembly. The bill provides that the rules may only 8 allow the department to adopt and implement the Iowa excellence 9 academic standard and assessment standards identified or 10 developed by Iowa educators. 11 Each school district and accredited nonpublic school is 12 encouraged to develop local methods and materials to assist 13 students in reaching the standards set forth under the Iowa 14 excellence academic standard. 15 The bill replaces the terms “core curriculum”, “Iowa 16 core curriculum”, and “Iowa common core”, which were used to 17 describe the academic standards adopted by the state board, 18 with the term “Iowa excellence academic standard”. Also, 19 provisions directing school districts to cooperate with each 20 eighth grade student on a core curriculum plan to meet core 21 curriculum requirements are amended to replace “core curriculum 22 plan” with “Iowa excellence academic standard plan” and “core 23 curriculum requirements” with “the Iowa excellence academic 24 standard”. The term “core content standards”, which was used 25 to describe the assessment standards adopted by the state 26 board, is replaced with the term “assessment standards”. The 27 assessment standards will remain applicable to all students 28 in kindergarten through grade 12 in every school district and 29 accredited nonpublic school. Corresponding changes are made 30 throughout the Code, and obsolete language is eliminated. 31 The bill may include a state mandate as defined in Code 32 section 25B.3. The bill requires that the state cost of 33 any state mandate included in the bill be paid by a school 34 district from state school foundation aid received by the 35 -11- LSB 6017XS (2) 85 kh/rj 11/ 12