Existing law establishes the Department of Education, which consists of the State Board of Education and the Superintendent of Public Instruction. (NRS 385.010) Existing law: (1) requires the State Board to prepare a plan to improve the academic achievement of pupils; and (2) sets forth the required contents of the plan. (NRS 385.111, 385.112) Existing law also requires the board of trustees of each school district and the governing bodies of certain charter schools to prepare an annual report of accountability that contains certain information, including, without limitation, information regarding teachers, other licensed educational personnel and paraprofessionals. (NRS 385A.070, 385A.230)
Section 1 of this bill: (1) requires the State Board to prepare a separate plan to improve the academic achievement of pupils enrolled in public elementary schools; (2) sets forth the required contents of the plan, including, without limitation, certain goals for public elementary schools; and (3) establishes requirements governing the consequences for the principal of a public elementary school that does not meet such goals. Section 3 of this bill requires that the plans to improve academic achievement required pursuant to existing law and section 1 include requirements concerning professional development. (NRS 385.111) Sections 4, 5 and 58 of this bill make conforming changes to refer to the plans prepared pursuant to existing law and section 1. (NRS 385.111)
Section 6 of this bill requires that the annual report of accountability include information on the plans to improve academic achievement prepared pursuant to existing law and section 1. (NRS 385.111) Section 7 of this bill applies certain requirements governing the annual report of accountability to the reporting requirements set forth in section 6. Section 8 of this bill revises the manner by which teacher vacancies are measured for inclusion in the annual report of accountability.
Existing law: (1) creates county school districts; and (2) provides that such school districts are political subdivisions of this State. (NRS 386.010) Section 9 of this bill provides for the impaneling of a School District Oversight Board under certain circumstances and provides the Board, if impaneled, with the authority granted to the board of trustees of a school district to take actions necessary to remedy the cause of a state of emergency for a school district. Section 9 additionally sets forth: (1) the membership of the Board; and (2) requirements that must be met before the Board is authorized to exercise its authority. Section 65 of this bill provides that meetings of the Board must be open to the public but are otherwise exempt from the provisions of the Open Meeting Law. (Chapter 241 of NRS)
Existing law: (1) sets forth the membership of the board of trustees in each county school district in which more than 75,000 pupils are enrolled (currently only the Clark County School District); (2) provides that four members of such a board of trustees are appointed, nonvoting members; and (3) sets forth requirements for electing officers of any board of trustees of a school district. (NRS 386.120, 386.165, 386.310) Section 10 of this bill: (1) provides that such appointed, nonvoting members are instead voting members; and (2) eliminates the prohibition on the ability of such members to vote for or serve as officers. Section 11 of this bill makes a conforming change to authorize the previously nonvoting members to serve as officers.
Existing law creates the Commission on School Funding and establishes the duties of the Commission. (NRS 387.1246, 387.12463) Section 12 of this bill requires the Commission to: (1) review and propose any necessary revisions to the method of calculating the quintile of at-risk pupils in this State; and (2) select a third party to verify such methods and to submit a report containing the findings and recommendations for using a different method. Section 62 of this bill authorizes the Commission to request the drafting of not more than 1 legislative measure for a regular session. Section 63 of this bill applies existing provisions governing the drafting of such measures to the drafting of a legislative measure pursuant to section 62. Section 81 of this bill directs the Commission to conduct an interim study concerning certain subjects relating to school funding.
Existing law creates the Early Childhood Literacy and Readiness Account and authorizes the Department to award grants to school districts, sponsors of charter schools and nonprofit organizations to support early childhood literacy and readiness programs. (NRS 387.1271-387.1277) Section 13 of this bill: (1) extends eligibility to receive such grants to private, for-profit organizations; and (2) requires that all programs supported by such a grant serve a child, regardless of the economic status of the child, at no cost to his or her parent or legal guardian.
Existing law: (1) requires that the ratio of pupils per licensed teacher in certain classes not exceed certain ratios; and (2) authorizes the State Board to grant a variance to a school district that does not meet such ratios in a quarter of a school year. (NRS 388.700) Section 14 of this bill sets forth requirements for the ratio of teachers per administrator in each elementary school within a school district. Section 16 of this bill: (1) prohibits the State Board from granting a variance of requirements for the ratio of pupils per licensed teacher unless the school district complies with the requirements set forth in section 14; and (2) requires requests for, and reports concerning, variances of requirements for the ratio of pupils per licensed teacher to be submitted annually rather than quarterly. Sections 17 and 18 of this bill make conforming changes to reflect the change to the timelines for such submissions. (NRS 388.723, 388.725)
Existing law requires a public school, to the extent that money is available, to employ a school counselor on a full-time basis and provide for a comprehensive program for school counseling. (NRS 388.055) Section 15 of this bill requires each public school located in a county whose population is 100,000 or more (currently Clark and Washoe Counties) to comply with such requirements, thereby requiring money to be made available for such programs in those school districts.
