2019 -- S 0865

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LC002553

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2019

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- THE RHODE ISLAND BOARD OF EDUCATION ACT

     Introduced By: Senators Pearson, McCaffrey, and Algiere

     Date Introduced: May 08, 2019

     Referred To: Senate Education

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 16-1-5 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-1 entitled "State

Department of Elementary and Secondary Education [See Title 16 Chapter 97 - The Rhode Island

Board of Education Act]" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     16-1-5. Duties of commissioner of elementary and secondary education.

     It shall be the duty of the commissioner of elementary and secondary education:

     (1) To carry out the policies and program formulated by the board of regents for

elementary and secondary education.

     (2) To evaluate credentials of applicants for certificates, to verify that the certification of

teachers is in accordance with law and established standards, and to issue certificates at the

direction of the board.

     (3) To certify the approval of accredited schools.

     (4) To recommend to the board an outline of the subjects and courses of study and the

instructional standards for elementary and secondary schools.

     (5) To approve the distribution of state school funds in accordance with law and the

regulations of the board.

     (6) To verify that school sites and school building plans are in accordance with law and

regulations.

     (7) To exercise supervision over school libraries and library services.

     (8) To certify that school bus routes and schedules and all contracts for pupil

transportation conform with provisions of law and the rules and regulations of the board.

     (9) To require the observance of all laws relating to schools and education.

     (10) To interpret school law and to decide such controversies as may be appealed to the

commissioner from decisions of local school committees.

     (11) To prepare and recommend standard forms for the use of local schools.

     (12)(i) To prepare, with the assistance of the department of administration, manuals of

uniform budgetary and standard financial records and procedures for local school officers. The

board of regents shall adopt uniform local school budgeting procedures no later than July 1, 1989,

and those procedures should include, at a minimum, the following:

     (A) Provision for uniform classification of revenues and expenditures;

     (B) Requirements of detailed expenditure estimates and a table of organization including

the proposed staffing of each school;

     (C) Estimates of receipts and expenditures for the last two (2) completed fiscal years, the

current and ensuing fiscal years; and

     (ii) To carry out the purpose of this subsection a sum of ten thousand dollars ($10,000)

not otherwise appropriated shall be included in the appropriation made to support the department

of elementary and secondary education.

     (13) To receive general supervision from the board of regents for elementary and

secondary education and to appoint the several officers and employees of the department subject

to the provisions of the State Merit System Act, chapters 3 and 4 of title 36.

     (14) To establish health education, alcohol and substance abuse programs for students in

grades kindergarten (K) through twelve (12), in accordance with § 35-4-18. The program will

consist of the following: A mandated state health education, alcohol and substance abuse,

curriculum for grades kindergarten (K) through twelve (12), a mandated assessment program in

the areas of health, fitness, alcohol and substance abuse, and an in-service training program which

will be developed specifically for the implementation of the mandated curriculum.

     (15)(i) To appoint a three (3) member committee for the purpose of choosing a "teacher

of the year" among teachers in public school grades kindergarten (K) through twelve (12). The

"teacher of the year" shall receive an award of one thousand dollars ($1,000).

     (ii) It is the intent of the general assembly that the funds necessary to carry out the

provisions of this subdivision shall be provided within the annual appropriations act.

     (a) The council on elementary and secondary education (“the council”), with the advice

and consent of the board of education (“the board”), shall appoint a commissioner of elementary

and secondary education (“the commissioner”). The commissioner shall serve at the pleasure of

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the council, provided that the commissioner's initial engagement by the council shall be for a

period of not more than three (3) years.

     (b) The position of commissioner shall be in the unclassified service of the state, and he

or she shall serve as the chief executive officer of the council and as the chief administrative

officer of the department.

     (c) The commissioner of elementary and secondary education shall have the duties that

are defined in this section and in this title and any other additional duties that may be determined

by the council, and the commissioner shall perform any other duties that may be vested in the

commissioner by law.

     (d) In addition to the general supervision of the department and the appointment of the

several officers and employees of the department, it shall be the duty of the commissioner:

     (1) To develop and implement a systematic program of information gathering,

processing, and analysis addressed to every aspect of elementary and secondary education in the

state, especially as that information relates to current and future educational needs;

     (2) To prepare a master plan for elementary and secondary education in the state, which

coordinates the goals and objectives of the public elementary and secondary education sector with

the activities of the nonpublic elementary and secondary education sector where feasible;

     (3) To implement broad policy as it pertains to the goals and objectives established by the

board of education; to enforce standards; and to exercise general supervision over public

elementary and secondary education in the state and over all elementary and secondary nonpublic

education in the state;

     (4) To perform the duties vested in the board and the council with relation to nonpublic

elementary and secondary educational institutions within the state under the terms of chapter 40

of this title, and other laws that affect nonpublic elementary and secondary education in the state;

     (5) To communicate with and to seek the advice of those concerned with and affected by

the board’s and the council's determinations;

     (6) To institute a process to review and revise statewide academic standards for the core

subjects of mathematics, English language arts, science and technology, history and social

studies, world languages, and the arts;

     (7) To develop statewide academic standards for the core subjects of mathematics,

English language arts, science and technology, history and social studies, world languages, and

the arts;

     (8) To institute a process for reviewing and revising curriculum frameworks that align

with the statewide academic standards for mathematics, English language arts, science and

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technology, history and social studies, world languages, and the arts;

     (9) To develop curriculum frameworks that align with the statewide academic standards

for mathematics, English language arts, science and technology, history and social studies, world

languages, and the arts;

     (10) To institute a process for reviewing and identifying high-quality curriculum and

materials in English language arts, mathematics, science and technology, history and social

studies, world languages, and the arts;

     (11) To identify high-quality curriculum and materials in English language arts,

mathematics, science and technology, history and social studies, world languages, and the arts.

     (12) To prepare a plan each year for providing statewide assistance in the preparation and

implementation of professional development plans;

     (13) To assist the council on elementary and secondary education in the preparation and

presentation annually to the state budget officer, in accordance with § 35-3-4, of a total state

elementary and secondary educational budget, which shall include, but not be limited to, the

budget of the department of elementary and secondary education, subcommittees, and agencies,

and state aid to local school districts;

     (14) Upon direction of the council on elementary and secondary education, to approve the

distribution and allocation of state school funds in accordance with law and the regulations of the

council on elementary and secondary education, including but not limited to, state aid to local

school districts;

     (15) To be responsible, upon direction of the council on elementary and secondary

education, for the allocation of appropriations, the acquisition, holding, disposition, and general

management of property;

     (16) To be responsible for the coordination of the various elementary and secondary

educational functions among the local educational agencies (LEAs) of the state, and to encourage

and to assist in the cooperation among them in order to achieve maximum efficiency and

economy;

     (17) To carry out the policies and programs formulated by the council on elementary and

secondary education;

     (18) To supervise the operation of the department of elementary and secondary

education, to have the duties as defined in this chapter, and other additional duties and

responsibilities that may be assigned by the council on elementary and secondary education;

     (19) To receive general supervision from the council on elementary and secondary

education and to appoint the several officers and employees of the department subject to the

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provisions of the State Merit System Act, chapters 3 and 4 of title 36;

     (20) To supervise the following specific functions:

     (i) To recommend to the board the basic subjects and courses of study to be taught and

instructional standards to be maintained in the public elementary and secondary schools in the

state;

     (ii) To recommend standards and qualifications of teachers; to evaluate credentials of

applicants for certificates; to verify that the certification of teachers is in accordance with law and

established standards; and to issue certificates upon approval of standards and qualifications by

the council on elementary and secondary education, at the direction of the board;

     (iii) To certify as to the necessity of school construction and that standards and design are

in accordance with law and regulations of the council on elementary and secondary education; to

approve a design for school construction throughout the state; and to verify that school sites and

school building plans are in accordance with law and regulations;

     (iv) To certify that school library standards and services are in accordance with law and

regulations of the council on elementary and secondary education and to exercise supervision

over school libraries and library services;

     (v) To recommend to the council on elementary and secondary education relating to the

transportation of pupils to school and to certify that school bus routes and schedules and all

contracts for pupil transportation conform with provisions of law and the rules and regulations of

the council;

     (vi) To require the observance of all laws relating to elementary and secondary schools

and education;

     (vii) To interpret school law and to decide such controversies as may be appealed to the

commissioner from decisions of local school committees;

     (viii) To prepare and recommend standard forms for use by local schools when reporting

to the department of elementary and secondary education;

     (ix)(A) To prepare, with the assistance of the department of administration, manuals of

uniform budgetary and standard financial records and procedures for local school officers; to

prepare uniform budgeting procedures for local school districts; and to prepare standard

accounting and auditing procedures for local school districts, except for the purposes of § 16-24-

2(3), which shall be done in conjunction with the auditor general. The council shall adopt uniform

local school budgeting procedures no later than July 1, 1989, and those procedures should

include, at a minimum, the following:

     (I) Provisions for uniform classification of revenues and expenditures;

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     (II) Requirements of detailed expenditure estimates and a table of organization including

the proposed staffing of each school; and

     (III) Estimates of receipts and expenditures for the last two (2) completed fiscal years, the

current fiscal year, and ensuing fiscal years.

