Bill Text: IL HB4140 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the State Board of Education Article of the School Code. In provisions concerning grants for preschool educational programs, provides that school districts and other eligible entities shall (instead of may) use the State Board of Education's evaluation tools for school readiness for children prior to age 5. Provides that following an evaluation, if a school district or other eligible entity determines that a child does not meet school readiness requirements but is 5 or will turn 5 on or before September 1 of a school year and would otherwise be eligible to attend kindergarten, the child may continue to attend a preschool educational program for no more than one additional school year following the child meeting the kindergarten age requirement. Provides that upon completion of that school year, the child is no longer eligible to attend a preschool educational program. Requires the State Board of Education to establish guidelines and procedures for determining whether or not a child meets school readiness requirements. Effective July 1, 2024.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2023-10-18 - Referred to Rules Committee [HB4140 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-HB4140-Introduced.html

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103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB4140 Introduced , by Rep. Michael T. Marron SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
105 ILCS 5/2-3.71 from Ch. 122, par. 2-3.71
Amends the State Board of Education Article of the School Code. In provisions concerning grants for preschool educational programs, provides that school districts and other eligible entities shall (instead of may) use the State Board of Education's evaluation tools for school readiness for children prior to age 5. Provides that following an evaluation, if a school district or other eligible entity determines that a child does not meet school readiness requirements but is 5 or will turn 5 on or before September 1 of a school year and would otherwise be eligible to attend kindergarten, the child may continue to attend a preschool educational program for no more than one additional school year following the child meeting the kindergarten age requirement. Provides that upon completion of that school year, the child is no longer eligible to attend a preschool educational program. Requires the State Board of Education to establish guidelines and procedures for determining whether or not a child meets school readiness requirements. Effective July 1, 2024.
LRB103 33393 RJT 63205 b
A BILL FOR
HB4140 LRB103 33393 RJT 63205 b
AN ACT concerning education.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section
2-3.71 as follows:
(105 ILCS 5/2-3.71) (from Ch. 122, par. 2-3.71)
Sec. 2-3.71. Grants for preschool educational programs.
(a) Preschool program.
(1) The State Board of Education shall implement and
administer a grant program under the provisions of this
subsection which shall consist of grants to public school
districts and other eligible entities, as defined by the
State Board of Education, to conduct voluntary preschool
educational programs for children ages 3 to 5 which
include a parent education component. A public school
district which receives grants under this subsection may
subcontract with other entities that are eligible to
conduct a preschool educational program. These grants must
be used to supplement, not supplant, funds received from
any other source.
(2) (Blank).
(3) Except as otherwise provided under this subsection
(a), any teacher of preschool children in the program

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authorized by this subsection shall hold a Professional
Educator License with an early childhood education
endorsement.
(3.5) Beginning with the 2018-2019 school year and
until the 2028-2029 school year, an individual may teach
preschool children in an early childhood program under
this Section if he or she holds a Professional Educator
License with an early childhood education endorsement or
with short-term approval for early childhood education or
he or she pursues a Professional Educator License and
holds any of the following:
(A) An ECE Credential Level of 5 awarded by the
Department of Human Services under the Gateways to
Opportunity Program developed under Section 10-70 of
the Department of Human Services Act.
(B) An Educator License with Stipulations with a
transitional bilingual educator endorsement and he or
she has (i) passed an early childhood education
content test or (ii) completed no less than 9 semester
hours of postsecondary coursework in the area of early
childhood education.
(4) (Blank).
(4.5) The State Board of Education shall provide the
primary source of funding through appropriations for the
program. Such funds shall be distributed to achieve a goal
of "Preschool for All Children" for the benefit of all

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children whose families choose to participate in the
program. Based on available appropriations, newly funded
programs shall be selected through a process giving first
priority to qualified programs serving primarily at-risk
children and second priority to qualified programs serving
primarily children with a family income of less than 4
times the poverty guidelines updated periodically in the
Federal Register by the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services under the authority of 42 U.S.C. 9902(2).
For purposes of this paragraph (4.5), at-risk children are
those who because of their home and community environment
are subject to such language, cultural, economic and like
disadvantages to cause them to have been determined as a
result of screening procedures to be at risk of academic
failure. Such screening procedures shall be based on
criteria established by the State Board of Education.
Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph (4.5),
grantees under the program must enter into a memorandum of
understanding with the appropriate local Head Start
agency. This memorandum must be entered into no later than
3 months after the award of a grantee's grant under the
program, except that, in the case of the 2009-2010 program
year, the memorandum must be entered into no later than
the deadline set by the State Board of Education for
applications to participate in the program in fiscal year
2011, and must address collaboration between the grantee's