Existing law creates the State Public Charter School Authority and prescribes the membership of the Authority. (NRS 388A.150, 388A.153) Existing law additionally sets forth the requirements for the process of applying to form a charter school and amending a charter contract. (NRS 388A.243-388A.258, 388A.276, 388A.279) Existing law further requires the sponsor of a charter school to submit a report containing certain information to the Department. (NRS 388A.351) Section 20 of this bill changes the membership of the Authority. Section 19 of this bill authorizes the board of trustees of certain school districts to object to the placement of a proposed charter school. Sections 21-23 of this bill revise certain requirements relating to: (1) the contents of an application to form a charter school; (2) the review of such an application; and (3) a public meeting for the consideration of such an application. Sections 24 and 25 of this bill require the Authority to take certain actions regarding a proposed amendment to a charter contract for a charter school it sponsors. Section 26 of this bill requires a report prepared by the sponsor of a charter school to include a description of the expenditures and sources of all revenues for the charter school.
Existing law requires at least 80 percent of the teachers who provide instruction at a charter school to hold a license or endorsement to teach in this State. (NRS 388A.518) Section 28 of this bill instead requires, with certain exceptions, that any teacher who provides instruction at a charter school to hold such a license or endorsement. Section 27 of this bill provides that the governing body of a charter school may adopt rules relating to the truancy of pupils if the rules are as restrictive as those set forth for pupils enrolled in traditional public schools, thereby removing the authority under existing law for the governing body of a charter school to adopt more restrictive rules relating to the truancy of pupils. (NRS 392.130-392.220)
Existing law: (1) creates the Nevada Educational Choice Scholarship Program; (2) establishes requirements for a scholarship organization that provides grants on behalf of a pupil to a school in which the pupil is enrolled; and (3) requires such a scholarship organization to submit an annual report to the Department containing certain information. (NRS 388D.250-388D.280) Section 30 of this bill establishes certain reporting requirements for schools that receive such grants. Section 31 of this bill requires such schools to administer certain examinations and assessments to certain pupils. Section 33 of this bill requires each school that receives such a grant to comply with the provisions of sections 30 and 31. Section 32 of this bill applies the definition of “scholarship organization” in existing law to sections 30 and 31. (NRS 388D.260)
Existing law requires the Department to adopt regulations prescribing certain limitations on: (1) the time taken from instruction to conduct an examination or assessment; and (2) the number of examinations or assessments administered in a school year. (NRS 390.805) Section 35 of this bill establishes additional requirements for such regulations. Section 34 of this bill sets forth certain reporting requirements concerning the amount of class time used to prepare for and conduct examinations and assessments.
Sections 37 and 38 of this bill: (1) create the Commission on Recruitment and Retention within the Department; (2) set forth the membership and duties of the Commission; and (3) requires the Commission to study issues relating to the recruitment and retention of educators in this State. Section 85 of this bill repeals provisions governing the Nevada State Teacher and Education Support Professional Recruitment and Retention Advisory Task Force, thereby dissolving the Task Force. (NRS 391.486-391.496)
Existing law creates the Commission on Professional Standards in Education and requires the Commission to prescribe regulations, subject to approval by the State Board, for licensing teachers and other educational personnel. (NRS 391.011, 391.019, 391.027) Section 39 of this bill requires the Commission to establish requirements for a person to obtain a provisional license with an endorsement as a registered apprentice. Section 85 repeals the authorization for the State Board to disapprove any regulation adopted by the Commission. Sections 39-42 of this bill make conforming changes to reflect the repeal of authority granted to the State Board. Section 41 revises provisions governing the timing and content of certain reports submitted by the Commission. (NRS 391.028) Section 44 of this bill requires the Department, rather than the State Board, to annually evaluate each provider approved by the Commission to offer certain courses of study or training. (NRS 391.039) Section 48 of this bill eliminates the requirement that certain reports concerning a shortage of teachers be submitted to the State Board. (NRS 391.125)
Existing law requires an applicant for the issuance or renewal of a license as a teacher or other educational personnel position to submit to the Superintendent of Public Instruction a complete set of his or her fingerprints and written permission authorizing the Superintendent to forward the fingerprints to the Central Repository for Nevada Records of Criminal History for its report on the criminal history of the applicant and for submission to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (hereinafter “FBI”) for its report on the criminal history of the applicant. (NRS 179A.075, 391.033) Sections 43 and 61 of this bill remove the requirement for an applicant for the renewal of a license as a teacher or other educational personnel to submit to the Superintendent a complete set of fingerprints for the purpose of obtaining a report on the criminal history of the applicant. Instead, section 60 of this bill requires the Central Repository and the Department of Education to participate in the in the Rap Back Program administered