The Final Countdown

With still no movement on the budget and little conversation about the continuing resolution from last year’s budget, it is unclear what the General Assembly’s plan is moving forward. The “Medicaid Light” bill as they call it still remains on the House Calendar with no movement, and it is unclear what the GA will do following a federal judge striking down a work requirement on another state’s medicaid expansion bill. Despite the budget inaction, there have been education bills moving this week. Multiple bills passed in the House and were sent to the Senate, including SB 199: Child Sex Abuse/Strengthen Laws,SB 230: NC Military and Veterans Act of 2019, and SB 295: Standards of Student Conduct. All education bills that were on the Senate Calendar this week were withdrawn and referred to the Senate Education Committee.

The Governor vetoed one education bill thus far, which was SB 392: Various Charter School Changes that make changes to the laws affecting charter schools. Governor Cooper’s veto message states his concern about the lift on enrollment caps for virtual charter schools due to the low performance of schools in this pilot.

Two bills I got to do a lot of research on their impacts this week were SB 522: Low Perf. Schools/Stand. Student Conduct and SB 438: Excellent Public Schools Act of 2019.

SB 522 makes changes regarding Innovative School Districts (ISD) and teacher licensure exams:

• Qualifying School Definition: Changes the current definition of a qualifying school and replaces it with “A school that is a Title I school in the lowest-performing five percent (5%) of school performance grades of all Title I schools.”
  • Requires the SBE to transfer the lowest scoring qualifying school in the state to the ISD.
• Selection Process: Requires the SBE to select the innovative schools through the following 4-year process:
  • Year 1- Qualifying List: Notifies the Local Board of Education (LBE) of qualification and requires the LBE to notify parents of the school’s status, potential impacts, and plans for improvement.
  • Year 2- Watch List: Moves schools that were on the qualifying list the previous year that still qualify to the watch list. The LBE and superintendent will be provided notice, performance data, and considerations for improvement. LBE must notify parents.
  • Year 3- Warning List: Moves schools that were on the watch list that still qualify to the warning list. Notice would be provided, and the LBE would hold a public hearing to share the potential impacts, the selection process, and resources for comprehensive support.
  • Year 4- Selection: Requires the SBE to place a school that was on the warning list the year before that still qualifies and is one of the 5 lowest qualifying schools on the ISD warning list.
  • Voluntary Selection:An LBE can request the SBE to select a qualifying school for transfer to the ISD if no more than 5 schools are selected in a given year.
• Innovation Zones: Makes changes that allows LBEs to move low-performing schools into an innovation zone even if it has less than 35% low-performing schools and compares innovation zones with other low-performing schools for performance comparison.
• Joint Study: Requires the State Superintendent and ISD superintendent to conduct a study on best options and statutory requirements for innovative schools and report to the JLEOC by March 15, 2020.
• Teacher Licensure Exams: This bill would make the following changes:
  • Allows individuals with a lateral entry license or a residency license that has been renewed twice to be eligible for a limited license.
  • Provides a one-year extension for individuals with lateral entry or residency licenses that would have expired by June 30, 2019 due to failure to fulfill licensure examination requirements.
  • Clarifies the new three-year timeline for individuals that hold an initial professional license by July 1, 2019 as well as new applicants.

Following conference committee, the House and the Senate have adopted the conference report for SB 438 that modifies the already active Read to Achieve Program to attain statewide reading proficiency by the third grade.

The bill adds the following provisions:

• Requires Individual Reading Plans (IRPs) to be developed for any student below grade level reading based on diagnostic assessments and is to be a living document that is adjusted based on student progress. The IRP would include:
  • Specific reading deficiencies for the student based on data;
  • Goals and benchmarks for growth;
  • Ways that progress will be evaluated;
  • Instructional support and interventions the student will receive;
  • Notice to parents on specific strategies to be implemented to assist the student;
  • And literacy resources for the student at home and at school.
• Requires the task force of the Excellent Public Schools Act to adopt a plan to improve literacy instruction. The plan should include:
  • Clear goals to ensure the literacy instruction that is provided in public schools is evidence-based, designed to improve outcomes in early literacy skills, and consistently delivered by teachers;
  • Latest researched strategies for evidence-based instruction that lead to student learning;
  • And components essential to preparing educators in literacy instruction.
• Requires the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT) to provide professional development that prioritizes delivery of early learning and literacy instruction services and increase the number of teachers participating in their evidence-based programs.
  • NCCAT must compile report and submit to the Superintendent of Public Instruction that includes the number of teacher’s served by NCCAT’s programs, evaluation data on the programs offered, and the satisfaction of teachers and local school administrative boards with programming.
• Requires local school administrative boards to submit a plan for operation of its reading camps to DPI and must be approved by DPI. The plans should include:
  • Efforts to staff reading camps with highly qualified teachers;
  • Incorporation of feedback received from DPI on the previous year’s plan;
  • And any partnerships with community organizations and other local school administrative units.
• Requires DPI to provide analysis on all formative and diagnostic assessment data using a uniform template for all data collected.

Finally, it was my last day working full time and I am SOOO upset. I am so thankful for the opportunity and cannot wait to fully reflect on the whole experience. I look forward to staying on part time at DPI and the Superintendent’s Office this school year.