Am.
Sub. S.B. 311
126th General Assembly
(As Passed by the General Assembly)
Sens. Gardner, Padgett, Harris, Clancy, Mumper, Jacobson, Cates, Goodman, Niehaus
Reps. Webster, Blessing, Combs, D. Evans, Martin, Schlichter, Setzer
Effective date: *
ACT SUMMARY
Ohio Core
curriculum
· Establishes the Ohio Core curriculum of 20 specified units of study as the minimum curriculum required for high school graduation from all school districts, community schools, and chartered nonpublic schools, beginning with the Class of 2014.
· Permits a student in the Classes of 2014 through 2017 who has not completed the Ohio Core curriculum to graduate from high school only if the student has satisfied certain alternative requirements.
· Excuses students enrolled in certain dropout prevention and recovery programs from the Ohio Core curriculum.
· Requires school districts, community schools, and chartered nonpublic high schools to integrate economics and financial literacy instruction into a required social studies course or another class.
· Requires students who are subject to the Ohio Core curriculum to complete two semesters of fine arts in any of grades 7 to 12 to graduate from high school, except for students pursuing a career-technical track.
· Requires school districts and community schools to adopt a procedure for notifying parents of the Ohio Core curriculum requirements.
Honors diplomas
· Authorizes the State Board of Education to prescribe an honors high school diploma that recognizes technical expertise for a career-technical student.
· Requires the State Board to revise its existing standards for honors diplomas and make them effective by June 30, 2007.
· Prohibits school districts and community schools from awarding an honors diploma to a student who is subject to the Ohio Core curriculum but opts to fulfill the alternative requirements.
High
school credit
· Permits a school district board, a community school, or a chartered nonpublic school to adopt a policy to excuse from physical education students who have participated in interscholastic athletics, marching band, or cheerleading for at least two full seasons.
· Requires the Department of Education and the Board of Regents to propose a standardized method and form for recording high school credit on high school transcripts.
· Requires the Department of Education to make its Individual Academic Career Plan available on its web site for schools to use in guiding students and families in selecting high school courses.
· Requires the State Board of Education to adopt a statewide plan for students to earn units of high school credit based on demonstration of subject area competency, instead of or in combination with completing hours of classroom instruction, and requires school districts, community schools, and chartered nonpublic schools to award high school credit in accordance with the plan.
· Requires school districts to enter into supplemental contracts with teachers who teach courses for high school credit to students of compulsory school age outside the normal school day.
Foreign language
· Requires the State Board of Education to establish a Foreign Language Advisory Council, which must propose a statewide foreign language education implementation plan to the General Assembly by December 31, 2007.
College
and work readiness
· Requires the Partnership for Continued Learning, in collaboration with the Board of Regents and the State Board of Education, to recommend by July 30, 2007, a means of assessing high school students' college and work readiness, especially in English and math.
· Directs the State Board of Education to display measures of the preparedness of high school graduates for higher education and the workforce on the school district and building report cards, beginning with the 2012-2013 school year.
Dual enrollment programs
· Requires each school district (including each joint vocational district), community school, and chartered nonpublic high school to offer students in grades 9 to 12 the opportunity to participate in a dual enrollment program to earn college credit.
· Directs the Articulation and Transfer Advisory Council of the Ohio Board of Regents to recommend standards for awarding college credit toward degree requirements based on students' scores on Advanced Placement exams and requires all public institutions of higher education to comply with the standards upon their adoption by the Board.
· Requires the Partnership for Continued Learning, by May 31, 2007, to make legislative recommendations to improve the operation of the Post-Secondary Enrollment Options Program and other dual enrollment programs.
· Specifies that, if the Partnership for Continued Learning does not make the legislative recommendations by the May 31, 2007, deadline, each state university must offer at least two college level courses via the Internet or interactive distance learning by which students may earn high school and college credit.
State universities
· Generally requires completion of the Ohio Core curriculum for admission as a resident undergraduate student to most state universities, beginning in the 2014-2015 academic year, for students who entered ninth grade after July 1, 2010.
· Beginning with the 2014-2015 academic year, phases out the state operating subsidies that the Ohio Board of Regents may pay to most state universities for academic remedial or developmental courses offered at their main campuses.
Current
and future appropriations
· Permits teachers and students of chartered nonpublic schools to participate in programs financed by a previous fiscal year 2007 appropriation to promote and implement the Ohio Core through alternative paths to teacher licensure and dual enrollment in math, science, engineering, technology, and foreign language.
· Appropriates an additional $16.8 million in fiscal year 2007 for grants to school districts to support implementation of the Ohio Core curriculum through building teacher capacity, recruiting and retaining teachers in required disciplines, providing intervention services to students, and other related purposes.
· States that the General Assembly will appropriate (1) at least $16.8 million annually in fiscal years 2008 through 2012 for the grant program and (2) an expected $120 million over five years for strategic initiatives to strengthen schools' capacities to hire highly qualified teachers.
Minimum school year (VETOED)
· Would have changed the minimum school year for school districts and chartered nonpublic schools from 182 days to 455 hours for half-day kindergarten, 910 hours for full-day kindergarten and grades 1 through 6, and 1,001 hours for grades 7 through 12 (Vetoed).
· Would have defined a school week as a maximum of five days, and would have specified that the school week could not include Saturdays and Sundays (Vetoed).
· Would have eliminated excused "calamity" days for schools (Vetoed).
