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From the ECS State Policy Database 2011 State Policies / Activities

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Education Commission of the States • 700 Broadway, Suite 810 • Denver, CO 80203-3442 • 303.299.3600 • fax 303.296.8332 • www.ecs.org

The following summary includes policies enacted in 2011. This database is made possible by your state's fiscal support of the Education Commission of the States (ECS). Most entries are legislative, although rules/regulations and executive orders that make substantive changes are included. Every effort is made to collect the latest available version of policies; in some instances, recent changes might not be reflected. For expediency purposes minimal attention has been paid to style (capitalization, punctuation) and format. To view the documents, click on the blue triangle next to the topic of interest. To view all, press the button located at the top labeled "Expand All." Please cite use of the database as: Education Commission of the States (ECS) State Policy Database, retrieved [date]. State Status/Date Level Summary 21st Century Skills Accountability Accountability--Accreditation Accountability--Measures/Indicators Accountability--Reporting Results Accountability--Rewards Accountability--Sanctions/Interventions Accountability--Sanctions/Interventions--No Pass No Play Accountability--Sanctions/Interventions--Takeovers Accountability--School Improvement Adult Basic Education Assessment Assessment--Accommodations Assessment--College Entrance Exams Assessment--Computer Based Assessment--End-of-Course Assessment--Formative/Interim At-Risk (incl. Dropout Prevention) At-Risk (incl. Dropout Prevention)--Alternative Education At-Risk (incl. Dropout Prevention)--Drugs/Alcohol Attendance Attendance--Compulsory Attendance--Truancy Background Checks Bilingual/ESL Business Involvement Career/Technical Education Career/Technical Education--Career Academies/Apprenticeship Choice of Schools--Charter Schools Choice of Schools--Charter Schools--Charter Districts Choice of Schools--Charter Schools--Closings Choice of Schools--Charter Schools--Cyber Charters Choice of Schools--Charter Schools--Finance Choice of Schools--Charter Schools--Research Choice of Schools--Choice/Open Enrollment Choice of Schools--Innovation Schools Choice of Schools--Magnet or Specialized Schools Choice of Schools--Tax Credits Choice of Schools--Vouchers Choice of Schools--Vouchers--Privately Funded Civic Education Civic Education--Character Education Civic Education--Civic Knowledge and Literacy Civic Education--Pledge of Allegiance Class Size Counseling/Guidance Curriculum Curriculum--Arts Education Curriculum--Drivers Education Curriculum--Financial Literacy/Economics Ed. Curriculum--Foreign Language/Sign Language Curriculum--Health/Nutrition Education Curriculum--Language Arts Curriculum--Mathematics Curriculum--Physical Education Curriculum--Science Curriculum--Sex Education Curriculum--Social Studies/History Data-Driven Improvement Demographics--Enrollments Desegregation Economic/Workforce Development Equity Federal Finance Finance--Adequacy/Core Cost Finance--Aid to Private Schools Finance--Bonds Finance--District Finance--Facilities Finance--Federal Finance--Funding Formulas Finance--Local Foundations/Funds Finance--Lotteries Finance--Performance Funding Finance--Private Giving Finance--Resource Efficiency Finance--State Budgets/Expenditures Finance--Student Fees Finance--Taxes/Revenues Finance--Taxes/Revenues--Alternative Revenues Governance Governance--Deregulation/Waivers/Home Rule Governance--Ethics/Conflict of Interest Governance--Mandates Governance--School Boards Governance--School Boards--Training Governance--Site-Based Management Governance--State Boards/Chiefs/Agencies Health Health--Child Abuse Health--Mental Health Health--Nutrition Health--School Based Clinics or School Nurses Health--Suicide Prevention High School High School--Advanced Placement High School--College Readiness High School--Dropout Rates/Graduation Rates High School--Dual/Concurrent Enrollment High School--Early Colleges/Middle Colleges High School--Exit Exams High School--GED (General Education Development) High School--Graduation Requirements Instructional Approaches--Grading Practices Instructional Approaches--Homeschooling Integrated Services/Full-Service Schools International Baccalaureate Leadership Leadership--District Superintendent Leadership--District Superintendent--Compensation and Diversified Pay Leadership--Principal/School Leadership Leadership--Principal/School Leadership--Certification and Licensure Leadership--Principal/School Leadership--Compensation and Diversified Pay Leadership--Principal/School Leadership--Evaluation and Effectiveness Leadership--Principal/School Leadership--Induction Programs and Mentoring