Utah Code 53E-5-303. Required action for district springboard schools and district elevate schools — Notification to parents and municipality for springboard schools
53E-5-303. Required action for district springboard schools and district elevate schools — Notification to parents and municipality for springboard schools.
(1)
In accordance with deadlines established by the state board, a local school board of a springboard school or elevate school shall:
Terms Used In Utah Code 53E-5-303
Administrator: includes "executor" when the subject matter justifies the use. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
Continuous improvement expert: means a person identified by the state board under Section 53E-5-305. See Utah Code 53E-5-301
Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
Elevate school: means a district school or charter school that:
Initial remedial year: means the school year a district school or charter school is designated as a springboard school under Section 53E-5-302 or elevate school under Section 53E-5-302. See Utah Code 53E-5-301
Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
School improvement committee: means a committee established under:
Springboard school: means a district school or charter school that has been designated a springboard school by the state board because the school:
(a)
is not a Title I school; and
(b)
when ranked according to the percentage of possible points the state board awards under 2, averaged over three school years is:
(i)
one of the five lowest performing elementary, middle, or junior high schools statewide; or
(ii)
one of the two lowest performing high schools statewide. See Utah Code 53E-5-301
State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes a state, district, or territory of the United States. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
establish a school improvement committee composed of the following members:
(i)
the local school board member who represents the voting district where the springboard school or elevate school is located;
(ii)
the school principal;
(iii)
three parents of students enrolled in the springboard school or elevate school appointed by the chair of the school community council;
(iv)
one teacher at the springboard school or elevate school appointed by the principal;
(v)
one teacher at the springboard school or elevate school appointed by the school district superintendent; and
(vi)
one school district administrator;
(b)
solicit proposals from a continuous improvement expert identified by the state board under Section 53E-5-305;
(c)
partner with the school improvement committee to select a proposal;
(d)
submit the proposal described in Subsection (1)(b) to the state board for review and approval; and
(e)
subject to Subsections (3) and (4), contract with a continuous improvement expert.
(2)
A proposal described in Subsection (1)(b) shall include a:
(a)
strategy to address the root causes of the springboard school’s or elevate school’s low performance identified through the needs assessment described in Section 53E-5-302; and
(b)
scope of work to facilitate implementation of the strategy that includes at least the activities described in Subsection (4)(b).
(3)
A local school board may not select a continuous improvement expert that is:
(a)
the school district; or
(b)
an employee of the school district.
(4)
A contract between a local school board and a continuous improvement expert:
(a)
shall be based on an explicit stipulation of desired outcomes and consequences for not meeting goals, including cancellation of the contract;
(b)
shall include a scope of work that requires the continuous improvement expert to at a minimum:
(i)
develop and implement, in partnership with the school improvement committee, a school improvement plan that meets the criteria described in Subsection (5);
(ii)
monitor the effectiveness of a school improvement plan through reliable means of evaluation, including on-site visits, observations, surveys, analysis of student achievement data, and interviews;
(iii)
provide ongoing implementation support and project management for a school improvement plan;
(iv)
provide high-quality professional learning personalized for school staff that is designed to build:
(A)
the leadership capacity of the school principal;
(B)
the instructional capacity of school staff;
(C)
educators’ capacity with data-driven strategies by providing actionable, embedded data practices; and
(v)
leverage support from community partners to coordinate an efficient delivery of supports to students inside and outside the classroom;
(c)
may include a scope of work that requires the continuous improvement expert to:
(i)
develop sustainable school district and school capacities to effectively respond to the academic and behavioral needs of students in high poverty communities; or
(ii)
other services that respond to the needs assessment conducted under Section 53E-5-302;
(d)
shall include travel costs and payment milestones; and
(e)
may include pay for performance provisions.
(5)
A school improvement committee shall partner with the continuous improvement expert selected under Subsection (1) to develop and implement a school improvement plan that:
(a)
addresses the root causes of the springboard school’s or elevate school’s low performance identified through the needs assessment described in Section 53E-5-302;
(b)
includes recommendations regarding changes to the springboard school’s or elevate school’s personnel, culture, curriculum, assessments, instructional practices, governance, leadership, finances, policies, or other areas that may be necessary to implement the school improvement plan;
(c)
includes measurable student achievement goals and objectives and benchmarks by which to measure progress;
(d)
includes a professional development plan that identifies a strategy to address problems of instructional practice;
(e)
includes a detailed budget specifying how the school improvement plan will be funded;
(f)
includes a plan to assess and monitor progress;
(g)
includes a plan to communicate and report data on progress to stakeholders; and
(h)
includes a timeline for implementation.
(6)
A local school board of a springboard school or elevate school shall:
(a)
prioritize school district funding and resources to the springboard school or elevate school;
(b)
grant the springboard school or elevate school streamlined authority over staff, schedule, policies, budget, and academic programs to implement the school improvement plan;
(c)
assist the continuous improvement expert and the springboard school or elevate school with:
(i)
addressing the root cause of the springboard school’s or elevate school’s low performance; and
(ii)
the development or implementation of a school improvement plan; and
(d)
for a springboard school, provide initial and annual notice:
(i)
that includes the following information regarding the springboard school:
(A)
the school’s improvement status;
(B)
the goals, benchmarks, and timetable in the school’s improvement plan and any progress toward the goals, benchmarks, and timetable; and
(C)
how the community may provide support to the school and students of the school inside and outside the classroom; and
(ii)
to:
(A)
parents of students enrolled in the school, using the same form of communication the local school board regularly uses to communicate with parents; and
(B)
the governing council and the mayor of the municipality in which the school is located.
(7)
(a)
On or before June 1 of an initial remedial year, a school improvement committee shall submit the school improvement plan to the local school board for approval.
(b)
Except as provided in Subsection (7)(c), on or before July 1 of an initial remedial year, a local school board of a springboard school or elevate school shall submit the school improvement plan to the state board for approval.
(c)
If the local school board does not approve the school improvement plan submitted under Subsection (7)(a), the school improvement committee may appeal the disapproval in accordance with rules made by the state board as described in Subsection 53E-5-305(6).
(8)
A local school board, or a local school board’s designee, shall annually report to the state board progress toward the goals, benchmarks, and timetable in a springboard school’s or elevate school’s improvement plan.
