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S.B. 226

             1     

HIGH QUALITY PRESCHOOL PROJECT

             2     
2012 GENERAL SESSION

             3     
STATE OF UTAH

             4     
Chief Sponsor: Aaron Osmond

             5     
House Sponsor: ____________

             6     
             7      LONG TITLE
             8      General Description:
             9          This bill creates a pilot program in which grants are given to qualifying education
             10      agencies to implement certain preschool programs.
             11      Highlighted Provisions:
             12          This bill:
             13          .    defines terms;
             14          .    establishes the High Quality Preschool Pilot Program to fund certain preschool
             15      programs to serve certain at-risk students;
             16          .    details components of high quality preschools that schools shall adopt to receive
             17      funding;
             18          .    requires the State Board of Education to:
             19              .    solicit proposals from qualifying education agencies that want to receive the
             20      grants;
             21              .    award grants for preschool programs;
             22              .    monitor and evaluate the programs; and
             23              .    develop policies and enact rules;
             24          .    establishes reporting requirements;
             25          .    provides for partnerships with private providers; and
             26          .    repeals the High Quality Preschool Pilot Program on July 1, 2017.
             27      Money Appropriated in this Bill:


             28          This bill appropriates:
             29          .    to the State Board of Education - Utah State Office of Education - Initiative
             30      Programs, as an ongoing appropriation:
             31              .    from the Education Fund, $5,000,000.
             32      Other Special Clauses:
             33          This bill provides an effective date.
             34      Utah Code Sections Affected:
             35      AMENDS:
             36          63I-2-253, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2011, Chapters 303, 330, and 419
             37      ENACTS:
             38          53A-1a-1101, Utah Code Annotated 1953
             39          53A-1a-1102, Utah Code Annotated 1953
             40          53A-1a-1103, Utah Code Annotated 1953
             41     
             42      Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
             43          Section 1. Section 53A-1a-1101 is enacted to read:
             44     
Part 11. High Quality Preschool Pilot Program

             45          53A-1a-1101. Definitions.
             46          As used in this part:
             47          (1) "Board" means the State Board of Education.
             48          (2) "Eligible LEA" means an LEA that:
             49          (a) contains at least one eligible school;
             50          (b) agrees to fund a portion of its preschool program funded under this program with
             51      federal funds described in Subsection (4)(a); and
             52          (c) has a data system capacity to collect longitudinal academic outcome data, including
             53      special education use by student by identifying each student with a unique student identifier.
             54          (3) (a) "Eligible private provider" means a child care program that:
             55          (i) (A) except as provided in Subsection (3)(b), is licensed under Title 26, Chapter 39,
             56      Utah Child Care Licensing Act; or
             57          (B) is exempt from licensure under Section 26-39-403 ; and
             58          (ii) meets other criteria as established by the board, consistent with Utah Constitution


             59      Article X, Section 1.
             60          (b) "Eligible private provider" does not include a residential child care, as defined in
             61      Section 26-39-102 .
             62          (4) "Eligible school" means a school that:
             63          (a) receives federal money under Title I of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, 20
             64      U.S.C. Sec. 6301 et seq., for a school-wide or targeted assistance program; and
             65          (b) has space capacity for a preschool classroom.
             66          (5) "Eligible student" means a student who:
             67          (a) lives in the attendance boundaries of an eligible LEA; and
             68          (b) (i) qualifies for free or reduced priced school lunch; or
             69          (ii) is classified as an English language learner.
             70          (6) "Local Education Agency" or "LEA" means a school district or charter school.
             71          (7) "Program" means the High Quality Preschool Pilot Program created in Section
             72      53A-1a-1102 .
             73          Section 2. Section 53A-1a-1102 is enacted to read:
             74          53A-1a-1102. High quality preschool pilot program -- Components -- Assessment
             75      -- Evaluation and reporting.
             76          (1) The High Quality Preschool Pilot Program is created to provide grants to eligible
             77      LEAs to fund high quality preschool programs at eligible schools.
             78          (2) Subject to future budget constraints, the Legislature shall appropriate money for a
             79      five-year period to the board for the program.
             80          (3) The board shall:
             81          (a) solicit proposals from eligible LEAs to receive money under the program;
             82          (b) award grants to up to seven eligible LEAs based on criteria described in Subsection
             83      (4);
             84          (c) develop Utah preschool standards, which shall be aligned to the board's
             85      kindergarten curriculum; and
             86          (d) develop a school readiness assessment based on the Utah preschool standards
             87      developed under Subsection (3)(c).
             88          (4) In awarding a grant under Subsection (3), the board shall consider:
             89          (a) an eligible LEA's capacity to effectively implement the components described in


