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





                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS for CS for SB 1756

    Amendment No.    

                            CHAMBER ACTION
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11  Senator Klein moved the following amendment:

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13         Senate Amendment (with title amendment) 

14         On page 49, line 5, through page 56, line 13, delete

15  those lines

16

17  and insert:

18         229.592  Implementation of state system of school

19  improvement and education accountability.--

20         (1)  DEVELOPMENT.--It is the intent of the Legislature

21  that every public school in the state shall have a school

22  improvement plan, as required by s. 230.23(16), fully

23  implemented and operational by the beginning of the 1993-1994

24  school year.  Vocational standards considered pursuant to s.

25  239.229 shall be incorporated into the school improvement plan

26  for each area technical center operated by a school board by

27  the 1994-1995 school year, and area technical centers shall

28  prepare school report cards incorporating such standards,

29  pursuant to s. 230.23(16), for the 1995-1996 school year.  In

30  order to accomplish this, the Florida Commission on Education

31  Reform and Accountability and the school districts and schools

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS for CS for SB 1756

    Amendment No.    





 1  shall carry out the duties assigned to them by ss. 229.594 and

 2  230.23(16), respectively.

 3         (2)  ESTABLISHMENT.--Based upon the recommendations of

 4  the Florida Commission on Education Reform and Accountability,

 5  the Legislature may enact such laws as it considers necessary

 6  to establish and maintain a state system of school improvement

 7  and accountability.  If, after considering the recommendations

 8  of the commission, the Legislature determines an adequate

 9  system of accountability to be in place to protect the public

10  interest, the Legislature may repeal or revise laws, including

11  fiscal policies, deemed to stand in the way of school

12  improvement.

13         (3)  COMMISSIONER.--The commissioner shall be

14  responsible for implementing and maintaining a system of

15  intensive school improvement and stringent education

16  accountability, which shall include policies and programs

17  based on the recommendations of the Florida Commission on

18  Education Reform and Accountability to.

19         (a)  Based on the recommendations of The Florida

20  Commission on Education Reform and Accountability, the

21  commissioner shall develop and implement the following

22  programs and procedures:

23         (a)1.  A system of data collection and analysis that

24  will improve information about the educational success of

25  individual students and schools. The information and analyses

26  must be capable of identifying educational programs or

27  activities in need of improvement, and reports prepared

28  pursuant to this paragraph subparagraph shall be distributed

29  to the appropriate school boards prior to distribution to the

30  general public.  This provision shall not preclude access to

31  public records as provided in chapter 119.

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS for CS for SB 1756

    Amendment No.    





 1         (b)2.  A program of school improvement that will

 2  analyze information to identify schools, educational programs,

 3  or educational activities in need of improvement.

 4         (c)3.  A method of delivering services to assist school

 5  districts and schools to improve.

 6         (d)4.  A method of coordinating with the state

 7  educational goals and school improvement plans any other state

 8  program that creates incentives for school improvement.

 9         (4)(b)  The commissioner shall be held responsible for

10  the implementation and maintenance of the system of school

11  improvement and education accountability outlined in this

12  section subsection.  There shall be an annual determination of

13  whether adequate progress is being made toward implementing

14  and maintaining a system of school improvement and education

15  accountability.

16         (5)(c)  The annual feedback report shall be developed

17  by the commission and the Department of Education.

18         (6)(d)  The commissioner and the commission shall

19  review each school board's feedback report and submit its

20  findings to the State Board of Education.  If adequate

21  progress is not being made toward implementing and maintaining

22  a system of school improvement and education accountability,

23  the State Board of Education shall direct the commissioner to

24  prepare and implement a corrective action plan. The

25  commissioner and State Board of Education shall monitor the

26  development and implementation of the corrective action plan.