Leadership--Principal/School Leadership--Preparation Leadership--Principal/School Leadership--Preparation--Alternative Leadership--Principal/School Leadership--Professional Development Leadership--Principal/School Leadership--Tenure Mentoring/Tutoring Middle School Minority/Diversity Issues Minority/Diversity Issues--African American Minority/Diversity Issues--American Indian / Alaska Native / Native Hawaiian No Child Left Behind--Adequate Yearly Progress No Child Left Behind--Assessment No Child Left Behind--Consequences for Schools No Child Left Behind--Report Cards No Child Left Behind--School Support No Child Left Behind--Supplemental Services Online Learning--Digital/Blended Learning Online Learning--Virtual Schools/Courses P-16 or P-20 P-3 P-3 Child Care P-3 Content Standards and Assessment P-3 Ensuring Quality P-3 Finance P-3 Governance P-3 Grades 1-3 P-3 Health and Mental Health P-3 Kindergarten P-3 Kindergarten--Full-Day Kindergarten P-3 Preschool P-3 Special Ed./Inclusion P-3 Teaching Quality/Professional Development Parent/Family CA Vetoed 10/2011 P-12 Parent Trigger Amendments A.B. 203 From bill summary: Requires interventions to be implemented for a school that is identified as persistently lowest-achieving but does not receive specified school improvement grant funding. Requires a governing board of a local educational agency to allow pare... More... RI Signed into law 07/2011 P-12 Rhode Island Family Engagement Advisory Council H.B. 5995 Adds a new chapter to create the Rhode Island Family Engagement Advisory Council to promote family engagement with education practice in Rhode Island. Sets membership and duties. http://www.rilin.state.ri.us/PublicLaws/law11/law11246.htm... More... HI Adopted 06/2011 P-12 Family Engagement S.C.R. 145-11 Requests that the board of education and the department of education collaborate with parent organizations to develop statewide policies for family engagement for Hawaii's public schools. Requests that the board of education and the department of education rep... More... LA Signed into law 06/2011 P-12 Community Outreach Plans S.B. 216 Requires the superintendent of the Recovery School District (New Orleans) to develop a community outreach plan to engage parents and community leaders in the successful operation and academic improvement of all schools under its jurisdiction and to solicit inp... More... NC Signed into law 06/2011 P-12 Requires Involvement of Parent/Guardian Before Corporal Punishment Administered S.B. 498 Provides that corporal punishment will not be administered on a student whose parent or guardian has stated in writing that corporal punishment must not be administered to that student. Provides that parents/guardians must be given a form to make such an elect... More... NC Signed into law 06/2011 P-12 Classroom Placement for Multiple Birth Siblings S.B. 726 Allows the parent of multiple birth siblings who are assigned to the same grade level and school to request a consultative meeting with the school principal to consider that the initial school placement of the siblings be in the same classroom or in separate c... More... NV Signed into law 06/2011 P-12 Parent Involvement A.B. 224 Creates the Office of Parental Involvement and Family Engagement within the Department of Education. Describes the duties of the office, which include adopting policies and developing a list of practices designed to increase the involvement of parents and the ... More... OH Signed into law 06/2011 P-12 Parent Trigger Pilot for Columbus H.B. 153 - Parent Trigger Pilot for Columbus Establishes a pilot project for any school operated by the Columbus school district that has been ranked in the lowest 5% of all public schools statewide for three or more consecutive years. Requires the district board to implement any of five requested reform... More... SC Signed into law 06/2011 P-12 Postsec. Extends the Implementation Date of Personal Pathways to Success H.B. 3748 Extends the date by which the Education and Economic Development Act, now called Personal Pathways to Success, must be implemented fully (the primary goals of Personal Pathways to Success are to increase high school completion rates, better prepare students fo... More... TX Signed into law 06/2011 P-12 Parent Trigger Law--Local Board May Trump S.B. 738 Provides that if the commissioner is presented with a written petition signed by the parents of a majority of the students enrolled at a campus that has an "unacceptable" performance rating for three consecutive school years after the campus is reconstituted, ... More... NV Signed into law 05/2011 P-12 Parent Involvement S.B. 229 Revises the requirements for the policy adopted by the State Board of Education to encourage parental and family involvement in supporting the education of their children This bill requires the