Public Act 099-0203

SB0665 Enrolled LRB099 04291 NHT 24316 b

AN ACT concerning education.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,

represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section

2-3.25f as follows:

(105 ILCS 5/2-3.25f) (from Ch. 122, par. 2-3.25f)

Sec. 2-3.25f. State interventions.

(a) The State Board of Education shall provide technical

assistance to assist with the development and implementation of

School and District Improvement Plans.

Schools or school districts that fail to make reasonable

efforts to implement an approved Improvement Plan may suffer

loss of State funds by school district, attendance center, or

program as the State Board of Education deems appropriate.

(a-5) (Blank).

(b) If after 3 years following its placement on academic

watch status a school district or school remains on academic

watch status, the State Board of Education may (i) change the

recognition status of the school district or school to

nonrecognized or (ii) authorize the State Superintendent of

Education to direct the reassignment of pupils or direct the

reassignment or replacement of school district personnel who

are relevant to the failure to meet adequate yearly progress

criteria. If a school district is nonrecognized in its

entirety, it shall automatically be dissolved on July 1

following that nonrecognition and its territory realigned with

another school district or districts by the regional board of

school trustees in accordance with the procedures set forth in

Section 7-11 of the School Code. The effective date of the

nonrecognition of a school shall be July 1 following the

nonrecognition.

(b-5) The State Board of Education shall also develop a

system to provide assistance and resources to lower performing

school districts. At a minimum, the State Board shall identify

school districts to receive priority services, to be known as

priority districts. The school district shall provide the

exclusive bargaining representative with a 5-day notice that

the district has been identified as a priority district. In

addition, the State Board may, by rule, develop other

categories of low-performing schools and school districts to

receive services.

Districts designated as priority districts shall be those

that fall within one of the following categories:

(1) Have at least one school that is among the lowest

performing 5% of schools in this State based on a 3-year

average, with respect to the performance of the "all

students" group for the percentage of students meeting or

exceeding standards in reading and mathematics combined,

and demonstrate a lack of progress as defined by the State

Board of Education.

(2) Have at least one secondary school that has an

average graduation rate of less than 60% over the last 3

school years.

(3) Have at least one school receiving a school

improvement grant under Section 1003(g) of the federal

Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.

The State Board of Education shall work with a priority

district to perform a district needs assessment to determine

the district's core functions that are areas of strength and

weakness, unless the district is already undergoing a national

accreditation process. The results from the district needs

assessment shall be used by the district to identify goals and

objectives for the district's improvement. The district needs

assessment shall include a study of district functions, such as

district finance, governance, student engagement, instruction

practices, climate, community involvement, and continuous

improvement.

Based on the results of the district needs assessment, the

State Board of Education shall work with the district to

provide technical assistance and professional development, in

partnership with the district, to implement a continuous

improvement plan that would increase outcomes for students. The

plan for continuous improvement shall be based on the results

of the district needs assessment and shall be used to determine

the types of services that are to be provided to each priority

district. Potential services for a district may include

monitoring adult and student practices, reviewing and

reallocating district resources, developing a district

leadership team, providing access to curricular content area

specialists, and providing online resources and professional

development.

The State Board of Education may require priority districts

identified as having deficiencies in one or more core functions

of the district needs assessment to undergo an accreditation

process as provided in subsection (d) of Section 2-3.25f-5 of

this Code.

(c) All federal requirements apply to schools and school

districts utilizing federal funds under Title I, Part A of the

federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.

(Source: P.A. 97-370, eff. 1-1-12; 98-1155, eff. 1-9-15.)