1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to education; working to develop, provide, 
  1.3             and maintain an educational structure that meets the 
  1.4             needs of nonwhite and white at-risk students; 
  1.5             identifying obstacles to students educational success; 
  1.6             providing for staff development and community 
  1.7             training; creating an advisory council to assist in 
  1.8             analyzing student performance data; emphasizing 
  1.9             outcomes; appropriating money; proposing coding for 
  1.10            new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 126. 
  1.11  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.12     Section 1.  [126.012] [THE GARY NEIL SUDDUTH EDUCATION 
  1.13  REFORM ACT; EDUCATIONAL STRUCTURE TO MEET THE NEEDS OF NONWHITE 
  1.14  AND WHITE AT-RISK STUDENTS.] 
  1.15     Subdivision 1.  [ESTABLISHMENT; CITATION.] (a) In an effort 
  1.16  to foster a statewide educational structure that meets the needs 
  1.17  of nonwhite and white at-risk students by better integrating 
  1.18  educational curricula, programs, strategies, data, and 
  1.19  resources, there is established a program to impact and 
  1.20  coordinate those portions of the state's educational system 
  1.21  affecting nonwhite and white at-risk students under this section.
  1.22     (b) This section shall be cited as the "Gary Neil Sudduth 
  1.23  Education Reform Act". 
  1.24     Subd. 2.  [PROGRAM EFFORTS.] (a) The commissioner of 
  1.25  children, families, and learning, with ongoing direct assistance 
  1.26  from the communities of color institute at the University of 
  1.27  Minnesota's Roy Wilkins center, shall develop elementary and 
  1.28  secondary curricula, programs, strategies, and staff development 
  2.1   training models for school districts to use in assisting school 
  2.2   personnel and other individuals working with schools to meet the 
  2.3   needs of nonwhite and white at-risk students.  Nonwhite and 
  2.4   white at-risk students are those nonwhite and white elementary 
  2.5   and secondary public school students who are at risk of failing 
  2.6   to meet the state's basic requirements under section 121.11, 
  2.7   subdivision 7c, are eligible to receive individual or family 
  2.8   assistance or services from local social services providers, 
  2.9   have been involved with the local juvenile justice system, or 
  2.10  have demonstrated poor school attendance during the current or 
  2.11  preceding school year under the applicable school attendance 
  2.12  policy. 
  2.13     (b) The curricula, programs, strategies, and staff 
  2.14  development training models shall: 
  2.15     (1) include culturally sensitive content that is consistent 
  2.16  with the requirements of the state high school graduation rule 
  2.17  under section 121.11, subdivision 7c; 
  2.18     (2) reflect the statewide testing and reporting 
  2.19  requirements under section 121.1113; 
  2.20     (3) offer nonwhite and white at-risk elementary and 
  2.21  secondary students sufficient and meaningful age and 
  2.22  grade-appropriate opportunities to achieve applicable state and 
  2.23  local educational requirements; and 
  2.24     (4) better enable nonwhite and white at-risk students to 
  2.25  match the educational performance of students of the same age or 
  2.26  grade who are not considered to be at-risk students. 
  2.27     (c) The curricula, programs, strategies, and staff 
  2.28  development training models also shall focus on assisting school 
  2.29  personnel and other individuals working with schools, including 
  2.30  mandated reporters of child neglect or endangerment, 
  2.31  community-based social services providers serving at-risk 
  2.32  children or youth and their families, and local juvenile justice 
  2.33  professionals, to use effective, collaborative strategies and 
  2.34  better combine financial and other resources to meet the needs 
  2.35  of nonwhite and white at-risk students. 
