BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1741
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 5, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 1741 (Coto) - As Amended: April 26, 2010
Policy Committee: Education
Vote:6-2
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill requires a petition to establish a charter school,
which will serve at least 15% English language learners (ELL)
pupils, to include specified information related to the
instructional program for these pupils. Specifically, this
bill:
1)Requires the charter school petition to include the following
information:
a) A description of the program that will meet the
academic, language, and cultural needs of ELL pupils at the
school.
b) The means by which administrators and staff qualified to
teach ELL pupils will be hired at the school.
c) The manner in which relevant programs will be
implemented for parents to understand how the charter
school process works, as specified.
d) For those petitioners currently operating a charter
school, a description of programs designed for ELL pupils
that have been implemented at these schools.
2)Requires the chartering authority, as part of the renewal
process for a charter school, to consider the degree in which
the school has implemented programs for ELL pupils, as
specified in their initial charter petition.
3)Requires a petition that establishes a charter school under
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the restart model of the federal Race To The Top (RTT) program
to meet all charter petition and renewal requirements,
including those related to ELL pupils (as specified in this
measure).
FISCAL EFFECT
GF/98 state reimbursable mandated costs, likely less than
$50,000, to local education agencies (LEAs) to review charter
petitions with additional information related to ELL pupils, as
specified. There is a current GF/98 state reimbursable mandate
of $2.3 million annually paid to LEAs to review charter school
petitions and renewals, notify charter schools of reasons for
revocation, and administer facility rentals. The cost
associated with this measure will be added to the existing
mandate.
According to a May 2006 decision by the Commission on State
Mandates (CSM), charter schools are not eligible to claim
mandate reimbursements. In denying charter schools' mandate
claims, the CSM repeatedly cites the fact that charter schools
are "voluntarily" created.
COMMENTS
1)Purpose . Current statute establishes a charter school as a
public school that provides instruction in any of grades K-12.
It is usually created or organized by a group of teachers,
parents and community leaders or a community-based
organization. A charter school may be authorized by an
existing local public school board, county board of education,
or the State Board of Education (SBE). Specific goals and
operating procedures for the charter school are detailed in an
agreement (charter) between the sponsoring board and charter
organizers. A charter school is generally exempt from most
laws governing school districts, except where specifically
noted in the law.
Current law also requires a potential charter school to submit
a petition to a LEA for approval to establish the school. The
petition is required to include a description of the
educational program of the school. Statute requires this
description to identify the pupils the school is attempting to
educate, what it means to be an education person in the 21st
Century, and how learning best occurs, as specified. In
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addition, the petition is required to identify the "measurable
pupil outcomes" the school will use. "Measurable pupil
outcomes" are defined as the extent to which all pupils of the
school demonstrate that they have attained the skills,
knowledge, and attitudes specified as goals in the school's
educational program.
Existing law does not require the petition to include
educational program information for specific pupil
populations. According to the author, "In California, charter
school enrollment has increased from 112,065 in 2001 to
238,226 in 2008. Of these, only 17% are ELL pupils, compared
to 25% of the total school population. Little to no data is
kept to reflect the success of ELL pupils in charter schools."
This bill requires a petition to establish a charter school,
which will serve at least 15% ELL pupils, to include specified
information related to the instructional program for these
pupils.
2)Persistently lowest achieving schools (PLAS) . In February
2009, the federal government passed the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act (ARRA), which allocated approximately $100
billion nationwide for education programs. RTT is a
competitive grant program established by ARRA that makes $4.35
billion available to states "to encourage and reward those
that are creating the conditions for education innovation and
reform; achieving significant improvement in student outcomes,
closing achievement gaps, improving high school graduation
rates, and ensuring student preparation for success in college
and careers."
The federal RTT program requires states to submit a plan
articulating the state's reform strategies in four core
education reform areas, including turning around the state's
lowest performing schools. SB 1 X5 (Steinberg), Chapter 2,
Statutes of 2009-10, Fifth Extraordinary Session, requires the
Superintendent of Public Instruction and SBE to identify the
lowest achieving five percent of schools in the state (i.e.,
PLAS).
SB 1 X5 also requires LEAs to choose one of the following four
intervention models for a school identified as PLAS (as
required under the federal RATT guidance):
(a) Turnaround model: replaces the principal and at least
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50% of the existing staff.
(b) Restart model: converts a school to a charter school or
operated by an outside management company.
(c) School closure: closes the school and enrolls the pupils
in another higher achieving school in the district.
(d) Transformation model - replace the principal; use
rigorous evaluation systems for teachers/administrators,
including using student data as a measure evaluation; and
identify and reward school leaders who have increased
student achievement, as specified.
This bill requires a petition to establish and renew a charter
school that is established pursuant to the restart model of
RTT program to comply with charter statute, including
provisions related to ELL pupils (as specified in this
measure).
Analysis Prepared by : Kimberly Rodriguez / APPR. / (916)
319-2081