BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



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          Date of Hearing:   June 25, 2014

                           ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
                                Joan Buchanan, Chair
                    SB 1221 (Hancock) - As Amended:  May 27, 2014

           SENATE VOTE  :   25-10
           
          SUBJECT  :   After school programs

          SUMMARY  :  Modifies eligibility, types of grants, amount of  
          grants, and outcome measures of the After School Education and  
          Safety (ASES), the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st  
          CCLC), and the 21st Century After School Safety and Enrichment  
          for Teens (ASSETs) programs.  Specifically,  this bill  :  

           Makes the following changes to the ASES program  :

          1)Replaces references to "direct grants" with "after school  
            grants."

          2)Establishes a minimum total after school grant amount for each  
            schoolsite by multiplying the applicable rate per pupil per  
            day of pupil attendance by 20 pupils being served for 180  
            regular school days.

          3)Authorizes additional funding, not to exceed $15,000 per site,  
            per school year, to be provided for transportation in programs  
            located in an area that has a population density of less than  
            11 persons per square miles.  Requires programs to submit to  
            the California Department of Education (CDE) for consideration  
            evidence of the need for after school transportation funds.   
            Authorizes transportation funds to be used to supplement, but  
            not supplant, local transportation services.

          4)Deletes intent statement that a grantee who serves additional  
            pupils by operating a longer day program not receive  
            additional funding for this purpose.  

          5)Authorizes, to the extent consistent with federal and state  
            privacy laws, local educational agencies to submit pupil data  
            to an operator of a summer program, and changes references to  
            the "Standardized Testing and Reporting program (STAR)" to  
            "statewide test and assessment scores."  
           








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          Changes to the 21st CCLC program  :

          6)Modifies legislative intent to express the intent of the  
            Legislature for the 21st CCLC program to provide year-round  
            opportunities for expanded learning.

          7)Deletes federal grants for family literacy services and  
            reduces from 10 to 5 the minimum percentage of federal funds  
            that are to be available for grants for equitable access or  
            family literacy services.  Rather than providing grants  
            specifically for family literacy, this bill deems, in  
            accordance with federal law, federal funding for programs that  
            promote parent involvement and family literacy as allowable  
            uses of funds designated for technical assistance, evaluation  
            and training services.

          8)Gives priority to grant applications that will provide  
            year-round expanded learning programming.  Defines "year-round  
            expanded learning programs" as any combination of an applicant  
            that offers summer programming to complement existing after  
            school programs, or an applicant that offers after school  
            programs to complement existing summer programs.  Specifies  
            that the applicant is not required to be the same entity that  
            operates the existing program.  

          9)Replaces references to "core funding" with "after school  
            funding."  

          10)Requires the CDE to submit a biennial report to the  
            Legislature related to the students attending expanded  
            learning programs and the quality of those programs.  Requires  
            the report to include data using the statewide unique student  
            identifier and authorizes the inclusion of aggregate reporting  
            of all of the following:

             a)   The number, geographical distribution and type of sites  
               and grantees.
             b)   Student attendance in the program and regular schoolday.
             c)   Statewide test and assessment scores.
             d)   Student demographics and characteristics. 
             e)   Student behavior changes and skill development.
             f)   The quality of the program based on CDE's guidance on  
               program quality standards.  

           Changes to the ASSETs program  :








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          11)Revises the purpose of the ASSETs program as assisting pupils  
            to pass the high school exit exam and instead states the  
            purpose of ASSETs as supporting college and career readiness.

          12)Strikes the provision requiring priority for funding to be  
            given to programs that serve pupils attending a school in the  
            lowest 3 deciles of the most recent score on the Academic  
            Performance Index (API) and instead requires priority for  
            funding to be given to programs that previously received  
            funding.

          13)Strikes obsolete provisions.  
                
