GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1991

H	5 

HOUSE BILL 828*
Committee Substitute Favorable 5/13/91
Third Edition Engrossed 5/15/91
Senate Education Committee Substitute Adopted 6/20/91
Fifth Edition Engrossed 6/26/91

Short Title:  Local School Improvement.	(Public)
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Sponsors:
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Referred to:  
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April 16, 1991

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO AMEND THE LAW REGARDING LOCAL SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PLANS AND TO OTHERWISE IMPROVE THE OPERATION OF THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.  Chapter 116 of the General Statutes is amended by adding the following new section to read:
"§ 116-11.2. Duties regarding programs in education administration.
The Board of Governors shall direct the constituent institutions with programs in education administration to evaluate these programs and to take the necessary steps to ensure adequate management training for public school principals and administrators."
Sec. 2.  The General Assembly urges private colleges and universities with programs in education administration to evaluate these programs and to take the necessary steps to ensure adequate management training for public school principals and administrators.
Sec. 3.  G.S. 115C-238.2 reads as rewritten:
"§ 115C-238.2.  Local participation in the Program voluntary; the benefits of local participation.
(a)	Local school administrative units may, but are not required to, participate in the Performance-based Accountability Program.
(b)	Local school administrative units that participate in the Performance-based Accountability Program:
(1)	Are exempt from State requirements to submit reports and plans, other than local school improvement plans, to the Department of Public Education; they are not exempt from federal requirements to submit reports and plans to the Department.
(2)	Are subject to the performance standards but not the opportunity standards or the staffing ratios of the State Accreditation Program. The performance standards in the State Accreditation Program, modified to reflect the results of end-of-course and end-of-grade tests, may serve as the basis for developing the student performance indicators adopted by the State Board of Education pursuant to G.S. 115C-238.1.
(3)	May receive funds for differentiated pay for teachers and administrators, in accordance with G.S. 115C-238.4, if they elect to participate in a differentiated pay plan.
(4)	May be allowed increased flexibility in the expenditure of State funds, in accordance with G.S. 115C-238.5.
(5)	May be granted waivers of certain State laws, regulations, and policies that inhibit their ability to reach local accountability goals, in accordance with G.S. 115C-238.6(a) and G.S. 115C-238.6(a1).
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Sec. 4.  G.S. 115C-238.3 reads as rewritten:
"§ 115C-238.3.  Elements of local plans.
(a)	The board of education of a local school administrative unit that elects to participate in the Program shall submit a local school improvement plan to the State Superintendent of Public Instruction before April 15 of the fiscal year preceding the fiscal year in which participation is sought.  The local board of education shall actively involve a substantial number of teachers, school administrators, and other school staff in developing the local school improvement plan.  It is the intent of the General Assembly that teachers have a major role in developing the local school improvement plan; therefore, at least half of the staff members involved in developing the local plan shall be teachers.  The teachers at each school shall select the teachers from that school who are involved in developing the local plan.
(b)	If the local school administrative unit is not currently meeting the highest level for accreditation for ninety-five percent (95%) or more of the student performance indicators adopted by the State Board of Education, the local school improvement plan shall set forth (i) the student performance goals established by the local board of education for the local school administrative unit and (ii) the unit's strategies and plans for attaining them.
The performance goals for the local school administrative unit shall address specific, measurable goals for all student performance indicators adopted by the State Board.  Factors that determine gains in achievement vary from school to school; therefore, socioeconomic factors and previous student performance indicators shall be used as the basis of the local school improvement plan.
The strategies for attaining the local student performance goals shall be based on plans for each individual school in the local school administrative unit.  The principal of each school and his staff shall develop a plan to address student performance goals appropriate to the school from those established by the local board of education.
(b1)	If the local school administrative unit is currently meeting the highest level of accreditation for ninety-five percent (95%) or more of the student performance indicators adopted by the State Board of Education, the local school improvement plan may continue to set forth the student performance goals established by the local board of education for the local school administrative unit, and the unit's strategies and plans for attaining them, in accordance with subsection (b) of this section.  If the unit chooses to concentrate on locally designed accountability goals focused on such things as thinking and reasoning skills, improving the school climate, and improving parental or student satisfaction levels, the local school improvement plan may set forth the locally designed accountability goals, and the unit's strategies and plans for attaining them.
