BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



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          Date of Hearing:   June 16, 2010

                           ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
                                Julia Brownley, Chair
                     SB 331 (Romero) - As Amended:  June 10, 2010

           SENATE VOTE  :   25-13
           
          SUBJECT  :   Migrant education

           SUMMARY  :  Requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction  
          (SPI) in collaboration with the Statewide Migrant Parent  
          Advisory Council to develop and revise, as necessary, the state  
          services delivery plan and the state master plan for services to  
          migrant children, commencing with the next revision, amendment,  
          or adoption after July 1, 2011, and makes various changes to the  
          Migrant Education Program (MEP).  Specifically,  this bill  :    

          1)Requires the state service delivery plan to include  
            collection, through the California Longitudinal Pupil  
            Achievement Data System (CALPADS) and the Migrant Student  
            Database, of individual and aggregate data for migrant pupils  
            regarding all of the following:

             a)   Eligible migrant children;
             b)   Preschool participation in migrant education funded  
               programs;
             c)   Enrollment in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12,  
               inclusive;
             d)   Achievement based on the California Standards Test (CST)  
               and the high school exit exam;
             e)   Enrollment in and completion of courses that satisfy the  
               subject requirements for admission to the California State  
               University and the University of California;
             f)   Suspensions and expulsions; 
             g)   Dropout rates;
             h)   Graduation and completion of the high school exit exam;
             i)   Retention in grade level;
             j)   Designation and redesignation of English learners;
             aa)  Completion of career technical education (CTE) courses;  
               and,
             bb)  Distribution of teachers based on highly qualified  
               status and years of experience in education.

          2)Specifies that individual and aggregate enrollment data shall  








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            also include separate data concerning the number of migrant  
            pupils enrolled in alternative education programs including,  
            but not limited to, juvenile court schools, county community  
            schools, community day schools, continuation high schools, and  
            independent studies.

          3)Requires interpretation services at each state and regional  
            migrant parent advisory council meeting by an individual who  
            has received training in interpreting and who is fully fluent  
            in English and in the language understandable to the parents.

          4)Requires a report developed by the State Parent Advisory  
            Council (SPAC) to include an evaluation of the MEP, a review  
            of annual needs, a year-end assessment, policy  
            recommendations, and the most recent data collected as  
            required in this bill.  

          5)Specifies that if the SPI or the California Department of  
            Education (CDE) does not provide the SPAC with training on the  
            preparation of the specified report, the SPAC may approve, by  
            majority vote, an individual or group to provide technical  
            assistance to draft the report.

          6)Stipulates that the technical assistance or training provided  
            by the SPI or an outside source for the purpose of drafting  
            the report shall be objective and free of charge and that it  
            is the sole responsibility of the SPAC to determine the  
            contents of the report.

          7)Deletes language stating that priority shall be given to  
            programs and activities for migrant children, and specifying  
            that migrant programs shall not be provided solely for  
            children who have ceased to migrate.  

          8)Makes several technical changes to provisions governing the  
            MEP.

           EXISTING LAW  :

          1)Requires that the SPAC participate in the planning, operation,  
            and evaluation of the state MEP and provides that the  
            membership of the SPAC shall be comprised of individuals who  
            are knowledgeable of the needs of migrant children and are  
            nominated and elected by the parents of migrant children  
            enrolled in the operating agencies. 








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          2)Requires at least two-thirds of the members of the SPAC to be  
            parents of migrant children and requires the SPAC to meet a  
            minimum of six times a calendar year to provide input on  
            issues relating to the operation of the MEP.

          3)Provides that each operating agency that receives migrant  
            education funds or services shall establish a parent advisory  
            council to actively solicit parent involvement in the  
            planning, operation, and evaluation of its programs.

          4)Requires the SPI to sponsor an annual SPAC conference to be  
            scheduled during the spring and requires the SPAC, within 120  
            days from the conclusion of the conference, to prepare and  
            submit a report to the Legislature, the State Board of  
            Education (SBE), the SPI, and the Governor regarding the  
            status of the migrant education program. 

