A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to modify school performance grades to provide that all schools receive a school PERFORMANCE grade for school ACHIEVEMENT and a school performance GRADE for school growth.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 115C‑12(9)c1. reads as rewritten:
"c1.	To issue an annual "report card" for the State and for each local school administrative unit, assessing each unit's efforts to improve student performance based on the growth in performance of the students in each school and taking into account progress over the previous years' level of performance and the State's performance in comparison with other states. This assessment shall take into account factors that have been shown to affect student performance and that the State Board considers relevant to assess the State's efforts to improve student performance. As a part of the annual "report card" for each local school administrative unit, the State Board shall award, in accordance with G.S. 115C‑83.15, numerical school achievement and school growth performance scores on a scale of zero to 100 and separate corresponding performance letter grades of A, B, C, D, or F for both the school achievement and school growth earned by each school within the local school administrative unit. The school performance grades shall reflect student performance on annual subject‑specific assessments, college and workplace readiness measures, and graduation rates. For schools serving students in any grade from kindergarten to eighth grade, separate performance scores and grades shall also be awarded based on the school performance in reading and mathematics respectively. The annual "report card" for schools serving students in third grade also shall include the number and percentage of third grade students who (i) take and pass the alternative assessment of reading comprehension; (ii) were retained in third grade for not demonstrating reading proficiency as indicated in G.S. 115C‑83.7(a); and (iii) were exempt from mandatory third grade retention by category of exemption as listed in G.S. 115C‑83.7(b). The annual "report card" for high schools shall also include measures of Advanced Placement course participation and International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme participation and Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate examination participation and performance."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 115C‑47(58) reads as rewritten:
"(58)	To Inform the Public About the North Carolina School Report Cards Issued by the State Board of Education. – Each local board of education shall ensure that the report card issued for it by the State Board of Education receives wide distribution to the local press or is otherwise provided to the public. Each local board of education shall ensure that the school performance scores and grades earned by each school in the local school administrative unit for the current and previous four school years is prominently displayed on the Web site of the local school administrative unit. If any school in the local school administrative unit is awarded a grade of D or F, the local board of education shall provide notice of the grade in writing to the parent or guardian of all students enrolled in that school."
SECTION 3.  G.S. 115C‑83.15 reads as rewritten:
"§ 115C‑83.15.  School achievement, growth, performance scores, and grades.
(a)	School Scores and Grades. – The State Board of Education shall award school achievement and growth scores and associated performance grades as required by G.S. 115C‑12(9)c1., and calculated as provided in this section. The State Board of Education shall enter all necessary data into the Education Value‑Added Assessment System (EVAAS) in order to calculate school performance scores and grades.
(b)	Calculation of the School Achievement Score. – In calculating the overall school achievement score earned by schools, the State Board of Education shall total the sum of points earned by a school on all of the following indicators that are measured for that school:
(1)	One point for each percent of students who score at or above proficient on annual assessments for mathematics in grades three through eight.
(2)	One point for each percent of students who score at or above proficient on annual assessments for reading in grades three through eight.
(3)	One point for each percent of students who score at or above proficient on annual assessments for science in grades five and eight.
(4)	One point for each percent of students who score at or above proficient on the Algebra I or Integrated Math I end‑of‑course test.
(5)	One point for each percent of students who score at or above proficient on the English II end‑of‑course test.
(6)	One point for each percent of students who score at or above proficient on the Biology end‑of‑course test.
(7)	One point for each percent of students who complete Algebra II or Integrated Math III with a passing grade.
(8)	One point for each percent of students who achieve the minimum score required for admission into a constituent institution of The University of North Carolina on a nationally normed test of college readiness.
(9)	One point for each percent of students enrolled in Career and Technical Education courses who meet the standard when scoring at Silver, Gold, or Platinum levels on a nationally normed test of workplace readiness.
(10)	One point for each percent of students who graduate within four years of entering high school.
