HB 212 (Wright) - This bill would exclude the Buckingham, Cumberland, and Lunenburg County
School Districts from the prohibition against hiring, under certain
circumstances, a school division employee who is related to a member of the
school board. VSBA spoke in support of the bill which was amended to include Planning District 1
in the list of communities exempted. The subcommittee recommended the bill for reporting unanimously (7-0).
Today was a busy day in the House Education Committee and Education Committee Subcommittee #2. VSBA staff attended both meetings and gave testimony as needed. Bills of relevance are discussed below:
House Education
HB 3 (Landes) - This bill would require the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia , in consultation with the Department of Education and each public institution of higher education, to establish (i) quality standards for dual enrollment courses, including quality standards for course instructors, materials, and content; (ii) a process by which dual enrollment courses that meet or exceed such quality standards are certified as universal transfer courses that satisfy course credit or other academic requirements at any public institution of higher education; and (iii) a policy for the satisfaction of course credit or other academic requirements through the successful completion of universal transfer courses by entering students. VSBA supports. The Education Committee reported and
referred the bill to the House Committee on Appropriations unanimously (22-0).
HB 2 (Bell) - This bill would require the Board of Education to provide for teacher licensure by reciprocity for a period of one year for any spouse of an active duty member of the Armed Forces of the United States or the Commonwealth, provided that such spouse has obtained a valid out-of-state license, with full credentials and without deficiencies, that is in force at the time the application for such a one-year reciprocal license is received by the Department of Education. VSBA supports the bill. The bill was reported by the committee unanimously (22-0).
HB 372 (Robinson) - This bill would make local school boards responsible for setting the school calendar and determining the opening day of the school year and eliminate the post-Labor Day opening requirement and "good cause" scenarios for which the Board of Education may grant waivers of this requirement. The bill requires local school boards that set the school calendar with a pre-Labor Day opening date, except those schools that were granted a "good cause" waiver for the 2017-2018 school year, to close all schools in the division from (i) the Thursday immediately preceding Labor Day through Labor Day or (ii) the Friday immediately preceding Labor Day through the Tuesday immediately succeeding Labor Day. VSBA supports the bill. The bill was reported by the committee (16-6).
HB 687 (McQuinn) - This bill would create the Virginia Public School Improvement Program to offer maximum educational options and flexibility for parents, teachers, and students. VSBA expressed concerns over funding and locked-in time limits imposed on school divisions that elect to implement the program. The bill was reported and referred to the House Appropriations
Committee (20-2).
HB 1020 (Adams) - This bill would make local school boards responsible for setting the school calendar and determining the opening day of the school year and eliminate the post-Labor Day opening requirement and "good cause" scenarios for which the Board of Education may grant waivers of this requirement. VSBA supports the bill. The bill was reported (16-6).
HB 1278 (LaRock) - This bill provides that a local school board applying for its school division to be designated as a School Division of Innovation may apply to the Board of Education (Board) to replace certain Standards of Learning assessments with performance-based assessments. VSBA supports the bill. The committee reported the bill (21-1).
HB 1320 (Habeeb) - This will would require the Department of Education to develop and distribute to each local school division a resource guide on the local development and implementation of performance assessments. VSBA supports the bill. The committee reported the bill unanimously (21-0).
At the adjournment of the full House Education Committee, Subcommittee #2 convened. Bills of importance to VSBA discussed are listed below:
HB 81 (Krizek) - This bill would eliminate the requirement that school boards appoint a new division superintendent (i)
within 180 days after a vacancy occurs or (ii) within 60 days after an
appointed division superintendent who has not yet assumed his office is granted
a release from such appointment. VSBA supports bill. The subcommittee recommended the bill for reporting (10-0).
HB 224 (Krizek) - This bill would requires the Board of Education to make regulations to require each new public school bus purchased for the transportation of students to be equipped with a seat belt consisting of a lap belt and shoulder strap or harness in every seat. The bill requires each school board to ensure that no later than July 1, 2036, each school bus that it uses for the transportation of students is equipped with a seat belt in every seat. The VSBA expressed concerns over the costs of this unfunded mandate.The subcommittee failed to recommend reporting (4-6). Therefore, the bill died.
HB 329 (Yancey) - This will would require the Board of Education, in establishing high school graduation requirements, to permit students to exceed a full course load in order to participate in courses offered by an institution of higher education that lead to a degree,
certificate, or credential at such institution. VSBA supports the bill.
HB 330 (Yancey) - This bill would permit any public elementary or secondary school student to possess and use topical sunscreen on a school bus, on school property, or at a school-sponsored event without a note or prescription from a licensed health care professional if the topical sunscreen is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for nonprescription use for the purpose of limiting damage to skin caused by exposure to ultraviolet light. The subcommittee recommended the bill for reporting after the sponsor agreed to consider amendments accounting for scent/asthma impacts and original container usage (10-0).
HB 399 (Keam) - This bill would require each school board to implement a plan to notify students and their parents of the availability of internships, externships, apprenticeships, credentialing programs, certification programs, licensure programs, and other work-based learning experiences. The subcommittee recommended the bill for reporting (10-0).
HB 442 (Carroll Foy) - This bill would require the Department of Education to develop, maintain, and make available to each local school board a catalogue of the testing accommodations available to English language learners for each certification, examination, assessment, and battery that satisfies the career and technical education credential graduation requirement. The subcommittee recommended the bill for reporting (10-0).
HB 507 (Mullin) - This bill provides that (i) the instructional programs for students with limited English proficiency implemented by each local school board may include dual language programs whereby such students receive instruction in English and in a second language and (ii) the additional full-time equivalent instructional positions for students
identified as having limited English proficiency that are funded pursuant to
the general appropriation act may include dual language teachers who provide
instruction in English and in a second language. The VSBA supports this bill. The subcommittee recommended the bill for reporting (8-2).
HB 809 (O'Quinn) - This bill would permit local school boards to display advertising material on the sides of school buses between the rear wheels and the rear of the bus, provided that no such material (i) obstructs the name of the school division or the number of the school bus, (ii) is sexually explicit, or (iii) pertains to alcohol; food or beverages that do not meet the nutrition standards developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture pursuant to the federal Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 or any additional state or local nutrition standards for food or beverages sold to students in school; gambling; politics; or tobacco. VSBA spoke in favor of the legislation. The subcommittee reported unanimously (10-0).
HB 827 (R. Bell) - This bill would require the Board of Education to (i)
promulgate regulations requiring any new public school bus placed into service
on or after July 1, 2018, to be equipped with an extended warning sign that
works in conjunction with the existing warning sign and extends into the lane
of travel immediately adjacent to the bus to the left of the bus driver and
(ii) determine the feasibility and effectiveness of requiring that public
school buses placed into service prior to July 1, 2018, be equipped with such
extended warning signs. VSBA voiced concerns regarding the impact of such a mandate and expressed favor towards the Department of Education researching the feasibility of implementation before requiring it of all school divisions. The subcommittee reported unanimously (10-0).
HB 1504 (Cline) - This bill would require enrollment in the Virtual Virginia online learning program during the school year to be open, on a space-available basis and free of charge, to each public high school student in the Commonwealth and each high school student in the Commonwealth who receives home instruction. The subcommittee recommended reporting and referring to House Appropriations (6-4).