           Existing Federal Law  :

          1)Authorizes the allocation of grants to state educational  
            agencies to establish or improve, directly or through local  
            operating agencies, programs and educational opportunities for  
            migratory children to help them succeed in the regular school  
            program, meet the state academic content standards that all  
            children are expected to meet, and graduate from high school.   


          2)Requires each state that receives a grant to ensure that the  
            state and its local operating agencies identify and address  
            the special educational needs of migratory children in  
            accordance with a comprehensive statewide plan, as specified. 

          3)Requires each state that receives funding to give priority for  
            services to migratory children who are failing or most at risk  
            of failing and whose education has been interrupted during the  
            regular school year.  Allows for continuation of services for:  

             a)   A child who ceases to be a migratory child during a  
               school term is eligible for services until the end of such  
               term;
             b)   A child who is no longer a migratory child may continue  
               to receive services for one additional year, but only if  
               comparable services are not available through other  
               programs; and,








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             c)   Secondary school students who were eligible for services  
               in secondary school may continue to be served through  
               credit accrual programs until graduation.  

           FISCAL EFFECT  :  According to the Senate Appropriations  
          Committee, this bill would entail significant costs, both  
          one-time and ongoing.  There would be costs to the CDE for  
          revising the master plan, expanded program monitoring,  
          augmenting data systems, translations, technical assistance and  
          evaluations.  There would also be significant local assistance  
          costs for local evaluations and interpretations.  Further, while  
          the bill requires the provision of services of migrant youth in  
          alternative education programs, it should be noted that the  
          program is not currently funded at a rate that allows services  
          to be provided to every eligible child.  It is estimated that  
          350,000 children are eligible but services are provided to only  
          210,000.

           COMMENTS  :  The MEP is a federally funded program, authorized  
          under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB).  The MEP is  
          designed to provide supplemental education services to migrant  
          children to help reduce the educational disruption and other  
          challenges that result from repeated moves.  According to the  
          CDE, the California MEP is the largest in the nation and one out  
          of every three migrant students in the United States (U.S.)  
          lives in California.  According to CDE, there are currently over  
          200,000 migrant students attending California schools during the  
          regular school year and 97,000 attending summer/intersession  
          classes.

          This bill requires the development and revision of the state  
          master plan and the state services delivery plan to be conducted  
          in collaboration with the SPAC, provides for the inclusion of  
          specified data in the master plan, requires the provision of  
          translation services at state and regional parent advisory  
          council meetings, and expands the scope of a report that the  
          SPAC is required to draft and submit to specified parties. 

           Revision of the master plan and state delivery plan:   Current  
          law requires the SPI to establish a SPAC to participate in the  
          planning, operation, and evaluation of the state MEP.  State law  
          requires SPAC membership to be comprised of individuals who are  
          knowledgeable of the needs of migrant children and are nominated  
          and elected by the parents of migrant children enrolled in the  
          operating agencies.  This bill requires the SPI, in  








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          collaboration with the SPAC, to develop and revise the state  
          services delivery plan, commencing with the next revision,  
          amendment, or adoption after July 1, 2011, and establishes that  
          the state master plan for services to migrant children shall  
          also be known as the state services delivery plan.  Contrary to  
          what this bill suggests, the state master plan and the state  
          services delivery plan are two separate and distinct plans.  The  
          state master plan is required by state law and the state  
          services delivery plan is required by federal law.  The SPI is  
          currently in the process of revising the state services delivery  
          plan and is expected to complete it in the next few months.  In  
          recognition that these are two different and separate plans,  
           staff recommends  the bill be amended on page 3, lines 37-38, to  
          strike out "The state master plan also may be known as the state  
          services delivery plan."

