The House Education SOL/SOQ Subcommittee met this morning to consider legislation on its docket. The subcommittee took the following action on legislation.
SB 1190 (Kiggans) Directs the Board of Education to include advanced directive education in its curriculum framework for the Health Standards of Learning for high school students. The bill reported on a vote of 8-0.
SB 1257 (McClellan) The bill modifies a school personnel requirement in Standard 2 of the Standards of Quality. It requires each school board to provide at least three specialized student support positions, including school social workers, school psychologists, school nurses, licensed behavior analysts, licensed assistant behavior analysts, and other licensed health and behavioral positions, per 1,000 students. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act. The bill was reported with amendments and referred to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on a 8-0 vote.
SB 1288 (Dunnavant) Requires the Department of Education and the Board of Education to develop new policies and procedures and effect numerous modifications to existing policies and procedures to improve the administration and oversight of special education in the Commonwealth. The bill was conformed to HB 2299 (Carr). The bill reported with a substitute and was referred to the House Appropriations Committee on a 7-0 vote.
SB 1303 (Dunnavant) Requires the Department of Education and the Board of Education to develop new policies and procedures and effect numerous modifications to existing policies and procedures to improve the administration and oversight of special education in the Commonwealth. The bill reported with a substitute on a 8-0 vote.
SB 1313 (Mason) Requires that funds expended for private special education services under the Children's Services Act only be expended on educational programs that are licensed by the Board of Education or an equivalent out-of-state licensing agency. The bill also provides that as of July 1, 2022, such funds may only be expended for programs that the Office of Children's Services certify as having reported their tuition rates.
The bill adds children and youth previously placed in approved private school educational programs for at least six months who will receive transitional services in a public school setting to the target population for eligibility for the state pool of funds. The bill provides that state funds shall be allocated for no longer than 12 months for transitional services.
The bill requires the Secretaries of Education and Health and Human Resources, in conjunction with the Office of Children's Services and the Department of Education, to establish a work group (the Work Group) with appropriate stakeholders to develop a detailed plan to direct the transfer of Children's Services Act funds currently reserved for children requiring an educational placement in a private special education day school or residential facility to the Department of Education, as well as several other topics. The bill requires that the Work Group submit its plan and recommendations to the Chairmen of the House Committee on Appropriations and Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations by November 1, 2021, as well as a final plan and recommendations by November 1, 2022. The bill reported on a 8-0 vote.
SB 1357 (Dunnavant) Requires the Board of Education to establish a through-year growth assessment system for use during the 2021–2022 and 2022–2023 school years for students in grades three through eight. The bill requires that the system be established using available federal funds and that the system provide accurate measurement of a student's performance in English and mathematics through computer adaptive technology. The bill also requires each school division to administer reading diagnostic assessments throughout the year in grades kindergarten through two, using existing assessments. The bill requires the Board of Education to report to the General Assembly on the results of the through-year growth assessments by September 1, 2022, and September 1, 2023. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act. The bill was conformed to HB 2027. The bill was reported and referred to the House Appropriations Committee on a vote of 7-0.
SB 1401 (Pillion) Reduces the total number and type of required Standards of Learning assessments to the minimum requirements established by the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended. The bill requires the Department of Education to annually report on the estimated projected and actual savings from the implementation of the bill and report the amount of such savings to the Governor and the Chairmen of the House Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations no later than the first day of each Regular Session of the General Assembly. The bill also requires that such amount be included in the total for Direct Aid to Public Education in any general appropriation act. The bill failed to report on a 4-4 vote.
