A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to enhance and further implement the provisions of the student citizen act of 2001.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 115C‑81 is amended by adding two new subsections to read:
"§ 115C‑81.  Basic Education Program.
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(g2)	Student Councils. – All high schools and middle schools shall be encouraged to have elected student councils through which students have input into policies and decisions that affect them. All other schools are encouraged to have student councils.
The purpose of these student councils is to build civic skills and attitudes such as participation in elections, discussion and debate of issues, and collaborative decision making. Schools shall encourage active, broad-based participation in these student councils.
(g3)	Current Events. – Schools should encourage discussions of current events in a wide range of classes, especially social studies and language arts classes. All high schools and middle schools are encouraged to have at least two classes per grade level to offer interactive current events discussions at least every four weeks."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 115C‑81(h1) reads as rewritten:
"(h1)	In addition to the instruction under subsection (h) of this section, local boards of education are encouraged to include instruction on the following responsibilities:
(1)	Respect for school personnel. – In the school environment, respect includes holding teachers, school administrators, and all school personnel in high esteem and demonstrating in words and deeds that all school personnel deserve to be treated with courtesy and proper deference.
(2)	Responsibility for school safety. – Helping to create a harmonious school atmosphere that is free from threats, weapons, and violent or disruptive behavior; cultivate an orderly learning environment in which students and school personnel feel safe and secure; and encourage the resolution of conflicts and disagreements through peaceful means including peer mediation. Instruction in this responsibility should include a consistent and age-appropriate antiviolence message and a conflict resolution component for students in kindergarten through 12th grade. These messages should include media-awareness education to help children recognize stereotypes and messages portraying violence.
(3)	Service to others. – Engaging in meaningful service to their schools and their communities. Schools may teach service‑learning by (i) incorporating it into their standard curriculum, or (ii) involving a classroom of students or some other group of students in one or more hands‑on community‑service projects. All schools are encouraged to provide opportunities for student involvement in community service or service-learning projects.
(4)	Good citizenship. – Obeying the laws of the nation and this State; abiding by school rules; and understanding the rights and responsibilities of a member of a republic."
SECTION 3.  G.S. 115C‑105.35 reads as rewritten:
"§ 115C‑105.35.  Annual performance goals.
The School‑Based Management and Accountability Program shall (i) focus on student performance in the basics of reading, mathematics, and communications skills in elementary and middle schools, (ii) focus on student performance in courses required for graduation and on other measures required by the State Board in the high schools, and (iii) hold schools accountable for the educational growth of their students. To those ends, the State Board shall design and implement an accountability system that sets annual performance standards for each school in the State in order to measure the growth in performance of the students in each individual school. For purposes of this Article, beginning school year 2002‑2003, the State Board shall include a "closing the achievement gap" component in its measurement of educational growth in student performance for each school. The "closing the achievement gap" component shall measure and compare the performance of each subgroup in a school's population to ensure that all subgroups as identified by the State Board are meeting State standards.
The State Board shall consider incorporating into the School‑Based Management and Accountability Program a character and civic education component which may include a requirement for student councils."
SECTION 4.  This act is effective when it becomes law.  The rewrite of G.S. 115C‑81(h1)(2) set out in Section 2 of this act applies beginning with the 2004‑2005 school year.