27         (7)(e)  As co-chair of the Florida Commission on

28  Education Reform and Accountability,  The commissioner shall

29  appear before the appropriate committees of the Legislature

30  annually in October to report to the Legislature and recommend

31  changes in state policy necessary to foster school improvement

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS for CS for SB 1756

    Amendment No.    





 1  and education accountability. The report shall reflect the

 2  recommendations of the Florida Commission on Education Reform

 3  and Accountability. Included in the report shall be a list of

 4  the schools for which school boards have developed assistance

 5  and intervention plans and an analysis of the various

 6  strategies used by the school boards. School reports shall be

 7  distributed pursuant to this paragraph and s. 230.23(16)(e)

 8  according to guidelines adopted by the State Board of

 9  Education.

10         (8)(4)  DEPARTMENT.--

11         (a)  The Department of Education shall implement a

12  training program to develop among state and district educators

13  a cadre of facilitators of school improvement.  These

14  facilitators shall assist schools and districts to conduct

15  needs assessments and develop and implement school improvement

16  plans to meet state goals.

17         (b)  Upon request, the department shall provide

18  technical assistance and training to any school, school

19  advisory council, district, or school board for conducting

20  needs assessments, developing and implementing school

21  improvement plans, developing and implementing assistance and

22  intervention plans, or implementing other components of school

23  improvement and accountability. Priority for these services

24  shall be given to schools designated as performance grade

25  category "D" or "F" and school districts in rural and sparsely

26  populated areas of the state.

27         (c)  Pursuant to s. 24.121(5)(d), the department shall

28  not release funds from the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund

29  to any district in which a school does not have an approved

30  school improvement plan, pursuant to s. 230.23(16), after 1

31  full school year of planning and development, or does not

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS for CS for SB 1756

    Amendment No.    





 1  comply with school advisory council membership composition

 2  requirements pursuant to s. 229.58(1). The department shall

 3  send a technical assistance team to each school without an

 4  approved plan to develop such school improvement plan or to

 5  each school without appropriate school advisory council

 6  membership composition to develop a strategy for corrective

 7  action.  The department shall release the funds upon approval

 8  of the plan or upon establishment of a plan of corrective

 9  action. Notice shall be given to the public of the

10  department's intervention and shall identify each school

11  without a plan or without appropriate school advisory council

12  membership composition.

13         (9)(5)  STATE BOARD.--The State Board of Education

14  shall adopt rules pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54

15  necessary to implement a state system of school improvement

16  and education accountability and shall specify required annual

17  reports by schools and school districts. Such rules must be

18  based on recommendations of the Commission on Education Reform

19  and Accountability and must include, but need not be limited

20  to, a requirement that each school report identify the annual

21  Education Enhancement Trust Fund allocations to the district

22  and the school and how those allocations were used for

23  educational enhancement and supporting school improvement.

24         (10)(6)  EXCEPTIONS TO LAW.--To facilitate innovative

25  practices and to allow local selection of educational methods,

26  the commissioner may waive, upon the request of a school

27  board, requirements of chapters 230 through 239 of the Florida

28  School Code that relate to instruction and school operations,

29  except those pertaining to civil rights, and student health,

30  safety, and welfare. The Commissioner of Education is not

31  authorized to grant waivers for any provisions of law

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS for CS for SB 1756

    Amendment No.    





 1  pertaining to the allocation and appropriation of state and

 2  local funds for public education; the election, compensation,

 3  and organization of school board members and superintendents;

 4  graduation and state accountability standards; financial

 5  reporting requirements; public meetings; public records; or

 6  due process hearings governed by chapter 120. Prior to

 7  approval, the commissioner shall report pending waiver

 8  requests to the state board on a monthly basis, and shall,

 9  upon request of any state board member, bring a waiver request

10  to the state board for consideration. If, within 2 weeks of

11  receiving the report, no member requests that a waiver be

12  considered by the state board, the commissioner may act on the

13  original waiver request. No later than January 1 of each year,

14  the commissioner shall report to the President and Minority

15  Leader of the Senate and the Speaker and Minority Leader of

16  the House of Representatives all approved waiver requests in

17  the preceding year.