          Federal and state laws identify the SPAC as an advisory body in  
          the planning and operation of programs and projects at the state  
          and local level, but federal law requires the comprehensive  
          state plan to be developed in collaboration with parents of  
          migratory children, and not parent councils.   Staff recommends   
          the bill be amended to stay consistent with federal law and  
          require the state plan be developed and revised by the SPI "in  
          collaboration with parents of migratory children."

           Data collection  :  Title I, Part C, of the NCLB, program  
          regulations, and policy guidance issued by the Office of Migrant  
          Education (OME) at the U.S. Department of Education (USDE)  
          require state educational agencies to conduct a Comprehensive  
          Needs Assessment (CNA) of the MEP.  Accordingly, in the summer  
          of 2005, the Migrant, Indian, and International Education Office  
          of the CDE in collaboration with WestEd launched the CNA  
          process.  The initial Comprehensive Needs Assessment (2007)  
          report identified several shortcomings, including the following:

          1)47% of migrant students attending public schools were in  
            Program Improvement (PI) schools.  

          2)The dropout rate for migrant students is believed to be well  
            over 50%, although reliable data on this measure are  
            unavailable.

          3)The CST show that only 12% of migrant students meet state  
            standards in English-language arts compared with 33% for  
            non-migrant students.  Only 18% meet mathematics state  








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            standards compared with 32% for non-migrant students.

          4)Approximately 23% of migrant students were significantly  
            over-aged in kindergarten.

          5)By 11th grade, 22% of migrant high school students had not  
            completed any A-G qualifying English courses.  

          The lack of "hard" data to inform the CNA was noted as one of  
          the most important findings of the entire process, and the  
          management team recommended that a comprehensive study be  
          conducted on the data needs of the MEP and that a plan be  
          devised to identify the specific responsibilities of the CDE,  
          regional offices, and school districts to collect, store, and  
          report data on migrant students and their families.  This bill  
          requires the collection of individual and aggregate data  
          regarding migrant children including achievement on the CST and  
          the high school exit exam as well as completion of college  
          preparation and CTE courses.  Because most migrant pupils are  
          also English learners,  staff recommends  the bill to also include  
          achievement data from the English language development test.   
          Furthermore, staff recommends a technical amendment on page 5,  
          line 36, after "examination" add "adopted pursuant to Section  
          60850."

           Annual report  : Current law requires the SPAC to prepare and  
          submit a report to the Legislature, the SBE, the SPI and the  
          Governor regarding the status of the MEP, but according to CDE,  
          no report has been submitted in 20 years.  This bill expands the  
          scope of the report by requiring the report to include an  
          evaluation of the MEP, a review of annual needs, a year-end  
          assessment, policy recommendations, and the most recent data  
          collected as required by this bill.  This bill, additionally,  
          authorizes the SPAC to solicit and approve, by majority vote, an  
          individual or group to provide technical assistance and training  
          for purpose of drafting this report.  This Committee may wish to  
          consider whether it would be appropriate for this advisory  
          council to solicit training and technical assistance from an  
          individual or group for purposes of drafting this report.  This  
          proposal gives an unspecified individual or group undue  
          influence over a report that is supposed to be drafted and  
          prepared by parents of migratory children and is supposed to  
          reflect the views of parents.  Furthermore, because this bill  
          requires the report to include policy recommendations, this bill  
          potentially provides a special interest group direct access,  








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          through the SPAC, to the Governor, the Legislature, the SBE and  
          the SPI.  Even though this bill requires the training and  
          technical assistance to be provided free of charge, this could  
          conceivably require a contract between the CDE and the selected  
          individual or group that will essentially act as a vendor and  
          provide the services required by this bill.  It is unclear as to  
          what the implications and liabilities would come as result of  
          this.  Additionally, this bill requires the report to include  
          very comprehensive data on migrant pupils, which the CDE  
          collects, and it may be inappropriate for an outside individual  
          or group to have access to this type of pupil data for purposes  
          of training and/or technical assistance to the SPAC.  

