HB 2154 Text

COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
H. B. 2154

(By Delegates Hartman, Long, Renner, Duke,
Hamilton, Howard and Sumner)

(Originating in the Committee on Education)

[January 15, 2003]

A BILL to amend and reenact section forty-five, article five, chapter eighteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended; and to amend and reenact section five, article five-a of said chapter, all relating to the school calender generally; removing requirement for state board rule on minimum attendance; providing for scheduling instructional support and enhancement days and specifying their use; requiring both instructional activities for students and professional activities for teachers and listing examples; waiving minimum attendance and attendance requirements on instructional support and enhancement days; changing dates for scheduling the primary statewide assessment program; authorizing the addition of instructional minutes for certain purposes; and requiring the scheduling of certain times available for faculty senate meetings.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That section forty-five, article five, chapter eighteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted; and that section five, article five-a of said chapter be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:

ARTICLE 5. COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION.

§18-5-45. School calendar.

(a) As used in this section, the following terms have the following meanings:

(1) Instructional day means a day within the instructional term which meets the following criteria:

(A) Instruction is offered to students for the amounts of time provided by state board rule;

(B) ~~A minimum percentage of students, as defined by state board rule, is present in the county schools;~~
~~(C)~~ Instructional time is used for instruction, cocurricular activities and approved extracurricular activities, and pursuant to the provisions of subdivision (12), subsection (b), section five, article five-a of this chapter, faculty senates; and

~~(D)~~ (C) Such other criteria as the state board determines appropriate.

(2) Bank time means time added beyond the required instructional day which may be accumulated and used in larger blocks of time during the school year for instructional or noninstructional activities, as further defined by the state board.

(3) Extracurricular activities are activities under the supervision of the school such as athletics, noninstructional assemblies, social programs, entertainment and other similar activities, as further defined by the state board.

(4) Cocurricular activities are activities that are closely related to identifiable academic programs or areas of study that serve to complement academic curricula as further defined by the state board.

(b) Findings. --

(1) The primary purpose of the school system is to provide instruction for students.

(2) The school calendar, as defined in this section, is designed to define the school term both for employees and for instruction.

(3) The school calendar traditionally has provided for one hundred eighty actual days of instruction but numerous circumstances have combined to cause the actual number of instructional days to be less than one hundred eighty.

(4) The quality and amount of instruction offered during the instructional term is affected by the extracurricular and cocurricular activities allowed to occur during scheduled instructional time.

(5) Within reasonable guidelines, the school calendar should be designed at least to guarantee that one hundred eighty actual days of instruction are possible.

(1) An employment term for teachers of no less than two hundred days, exclusive of Saturdays and Sundays; and

(2) Within the employment term, an instructional term for students of no less than one hundred eighty separate instructional days. The instructional term for students shall include, one instructional day in each of the months of October, December, February, April and June which is an instructional support and enhancement day scheduled by the board to include both instructional activities for students and professional activities for teachers to improve student instruction. The instructional activities for students may include, but are not limited to, both in school and outside of school activities such as student mentoring, tutoring, counseling, student research and other projects or activities of an instructional nature, community service, career exploration, parent and teacher conferences, visits to the homes of students, college and financial aid workshops and college visits. The instructional activities for students shall be determined and scheduled at the local school level. The first two hours of the instructional day shall be utilized for instructional activities for students which require the direct supervision or involvement by teachers, and such activities shall be limited to two hours. The professional activities for teachers shall include a two hour block of time immediately following the first two hours of instructional activities for students during which the faculty senate shall have the opportunity to meet. Any time not utilized by the faculty senate and the remainder of the school day, not including the duty free lunch period, shall be used for other professional activities for teachers to improve student instruction which may include, but are not limited to, professional staff development, curriculum team meetings, individualized education plan meetings and other meetings between teachers, principals, aides and paraprofessionals to improve student instruction as determined and scheduled at the local school level. Notwithstanding any other provision of law or policy to the contrary, the presence of any specific number of students in attendance at the school for any specific period of time shall not be required on instructional support and enhancement days and the transportation of students to the school shall not be required.

(d) The instructional term shall commence no earlier than the twenty-sixth day of August and terminate no later than the eighth day of June.

(e) Noninstructional days shall total twenty and shall be comprised of the following:

(1) Seven holidays as specified in section two, article five, chapter eighteen-a of this code;

(2) Election day as specified in section two, article five, chapter eighteen-a of this code;

(3) Six days to be designated by the county board to be used by the employees outside the school environment; and

(4) Six days to be designated by the county board for any of the following purposes:

(A) Curriculum development;

(B) Preparation for opening and closing school;

(D) Teacher-pupil-parent conferences;

(E) Professional meetings; and

(F) Making up days when instruction was scheduled but not conducted.

(f) Three of the days described in subdivision (4), subsection (e) of this section shall be scheduled prior to the twenty-sixth day of August for the purposes of preparing for the opening of school and staff development.

(g) At least one of the days described in subdivision (4), subsection (e) of this section shall be scheduled after the eighth day of June for the purpose of preparing for the closing of school. If one hundred eighty separate instruction days occur prior to the eighth day of June, this day may be scheduled on or before the eighth day of June.