18         (a)  Graduation requirements in s. 232.246 must be met

19  by demonstrating performance of intended outcomes for any

20  course in the Course Code Directory unless a waiver is

21  approved by the commissioner. In developing procedures for

22  awarding credits based on performance outcomes, districts may

23  request waivers from State Board of Education rules relating

24  to curriculum frameworks and credits for courses and programs

25  in the Course Code Directory. Credit awarded for a course or

26  program beyond that allowed by the Course Code Directory

27  counts as credit for electives. Upon request by any school

28  district, the commissioner shall evaluate and establish

29  procedures for variations in academic credits awarded toward

30  graduation by a high school offering six periods per day

31  compared to those awarded by high schools operating on other

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS for CS for SB 1756

    Amendment No.    





 1  schedules.

 2         1.  A school board may originate a request for waiver

 3  and submit the request to the commissioner if such a waiver is

 4  required to implement districtwide improvements.

 5         2.  A school board may submit a request to the

 6  commissioner for a waiver if such request is presented to the

 7  school board by a school advisory council established pursuant

 8  to s. 229.58 and if such a waiver is required to implement a

 9  school improvement plan required by s. 230.23(16). The school

10  board shall report annually to the Florida Commission on

11  Education Reform and Accountability, in conjunction with the

12  feedback report required pursuant to this section subsection

13  (3), the number of waivers requested by school advisory

14  councils, the number of such waiver requests approved and

15  submitted to the commissioner, and the number of such waiver

16  requests not approved and not submitted to the commissioner.

17  For each waiver request not approved, the school board shall

18  report the statute or rule for which the waiver was requested,

19  the rationale for the school advisory council request, and the

20  reason the request was not approved.

21         3.  When approved by the commissioner, a waiver

22  requested under this paragraph is effective for a 5-year

23  period.

24         (b)  Notwithstanding the provisions of chapter 120 and

25  for the purpose of implementing this subsection, the

26  commissioner may waive State Board of Education rules if the

27  school board has submitted a written request to the

28  commissioner for approval pursuant to this subsection.

29         (c)  The written request for waiver of statute or rule

30  must indicate at least how the general statutory purpose will

31  be met, how granting the waiver will assist schools in

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS for CS for SB 1756

    Amendment No.    





 1  improving student outcomes related to the student performance

 2  standards adopted by the state board pursuant to subsection

 3  (5), and how student improvement will be evaluated and

 4  reported. In considering any waiver, The commissioner shall

 5  not grant any waiver that would impair the ensure protection

 6  of the health, safety, welfare, or and civil rights of the

 7  students or the and protection of the public interest.

 8         (d)  Upon denying a request for a waiver, the

 9  commissioner must state with particularity the grounds or

10  basis for the denial. The commissioner shall report the

11  specific statutes and rules for which waivers are requested

12  and the number and disposition of such requests to the

13  Legislature, the State Board of Education, and the Florida

14  Commission on Education Reform and Accountability for use in

15  determining which statutes and rules stand in the way of

16  school improvement.

17         (e)1.  Schools designated in performance grade category

18  "A," making excellent progress, shall, if requested by the

19  school, be given deregulated status as specified in s.

20  228.0565(5), (7), (8), (9), and (10).

21         2.  Schools that have improved at least two performance

22  grade categories and that meet the criteria of the Florida

23  School Recognition Program pursuant to s. 231.2905 may be

24  given deregulated status as specified in s. 228.0565(5), (7),

25  (8), (9), and (10).

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27

28  ================ T I T L E   A M E N D M E N T ===============

29  And the title is amended as follows:

30         On page 2, lines 28-30, delete those lines

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS for CS for SB 1756

    Amendment No.    





 1  and insert:

 2         removing obsolete provisions; deleting

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