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6 Cosponsor:
Derrin R. Owens
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8 LONG TITLE
9 General Description:
10 This bill amends provisions related to a turnaround expert selected by a local school
11 board.
12 Highlighted Provisions:
13 This bill:
14 ▸ permits a local school board to select a turnaround expert that is a school district or
15 an employee of a school district.
16 Money Appropriated in this Bill:
17 None
18 Other Special Clauses:
19 None
20 Utah Code Sections Affected:
21 AMENDS:
22 53E-5-303, as renumbered and amended by Laws of Utah 2018, Chapter 1
23
24 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
25 Section 1. Section 53E-5-303 is amended to read:
26 53E-5-303. Required action to turn around a low performing district school.
27 (1) In accordance with deadlines established by the board, a local school board of a low
28 performing school shall:
29 (a) establish a school turnaround committee composed of the following members:
30 (i) the local school board member who represents the voting district where the low
31 performing school is located;
32 (ii) the school principal;
33 (iii) three parents of students enrolled in the low performing school appointed by the
34 chair of the school community council;
35 (iv) one teacher at the low performing school appointed by the principal;
36 (v) one teacher at the low performing school appointed by the school district
37 superintendent; and
38 (vi) one school district administrator;
39 (b) solicit proposals from a turnaround expert identified by the board under Section
40 53E-5-305;
41 (c) partner with the school turnaround committee to select a proposal;
42 (d) submit the proposal described in Subsection (1)(b) to the board for review and
43 approval; and
44 (e) subject to Subsections (3) and (4), contract with a turnaround expert.
45 (2) A proposal described in Subsection (1)(b) shall include a:
46 (a) strategy to address the root causes of the low performing school's low performance
47 identified through the needs assessment described in Section 53E-5-302; and
48 (b) scope of work to facilitate implementation of the strategy that includes at least the
49 activities described in Subsection (4)(b).
50 (3) A local school board may [
51 (a) the school district; or
52 (b) an employee of the school district.
53 (4) A contract between a local school board and a turnaround expert:
54 (a) shall be based on an explicit stipulation of desired outcomes and consequences for
55 not meeting goals, including cancellation of the contract;
56 (b) shall include a scope of work that requires the turnaround expert to at a minimum:
57 (i) develop and implement, in partnership with the school turnaround committee, a
58 school turnaround plan that meets the criteria described in Subsection (5);
59 (ii) monitor the effectiveness of a school turnaround plan through reliable means of
60 evaluation, including on-site visits, observations, surveys, analysis of student achievement data,
61 and interviews;
62 (iii) provide ongoing implementation support and project management for a school
63 turnaround plan;
64 (iv) provide high-quality professional development personalized for school staff that is
65 designed to build:
66 (A) the leadership capacity of the school principal;
67 (B) the instructional capacity of school staff;
68 (C) educators' capacity with data-driven strategies by providing actionable, embedded
69 data practices; and
70 (v) leverage support from community partners to coordinate an efficient delivery of
71 supports to students inside and outside the classroom;
72 (c) may include a scope of work that requires the turnaround expert to:
73 (i) develop sustainable school district and school capacities to effectively respond to
74 the academic and behavioral needs of students in high poverty communities; or
75 (ii) other services that respond to the needs assessment conducted under Section
76 53E-5-302;
77 (d) shall include travel costs and payment milestones; and
78 (e) may include pay for performance provisions.
79 (5) A school turnaround committee shall partner with the turnaround expert selected
80 under Subsection (1) to develop and implement a school turnaround plan that:
81 (a) addresses the root causes of the low performing school's low performance identified
82 through the needs assessment described in Section 53E-5-302;
83 (b) includes recommendations regarding changes to the low performing school's
84 personnel, culture, curriculum, assessments, instructional practices, governance, leadership,
85 finances, policies, or other areas that may be necessary to implement the school turnaround
86 plan;
87 (c) includes measurable student achievement goals and objectives and benchmarks by
88 which to measure progress;
89 (d) includes a professional development plan that identifies a strategy to address
90 problems of instructional practice;
91 (e) includes a detailed budget specifying how the school turnaround plan will be
92 funded;
93 (f) includes a plan to assess and monitor progress;
94 (g) includes a plan to communicate and report data on progress to stakeholders; and
95 (h) includes a timeline for implementation.
96 (6) A local school board of a low performing school shall:
97 (a) prioritize school district funding and resources to the low performing school;
98 (b) grant the low performing school streamlined authority over staff, schedule, policies,
99 budget, and academic programs to implement the school turnaround plan; and
100 (c) assist the turnaround expert and the low performing school with:
101 (i) addressing the root cause of the low performing school's low performance; and
102 (ii) the development or implementation of a school turnaround plan.
103 (7) (a) On or before June 1 of an initial remedial year, a school turnaround committee
104 shall submit the school turnaround plan to the local school board for approval.
105 (b) Except as provided in Subsection (7)(c), on or before July 1 of an initial remedial
106 year, a local school board of a low performing school shall submit the school turnaround plan
107 to the board for approval.
108 (c) If the local school board does not approve the school turnaround plan submitted
109 under Subsection (7)(a), the school turnaround committee may appeal the disapproval in
110 accordance with rules made by the board as described in Subsection 53E-5-305(6).
111 (8) A local school board, or a local school board's designee, shall annually report to the
112 board progress toward the goals, benchmarks, and timetable in a low performing school's
113 turnaround plan.
Legislative Review Note
Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel