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H.B. 501

             1     

YOUTH SUICIDE PREVENTION

             2     
2012 GENERAL SESSION

             3     
STATE OF UTAH

             4     
Chief Sponsor: Eric K. Hutchings

             5     
Senate Sponsor: ____________

             6     
             7      LONG TITLE
             8      General Description:
             9          This bill requires the State Board of Education to provide suicide prevention training
             10      for licensed employees.
             11      Highlighted Provisions:
             12          This bill:
             13          .    requires the State Board of Education to develop sample materials to be used by a
             14      school district or charter school regarding student suicide prevention; and
             15          .    requires school districts and charter schools to provide in-service training on youth
             16      suicide prevention every five years.
             17      Money Appropriated in this Bill:
             18          None
             19      Other Special Clauses:
             20          None
             21      Utah Code Sections Affected:
             22      AMENDS:
             23          53A-1-603, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2010, Chapters 11 and 305
             24     
             25      Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
             26          Section 1. Section 53A-1-603 is amended to read:
             27           53A-1-603. Duties of State Board of Education.


             28          (1) Except as provided in Subsection (5), the State Board of Education shall:
             29          (a) require each school district and charter school to implement the Utah Performance
             30      Assessment System for Students, hereafter referred to as U-PASS;
             31          (b) require the state superintendent of public instruction to submit and recommend
             32      criterion-referenced achievement tests or online computer adaptive tests, a tenth grade basic
             33      skills competency test, an online writing assessment for grades 5 and 8, and a test for students
             34      in grade 3 to measure reading grade level to the board for approval and adoption and
             35      distribution to each school district and charter school by the state superintendent;
             36          (c) develop an assessment method to uniformly measure statewide performance, school
             37      district performance, and school performance of students in grades 3 through 12 in mastering
             38      basic skills courses; and
             39          (d) provide for the state to participate in the National Assessment of Educational
             40      Progress state-by-state comparison testing program.
             41          (2) Except as provided in Subsection (5) and Subsection 53A-1-611 (6), under
             42      U-PASS, the state office shall annually require that each district and charter school, as
             43      applicable, administer:
             44          (a) as determined by the State Board of Education, statewide criterion-referenced tests
             45      or online computer adaptive tests in grades 3 through 12 and courses in basic skill areas of the
             46      core curriculum;
             47          (b) an online writing assessment to all students in grades 5 and 8;
             48          (c) a tenth grade basic skills competency test as detailed in Section 53A-1-611 ; and
             49          (d) a test to all students in grade 3 to measure reading grade level.
             50          (3) The board shall adopt rules for the conduct and administration of U-PASS to
             51      include the following:
             52          (a) the computation of student performance based on information that is disaggregated
             53      with respect to race, ethnicity, gender, limited English proficiency, and those students who
             54      qualify for free or reduced price school lunch;
             55          (b) security features to maintain the integrity of the system, which could include
             56      statewide uniform testing dates, multiple test forms, and test administration protocols;
             57          (c) the exemption of student test scores, by exemption category, such as limited
             58      English proficiency, mobility, and students with disabilities, with the percent or number of


             59      student test scores exempted being publically reported at a district level;
             60          (d) compiling of criterion-referenced, online computer adaptive, and online writing test
             61      scores and test score averages at the classroom level to allow for:
             62          (i) an annual review of those scores by parents of students and professional and other
             63      appropriate staff at the classroom level at the earliest point in time;
             64          (ii) the assessment of year-to-year student progress in specific classes, courses, and
             65      subjects;
             66          (iii) a teacher to review, prior to the beginning of a new school year, test scores from
             67      the previous school year of students who have been assigned to the teacher's class for the new
             68      school year; and
             69          (iv) allowing a school district or charter school to have its tests administered and
             70      scored electronically to accelerate the review of test scores and their usefulness to parents and
             71      educators under Subsections (3)(d)(i), (ii), and (iii), without violating the integrity of U-PASS;
             72      and
             73          (e) providing that:
             74          (i) scores on the tests and assessments required under Subsection (2)(a) shall be
             75      considered in determining a student's academic grade for the appropriate course and whether a
             76      student shall advance to the next grade level; and
             77          (ii) except as provided in Subsection 53A-1-611 (6), the student's score on the tenth
             78      grade basic skills competency test shall be recorded on the student's transcript of credits.
             79          (4) The State Board of Education shall consider administering the basic skills
             80      competency test on a Saturday to preserve instructional time.
             81          (5) (a) The State Board of Education may exempt a school district or charter school
             82      from the testing requirements specified in Subsection (2) if:
             83          (i) the school district or charter school pilots an assessment system that incorporates
             84      the following:
             85          (A) online classroom-based assessment that utilizes adaptive testing;
             86          (B) online writing assessments in grades 4 through 12; or
             87          (C) assessments administered in grades 8, 10, and 11 to determine readiness for
             88      postsecondary education;
             89          (ii) the State Board of Education approves the specific assessment administered under


             90      Subsection (5)(a)(i) and the assessment provider; and
             91          (iii) the school district or charter school verifies the local fiscal capability and
             92      resources needed to participate in the pilot assessment system.
             93          (b) A school district or charter school that receives an exemption under Subsection
             94      (5)(a) is subject to an accountability plan and high school graduation standards that are:
             95          (i) based on the school district's or charter school's assessment system, which may
             96      include assessments described in Subsection (2) or Subsections (5)(a)(i) through (iii); and
             97          (ii) developed and adopted by the State Board of Education.
             98          (c) By the November 2014 meeting of the Education Interim Committee, the State
             99      Board of Education shall submit recommendations to the committee on the state's assessment
             100      system.
             101          (6) (a) A school district or charter school, as applicable, is encouraged to administer an
             102      online writing assessment to students in grade 11.
             103          (b) The State Board of Education may award a grant to a school district or charter
             104      school to pay for an online writing assessment and instruction program that may be used to
             105      assess the writing of students in grade 11.
             106          (7) (a) On or before the 2010 October meeting of the Education Interim Committee, the
             107      State Board of Education shall prepare and present its plan for a pilot program for the 2010-11
             108      and 2011-12 school years to:
             109          (i) replace the tenth grade basic skills competency test with computer adaptive testing
             110      of basic skills; and
             111          (ii) administer the ACT exam to secondary students.
             112          (b) The State Board of Education shall implement the pilot program described in
             113      Subsection (7)(a) for the 2010-11 and 2011-12 school years.
             114          (c) The State Board of Education shall re-direct the money saved by not administering
             115      the tenth grade basic skills competency test pursuant to Subsection 53A-1-611 (6) to fund the
             116      implementation of the pilot program described in Subsection (7)(b) for fiscal years 2010-11
             117      and 2011-12.
             118          (8) (a) School districts and charter schools shall provide two hours of in-service youth
             119      suicide prevention training for all licensed employees at least once every five years.
             120          (b) The State Board of Education shall develop sample materials to be used by a school


             121      district or charter school for in-service training on youth suicide prevention.
             122          (c) The training required by this Subsection (8) shall be incorporated into professional
             123      development training required by rule in accordance with Subsection 53A-6-104 (2)(b)(i).




Legislative Review Note
    as of 2-8-12 10:22 AM


Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel


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