1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to education finance; creating a statewide 
  1.3             system to enhance student performance through 
  1.4             alternative teacher compensation programs; 
  1.5             appropriating money; proposing coding for new law in 
  1.6             Minnesota Statutes, chapter 120B. 
  1.7   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.8      Section 1.  [120B.32] [SCHOOL DISTRICT SYSTEM 
  1.9   ACCOUNTABILITY AND EDUCATIONAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN.] 
  1.10     Subdivision 1.  [QUALIFYING PLAN.] A district may develop a 
  1.11  system accountability and educational improvement plan.  The 
  1.12  plan must establish comprehensive measures of school district, 
  1.13  school site, teacher, and individual student performance 
  1.14  consistent with subdivisions 2 to 5.  
  1.15     Subd. 2.  [DISTRICT ACCOUNTABILITY.] A school board must 
  1.16  approve a system accountability and educational improvement 
  1.17  plan.  The plan must indicate the data and measures needed for 
  1.18  improving educational performance within the district, including 
  1.19  baseline data, performance goals, and benchmarks accompanied by 
  1.20  specific dates for meeting those benchmarks.  A district's 
  1.21  performance goals must include student achievement goals and may 
  1.22  include other performance goals such as improved school 
  1.23  attendance, student discipline, school safety or parent 
  1.24  involvement, or enhancing the knowledge and skills of school 
  1.25  staff.  The plan also must describe the methods for developing, 
  1.26  reviewing, and implementing means to improve educational 
  2.1   performance at each school site located within the district. 
  2.2      Subd. 3.  [SCHOOL SITE ACCOUNTABILITY.] Each school site 
  2.3   must develop a board-approved accountability and educational 
  2.4   improvement plan that is aligned with the performance goals 
  2.5   contained in the school district accountability and educational 
  2.6   improvement plan.  While a site plan must be consistent with the 
  2.7   district accountability plan, it may establish performance goals 
  2.8   and benchmarks that meet or exceed those of the district.  
  2.9      Subd. 4.  [TEACHER ACCOUNTABILITY.] A district's 
  2.10  accountability and educational improvement plan must identify 
  2.11  the district's plan to assess teacher performance.  The plan 
  2.12  must include clearly defined, research-based teacher 
  2.13  professional development standards that permit objective 
  2.14  assessment, including classroom observation, consistent with 
  2.15  district goals for instruction.  The plan must be developed in 
  2.16  collaboration with the exclusive bargaining representative of 
  2.17  the teachers and approved by the school board.  The plan may 
  2.18  include:  
  2.19     (1) teacher professional development standards that 
  2.20  emphasize content; 
  2.21     (2) staff development opportunities for teachers to attain 
  2.22  teacher professional development standards; or 
  2.23     (3) standards and procedures for assessing teachers' 
  2.24  professional practice.  
  2.25     The teacher professional development standards must be 
  2.26  sufficiently rigorous to effect meaningful professional 
  2.27  development and improvement.  
  2.28     Subd. 5.  [STUDENT ACCOUNTABILITY.] A district's system 
  2.29  accountability and educational improvement plan must include 
  2.30  comprehensive measures of student performance and a list of 
  2.31  assessment tools the district will use to determine student 
  2.32  performance. 
  2.33     <b>[EFFECTIVE DATE.]</b> This section is effective the day 
  2.34  following final enactment.  
  2.35     Sec. 2.  [120B.33] [ALTERNATIVE TEACHER COMPENSATION; 
  2.36  ACCOUNTABILITY AND EDUCATIONAL IMPROVEMENT.] 
  3.1      Subdivision 1.  [RESTRUCTURED SYSTEM ESTABLISHED.] A 
  3.2   restructured teacher compensation system is established to 
  3.3   provide incentives for teachers to continuously improve their 
  3.4   knowledge and skills, for school districts to successfully 
  3.5   recruit and retain highly qualified teachers, and to support 
  3.6   teachers' roles in improving students' educational achievement. 
  3.7      Subd. 2.  [TEACHER PROFESSIONAL PAY LADDER.] (a) In order 
  3.8   to qualify for funding under this section, all of a district's 
  3.9   probationary teachers must be compensated according to the 
  3.10  teacher professional pay ladder schedule instead of the existing 
  3.11  step and lane salary schedule.  A district must include in a 
  3.12  teacher professional pay ladder schedule the conditions needed 
  3.13  for a teacher to advance to each subsequent progression.  The 
  3.14  schedule and conditions must be developed in collaboration with 
  3.15  the exclusive bargaining representative of the teachers and 
  3.16  approved by the school board.  The restructured teacher 
  3.17  compensation system must accurately and adequately reflect 
  3.18  teachers' level of content knowledge and general pedagogy, 
  3.19  include professional standards of best practices, and promote 
  3.20  professional growth and expertise.  The professional pay ladder 
  3.21  must contain an evaluation mechanism at each subsequent 
  3.22  progression that is aligned with teacher accountability 
  3.23  provisions in section 120B.32, subdivision 4. 
  3.24     (b) The restructured teacher compensation system may 
  3.25  provide compensation increases to teachers who attain additional 
  3.26  relevant knowledge and skills. 
  3.27     (c) All teachers newly hired in a district that implements 
  3.28  a professional pay ladder must be placed on the professional pay 
  3.29  ladder.  
