Public School Local Accountability Systems

Accountability - local accountability system grant program - supplemental performance report - alternative format - evaluation - reporting - appropriation. The act creates the local accountability system grant program (grant program) in the department of education (department) to provide grant money to local education providers that adopt local accountability systems to supplement the state accountability system. A local accountability system may include additional measures for determining achievement of the state performance indicators and additional indicators of student success, but the measures do not affect the accreditation rating assigned to a school district or the type of plan that a school must adopt. A local education provider may use grant money to work with one or more accountability system partners, which may be public or private institutions of higher education or private nonprofit entities. The department shall review applications and recommend to the state board of education (state board) the applicants that may receive a grant and the amount of the grant. The state board shall award the grants subject to available appropriations. The department may also accept and expend gifts, grants, and donations for the grant program and the summary evaluation report.

A local education provider that adopts a local accountability system may submit to the department a supplemental performance report that includes information collected through the local accountability system. The local education provider may also use an alternative format for the type of performance plan that the local education provider is required to implement. The department must post the supplemental performance reports and alternatively formatted plans on the department's data portal.

Starting no later than July 15, 2020, the department must convene an annual meeting of the local education providers that implement local accountability systems to share information. Beginning January 15, 2021, the department shall submit an annual report to the state board and the education committees of the general assembly concerning implementation of local accountability systems and implementation of the grant program. The department shall also post the report on its website and, upon request of a local education provider, provide information concerning the measures implemented through local accountability systems.

Starting in the third year of the grant program, the department must contract with an external evaluator to prepare an annual summary evaluation report of the implementation of the local accountability systems that receive grants. The department must include the summary evaluation in the annual report.

For the 2019-20 fiscal year, the act appropriates $493,097 from the general fund to the department of education to implement the local accountability system grant program.

(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)