             90      Subsection (6);
             91          (b) the percentage of an eligible LEA's students that qualify for free or reduced price
             92      lunch; and
             93          (c) the level of administrative support and leadership at an eligible LEA to effectively
             94      implement, monitor, and evaluate the program.
             95          (5) To receive a grant under the program, an eligible LEA shall submit a proposal to
             96      the board detailing:
             97          (a) the eligible LEA's strategy to implement the components described in Subsection
             98      (6);
             99          (b) the number of students the eligible LEA plans to serve, categorized by age, free or
             100      reduced price school lunch status, and English language learner status;
             101          (c) the number of high quality preschool classrooms the eligible LEA plans to operate;
             102      and
             103          (d) the estimated cost per student.
             104          (6) To receive funding under the program, an LEA shall establish or currently operate a
             105      high quality preschool that has the following components:
             106          (a) early childhood development standards aligned with the board's kindergarten
             107      curriculum standards;
             108          (b) a research-based curriculum that addresses the following developmental domains
             109      through explicit instruction in whole and small group settings:
             110          (i) oral language and listening comprehension;
             111          (ii) phonological awareness and prereading;
             112          (iii) alphabet and word knowledge;
             113          (iv) prewriting, fine motor, and visual arts;
             114          (v) book knowledge and print awareness;
             115          (vi) numeracy;
             116          (vii) social and emotional;
             117          (viii) gross motor and performing arts;
             118          (ix) science and technology; and
             119          (x) social studies, health, and safety;
             120          (c) ongoing, focused, and intensive professional development for staff of the preschool


             121      program;
             122          (d) ongoing assessment of a student's education growth and developmental progress to
             123      inform instruction;
             124          (e) a pre- and post-assessment of each student that assesses age-appropriate literacy and
             125      numeracy skills that is:
             126          (i) aligned to the Utah preschool standards developed under Subsection (3); and
             127          (ii) designated by the board under Subsection (10);
             128          (f) class size that does not exceed 20 students, with one adult for every 10 students in
             129      the class;
             130          (g) ongoing program evaluation and data collection to monitor program goal
             131      achievement and implementation of required program components;
             132          (h) family involvement, including class participation, frequent communication between
             133      home and school, and parent education opportunities; and
             134          (i) teachers with at least a Bachelor's degree or a child development associate
             135      certification.
             136          (7) All LEAs and eligible private providers that receive funding under this part shall
             137      meet four times each year to evaluate implementation and ensure each LEA's and private
             138      provider's preschool has the components described in Subsection (6).
             139          (8) (a) An LEA that receives funds under this part shall report annually to the board the
             140      following:
             141          (i) number of students served by the LEA's preschool, reported by free or reduced price
             142      student lunch status and English language learner status;
             143          (ii) attendance;
             144          (iii) cost per student;
             145          (iv) assessment results; and
             146          (v) longitudinal data on each student currently receiving funding under this part and
             147      any students who previously received funding under this part, including:
             148          (A) academic achievement outcomes;
             149          (B) special education use; and
             150          (C) English language learner services.
             151          (b) For each year of the program, the board shall report to the Legislature's Education


             152      Interim Committee the information collected under Subsection (8)(a) for each participating
             153      LEA.
             154          (9) The board shall contract with an independent, nationally recognized early education
             155      evaluator, selected through a request for proposals, to evaluate the quality and outcomes of the
             156      program, including:
             157          (a) adherence to required components described in Subsection (6); and
             158          (b) pre- and post-assessment results of students in the program.
             159          (10) The board shall make rules to effectively administer and monitor the program,
             160      including:
             161          (a) the pre- and post-assessment that LEAs shall use, ensuring that all LEAs use the
             162      same pre- and post-assessment required in Subsection (6)(e); and
             163          (b) reporting requirements for LEAs and eligible private providers.
             164          Section 3. Section 53A-1a-1103 is enacted to read:
             165          53A-1a-1103. High quality preschool pilot program funding -- Provisions for
             166      private providers.
             167          (1) Except as provided in Subsection (6), an eligible LEA shall contract with an
             168      eligible private provider to provide the program to at least 10% of the LEA's eligible students
             169      that the LEA plans to serve through the program.
             170          (2) To receive funding under this part, an eligible private provider shall:
             171          (a) offer a preschool program that contains the components described in Subsection
             172      53A-1a-1102 (6);
             173          (b) align its assessments, early learning standards, and professional development with
             174      the contracting LEA;
             175          (c) allow classroom visits by the contracting LEA or the board to ensure the
             176      components described in Subsection (2)(a) are being implemented;
             177          (d) administer the required pre- and post-assessments, or contract with the LEA to
             178      administer the required pre- and post-assessments, described in Subsection 53A-1a-1102 (6)(e);
             179      and
             180          (e) report the information described in Subsection 53A-1a-1102 (8) to the contracting
             181      LEA.
             182          (3) The board shall distribute money to the participating LEA and the LEA shall


             183      contract with the eligible private provider and pay the eligible private provider to provide the
             184      preschool program to eligible students.
             185          (4) An LEA may provide the eligible private provider with:
             186          (a) professional development;
             187          (b) staffing or staff support;
             188          (c) materials; and
             189          (d) assessments.
             190          (5) (a) The eligible private provider may not charge an eligible student tuition or fees.
             191          (b) The eligible private provider may use grants, scholarships, or other money to help
             192      fund the preschool program.
             193          (6) If there is no eligible private provider that is willing to contract with an eligible
             194      LEA, the eligible LEA is not required to contract with an eligible private provider.
             195          (7) The board may use up to:
             196          (a) 2% of the total appropriation under this part to administer and monitor the program;
             197          (b) 2% of the total appropriation under this part to develop the school readiness
             198      assessment required under Subsection 53A-1a-1102 (3)(d); and
             199          (c) 10% of the total appropriation under this part to contract with an evaluator as
             200      required under Subsection 53A-1a-1102 (9).
             201          (8) The board shall distribute money to eligible LEAs chosen to participate in the
             202      program as follows:
             203          (a) each eligible LEA chosen by the board to participate in the program shall receive
             204      funding for at least one preschool classroom; and
             205          (b) the remaining funds available after funding Subsection (8)(a) shall be prorated to
             206      the eligible LEAs based on the number of students eligible to receive free or reduced price
             207      school lunch.
             208          (9) A contractual partnership established under Subsection (1) shall be consistent with
             209      Utah Constitution Article X, Section 1.
             210          (10) Funds appropriated under this part may not be used to supplant other money used
             211      for preschools at eligible schools.
             212          Section 4. Section 63I-2-253 is amended to read:
             213           63I-2-253. Repeal dates -- Titles 53, 53A, and 53B.


             214          (1) Section 53A-1-403.5 is repealed July 1, 2012.
             215          (2) Subsection 53A-1-603 (5) is repealed July 1, 2015.
             216          (3) Title 53A, Chapter 1a, Part 10, UPSTART, is repealed July 1, 2014.
             217          (4) Title 53A, Chapter 1a, Part 11, High Quality Preschool Pilot Program, is repealed
             218      July 1, 2017.
             219          [(4)] (5) Subsection 53A-13-110 (4) is repealed July 1, 2013.
             220          [(5)] (6) Section 53A-15-1215 is repealed July 1, 2012.
             221          Section 5. Appropriation.
             222          Under the terms and conditions of Title 63J, Chapter 1, Budgetary Procedures Act, the
             223      following sums of money are appropriated from resources not otherwise appropriated, or
             224      reduced from amounts previously appropriated, out of the funds or accounts indicated for the
             225      fiscal year beginning July 1, 2012 and ending June 30, 2013. These are additions to any
             226      amounts previously appropriated for fiscal year 2013.
             227      To State Board of Education - Utah State Office of Education - Initiative Programs
             228          From Education Fund
$5,000,000

             229              Schedule of Programs:
             230                  Contracts and Grants                $5,000,000
             231          The Legislature intends that the appropriation under this section is:
             232          (1) ongoing, subject to availability of funds;
             233          (2) for fiscal years 2012-13, 2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16, and 2016-17 only;
             234          (3) to be used to carry out the requirements of Title 53A, Chapter 1a, Part 11, High
             235      Quality Preschool Pilot Program; and
             236          (4) nonlapsing.
             237          Section 6. Effective date.
             238          (1) Except as provided in Subsection (2), this bill takes effect on May 8, 2012.
             239          (2) Uncodified Section 5, Appropriation, takes effect on July 1, 2012.




Legislative Review Note
    as of 2-21-12 2:33 PM


Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel


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