BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Dede Alpert, Chair
1999-2000 Regular Session
BILL NO: SB 306
AUTHOR: Hayden
AS AMENDED: March 16, 1999
FISCAL COMM.: Yes HEARING DATE: March 24, 1999
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT: Nancy Anton
SUMMARY
This bill establishes the Parent Involvement Grant Program
whereby nonprofit community-based organizations will offer
training courses for parents and guardians of schoolage
children to enhance their involvement in the education of
their children in public schools. The community-based
organizations participating in this program would be
selected by the State Department of Education (SDE) through
a competitive process, as specified, and would receive 4-1
matching grants. SDE would be required to report on this
program to the State Board of Education (SBE) and the
Legislature by January 1, 2005. The program would sunset
on January 1, 2005.
BACKGROUND
Current law provides for several programs that encourage
parental involvement in the education of their children
(Education Code Section 11500, 52852, et seq.) Current law
also requires school districts to either (1) adopt a policy
on parent involvement and/or (2) establish a parent
involvement program for each Chapter 1 recipient school.
Lastly, current law provides that parents be notified of
specified rights and available programs (Education Code
Section 48980.)
ANALYSIS
This bill establishes the Parent Involvement Grant Program.
Specifically, the bill:
1) Provides that state funds be appropriated for
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nonprofit community-based organizations to offer
training courses for parents and guardians of
school-age children to enhance involvement in the
education of their children in the public schools.
2) Provides that the SDE administer this program based
on a competitive grant process program. Priority for
selecting grant recipients would be based on the
following:
a) (a) Ability to recruit and retain parents
with traditionally low participation rates.
b) Ability to conduct training in various
languages, as specified.
c) Experience, as specified, in implementing
parent involvement programs.
3) Requires that a parent involvement training course
offered pursuant to this bill include s at least 10
hours of live and direct parent instruction on a
minimum of six of 10 specified subject areas. The
bill also requires grant recipients to solicit input
from parents, as specified.
4) Appropriates no funds but specifies that the grants be
provided pursuant to this bill be on a 4-to-1 matching
basis. The bill authorizes participating
organizations to assess a course fee of up to $2 for
purposes of meeting the matching fund requirement.
5) Requires SDE to recommend and approve an evaluation
design which grant recipients would be required to
use. SDE would be required s to report these findings
to the State Board of Education and the Legislature by
January 1, 2005.
6) Sunsets on January 1, 2005.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) One Piece of the Pie. This bill appears to address
one approach - provide parent involvement training --
of what is often cited as a multi-faceted problem of
promoting parent involvement in their child's
education. Other needed features include effective
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school communication, volunteer opportunities,
school-based parent centers, home learning activities,
parent-school decision making opportunities and
collaboration with community-based organizations.
Does it make sense to establish a grant program that
is limited to only one part of the problem?
2) School Districts Excluded. This bill limits
participation to nonprofit community-based
organizations. Many school districts or county
offices of education either currently offer or would
like to offer just the type of parent involvement
training that this bill is endorsing. Does it make
sense to exclude these as well as other potentially
interested agencies?
3) Report Due before Sunset. The evaluation report
required by this bill is due the same day that the
bill sunsets. This means that the evaluation results
will not be available when the Legislature must
consider whether to extend the sunset. Staff
recommends that the evaluation report be due at least
18 months prior to the program's sunset.
4) Funding. Although the bill establishes a local grant
program, the bill makes no appropriation and is silent
as to a funding source for these grants. How will
this program be funded?
SUPPORT
Alum Rock Union Elementary School District
California Congress of Parents, Teachers, and Students,
Inc.
California Rural Legal Assistance, Inc.
Chicano Federation of San Diego County, Inc.
City of Sacramento, Mayor Joe Serna, Jr.
El Monte City School District
Franklin-McKinley School District
Glendale Unified School District
June Burnett Institute
Jurupa Unified School District
Little Lake City School District
Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project
Multicultural Education, Training and Advocacy, Inc.
National School District
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Oceanside Unified School District
Patterson Unified School District
Riverside Unified School District
San Diego City Schools
School Futures Research Foundation
State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Student Outreach, Enrollment Services at CSU, Stanislaus
Union of Pan Asian Communities
Vista Unified School District
Individual letter
PPOSITION
None received