1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to education; modifying staff development 
  1.3             committee outcomes and revenue; amending Minnesota 
  1.4             Statutes 1998, sections 122A.60, subdivisions 1 and 3; 
  1.5             and 122A.61, subdivision 1. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 122A.60, 
  1.8   subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  1.9      Subdivision 1.  [STAFF DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE.] A school 
  1.10  board must use the revenue authorized in section 122A.61 for 
  1.11  in-service education for programs under section 120B.22, 
  1.12  subdivision 2, or for staff development plans under this 
  1.13  section.  The board must establish a staff development committee 
  1.14  to develop the plan, assist site decision-making staff 
  1.15  development teams in developing a site plan consistent with the 
  1.16  goals of the plan, and evaluate staff development efforts at the 
  1.17  site level.  A majority of the advisory committee and the site 
  1.18  staff development team must be teachers representing various 
  1.19  grade levels, subject areas, and special education.  The 
  1.20  advisory committee must also include nonteaching staff, parents, 
  1.21  and administrators.  Districts must report staff development 
  1.22  results and expenditures to the commissioner in the form and 
  1.23  manner determined by the commissioner.  The expenditure report 
  1.24  must include expenditures by the board for district level 
  1.25  activities and expenditures made by the staff.  The report must 
  2.1   provide a breakdown of expenditures for (1) curriculum 
  2.2   development and programs, (2) in-service education, workshops, 
  2.3   and conferences, and (3) the cost of teachers or substitute 
  2.4   teachers for staff development purposes.  Within each of these 
  2.5   categories, the report must also indicate whether the 
  2.6   expenditures were incurred at the district level or the school 
  2.7   site level, and whether the school site expenditures were made 
  2.8   possible by the grants to school sites that demonstrate 
  2.9   exemplary use of allocated staff development revenue.  These 
  2.10  expenditures are to be reported using the UFARS system.  The 
  2.11  commissioner shall report the staff development expenditure data 
  2.12  to the education committees of the legislature by February 15 
  2.13  each year.  
  2.14     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 122A.60, 
  2.15  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  2.16     Subd. 3.  [STAFF DEVELOPMENT OUTCOMES.] The staff 
  2.17  development committee must adopt a staff development plan for 
  2.18  improving student achievement of education outcomes.  The plan 
  2.19  must be consistent with education outcomes that the school board 
  2.20  determines.  The plan must include ongoing staff development 
  2.21  activities that contribute toward continuous improvement in 
  2.22  achievement of the following goals: 
  2.23     (1) improve student achievement of state and local 
  2.24  education standards in all areas of the curriculum by using best 
  2.25  practices methods; 
  2.26     (2) effectively meet the needs of a diverse student 
  2.27  population, including at-risk children, children with 
  2.28  disabilities, and gifted children, within the regular classroom 
  2.29  and other settings; 
  2.30     (3) provide an inclusive curriculum for a racially, 
  2.31  ethnically, and culturally diverse student population that is 
  2.32  consistent with the state education diversity rule and the 
  2.33  district's education diversity plan; 
  2.34     (4) improve staff ability to collaborate and consult with 
  2.35  one another and to resolve conflicts; 
  2.36     (5) effectively teach and model violence prevention policy 
  3.1   and curriculum that address issues of harassment and teach 
  3.2   nonviolent alternatives for conflict resolution; and 
  3.3      (6) provide teachers and other members of site-based 
  3.4   management teams with appropriate management and financial 
  3.5   management skills; and 
  3.6      (7) effectively mentor or support teachers new to the 
  3.7   school or district. 
  3.8      Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 122A.61, 
  3.9   subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  3.10     Subdivision 1.  [STAFF DEVELOPMENT REVENUE.] A district is 
  3.11  required to reserve an amount equal to at least one percent of 
  3.12  the basic revenue under section 126C.10, subdivision 2, for 
  3.13  in-service education for programs under section 120B.22, 
  3.14  subdivision 2, for staff development plans, including plans for 
  3.15  challenging instructional activities and experiences under 
  3.16  section 122A.60, and for curriculum development and programs, 
  3.17  other in-service education, teachers' workshops, teacher 
  3.18  conferences, the cost of substitute teachers staff development 
  3.19  purposes, and other related costs for staff development 
  3.20  efforts.  Districts may expend an additional amount of basic 
  3.21  revenue for staff development based on their needs.  The board 
  3.22  must initially allocate 50 percent of the revenue to each school 
  3.23  site in the district on a per teacher basis, which must be 
  3.24  retained by the school site until used.  The board may retain 25 
  3.25  percent to be used for district wide staff development efforts.  
  3.26  The remaining 25 percent of the revenue must first be used to 
  3.27  implement mentoring programs to assist teachers in the first 
  3.28  years of teaching and then may be used to make grants to school 
  3.29  sites that demonstrate exemplary use of allocated staff 
  3.30  development revenue.  A grant may be used for any purpose 
  3.31  authorized under section 120B.22, subdivision 2, 122A.60, or for 
  3.32  the costs of curriculum development and programs, other 
  3.33  in-service education, teachers' workshops, teacher conferences, 
  3.34  substitute teachers for staff development purposes, and other 
  3.35  staff development efforts, and determined by the site 
  3.36  decision-making team.  The site decision-making team must 
  4.1   demonstrate to the school board the extent to which staff at the 
  4.2   site have met the outcomes of the program.  The board may 
  4.3   withhold a portion of initial allocation of revenue if the staff 
  4.4   development outcomes are not being met.