  2.36     Subd. 3.  [PROGRAM CONTENT.] The commissioner, with ongoing 
  3.1   direct assistance from the communities of color institute at the 
  3.2   University of Minnesota's Roy Wilkins center, also shall use the 
  3.3   data under section 121.1113, the data and experiences of other 
  3.4   states undertaking K-12 educational reform, and national 
  3.5   educational data to determine and address the educational 
  3.6   obstacles preventing nonwhite and white at-risk students from 
  3.7   meeting state and local educational requirements.  The 
  3.8   commissioner shall use the results of the data to develop, 
  3.9   implement, and refine elementary and secondary curricula, 
  3.10  programs, strategies, and staff development training models to 
  3.11  improve the academic performance of nonwhite and white at-risk 
  3.12  children and strengthen the abilities of these students and 
  3.13  their families to: 
  3.14     (1) understand students individual academic needs; 
  3.15     (2) advocate on students behalf to ensure students 
  3.16  individual academic needs are being addressed; and 
  3.17     (3) assist in determining the appropriate and culturally 
  3.18  sensitive curricula needed to overcome the educational obstacles 
  3.19  facing students and meet students individual academic needs. 
  3.20     Subd. 4.  [OUTREACH EFFORTS.] The commissioner shall obtain 
  3.21  the ongoing direct assistance from the communities of color 
  3.22  institute at the University of Minnesota's Roy Wilkins center in 
  3.23  providing sufficient and appropriate community outreach efforts 
  3.24  and assistance to meet the goals of this section.  The 
  3.25  commissioner and the communities of color institute shall focus 
  3.26  on providing understanding about the factors that negatively 
  3.27  affect students educational performance and developing and 
  3.28  better integrating educational and other community resources 
  3.29  that assist nonwhite and white at-risk students to improve their 
  3.30  educational performance. 
  3.31     Subd. 5.  [ADVISORY COUNCIL.] The commissioner, with advice 
  3.32  from the communities of color institute, shall establish a 
  3.33  ten-member advisory council of interested and qualified 
  3.34  individuals to consider short- and long-term summary data 
  3.35  measuring the educational performance of nonwhite and white 
  3.36  at-risk students and recommend to the commissioner and the 
  4.1   communities of color institute effective state and local 
  4.2   policies affecting the educational performance of nonwhite and 
  4.3   white at-risk students.  The commissioner shall regularly 
  4.4   convene advisory council meetings.  The terms and compensation 
  4.5   of council members shall be as described in section 15.059, 
  4.6   subdivision 6. 
  4.7      Subd. 6.  [REPORTS.] The commissioner, with the assistance 
  4.8   of the communities of color institute and the advisory council 
  4.9   under subdivision 5, shall report annually beginning November 
  4.10  15, 1999, to the governor, the commissioners of human services 
  4.11  and corrections, the minority affairs councils, and the 
  4.12  education committees of the legislature on matters related to 
  4.13  the purposes of this section.  The report shall include, among 
  4.14  other things, current research analyzing the educational 
  4.15  performance of nonwhite and white at-risk students, implemented 
  4.16  or revised educational curricula, programs and strategies to 
  4.17  improve the educational performance of nonwhite and white 
  4.18  at-risk students, the financial and other resources currently 
  4.19  available to nonwhite and white at-risk students under this 
  4.20  section, and the short- and long-term impact of ongoing efforts 
  4.21  to improve the educational performance of nonwhite and white 
  4.22  at-risk students. 
  4.23     Sec. 2.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
  4.24     $5,575,000 is appropriated from the general fund in fiscal 
  4.25  year 1999 to the commissioner of children, families, and 
  4.26  learning for the purposes of section 1.  The commissioner, with 
  4.27  the direct ongoing involvement of the communities of color 
  4.28  institute, shall first assist those school districts and 
  4.29  communities within the seven-county metropolitan area and other 
  4.30  areas throughout the state where, according to state measures, 
  4.31  there is at least a 20 percent or greater disparity in 
  4.32  educational performance between nonwhite and white elementary or 
  4.33  secondary public school students and where the nonwhite student 
  4.34  population of a school exceeds 30 percent.  The commissioner 
  4.35  shall use the appropriation to research, plan, design, develop, 
  4.36  monitor, and implement educational curricula, programs, and 
  5.1   strategies to improve the educational performance of nonwhite 
  5.2   and white at-risk students and provide financial and other 
  5.3   resources and training.  No more than 1.5 percent of this 
  5.4   appropriation is available to pay indirect administrative costs 
  5.5   and no more than ten percent of this appropriation is available 
  5.6   to pay administrative, accounting, and evaluation costs.