Other
provisions
· Requires the State Board of Education to issue an annual report on the quality of teacher preparation programs.
· Requires the Teacher Quality Partnership to study the relationship of teacher performance on educator licensure assessments to teacher effectiveness in the classroom and to submit annual reports.
· Requires the Partnership for Continued Learning to make recommendations concerning expansion of school counseling career and educational programs.
· Adds to the Partnership for Continued Learning one teacher from a school district, one teacher from a chartered nonpublic school, one teacher from a career center, and one representative of a comprehensive or compact career-technical school.
· Requires community schools to adopt parental involvement policies in the same manner as school districts.
· Directs the State Board of Education to adopt recommendations for the development of parental involvement policies by school districts and community schools.
· Establishes a public-private collaborative commission to make recommendations for promoting greater incidence of student success in conjunction with the Ohio Core curriculum.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Ohio Core: a new minimum high
school curriculum
Advanced work for high school credit
Instruction in financial literacy
Temporary alternative to the Ohio Core (opt-out)
Local option for more rigorous curriculum
Dropout prevention and recovery programs
Application to community schools
Notice of Ohio Core requirements
Excuse from physical education for students in athletics, marching
band, or cheerleading
Standardized high school transcripts
Individual Academic Career Plan
Competency-based high school credit
Supplemental contracts for teachers
Foreign Language Advisory Council
Recommendation for a college and work readiness assessment
Report card data on college and work readiness
Recommendations for improving dual enrollment programs
Internet and distance learning classes by state universities
Admission to state universities
Legislative recommendations for waivers
Remedial and developmental courses at state universities
Funding limits at ten state universities
Remedial courses at other institutions
Report on quality of teacher preparation programs
Study of teacher performance assessments vs. classroom effectiveness
Recommendations related to school counselors
Partnership for Continued Learning membership
Public-private collaborative commission
Programs to promote and implement the Ohio Core
Inclusion of chartered nonpublic schools
Additional appropriation--the Ohio Core Grant Program
Intent for future appropriations
CONTENT AND OPERATION
(R.C. 3313.603(B) and (C))
To earn a high school diploma, students of school districts and nonpublic schools must complete their high school's curriculum, which must at least satisfy the minimum high school curriculum prescribed in state law. (However, disabled students instead must complete their individualized education plans (or IEPs).) In addition, students of school districts, community schools, and chartered nonpublic schools must pass the state high school proficiency or achievement tests.[1]
The act prescribes a new minimum high school curriculum for public and chartered nonpublic schools. Called the "Ohio Core," the new curriculum first applies to the Class of 2014. Thus, students entering the ninth grade in the 2010-2011 school year in any public or chartered nonpublic school will be subject to the new minimum curriculum. Students attending nonchartered nonpublic schools remain subject to the curriculum requirements set for them by the State Board of Education.[2]
As with the previous state minimum high school curriculum, the new Ohio Core consists of 20 units of study, but the distribution of those units among subject areas is changed. The following table compares the Ohio Core curriculum with the previous minimum state high school curriculum:
STATE MINIMUM HIGH SCHOOL CURRICULUM
|
|
|
THE OHIO CORE |
|
English
Lang. Arts |
4
units (480 hours) |
4 units (480 hours) |
|
Math |
3
units (360 hours) |
4 units (480 hours),
including 1 unit (120 hours) of algebra II or its equivalent |
|
Science |
3
units (360 to 450 hours, depending on whether the unit is a laboratory
course), including: |
3 units with inquiry-based
laboratory experience,* including the following, or their equivalent: |
|
Social
Studies |
3
units (360 hours), including ½ unit (60 hours) of American history and ½ unit
of American government |
3 units (360 hours),
including ½ unit (60 hours) of American history and ½ unit of American
government |
|
Health |
½
unit (60 hours) |
½
unit (60 hours) |
|
Physical
Education |
½
unit (120 hours) |
½
unit (120 hours) |
|
Electives |
6
units (720 hours), which must include 1 unit (or two ½ units) from
business/technology, fine arts, or foreign language |
5 units (600 hours), which
must consist of one or a combination of foreign language, fine arts,
business, career-technical education, family and consumer sciences,
technology, agricultural education, or English language arts, math, science,
or social studies courses not otherwise required under the Ohio Core |
|
Total |
20
units |
20 units |
*It is
not clear whether the act's requirement that science units have
"laboratory experience" actually requires that they consist of 150
hours of instruction (which prior law required for all "laboratory
courses") instead of the usual 120 hours for classroom instruction.
As the table illustrates, the new curriculum requires four, rather than just three, units of math. It also requires that one math unit consist of "algebra II" or its equivalent.
While the act continues to require three units of science, it adds that those units must include "inquiry-based laboratory experience that engages students in asking valid scientific questions and gathering and analyzing information." In addition, the three units must consist of one each of the following, or their equivalent: physical science and biology (as under prior law) and one unit of advanced study in either (1) chemistry, physics, or other physical science, (2) advanced biology or other life science, or (3) astronomy, physical geology, or other earth or space science. The act does not prescribe how much laboratory time must be completed. Thus, it is not clear whether an Ohio Core science unit must consist of 120 hours of instruction, which is normally required for one unit, or 150 hours, which is required for laboratory courses.[3]
To offset the extra math class and keep the total curriculum at 20 units, the act reduces the number of required electives from six to five. It also eliminates the prior requirement that a student's electives include one unit from business/technology, fine arts, or foreign language. Rather, under the act, students may complete their electives in one or any combination of foreign language, fine arts, business, career-technical education, family and consumer sciences, technology, agricultural education, or additional English, math, science, or social studies classes not required by the Ohio Core.
