First Substitute H.B. 200

Representative Bradley G. Last proposes the following substitute bill:

1 EARLY CHILDHOOD LEARNING AND
2 EVALUATION
3 2008 GENERAL SESSION
4 STATE OF UTAH
5 Chief Sponsor: Bradley G. Last
6 Senate Sponsor: Darin G. Peterson
7 Cosponsors:
8 Sylvia S. Andersen
9 David Clark
10 Bradley M. Daw
11 Brad L. DeeJohn Dougall
Lorie D. Fowlke
Kevin S. Garn
James R. Gowans
Gregory H. HughesEric K. Hutchings
Michael E. Noel
Stephen H. Urquhart
Mark W. Walker
R. Curt Webb 12
13 LONG TITLE
14 General Description:
15 This bill creates a pilot project using a home-based educational technology program to
16 develop school readiness skills of preschool children.
17 Highlighted Provisions:
18 This bill:
19 . establishes within the public education system a pilot project known as UPSTART
20 which uses a home-based educational technology program to develop school
21 readiness skills of preschool children;
22 . directs the State Board of Education to contract with:
23 . an educational technology provider, selected through a request for proposals
24 process, for the delivery of a home-based educational technology program to
25 develop school readiness skills of preschool children; and
26 . an independent evaluator to evaluate the home-based educational technology

27 program for preschool children;
28 . specifies standards for the home-based educational technology program for
29 preschool children;
30 . provides for school district participation in the pilot project;
31 . requires an annual audit of the contractor's use of funds appropriated for UPSTART
32 and an annual report on UPSTART to the Legislature; and
33 . repeals the pilot project on July 1, 2014.
34 Monies Appropriated in this Bill:
35 This bill appropriates:
36 . as an ongoing appropriation subject to future budget constraints, $2,500,000 from
37 the Uniform School Fund for fiscal year 2008-09; and
38 . for fiscal year 2007-08 only, $1,000,000 from the Uniform School Fund.
39 Other Special Clauses:
40 This bill provides an immediate effective date.
41 Utah Code Sections Affected:
42 AMENDS:
43 63-55b-153, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2007, Chapter 216
44 ENACTS:
45 53A-1a-1001, Utah Code Annotated 1953
46 53A-1a-1002, Utah Code Annotated 1953
47 53A-1a-1003, Utah Code Annotated 1953
48 53A-1a-1004, Utah Code Annotated 1953
49 53A-1a-1005, Utah Code Annotated 1953
50 53A-1a-1006, Utah Code Annotated 1953
51 53A-1a-1007, Utah Code Annotated 1953
52
53 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
54 Section 1. Section 53A-1a-1001 is enacted to read:
55 Part 10. UPSTART
56 53A-1a-1001. Definitions.
57 As used in this part:

58 (1) "Contractor" means the educational technology provider selected by the State Board
59 of Education under Section 53A-1a-1002 .
60 (2) "Low income" means an income below 200% of the federal poverty guideline.
61 (3) "Preschool children" means children who are:
62 (a) age four or five; and
63 (b) have not entered kindergarten.
64 (4) "UPSTART" means the pilot project established by Section 53A-1a-1002 that uses
65 a home-based educational technology program to develop school readiness skills of preschool
66 children.
67 Section 2. Section 53A-1a-1002 is enacted to read:
68 53A-1a-1002. Pilot project to develop school readiness skills of preschool children.
69 (1) UPSTART, a pilot project that uses a home-based educational technology program
70 to develop school readiness skills of preschool children, is established within the public
71 education system.
72 (2) UPSTART is created to:
73 (a) evaluate the effectiveness of giving preschool children access, at home, to
74 interactive individualized instruction delivered by computers and the Internet to prepare them
75 academically for success in school; and
76 (b) test the feasibility of scaling a home-based curriculum in reading, math, and science
77 delivered by computers and the Internet to all preschool children in Utah.
78 (3) The State Board of Education shall contract with an educational technology
79 provider, selected through a request for proposals process, for the delivery of a home-based
80 educational technology program for preschool children that meets the requirements of
81 Subsection (4).
82 (4) A home-based educational technology program for preschool children shall meet
83 the following standards:
84 (a) the contractor shall provide computer-assisted instruction for preschool children on
85 a home computer connected by the Internet to a centralized file storage facility;
86 (b) the contractor shall:
87 (i) provide technical support to families for the installation and operation of the
88 instructional software; and