          Current law does not require the SPI to provide such training  
          and technical assistance for the SPAC to complete the  
          aforementioned report.  However, migrant parents who are part of  
          the council could potentially benefit from such training and  
          assistance in order to be able to draft the report, thus it  
          seems to be more appropriate and prudent to assign this  
          responsibility to the SPI, particularly since the SPI already  
          provides training to the SPAC in other areas.  This bill could  
          include a specific requirement for this training to be included  
          with other training that the SPI provides the SPAC.  It is  
          unclear as to why the Legislature would be interested in  
          authorizing an outside group to provide this training instead of  
          requiring the SPI to do so.   Staff recommends  an amendment to  
          require the SPI to provide training and technical assistance to  
          the SPAC for purposes of drafting the report and to delete the  
          provision allowing the SPAC to solicit and approve an individual  
          or group to provide technical assistance and training.  

           Priority for services  :  This bill deletes language from existing  
          law which provides that "priority shall be given to programs and  
          activities for migrant children, and in no case shall migrant  
          programs be provided solely for children who have ceased to  
          migrate."  The author wishes to reinstate this language in  
          current law.  However, this language may create confusion and  
          may possibly be in conflict with federal law relative to  
          continuation of services for children who are no longer  
          migratory.  Federal law provides that:

          1.A child who ceases to be a migratory child during a school  
            term is eligible for services until the end of such term;
          2.A child who is no longer a migratory child may continue to  
            receive services for one additional year, but only if  








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            comparable services are not available through other programs;  
            and,
          3.Secondary school students who were eligible for services in  
            secondary school may continue to be served through credit  
            accrual programs until graduation.  

          Rather than reinstating current law which may be in conflict  
          with the federal law,  staff recommends  an amendment to specify  
          that "Priority for the provision of services shall be consistent  
          with federal law and regulations governing the MEP."  This  
          approach allows for some flexibility, considering that the  
          federal statutes may change if and when NCLB is reauthorized. 
          
          Lastly, this bill requires the provision of translation services  
          at each state and regional council meeting by an individual who  
          has received training in interpreting and who is fully fluent in  
          English and in the language understandable to the parents.  
          
           LAO Report  :  In 2006, the Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO)  
          produced the report, "Improving Services for Migrant Students,"  
          in which the LAO found that the existing model for delivering  
          the MEP has led to limited program accountability, poor  
          coordination with other student services, and little statewide  
          collaboration.  Among its recommendations, the LAO called for an  
          expansion of the state's migrant education data system to  
          include more data elements and that district and school  
          personnel shall be provided access to the enhanced system.  The  
          LAO cited the importance of collecting consistent information on  
          these students and sharing it across the state in order to ease  
          their transitions and to create more coordinated statewide MEP  
          services.  The LAO also identified the incorporation of  
          additional data fields regarding migrant students into the  
          California School Information Services (CSIS) system as one  
          option for achieving this goal.  

          The author states, "For more than 30 years, the California  
          Department of Education has worked under the same migrant  
          education plan without any comprehensive needs assessment of the  
          program or evaluation of its effectiveness for migrant students.  
          The Comprehensive Needs Assessment (assessment) was finally  
          conducted in 2007-- after it was mandated by the No Child Left  
          Behind Act, Title I, Part C.  The results dramatically reflect  
          that more needs to be done for these children."

           Arguments in support  :  The Association of California School  








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          Administrators writes, "It is important that state and local  
          educational agencies improve the data collection and tracking of  
          migrant students and prepare a master plan that can be based on  
          what the data shows are the service delivery needs of this often  
          neglected group of students.  The more accurate data we have  
          locally the better we can support migrant students and their  
          families."

           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :

           Support 
           
          Association of California School Administrators
          California Immigrant Policy Center
          John Castillo Photography
          Mexican American Opportunity Foundation 
          Superintendent of Public Instruction (If amended) 
           
           Opposition 
           
          None on file. 

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Marisol Avi?a / ED. / (916) 319-2087