(R.C. 3313.603(G))
As under prior law, high schools may permit middle school students to take advanced work for high school credit. High schools may count that coursework toward graduation if it was taught by a teacher licensed to teach high school and it meets high school curriculum requirements, as determined by the school district or school. The act specifies that students may use this option to earn credit for Ohio Core requirements.
(R.C. 3313.603(C)(6))
Under the act, each public and chartered nonpublic high school must integrate the study of economics and financial literacy into the content of one or more of the Ohio Core social studies classes or another class so that all students receive the instruction. The instruction must reflect the coverage of those topics in the social studies academic content standards adopted by the State Board of Education.[4] In developing economics and financial literacy curricula, high schools must use available public-private partnerships, resources, and materials that exist in business, industry, and economics education centers at institutions of higher education.
(R.C. 3313.603(K))
The act requires students subject to the Ohio Core curriculum to complete two semesters or the equivalent of fine arts to graduate from high school. This provision does not apply to students who opt out of the Ohio Core, to students enrolled in dropout recovery programs that have a waiver from the Ohio Core, or to students who are in a career-technical track as determined by the district board or community school or nonpublic school governing authority. The fine arts coursework may be taken in any of grades 7 to 12. If a student completes a fine arts course in seventh or eighth grade, the student may elect to have that course count toward the five electives required by the Ohio Core, if the course qualifies for high school credit (see "Advanced work for high school credit" above). If the course does not qualify for high school credit, it still counts toward the requirement to complete two semesters of fine arts.
The act makes several purpose and intent statements regarding its new Ohio Core curriculum requirements.
Purpose of the Ohio Core. The act states that completion of the Ohio Core curriculum is the standard expectation for all students entering ninth grade at a public or chartered nonpublic high school on or after July 1, 2010, and may be satisfied through a variety of methods, including, but not limited to, integrated, applied, career-technical, and traditional coursework.
Future appropriations. The act states that since "teacher quality is essential for student success in completing the Ohio Core curriculum, the General Assembly shall appropriate funds for strategic initiatives designed to strengthen schools' capacities to hire and retain highly qualified teachers in the subject areas required by the curriculum." It also states "such initiatives are expected to require an investment of $120,000,000 over five years."
Coordination. The act further states that "stronger coordination between high schools and institutions of higher education is necessary to prepare students for more challenging academic endeavors and to lessen the need for academic remediation in college." It directs the State Board of Education, the Ohio Board of Regents, and the Partnership for Continued Learning[5] "to develop policies to ensure that only in rare instances will students who complete the Ohio Core curriculum require academic remediation after high school."
Technology. The act further directs school districts, community schools, and chartered nonpublic schools to "integrate technology into learning experiences whenever practicable across the curriculum in order to maximize efficiency, enhance learning, and prepare students for success in the technology-driven twenty-first century." It formally stipulates that districts and schools may use distance and web-based course delivery for all instruction, including laboratory experience in science, and that they use, whenever practicable, electronic learning opportunities offered by various public and private technology providers, such as the eTech Ohio Commission and public television stations.
(R.C. 3313.603(D))
The act provides students who enter ninth grade on or after July 1, 2010, and before July 1, 2014 (that is, the four graduating classes of 2014 through 2017) an alternative to completing the Ohio Core curriculum for high school graduation. Under the act, such a student may graduate from high school without completing the Ohio Core curriculum, but only if the following conditions are satisfied:
(1) The student and the student's parent, guardian, or custodian sign and file with the school a written statement consenting to the student's graduating without completing the Ohio Core curriculum and acknowledging that one consequence is ineligibility to enroll in most state universities without further coursework. The student must attend two years of high school before filing this statement.
(2) The student and the student's parent, guardian, or custodian fulfill any procedural requirements the school stipulates to ensure their informed consent and to facilitate orderly filing of statements.
(3) The student, the student's parent, guardian, or custodian, and a high school representative jointly develop an "individual career plan" for the student that specifies the student matriculating to a two-year degree program, acquiring a business and industry credential, or entering an apprenticeship.
(4) The high school provides counseling and support for the student related to that plan for the remainder of high school.
(5) The student, at a minimum, completes at least the 20-unit curriculum prescribed under prior law (which is retained by the act for students entering the ninth grade prior to July 1, 2010, for this temporary opt-out exception, and for students in an approved dropout prevention and recovery program (see below)).
The exception is not available to students who enter ninth grade on or after July 1, 2014 (the Classes of 2018 and later). But the Partnership for Continued Learning, by August 1, 2014, must analyze student performance data and make recommendations whether "there are mitigating factors that warrant extending the exception" to subsequent classes.
(R.C. 3313.603(E))
The act affirms the authority of each school district and chartered nonpublic school to implement a more rigorous curriculum than required by law. Specifically, a district or school may require more than 20 units of academic credit to graduate, may allow for no exceptions to its minimum curriculum, or may allow an exception comparable to the act's exception (see above) but with additional requirements.
(R.C. 3313.603(F))
The act permanently permits certain students to graduate by successfully completing a competency-based instructional program offered by a "dropout prevention and recovery program," instead of completing the Ohio Core curriculum. To qualify, the dropout program serving the student must have received a waiver from the Department of Education. The Department must grant a program a waiver if it meets all of the following conditions:
(1) It serves only students 16 or older, but no older than 21.
