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To amend Section 263.325 of Am. Sub. H.B. 59 of the | 1 |
130th General Assembly to modify the membership | 2 |
structure of the Straight A Program Governing | 3 |
Board. | 4 |
Section 1. That Section 263.325 of Am. Sub. H.B. 59 of the | 5 |
130th General Assembly be amended to read as follows: | 6 |
Sec. 263.325. (A) The Straight A Program is hereby created | 7 |
for fiscal years 2014 and 2015 to provide grants to city, local, | 8 |
exempted village, and joint vocational school districts, | 9 |
educational service centers, community schools established under | 10 |
Chapter 3314., STEM schools established under Chapter 3326., | 11 |
college-preparatory boarding schools established under Chapter | 12 |
3328. of the Revised Code, individual school buildings, education | 13 |
consortia (which may represent a partnership among school | 14 |
districts, school buildings, community schools, or STEM schools), | 15 |
institutions of higher education, and private entities partnering | 16 |
with one or more of the educational entities identified in this | 17 |
division for projects that aim to achieve significant advancement | 18 |
in one or more of the following goals: | 19 |
(1) Student achievement; | 20 |
(2) Spending reduction in the five-year fiscal forecast | 21 |
required under section 5705.391 of the Revised Code; | 22 |
(3) Utilization of a greater share of resources in the | 23 |
classroom. | 24 |
(B)(1) Grants shall be awarded by a | 25 |
thirteen-member governing board consisting of the Superintendent | 26 |
of Public Instruction, or the Superintendent's designee, four | 27 |
members appointed by the Governor, two members appointed by the | 28 |
Speaker of the House of Representatives, | 29 |
by the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, two | 30 |
members appointed by the President of the Senate, and two members | 31 |
appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate. The Department of | 32 |
Education shall provide administrative support to the board. No | 33 |
member shall be compensated for the member's service on the board. | 34 |
(2) The board shall select grant advisors with fiscal | 35 |
expertise and education expertise. These advisors shall evaluate | 36 |
proposals from grant applicants and advise the staff administering | 37 |
the program. No advisor shall be compensated for this service. | 38 |
(3) The board shall issue an annual report to the Governor, | 39 |
the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President of the | 40 |
Senate, and the chairpersons of the House and Senate committees | 41 |
that primarily deal with education regarding the types of grants | 42 |
awarded, the grant recipients, and the effectiveness of the grant | 43 |
program. | 44 |
(4) The board shall create a grant application and publish on | 45 |
the Department's web site the application and timeline for the | 46 |
submission, review, notification, and awarding of grant proposals. | 47 |
(5) With the approval of the board, the Department shall | 48 |
establish a system for evaluating and scoring the grant | 49 |
applications received under this section. | 50 |
(C) Each grant applicant shall submit a proposal that | 51 |
includes all of the following: | 52 |
(1) A description of the project for which the applicant is | 53 |
seeking a grant, including a description of how the project will | 54 |
have substantial value and lasting impact; | 55 |
(2) An explanation of how the project will be | 56 |
self-sustaining. If the project will result in increased ongoing | 57 |
spending, the applicant shall show how the spending will be offset | 58 |
by verifiable, credible, permanent spending reductions. | 59 |
(3) A description of quantifiable results of the project that | 60 |
can be benchmarked. | 61 |
If an education consortia described in division (A) of this | 62 |
section applies for a grant, the lead applicant shall be the | 63 |
school district, school building, community school, or STEM school | 64 |
that is a member of the consortia and shall so indicate on the | 65 |
grant application. | 66 |
(D)(1) Within seventy-five days after receiving a grant | 67 |
application, the board shall issue a decision on the application | 68 |
of "yes," "no," "hold," or "edit." In making its decision, the | 69 |
board shall consider whether the project has the capability of | 70 |
being replicated in other school districts and schools or creates | 71 |
something that can be used in other districts and schools. A grant | 72 |
awarded under this section to a school district, educational | 73 |
service center, community school, STEM school, college-preparatory | 74 |
boarding school, individual school building, institution of higher | 75 |
education, or private entity partnering with one or more of the | 76 |
educational entities identified in division (A) of this section | 77 |
shall not exceed $5,000,000 in each fiscal year. A grant awarded | 78 |
to an education consortia shall not exceed $15,000,000 in each | 79 |
fiscal year. The Superintendent of Public Instruction may make | 80 |
recommendations to the Controlling Board that these maximum | 81 |
amounts be exceeded. Upon Controlling Board approval, grants may | 82 |
be awarded in excess of these amounts. | 83 |
(2) If the board issues a "hold" or "edit" decision for an | 84 |
application, it shall, upon returning the application to the | 85 |
applicant, specify the process for reconsideration of the | 86 |
application. An applicant may work with the grant advisors and | 87 |
staff to modify or improve a grant application. | 88 |
(E) Upon deciding to award a grant to an applicant, the board | 89 |
shall enter into a grant agreement with the applicant that | 90 |
includes all of the following: | 91 |
(1) The content of the applicant's proposal as outlined under | 92 |
division (C) of this section; | 93 |
(2) The project's deliverables and a timetable for their | 94 |
completion; | 95 |
(3) Conditions for receiving grant funding; | 96 |
(4) Conditions for receiving funding in future years if the | 97 |
contract is a multi-year contract; | 98 |
(5) A provision specifying that funding will be returned to | 99 |
the board if the applicant fails to implement the agreement, as | 100 |
determined by the Auditor of State. | 101 |
(6) A provision specifying that the agreement may be amended | 102 |
by mutual agreement between the board and the applicant. | 103 |
(F) An advisory committee for the Straight A Program is | 104 |
hereby established. The committee shall consist of not more than | 105 |
eleven members appointed by the Governor that represent all areas | 106 |
of the state and different interests. The committee shall annually | 107 |
review the Straight A Program and provide strategic advice to the | 108 |
governing board and the Director of the Governor's Office of 21st | 109 |
Century Education. | 110 |
(G) Each grant awarded under this section shall be subject to | 111 |
approval by the Controlling Board prior to execution of the grant | 112 |
agreement. | 113 |
Section 2. That existing Section 263.325 of Am. Sub. H.B. 59 | 114 |
of the 130th General Assembly is hereby repealed. | 115 |