(h) At least four of the days described in subdivision (3), subsection (e) of this section shall be scheduled after the first day of March.

(i) At least two of the days described in subdivision (4), subsection (e) of this section, will be scheduled for professional development. The professional development conducted on these days will be consistent with the goals established by the state board pursuant to the provisions of section twenty-three-a, article two, chapter eighteen of this code.

(j) Subject to the provisions of subsection (g) of this section, all noninstructional days will be scheduled prior to the eighth day of June.

(k) The state board may not schedule the primary statewide assessment program prior to the ~~fifteenth~~ first day of May of the instructional year. ~~unless the state board determines that the nature of the test mandates an earlier testing date~~

(l) If, on or after the first day of March, the county board determines that it is not possible to complete one hundred eighty separate days of instruction, the county board shall schedule instruction on any available noninstructional day, regardless of the purpose for which the day originally was scheduled, and the day will be used for instruction: Provided, That the noninstructional days scheduled for professional development shall be the last available noninstructional days to be rescheduled as instructional days: Provided, however, That on or after the first day of March, the county board may also require additional minutes of instruction in the school day to make up for lost instructional days in excess of the days available through rescheduling and, if in its judgment it is reasonable and necessary to improve student performance, to avoid scheduling instruction on noninstructional days previously scheduled for professional development. The provisions of this subsection do not apply to: (1) Holidays; and (2) election day.

(m) The following applies to bank time:

(1) Bank time may not be used to avoid one hundred eighty separate days of instruction;

(2) Bank time may not be used to lengthen the time provided in law for faculty senates;

(3) The use of bank time for extracurricular activities will be limited by the state board; and

(4) Such other requirements or restrictions as the state board may provide in the rule required to be promulgated by this section.

(n) The following applies to cocurricular activities:

(1) The state board shall determine what activities may be considered cocurricular;

(2) The state board shall determine the amount of instructional time that may be consumed by cocurricular activities; and

(3) Such other requirements or restrictions as the state board may provide in the rule required to be promulgated by this section.

(o) The following applies to extracurricular activities:

(1) Except as provided by subdivision (3) of this subsection, extracurricular activities may not be scheduled during instructional time;

(2) The use of bank time for extracurricular activities will be limited by the state board; and

(3) The state board shall provide for the attendance by students of certain activities sanctioned by the secondary schools activities commission when those activities are related to statewide tournaments or playoffs or are programs required for secondary schools activities commission approval.

(p) Noninstructional interruptions to the instructional day shall be minimized to allow the classroom teacher to teach.

(q) Nothing in this section prohibits establishing year-round schools in accordance with rules to be established by the state board.

(r) Prior to implementing the school calendar, the county board shall secure approval of its proposed calendar from the state board or, if so designated by the state board, from the state superintendent.

(s) The county board may contract with all or part of the personnel for a longer term.

(t) The minimum instructional term may be decreased by order of the state superintendent in any county declared a federal disaster area and where the event causing the declaration is substantially related to a reduction of instructional days.

(u) Where the employment term overlaps a teacher's or service personnel's participation in a summer institute or institution of higher education for the purpose of advancement or professional growth, the teacher or service personnel may substitute, with the approval of the county superintendent, the participation for up to five of the noninstructional days of the employment term.

(v) The state board shall promulgate a rule in accordance with the provisions of article three-b, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code for the purpose of implementing the provisions of this section.

ARTICLE 5A. LOCAL SCHOOL INVOLVEMENT.

§18-5A-5. Public school faculty senates established; election of officers; powers and duties.

(a) There is established at every public school in this state a faculty senate which is comprised of all permanent, full-time professional educators employed at the school who shall all be voting members. Professional educators, as used in this section, means professional educators as defined in chapter eighteen-a of this code. A quorum of more than one half of the voting members of the faculty shall be present at any meeting of the faculty senate at which official business is conducted. Prior to the beginning of the instructional term each year, but within the employment term, the principal shall convene a meeting of the faculty senate to elect a chair, vice chair and secretary and discuss matters relevant to the beginning of the school year. The vice chair shall preside at meetings when the chair is absent. Meetings of the faculty senate shall be held ~~on a regular basis as determined by a schedule approved by the faculty senate and amended periodically if needed~~ during the times provided in accordance with subdivision (12), subsection (b) of this section as determined by the faculty senate. Emergency meetings may be held during noninstructional time at the call of the chair or a majority of the voting members by petition submitted to the chair and vice chair. An agenda of matters to be considered at a scheduled meeting of the faculty senate shall be available to the members at least two employment days prior to the meeting. For emergency meetings the agenda shall be available as soon as possible prior to the meeting. The chair of the faculty senate may appoint such committees as may be desirable to study and submit recommendations to the full faculty senate, but the acts of the faculty senate shall be voted upon by the full body.