revised policy to include: (1) promotion of an atmosphere for pare... More... TN Signed into law 05/2011 P-12 Employee Leave Time for Volunteering S.B. 1880 Urges employers to develop programs under which their employees with children in school can take time off to volunteer in their children's schools. http://www.capitol.tn.gov/Bills/107/Bill/SB1880.pdf... More... AR Signed into law 04/2011 P-12 Classroom Assignment of Multiple Birth Siblings S.B. 268 Authorizes parents with multiple birth siblings who are assigned to the same grade level and school, prek-6 to request in writing that the school place the siblings in the same classroom or in separate classrooms. Allows districts to deny requests under certai... More... AR Signed into law 04/2011 P-12 Parental monitors on school buses S.B. 321 Authorizes a school district board of directors to create and implement a program to authorize a parent of a child enrolled in the school district to act as a monitor in a school bus. Directs the Commission for Arkansas Public School Academic Facilities and Tr... More... AZ Signed into law 04/2011 P-12 Parent Rights S.B. 1453 States that parents have a right to review learning material and activities and remove their child from certain activities or classes deemed harmful by the parent. http://www.azleg.gov/legtext/50leg/1r/bills/sb1453h.pdf... More... CO Signed into law 04/2011 P-12 Parental Involvement and School Improvement Plans H.B. 1126 Encourages districts to adopt policies to increase parental involvement. Requires schools that must develop improvement plans to notify parents of the issues giving rise to the need for such a plan, and to include other relevant information about the plan and ... More... MT Vetoed 04/2011 P-12 Parental Control Over Student Participation H.B. 456 Allows parental control over student participation in courses of instruction, assemblies, etc. that involve human sexual education. Requires districts to inform parents/guardians when such events will be held or taught. Prohibits districts from allowing any ab... More... AR Signed into law 03/2011 P-12 Parental Notification of Law Enforcement Involvement H.B. 1578 Concerns parental notification in cases of police investigation of possible child abuse. Directs principals to not provide parental notification if a request is made to interview a student during the course of an investigation of suspected child maltreatment a... More... AR Signed into law 03/2011 P-12 Parental Involvement Plans S.B. 740 Directs the department of education to monitor each school district's parental involvement plan to: (i) Evaluate whether the school district is implementing its plan and the implementation's effectiveness; and (ii) Assess the areas in which a school district n... More... MS Vetoed 03/2011 P-12 Parental Choice for Twin Placement/Loaning of Extra Textbooks S.B. 2536 Allows parental choice for the placement of twins or higher order multiples in seperate classrooms. Authorizes local boards to offer surplus inventory textbooks to parents or guardians of students residing in the district.(Vetoed because it is identical to H.B... More... MS Signed into law 03/2011 P-12 Classroom Placement of Twins H.B. 637 Allows parental choice for the placement of twins or higher order multiples in seperate classrooms. http://billstatus.ls.state.ms.us/documents/2011/pdf/HB/0600-0699/HB0637SG.pdf... More... OH Signed into law 03/2011 P-12 Family and Civic Engagement Teams H.B. 30 - Family and Civic Engagement Teams, Linkage Coordinators Repeals Section 3306.31, which required each district with a three-year average graduation rate of 80% or less to have a linkage coordinator to serve as the primary mentor, coach and motivator for at-risk students and coordinate those students' participation i... More... VA Signed into law 03/2011 P-12 Electronic Records and Signatures H.B. 2243 Authorizes local school boards to adopt and implement policies pursuant to which electronic records and electronic signatures may be accepted from any parent, guardian, or other person having control or charge of a child enrolled in the relevant school divisio... More... Postsecondary Postsecondary Accountability Postsecondary Accountability--Accreditation Postsecondary Accountability--Student Learning Postsecondary Affordability Postsecondary Affordability--Financial Aid Postsecondary Affordability--Textbooks Postsecondary Affordability--Tuition/Fees Postsecondary Affordability--Tuition/Fees--Prepd/College Savings Plans Postsecondary Affordability--Tuition/Fees--Undocumented Immigrants Postsecondary Faculty Postsecondary Faculty--Compensation Postsecondary Faculty--Intellectual Property Postsecondary Faculty--Tenure Postsecondary Finance Postsecondary Finance--Efficiency/Performance-Based Funding Postsecondary Finance--Facilities Postsecondary Finance--Revenue and