Florida Senate - 2021                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SB 7070
       
       
       
       
       
       
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                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
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       The Committee on Rules (Thurston) recommended the following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment to Amendment (502390) (with title
    2  amendment)
    3  
    4         Between lines 142 and 143
    5  insert:
    6         Section 3. Notwithstanding s. 1008.25, Florida Statutes, a
    7  parent or guardian may request that his or her K-5 public school
    8  student be retained for the 2021-2022 school year in the grade
    9  level to which the student was assigned at the beginning of the
   10  2020-2021 school year, provided that such request is made for
   11  academic reasons.
   12         (1) A parent or guardian who wishes for his or her student
   13  to be retained as provided by this act must submit, in writing,
   14  to the school principal a retention request that specifies the
   15  academic reasons for the retention. Only requests received by
   16  the principal on or before June 30, 2021, must be considered. A
   17  principal may consider a request received after that date at his
   18  or her discretion.
   19         (2)(a) A principal who considers a retention request
   20  submitted pursuant to this subsection shall inform the student’s
   21  teachers of the retention request and collaboratively discuss
   22  with the parent or guardian any basis for agreement or
   23  disagreement with the request. As part of the discussion with
   24  the parent or guardian, the principal shall disclose that
   25  retention may impact the student’s eligibility to participate in
   26  high school interscholastic or intrascholastic sports due to the
   27  student’s age.
   28         (b) In lieu of retention, the principal, teachers, and
   29  parent or guardian may collaborate to develop a customized 1
   30  year education plan for the student with the intent of helping
   31  the student return to grade level readiness by the end of the
   32  next academic year. Such plan may include, but need not be
   33  limited to, supplemental educational support, services, and
   34  interventions; summer education; promotion in some, but not all,
   35  courses; and midyear promotion.
   36         (c) The parent’s or guardian’s decision to promote or
   37  retain his or her student after discussing the retention request
   38  with the principal shall control.
   39         (3) If a student retained under this subsection has an
   40  individual education plan (IEP) in effect, the student’s IEP
   41  team shall convene to review and revise the student’s IEP, as
   42  appropriate.
   43         (4) By June 30, 2022, school districts shall report to the
   44  Department of Education the number of students retained pursuant
   45  to this act for all or part of the 2021-2022 school year.
   46  
   47  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
   48  And the title is amended as follows:
   49         Delete line 168
   50  and insert:
   51         educational institution; authorizing a parent or
   52         guardian to request that his or her K-5 student be
   53         retained in a grade level for academic reasons for a
   54         specified school year; requiring that such a request
   55         be submitted in a specified manner; requiring school
   56         principals to consider such requests if they are
   57         timely received; authorizing school principals to
   58         consider requests that are not timely received;
   59         requiring a school principal who considers a request
   60         for retention to inform the student’s teachers of the
   61         request and collaboratively discuss with the parent or
   62         guardian any basis for agreement or disagreement with
   63         the request; requiring such discussion to disclose
   64         that retention may impact the student’s eligibility to
   65         participate in high school interscholastic or
   66         intrascholastic sports; authorizing the principal,
   67         teachers, and parent or guardian to collaborate to
   68         develop a customized 1-year education plan for the
   69         student in lieu of retaining the student; requiring a
   70         parent’s or guardian’s decision regarding retention to
   71         control; requiring the individual education plan (IEP)
   72         team for a retained student to review and revise the
   73         student’s IEP, as appropriate; requiring school
   74         districts to report certain data to the department by
   75         a specified date; providing an effective date.