            Changes to all three programs  :

          14)Requires an application to certify evidence of pupil social,  
            behavioral, or skill development data collection to support  
            quality program improvement processes. These pupil data  
            outcomes may relate to specific social-emotional competencies,  
            including, but not necessarily limited to, social skills,  
            self-control, academic mindset, perseverance, conflict  
            resolution, and school-connectedness.

          15)Strikes as consideration of outcomes STAR test scores,  
            positive behavioral changes, homework completion rates, and  
            skill development as reported by schoolday teacher or after  
            school staff, and instead requires programs to submit evidence  
            of a data-driven program quality improvement process that is  
            based on the CDE's guidance on program quality standards,  
            using unique statewide pupil identifiers.  

          16)Defines "expanded learning" as before school, after school,  
            summer, or intersession learning programs that focus on  
            developing the academic, social, emotional, and physical needs  
            and interests of pupils through hands-on, engaging learning  
            experiences. Expresses the intent of the Legislature that  
            expanded learning programs be pupil-centered, results driven,  
            include community partners, and complement, but do not  
            replicate, learning activities in the regular schoolday and  
            school year.

          17)Replaces references to "supplemental grant" with "summer  
            grant."









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          18)Defines "summer grant" as funding to operate any program in  
            excess of 180 regular schooldays or during any combination of  
            summer, intersession, or vacation periods.

          19)Modifies the maximum summer grant from a maximum of 30% of  
            the total grant amount awarded per school year, to either a  
            maximum of 30% of the total grant amount awarded per school  
            year, or $33,750 for each regular school year for each  
            elementary school and $45,000 for each regular school year for  
            each middle or junior high school.  

           EXISTING LAW  :

          1)Establishes the ASES program through the 2002 voter approved  
            initiative, Proposition 49. The ASES program funds the  
            establishment of local after school education and enrichment  
            programs, which are created through partnerships between  
            schools and local community resources to provide literacy,  
            academic enrichment and safe constructive alternatives for  
            students in kindergarten through ninth grade (Education Code  
            (EC) Section 8482).

          2)Establishes the 21st CCLC contained within the federal No  
            Child Left Behind Act of 2001 to complement the ASES program.   
            Specifies that the requirements of the ASES program apply to  
            the 21st CCLC program with specified exceptions. (EC 8484.7)

          3)Establishes the ASSETs program to create incentives for  
            establishing locally driven after school enrichment programs  
            between schools and local community organizations serving  
            pupils in high school from grades 9 through 12. (EC Section  
            8421)

           FISCAL EFFECT  :  According to the Senate Appropriations  
          Committee, this bill results in:

          1)Cost pressure:  This bill creates new grants to draw from the  
            same funding source, which puts pressure on the existing  
            funding. The bill also creates a minimum grant funding level  
            that is higher than small programs would have been awarded  
            under the existing per-pupil funding formula, which adds  
            pressure on an existing source that is already insufficient to  
            fund most requests.

          2)Minor cost savings: To the extent that the new reporting  








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            requirements streamline the CDE grant monitoring activities,  
            there will be minor workload savings to the CDE.  

           COMMENTS  :   ASES   program  .  The ASES program, passed by voters as  
          Proposition 49 in 2002, provides almost $550 million annually  
          for before and after school programs for kindergarten through  
          grade 9 students.  In FY 2010-11, 450 predominantly districts  
          and county offices of education received grants, although local  
          governments and nonprofit organizations working in partnership  
          with local educational agencies may also apply.  After school  
          programs must commence right after school and at least until 6  
          p.m. for 15 hours per week.  Direct grants are provided in three  
          one-year increments with maximum grants at $112,500 per year for  
          elementary schools and $150,000 per year for middle or junior  
          high schools based on a per pupil amount of $7.50 per day.   
          Priority for funding goes to schools where at least 50% of the  
          pupils are eligible for free- or reduced-priced lunch.  Each  
          program is required to provide a match equal to not less than  
          one-third of the total grant.  Facilities may count towards 25%  
          of the local contribution.  