(2) It enrolls students who, at the time of their enrollment, are at least one grade level behind their age group, experience crises that significantly interfere with their academic progress, or both.
(3) It requires students to pass the Ohio Graduation Tests.[6]
(4) It develops an individual career plan for each student that specifies the student matriculating to a two-year degree program, acquiring a business and industry credential, or entering an apprenticeship.
(5) It provides counseling and support for the student related to that plan for the remainder of high school.
(6) It requires the student and the student's parent, guardian, or custodian to sign and file a written statement consenting to the student's graduating without completing the Ohio Core curriculum and acknowledging that one consequence is ineligibility to enroll in most state universities without further coursework.
(7) It submitted to the Department, prior to receiving the waiver, an instructional plan that demonstrates how it will teach and assess the state academic content standards adopted by the State Board of Education.
The act specifies that if the Department does not act on a program's application for a waiver within 60 days after it is submitted to the Department, it is considered to be granted.
(R.C. 3314.03(A)(11)(f))
The act applies the Ohio Core curriculum requirements to students of community schools, as well as students of school districts and chartered nonpublic schools. Under prior law, and until July 1, 2010, under the act, community schools are not subject to state curriculum standards, and their students may satisfy the curricular requirement for a diploma by completing the school's curriculum. However, each community school that serves high school students at a minimum must satisfy the Ohio Core curriculum beginning with students entering ninth grade on or after July 1, 2010.
(R.C. 3313.6014 and 3314.03(A)(11)(d))
The act requires each school district and community school to adopt a procedure for notifying the parent of each high school student enrolled in the district, or in a joint vocational school district to which the district belongs, of the Ohio Core curriculum requirements and that one consequence of not completing the Ohio Core is ineligibility to enroll in most state universities in Ohio without additional coursework. The act also specifies that this provision does not create a new cause of action or substantive legal right.
(R.C. 3313.61(B) and 3325.08(B); Section 4)
Continuing law authorizes public high schools to issue an "honors diploma" to any student who has successfully completed the high school curriculum (or, if the student is a disabled student, the student's IEP), has met the proficiency or achievement testing requirements for graduation, and has met additional criteria established in rules adopted by the State Board of Education.
The act authorizes the State Board to prescribe an honors diploma that recognizes technical expertise for a career-technical student. It also requires the State Board to adopt rules revising its existing standards for honors diplomas. The State Board must file the revised rules so that they take effect by June 30, 2007.
The act also prohibits the granting of an honors diploma to any student who is subject to the Ohio Core curriculum but instead elects to graduate under the alternative requirements described above.
(R.C. 3313.603(L))
The act permits each school district board, and each community school and chartered nonpublic school governing authority, to adopt a policy under which it may excuse from the high school physical education requirement students who have participated in interscholastic athletics, marching band, or cheerleading for at least two full seasons. If the board or authority adopts such a policy, it may not require the student to complete any physical education course as a condition to graduate from high school. However, the student must complete one-half unit of at least 60 hours of instruction in another course of study. Districts and schools may excuse high school students graduating before, as well as after, the Ohio Core curriculum applies.
(R.C. 3301.46)
The act requires the Department of Education and the Board of Regents to propose a standardized method and form for documenting high school credits on high school transcripts that are compatible with the standards for credit transfer and articulation adopted by the Board of Regents and any electronic clearinghouse for student transcript transfer developed by the Board of Regents. The proposal must be submitted no later than April 30, 2009, to the State Board of Education, the Chancellor of the Board of Regents, the Partnership for Continued Learning, the Governor, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the House, the President and Minority Leader of the Senate, and the chairpersons and ranking minority members of the House and Senate Education committees.
(R.C. 3313.603(H))
The act requires the Department of Education to make its Individual Academic Career Plan available through its Ohio Career Information web site[7] for schools to use in guiding students and families in selecting high school courses.
(R.C. 3313.603(J) and 3314.03(A)(11)(f))
The act requires the State Board of Education, in consultation with the Board of Regents and the Partnership for Continued Learning, by March 31, 2009, to adopt a statewide plan for students to earn units of high school credit based on a demonstration of subject area competency, instead of or in combination with completing hours of classroom instruction. The plan must include a standard method for recording demonstrated proficiency on high school transcripts.
The State Board must commence phasing in the plan during the 2009-2010 school year. In addition, each school district, community school, and chartered nonpublic school must comply with the plan and award units of high school credit in accordance with it.
(R.C. 3319.0811)
The act specifies that if a school district offers students of compulsory school age courses for high school credit that are taught at times outside the normal school day, the district must enter into supplemental contracts with the teachers assigned to those courses and may not include those assignments as part of the teachers' regular employment contracts.[8] Under continuing law, supplemental contracts must specify duties performed by a teacher in addition to regular teaching duties and the salary to be paid for those additional duties. A supplemental contract is limited to five years in length.[9]
(Section 3)
The act requires the State Board of Education to establish a Foreign Language Advisory Council to develop and propose a statewide foreign language education implementation plan. In appointing the Council, the State Board must consult with the Board of Regents and the Partnership for Continued Learning. The Council membership must include educators from preschool through higher education, business leaders, and "representatives of other interested parties."
