BILL NUMBER: AB 2089 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 16, 2010
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Coto
FEBRUARY 18, 2010
An act relating to public education. An
act to amend Section 33370 of the Education Code, relating to
American Indian education programs.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2089, as amended, Coto. Education Governance
Commission. American Indian Education Oversight
Committee.
Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction,
with input from existing California American Indian education center
directors, to appoint an American Indian Education Oversight
Committee by January 30, 2007, composed of at least 7 educators, 4 of
whom shall be California American Indian education center directors.
All members shall possess proven knowledge of current educational
policies relating to, and issues faced by, American Indian
communities in California. This committee shall provide input and
advice to the Superintendent on all aspects of American Indian
education programs established by the state.
This bill would require the Superintendent to appoint an American
Indian Education Oversight Committee, as described above, by January
30, 2012. The bill would allow the Superintendent, if he or she is
unable to find a qualified individual to fill a vacancy in one of the
4 positions for center directors within 30 days of the vacancy
arising, to fill the vacancy with an educator who is not a center
director.
Existing law establishes various state and local governmental
agencies to govern the operation of the public elementary and
secondary school system, and prescribes the powers and duties of
those agencies.
This bill would establish the Education Governance Commission,
composed of 12 members to be appointed as specified, and require the
commission to convene on February 1, 2011, and meet until October 1,
2011, in order to create a plan for the governance of the state's
public elementary and secondary school system. The bill would require
the commission to complete and present its plan to the Legislature
in time for legislative action during the 2nd year of the 2011-12
Regular Session of the Legislature.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 33370 of the
Education Code is amended to read:
33370. (a) There is hereby created within the department an
American Indian Education Unit, which shall provide technical support
to, and proper administrative oversight of, American Indian
education programs established by the state in order to ensure that
American Indian pupils in California public schools are able to meet
the challenging academic standards of the federal No Child Left
Behind Act of 2001 (20 U.S.C. Sec. 6301 et seq.) and that those
programs reflect the cultural and educational standards stated in
Executive Order No. 13336, 69 Federal Register 25295 (May 5, 2004),
relating to American Indian and Alaska Native Education.
(b) The Superintendent shall appoint an American Indian Education
Unit Manager who shall oversee the American Indian Education Unit.
(c) The duties of the American Indian Education Unit shall include
the development of clear, consistent, and effective
operating policies and procedures that include measures to ensure
that the learning needs of American Indian pupils are being
adequately addressed.
(d) The department shall ensure that staff are properly trained in
the application of the policies adopted pursuant to subdivision (c)
and that the policies are consistent with the legislative intent
relating to the California American Indian Education Program and with
Section 11019.6 of, subdivisions (d) and (f) of Section 11340 of,
and Section 11342.2 of, the Government Code.
(e) The department shall prescribe the following:
(1) The data that California American Indian education centers
shall report on an annual basis in order to measure program
performance.
(2) On or before January 1, 2011, the department shall conduct an
evaluation of the centers to determine whether to renew the
application of each existing center or instead to approve an
application to establish a new center.
(3) A description of the consequences for failing to submit the
data.
(f) The department shall adopt policies that include:
(1) An equitable process that will be used to select centers that
will receive grant awards and determine their respective funding
amounts.
(2) Establish a prompt timeframe for disbursing approved payments
to the centers.
(3) A monitoring process and plan to ensure that fiscal and
program information reported by the centers is accurate and complete,
including a process for corrective action and investigation by the
department for noncompliance. The process shall be based upon
consistent and equitable principles.
(4) The incorporation of culturally responsive methodologies in
order to ensure that an optimal educational program for American
Indian pupils is supported and maintained.
(5) Ensuring respect for the federal trust and sovereign nation
status of California American Indian tribes.
(g) The Superintendent, with input from existing California
American Indian education center directors, shall appoint an
American Indian Education Oversight Committee by January 30,
2007 2012 , composed of at least seven
educators, four of whom shall be California American Indian education
center directors. If the Superintendent is unable to find a
qualified individual to fill a vacancy in one of the four positions
for center directors within 30 days of the vaca ncy
arising, he or she may fill the vacancy with an educator who is not a
center director. All members shall possess proven knowledge of
current educational policies relating to, and issues faced by,
American Indian communities in California. This committee shall
provide input and advice to the Superintendent on all aspects of
American Indian education programs established by the state.
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares
all of the following:
(a) California's public elementary and secondary education
governance structure has frequently been described as fragmented, and
has evolved without clear roles and responsibilities. From the state
level to the local level, there are numerous offices and entities
involved in education governance. The lines of accountability are
often unclear.
(b) In 2002, the Legislature established the Joint Committee to
Develop a Master Plan for Education that includes working groups and
resulted in more than 40 recommendations for education reform.
(c) In November 2007 the Governor's Committee on Educational
Excellence, composed of statewide education, business, and community
leaders, issued its recommendations to reform education governance in
this state.
(d) "Getting Down to Facts," an independent research project
requested by the Governor, the President pro Tempore of the Senate,
the Speaker of the Assembly, and the Superintendent of Public
Instruction, and conducted by the Institute for Research on Education
Policy and Practice at Stanford University, found a fragmented state
education governance system and recommended realigning the system to
better define roles and responsibilities.
(e) As part of the ongoing effort to reform the governance,
budgetary, and finance systems of this state, this act seeks a path
to statutory change in the state's public elementary and secondary
education governance structure.
SEC. 2. (a) The Education Governance Commission
is hereby established. The commission shall be composed of 12
members to be appointed as follows:
(1) Six members appointed by the Governor.
(2) Three members appointed by a concurrent resolution adopted by
the Legislature.
(3) Three members appointed by the Superintendent of Public
Instruction.
(b) (1) The commission shall convene on February 1, 2011, and meet
until October 1, 2011, in order to create a plan for the governance
of the state's public elementary and secondary school system. The
commission shall complete its plan, and present the plan to the
Legislature in time for legislative action during the second year of
the 2011-12 Regular Session of the Legislature.
(2) The plan shall replace the study on educational governance
completed by the Institute for Research on Education Policy and
Practice in November 2006 as the basis for policy decisions regarding
education governance in this state.
(3) The plan shall include a comprehensive organizational chart of
the proposed governance structure and clear definitions of the
roles, responsibilities, and scope of authority of each office or
entity. The plan also may include the elimination of offices and
roles, the consolidation of offices and roles, and intervention
strategies as necessary.