          Participating after-school programs are required to have an  
          educational and literacy component in which tutoring or homework  
          assistance is provided in one or more of the following areas:   
          language arts, mathematics, history and social science, computer  
          training, or sciences; and an educational enrichment component,  
          which may include, but is not limited to, fine arts, career  
          technical education, career exploration, recreation, physical  
          fitness and prevention activities.  

          The program requires before school programs to operate one and a  
          half hours a day and after school programs to operate after  
          school until 6 p.m. for a minimum of 15 hours per week.  ASES  
          grantees can request supplemental grants in order to operate for  
          more than 180 days or to operate during summer, intersession or  
          vacation.  

           21st CCLC program  .  In addition to the funds generated by  
          Proposition 49, the state also receives approximately $130  
          million annually in federal funds for the 21st CCLC program,  
          which provides funding for before and after school activities to  
          pupils in kindergarten through grade 12.  The state has chosen  
          to implement this program almost identical to the state's ASES  
          program.  In fact, most of the provisions relating to the ASES  
          program apply to the 21st CCLC.  Existing law (EC 8484.8)  








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          specifies that 40% of the 21st CCLC funds shall be allocated for  
          programs serving elementary and middle school pupils and 50%  
          shall be allocated for direct grants to community learning  
          centers serving high school pupils.  The remaining 10% is used  
          for direct grants to community learning center programs to  
          provide equitable access and to provide family literacy  
          services.  Federal requirements give priority for funding to  
          programs serving Title 1 kids (low-income kids eligible for free  
          and reduced-priced meals).  

           ASSETs  .  The 21st The High School ASSETs program provides grants  
          up to $250,000 per school site based on $10 per student per day,  
          to serve pupils in grades 9 through 12.  The program may operate  
          after school only, or after school and during any combination of  
          before school, weekends, summer, intersession, and vacation, for  
          at least 15 hours per week, and may operate on one or multiple  
          sites.  According to the CDE, in fiscal year 2012-13, $60.9  
          million of the $128 million in federal funds was directed to the  
          ASSETs program, allocated to 345 sites serving 45,817 students.   
          The program must contain the following elements:

          1)An academic assistance element that includes at least one of  
            the following:  preparation for the high school exit exam,  
            tutoring, homework assistance, or college preparation; and,

          2)An enrichment element that may include, but is not limited to,  
            community service, career and technical education, career  
            exploration, job readiness, opportunities for mentoring and  
            tutoring younger pupils, service learning, arts, computer and  
            technology training, physical fitness and recreation  
            activities.

           This bill  , co-sponsored by Superintendent of Public Instruction  
          Tom Torlakson and the Partnership for Children and Youth, makes  
          a number of changes to the ASES, 21st CCLC and the ASSETs  
          programs.  Some of the changes affect all three programs.  The  
          major changes include the following:

           New minimum grant  .  Under the ASES program, direct grants are  
          provided in three one-year increments with maximum grants at  
          $112,500 per year for elementary schools and $150,000 per year  
          for middle or junior high schools based on a per pupil amount of  
          $7.50 per day.  This bill changes "direct grants" to "after  
          school grants" and establishes a minimum amount for each  
          schoolsite by providing an amount equal to attendance by 20  








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          pupils, even if there are less than 20 pupils in attendance.   
          According to the CDE, this is to provide funding to assist small  
          programs with attendance too low to generate grant funding  
          sufficient to operate a viable program.  The amount is based on  
          the requirement of a staff-to-pupil ratio of 20 to 1.  It is  
          unclear how many applicants will be eligible for the minimum  
          grant, or how many participants these programs will enroll.  

           New transportation grant  .  This bill authorizes additional funds  
          under the ASES program, up to $15,000 per site, to be provided  
          to enable programs located in areas with a population density of  
          less than 11 persons per square miles to provide transportation.  
           This is to enable programs in extreme rural areas to transport  
          students to an after school program.
           