     (B) To carry out the purpose of this subsection, a sum of ten thousand dollars ($10,000)

not otherwise appropriated shall be included in the appropriation made to support the department

of elementary and secondary education; and

     (x) To determine when special purpose grants made to local school districts shall be

eligible for reimbursement through the school operations aid formula in accordance with chapter

7 of this title, and to designate the purpose(s) for which the local school district may use the

school operations aid reimbursement, including reimbursement on local matching funds used to

support the special purpose grant. The commissioner shall promulgate and adopt rules and

regulations to carry out the intent of this subsection;

     (21) To establish health education and alcohol and substance use disorder programs for

students in grades prekindergarten (pre-K) through twelve (12), in accordance with § 35-4-18.

The program will consist of the following:

     (i) A mandated state health education and alcohol and substance use disorder curriculum

for grades prekindergarten (pre-K) through twelve (12);

     (ii) A mandated assessment program in the areas of health, fitness, and alcohol and

substance use disorder; and

     (iii) An in-service training program that will be developed specifically for the

implementation of the mandated curriculum;

     (22) To appoint a three (3) member committee for the purpose of choosing a "teacher of

the year" among teachers in public school grades prekindergarten (pre-K) through twelve (12).

The "teacher of the year" shall receive an award of one thousand dollars ($1,000).

     (i) It is the intent of the general assembly that the funds necessary to carry out the

provisions of this subsection shall be provided within the annual appropriations act.

     (23) To approve and accredit elementary and secondary schools in accordance with the

policy and regulations of the council on elementary and secondary education and to certify the

approval of accredited schools;

     (24) To be responsible for the administration of policies, rules, and regulations of the

board of education and the council on elementary and secondary education with relation to the

entire field of elementary and secondary education within the state, not specifically granted to any

other department, board, or agency and not incompatible with law; and

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     (25) To receive from law enforcement agencies a list periodically of the names of Rhode

Island missing children and to disseminate these lists to local school districts.

     SECTION 2. Sections 16-2-9 and 16-2-11 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-2 entitled

"School Committees and Superintendents [See Title 16 Chapter 97 - The Rhode Island Board of

Education Act]" are hereby amended to read as follows:

     16-2-9. General powers and duties of school committees.

     (a) The Unless the responsibility is otherwise delegated by this chapter, the entire care,

control, and management of all public school interests of the several cities and towns shall be

vested in the school committees of the several cities and towns. School committees shall have, in

addition to those enumerated in this title, the following powers and duties:

     (1) To identify educational needs in the community.

     (2) To develop education policies to meet the needs of the community.

     (3) To provide for and assure the implementation of federal and state laws, the

regulations of the board of regents for elementary and secondary education, and of local school

policies, programs, and directives.

     (4) To provide for the evaluation of the performance of the school system.

     (5) To have responsibility for the care and control of local schools.

     (6) To have overall policy responsibility for the employment and discipline of school

department personnel.

     (7) To approve a master plan defining goals and objectives of the school system. These

goals and objectives shall be expressed in terms of what men and women should know and be

able to do as a result of their educational experience. The committee shall periodically evaluate

the efforts and results of education in light of these objectives.

     (8) To provide for the location, care, control, and management of school facilities and

equipment.

     (9) To adopt a school budget to submit to the local appropriating authority.

     (10) To adopt any changes in the school budget during the course of the school year.

     (11) To approve expenditures in the absence of a budget, consistent with state law.

     (12) To employ a superintendent of schools and assign any compensation and other terms

and conditions as the school committee and superintendent shall agree, provided that in no event

shall the term of employment of the superintendent exceed three (3) years. Nothing contained in

this chapter shall be construed as invalidating or impairing a contract of a school committee with

a school superintendent in force on May 12, 1978.

     (13) To give advice and consent on the appointment by the superintendent of all school

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department personnel.

     (14)(13) To establish minimum standards for personnel, to adopt personnel policies, and

to approve a table of organization.

     (15)(14) To establish standards for the evaluation of personnel.

     (16)(15) To establish standards for conduct in the schools and for disciplinary actions.

     (17)(16) To hear appeals from disciplinary actions.

     (18)(17) To enter into contracts; provided, however, that notwithstanding any other

provision of the general or public laws, whether of specific or general application, and

notwithstanding the provisions of any charter of any municipality where the school committee is

appointed and not elected, but not including, the Central Falls school district board of trustees

established by § 16-2-34, the power and duty to enter into collective bargaining agreements shall

be vested in the chief executive officer of the municipality and not in the school committee.

     (19)(18) To publish policy manuals which shall include all school committee policies.

     (20)(19) To establish policies governing curriculum, courses of instruction, and text

books textbooks.

     (21)(20) To provide for transportation services which meet or exceed standards of the

board of regents for elementary and secondary education.

     (22)(21) To make any reports to the department of education as are required by the board

of regents for elementary and secondary education.

     (23)(22) To delegate, consistent with law, any responsibilities to the superintendent as the

committee may deem appropriate.

     (24)(23) To address the health and wellness of students and employees.

     (25)(24) To establish a subcommittee of the school board or committee to decrease

obesity and address school health and wellness policies for students and employees consistent

with § 16-21-28.

     (26)(25) To annually undertake a minimum of six (6) hours of professional development

as set forth and described in § 16-2-5.1.

     (b) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to limit or interfere with the rights of teachers

and other school employees to collectively bargain pursuant to chapters 9.3 and 9.4 of title 28 or

to allow any school committee to abrogate any agreement reached by collective bargaining.

     (c) The elected school committees of each city, town, or regional school district, or the

chief executive officer of any municipality having an appointed school committee, shall have the

power to bind their successors and successor committees by entering into contracts of

employment in the exercise of their governmental functions.

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     (d) Notwithstanding any provisions of the general laws to the contrary, the requirement

defined in subsections (d) through (f) of this section shall apply. The school committee of each

school district shall be responsible for maintaining a school budget which that does not result in a

debt.

     (e) The school committee shall, within thirty (30) days after the close of the first and

second quarters of the state's fiscal year, adopt a budget as may be necessary to enable it to

operate without incurring a debt, as described in subsection (d).

     (f) In the event that any obligation, encumbrance, or expenditure by a superintendent of

schools or a school committee is in excess of the amount budgeted or that any revenue is less than

the amount budgeted, the school committee shall within five (5) working days of its discovery of

potential or actual over expenditure or revenue deficiency submit a written statement of the

amount of and cause for the over obligation or over expenditure or revenue deficiency to the city

or town council president and any other person who by local charter or statute serves as the city

or town's executive officer; the statement shall further include a statement of the school

committee's plan for corrective actions necessary to meet the requirements of subsection (d). The

plan shall be approved by the auditor general and also submitted to the division of municipal

finance.

     (g) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, whether of general or specific

application, and notwithstanding any contrary provision of any city or town charter or ordinance,

the elected school committee of any city, town, and regional school district shall be, and is hereby

authorized to retain the services of such independent legal counsel as it may deem necessary and

convenient. Any counsel so retained shall be compensated out of funds duly appropriated to the

school committee, and in no event shall the independent counsel be deemed to be an employee of

the pertinent city or town for any purpose.

     16-2-11. General powers and duties of superintendent.

     (a) The superintendent of schools employed in accordance with the provisions of this

chapter shall, under the direction of the school committee, have the care and supervision of the

public schools and shall be the chief administrative agent of the school committee. The

superintendent shall have any duties as are defined in this section and in this title and any other

duties as may be determined by the school committee, and shall perform any other duties as may

be vested in him or her by law. In addition to the care and supervision of public schools and the

appointment of employees of the district, it shall be the duty of the superintendent:

     (1) To implement policies established by the school committee.

     (2) To recommend educational plans, policies, and programs to meet the needs of the

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district.

     (3) To recommend policies governing curriculum, courses of instruction, textbooks, and

transportation of students.

     (4) To comply with provisions of federal and state law and local charter provisions and

ordinances.

     (5) To have administrative responsibility for the school system.

     (6) To oversee the care, control, and management of school facilities and equipment. To

appoint principals for each public school within the district at levels of compensation determined

in accordance with policies established by the school committee.

     (7) To appoint all school department personnel with the consent of the school committee.

To appoint administrators and other personnel not assigned to individual schools at levels of

compensation determined in accordance with policies established by the school committee and

collective bargaining agreements.

     (8) To administer oversee the personnel function of the school department consistent with

personnel standards, policies, and the table of organization established by the school committee.

     (9) To provide for the evaluation of department personnel appointed by the

superintendent.

     (10) To prepare a school budget for consideration by the school committee.

     (11) To authorize purchases consistent with the adopted school budget, policies, and

directives of the school committee, and applicable municipal policies, ordinances, and charter

provisions.

     (12) To be responsible for keeping the records of the school system.

     (13) To report to the school committee on a regular basis the financial condition of the

school system.

     (14) To be responsible oversee for discipline in the school system.

     (15) To evaluate all schools within the school system and to report to the school

committee the conformity with regulations of the board of regents education and the policies,

programs, and directives of the school committee.

     (16) To report to the school committee on the operation of the school system, including

an annual report on the district's progress.

     (b) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to limit or interfere with the rights of teachers

and other school employees to collectively bargain pursuant to chapters 9.3 and 9.4 of title 28, or

to allow any school superintendent to abrogate any agreement reached by collective bargaining.