89 (ii) provide for the installation of computer and Internet access in homes of low income
90 families that cannot afford the equipment and service;
91 (c) the contractor shall have the capability of doing the following through the Internet:
92 (i) communicating with parents;
93 (ii) updating the instructional software;
94 (iii) validating user access;
95 (iv) collecting usage data;
96 (v) storing research data; and
97 (vi) producing reports for parents, schools, and the Legislature;
98 (d) the program shall include the following components:
99 (i) computer-assisted, individualized instruction in reading, mathematics, and science;
100 (ii) a multisensory reading tutoring program; and
101 (iii) a validated computer adaptive reading test that does not require the presence of
102 trained adults to administer and is an accurate indicator of reading readiness of children who
103 cannot read;
104 (e) the contractor shall have the capability to quickly and efficiently modify, improve,
105 and support the product;
106 (f) the contractor shall work in cooperation with school district personnel who will
107 provide administrative and technical support of the program as provided in Section
108 53A-1a-1003 ;
109 (g) the contractor shall solicit families to participate in the program as provided in
110 Section 53A-1a-1004 ; and
111 (h) in implementing the home-based educational technology program, the contractor
112 shall seek the advise and expertise of early childhood education professionals within the Utah
113 System of Higher Education on issues such as:
114 (i) soliciting families to participate in the program;
115 (ii) providing training to families; and
116 (iii) motivating families to regularly use the instructional software.
117 (5) The contract shall provide funding for a home-based educational technology
118 program for preschool children for one year with an option to extend the contract for additional
119 years or to expand the program to a greater number of preschool children, subject to the

120 appropriation of money by the Legislature for UPSTART.
121 Section 3. Section 53A-1a-1003 is enacted to read:
122 53A-1a-1003. School district participation in UPSTART.
123 (1) A school district may participate in UPSTART if the local school board agrees to
124 work in cooperation with the contractor to provide administrative and technical support for the
125 pilot project.
126 (2) Family participants in UPSTART shall be solicited from school districts that
127 participate in UPSTART.
128 (3) A school district that participates in UPSTART shall:
129 (a) receive funding for:
130 (i) paraprofessional and technical support staff; and
131 (ii) travel, materials, and meeting costs of the program;
132 (b) participate in program training by the contractor; and
133 (c) agree to adopt standardized policies and procedures in implementing the pilot
134 project.
135 Section 4. Section 53A-1a-1004 is enacted to read:
136 53A-1a-1004. Family participation in UPSTART.
137 (1) The contractor shall solicit families to participate in UPSTART through a public
138 information campaign and referrals from participating school districts.
139 (2) (a) Preschool children who participate in UPSTART shall:
140 (i) be from families with diverse socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds; and
141 (ii) reside in different regions of the state in both urban and rural areas.
142 (b) At least 30% of the preschool children who participate in UPSTART shall be from
143 low income families.
144 (3) A low income family that cannot afford a computer and Internet service to operate
145 the instructional software may obtain a computer and peripheral equipment on loan and receive
146 free Internet service for the duration of the family's participation in the pilot project.
147 (4) The contractor shall make the home-based educational technology program
148 available to families at an agreed upon cost if the number of families who would like to
149 participate in UPSTART exceeds the number of participants funded by the legislative
150 appropriation.