          Summer grants  .  Current law authorizes an ASES and 21st CCLC  
          grantee to receive a supplemental grant to operate in excess of  
          180 days or during any combination of summer, intersession, or  
          vacation for a minimum of three hours per day for an after  
          school program and two hours a day for a before school program.   
          The grant amount is either $7.50 per pupil per day, or 30% of  
          the total grant amount awarded to the school per school year,  
          whichever is less.  This bill changes "supplemental grant" to  
          "summer grant," although the purposes for which the grant is  
          provided remains unchanged (grants can be used for intersession  
          or vacation, in addition to summer).  According to the sponsor,  
          the majority of grants are used for summer programs.  The term  
          clarifies the use of grants.  The bill also changes the grant  
          amount for summer grants by providing a maximum of $33,750 for  
          each school year for elementary schools and $45,000 for middle  
          or junior high schools.  This is to determine a grant amount for  
          programs that may not already have an after school grant.  

           Priority for programs providing year-round programs  .  This bill  
          requires priority for 21st CCLC grants to be awarded to programs  
          that will provide year-round expanded learning programs, defined  
          as a program that offers year-round programming, or an applicant  
          adding summer programming to complement existing after school  
          programs, or an applicant adding after school programs to  
          complement existing summer programs.  The bill also specifies  
          that the applicant is not required to be the same entity that  
          operates the existing program.  According to the sponsor, this  
          is to enable an applicant coordinating with existing providers  
          to fill a gap.  For example, a school may operate an after  
          school program, but does not offer a summer program.  A separate  








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          organization may submit an application to provide the summer  
          program.  Staff recommends an amendment to clarify that priority  
          may be given to a program not offering a year-round expanded  
          learning program if the program is coordinating with a provider  
          to complement an existing program.   

           Family literacy  .  Federal law allows 21st CCLC funds to be used  
          for family literacy services.  California has chosen to set  
          aside at least 10% of federal 21st CCLC funds to provide  
          equitable access and participation in CCLC programs and grants  
          to provide family literacy services.  The author and sponsors  
          believe that these funds are better used for pupil  
          participation.  This bill incorporates parent involvement and  
          family literacy as authorized used of grant funds, and reduces  
          from 10% to 5% the amount reserved for grants to provide  
          equitable access and participation in CCLC programs.  These  
          grant funds are primarily used for transportation and language  
          translation services.

           Program evaluation  .  Current law requires programs to submit  
          annual outcome-based data for evaluating program effectiveness,  
          including academic performance, impact on school attendance,  
          pupil behavioral changes, STAR test results, and for the ASSETs  
          program, performance on the high school exit exam.  This bill  
          strikes these requirements, and instead, requires grantees to  
          submit, using the unique statewide pupil identifiers, schoolday  
          attendance on an annual basis, program attendance on a  
          semiannual basis, and evidence of a data-driven program quality  
          improvement process that is based on CDE's guidance on program  
          quality standards.  In 2012, the CDE contracted with the  
          California Afterschool Network Quality Committee to develop  
          recommendations for determining quality in California after  
          school programs.  In 2013, a report, "Quality Standards for  
          Expanded Learning," was released that suggested 12 quality  
          standards, including:  safe and supportive environment; active  
          and engaged learning; skill building; youth voice and  
          leadership; healthy choices and behaviors; quality staff;  
          diversity, access and equity; clear vision, mission and purpose;  
          collaborative partnerships; continuous quality improvement;  
          program management; and sustainability.  A "Phase II" workgroup  
          has since begun the development of indicators of quality  
          standards and a matrix of existing quality assessment tools.   
          Recommendations for indicators are expected on June 30, 2014.   

           Application  .  This bill adds a new certification requirement in  








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          the application process.  An applicant must certify "evidence of  
          pupil social, behavioral, or skill development data collection  
          to support quality program improvement processes.  These pupil  
          data outcomes may relate to specific social-emotional  
          competencies, including, but not necessarily limited to, social  
          skills, self-control, academic mindset, perseverance, conflict  
          resolution, and school-connectedness."  Applicants are not  
          required to submit data to the CDE; however, they must certify  
          that they will collect such data.  Staff recommends a technical  
          amendment to clarify the "collection and use" of data, rather  
          than the "evidence" of data collection.   