The strategies for attaining the local student performance goals or the locally designed accountability goals shall be based on plans for each individual school in the local school administrative unit.  The principal of each school and his staff shall develop a plan to address student performance goals or the locally designed accountability goals appropriate to the school from those established by the local board of education.
If at the end of any school year, the unit failed to meet the highest level for accreditation for ninety-five percent (95%) or more of the student performance indicators adopted by the State Board of Education, the local unit shall develop a new plan in accordance with subsection (b) of this section.
(c)	The local school administrative unit shall consider a plan for differentiated pay.  The local plan shall include a plan for differentiated pay, in accordance with G.S. 115C-238.4, unless the local school administrative unit elects not to participate in any differentiated pay plan.
(d)	The local plan may include a request for a waiver of State laws, regulations, or policies.  The request for a waiver shall identify the State laws, regulations, or policies that inhibit the local unit's ability to reach its local accountability goals and shall explain how a waiver of those laws, regulations, or policies will permit the local unit to reach its local goals.
	(e)  Support among affected staff members is essential to successful implementation of a local school improvement plan; therefore, a local board of education that decides to participate in the Program shall present a proposed local school improvement plan, including waiver requests, to its teachers and administrators for their review.  Any modifications to an existing plan, including waiver requests, shall also be presented by the local board to its teachers and administrators for their review.
(f)	At the end of the first year of implementation of a local school improvement plan or in December 1991, whichever is later, and every three years after the end of the first year of implementation, the teachers in the local school administrative unit shall be surveyed regarding their attitudes about the plan and educational reform in the local school administrative unit.  The survey instrument shall be developed by the State Board of Education, after consultation with the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee.  The State Board of Education shall report the results of the surveys to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee and to the Joint Legislative Commission on Governmental Operations.
This subsection shall be implemented within funds available to the State Board of Education for aid to local school administrative units."
Sec. 5.  G.S. 115C-238.4 reads as rewritten:
"§ 115C-238.4.  Differentiated pay.
(a)	Local school administrative units may include, but are not required to include, a differentiated pay plan for certified instructional staff, certified instructional support staff, and certified administrative staff as a part of their local school improvement plans.  Units electing to include differentiated pay plans in their school improvement plans shall base their differentiated pay plans on:
(1)	The Career Development Pilot Program, G.S. 115C-363 et seq.;
(2)	The Lead Teacher Pilot Program, G.S. 115C-363.28 et seq.;
(3)	A locally designed school-based performance program, subject to limitations and guidelines adopted by the State Board of Education;
(4)	A differentiated pay plan that the State Board of Education finds has been successfully implemented in another state; 
(5)	A locally designed plan including any combination or modification of the foregoing plans; or
(6)	A unique plan designed by their administrators and teachers.
(a1)	A differentiated pay plan may authorize the use of up to one-third of all State differentiated pay funds for staff development and planning activities and for paying substitute teachers as is necessary to provide time for staff development and planning activities.  A differentiated pay plan may also authorize extending the use of differentiated pay funds to include noncertified employees in the plan.
(b)	Support among affected staff members is essential to successful implementation of a differentiated pay plan; therefore, a local board of education that decides that a differentiated pay plan should be included in its local school improvement plan shall present a proposed differentiated pay plan to affected staff members for their review and vote.  The vote shall be by secret ballot.  The local board of education shall include the proposed differentiated pay plan in its local school improvement plan only if the proposed plan has the approval of a majority of the affected paid certificated instructional and instructional support staff and a majority of the affected certificated administrators.
Every three years after a differentiated pay plan receives such approval, the local board of education shall present a proposed plan to continue, discontinue, or modify that differentiated pay plan to affected staff members for their review and vote.  The vote shall be by secret ballot.  The local board of education shall include the proposed plan in its local school improvement plan only if the proposed plan has the approval of a majority of the affected paid certificated instructional and instructional support staff and a majority of the affected certificated administrators.