151 Section 5. Section 53A-1a-1005 is enacted to read:
152 53A-1a-1005. Purchase of equipment and service through cooperative purchasing
153 contracts.
154 The State Board of Education or a school district may purchase computers, peripheral
155 equipment, and Internet service for low income families who cannot afford them through
156 cooperative purchasing contracts administered by the state Division of Purchasing and General
157 Services.
158 Section 6. Section 53A-1a-1006 is enacted to read:
159 53A-1a-1006. Audit and evaluation.
160 (1) The state auditor shall:
161 (a) conduct an annual audit of the contractor's use of funds for UPSTART; or
162 (b) contract with an independent certified public accountant to conduct an annual audit.
163 (2) The State Board of Education shall:
164 (a) require by contract that the contractor will open its books and records relating to its
165 expenditure of funds pursuant to the contract to the state auditor or the state auditor's designee;
166 (b) reimburse the state auditor for the actual and necessary costs of the audit; and
167 (c) contract with an independent, qualified evaluator, selected through a request for
168 proposals process, to evaluate the home-based educational technology program for preschool
169 children.
170 (3) Of the monies appropriated by the Legislature for UPSTART, excluding funds used
171 to provide computers, peripheral equipment, and Internet service to families, no more than
172 7.5% may be used for the evaluation of the program.
173 Section 7. Section 53A-1a-1007 is enacted to read:
174 53A-1a-1007. Annual report.
175 (1) The State Board of Education shall make a report on UPSTART to the Education
176 Interim Committee by November 30 each year.
177 (2) The report shall:
178 (a) address the extent to which UPSTART is accomplishing the purposes for which it
179 was established as specified in Section 53A-1a-1002 ; and
180 (b) include the following information:
181 (i) the number of families:

182 (A) volunteering to participate in the program;
183 (B) selected to participate in the program;
184 (C) requesting computers; and
185 (D) furnished computers;
186 (ii) the frequency of use of the instructional software;
187 (iii) obstacles encountered with software usage, hardware, or providing technical
188 assistance to families;
189 (iv) student performance on pre-kindergarten and post-kindergarten assessments
190 conducted by school districts and charter schools for students who participated in the
191 home-based educational technology program and those who did not participate in the program;
192 and
193 (v) as available, the evaluation of the program conducted pursuant to Section
194 53A-1a-1006 .
195 Section 8. Section 63-55b-153 is amended to read:
196 63-55b-153. Repeal dates -- Titles 53, 53A, and 53B.
197 (1) Section 53-3-210 is repealed February 1, 2007.
198 (2) Section 53A-1-403.5 is repealed July 1, 2012.
199 (3) Subsection 53A-1a-511 (7)(c) is repealed July 1, 2007.
200 (4) Tile 53A, Chapter 1a, Part 10, UPSTART, is repealed July 1, 2014.
201 [(4)] (5) Section 53A-3-702 is repealed July 1, 2008.
202 [(5)] (6) Section 53A-6-112 is repealed July 1, 2009.
203 [(6)] (7) Section 53A-17a-152 is repealed July 1, 2010.
204 Section 9. Ongoing appropriation for UPSTART.
205 As an ongoing appropriation subject to future budget constraints, there is appropriated
206 from the Uniform School Fund for fiscal year 2008-09, $2,500,000 to the State Board of
207 Education for UPSTART as provided in Title 53A, Chapter 1a, Part 10, UPSTART, including
208 costs of:
209 (1) a home-based educational technology program provided by a contractor;
210 (2) computers, peripheral equipment, and Internet service for families who cannot
211 afford the equipment and service;
212 (3) administrative and technical support provided by school districts;

213 (4) an audit of the contractor's use of funds appropriated for UPSTART; and
214 (5) an evaluation of the home-based educational technology program.
215 Section 10. One-time appropriation for UPSTART.
216 (1) There is appropriated from the Uniform School Fund to the State Board of
217 Education for fiscal year 2007-08 only, $1,000,000 for UPSTART as provided in Title 53A,
218 Chapter 1a, Part 10, UPSTART.
219 (2) The money appropriated in Subsection (1) is nonlapsing.
220 Section 11. Effective date.
221 If approved by two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, this bill takes effect
222 upon approval by the governor, or the day following the constitutional time limit of Utah
223 Constitution Article VII, Section 8, without the governor's signature, or in the case of a veto,
224 the date of veto override.