Agenda - 09-28-2017 - 7. Information Item - NCSBA 2017 Legislative Summary

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• Clarifies that the ISD shall be considered a local school administrative unit. • Rescinds the ISD Superintendent's ability to waive SBE rules, regulations,policies, and procedures, but allows the ISD Superintendent to request such a waiver. • Adds the SBE, DPI, and the ISD Superintendent to the list of entities protected from civil liability for acts or omissions of an innovative school operator. • Delays all implementation dates by one year. Makes the following changes to innovation zones: • Allows a local board of education to ask the SBE for permission to create an innovation zone if 35% of the schools in its local school administrative unit are low-performing. • Adds the recommendation of the ISD Superintendent to the information received by the SBE before granting the creation of the innovation zone. • Requires a low-performing school in an innovation zone to become an innovative school if it does not exceed expected growth in the last two years of the five consecutive years in the innovation zone. Section 7.27 Read to Achieve Diagnostic Changes Makes the following changes to the diagnostic and formative reading assessment program for K- 3 students: • Makes EVAAS the only tool used to analyze student data to identify causes for difficulty with reading development. • Allows reading assessments to be administered by computer or other electronic devices. • Sets an October 1, 2017 deadline for the State Superintendent to issue a RFP for a diagnostic reading assessment instrument. • Directs the State Superintendent to select a vendor by March 1, 2018. • Allows $5 million appropriated in 2015 for the Excellent Public Schools Act to not revert in FY 2016-17 and be made available to local school administrative units in FY 2017-18 to purchase computers or other electronic devices used for the administration of the diagnostic reading assessments. *added by budget technical corrections. *New diagnostic tools go into effect in the 2018-19 school year. G.S. 115C-83.6. Section 7.28 Reimburse Initial Teacher License Fee for Certain NC Teaching Graduates Establishes guidelines for the reimbursement of the initial teacher licensure application fee for applicants that are graduates of approved educator preparation programs located in NC and have successfully earned their initial teaching licenses in NC ($245,000 appropriated each fiscal year for the program). Applies to applications received on or after July 1, 2017. G.S. 115C-296. Section 7.28A Testing Transparency I. Testing Reports to SBE Modifies and expands the information local school boards must annually report to the SBE regarding locally administered assessments. In addition to reporting on the source of funds supporting the local testing program (already required), local school boards must report the following to the SBE starting with the 2018-19 school year: 21