by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for the purpose of enabling the Department to obtain ongoing status notifications of any criminal history of a person licensed by the Superintendent. Under section 60: (1) any fingerprints submitted by an applicant for the issuance of a license as a teacher or other educational personnel will be retained in certain systems maintained by the Central Repository and the FBI for the purposes of the Rap Back Program; and (2) if the Rap Back Program identifies a new criminal history event for such a licensee, notice will be provided to the Central Repository and the Central Repository is required to notify the Department that a licensee has a criminal history event. Section 60 further provides for the confidentiality of such criminal history information and the destruction of fingerprints maintained in the system when a person is no longer licensed. Under section 84, persons who are licensed by the Superintendent at the time the Rap Back Program becomes effective are required to submit fingerprints for the purposes of the Program at the time of the first renewal of their license after the Program is effective and would not submit fingerprints for subsequent renewals. Section 45 of this bill makes a conforming change related to fees for the renewal of such a license to reflect that fingerprints for a background check would no longer be submitted with a renewal application when the Rap Back Program becomes effective. (NRS 391.040) Section 46 of this bill makes a conforming change to remove a requirement for a person who is licensed by the Superintendent and who is returned to employment after certain leave to submit fingerprints for the purposes of a background check because the Department would be receiving notifications for such purposes through the Rap Back Program. (NRS 391.104)
The board of trustees of a school district is authorized to employ a superintendent of schools. (NRS 391.110) Section 47 of this bill requires the board of trustees of a school district located in a county whose population is 100,000 or more (currently Clark and Washoe Counties) to comply with certain requires when hiring a superintendent of schools.
Existing law: (1) requires the State board to establish a statewide performance evaluation system and; (2) sets forth certain requirements governing the evaluation of probationary teachers. (391.465, 391.685) Section 49 of this bill changes how pupil growth is calculated for the purposes of such an evaluation. Section 52 of this bill revises the observation cycles for probationary teachers.
Section 50 of this bill requires a teacher to develop goals for educational growth, rather than learning goals, for each of his or her pupils. (NRS 391.480) Section 51 of this bill makes a conforming change to reflect the change made in section 50.
Existing law requires the board of trustees of each school district to establish a program of performance pay and enhanced compensation for the recruitment and retention of licensed teachers and administrators. (NRS 391A.450) Section 55 of this bill: (1) requires each large school district to establish through negotiations with an employee organization a salary incentive program for professional growth for teachers and principals; and (2) sets forth requirements for an agreement to provide a salary increase through the program. Section 56 of this bill requires the board of trustees of each large school district to reserve for each fiscal year an amount of money sufficient to provide such agreed upon increases in salaries. Section 54 of this bill defines “large school district” for the purposes of sections 55 and 56. Section 66 of this bill requires the salary incentive program to be within the scope of mandatory collective bargaining. Section 79 of this bill clarifies the manner in which the provisions of section 55 applies to any existing contracts.
Existing law requires a regional training program for the professional development of teachers and administrators to provide certain training for educational personnel. (NRS 391A.125) Section 57 of this bill sets forth certain requirements for such training.
Article 11 of the Nevada Constitution requires the Nevada Legislature to provide for the establishment of a State University that is controlled by a Board of Regents whose duties are prescribed by law. (Nev. Const. Art. 11, § 4) Section 59 of this bill requires the Board of Regents, in consultation with the Department, to develop a method for sharing with the Department certain numbers used for the identification of students.
Existing law: (1) requires the Legislative Auditor to conduct a performance audit of certain school districts and the State Public Charter School Authority; and (2) sets forth the schedule for conducting such performance audits. (NRS 218G.600) Section 64 of this bill sets forth additional matters for the Legislative Auditor to evaluate when conducting such performance audits. Section 80 of this bill directs the Legislative Auditor to perform certain tasks concerning the examination of resource levels and funding levels that represent the best practices for adequately meeting the needs of pupils.
Existing law requires the governing board of a local government to publish a summary of a fiscal report of the local government in a certain newspaper. (NRS 354.6015) Section 67 of this bill eliminates such a requirement for the boards of trustees of school districts.
Under existing law, the apprenticeship program in Nevada is administered by the Labor Commissioner as the ex officio State Apprenticeship Director with the advice and guidance of the State Apprenticeship Council. (NRS 610.110, 610.120) Sections 69 and 70 of this bill create the Nevada Registered Teacher Apprenticeship Support Account and the Nevada Registered Teacher Apprenticeship Support Program, respectively. Section 69 requires the State Apprenticeship Director to administer the Account.
Sections 71-78 of this bill make certain appropriations to carry out the provisions of this bill.