     (c) If at any time during the fiscal year the superintendent of schools determines, or is

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notified by the city or town chief charter officer or treasurer, that the estimated school expenses

may exceed all revenue appropriated by the state or city or town or otherwise for public schools

in the city or town, the superintendent of schools shall recommend to the school committee and

shall, in order to provide for continuous regular public school operations consistent with the

requirements of § 16-2-2 without regard to financial conditions, subsequently report to the city or

town treasurer and chief charter officer what action will be taken to prevent an excess of

expenditures, encumbrances, and accruals over revenues for public schools in the city or town.

     SECTION 3. Chapter 16-2 of the General Laws entitled "School Committees and

Superintendents [See Title 16 Chapter 97 - The Rhode Island Board of Education Act]" is hereby

amended by adding thereto the following section:

     16-2-11.1. General powers and duties of school principals.

     (a) Principals employed under this section shall be the educational administrators and

managers of their schools and shall supervise the operation and management of their schools and

school property, subject to the supervision and direction of the superintendent. The principal shall

have any duties as are defined in this section and in this title and shall perform any other duties as

may be vested in him or her by law. In addition to serving as the educational administrator and

manager of his or her school, it shall be the duty of the principal:

     (1) In consultation with the school improvement team, to hire all teachers, athletic

coaches, instructional or administrative aides, and other personnel assigned to the school,

consistent with district personnel policies, collective bargaining agreements, and budgetary

restrictions, and subject to the approval of the superintendent.

     (2) To administer the personnel function of the school as it relates to any teachers,

athletic coaches, instructional or administrative aides, and other personnel assigned to the school,

consistent with district personnel policies, collective bargaining agreements, and budgetary

restrictions, subject to review and prior approval by the superintendent and subject to the

provisions of this chapter.

     (3) To oversee the care, control, and management of school facilities and equipment.

     (4) In consultation with the school improvement team, to prepare a school budget for

consideration by the superintendent.

     (5) To provide for the evaluation of personnel assigned to the school, including all

teachers, consistent with the standards developed by the school committee pursuant to §16-2-

9(a)(14).

     (b) It shall be the responsibility of the principal, in consultation with professional staff of

the building, to promote participatory decision making among all professional staff for the

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purpose of developing educational policy.

     (c) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to limit or interfere with the rights of teachers

and other school employees to collectively bargain pursuant to §28-9.3 and §28-9.4, or to allow

any school principal to abrogate any agreement reached by collective bargaining.

     SECTION 4. Sections 16-53.1-2 and 16-53.1-3 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-53.1

entitled "Rhode Island School Improvement Team Act" are hereby amended to read as follows:

     16-53.1-2. Establishment of school improvement teams.

     (a)(1) The school board or school committees of the cities and towns shall establish a

school improvement team for each school in the district, and shall develop procedures for the

election and appointment of school improvement team members. Each school improvement team

shall be composed of the principal and an appropriately balanced number of teachers, education

support employees, students, parents, and other business and community citizens who are

representative of the ethnic, racial, and economic community served by the school, provided that

vocational-technical center and high school school-improvement teams shall include students,

and middle and junior high school school-improvement teams may include students. Members

representing teachers, education support employees, students, and parents shall be selected by

their peer groups at the school in a fair and equitable manner. At the middle and high school

levels, where there are designated department heads, those department heads will also be included

on the school improvement team.

     (2) Business and other community members shall be selected by the school according to a

procedure established by the school board. The school board shall review the membership

composition of each school improvement team. Should the school board determine that the

membership elected by the school is not representative of the ethnic, racial, and economic

community served by the school, the board shall appoint additional members to achieve proper

representation. For the purposes of school improvement teams, the term "teacher" includes

classroom teachers, certified student services personnel, and media specialists. For purposes of

this subsection, "education support employee" means any person employed by a school who is

not defined as instructional or administrative personnel pursuant to law and whose duties require

twenty (20) or more hours in each normal working week.

     (b) The school board may establish a district school improvement team that is

representative of the district and composed of teachers, students, parents, and other citizens or a

district school improvement team which that may be comprised of representatives of each school

improvement team.

     16-53.1-3. Duties of the school improvement teams.

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     Each school improvement team shall perform any functions that are prescribed by

regulations of the school board or school committee; no school improvement team shall have any

of the powers and duties now reserved by law to the school board. Each school improvement

team shall assist in the preparation and evaluation of the school improvement plans and shall

provide any assistance that the principal may request in preparing the school's annual budget and

plan as required by law.

     (a) The school improvement team, including the school principal, shall meet regularly

and shall assist in the identification of the educational needs of the students attending the school;

make recommendations to the principal for the development, implementation, and assessment of

the curriculum accommodation plan required pursuant to § 16-3.3-1; and shall assist in the review

of the annual school budget and in the formulation of a school improvement plan, as provided in

subsection (b) of this section.

     (b) The principal of each school, in consultation with the school improvement team

established pursuant to this section, shall on an annual basis, in conformity with § 16-3.3-3,

develop and submit to the district superintendent a plan for improving student performance. The

superintendent shall review and approve the plan, after consultation with the school committee.

Plans shall be prepared in a manner and form prescribed by the department of elementary and

secondary education and shall conform to any policies and practices of the district consistent

therewith. If the superintendent does not approve a plan submitted by the principal, the plan shall

be returned to the principal who shall, after consultation with the school improvement team,

resubmit the plan to the superintendent who shall review and approve the resubmitted plan, after

consultation with the school committee.

     (c) Nothing contained in this section shall prevent the school committee from granting a

school improvement team additional authority in the area of educational policy; provided,

however, that school improvement teams shall have no authority over the rights of teachers and

other school employees to collectively bargain pursuant to chapters 9.3 and 9.4 of title 28, and

provided further that school improvement teams have no authority to abrogate any agreement

reached by collective bargaining.

     SECTION 5. Section 16-59-6 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-59 entitled "Council on

Postsecondary Education [See Title 16 Chapter 97 - The Rhode Island Board of Education Act]"

is hereby repealed.

     16-59-6. Commissioner of postsecondary education.

     The council on postsecondary education, with approval of the board, shall appoint a

commissioner of postsecondary education, who shall serve at the pleasure of the council,

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provided that his or her initial engagement by the council shall be for a period of not more than

three (3) years. For the purpose of appointing, retaining, or dismissing a commissioner of

postsecondary education, the governor shall serve as an additional voting member of the council.

The position of commissioner shall be in the unclassified service of the state and he or she shall

serve as the chief executive officer of the council on postsecondary education, the chief

administrative officer of the office of postsecondary commissioner, and the executive director of

the division of higher education assistance. The commissioner of postsecondary education shall

have any duties that are defined in this section and in this title and other additional duties as may

be determined by the council, and shall perform any other duties as may be vested in him or her

by law. In addition to these duties and general supervision of the office of postsecondary

commissioner and the appointment of the several officers and employees of the office, it shall be

the duty of the commissioner of postsecondary education:

     (1) To develop and implement a systematic program of information gathering,

processing, and analysis addressed to every aspect of higher education in the state, especially as

that information relates to current and future educational needs.

     (2) To prepare a strategic plan for higher education in the state aligned with the goals of

the board of education's strategic plan; to coordinate the goals and objectives of the higher public

education sector with the goals of the council on elementary and secondary education and

activities of the independent higher education sector where feasible.

     (3) To communicate with, and seek the advice of those concerned with, and affected by

the board of education's and council's determinations.

     (4) To implement broad policy as it pertains to the goals and objectives established by the

board of education and council on postsecondary education; to promote better coordination

between higher public education in the state, independent higher education in the state as

provided in subdivision (10) of this section, and pre k-12 education; to assist in the preparation of

the budget for public higher education; and to be responsible, upon direction of the council, for

the allocation of appropriations, the acquisition, holding, disposition of property.

     (5) To be responsible for the coordination of the various higher educational functions of

the state so that maximum efficiency and economy can be achieved.

     (6) To assist the board of education in preparation and maintenance of a five-year (5)

strategic funding plan for higher education; to assist the council in the preparation and

presentation annually to the state budget officer in accordance with § 35-3-4 of a total, public

higher educational budget.

     (7) To recommend to the council on postsecondary education, after consultation with the

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presidents, a clear and definitive mission for each public institution of higher learning.

     (8) To annually recommend to the council on postsecondary education, after consultation

with the presidents, the creation, abolition, retention, or consolidation of departments, divisions,

programs, and courses of study within the public colleges and universities to eliminate

unnecessary duplication in public higher education, to address the future needs of public higher

education in the state, and to advance proposals recommended by the presidents of the public

colleges and universities pursuant to §§ 16-32-2.1, 16-33-2.1 and 16-33.1-2.1.

     (9) To supervise the operations of the office of postsecondary commissioner, including

the division of higher education assistance, and any other additional duties and responsibilities

that may be assigned by the council.

     (10) To perform the duties vested in the council with relation to independent higher

educational institutions within the state under the terms of chapter 40 of this title and any other

laws that affect independent higher education in the state.

     (11) To be responsible for the administration of policies, rules, and regulations of the

council on postsecondary education with relation to the entire field of higher education within the

state, not specifically granted to any other department, board, or agency and not incompatible

with law.