In developing the plan, the Council must, at minimum, address facilitating K-12 foreign language acquisition, emphasis on languages of economically competitive countries, best practices for implementing P-16 foreign language instruction, course-delivery models, and proficiency-based approaches to earning foreign language credit. The plan also must include recommendations for legislation to implement the plan by the 2014-2015 school year. The Council must submit its plan by December 31, 2007, to the State Board, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Board of Regents, the Partnership for Continued Learning, the Governor, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the House, the President and Minority Leader of the Senate, and the chairpersons and ranking minority members of the House and Senate Education committees.
(R.C. 3301.43)
The act requires the Partnership for Continued Learning, in collaboration with the Board of Regents and the State Board of Education, to recommend a means of assessing high school students' college and work readiness, especially in English and math. In doing so, the Partnership must recommend one or more assessments that can achieve the following goals:
(1) Measure students' skills against identified college and work-ready expectations in English and math and serve as an indicator of students' readiness to successfully complete introductory level coursework at an institution of higher education and to avoid remedial coursework;
(2) Promote consistency in high school academic course content, quality, and expectations;
(3) Provide individual students with information to assist in planning the remaining high school learning experience;
(4) Serve as one indicator for college admission or placement; and
(5) Assist institutions of higher education in aligning remedial coursework with the college and work-ready expectations measured by the assessments.
The Partnership must consider the suitability of existing assessments for these purposes, including the Ohio Graduation Tests. It also must describe how the recommended readiness assessments fit within the current state achievement test system.
The Partnership must submit its report by July 30, 2007, to the Governor, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the House, the President and Minority Leader of the Senate, the chairpersons and ranking minority members of the House and Senate Education committees, the State Board of Education, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Board of Regents, and the Chancellor of the Board of Regents.
(R.C. 3302.032 and 3314.012)
Under the act, by June 30, 2012, the State Board of Education must select one or more measures of the preparedness of high school graduates for higher education and the workforce for display on the school district and building report cards. Prior to selecting any measure, the State Board must consult with the Partnership for Continued Learning and the Ohio Board of Regents. Those measures may include student performance on the college readiness assessment recommended by the Partnership for Continued Learning (see above), the percentage of students who earn college credit while in high school, or the percentage of students who take remedial coursework in college. The Department of Education must begin including the measures on the report cards covering the 2012-2013 school year. The act prohibits a district's or building's performance on the measures from affecting its report card rating (as either excellent, effective, in continuous improvement, under academic watch, or in academic emergency).
(R.C. 3313.6013, 3314.03(A)(11)(d), and 3333.34)
The act requires each school district (including each joint vocational school district), community school, and chartered nonpublic high school to offer students in grades 9 to 12 the opportunity to participate in a dual enrollment program. As defined, a dual enrollment program enables a student either (1) to earn credit toward a degree from an institution of higher education while enrolled in high school or (2) to complete coursework while in high school that may qualify for college credit if the student attains a specified score on an examination covering the coursework. Dual enrollment programs include the existing Post-Secondary Enrollment Options Program (PSEO), Advanced Placement courses (see "College credit for AP courses" below), and similar programs established through agreements between individual districts or schools and post-secondary institutions.
Under continuing law, all school districts (except joint vocational school districts) and community schools must participate in PSEO, which allows high school students to enroll in nonsectarian college courses on a full- or part-time basis and receive high school and college credit for those courses.[10] City, local, and exempted village districts and community schools meet the act's requirement to offer a dual enrollment program through their mandatory participation in PSEO. Nevertheless, these districts and community schools may offer additional dual enrollment programs, and joint vocational school districts must offer another dual enrollment program, to students "in good standing." The act directs the Partnership for Continued Learning to develop a definition of "in good standing" for schools to use in determining who qualifies for dual enrollment programs other than PSEO.
Chartered nonpublic high schools also are eligible for PSEO and may satisfy the act's requirement by electing to participate in that program. Chartered nonpublic high schools that do not participate in PSEO must offer at least one other dual enrollment program instead, but only to students in good standing, as defined by the Partnership for Continued Learning.
All school districts, community schools, and chartered nonpublic high schools must provide students in grades 8 to 11 with information about the dual enrollment programs they offer. In addition, the Board of Regents, in collaboration with the State Board of Education, must publish an annual report describing those programs. The Board of Regents must submit the report to the Governor, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the House, the President and Minority Leader of the Senate, the chairpersons and ranking minority members of the House and Senate Education committees, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, and the President of the State Board of Education. In addition, the Board of Regents must post the report on its web site.
(R.C. 3333.163)
The Advanced Placement (AP) Program offers students the opportunity to earn college credit while enrolled in high school through participation in high-level academic courses in various subject areas. Generally, to be eligible for college credit, a student must take an exam covering the course content. Each college or university establishes its own policy regarding how well students must score on AP exams to receive course credit at that institution.
To bring consistency to these policies at Ohio's public institutions of higher education, the act directs the Articulation and Transfer Advisory Council of the Board of Regents to recommend, by April 15, 2008, standards for awarding course credit to students based on their scores on AP exams.[11] The Council must recommend a score on each AP exam that it considers to be a passing score for which college credit is appropriate. Upon adoption of the recommended standards by the Board of Regents, all state universities, community colleges, state community colleges, university branches, and technical colleges must comply with the standards in awarding course credit for scores on AP exams.
