AB 961 makes the first "down payment" toward providing Schools of Greatest Need with the assistance they need to improve student learning. It creates the High Priority School Grant Program that will fund participation in the program. The HPSGP schools will be funded for a four-year period.
Eligibility
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Voluntary program - schools volunteer for participation
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Priority given to 1st decile, then 2nd decile, etc. Schools selected based on scores
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Schools eligible for HPSGP even if they have met their growth targets
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$200 million committed for four years - funding will cover about 80% of Decile 1 schools
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$400/student total (Current Decile 1 IIUSP schools receive additional $200 to bring them to the $400 level)
Schools in HPSGP must also apply to IIUSP to be eligible
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Decile 1 IIUSP schools may apply to HPSGP and operate under HPSGP funding
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In addition, almost 500,000 students in other Decile 1 schools will also be funded
Plan Development
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Plan developed by site council (current IIUSP schools may continue to utilize Site Action Team) with assistance from school district liaison
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Plan to be grounded in research, data, needs analysis
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External evaluators become an option
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Schools given $50,000 for planning
Plan Components
Plan to address the following essential components:
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Pupil literacy and achievement
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Attracting and Retaining Quality Staff
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Parental Involvement
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Facilities, Curriculum, Instructional Materials and Support Services
NOTE: Bill contains examples schools may use to meet these goals. These are options and schools are not limited to those listed in the bill. They serve as examples that schools may wish to consider.
Implementation
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Schools have planning year plus three implementation years, with possibility of waiver for fourth year
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Funding continues for four-year period, even if school meets growth targets
Benchmarks
Interventions
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If a school has not met growth targets after the third implementation year, the State Superintendent (SPI) in conjunction with the State Board (SBE) may impose district level interventions that require district to contract with School Assistance and Intervention Team to monitor and report to local board and state.
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SPI and SBE continue to have options contained in current law.
Bargaining Issues
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The plan and this program shall not supersede conflicting language in the collective bargaining agreement (Section 52055.63)
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District shall certify that it has met and consulted with the exclusive representative of certificated employees on the action plan. Exclusive representative consultation is in addition to involving teachers in the development of the plan (52055.630(b)
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Outside of collective bargaining , the exclusive representative and district shall jointly develop a strategy for addressing the distribution of experienced credentialed teachers throughout the school district. This collaboration shall include discussions on ways to maximize options to recruit credentialed teachers, ensuring that newly hired teachers are assigned in alignment with the goal of equal distribution and ensuring that low-performing schools provide a teaching and learning environment to retain a fully credentialed teaching staff. (Section 52055.620(d)
Current IIUSP Language on Bargaining
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The school action plan may propose to increase instructional days if both of the following are met:
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Provisions of the plan shall not violate current collective bargaining agreements
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An agreement is reached with the exclusive representative concerning staffing specifically to accommodate the extended year (Section 52054(g))
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In development of the plan, the team shall consult with the exclusive representatives of employee organizations (Section 52054(f))
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The team, in development of the plan, shall consult with exclusive representatives of employee organizations (Section 52054(h))