     (12) To prepare standard accounting procedures for public higher education and all public

colleges and universities.

     (13) To carry out the policies and directives of the board of education and the council on

postsecondary education through the office of postsecondary commissioner and through

utilization of the resources of the public institutions of higher learning.

     (14) To enter into interstate reciprocity agreements regarding the provision of

postsecondary distance education; to administer such agreements; to approve or disapprove

applications to voluntarily participate in such agreements from postsecondary institutions that

have their principal place of business in Rhode Island; and to establish annual fees, with the

approval of the council on postsecondary education, for aforesaid applications to participate in an

interstate postsecondary distance education reciprocity agreement.

     (15) To the extent necessary for participation, and to the extent required and stated in any

distance learning reciprocity agreement, to implement procedures to address complaints received

from out-of-state students in connection with, or related to, any Rhode Island postsecondary

institution, public or private, that has been approved to participate in said reciprocity agreement.

     (16) To exercise all powers and duties of the division of higher education assistance as

set forth under the terms of chapter 57 of this title.

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     SECTION 6. Section 16-60-6 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-60 entitled "Council on

Elementary and Secondary Education [See Title 16 Chapter 97 - The Rhode Island Board of

Education Act]" is hereby repealed.

     16-60-6. Commissioner of elementary and secondary education.

     The council on elementary and secondary education, with the advice and consent of the

board of education, shall appoint a commissioner of elementary and secondary education who

shall serve at the pleasure of the council on elementary and secondary education, provided that

the commissioner's initial engagement by the council shall be for a period of not more than three

(3) years. For the purpose of appointing, retaining, or dismissing a commissioner, the governor

shall serve as an additional voting member of the council on elementary and secondary education.

The position of commissioner shall be in the unclassified service of the state and he or she shall

serve as the chief executive officer of the council on elementary and secondary education and as

the chief administrative officer of the department of elementary and secondary education. The

commissioner of elementary and secondary education shall have the duties that are defined in this

section and in this title and any other additional duties that may be determined by the council on

elementary and secondary education, and shall perform any other duties that may be vested in the

commissioner by law. In addition to the general supervision of the department of elementary and

secondary education and the appointment of the several officers and employees of the

department, it shall be the duty of the commissioner of elementary and secondary education:

     (1) To develop and implement a systematic program of information gathering,

processing, and analysis addressed to every aspect of elementary and secondary education in the

state, especially as that information relates to current and future educational needs.

     (2) To prepare a master plan for elementary and secondary education in the state; to

coordinate the goals and objectives of the public elementary and secondary education sector with

the activities of the nonpublic elementary and secondary education sector where feasible.

     (3) To communicate with and seek the advice of those concerned with and affected by the

board of education's and the council's determinations.

     (4) To implement broad policy as it pertains to the goals and objectives established by the

board of education; to enforce standards and to exercise general supervision over public

elementary and secondary education in the state and over all elementary and secondary nonpublic

education in the state as provided in subdivision (8) of this section; to assist in the preparation of

the budget for elementary and secondary education and to be responsible upon direction of the

council on elementary and secondary education for the allocation of appropriations, the

acquisition, holding, disposition, and general management of property.

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     (5) To be responsible for the coordination of the various elementary and secondary

educational functions among the educational agencies of the state including local school districts

and to encourage and to assist in the cooperation among them so that maximum efficiency and

economy may be achieved.

     (6) To assist the council on elementary and secondary education in the preparation and

presentation annually to the state budget officer, in accordance with § 35-3-4, of a total state

elementary and secondary educational budget which shall include, but not be limited to, the

budget of the department of elementary and secondary education, subcommittees and agencies,

and state aid to local school districts.

     (7) To supervise the operation of the department of elementary and secondary education,

to have the duties as defined in § 16-1-5 and in this title or in law wherever outlined, and other

additional duties and responsibilities that may be assigned by the council on elementary and

secondary education.

     (8) To perform the duties vested in the board of education and council on elementary and

secondary education with relation to nonpublic elementary and secondary educational institutions

within the state under the terms of chapter 40 of this title, and other laws that affect nonpublic

elementary and secondary education in the state.

     (9) To supervise the following specific functions:

     (i) To recommend the basic subjects and courses of study to be taught and instructional

standards to be maintained in the public elementary and secondary schools in the state.

     (ii) To recommend standards and qualifications of teachers and to issue certificates upon

approval of standards and qualifications by the council on elementary and secondary education.

     (iii) To distribute state school funds in accordance with law and regulations of the council

on elementary and secondary education.

     (iv) To certify as to the necessity of school construction and that standards and design are

in accordance with law and regulations of the council on elementary and secondary education and

to approve a design for school construction throughout the state.

     (v) To certify that school library standards and services are in accordance with law and

regulations of the council on elementary and secondary education.

     (vi) To recommend to the council on elementary and secondary education relating to the

transportation of pupils to school.

     (vii) To require the observance of all laws relating to elementary and secondary schools

and education.

     (viii) To interpret school law and to decide any controversies that may be appealed to him

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or her from decisions of local school committees.

     (ix) To prepare and recommend standard forms for the use of local schools when

reporting to the department of elementary and secondary education.

     (x) To prepare standard accounting and auditing procedures for local school districts,

except for the purposes of subdivision (3) of § 16-24-2 which shall be done in conjunction with

the auditor general.

     (xi) To prepare uniform budgeting procedures for local school districts.

     (xii) To determine when special purpose grants made to local school districts shall be

eligible for reimbursement through the school operations aid formula in accordance with chapter

7 of this title, and to designate the purpose(s) for which the local school district may use the

school operations aid reimbursement, including reimbursement on local matching funds used to

support the special purpose grant. The commissioner shall promulgate and adopt rules and

regulations to carry out the intent of this subsection.

     (10) To approve and accredit elementary and secondary schools in accordance with the

policy and regulations of the council on elementary and secondary education.

     (11) To be responsible for the administration of policies, rules, and regulations of the

board of education and the council on elementary and secondary education with relation to the

entire field of elementary and secondary education within the state not specifically granted to any

other department, board, or agency and not incompatible with law.

     (12) To receive from law enforcement agencies a list periodically of the names of Rhode

Island missing children and to disseminate these lists to local school districts.

     SECTION 7. Title 16 of the General Laws entitled "EDUCATION" is hereby amended

by adding thereto the following chapter:

CHAPTER 3.3

ANNUAL EVALUATION OF LOCAL EDUCATION AGENCIES AND PUBLIC SCHOOLS

     16-3.3-1. Performances of local education agencies and individual public schools;

Evaluation system; Assessment instruments; Reports.

     (a) The board of education (“board”) shall adopt a system for evaluating, on an annual

basis, the performance of both local education agencies and individual public schools. With

respect to individual schools, the system shall:

     (1) Include instruments designed to assess the extent to which schools and districts

succeed in improving or fail to improve student performance, as defined by:

     (i) Student acquisition of the skills, competencies, and knowledge called for by the

academic standards and embodied in the curriculum frameworks established pursuant to this

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chapter in the areas of mathematics, English language arts, science and technology, history and

social studies, world languages, and the arts; and

     (ii) Other gauges of student learning judged by the board to be relevant and meaningful to

students, parents, teachers, administrators, and taxpayers.

     (2) Be designed both to measure outcomes and results regarding student performance,

and to improve the effectiveness of curriculum and instruction.

     (3) In its design and application, strike a balance among considerations of accuracy,

fairness, expense, and administration.

     (4) Employ a variety of assessment instruments on either a comprehensive or statistically

valid sampling basis. Such instruments shall:

     (i) Be criterion-referenced, assessing whether students are meeting the academic

standards described in this chapter;

     (ii) As much as is practicable, especially in the case of students whose performance is

difficult to assess using conventional methods, include consideration of work samples, projects,

and portfolios, and shall facilitate authentic and direct gauges of student performance;

     (iii) Provide the means to compare student performance among the various school

systems and communities in the state, and between students in other states and in other nations,

especially those nations which compete with the state for employment and economic

opportunities;

     (iv) Be designed to avoid gender, cultural, ethnic, or racial stereotypes; and

     (v) Recognize sensitivity to different learning styles and impediments to learning, which

may include issues related, but not limited, to cultural, financial, emotional, health, and social

factors.

     (5) Take into account, on a nondiscriminatory basis, the cultural and language diversity

of students in the state and the particular circumstances of students with special needs.

     (6) Comply with federal requirements for accommodating children with special needs.

     (7) Allow all potential English-proficient students from language groups in which

English language learner programs are offered opportunities for assessment of their performance

in the language which best allows them to demonstrate educational achievement and mastery of

academic standards and curriculum frameworks established pursuant to this chapter. For the

purposes of this section, a "potential English proficient student'' shall be defined as a student who

is not able to perform ordinary class work in English; provided, however, that no student shall be

allowed to be tested in a language other than English for longer than three (3) consecutive years.

     (b) The board shall take all appropriate action to bring about and continue the state’s

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participation in the assessment activities of the National Assessment of Educational Progress and

in the development of standards and assessments by the New Standards Program.

     (c) In addition, comprehensive diagnostic assessment of individual students shall be

conducted at least in the fourth, eighth, and tenth grades. Said diagnostic assessments shall

identify academic achievement levels of all students in order to inform teachers, parents,

administrators, and the students themselves, as to individual academic performance.