  3.30     Subd. 3.  [ADDITIONAL DAYS FOR PROBATIONARY TEACHER 
  3.31  INDUCTION AND MENTORING.] (a) To be eligible to implement a 
  3.32  restructured teacher compensation system, participating 
  3.33  teachers, which must include probationary teachers, and school 
  3.34  districts must agree to increase by at least ten days per school 
  3.35  year the number of days devoted to staff development 
  3.36  activities.  The ten additional days must be: 
  4.1      (1) the equivalent in hours of ten school days, consistent 
  4.2   with section 120A.41; and 
  4.3      (2) calculated in terms of the number of days that teachers 
  4.4   with continuing contract or tenure rights must work.  
  4.5   Teachers and school districts must use the additional days for 
  4.6   establishing and implementing a new teacher induction and 
  4.7   mentoring program that provides continuous learning 
  4.8   opportunities, ongoing orientation, and sustained teacher 
  4.9   support.  
  4.10     (b) Teachers and school districts are encouraged to use the 
  4.11  resources of existing educational institutions and organizations 
  4.12  to establish and implement the program.  
  4.13     (c) School districts may extend the work year of 
  4.14  nonparticipating teachers in order to provide induction and 
  4.15  mentoring activities for peer review and assessment, and for 
  4.16  professional development that aligns with the district's 
  4.17  accountability system.  
  4.18     <b>[EFFECTIVE DATE.]</b> This section is effective the day 
  4.19  following final enactment.  
  4.20     Sec. 3.  [120B.34] [ALTERNATIVE COMPENSATION AID.] 
  4.21     A school district that meets the conditions of section 
  4.22  120B.33 is eligible for alternative compensation aid.  
  4.23  Alternative compensation aid for a qualifying school district 
  4.24  equals $2,000 times the number of probationary teachers teaching 
  4.25  in the school district during the current school year plus $500 
  4.26  times the number of nonprobationary teachers providing induction 
  4.27  and mentoring activities for peer review and assessment during 
  4.28  the current school year.  For purposes of this section, the 
  4.29  number of probationary teachers includes any nontenured licensed 
  4.30  teacher who is working at least 60 percent of a full-time 
  4.31  teacher's hours.  This aid is available to a school district 
  4.32  only after the school board and the exclusive bargaining 
  4.33  representative of the teachers sign and submit to the 
  4.34  commissioner of the department of children, families, and 
  4.35  learning a written statement that they have developed an 
  4.36  alternative teacher compensation proposal based on the system 
  5.1   accountability and educational improvement plan under section 
  5.2   120B.32.  The aid received under this section must be used for 
  5.3   activities under section 120B.33, subdivision 3. 
  5.4      <b>[EFFECTIVE DATE.]</b> This section is effective July 1, 2002.  
  5.5      Sec. 4.  [TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.] 
  5.6      (a) The department of children, families, and learning, at 
  5.7   a participant's request, must assist teachers and school 
  5.8   districts in designing the teacher professional development 
  5.9   standards and training interested parties in assessing whether 
  5.10  and at what level teachers are attaining the standards. 
  5.11     (b) Teachers and school districts also are encouraged to 
  5.12  seek assistance from education districts, education 
  5.13  cooperatives, and other education organizations in designing the 
  5.14  teacher professional development standards and training teachers 
  5.15  and administrators in assessing whether and at what level 
  5.16  teachers are attaining the standards. 
  5.17     <b>[EFFECTIVE DATE.]</b> This section is effective the day 
  5.18  following final enactment.  
  5.19     Sec. 5.  [APPROPRIATIONS.] 
  5.20     Subdivision 1.  [DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN, FAMILIES, AND 
  5.21  LEARNING.] The sums indicated in this section are appropriated 
  5.22  from the general fund to the department of children, families, 
  5.23  and learning for the fiscal years designated. 
  5.24     Subd. 2.  [IMPLEMENTATION ASSISTANCE.] For grants to school 
  5.25  districts for the costs of developing research-based teacher 
  5.26  professional development and assessment standards and for 
  5.27  training to implement the standards: 
  5.28       $.,...,...     .....     2002 
  5.29     No grant may exceed $25,000 for an individual district, nor 
  5.30  be less than $2,500 for an individual district.  Districts 
  5.31  receiving grants are encouraged to cooperate with other grant 
  5.32  recipients for the purposes of this appropriation. 
  5.33     This appropriation is available until June 30, 2003. 
  5.34     Subd. 3.  [ALTERNATIVE COMPENSATION AID.] For alternative 
  5.35  compensation aid under Minnesota Statutes, section 120B.34: 
  5.36       $.,...,...     .....     2002 
  6.1        $.,...,...     .....     2003 
  6.2      Of the annual appropriations, at least $....... must be 
  6.3   awarded to school districts whose administrative offices on July 
  6.4   1, 2001, are located in Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, 
  6.5   Scott, or Washington county, and at least $....... must be 
  6.6   awarded to school districts whose administrative offices on July 
  6.7   1, 2001, are not located in Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, 
  6.8   Ramsey, Scott, or Washington county.  If applications for 
  6.9   funding are not sufficient to distribute the full amount of 
  6.10  funding designated for each geographic area, the commissioner 
  6.11  may reallocate those funds to the remaining applying districts, 
  6.12  regardless of their location.  The commissioner shall award 
  6.13  grants based on the order in which the documents required under 
  6.14  Minnesota Statutes, section 120B.34, are received.  A school 
  6.15  district that qualifies for aid in fiscal year 2002 remains 
  6.16  eligible for aid in fiscal year 2003. 
  6.17     Any balance in the first year does not cancel but is 
  6.18  available in the second year. 
  6.19     <b>[EFFECTIVE DATE.]</b> This section is effective July 1, 2002.