(c)	Local school administrative units electing to participate in a differentiated pay plan shall receive State funds according to the terms of the plan but not to exceed:
(1)	1990-91: two percent (2%) of teacher and administrator salaries, and the employer's contributions for social security and retirement;
(2)	1991-92: three percent (3%) of teacher and administrator salaries, and the employer's contributions for social security and retirement;
(3)	1992-93: four percent (4%) of teacher and administrator salaries, and the employer's contributions for social security and retirement;
(4)	1993-94: five and one-half percent (5 1/2%) of teacher and administrator salaries, and the employer's contributions for social security and retirement; and
(5)	1994-95 and thereafter: seven percent (7%) of teacher and administrator salaries, and the employer's contributions for social security and retirement.
Any differentiated pay plan developed in accordance with this section shall be implemented within State and local funds available for differentiated pay.
(d)	Attainment of the equivalent of Career Status I shall be rewarded through a new salary schedule that provides a salary differential when a certified educator successfully completes his probationary period.
(e)	Any additional compensation received by an employee as a result of the unit's participation in the Program shall be paid as a bonus or supplement to the employee's regular salary.  If an employee in a participating unit does not receive additional compensation, such failure to receive additional compensation shall not be construed as a demotion, as that term is used in G.S. 115C-325.
Payments of bonuses or supplements shall be made no more frequently than once every calendar quarter: Provided, however, prior to the 1994-95 school year, payments in the career development pilot units may be made on a monthly basis.
(f)	If a local school administrative unit bases its differentiated pay plan on a locally designed school-based performance program, pursuant to subdivision (a)(3) of this section, the plan shall provide that following the attainment of the local school goals, the local board of education shall make a determination of which certified staff members contributed to the attainment of those goals.  Differentiated pay bonuses shall then be distributed to those designated employees.  The local board of education shall make the determination upon recommendation of (i) the superintendent and (ii) any other person or committee designated in the local differentiated pay plan.  The other person or committee designated in the local differentiated pay plan may be the principal, a school-based committee, or any other person or local committee."
Sec. 6.  G.S. 115C-238.6 reads as rewritten:
"§ 115C-238.6.  Approval of local school administrative unit plans by the State Superintendent; conditions for continued participation.
(a)	Prior to June 30 each year, the State Superintendent shall review local school improvement plans submitted by the local school administrative units in accordance with policies and performance indicators adopted by the State Board of Education.  If the State Superintendent approves the plan for a local school administrative unit, that unit shall participate in the Program for the next fiscal year.  Immediately following plan approval by the Superintendent, and for any plans previously approved, the State Board shall consider and may grant waivers of State laws, regulations and policies pertaining to the following to enable a local unit to reach its local accountability goals:
(1)	Assignment, allocation, reduction, and use of positions for teacher assistants;
(2)	Class size: Provided, however, local school administrative units shall report on class size as required by the State Board;
(3)	Employee certification, so as to permit the use of noncertified personnel for teaching and administrative roles if their academic and professional backgrounds demonstrate potential: Provided, however, that the Department of Public Instruction shall assess the relevant work experience of any such noncertified employee and shall place any such noncertified employee on the teacher salary schedule:  Provided, further, that units exercising flexibility in this area shall perform annual evaluations certifying that students are being well served, as evidenced by student achievement;
(4)	Evaluation of career status teachers and administrators, so as to allow the development of an alternative procedure to be used in lieu of the Teacher Performance Appraisal Instrument: Provided, however, any such alternative procedure shall not be referred to as the Teacher Performance Appraisal Instrument or TPAI; and, provided further, the Department of Public Instruction shall provide technical assistance, including the provision of model evaluation processes and instruments, to local school administrative units that elect to develop dual personnel evaluation processes.  A dual personnel evaluation process includes (i) an evaluation designed to provide information to guide teachers in their professional growth and development, and (ii) an evaluation to provide information to make personnel decisions pertaining to hiring, termination, promotion, and reassignment.