     (d) The board shall develop procedures for updating, improving, or refining the

assessment system.

     (e) The commissioner of elementary and secondary education (“commissioner”) is

authorized and directed to gather information, including the information specified herein and such

other information as the board shall require, for the purposes of evaluating individual public

schools, school districts, and the efficacy and equity of state and federally-mandated programs.

All information gathered pursuant to this section shall be filed in the manner and form prescribed

by the department of education (“department”).

     (f) The board shall establish and maintain a data system to collect information from

school districts for the purpose of assessing the effectiveness of district evaluation systems in

assuring effective teaching and administrative leadership in the public schools. Such information

shall be made available in the aggregate to the public; provided, however, that the following

information shall be considered personnel information and shall not be subject to disclosure:

     (1) Any data or information that school districts, the department, or both create, send, or

receive in connection with an educator assessment that is evaluative in nature and that may be

linked to an individual educator, including information concerning:

     (i) An educator's formative assessment or evaluation;

     (ii) An educator’s summative evaluation or performance rating; or

     (iii) The student learning, growth, and achievement data that may be used as part of an

individual educator's evaluation

     (g) Each school district shall maintain individual records on every student and employee.

Each student record shall contain a unique and confidential identification number, basic

demographic information, program and course information, and such other information as the

department shall determine necessary. Said records shall conform to parameters established by

the department.

     (h) For the purposes of improving the performance of school districts, individual public

schools, and the efficacy and equity of state and federal programs, each district shall file with the

commissioner once in each three (3) year period a comprehensive, three (3) year district

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improvement plan. The plan shall:

     (1) Be developed and submitted in a manner and form prescribed by the department of

education.

     (2) To the extent feasible, be designed to fulfill all planning requirements of state and

federal education laws.

     (3) Include, but not be limited to:

     (i) An analysis of student and subgroup achievement gaps in core subjects;

     (ii) Identification of specific improvement objectives;

     (iii) A description of the strategic initiatives the district will undertake to achieve its

improvement objectives; and

     (iv) Performance benchmarks and processes for evaluating the effect of district

improvement initiatives.

     (4) Describe the professional development activities that will support each district

improvement initiative and the teacher induction and mentoring activities that will be undertaken

to support successful implementation of the district's improvement efforts.

     (i) On an annual basis, not later than September 1 of each year, each district shall prepare

and have available for state review an annual action plan. The district annual action plan shall:

     (1) Enumerate the specific activities, persons responsible, and timelines for action to be

taken as part of the strategic initiatives set forth in the district's three (3) year improvement plan;

and

     (2) Identify the staff and financial resources allocated to support these initiatives.

     (j) Annually, the principal of each school shall:

     (1) In consultation with the school improvement team, adopt student performance goals

for the schools consistent with the school performance goals established by the department of

education pursuant to state and federal law and regulations;

     (2) Consistent with any educational policies established for the district, assess the needs

of the school in light of those goals; and

     (3) Formulate a school plan to advance such goals and improve student performance. The

school's plan to support improved student performance shall:

     (i) Include, but not be limited to, the same components required for district improvement

plans;

     (ii) Conform to department and district specifications to ensure that such school

improvement plans meet state and federal law requirements; and

     (iii) Be submitted to the superintendent who shall review and approve the plan, after

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consultation with the school committee, not later than July 1 of the year in which the plan is to be

implemented, according to a plan development and review schedule established by the district

superintendent.

     (k) The three (3) year comprehensive district plan, annual district action plan, and annual

school improvement plan shall replace any district and school plans previously required pursuant

to the general laws or any regulation, which, in the professional opinion of the commissioner,

would be most effectively presented as part of the coordinated district or school plan for

improving student achievement. The department shall identify any additional reports or plans

required by any general law or regulation which can be incorporated into this single filing in

order to reduce paperwork and eliminate duplication.

     (l) Each school district in which more than twenty percent (20%) of the students score

below level two on the Rhode Island Comprehensive Assessment System exam, in this paragraph

called RICAS, shall submit a RICAS success plan to the department. The plan shall describe the

school district's strategies for helping each student to master the skills, competencies, and

knowledge required for the competency determination. The department shall:

     (1) Determine the elements that shall be required to be included in such plan. These

elements may include, but are not limited to, the following:

     (i) A plan to assess each student's strengths, weaknesses and needs;

     (ii) A plan to use summer school, after school, and other additional support to provide

each child with the assistance needed; and

     (iii) A plan for involving the parents of students.

     (2) Examine each district's plan and determine if it has a reasonable prospect of

significantly reducing the school district's failure rates.

     (3) Coordinate oversight of the RICAS success plans with existing audit and oversight

functions and with the RICAS grant program.

     (m) Each school district shall file a report with the department every year by a date and in

a format determined by the board. Said report shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

     (1) An outline of the curriculum and graduation requirements of the district;

     (2) Pupil/teacher ratios and class size policy and practice;

     (3) Teacher and administrator evaluation procedures;

     (4) Statistics, policies, and procedures relative to truancy and dropouts;

     (5) Statistics, policies, and procedures relative to expulsions and in-school and out-of-

school suspensions;

     (6) Percent of school-age children attending public schools;

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     (7) Racial composition of teaching and administrative staff;

     (8) Enrollment and average daily attendance;

     (9) The annual budgets and expenditures for both the district and the individual schools in

the district.

     (n) Each school district shall file a description of the following instructional procedures

and programs with the department every year:

     (1) Art and music programs;

     (2) Technology education;

     (3) Programs for gifted and talented students;

     (4) Adult education programs;

     (5) Library and media facilities;

     (6) Condition of instructional materials including textbooks, workbooks, audio-visual

materials, and laboratory materials;

     (7) Types and condition of computers and computer software;

     (8) Basic skills remediation programs;

     (9) Drug, tobacco, and alcohol abuse programs;

     (10) Multi-cultural education training for students and teachers;

     (11) Global education; and

     (12) Nutrition and wellness programs.

     (o) Each school district and charter school shall file an annual report for the current

school year regarding implementation with the department every November 1 in a format

determined by the board. The report shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

     (1) The number of children receiving services within each disability category;

     (2) The number of children, by grade level, within each such disability category and the

costs of services provided by each such category for such children receiving their education in a

publicly operated day school program;

     (3) The number of children, by grade level, within each such disability category and the

costs of services provided by each such category for such children receiving their education in a

private day setting;

     (4) The number of children, by grade level, within each such disability category and the

costs of services provided by each such category for such children receiving their education in a

private residential setting;

     (5) The number of children who remain in the regular education program full time; the

number of children who are removed from the regular classroom for up to twenty-five percent

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(25%) of the day; the number of children who are removed from the regular classroom between

twenty-five percent (25%) and sixty percent (60%) of the day;

     (6) The number of children who are placed in substantially separate classrooms on a

regular education school site;

     (7) The number of children, ages three (3) and four (4), who are educated in integrated

and separate classrooms; and the assignment by sex, national origin, economic status, race, and

religion, of children by age level to special education classes and the distribution of children

residing in the district by sex, national origin, economic status, race, and religion of children by

age level; and

     (8) The number of children, by grade level, receiving special education services who

have limited English proficiency.

     (p) Each school district and charter school shall furnish in a timely manner additional

information as the department shall request.

     (q) Each school district required to provide an English language learners program shall

file the following information with the department annually:

     (1) The type of English language learners programs provided;

     (2) With regard to limited English proficient students:

     (i) The number enrolled in each type of English language learners program;

     (ii) The number enrolled in English as a second language who are not enrolled in another

English language learners program;

     (iii) The results of basic skills, curriculum assessment, achievement, and language

proficiency testing, whether administered in English or in the native language;

     (iv) The absentee, suspension, expulsion, dropout, and promotion rates; and

     (v) The number of years each limited English proficient student has been enrolled in an

English language learners program;

     (3) The number of students each year who have enrolled in institutions of higher

education and were formerly enrolled in an English language learners program;

     (4) The academic progress in regular education of students who have completed an

English language learners program;

     (5) For each limited English proficient student receiving special education, the number of

years in the school district prior to special education evaluation and the movement in special

education programs by program placement;

     (6) The number of limited English proficient students enrolled in programs of

occupational or vocational education;

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     (7) The name, national origin, native language, certificates held, language proficiency,

grade levels, and subjects taught by each teacher of an English language learners program,

bilingual aides or paraprofessionals, bilingual guidance or adjustment counselors, and bilingual

school psychologists;

     (8) The per-pupil expenditures for each full time equivalent student enrolled in an

English language learners program;

     (9) The sources and amounts of all funds expended on students enrolled in English

language learners programs, broken down by local, state, and federal sources, and whether any

such funds expended supplanted, rather than supplemented, the local school district obligation;

     (10) The participation of parents through parent advisory councils; and

     (11) Whether there were any complaints filed with any federal or state court or

administrative agency, since the program's inception, concerning the compliance with federal or

state minimum legal requirements, the disposition of such complaint, and the monitoring and

evaluation of any such agreement or court order relative to such complaint.

     Said information shall be filed in the form of the total for the school district as well as

categorized by school, grade, and language.

