Florida Senate - 2013 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 862
Barcode 766560
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
Comm: RCS .
04/16/2013 .
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Appropriations Subcommittee on Education (Benacquisto)
recommended the following:
1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
2
3 Delete everything after the enacting clause
4 and insert:
5 Section 1. Subsection (3) of section 1001.10, Florida
6 Statutes, is amended to read:
7 1001.10 Commissioner of Education; general powers and
8 duties.—
9 (3) To facilitate innovative practices and to allow local
10 selection of educational methods, the State Board of Education
11 may authorize the commissioner to waive, upon the request of a
12 district school board, rules of the State Board of Education
13 relating rules that relate to district school instruction and
14 school operations, except those rules pertaining to civil
15 rights, and student health, safety, and welfare. The
16 commissioner of Education is not authorized to grant waivers for
17 any provisions in rule pertaining to the allocation and
18 appropriation of state and local funds for public education; the
19 election, compensation, and organization of school board members
20 and superintendents; graduation and state accountability
21 standards; financial reporting requirements; reporting of out
22 of-field teaching assignments under s. 1012.2315 s. 1012.42;
23 public meetings; public records; or due process hearings
24 governed by chapter 120. No later than January 1 of each year,
25 the commissioner shall report to the Legislature and the State
26 Board of Education all approved waiver requests in the preceding
27 year.
28 Section 2. Paragraph (d) is added to subsection (21) of
29 section 1002.20, Florida Statutes, and subsection (25) is added
30 to that section, to read:
31 1002.20 K-12 student and parent rights.—Parents of public
32 school students must receive accurate and timely information
33 regarding their child’s academic progress and must be informed
34 of ways they can help their child to succeed in school. K-12
35 students and their parents are afforded numerous statutory
36 rights including, but not limited to, the following:
37 (21) PARENTAL INPUT AND MEETINGS.—
38 (d) Parent empowerment.—Parents of students who are
39 assigned to a public school that is required to implement a
40 turnaround option pursuant to s. 1008.33 may submit a petition
41 to the school district requesting implementation of a turnaround
42 option pursuant to s. 1003.07.
43 (25) ASSIGNMENT TO TEACHERS.—
44 (a) Out-of-field classroom teachers.—Each school district
45 shall annually notify the parent of a public school student who
46 is assigned to a classroom teacher teaching out-of-field. The
47 notice must inform the parent that virtual instruction from a
48 certified in-field teacher having an annual performance
49 evaluation rating of “effective” or “highly effective” is
50 available pursuant to s. 1012.2315(5).
51 (b) Underperforming classroom teachers.—Each school
52 district shall annually notify the parent of a public school
53 student assigned to a classroom teacher or school administrator
54 who, under s. 1012.34, has two consecutive annual performance
55 evaluation ratings of “unsatisfactory,” two annual performance
56 evaluation ratings of “unsatisfactory within a 3-year period,”
57 or three consecutive annual performance evaluation ratings of
58 “needs improvement” or a combination of “needs improvement” and
59 “unsatisfactory.” The notice must inform the parent that virtual
60 instruction from a teacher who has an annual performance
61 evaluation rating of “effective” or “highly effective” is
62 available pursuant to s. 1012.2315(7).
63 Section 3. Paragraph (c) of subsection (7) of section
64 1002.32, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
65 1002.32 Developmental research (laboratory) schools.—
66 (7) PERSONNEL.—
67 (c) Lab school faculty members shall meet the certification
68 requirements of s. 1012.32 ss. 1012.32 and 1012.42.
69 Section 4. Paragraph (b) of subsection (16) of section
70 1002.33, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
71 1002.33 Charter schools.—
72 (16) EXEMPTION FROM STATUTES.—
73 (b) Additionally, a charter school shall comply be in
74 compliance with the following statutes:
75 1. Section 286.011, relating to public meetings and
76 records, public inspection, and criminal and civil penalties.
77 2. Chapter 119, relating to public records.
78 3. Section 1003.03, relating to the maximum class size,
79 except that the calculation for compliance pursuant to s.
80 1003.03 must shall be the average at the school level.
81 4. Section 1012.22(1)(c), relating to compensation and
82 salary schedules.
