Bill Summary for H 734 (2019-2020)

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Summary date: 

Apr 11 2019

Bill Information:

View NCGA Bill Details2019-2020 Session
House Bill 734 (Public) Filed Thursday, April 11, 2019
AN ACT TO CREATE THE NORTH CAROLINA COLLABORATIVE SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PILOT PROGRAM.
Intro. by Johnson, Horn.

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Bill summary

Requires the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) to establish the North Carolina Collaborative School Improvement Pilot Program (pilot) as a three-year pilot program that leverages independent school turnaround experts in a pay-for-performance model to provide direct support for low-performing schools. Requires selecting 10 low-performing schools by October 1, 2019, for participation in the pilot; sets out additional guidance for selecting those schools. Requires the local board of education of a pilot school to prioritize funding and resources to the pilot school, and grant the school streamlined authority over staff, schedule, policies, budget, and academic programs to implement the school turnaround plan. Requires DPI, by October 2, 2019, to identify at least two turnaround experts from which a pilot school must choose. Sets out criteria for those experts. 

Requires the local board of education of a pilot school to establish, by December 1, 2019, a school turnaround committee composed of the specified members. Also requires the local board of education, by February 1, 2020, to partner with the school turnaround committee to select a turnaround expert from those identified by DPI; prohibits selecting an expert that is the local school administrative unit or an employee thereof. 

Sets out steps and requirements that must be taken when awarding a contract to a turnaround expert.

Specifies a turnaround expert's ten duties, including recommending changes to the school's culture, curriculum, assessments, instructional practices, governance, finances, policies, or other areas based on data collected by the expert, monitoring the effectiveness of a school turnaround plan, and giving quarterly progress reports to DPI. 

Requires the turnaround committee, in consultation with the expert, to develop and implement a school turnaround plan that meets the specified requirements. Requires the plan to be submitted, by June 15, 2020, to the local board of education for approval; allows the committee to appeal the disapproval of a plan. Requires the local board of education to submit the plan by July 15, 2020, to DPI for approval; allows the local board of education to appeal the disapproval of a plan. Sets out timelines for appeals.

Requires the State Board of Education to adopt rules that provide consequences for a pilot school that does not meet the exit criteria set by DPI by the later of June 30, 2022, or the end of the school year in which the pilot school is granted an extension if one has been granted. 

Requires DPI to report annually from November 30, 2020, to November 30, 2022, on the implementation of the pilot to the specified NCGA committee. Specifies minimum information to be included in the report. Requires DPI to select an independent research organization to conduct a report on the longitudinal outcome of the pilot. Requires the organization to issue an interim report to the same NCGA committee by November 30, 2022, and a final report on November 30, 2025; sets out minimum information that is to be included in the report.