     (r) The commissioner annually shall analyze and publish data reported by school districts

under this section regarding English language learners programs and limited English proficient

students. Publication shall include, but need not be limited to, availability on the department's

worldwide web site. The commissioner shall submit annually a report to the committees of

jurisdiction for education in the house of representatives and senate on such data on a statewide

and school district basis, including, but not limited to, by language group and type of English

language learners programs.

     16-3.3-2. Office of school and district accountability.

     (a) In order to support the commissioner, department, and board in fulfilling their duties,

there shall be, within the department, an office of school and district accountability, which shall

be comprised of and staffed with current personnel and which shall be funded with existing

budgetary resources; hereinafter, the office of school and district accountability shall be referred

to as the office. This office shall include personnel whose work and expertise focuses on assisting

districts and schools in their implementation of turnaround plans. This office also shall:

     (1) Provide a mechanism to review and report on the efforts of schools, charter schools,

and school districts, including regional school districts, to improve the academic achievement of

their students; and

     (2) Inform and assist the board and the department in fulfilling their broader

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responsibilities to promote high levels of achievement in the schools and districts of the state;

     (3) Be under the direction and supervision of one individual who shall be appointed by

the commissioner. This individual shall be responsible for:

     (i) The direction and supervision of the targeted assistance and intervention efforts of the

department under this chapter;

     (ii) Any assistance efforts as the commissioner deems necessary to correct deficiencies

identified by the office;

     (iii) Compliance with the accountability provisions of federal law; and

     (iv) Ensuring that the auditing and assistance functions of the department are aligned to

promote collaboration and communication across the auditing and assistance functions.

     (4) Ensure that school and district review teams include experienced practitioners in the

field of education, except that no member shall have been previously or currently employed by:

     (i) The school, district, or charter school being reviewed; or

     (ii) A district, charter school, or education collaborative serving a common student

population with the school, district, or charter school being reviewed.

     (5) Act as an auditing body, objectively reviewing the results of educational

measurements and tests conducted by or for the department in implementing the laws under this

chapter.

     (i) In executing this subsection, the office shall:

     (A) Perform no fewer than ten (10) school district audits annually, seventy-five percent

(75%) of which shall be in districts whose students achieve at low levels either in absolute terms

or relative to districts that educate similar student populations. The remainder of the audits shall

be divided equally among districts whose students achieve at high levels relative to districts that

educate similar student populations and randomly selected districts;

     (B) Ensure that no school or district is audited during the administration of any statewide

assessments;

     (C) Coordinate with other entities in the department to ensure that a school or district is

not subject to multiple comprehensive audits or reviews by the department or any accrediting

body within a nine (9) month period, unless the board specifically votes to do so on an emergency

basis;

     (D) Have the following duties relative to school district audits:

     (I) Objectively review the accuracy of the school and district reports by conducting or

contracting for periodic program and fiscal audits as necessary;

     (II) Undertake inspections of schools, charter schools, and school districts, including

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regional school districts, to evaluate efforts to improve and support the quality of instruction and

administration;

     (III) Review the district's RICAS success plan, if one was required pursuant to law, and

evaluate the implementation of that plan;

     (IV) Review the district's implementation of any RICAS grants received to develop or

enhance academic support services for students scoring in level 1 or 2;

     (V) Evaluate the alignment of curriculum and professional development plans with the

state curriculum and assessments;

     (VI) Review the progress of overall student achievement;

     (VII) Evaluate student performance, school and district management, overall district

governance, and any other areas deemed necessary by the office; and

     (VIII) Ensure such audits are conducted in accordance with standards established by the

council of elementary and secondary education;

     (E) Following the school district audit, produce a comprehensive report detailing its

findings and observations, which the commissioner shall present to the council along with any

recommendations for further action to be taken by the council. After the council’s receipt of the

report, the commissioner shall issue recommendations to districts not requiring further action

relative to methods for improving any deficiencies identified by the office. The recommendations

shall be transmitted to the reviewed district's superintendent and school committee within ninety

(90) days of the council’s receipt of the report; and

     (F) Annually compile a report of best practices from the list of audits conducted that year

and distribute the compiled list to all school districts in the state.

     (6) For the purposes of any inspection or audit, have access to all necessary papers,

vouchers, books, and records pertaining to a school, including a charter school, a school district,

or a regional school district.

     (7) In establishing protocols for the conduct of school or district audits, to the extent

practicable, minimize the administrative burden on schools and districts by using existing,

recently-compiled, or readily-available data sources. Schools, school districts, and school

personnel shall cooperate with the office for any inspection or audit conducted pursuant to this

section including, but not limited to, participating in interviews and producing books and

documents. Each school district, including regional school districts and charter schools, shall

annually file with the office, on or before October 1, a copy of its current personnel contracts and

collective bargaining agreements in a form and manner prescribed by the commissioner. The

office shall ensure that any noncompliance with law, misfeasance, or malfeasance shall be

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referred to the commissioner for appropriate action.

     (8) Support the commissioner and the council in carrying out their duties under sections

related to underperforming schools. Nothing in this section shall be construed as limiting the

ability of the department to contract with individuals, external partners, or other entities to

support the assistance functions established by said sections.

     (b) The department shall transmit the office's findings, audit reports, recommendations,

and follow-up reports to the commissioner, the council on elementary and secondary education,

the attorney general, and a local public library in the audited districts. The department shall report

to the general assembly the results of its findings, audit reports, recommendations and follow-up

reports, and file such reports with the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate, who

shall forward the same to the senate president, the speaker of the house of representatives, and the

committees of educational jurisdiction.

     16-3.3-3. Underperforming or chronically underperforming schools; Creation and

submission of turnaround plan; Appointment of received; Annual review.

     (a) The commissioner of elementary and secondary education may, on the basis of

student performance data collected pursuant to this chapter, a school or district review performed

under this chapter, or regulations adopted by the council on elementary and secondary education,

designate one or more schools in a school district as underperforming or chronically

underperforming.

     (b) The council shall adopt regulations establishing standards for the commissioner to

make such designations on the basis of data collected pursuant to this chapter or information from

a school or district review performed pursuant this chapter.

     (c) Upon the release of the proposed regulations, the council shall file a copy thereof with

the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate who shall forward the regulations to

committees of jurisdiction for education issues. Within thirty (30) days of the filing, the

committee(s) may hold a public hearing to issue a report on the proposed regulations and file the

report with the council.

     (d) The council, pursuant to applicable law, may adopt final regulations, making

revisions to the proposed regulations as it deems appropriate after consideration of the report, and

shall file a copy of the final regulations with the chairpersons of the committees of jurisdiction on

education issues. Within thirty (30) days of the filing, the board shall file the final regulations

with the secretary of state.

     (e) Schools that score in the lowest twenty (20) percent statewide among schools serving

common grade levels on a single measure developed by the department that takes into account

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student performance data and, beginning on July 1, 2021, improvement in student academic

performance, shall be deemed eligible for designation as underperforming or chronically

underperforming. Not more than four percent (4%) of the total number of public schools may be

designated as underperforming or chronically underperforming at any given time.

     (f) In adopting regulations allowing the commissioner to designate a school as

underperforming or chronically underperforming, the council shall ensure that such regulations

take into account multiple indicators of school quality, such as student attendance, dismissal rates

and exclusion rates, promotion rates, graduation rates, or the lack of demonstrated significant

improvement for two (2) or more consecutive years in core academic subjects, either in the

aggregate or among subgroups of students, including designations based special education, low-

income, English language proficiency, and racial classifications.

     (g) Before a school is designated chronically underperforming by the commissioner, a

school must be designated underperforming and fail to improve.

     (h) An underperforming or chronically underperforming school described in the

following subsections shall operate in accordance with laws regulating other public schools,

except as such provisions may conflict with this section or any turnaround plans created

hereunder. A student who is enrolled in a school at the time it is designated as underperforming or

chronically underperforming shall retain the ability to remain enrolled in the school while

remaining a resident of the district if the student chooses to do so.

     (i) Upon the designation of a school as an underperforming school in accordance with

regulations developed pursuant to this section, the superintendent of the district, with approval by

the commissioner, shall create a turnaround plan for the school, under subsections (i) to (k),

inclusive. The commissioner may allow for an expedited turnaround plan for schools that have

been previously designated as underperforming and where the district has a turnaround plan that

has had a public comment period and approval of the local school committee.

     (j) Before the superintendent creates the turnaround plan required in this subsection, the

superintendent shall convene a local stakeholder group of not more than thirteen (13) individuals,

for the purpose of soliciting recommendations on the content of such plan to maximize the rapid

academic achievement of students at the school. The superintendent shall give due consideration

to the recommendations of the stakeholder group. The group shall include:

     (1) The commissioner, or a designee;

     (2) The chair of the school committee, or a designee;

     (3) The president of the local teacher's union, or a designee;

     (4) An administrator from the school, who may be the principal, chosen by the

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superintendent;

     (5) A teacher from the school, chosen by the faculty of the school;

     (6) A parent from the school, chosen by the local parent organization;

     (7) A representative of applicable state and local social service, health, and child welfare

agencies, chosen by the superintendent;

     (8) A representative of state and local workforce development agencies, chosen by the

superintendent;

     (9)(i) For elementary schools, a representative of an early education and care provider,

chosen by the commissioner of elementary and secondary education; or

     (ii) For middle schools or high schools, a representative of the higher education

community, selected by the council on postsecondary education;

     (10) A member of the community, appointed by the chief executive of the city or town;

     (11) A member of the professional staff within the department’s office of school and

district accountability, with expertise in assisting with turnaround plans;

     (12)(i) For elementary schools, a representative from the school, selected by the student

body, to represent the interests of students; or

     (ii) For middle schools or high schools, a student representative from the school, selected

by the student body; and

     (13) A paraprofessional or support staff member of the school, chosen by his or her peers

at the school.