Expenditures Postsecondary Governance and Structures Postsecondary Governance and Structures--Administrative/Leadership Issues Postsecondary Governance and Structures--State Executives/State Agencies Postsecondary Institutions Postsecondary Institutions--Community/Technical Colleges Postsecondary Institutions--For-Profit/Proprietary Postsecondary Institutions--Four-Year Baccalaureate Postsecondary Institutions--HBCUs/Minority-Serving Institutions Postsecondary Institutions--Private/Independent Postsecondary Online Instruction Postsecondary Participation--Access Postsecondary Participation--Admissions Requirements Postsecondary Participation--Affirmative Action Postsecondary Participation--Enrollments (Statistics) Postsecondary Students Postsecondary Students--Adults Postsecondary Students--Disabled Postsecondary Students--Foster Youth Postsecondary Students--Graduate/Professional Postsecondary Students--International Postsecondary Students--Low-Income Postsecondary Students--Military Postsecondary Students--Minority Postsecondary Success Postsecondary Success--Completion Postsecondary Success--Developmental/Remediation Postsecondary Success--Retention/Persistence Postsecondary Success--Transfer/Articulation Private Schools Privatization Promising Practices Promotion/Retention Public Involvement Reading/Literacy Reading/Literacy--Adult Literacy Religion Remediation (K-12) Rural Scheduling/School Calendar Scheduling/School Calendar--Day/Class Length Scheduling/School Calendar--Extended Day Programs Scheduling/School Calendar--Summer School Scheduling/School Calendar--Week Scheduling/School Calendar--Year Scheduling/School Calendar--Year Round School Climate/Culture School Safety School Safety--Bullying Prevention/Conflict Resolution School Safety--Code of Conduct School Safety--Corporal Punishment School Safety--Disaster/Emergency Preparedness School Safety--Expulsion/Suspension School Safety--Sexual Harassment and Assault School Safety--Special Education School Safety--Uniforms/Dress Codes School/District Structure/Operations School/District Structure/Operations--District Consolidation/Deconsolidation School/District Structure/Operations--District Size School/District Structure/Operations--Facilities School/District Structure/Operations--Food Service School/District Structure/Operations--Libraries School/District Structure/Operations--Personnel (Non-Teaching) School/District Structure/Operations--School Size School/District Structure/Operations--Shared Services School/District Structure/Operations--Staffing Ratios School/District Structure/Operations--Transportation Service-Learning Special Education Special Education--Federal Law/Regulations Special Education--Finance Special Education--Placement Special Education--Transition Special Populations--Corrections Education Special Populations--Foster Care Special Populations--Gifted and Talented Special Populations--Homeless Education Special Populations--Immigrant Education Special Populations--Military Standards Standards--Common Core State Standards State Longitudinal Data Systems State Policymaking State Policymaking--Task Forces/Commissions STEM Student Achievement Student Surveys Students--Athletics/Extracurricular Activities Students--Employment Students--Incentives Students--Records/Rights Teaching Quality Teaching Quality--Certification and Licensure Teaching Quality--Certification and Licensure--Alternative Teaching Quality--Certification and Licensure--Assignment Teaching Quality--Certification and Licensure--Highly Qualified Teachers Teaching Quality--Certification and Licensure--Natl. Bd. for Prof. Teach. Stds. Teaching Quality--Certification and Licensure--Special Education Teaching Quality--Certification and Licensure--State Prof. Standards Bds. Teaching Quality--Certification and Licensure--Substitute Teachers Teaching Quality--Compensation and Diversified Pay Teaching Quality--Compensation and Diversified Pay--Pay-for-Performance Teaching Quality--Compensation and Diversified Pay--Retirement/Benefits Teaching Quality--Evaluation and Effectiveness Teaching Quality--Induction Programs and Mentoring Teaching Quality--Paraprofessionals Teaching Quality--Preparation Teaching Quality--Professional Development Teaching Quality--Recruitment and Retention Teaching Quality--Recruitment and Retention--At-Risk Schools Teaching Quality--Recruitment and Retention--High-Needs Subjects Teaching Quality--Reduction in Force Teaching Quality--Teacher Attitudes Teaching Quality--Teacher Rights Teaching Quality--Tenure or Continuing Contract Teaching Quality--Unions/Collective Bargaining Teaching Quality--Unions/Collective Bargaining--Strikes Technology Technology--Devices/Software/Hardware Technology--Equitable Access Technology--Funding Issues Technology--Teacher/Faculty Training Textbooks and Open Source Urban--Change/Improvements