Introduced Version
House Bill 2827 History
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Key: Green = existing Code. Red = new code to be enacted
H. B. 2827
(By Delegates L. Phillips, Stephens, Campbell, Hartman,
Walker, P. Smith and Eldridge)
[Introduced March 5, 2013; referred to the
Committee on Education then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §18-5-18b of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended; and to amend and reenact §18-9A-8 of said
code, all relating to modifying the funding ratio of school
students to counselors; providing counties with the
flexibility to set caseload standards so long as the standards
equally distribute counselors to students at each academic
level throughout the county and providing protection for
counties that currently exceed the proposed funding ratio.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §18-5-18b of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted; and that §18-9A-8 of said code be amended
and reenacted, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION.
§18-5-18b. School counselors in public schools.
(a) A school counselor means a professional educator who holds
a valid school counselor's certificate in accordance with article
three of this chapter.
(b) Each county board shall provide counseling services for
each pupil enrolled in the public schools of the county. Each
county board may set the caseloads for school counselors for high
schools, middle schools and primary schools in the county. These
caseloads shall be equally distributed at each academic level
within the county.
(c) The school counselor shall work with individual pupils and
groups of pupils in providing developmental, preventive and
remedial guidance and counseling programs to meet academic, social,
emotional and physical needs; including programs to identify and
address the problem of potential school dropouts. The school
counselor also may provide consultant services for parents,
teachers and administrators and may use outside referral services,
when appropriate, if no additional cost is incurred by the county
board.
(d) The state board may adopt rules consistent with the
provisions of this section that define the role of a school
counselor based on the "National Standards for School Counseling
Programs" of the American school counselor association. A school
counselor is authorized to perform such services as are not
inconsistent with the provisions of the rule as adopted by the
state board. To the extent that any funds are made available for
this purpose, county boards shall provide training for counselors
and administrators to implement the rule as adopted by the state
board. The rules shall also set forth the manner in which each county is to set required caseload standards for school counselors.
(e) Each county board shall develop a comprehensive drop-out
prevention program utilizing the expertise of school counselors and
any other appropriate resources available.
(f) School counselors shall be full-time professional
personnel, shall spend at least seventy-five percent of work time
in a direct counseling relationship with pupils, and shall devote
no more than one fourth of the work day to administrative
activities: Provided, That such activities are counselor related.
(g) Nothing in this section prohibits a county board from
exceeding the provisions of this section, or requires any specific
level of funding by the Legislature.
ARTICLE 9A. PUBLIC SCHOOL SUPPORT.
§18-9A-8. Foundation allowance for professional student support
services.
(a) The basic foundation allowance to the county for
professional student support personnel shall be the amount of money
determined in accordance with the following:
(1) The sum of the state minimum salaries, as determined in
accordance with the provisions of article four, chapter eighteen of
this code, for all state aid eligible school nurse and counselor
positions in the county during the two thousand eight fiscal year
which number shall be reduced in the same proportion as the number
of professional educators allowed to be funded under section four of this article to the total number of professional educators
employed that are state aid eligible. In performing this
calculation, the numerator shall be the number of professional
educators actually funded under section four of this article and
the denominator shall be the total number of professional educators
employed that are eligible to be funded under section four of this
article;
(2) The amount derived from the calculation in subdivision (1)
of this subsection is increased by one half percent;
(3) The amount derived from the calculation in subdivision (2)
of this subsection is the basic foundation allowance to the county
for professional student support personnel for the 2009 fiscal
year;
(4) For fiscal years 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013, the basic
foundation allowance to the county for professional student support
personnel increases by one-half percent per year over the allowance
for the previous year; and
(5) For all fiscal years thereafter, the basic foundation
allowance to the county for professional student support personnel
remains the same amount as in the two thousand thirteen fiscal year
funding shall be based upon a ratio of three hundred fifty students
per each school counselor. The reenactment of this section during
the 2013 Regular Session of the Legislature may not reduce funding
levels for any county which currently meets or exceeds this level
of funding.
(b) The additional positions for counselors that may be
created as a result of the one percent increase provided pursuant
to this section shall be assigned to schools where the counselor
can:
(1) Enhance student achievement;
(2) Provide early intervention for students in grades
prekindergarten through five; and
(3) Enhance student development and career readiness.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to create a funding ratio
of 350/1 of students and school counselors. The bill would allow
counties to set their own caseload standards so long as these are
equally distributed at each academic level in the county. The bill
would also grandfather existing counties which exceed the proposed
ratio.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.