83 5. Section 1012.33(5), relating to workforce reductions.
84 6. Section 1012.335, relating to contracts with
85 instructional personnel hired on or after July 1, 2011.
86 7. Section 1012.34, relating to the substantive
87 requirements for performance evaluations for instructional
88 personnel and school administrators.
89 8. Section 1012.2315(5) and (7), relating to the assignment
90 of teachers and notification to parents.
91 Section 5. Section 1003.07, Florida Statutes, is created to
92 read:
93 1003.07 Parent empowerment.—
94 (1) This section may be cited as the “Parent Empowerment
95 Act.”
96 (2) As used in this section, the term:
97 (a) “Eligible student” means a student enrolled in a school
98 in which a turnaround option will be implemented or a student
99 who, under the school district’s enrollment policy, is scheduled
100 for assignment to that school the following school year. A
101 student who is graduating or being promoted out of a school that
102 is eligible for a turnaround option and who will not be enrolled
103 in that school the following school year is not an eligible
104 student.
105 (b) “Parental vote” means the signature of one parent of an
106 eligible student.
107 1. If the other parent objects in writing to the parental
108 vote before the date the petition is scheduled to be submitted,
109 and if the parents have equal parental rights, the parental vote
110 counts for one-half of a vote.
111 2. If one parent has sole parental responsibility or holds
112 the right to make educational decisions for the student pursuant
113 to s. 61.13, only that parent can vote regarding the eligible
114 student.
115 (3) Each school district shall notify, in writing, the
116 parents of eligible students and the school advisory council
117 when a public school has earned a school grade of “F” and is
118 required to select a turnaround option pursuant to s. 1008.33.
119 The written notice must inform parents that, before the district
120 school board selects a turnaround option, parents may petition
121 for implementation of a particular turnaround option pursuant to
122 s. 1008.33. The notice must be provided to parents within 30
123 calendar days after the school district receives notice from the
124 department that the school is required to select a turnaround
125 option. The notice must include:
126 (a) A description of each turnaround option available for
127 selection under s. 1008.33;
128 (b) A description of the process for implementing a
129 turnaround option, including the date by which the school
130 district must submit its implementation plan to the State Board
131 of Education;
132 (c) The date and location for submission of the petition;
133 (d) The date and location of the publicly noticed district
134 school board meeting required in this section at which the
135 school board will consider the available turnaround options; and
136 (e) The contact information of the district school board.
137 (4) A person who solicits signatures may not offer monetary
138 compensation, a promise of employment, or any other reward to a
139 parent for signing a petition. A person who solicits signatures
140 may not be paid per signature and, if asked, must disclose the
141 organization he or she represents. A for-profit corporation,
142 business, or entity is prohibited from gathering signatures or
143 paying others to solicit signatures.
144 (5) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules to
145 establish a petition format, the petition submission process,
146 standards for verifying signatures, and timeframes for the
147 verification and consideration of a petition at a publicly
148 noticed meeting. Petition forms must be easily accessible to
149 parents. Each petition form must clearly identify only one
150 turnaround option on the front page of the petition and on each
151 page thereafter. The school district shall provide clear
152 instructions and a sample petition form for each turnaround
153 option available for selection under s. 1008.33.
154 (6) The petition process must provide that:
155 (a) Parents of eligible students have at least 30 days
156 after initial notification to gather petition signatures.
157 (b) The school district shall verify signatures no more
158 than 30 days after the date the petition is submitted.
159 (c) The district school board may not meet sooner than 30
160 days after the petition is submitted.
161 (d) A submitted petition may list only one turnaround
162 option identified in s. 1008.33 which is not currently being
163 implemented at the school. A parent may sign more than one
164 petition for a turnaround option.
165 (e) A parent signature constitutes a certification that the
166 parent has a present intention to enroll his or her child, who
167 must be identified on the petition, if the turnaround option
168 identified on the petition is selected. A school district may
169 not reject a parent’s signature on a petition on the basis that
170 the parent signed the petition before the initial notice.