(R.C. 3301.42(B))
Continuing law requires the Partnership for Continued Learning to make recommendations for increasing opportunities for students to participate in dual enrollment programs. The act further requires those recommendations to include expanded opportunities for students to earn college credit on their high school campuses. Also, under the act, the Partnership must recommend legislative changes that would improve the operation of PSEO and other dual enrollment programs. These legislative recommendations, which must be developed in consultation with the Board of Regents and the State Board of Education, are due by May 31, 2007.
(R.C. 3345.062)
If the Partnership for Continued Learning does not make legislative recommendations for improving dual enrollment programs by the May 31, 2007, deadline (see above), the act requires each of the 13 state universities to offer at least two college level courses via the Internet or interactive distance learning that students may take to earn both high school and college credit. Each state university must offer one science and one math course. The university may charge a fee for each course up to one-tenth of the amount per credit hour normally charged by the university for an undergraduate course at its main campus. Finally, each course may include a single presentation, no more than two minutes long, describing the university's other programs and courses.
(R.C. 3345.06)
The act generally restricts undergraduate admission to ten of Ohio's 13 state universities, beginning in the 2014-2015 academic year, for Ohio residents who entered ninth grade on or after July 1, 2010. Those students may be permitted to commence undergraduate coursework only if they have successfully completed the Ohio Core curriculum. This restriction applies to the University of Akron, Bowling Green State University, University of Cincinnati, Cleveland State University, Kent State University, Miami University, Ohio University, Ohio State University, University of Toledo, and Wright State University. It specifically does not apply to Central State University, Shawnee State University, and Youngstown State University.
The act also authorizes any of the ten state universities to which the admission restriction applies to delay admission or to conditionally admit a student who has completed the Ohio Core curriculum, if the university determines that the student still requires academic remedial or developmental coursework. The university may delay admission, or make admission conditional upon, the student's completing this additional coursework at a university branch, community college, state community college, or technical college.
The act provides a number of exceptions to the general requirement. First, a student who has not completed the Ohio Core may be admitted if the student has earned at least ten semester hours (or its equivalent) at a community college, state community college, university branch, technical college, or another post-secondary institution (except any of the ten state universities to which the general prohibition applies) in courses bearing college credit that may be applied to the requirements for a degree. State universities must grant credit for those courses in the manner prescribed in any applicable articulation and transfer policies of the Board of Regents or any agreements the universities have entered into with the institution where the student completed those courses. The act also specifically states that credit toward satisfaction of this exception may be granted for college credit earned during high school through the Post-Secondary Enrollment Options Program (PSEO) or other dual enrollment programs, if the courses may be applied toward a degree. (See "Dual enrollment programs" above.)
Second, the act permits admission of a disabled student who has not completed the Ohio Core, if the student successfully completed the student's IEP.
Third, a student who is receiving home instruction, has completed the equivalent of the twelfth grade through home instruction, or has graduated from a nonchartered nonpublic high school may be admitted without completing the Ohio Core, if the student has demonstrated mastery of the academic content and skills in reading, writing, and math needed for introductory college coursework without remedial coursework.
Fourth, a high school student may be admitted to a state university as a secondary student participating in the Post-Secondary Enrollment Options Program or another dual enrollment program.
(R.C. 3301.42(M))
The act does not authorize the ten state universities to waive the new admission requirement. However, it requires the Partnership for Continued Learning to make recommendations for legislative changes that would establish criteria for state universities to use in granting waivers to the general requirement that each resident undergraduate student complete the Ohio Core curriculum prior to admission. At a minimum, the Partnership must consider criteria for waiving the admission requirement for (1) students who have served in the military and (2) students who entered ninth grade on or after July 1, 2010, in another state and moved to Ohio prior to high school graduation. The Partnership must develop its recommendations in consultation with the Board of Regents and issue them by July 1, 2007.
(R.C. 3345.061)
(R.C. 3345.061(B))
Beginning with the 2014-2015 academic year, the act limits the amount of state operating funds that the University of Akron, Bowling Green State University, University of Cincinnati, Cleveland State University, Kent State University, Miami University, Ohio University, Ohio State University, University of Toledo, and Wright State University may receive for academic remedial or developmental courses offered at their main campuses. Funding for those courses is limited as follows:
(1) In the 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 academic years, to 3% of the total undergraduate credit hours provided by the university at its main campus;
(2) In the 2016-2017 academic year, to 15% of the first-year full-time-equivalent (FTE) students enrolled at the university's main campus;
(3) In the 2017-2018 academic year, to 10% of the first-year FTE students enrolled at the university's main campus; and
(4) In the 2018-2019 academic year, to 5% of the first-year FTE students enrolled at the university's main campus.
After the 2018-2019 academic year, the act prohibits state operating subsidies for academic remedial or development courses at the main campuses of the ten affected state universities. However, the act also states that state universities may continue to offer such courses beyond the extent for which subsidies are paid and after they are fully phased out.
(R.C. 3345.061(C))
After the phase-out of subsidies for the ten state universities, state subsidies for remedial or developmental courses may be paid for students who commence undergraduate studies in 2014-2015 or later only to Central State University, Shawnee State University, Youngstown State University, university branches, community colleges, state community colleges, and technical colleges.
(R.C. 3345.061(D))
The act requires each state university to grant credit for academic remedial or developmental courses successfully completed at an approved institution in accordance with any applicable articulation and transfer agreements the university has entered into with that institution.[12]
(R.C. 3345.061(E))
The act requires the Board of Regents to withhold state operating subsidies for remedial and developmental courses at a state university's main campus in order to conform to the funding limits prescribed in the act (see above). The Board also must adopt uniform statewide standards for academic remedial and developmental courses and to encourage and assist in the design and establishment of such courses.