In calculating the overall school achievement score earned by schools, the State Board of Education shall (i) use a composite approach to weigh the achievement elements based on the number of students measured by any given achievement element and (ii) proportionally adjust the scale to account for the absence of a school achievement element for award of scores to a school that does not have a measure of one of the school achievement elements annually assessed for the grades taught at that school. The overall school achievement score shall be translated to a 100‑point scale and used for school reporting purposes as provided in G.S. 115C‑12(9)c1., 115C‑218.65, and 115C‑238.66.
(c)	Calculation of the School Growth Score. – Using EVAAS, the State Board shall calculate the overall growth score earned by schools. In calculating the total growth score earned by schools, the State Board of Education shall weight student growth on the achievement indicators as provided in subsection (b) of this section that have available growth values. The numerical values used to determine whether a school has met, exceeded, or has not met expected growth shall be translated to a 100‑point scale and used for school reporting purposes as provided in G.S. 115C‑12(9)c1., 115C‑218.65, and 115C‑238.66.
(d)	School Performance Scores and Grades for School Achievement and School Growth. – For all schools, the score for school achievement, as provided in subsection (b) of this section, and the score for school growth, as provided in subsection (c) of this section, shall each be converted by the State Board of Education to a 100‑point scale and used to determine two separate school performance grades, one for school achievement and one for school growth, based on the following scale:
(1)	A score of at least 90 is equivalent to a school performance grade of A.
(2)	A score of at least 80 is equivalent to overall school performance grade of B.
(3)	A score of at least 70 is equivalent to a school performance grade of C.
(4)	A score of at least 60 is equivalent to a school performance grade of D.
(5)	A score of less than 60 is equivalent to a school performance grade of F.
(e)	Elementary and Middle School Reading and Math Achievement Scores. – For schools serving students in kindergarten through eighth grade, the school achievement scores in reading and mathematics, respectively, shall be reported separately on the annual school report card provided under G.S. 115C‑12(9)c1., 115C‑218.65, and 115C‑238.66.
(f)	Indication of Growth. – In addition to awarding the overall school scores for achievement and growth and associated performance grades, using EVAAS, the State Board shall designate that a school has met, exceeded, or has not met expected growth. The designation of student growth shall be clearly displayed in the annual school report card provided under G.S. 115C‑12(9)c1., 115C‑218.65, and 115C‑238.66."
SECTION 4.  G.S. 115C‑218.65 reads as rewritten:
"§ 115C‑218.65.  North Carolina School Report Cards.
A charter school shall ensure that the report card issued for it by the State Board of Education receives wide distribution to the local press or is otherwise provided to the public. A charter school shall ensure that the school performance scores and grades earned by the charter school for the current and previous four school years is prominently displayed on the school Web site. If a charter school is awarded a grade of D or F, the charter school shall provide notice of the grade in writing to the parent or guardian of all students enrolled in that school."
SECTION 5.  G.S. 115C‑238.66(11) reads as rewritten:
"(11)	North Carolina School Report Cards. – A regional school shall ensure that the report card issued for it by the State Board of Education receives wide distribution to the local press or is otherwise provided to the public. A regional school shall ensure that the school performance scores and grades earned by the regional school for the current and previous four school years is prominently displayed on the school Web site. If a regional school is awarded a grade of D or F, the regional school shall provide notice of the grade in writing to the parent or guardian of all students enrolled in that school."
SECTION 6.  Notwithstanding G.S. 115C‑83.15(d), as amended by this act, for the 2014‑2015 school year only, for all schools, the score for school achievement and the score for school growth shall each be converted by the State Board of Education to a 100‑point scale and used to determine two separate school performance grades, one for school achievement and one for school growth, based on the following scale:
(1)	A score of at least 85 is equivalent to a school performance grade of A.
(2)	A score of at least 70 is equivalent to a school performance grade of B.
(3)	A score of at least 55 is equivalent to a school performance grade of C.
(4)	A score of at least 40 is equivalent to a school performance grade of D.
(5)	A score of less than 40 is equivalent to a school performance grade of F.
SECTION 7.  This act is effective when it becomes law.