     If the school or district does not have a parent organization or if the organization does not

select a parent, the superintendent shall select a volunteer parent of a student from the school. The

superintendent shall convene such group within thirty (30) days of the commissioner designating

a school as underperforming and the group shall make its recommendations to the superintendent

within forty-five (45) days of its initial meeting. Meetings of the local stakeholder group shall be

open to the public and the recommendations submitted to the superintendent under this subsection

shall be publicly available immediately upon their submission.

     (k) In creating the turnaround plan in subsections (i) and (j), the superintendent shall

include, after considering the recommendations of the local stakeholder group, provisions

intended to maximize the rapid academic achievement of students at the school and shall, to the

extent practicable, base the plan on student outcome data, including, but not limited to:

     (1) Data collected or information from a school or district review performed pursuant to

the provisions of this chapter;

     (2) Student achievement on the Rhode Island Comprehensive Assessment System;

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     (3) Other measures of student achievement, approved by the commissioner;

     (4) Student promotion and graduation rates;

     (5) Achievement data for different subgroups of students, including low-income students,

limited English-proficient students and students receiving special education; and

     (6) Student attendance, dismissal rates and exclusion rates.

     (l) The superintendent shall also include in the creation of the turnaround plan, after

considering the recommendations of the local stakeholder group, the following:

     (1) Steps to address social service and health needs of students at the school and their

families, to help students arrive and remain at school ready to learn; provided, however, that this

may include mental health and substance abuse screening;

     (2) Steps to improve or expand child welfare services and, as appropriate, law

enforcement services in the school community, in order to promote a safe and secure learning

environment;

     (3) Steps to improve workforce development services provided to students and their

families at the school, to provide students and families with meaningful employment skills and

opportunities;

     (4) Steps to address achievement gaps for limited English-proficient, special education

and low-income students;

     (5) Alternative English language learning programs for limited English proficient

students;

     (6) A financial plan for the school, including any additional funds to be provided by the

district, state, federal government or other sources; and

     (7) Recommendations to limit, suspend, or change one or more provisions of any

collective bargaining agreement, as the contract or agreement applies to the school.

     (m) The secretary of health and human services, director of the department of labor,

director of public safety and other applicable state and local social service, health and child

welfare officials shall coordinate with the superintendent regarding the implementation of

strategies pursuant to subsection (1) of this section that are included in a final turnaround plan and

shall, subject to appropriation, reasonably support such implementation consistent with the

requirements of state and federal law applicable to the relevant programs that each such official is

responsible for administering. The board of education and the commissioner of elementary and

secondary education shall assist the superintendent in facilitating the coordination.

     (n) To assess the school across multiple measures of school performance and student

success, the turnaround plan shall include measurable annual goals including, but not limited to:

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     (1) Student attendance, dismissal rates and exclusion rates;

     (2) Student safety and discipline;

     (3) Student promotion and graduation and dropout rates;

     (4) Student achievement on the Rhode Island Comprehensive Assessment System;

     (5) Progress in areas of academic underperformance;

     (6) Progress among subgroups of students, including low-income students, limited

English-proficient students and students receiving special education;

     (7) Reduction of achievement gaps among different groups of students;

     (8) Student acquisition and mastery of twenty-first century skills;

     (9) Development of college readiness, including at the elementary and middle school

levels;

     (10) Parent and family engagement;

     (11) Building a culture of academic success among students;

     (12) Building a culture of student support and success among school faculty and staff

and;

     (13) Developmentally appropriate child assessments from pre-kindergarten through third

grade, if applicable.

     (o) Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, in creating the turnaround

plan required in this section, the superintendent may, after considering the recommendations of

the group of stakeholders:

     (1) Expand, alter, or replace the curriculum and program offerings of the school,

including the implementation of research-based early literacy programs, early interventions for

struggling readers, and the teaching of advanced placement courses or other rigorous nationally or

internationally recognized courses, if the school does not already have such programs or courses;

     (2) Reallocate the uses of the existing budget of the school;

     (3) Provide additional funds to the school from the budget of the district, if the school

does not already receive funding from the district at least equal to the average per pupil funding

received for students of the same classification and grade level in the district;

     (4) Provide funds, subject to appropriation and following consultation with applicable

local unions, to increase the salary of any administrator or teacher in the school to attract or retain

highly-qualified administrators or teachers, or to reward administrators or teachers who work in

underperforming schools that achieve the annual goals set forth in the turnaround plan;

     (5) Expand the school day or school year or both of the school;

     (6) For an elementary school, add pre-kindergarten and full-day kindergarten classes, if

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the school does not already have such classes;

     (7) Following consultation with applicable local unions, review professional evaluations

currently performed under applicable laws and regulations, as well as any other relevant

considerations, to determine if personnel placements are appropriate; if after that review and

appropriate due process identified in this chapter, it is determined that any school personnel

should not remain in a specific position, all due process and applicable laws shall be followed

such that the employee may be placed in another role in the district, according to collective

bargaining agreements and applicable laws;

     (8) Limit, suspend, or change one or more school district policies or practices, as such

policies or practices relate to the school;

     (9) Include a provision of job-embedded professional development for teachers at the

school, with an emphasis on strategies that involve teacher input and feedback;

     (10) Provide for increased opportunities for teacher planning time and collaboration

focused on improving student instruction;

     (11) Establish a plan for professional development for administrators at the school, with

an emphasis on strategies that develop leadership skills and use the principles of distributive

leadership;

     (12) Establish steps to assure a continuum of high-expertise teachers by aligning the

following processes with a common core of professional knowledge and skill: hiring, induction,

teacher evaluation, professional development, teacher advancement, school culture, and

organizational structure;

     (13) Develop a strategy to search for and study best practices in areas of demonstrated

deficiency in the school;

     (14) Establish strategies to address mobility and transiency among the student population

of the school; and

     (15) Include additional components based on the reasons why the school was designated

as underperforming and the recommendations of the group of stakeholders.

     (p) If the superintendent determines that any school personnel should not remain in a

specific position pursuant to the provisions of this section, the employee shall retain such rights

as may be provided under applicable law or any collective bargaining agreement in relation to the

employee's ability to fill another position in the district; provided, however, that the employee

shall not have the right to displace any teacher with professional teacher status in any other school

during a school year.

     (q) A teacher with professional teacher status in a school declared underperforming or

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chronically underperforming may be reassigned; provided, however, that the teacher receives five

(5) days written notice of the decision to reassign which shall include, without limitation, an

explanation of the reason why the superintendent is reassigning the teacher; provided, further,

that the teacher may seek review of a reassignment decision within five (5) days after receiving

notice of the teacher's reassignment by filing a petition for expedited arbitration with the

commissioner; provided, further, that the commissioner shall cause an arbitrator to be selected

within three (3) days of receipt of petition and shall conduct and complete a hearing within ten

(10) days of receipt of the petition; provided, further, that in reviewing reassignment decisions,

the arbitrator shall consider the components of the turnaround plan, any personnel evaluations

conducted that are consistent with the guidelines established, and any other relevant

considerations; and provided, further, that the arbitrator's decision shall be issued within 10 days

from the completion of the hearing.

     (r) For a school with limited English-proficient students, the professional development

and planning time for teachers and administrators inclusive, shall include specific strategies and

content designed to maximize the rapid academic achievement of limited English-proficient

students at the school.

     (s) Within thirty (30) days of the local stakeholder group making recommendations,

pursuant to this chapter, the superintendent shall submit a turnaround plan to the local stakeholder

group, the school committee, and the commissioner, all of whom may propose modifications to

the plan. The superintendent shall make such plan immediately available to the public upon the

submission. The stakeholder group, the school committee and the commissioner shall submit any

proposed modifications to the superintendent not more than thirty (30) days after the date of

submission of the turnaround plan and the proposed modifications shall be made public

immediately upon their submission to the superintendent. The superintendent shall consider and

may incorporate the modifications into the plan if the superintendent determines that inclusion of

the modifications would further promote the rapid academic achievement of students at the

school or may alter or reject the proposed modifications submitted under this subsection. Within

thirty (30) days of receiving any proposed modifications under this subsection, the superintendent

shall issue a final turnaround plan for the school and the plan shall be made publicly available.

     (t) Within thirty (30) days of the issuance of a final turnaround plan pursuant to this

chapter, a school committee or local union may appeal to the commissioner regarding one or

more components of the plan, including the absence of one or more modifications proposed. The

commissioner may, in consultation with the superintendent, modify the plan if the commissioner

determines that:

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     (1) Such modifications would further promote the rapid academic achievement of

students in the applicable school;

     (2) A component of the plan was included, or a modification was excluded, on the basis

of demonstrably-false information or evidence; or

     (3) The superintendent failed to meet the requirements of subsections (i) to (s) of this

section. The decision of the commissioner regarding an appeal under this subsection shall be

made within thirty (30) days and shall be final.