171 (f) The school district shall verify at least a majority of
172 the signatures on the petition using existing student enrollment
173 documentation or other records containing parent signatures. A
174 school district may not reject a parent’s signature on a
175 petition based on a lack of conformity to signatures in school
176 records if the parent’s identity and signature can be easily
177 validated with a photographic identification or a notarized
178 signature verifying the identity of the signer, or by the
179 personal knowledge of a school employee. The school district is
180 not required to verify notarized signatures, and signatures
181 verified outside an established verification period are valid.
182 (g) For a petition to be valid, it must bear the dated
183 signatures of a majority of the parents of eligible students.
184 For purposes of this section, a majority is more than one-half
185 of the parents who are eligible to sign the petition. Only one
186 parental vote per eligible student may be counted with respect
187 to each petition.
188 (h) If valid petitions for more than one turnaround option
189 are submitted, the petition having the most signatures is the
190 official turnaround option selected by parents.
191 (7) The turnaround option selected by parents must be
192 considered for implementation by the school district at a
193 publicly noticed district school board meeting. The district
194 school board may adopt the turnaround option selected by parents
195 or a different turnaround option selected by the district school
196 board. Pursuant to s. 1008.33, an implementation plan for the
197 adopted turnaround option must be submitted to the state board.
198 (a) If the district school board adopts a turnaround option
199 that is different from the turnaround option selected by
200 parents, it shall identify with its submission the turnaround
201 option selected by parents.
202 (b) If the state board determines that the turnaround
203 option selected by parents is more likely to improve the
204 academic performance of students at the school, the district
205 school board shall submit to the state board an implementation
206 plan for the turnaround option selected by parents.
207 (c) If the school improves by at least one letter grade,
208 implementation of a turnaround option is no longer required in
209 accordance with s. 1008.33(4)(d).
210 Section 6. Subsection (4) of section 1008.33, Florida
211 Statutes, is amended to read:
212 1008.33 Authority to enforce public school improvement.—
213 (4)(a) The state board shall apply the most intense
214 intervention and support strategies to schools earning a grade
215 of “F.” In the first full school year after a school initially
216 earns a grade of “F,” the school district must implement
217 intervention and support strategies prescribed in rule under
218 paragraph (3)(c), select a turnaround option from those provided
219 in subparagraphs (b)1.-5., and submit a plan for implementing
220 the turnaround option to the department for approval by the
221 state board. Upon approval by the state board, the turnaround
222 option must be implemented in the following school year.
223 (b) Except as provided in subsection (5), the turnaround
224 options available to a school district to address a school that
225 earns a grade of “F” are:
226 1. Convert the school to a district-managed turnaround
227 school;
228 2. Reassign students to another school and monitor the
229 progress of each reassigned student;
230 3. Close the school and reopen the school as one or more
231 charter schools, each with a governing board that has a
232 demonstrated record of effectiveness;
233 4. Contract with an outside entity that has a demonstrated
234 record of effectiveness to operate the school; or
235 5. Implement a hybrid of turnaround options set forth in
236 subparagraphs 1.-4. or other turnaround models that have a
237 demonstrated record of effectiveness.
238 (c) Parents of students who are assigned to a public school
239 that is required by the State Board of Education to implement a
240 turnaround option may petition the school district to implement
241 one of the turnaround options in paragraph (b) selected by the
242 parents pursuant to s. 1003.07.
243 (d)(c) Except for schools required to implement a
244 turnaround option pursuant to subsection (5), a school earning a
245 grade of “F” shall have a planning year followed by 2 full
246 school years to implement the initial turnaround option selected
247 by the school district and approved by the state board.
248 Implementation of the turnaround option is no longer required if
249 the school improves by at least one letter grade.
250 (e)(d) A school earning a grade of “F” that improves its
251 letter grade must continue to implement strategies identified in
252 its school improvement plan pursuant to s. 1001.42(18)(a). The
253 department must annually review implementation of the school
254 improvement plan for 3 years to monitor the school’s continued
255 improvement.
256 (f)(e) If a school earning a grade of “F” does not improve
257 by at least one letter grade after 2 full school years of
258 implementing the turnaround option selected by the school
259 district under paragraph (b), the school district must select a
260 different option and submit another implementation plan to the
261 department for approval by the state board. Implementation of
262 the approved plan must begin the school year following the
263 implementation period of the existing turnaround option, unless
264 the state board determines that the school is likely to improve
265 a letter grade if additional time is provided to implement the
266 existing turnaround option.
