Let Parents Fix Failing Schools

Section 1. Legislative intent. The legislature hereby finds that the current state of our education system in New York state is not providing all its students with access to the best possible education, thus inhibiting their ability to become fully participating members of society. New York state was recently ranked 35th in the country in their progress on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, otherwise referred to as the Nation's Report Card, a national test instituted every other year to students in every state. The gaps in achievement between students based on race and geographic location are staggering and unacceptable. In 2011, White students in New York state were almost twice as likely as their African-American and Hispanic counterparts to meet basic standards in reading and writing. According to the state education department, in 2011 only 47% of public high school students in the city of Buffalo and the city of Rochester graduated, a reduction from a 53% graduation rate in 2009.

Although there have been steps taken on the state level to correct and reverse these alarming trends and gaps in achievement, the speed with which they are implemented is insufficient, and the varying needs of districts cannot be met by one universal approach. The legislature believes that to ensure the successful rehabilitation of our lowest performing schools, we must engage and encourage the involvement of the parents in the process. Allowing parents to assert control over how persistently lowest achieving schools are revitalized will instill a

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

[ ] is old law to be omitted.

LBD03616-01-7

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sense of ownership over the approach implemented, and help ensure their continued involvement in the process. When considering how to best address their individual situation, parents will have to become organized and informed about the different challenges the school faces. Parental involvement is the only aspect of education reform that the state and the local educational authorities have little to no control over, yet it is a requirement for many programs and grants designed to assist in these much needed reforms.

Therefore, this legislation will provide a pilot program that allows parents, in a portion the state identified as having persistently lowest achieving schools, to collectively come together and provide direction on how to correct and ensure the adequate education of their children.

§ 2. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "parent empowerment pilot program".

§ 3. The education law is amended by adding a new section 3614 to read as follows:

§ 3614. Parent empowerment pilot program. 1. For the purposes of this section, the following terms shall mean:

a. "Persistently lowest-achieving school" means a public school that has failed to make annual year progress for four years in a row or more as identified by the commissioner.

b. "Intervention model" means federal education intervention models, which include the turnaround model, restart model, transformation model or closure model.

c. "Turnaround model" means that a school must replace the principal and rehire no more than fifty percent of the school's staff, adopt a new governance structure, provide job-embedded professional development, offer staff financial and career-advancement incentives, implement a research-based, aligned instructional program, extend learning and teacher planning time, create a community-orientation, and provide operating flexibility.

d. "Restart model" means that a school closes and reopens under a charter school operator, a charter management organization (CMO) or an education partnership organization that has been selected through a rigorous review process. A restart model must enroll, within the grades it serves, any former student who wishes to attend.

e. "Transformation model" means that a school must replace the principal, provide job-embedded professional development, implement a rigorous teacher-evaluation and reward system, offer financial and career advancement incentives, implement comprehensive instructional reform, extend learning- and teacher-planning time, create a community-orientation, and provide operating flexibility and sustained support.

f. "Closure model" means that the school is closed and its students are enrolled in other, higher-achieving schools.

g. "School district" means a local education authority with jurisdiction over a subject school.

h. "Final disposition" means a decision by a school district with regard to a petition seeking the implementation of an intervention model at a subject school under their jurisdiction.

i. "Petition" means a document used by petitioners seeking support for an intervention model at a subject school consistent with the provisions of this section.

j. "Petitioner" means a parent or other person working with parents of a subject school to collect signatures in support of a petition seeking to implement an intervention model at a subject school.

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k. "Lead petitioner" means up to five parents with students enrolled in a subject school who initiate and lead a petition drive seeking to implement an intervention model in that subject school.

l. "Contact person" means an individual lead petitioner designated to be the official contact person with regard to official communications required under this section.

m. "Parent" means a parent, legal guardian, or foster parent responsible for education decisions for a public school student enrolled in a subject school.

n. "Subject school" means a persistently lowest-achieving school that is the subject of a petition seeking to implement an intervention model.

o. "Eligible student" means a student enrolled at a subject school on the date when a petition seeking the implementation of an intervention model is commenced.