(5)	The provision of driver education services so as to limit access to students who (i) are meeting reasonable local attendance standards, (ii) are making progress toward high school graduation, and (iii) have not dropped out of school;
(6)	The use of staff development funds;
(7)	Traditional class units and the scheduling of end-of-course and end-of-grade testing so as to (i) enable students who can demonstrate mastery of a course to move into more demanding course work at a faster pace, (ii) enable slower students more than a traditional one-year course to master the course content required, and (iii) aid the transition to year-round schooling;
(8)	The obligation of offering summer school by authorizing the substitution of after-school or Saturday remedial or tutorial programs for at-risk students: Provided, however, students who fail to meet promotion standards for grades three, six, and eight shall be eligible for summer school;
(9)	The use of State-provided buses for field trips or for transporting parents and under-school-aged children if the transportation will enhance a local school administrative unit's educational program: Provided, however, that any additional insurance and operating costs for the buses shall be paid with non-State funds;
(10)	The placement of additional students in individual classes of academically gifted programs if the programs for State-identified gifted children are not overenrolled;
(11)	The system of calculating graduation requirements so as to enable schools to count advanced course work toward graduation regardless of the grade level at which the courses were taken, or whether the courses were taken through a cooperative program with a community college or a four-year college: Provided, however, this subdivision is not intended to reduce the requirement that all high school students shall take three units of mathematics during the high school years.
(a1)	If a local plan contains a request for additional waivers of State laws, regulations, or policies, in accordance with G.S. 115C-238.3(d), the State Superintendent shall determine whether and to what extent the identified laws, regulations, or policies should be waived.  The State Superintendent shall present that plan and his determination to the State Board of Education.  If the State Board of Education deems it necessary to do so to enable a local unit to reach its local accountability goals, the State Board, only upon the recommendation of the State Superintendent, may grant waivers of:
(1)	State laws pertaining to teacher certification, the use of State-adopted textbooks, and the purposes for which State funds for the public schools may be used, and
(2)	All State regulations and policies, except those pertaining to State salary schedules and employee benefits for school employees, the instructional program that must be offered under the Basic Education Program, the system of employment for public school teachers and administrators set out in G.S. 115C-325, health and safety codes, compulsory school attendance, the minimum lengths of the school day and year, and the Uniform Education Reporting System.
The State Board shall either grant or deny each waiver within 90 days after it is requested.  The State Board shall provide a written explanation of why a waiver is denied.
If twenty-five percent (25%) of the local school administrative units in the State request a waiver of the same policy or regulation, the State Board shall assess whether the policy or regulation should be modified or deleted.
(b)	Local school administrative units shall continue to participate in the Program and receive funds for differentiated pay, if their local plans call for differentiated pay, so long as (i) they demonstrate satisfactory progress toward student performance goals set out in their local school improvement plans; or (ii) once their local goals are met, they continue to achieve their local goals and they otherwise demonstrate satisfactory performance, as determined by the State Superintendent in accordance with guidelines set by the State Board of Education.
If the local school administrative units do not achieve their goals after two years, the Department of Public Instruction shall provide them with technical assistance to help them meet their goals.  If after one additional year they do not achieve their goals, the State Board of Education shall decide what steps shall be taken to improve the education of students in the unit."
Sec. 7.  G.S. 115C-264 reads as rewritten:
"§ 115C-264.  Operation.
In the operation of their public school food programs, the public schools shall participate in the National School Lunch Program established by the federal government. The program shall be under the jurisdiction of the Division of School Food Services of the Department of Public Instruction and in accordance with federal guidelines as established by the Child Nutrition Division of the United States Department of Agriculture.
Each school may, with the approval of the local board of education, sell soft drinks to students so long as soft drinks are not sold (i)	during the lunch period, (ii) at elementary schools, or (iii) contrary to the requirements of the National School Lunch Program.
All school food services shall be operated on a nonprofit basis, and any earnings therefrom over and above the cost of operation as defined herein shall be used to reduce the cost of food, to serve better food, or to provide free or reduced-price lunches to indigent children and for no other purpose. The term 'cost of operation' shall be defined as actual cost incurred in the purchase and preparation of food, the salaries of all personnel directly engaged in providing food services, and the cost of nonfood supplies as outlined under standards adopted by the State Board of Education. 'Personnel' shall be defined as food service supervisors or directors, bookkeepers directly engaged in food service record keeping and those persons directly involved in preparing and serving food: Provided, that food service personnel shall be paid from the funds of food services only for services rendered in behalf of lunchroom services. Any cost incurred in the provisions and maintenance of school food services over and beyond the cost of operation shall be included in the budget request filed annually by local boards of education with boards of county commissioners. It shall not be mandatory that the provisions of G.S. 115C-522(a)	and 143-129 be complied with in the purchase of supplies and food for such school food services."
Sec. 8.  This act is effective upon ratification.