267 Section 7. Section 1012.2315, Florida Statutes, is amended
268 to read:
269 1012.2315 Assignment of teachers.—
270 (1) LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT.—The Legislature finds
271 disparities between teachers assigned to teach in a majority of
272 schools that do not need improvement and schools that do need
273 improvement pursuant to s. 1008.33. The disparities may be found
274 in the assignment of temporarily certified teachers, teachers in
275 need of improvement, and out-of-field teachers and in the
276 performance of the students. It is the intent of the Legislature
277 that district school boards have flexibility through the
278 collective bargaining process to assign teachers more equitably
279 across the schools in the district.
280 (2) ASSIGNMENT TO SCHOOLS GRADED “D” or “F”.—School
281 districts may not assign a higher percentage than the school
282 district average of temporarily certified teachers, teachers in
283 need of improvement, or out-of-field teachers to schools graded
284 “D” or “F” pursuant to s. 1008.34. Each school district shall
285 annually certify to the commissioner of Education that this
286 requirement has been met. If the commissioner determines that a
287 school district is not in compliance with this subsection, the
288 State Board of Education must shall be notified and shall take
289 action pursuant to s. 1008.32 in the next regularly scheduled
290 meeting to require compliance.
291 (3) SALARY INCENTIVES.—District school boards may are
292 authorized to provide salary incentives to meet the requirement
293 of subsection (2). A district school board may not sign a
294 collective bargaining agreement that precludes the school
295 district from providing sufficient incentives to meet this
296 requirement.
297 (4) COLLECTIVE BARGAINING.—Notwithstanding provisions of
298 chapter 447 relating to district school board collective
299 bargaining, collective bargaining provisions may not preclude a
300 school district from providing incentives to high-quality
301 teachers and assigning such teachers to low-performing schools.
302 (5) ASSISTANCE TO OUT-OF-FIELD TEACHERS.—
303 (a) Each district school board shall adopt rules for
304 administering an assistance plan for each classroom teacher who
305 is teaching out-of-field. The assistance plan must provide
306 teachers who are teaching out-of-field with priority
307 consideration in professional development activities and require
308 such teachers to participate in a certification or staff
309 development program that provides the competencies required for
310 the assigned duties. A school district may reimburse a teacher
311 who is teaching out-of-field for a certification fee. The
312 assistance plan must also include duties of administrative
313 personnel and other instructional personnel for assisting a
314 teacher who is teaching out-of-field.
315 (b) The school district shall annually notify the parent of
316 a student who is assigned to a classroom teacher teaching a
317 subject matter that is:
318 1. Outside the field in which the teacher is certified;
319 2. Outside the field that was the teacher’s minor field of
320 study; or
321 3. Outside the field in which the teacher has demonstrated
322 sufficient subject area expertise, as determined by district
323 school board policy, in the subject area to be taught.
324
325 The notice must inform the parent that virtual instruction from
326 a certified in-field teacher who has an annual performance
327 evaluation rating of “effective” or “highly effective” under s.
328 1012.34 is available to his or her child through the virtual
329 instruction options specified in s. 1002.321(4).
330 (6)(5) REPORT.—
331 (a) By July 1, 2012, the department of Education shall
332 annually report on its website, in a manner that is accessible
333 to the public, the performance rating data reported by district
334 school boards under s. 1012.34. The report must include the
335 percentage of classroom teachers, instructional personnel, and
336 school administrators receiving each performance rating
337 aggregated by school district and by school.
338 (7) ASSIGNMENT OF TEACHERS BASED UPON PERFORMANCE
339 EVALUATIONS.—
340 (a)(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of s.
341 1012.31(3)(a)2., each school district shall annually notify
342 report to the parent of a any student who is assigned to a
343 classroom teacher or school administrator having two consecutive
344 annual performance evaluation ratings of “unsatisfactory” under
345 s. 1012.34, two annual performance evaluation ratings of
346 unsatisfactory within a 3-year period under s. 1012.34, or three
347 consecutive annual performance evaluation ratings of “needs
348 improvement” or a combination of “needs improvement” and
349 “unsatisfactory” under s. 1012.34. The notice must inform the
350 parent that virtual instruction from a teacher having a
351 performance evaluation rating of “highly effective” or
352 “effective” under s. 1012.34 is available to his or her child
353 through the virtual instruction options specified in s.