2. a. Any school identified by the commissioner as persistently lowest-achieving shall be eligible for participation in the parent empowerment pilot program. The program shall allow parents of a subject school to circulate petitions in support of an intervention model, which a school district shall act upon pursuant to this section if fifty-one percent or more of the parents of the students enrolled in the subject school sign a petition in support of the intervention model. Such petition shall be prepared and submitted in accordance with subdivisions three, four and five of this section. Such petition shall identify only one intervention model, and all eligible parents shall be afforded the opportunity to participate.

b. A school district must provide in writing to any person who requests it total subject school enrollment data and the number of signatures that would be required to implement an intervention model pursuant to the standard provided in paragraph a of this subdivision.

c. Upon submission of a petition, the school district in which the subject school is located shall be required to implement the specified intervention model or an alternative intervention model pursuant to the provisions of subdivision six of this section.

d. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, a subject school which is designated in accordance with this section to restart as a charter school shall apply for a charter and operate in accordance with article fifty-six of this chapter, provided however:

(i) a charter school created under this subdivision shall serve the same population and grades as the previous school;

(ii) notwithstanding any other provision of law, all students enrolled at the time the petition process commences shall be given the opportunity to enroll in the charter school prior to the admission of other students; and

(iii) the provisions of paragraph (b) of subdivision three and subparagraph (i) of paragraph (b-1) of subdivision three of section twentyeight hundred fifty-four of this chapter shall not apply to charter schools opened pursuant to this section.

3. a. A petition shall only contain signatures of parents of students attending the subject school.

b. Only one parent per student may sign a petition.

c. A petition may be signed by a parent once for each of his or her students attending the subject school, provided however a separate petition box must be completed in its entirety for each of his or her students.

d. A petition may be circulated and presented in sections, so long as each section complies with requirements set forth in this subdivision

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and subdivision four of this section regarding the content of the petition.

e. Signature gatherers may not offer gifts, rewards, or tangible incentives to parents to sign a petition. Nor shall signature gatherers make any threats of coercive action, false statements or false promises of benefits to parents in order to persuade them to sign a petition, except that signature gatherers, school site staff or other members of the public may discuss education related improvements hoped to be realized by implementing any intervention described in these regulations. Signature gatherers, students, school site staff, school district staff, members of the community, and parents shall be free from harassment, threats, and intimidation related to circulation of or signing a petition, and from being discouraged to sign or being encouraged to revoke their signature on a petition. Signature gatherers shall disclose if they are being paid and shall not be paid per signature.

f. Subject school or district resources shall not be used to impede, assist or in any way influence the petition signature gathering process other than as specifically provided in this section.

4. a. The petition and each section of the petition shall contain the following elements:

(i) a heading which states that it is a petition of parents to request that a model intervention be implemented at the specified subject school and to be submitted to a specified school district;

(ii) a statement that the petition seeks the signatures of the parent of the students attending the subject school;

(iii) the name and public contact information of the contact person who is to be contacted by persons interested in the petition or by the school district;

(iv) identification of the intervention model;

(v) a description of the intervention model using the language set forth in paragraphs c, d, e, or f of subdivision one of this section without omission, to ensure full disclosure of the impact of the intervention model;

(vi) the name of the subject school;

(vii) boxes that are consecutively numbered commencing with number 1, with sufficient space for the signature of each petition signer as well as his or her printed name, date, student's name, the student's date of birth, and the student's current grade. The boxes may also have space for the signer's address, city or unincorporated community name, and zip code, or request other information, and, if so, the petition shall make clear that providing such information is voluntary and cannot be made a condition of signing;

(viii) an affirmation that the signing parent is requesting the school district to implement the identified intervention model at the subject school;

(ix) if requesting that a school district implement the restart model and that the subject school be reopened under a specific charter school operator, charter management organization, or education partnership organization, a clear statement containing that information on the front of the petition, including contact information of the charter school operator, charter management organization or education partnership organization; and

(x) the names of any agencies or organizations that are supporting the petition, either through direct financial assistance or in-kind contributions of staff and volunteer support, must be prominently displayed on the front page of the petition.

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b. The department shall develop a sample petition, which shall be available on the department's website. The department shall make the sample petition available in the languages predominantly spoken in the affected community upon request. A petitioner shall not be required to use the sample petition; however, alternate petitions must contain all required components pursuant to this section and regulatory requirements.

5. a. Completed petitions shall be submitted to the school district by the lead petitioners. Lead petitioners may not submit a petition to the school district until they have collected the signatures of fifty-one percent or more of the subject school parents. The date of submission of the petition shall be the start date for implementation of all statutory and regulatory requirements established pursuant to this section.

b. Consistent with paragraph a of subdivision six of this section, lead petitioners shall be allowed to resubmit their petition once to correct errors identified by the school district, verify signatures after a good faith effort is made by the school district to do so first, or submit additional signatures. The start date for a resubmitted petition shall be the date it is resubmitted. No rolling petitions shall be accepted by the school district.