In addition, the Board must encourage and assist in the development of articulation and transfer agreements between state universities and other institutions of higher education in accordance with the Board's policies and procedures.
(R.C. 3319.233)
Continuing law requires the State Board of Education to adopt standards for and to approve teacher preparation programs at public and private institutions of higher education.[13] The act further requires the State Board, in collaboration with the Ohio Board of Regents, to issue an annual report on the quality of those institutions. This report must be prepared in collaboration with the Teacher Quality Partnership, which is a research consortium of 50 Ohio colleges and universities that offer teacher preparation programs.
Information contained in the report must include (1) identification of best practices in the preparation of teachers drawn from the Teacher Quality Partnership's and others' research, (2) a plan for implementing best practices in approved teacher preparation programs, (3) the number of graduates of approved teacher preparation programs who graduated with a subject area specialty and teach in grades 7 to 12, disaggregated by the subject areas of math, science, foreign language, special education, and any other subject areas determined by the State Board, and (4) a plan to be implemented by teacher preparation programs to increase the number of science, math, and foreign language teachers needed throughout the state, especially in hard-to-staff schools. All information in the report must be based on data collected by the Teacher Quality Partnership and other educational agencies.
(R.C. 3319.234)
The act requires the Teacher Quality Partnership to study the relationship of the assessments adopted by the State Board of Education for licensing teachers to teachers' actual effectiveness in the classroom. The Teacher Quality Partnership must submit reports to the Governor, the President and Minority Leader of the Senate, the Speaker and the Minority Leader of the House, the chairs and ranking minority members of the Senate and House Education committees, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Board of Regents, and the Partnership for Continued Learning. The Teacher Quality Partnership must to begin submitting its reports not later than September 1, 2008.
(R.C. 3301.42(G))
The act adds the responsibility to make recommendations for expansion of "school counseling career and educational programs" to the Partnership for Continued Learning's duties to make recommendations concerning expanding access to postsecondary education.
(R.C. 3301.41)
The act adds four additional members to the Partnership for Continued Learning. One member must be a teacher employed by a school district, one must be a teacher employed by a chartered nonpublic school, one must be a teacher in any of grades 9 to 12 in a career center, and one must be a representative of a comprehensive or compact career-technical school. The Governor must appoint these members, and as with current members, they serve at the pleasure of the Governor.[14]
(R.C. 3313.472 and 3314.03(A)(11)(d))
Continuing law requires each school district board to adopt a policy on parental involvement to build communication between parents and teachers and administrators. The policy must provide the opportunity for parents to be informed of the importance of parental involvement, methods of supporting their children's learning activities, and strategies to use at home to improve their children's academic success and development.
The act applies the requirement to adopt a parental involvement policy to community schools. It also directs the State Board of Education to adopt recommendations for the development of parental involvement policies by districts and schools. The State Board must consult with the National Center for Parents at the University of Toledo in developing its recommendations.[15]
(Section 8)
The act establishes a public-private collaborative commission to make recommendations for promoting greater incidence of student success in conjunction with the Ohio Core curriculum. The commission's recommendations must address "methods of encouraging students and their families to develop a greater vision for their successful future in Ohio, including consideration of career opportunities afforded by higher education and the use of mentorships, internships, and other programs to provide students and their families with guidance . . . toward pursuing higher education and career opportunities." The eight members of the commission are:
(1) A school district superintendent, appointed by the Governor;
(2) A business or civic leader, appointed by the Governor;
(3) Four public members, two each appointed by the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate, each in consultation with the respective minority leader;
(4) One member appointed by the Superintendent of Public Instruction; and
(5) One member appointed by the Chancellor of the Board of Regents.
The two gubernatorial appointees are co-chairpersons of the commission. The commission's recommendations are due by December 31, 2007. They must be distributed to the Governor, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the House, the President and Minority Leader of the Senate, the chairpersons and ranking minority members of the House and Senate Education committees, the State Board of Education, the Board of Regents, and the Partnership for Continued Learning.
(Section 6 of Sub. H.B. 115 of the 126th General Assembly, amended in Sections 5, 6, and 7)
Sub. H.B. 115 of the 126th General Assembly appropriated $13.2 million for Ohio Core support. It earmarked those funds for several programs to implement the Ohio Core by promoting alternative paths to teacher licensure and dual enrollment in math, science, engineering, technology, and foreign language. The specific earmarks include funds for the following:
(1) Support the participation of teachers and mid-career professionals in a 12-month intensive training program that leads to teacher licensure in a laboratory-based science, advanced mathematics, or foreign language field at the secondary education level and employment with an Ohio school district;
(2) Support alternative teacher licensure programs developed by educational service centers, in partnership with institutions of higher education;
(3) Support contracts with institutions of higher education to obtain student instruction in math, science, or foreign language that results in dual high school and college credit;
(4) eTech Ohio Commission funding for the "Ohio Students Choosing On-line Resources for Educational Success Initiative" that increases the educational options available for students in math, advanced laboratory-based science, and foreign language; and
(5) Board of Regents funding to support up to ten regional summer academies that focus on foreign language, science, math, engineering, and technology and prepare 11th and 12th grade students to pursue college-level foreign language, mathematics, science, technology, and engineering, with a focus on secondary teaching in these disciplines.