     (u) If, after considering the recommendations of the group of stakeholders, the

superintendent considers it necessary to maximize the rapid academic achievement of students at

the applicable school by altering the compensation, hours, and working conditions of the

administrators, teachers, principal, and staff at the school, or by altering other provisions of a

contract or collective bargaining agreement applicable to the administrators, teachers, principal,

and staff, the superintendent may request that the school committee and any union bargain or

reopen the bargaining of the relevant collective bargaining agreement to facilitate such

achievement. The bargaining shall be conducted in good faith and completed not later than thirty

(30) days from the point at which the superintendent requested that the parties bargain. The

agreement shall be subject to ratification within ten (10) business days by the bargaining unit

members in the school. If the parties are unable to reach an agreement within thirty (30) days, or

if the agreement is not ratified within ten (10) business days by the bargaining unit members of

the school, the parties shall submit remaining unresolved issues to a joint resolution committee

for dispute resolution process on the next business day following the end of the thirty (30) day

bargaining period or failure to ratify.

     (v) The joint resolution committee shall be comprised of three (3) members: one of whom

shall be appointed by the employee organization within three (3) business days following the

submission of unresolved issues to the joint resolution committee, one of whom shall be

appointed by the school committee within three (3) business days following the submission of

unresolved issues to the joint resolution committee, and one of whom shall be selected through

the American Arbitration Association, who shall forthwith forward to the parties a list of three (3)

conciliators, each of whom shall have professional experience in elementary and secondary

education, from which the parties may agree upon a single conciliator; provided, however, that if

the parties cannot select a conciliator from among the three (3) within three (3) business days, the

American Arbitration Association shall select a conciliator from the remaining names. The joint

resolution committee shall conduct a dispute resolution process to be concluded within ten (10)

business days of selection. This process shall be conducted in accordance with the rules of the

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American Arbitration Association and consistent with this section. The fee for the process shall

be shared equally between the two (2) parties involved.

     (w) The joint resolution committee shall consider the positions of the parties, the

designation of the school as underperforming, and the needs of the students in the school.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, the decision of the joint resolution

committee shall be dispositive of all the issues in dispute and shall be submitted to the parties

within ten (10) business days of the completion of the process. Under no circumstance shall a

time extension be granted beyond ten (10) business days of the completion of the process. If a

decision is not submitted to the parties within ten (10) business days, the commissioner will

resolve all outstanding issues.

     (x) The superintendent may select an external receiver to operate the school and

implement the turnaround plan or to assist the superintendent with the implementation. The

superintendent may appoint the receiver if the superintendent determines that conditions exist in

the district that are likely to negatively affect his or her ability to implement the plan successfully.

A school committee may appeal to the commissioner the decision of the superintendent to

appoint an external receiver. The commissioner may reverse such decision only if he or she

determines that the superintendent made the decision on the basis of demonstrably-false

information or evidence. A receiver shall be an individual with a demonstrated record of success

in improving low-performing schools or the academic performance of disadvantaged students.

     (y) An external receiver selected by the superintendent to operate a school shall have full

managerial and operational control over the school as provided in the turnaround plan. For all

other purposes, the school district in which the school is located shall remain the employer of

record.

     (z) Each turnaround plan shall be authorized for a period of not more than three (3) years,

subject to this chapter. The superintendent or external receiver, as applicable, may develop

additional components of the turnaround plan pursuant to this section and shall develop annual

goals for each component of the plan, in a manner consistent with this section. The

superintendent or external receiver, as applicable, shall be responsible for meeting the goals of the

plan.

     (aa) Each school designated by the commissioner as underperforming under subsection

(a) of this section shall be reviewed by the superintendent, in consultation with the principal of

the school, at least annually. The purpose of the review shall be to determine whether the school

has met the annual goals in its turnaround plan and to assess the overall implementation of the

turnaround plan. The review shall be in writing and shall be submitted to the commissioner and

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the relevant school committee not later than July 1 for the preceding school year. The review

shall be submitted in a format determined by the department of elementary and secondary

education.

     (bb) If the commissioner determines that the school has met the annual performance

goals stated in the turnaround plan, the review shall be considered sufficient and the

implementation of the turnaround plan shall continue. If the commissioner determines that the

school has not met one or more goals in the turnaround plan and that the failure to meet the goals

may be corrected through reasonable modification of the plan, the superintendent may amend the

turnaround plan in a manner consistent with the provisions of this chapter. If the commissioner

determines that the school has substantially failed to meet one or more goals in the plan, the

commissioner may appoint an examiner to conduct an evaluation of the school's implementation

of the turnaround plan.

     (cc) If the commissioner determines that the school has substantially failed to meet

multiple goals in the plan, the commissioner may require changes to the turnaround plan to be

implemented by the superintendent in the following year or the appointment of an external

partner to advise and assist the superintendent in implementing the plan the following year. If the

changes to the turnaround plan require changes in a collective bargaining agreement applicable to

administrators, teachers or staff in the school, the bargaining procedure in this chapter shall be

used. If an underperforming school is operated by an external receiver, the commissioner may

require the superintendent to terminate the receiver and develop a new turnaround plan; provided,

however, that the superintendent shall not terminate the receiver before the completion of the first

full school year of the operation of the underperforming school.

     (dd) Upon the expiration of a turnaround plan, the commissioner shall conduct a review

of the school to determine whether the school has improved sufficiently, requires further

improvement or has failed to improve. On the basis of such review, the commissioner may

determine that:

     (1) The school has improved sufficiently for the designation of the school as

underperforming to be removed;

     (2) The school has improved, but the school remains underperforming, in which case the

superintendent may, with the approval of the commissioner, renew the plan or create a new or

modified plan for an additional period of not more than three (3) years, consistent with the

requirements of this chapter; or

     (3) Consistent with the requirements of subsection (a) of this section, the school is

chronically underperforming. The commissioner may recommend the appointment of an external

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receiver by the superintendent if the commissioner believes that a new or modified turnaround

plan implemented by the superintendent will not result in rapid improvement. In carrying out this

subsection, the superintendent shall:

     (i) In the case of a renewal of a turnaround plan, determine subsequent annual goals for

each component of the plan with the input of the local stakeholder group as defined in this

chapter; or

     (ii) Create a new or modified turnaround plan as necessary, consistent with the

requirements of this section.

     (ee) Upon the designation of a school as a chronically underperforming school in

accordance with the regulations developed pursuant to this section, the commissioner shall create

a turnaround plan for the school pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.

     (ff) Before creating the turnaround plan required in this subsection, the commissioner

shall convene a local stakeholder group of not more than thirteen (13) individuals for the purpose

of soliciting recommendations on the content of such plan in order to maximize the rapid

academic achievement of students. The commissioner shall give due consideration to the

recommendations of the stakeholder group. The group shall include:

     (1) The superintendent, or a designee;

     (2) The chair of the school committee, or a designee;

     (3) The president of the local teacher's union, or a designee;

     (4) An administrator from the school, who may be the principal, chosen by the

superintendent;

     (5) A teacher from the school chosen by the faculty of the school;

     (6) A parent from the school chosen by the local parent organization;

     (7) A representative of applicable state and local social service, health and child welfare

agencies, chosen by the commissioner;

     (8) A representative of state and local workforce development agencies, chosen by the

commissioner;

     (9)(i) For elementary schools, a representative of an early education and care provider,

chosen by the commissioner of elementary and secondary education; or

     (ii) For middle schools or high schools, a representative of the higher education

community, selected by the council on postsecondary education;

     (10) A member of the community appointed by the chief executive of the city or town;

     (11) A member of the professional staff within the department’s office of school and

district accountability, with expertise in assisting with turnaround plans;

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     (12)(i) For elementary schools, a representative from the school, selected by the student

body, to represent the interests of students; or

      (ii) For middle schools or high schools, a student representative from the school, selected

by the student body; and

     (13) A paraprofessional or support staff member of the school, chosen by his or her peers

at the school.

     If the school or district does not have a parent organization or if the organization does not

select a parent, the commissioner shall select a volunteer parent of a student from the school. The

commissioner shall convene the group within thirty (30) days of the designation of a school as

chronically underperforming and the group shall make its recommendations to the commissioner

within forty-five (45) days of its initial meeting. Meetings of the local stakeholder group shall be

open to the public and the recommendations submitted to the commissioner under this subsection

shall be publicly available immediately upon their submission.

     (gg) In creating the turnaround plan required in this chapter, the commissioner shall

include, after considering the recommendations of the local stakeholder group, provisions

intended to maximize the rapid academic achievement of students at the school and shall, to the

extent practicable, base the plan on student outcome data, including, but not limited to:

     (1) Data collected or information from a school or district review performed;

     (2) Student achievement on the Rhode Island Comprehensive Assessment System;

     (3) Other measures of student achievement, approved by the commissioner, as

appropriate;

     (4) Student promotion and graduation rates;

     (5) Achievement data for different subgroups of students, including low-income students,

limited English-proficient students and students receiving special education; and

     (6) Student attendance ,dismissal rates and exclusion rates.

     (hh) The commissioner shall include in the creation of the turnaround plan, after