(b) In addition to any other powers and duties conferred by law, or authorized by policies adopted by the state or county board of education or bylaws which may be adopted by the faculty senate not inconsistent with law, the powers and duties listed in this subsection are specifically reserved for the faculty senate. The intent of these provisions is neither to restrict nor to require the activities of every faculty senate to the enumerated items except as otherwise stated. Each faculty senate shall organize its activities as it deems most effective and efficient based on school size, departmental structure and other relevant factors.

(1) Each faculty senate shall control funds allocated to the school from legislative appropriations pursuant to section nine, article nine-a of this chapter. From such funds, each classroom teacher and librarian shall be allotted fifty dollars for expenditure during the instructional year for academic materials, supplies or equipment which, in the judgment of the teacher or librarian, will assist him or her in providing instruction in his or her assigned academic subjects or shall be returned to the faculty senate: Provided, That nothing contained herein prohibits the funds from being used for programs and materials that, in the opinion of the teacher, enhance student behavior, increase academic achievement, improve self-esteem and address the problems of students at-risk. The remainder of funds shall be expended for academic materials, supplies or equipment in accordance with a budget approved by the faculty senate. Notwithstanding any other provisions of the law to the contrary, funds not expended in one school year are available for expenditure in the next school year: Provided, however, That the amount of county funds budgeted in a fiscal year may not be reduced throughout the year as a result of the faculty appropriations in the same fiscal year for such materials, supplies and equipment. Accounts shall be maintained of the allocations and expenditures of such funds for the purpose of financial audit. Academic materials, supplies or equipment shall be interpreted broadly, but does not include materials, supplies or equipment which will be used in or connected with interscholastic athletic events.

(2) A faculty senate may establish a process for faculty members to interview new prospective professional educators and paraprofessional employees at the school and submit recommendations regarding employment to the principal, who may also make independent recommendations, for submission to the county superintendent: Provided, That such process shall be chaired by the school principal and must permit the timely employment of persons to perform necessary duties.

(3) A faculty senate may nominate teachers for recognition as outstanding teachers under state and local teacher recognition programs and other personnel at the school, including parents, for recognition under other appropriate recognition programs and may establish such programs for operation at the school.

(4) A faculty senate may submit recommendations to the principal regarding the assignment scheduling of secretaries, clerks, aides and paraprofessionals at the school.

(5) A faculty senate may submit recommendations to the principal regarding establishment of the master curriculum schedule for the next ensuing school year.

(6) A faculty senate may establish a process for the review and comment on sabbatical leave requests submitted by employees at the school pursuant to section eleven, article two of this chapter.

(7) Each faculty senate shall elect three faculty representatives to the local school improvement council established pursuant to section two of this article.

(8) Each faculty senate may nominate a member for election to the county staff development council pursuant to section eight, article three, chapter eighteen-a of this code.

(9) Each faculty senate shall have an opportunity to make recommendations on the selection of faculty to serve as mentors for beginning teachers under beginning teacher internship programs at the school.

(10) A faculty senate may solicit, accept and expend any grants, gifts, bequests, donations and any other funds made available to the faculty senate: Provided, That the faculty senate shall select a member who has the duty of maintaining a record of all funds received and expended by the faculty senate, which record shall be kept in the school office and is subject to normal auditing procedures.

(11) Any faculty senate may review the evaluation procedure as conducted in their school to ascertain whether the evaluations were conducted in accordance with the written system required pursuant to section twelve, article two, chapter eighteen-a of this code and the general intent of this Legislature regarding meaningful performance evaluations of school personnel. If a majority of members of the faculty senate determine that such evaluations were not so conducted, they shall submit a report in writing to the state board of education: Provided, That nothing herein creates any new right of access to or review of any individual's evaluations.

(12) A local board shall provide to each faculty senate ~~either: (A)~~ ~~A two-hour per month block of instructional time within the instructional day; or (B)~~ a two hour block of time for a faculty senate meeting on a day scheduled for the opening of school prior to the beginning of the instructional term, and a two hour block of time on each instructional support and enhancement day scheduled by the board for instructional activities for students and professional activities for teachers pursuant section forty-five, article five of this chapter. A faculty senate may meet for an unlimited block of time per month during noninstructional days to discuss and plan strategies to improve student instruction. A faculty senate meeting scheduled on a noninstructional day shall be considered as part of the purpose for which the noninstructional day is scheduled. This time may be utilized and determined at the local school level and includes, but is not limited to, faculty senate meetings.

(13) Each faculty senate shall develop a strategic plan to manage the integration of special needs students into the regular classroom at their respective schools and submit the strategic plan to the superintendent of the county board of education periodically pursuant to guidelines developed by the state department of education. Each faculty senate shall encourage the participation of local school improvement councils, parents and the community at large in developing the strategic plan for each school.

Each strategic plan developed by the faculty senate shall include at least: (A) A mission statement; (B) goals; (C) needs; (D) objectives and activities to implement plans relating to each goal; (E) work in progress to implement the strategic plan; (F) guidelines for placing additional staff into integrated classrooms to meet the needs of exceptional needs students without diminishing the services rendered to the other students in integrated classrooms; (G) guidelines for implementation of collaborative planning and instruction; and (H) training for all regular classroom teachers who serve students with exceptional needs in integrated classrooms.

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