The act qualifies teachers employed by and students enrolled in chartered nonpublic schools for the programs financed by the $13.2 million already appropriated for fiscal year 2007 described in (1) through (5) above. Prior law qualified only teachers and students of public schools.
The act appropriates an additional $16.8 million to the Department of Education in fiscal year 2007 for the Ohio Core Grant Program. The program is to provide grants to school districts "to directly support Ohio Core purposes such as building teacher capacity, recruiting and retaining teachers in required disciplines, providing intervention services to students, and other related purposes." The Department must (1) consult with the Partnership for Continued Learning in establishing procedures for awarding the grants to "eligible school districts" and (2) evaluate the effectiveness of the program.
The act states that "the General Assembly intends to fund the Ohio Core Grant Program from fiscal year 2008 through fiscal year 2012 at a minimum of $16,800,000 each fiscal year."
(R.C. 3313.48, new 3313.481, 3313.62, and 3317.01(B); repealed R.C. 3313.481 and 3313.482; Sections 9 and 10; conforming changes in R.C. 2151.011, 3313.533, and 3317.029)
The Governor vetoed provisions that would have changed the minimum school year for school districts and chartered nonpublic schools from 182 days to 455 hours for students in half-day kindergarten, 910 hours for students in grades 1 through 6 or in all-day kindergarten, and 1,001 hours for students in grades 7 through 12. This would have been equivalent to the number of hours specified under the current 182-day minimum school year for public schools and for grades 1 through 6 in chartered nonpublic schools, and would have been an increase from the current minimum prescribed for grades 7 through 12 in chartered nonpublic schools. The act also would have specified that the school week be a maximum of five days, instead of the equivalent of five days, and would have specified that the school week could not include Saturdays and Sundays. Finally, the act would have eliminated the five excused "calamity" days permitted under current law and would have eliminated the current law that permits a school to count up to two hours a day if it closes early or opens late because of hazardous weather conditions.
The Governor's veto of these provisions left intact all current provisions regarding the 182-day minimum school year for school districts and nonpublic schools. More detailed analysis of the vetoed provisions, as well as background information on the current minimum school year, is available in the LSC analysis of Sub. H.B. 254 of the 126th General Assembly, As Passed by the House. The analysis is available online at www.lsc.state.oh.us/analyses126/h0254-ph-126.pdf. (H.B. 254 was not enacted.)
HISTORY
|
ACTION |
DATE |
|
|
|
|
Introduced |
04-06-06 |
|
Reported, S. Education |
12-06-06 |
|
Passed Senate (20-11) |
12-06-06 |
|
Reported, H. Education |
12-19-06 |
|
Passed House (55-41) |
12-19-06 |
|
Senate concurred in House amendments (21-12) |
12-19-06 |
06-sb311-126.doc/kl
* The Legislative Service Commission had not received formal notification of the effective date at the time this analysis was prepared. Additionally, the analysis may not reflect action taken by the Governor.
[1] R.C. 3313.61 and 3313.615. Beginning with the Class of 2007, the ninth grade proficiency tests are replaced by the tenth grade achievement tests, known as the Ohio Graduation Tests (R.C. 3301.0712, not in the act).
[2] See Ohio Administrative Code section 3301-35-08(E).
[3] R.C. 3313.603(A)(1).
[4] Under continuing law, the State Board must adopt statewide academic standards for grades K to 12 in reading, writing, math, science, and social studies, which specify the academic content and skills students are expected to learn at each grade level (R.C. 3301.079(A), not in the act). All of these standards have been adopted.
[5] The Partnership for Continued Learning is charged with making recommendations to facilitate collaboration among providers of preschool through post-secondary education and to maintain a high-quality workforce. Members are the Governor, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Chancellor of the Board of Regents, the Director of Development, the chairpersons and ranking minority members of the House and Senate Education committees, and representatives of education and workforce interests appointed by the Governor. (R.C. 3301.41.) The act adds to the Partnership's membership four persons appointed by the Governor who represent classroom teachers. See "Partnership for Continued Learning membership" below.
[6] Passing the Ohio Graduation Tests is a diploma requirement for most students, unless specifically exempted by law. Therefore, the act's stipulation that students of dropout programs must pass the OGTs appears merely to affirm continuing law.
[7] www.ocis.org/.
[8] Generally, a child between 6 and 18 years old is of compulsory school age (R.C. 3321.01, not in the act).
[9] R.C. 3319.08, not in the act.
[10] See R.C. Chapter 3365.
[11] The Council is a standing committee of the Board of Regents charged with facilitating implementation of the statewide articulation and transfer policy.
[12] The act states that Ohio's two-year institutions are respected points of entry for students embarking on their post-secondary careers and that courses completed at those institutions are transferable to state universities in accordance with articulation and transfer agreements developed according to state law. Under those provisions of continuing law, the Board of Regents is required to (1) adopt policies and procedures for the transfer of coursework and degrees among state institutions of higher education, (2) adopt rules for a statewide system of articulation agreements for students pursuing teacher preparation programs, and (3) adopt criteria, policies, and procedures for the transfer of technical courses (see R.C. 3333.16, 3333.161, and 3333.162, none in the act).
[13] R.C. 3319.23, not in the act.
[14] Am. Sub. H.B. 79 of the 126th General Assembly added two other members to the Partnership: one community school sponsor and one community school teacher or administrator. The six new members in the two acts combined bring the Partnership's membership to 25.
[15] Identical provisions were enacted in Am. Sub. H.B. 79.