           Report to the Legislature  .  The bill requires the CDE to develop  
          and submit a biennial report to the Legislature related to the  
          students attending expanded learning programs and the quality of  
          those programs.  Grantees are currently required to submit  
          annual attendance data to the CDE, as funding is based on  
          attendance, and a one-time evaluation of after school programs  
          was completed in 2011.  This bill repeals the evaluation  
          requirement.  Currently, the Legislature does not receive any  
          reports relative to after school programs.  This bill requires  
          the report to include data using the statewide unique student  
          identifier and authorizes the inclusion of aggregate reporting  
          of all of the following:

          1)The number, geographical distribution and type of sites and  
            grantees.
          2)Student attendance in the program and regular schoolday.
          3)Statewide test and assessment scores.
          4)Student demographics and characteristics. 
          5)Student behavior changes and skill development.
          6)The quality of the program based on CDE's guidance on program  
            quality standards.  

          This provision is in the section of the Education Code relating  
          to the 21st CCLC program.  Staff recommends relocating this  
          provision to Section 8428, which this bill repeals, to replace  
          the previous requirement for CDE to conduct an evaluation.  

           Arguments in support  .  Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom  
          Torlakson states, "Expanded learning programs - before and after  
          school, summer, and intersession programs - show positive  
          impacts on students, including:   improved school attendance,  
          English fluency, academic success, and social-emotional skill  
          development.  In California, state and federally-funded expanded  








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          learning programs serve approximately 420,000 students in nearly  
          4,500 programs across the state.  Developed in collaboration  
          with the expanded learning community, SB 1221 would simplify and  
          improve state and local program administration and update state  
          and local reporting requirements to more effectively support  
          program quality improvement.  Research on student learning loss  
          during the summer shows that year-round and summer learning  
          opportunities are essential to close the achievement gap.  SB  
          1221 would maximize expanded learning programs' impact on  
          students by supporting high-quality, year-round programming."   

           Prior legislation  .  SB 429 (DeSaulnier), Chapter 626, Statutes  
          of 2011, authorizes an ASES program provider to use supplemental  
          grant funds to operate a six-hour program and establishes other  
          parameters for programs operating summer, intersession or  
          vacation programs, including authorizing a program to be  
          conducted at an offsite location or at an alternate schoolsite  
          and authorizing a supplemental grantee to open eligibility to  
          every pupil attending a school in the district with priority for  
          pupils enrolled in the school that receive a grant.  

          SB 798 (DeSaulnier), Chapter 479, Statutes of 2010, requires any  
          federal 21st CCLC program funds that exceed the total state  
          appropriation for fiscal year 2008-09 to be allocated in  
          accordance with a specified formula that includes 15% for summer  
          programs serving elementary and middle school pupils.

           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :

           Support 
           
          Partnership for Youth and Children (co-sponsor)
          State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson  
          (co-sponsor)
          A World Fit For Kids!
          Alameda County Superintendent of Schools Sheila Jordan
          After School Coalition
          Aspiranet
          Association of California School Administrators
          California Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs
          California Charter Schools Association Advocates
          California Library Association
          California School-Based Health Alliance
          California State Alliance of YMCAs
          California State Parks Foundation








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          California State PTA
          California STEM Learning Network
          Central Valley Afterschool Foundation
          Fight Crime: Invest in Kids California
          Gilroy Unified School District 
          GreatSchools
          InnerCity Struggle
          LA's BEST
          Los Angeles Unified School District
          MISSION: READINESS
          Public Profit
          Mountain View School District
          Santa Barbara School of Squash
          Techbridge
          The SEALS, After School Program
          The Village Extended School Program
          THINK Together
          United Way of Santa Barbara County
           
            Opposition 
           
          None on file

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Sophia Kwong Kim / ED. / (916) 319-2087