354 1002.321(4).
355 (b) If a high school or middle school student is currently
356 taught by a classroom teacher who, during that school year,
357 receives a performance evaluation rating of “needs improvement”
358 or “unsatisfactory” under s. 1012.34, the student may not be
359 assigned the following school year to a classroom teacher in the
360 same subject area who received a performance evaluation rating
361 of “needs improvement” or “unsatisfactory” in the preceding
362 school year.
363 (c) If an elementary school student is currently taught by
364 a classroom teacher who, during that school year, receives a
365 performance evaluation rating of “needs improvement” or
366 “unsatisfactory” under s. 1012.34, the student may not be
367 assigned the following school year to a classroom teacher who
368 received a performance evaluation rating of “needs improvement”
369 or “unsatisfactory” in the preceding school year.
370 (d) For a student enrolling in an extracurricular course as
371 defined in s. 1003.01(15), a parent may choose to have the
372 student taught by a teacher who received a performance
373 evaluation of “needs improvement” or “unsatisfactory” in the
374 preceding school year if the student and the student’s parent
375 receive an explanation of the impact of teacher effectiveness on
376 student learning and the principal receives written consent from
377 the parent.
378 Section 8. Section 1012.42, Florida Statutes, is repealed.
379 Section 9. This act shall take effect July 1, 2013.
380
381 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
382 And the title is amended as follows:
383 Delete everything before the enacting clause
384 and insert:
385 A bill to be entitled
386 An act relating to parent empowerment in education;
387 amending s. 1001.10, F.S.; conforming a cross
388 reference; amending s. 1002.20, F.S.; providing that
389 parents who have a student in a public school that is
390 implementing a turnaround option may petition to have
391 a particular turnaround option implemented; requiring
392 the school district to notify parents of a public
393 school student being taught by an out-of-field teacher
394 or by a teacher with an unsatisfactory performance
395 rating; specifying requirements for the notice;
396 amending s. 1002.32, F.S.; conforming a cross
397 reference; amending s. 1002.33, F.S.; requiring a
398 charter school to comply with certain procedures for
399 the assignment of teachers; creating s. 1003.07, F.S.;
400 creating the Parent Empowerment Act; specifying what
401 constitutes an eligible student and a parental vote;
402 requiring that a school district send a written notice
403 to parents of public school students regarding the
404 parents’ options to petition the school for a
405 particular turnaround option; requiring the notice to
406 include certain information; authorizing up to one
407 parental vote per eligible student; establishing the
408 process to solicit signatures for a petition;
409 prohibiting a person from being paid for signatures;
410 prohibiting a for-profit corporation, business, or
411 entity from soliciting signatures or paying a person
412 to solicit signatures; establishing criteria to verify
413 the signatures on a petition; requiring the State
414 Board of Education to adopt rules for filing a
415 petition; specifying that a petition is valid if it is
416 signed and dated by a majority of the parents of
417 eligible students and those signatures are verified;
418 requiring the school district to consider the
419 turnaround option on the valid petition with the most
420 signatures at a publicly noticed school board meeting;
421 requiring the school district to submit an
422 implementation plan to the state board; amending s.
423 1008.33, F.S.; authorizing a parent to petition the
424 school district to implement a turnaround option
425 selected by the parent; amending s. 1012.2315, F.S.;
426 providing for assistance to teachers teaching out-of
427 field; requiring the school district to notify parents
428 and inform them of their options if a student is being
429 taught by an out-of-field teacher; providing that a
430 student may not be assigned to a teacher with a
431 performance evaluation rating of less than effective
432 for a specified number of consecutive school years;
433 authorizing the parent of a student to consent to the
434 assignment of that student to a teacher with a
435 performance evaluation rating of less than effective
436 under certain circumstances; repealing s. 1012.42,
437 F.S., relating to teachers who are teaching out-of
438 field; providing an effective date.