HB 291

1
A bill to be entitled
2An act relating to the public school grading system;
3amending s. 1008.34, F.S.; adding certain feeder pattern
4schools to list of schools receiving a school grade;
5prescribing circumstances in which a feeder pattern
6exists; amending s. 1002.38, F.S.; allowing students
7served by certain feeder pattern schools to participate in
8the Opportunity Scholarship Program; amending s. 1008.36,
9F.S.; allowing certain feeder pattern schools to
10participate in the Florida School Recognition Program;
11providing an effective date.
12
13Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
14
15     Section 1.  Subsection (3) of section 1008.34, Florida
16Statutes, is amended to read:
17     1008.34  School grading system; district performance
18grade.--
19     (3)  DESIGNATION OF SCHOOL PERFORMANCE GRADE CATEGORIES.--A
20school that serves any combination of students in kindergarten
21through grade 3 that does not receive a school grade because its
22students are not tested and included in the school grading
23system shall receive the school grade designation of a feeder
24pattern school identified by the Department of Education and
25verified by the school district. A school feeder pattern exists
26if at least 60 percent of the students in the school serving a
27combination of students in kindergarten through grade 3 are
28scheduled to be assigned to the graded school. School
29performance grade category designations itemized in subsection
30(2) shall be based on the following:
31     (a)  Timeframes.--
32     1.  School performance grade category designations shall be
33based on the school's current year performance and the school's
34annual learning gains.
35     2.  A school's performance grade category designation shall
36be based on a combination of student achievement scores, student
37learning gains as measured by annual FCAT assessments in grades
383 through 10, and improvement of the lowest 25th percentile of
39students in the school in reading, math, or writing on the FCAT,
40unless these students are performing above satisfactory
41performance.
42     (b)  Student assessment data.--Student assessment data used
43in determining school performance grade categories shall
44include:
45     1.  The aggregate scores of all eligible students enrolled
46in the school who have been assessed on the FCAT.
47     2.  The aggregate scores of all eligible students enrolled
48in the school who have been assessed on the FCAT, including
49Florida Writes, and who have scored at or in the lowest 25th
50percentile of students in the school in reading, math, or
51writing, unless these students are performing above satisfactory
52performance.
53
54The Department of Education shall study the effects of mobility
55on the performance of highly mobile students and recommend
56programs to improve the performance of such students. The State
57Board of Education shall adopt appropriate criteria for each
58school performance grade category. The criteria must also give
59added weight to student achievement in reading. Schools
60designated as performance grade category "C," making
61satisfactory progress, shall be required to demonstrate that
62adequate progress has been made by students in the school who
63are in the lowest 25th percentile in reading, math, or writing
64on the FCAT, including Florida Writes, unless these students are
65performing above satisfactory performance.
66     Section 2.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) and paragraphs
67(a) and (b) of subsection (3) of section 1002.38, Florida
68Statutes, are amended to read:
69     1002.38  Opportunity Scholarship Program.--
70     (2)  OPPORTUNITY SCHOLARSHIP ELIGIBILITY.--A public school
71student's parent may request and receive from the state an
72opportunity scholarship for the student to enroll in and attend
73a private school in accordance with the provisions of this
74section if:
75     (a)1.  By assigned school attendance area or by special
76assignment, the student has spent the prior school year in
77attendance at a public school, including a K-3 feeder pattern
78school, that has been designated pursuant to s. 1008.34 as
79performance grade category "F," failing to make adequate
80progress, and that has had 2 school years in a 4-year period of
81such low performance, and the student's attendance occurred
82during a school year in which such designation was in effect;
83     2.  The student has been in attendance elsewhere in the
84public school system and has been assigned to such school for
85the next school year; or
86     3.  The student is entering kindergarten or first grade and
87has been notified that the student has been assigned to such
88school for the next school year.
89
90The provisions of this section shall not apply to a student who
91is enrolled in a school operating for the purpose of providing
92educational services to youth in Department of Juvenile Justice
93commitment programs. For purposes of continuity of educational
94choice, the opportunity scholarship shall remain in force until
95the student returns to a public school or, if the student
96chooses to attend a private school the highest grade of which is
97grade 8, until the student matriculates to high school and the
98public high school to which the student is assigned is an
99accredited school with a performance grade category designation
100of "C" or better. However, at any time upon reasonable notice to
101the Department of Education and the school district, the
102student's parent may remove the student from the private school
103and place the student in a public school, as provided in
104subparagraph (3)(a)2.
105     (3)  SCHOOL DISTRICT OBLIGATIONS.--
106     (a)  A school district shall, for each student enrolled in
107or assigned to a school, including a K-3 feeder pattern school,
108that has been designated as performance grade category "F" for 2
109school years in a 4-year period:
110     1.  Timely notify the parent of the student as soon as such
111designation is made of all options available pursuant to this
112section.
113     2.  Offer that student's parent an opportunity to enroll
114the student in the public school within the district that has
115been designated by the state pursuant to s. 1008.34 as a school
116performing higher than that in which the student is currently
117enrolled or to which the student has been assigned, but not less
118than performance grade category "C." The parent is not required
119to accept this offer in lieu of requesting a state opportunity
120scholarship to a private school. The opportunity to continue
121attending the higher performing public school shall remain in
122force until the student graduates from high school.
123     (b)  The parent of a student enrolled in or assigned to a
124school, including a K-3 feeder pattern school, that has been
125designated performance grade category "F" for 2 school years in
126a 4-year period may choose as an alternative to enroll the
127student in and transport the student to a higher-performing
128public school that has available space in an adjacent school
129district, and that school district shall accept the student and
130report the student for purposes of the district's funding
131pursuant to the Florida Education Finance Program.
132     Section 3.  Subsection (3) of section 1008.36, Florida
133Statutes, is amended to read:
134     1008.36  Florida School Recognition Program.--
135     (3)  All public schools, including charter schools and K-3
136feeder pattern schools, that receive a school grade pursuant to
137s. 1008.34 are eligible to participate in the program.
138
139Notwithstanding statutory provisions to the contrary, incentive
140awards are not subject to collective bargaining.
141     Section 4.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2006.


CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.