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program and the local Head Start agency on certain issues,
which shall include without limitation the following:
(A) educational activities, curricular objectives,
and instruction;
(B) public information dissemination and access to
programs for families contacting programs;
(C) service areas;
(D) selection priorities for eligible children to
be served by programs;
(E) maximizing the impact of federal and State
funding to benefit young children;
(F) staff training, including opportunities for
joint staff training;
(G) technical assistance;
(H) communication and parent outreach for smooth
transitions to kindergarten;
(I) provision and use of facilities,
transportation, and other program elements;
(J) facilitating each program's fulfillment of its
statutory and regulatory requirements;
(K) improving local planning and collaboration;
and
(L) providing comprehensive services for the
neediest Illinois children and families.
If the appropriate local Head Start agency is unable or
unwilling to enter into a memorandum of understanding as

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required under this paragraph (4.5), the memorandum of
understanding requirement shall not apply and the grantee
under the program must notify the State Board of Education
in writing of the Head Start agency's inability or
unwillingness. The State Board of Education shall compile
all such written notices and make them available to the
public.
(5) The State Board of Education shall develop and
provide evaluation tools, including tests, that school
districts and other eligible entities shall may use to
evaluate children for school readiness prior to age 5. The
State Board of Education shall require school districts
and other eligible entities to obtain consent from the
parents or guardians of children before any evaluations
are conducted. Following an evaluation completed under
this paragraph (5), if a school district or other eligible
entity determines that a child does not meet school
readiness requirements but is 5 or will turn 5 on or before
September 1 of a school year and would otherwise be
eligible to attend kindergarten, the child may continue to
attend a preschool educational program for no more than
one additional school year following the child meeting the
kindergarten age requirement. Upon completion of that
school year, the child is no longer eligible to attend a
preschool educational program. The State Board of
Education shall encourage local school districts and other

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eligible entities to evaluate the population of preschool
children in their communities and provide preschool
programs, pursuant to this subsection, where appropriate.
The State Board of Education shall establish guidelines
and procedures for determining whether or not a child
meets school readiness requirements under this paragraph
(5).
(6) The State Board of Education shall report to the
General Assembly by November 1, 2018 and every 2 years
thereafter on the results and progress of students who
were enrolled in preschool educational programs, including
an assessment of which programs have been most successful
in promoting academic excellence and alleviating academic
failure. The State Board of Education shall assess the
academic progress of all students who have been enrolled
in preschool educational programs.
On or before November 1 of each fiscal year in which
the General Assembly provides funding for new programs
under paragraph (4.5) of this Section, the State Board of
Education shall report to the General Assembly on what
percentage of new funding was provided to programs serving
primarily at-risk children, what percentage of new funding
was provided to programs serving primarily children with a
family income of less than 4 times the federal poverty
level, and what percentage of new funding was provided to
other programs.

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(7) Due to evidence that expulsion practices in the
preschool years are linked to poor child outcomes and are
employed inconsistently across racial and gender groups,
early childhood programs receiving State funds under this
subsection (a) shall prohibit expulsions. Planned
transitions to settings that are able to better meet a
child's needs are not considered expulsion under this
paragraph (7).
(A) When persistent and serious challenging
behaviors emerge, the early childhood program shall
document steps taken to ensure that the child can
participate safely in the program; including
observations of initial and ongoing challenging
behaviors, strategies for remediation and intervention
plans to address the behaviors, and communication with
the parent or legal guardian, including participation
of the parent or legal guardian in planning and
decision-making.
(B) The early childhood program shall, with
parental or legal guardian consent as required,
utilize a range of community resources, if available
and deemed necessary, including, but not limited to,
developmental screenings, referrals to programs and
services administered by a local educational agency or
early intervention agency under Parts B and C of the
federal Individual with Disabilities Education Act,

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and consultation with infant and early childhood
mental health consultants and the child's health care
provider. The program shall document attempts to
engage these resources, including parent or legal
guardian participation and consent attempted and
obtained. Communication with the parent or legal
guardian shall take place in a culturally and
linguistically competent manner.
(C) If there is documented evidence that all
available interventions and supports recommended by a
qualified professional have been exhausted and the
program determines in its professional judgment that
transitioning a child to another program is necessary
for the well-being of the child or his or her peers and
staff, with parent or legal guardian permission, both
the current and pending programs shall create a
transition plan designed to ensure continuity of
services and the comprehensive development of the
child. Communication with families shall occur in a
culturally and linguistically competent manner.
(D) Nothing in this paragraph (7) shall preclude a
parent's or legal guardian's right to voluntarily
withdraw his or her child from an early childhood
program. Early childhood programs shall request and
keep on file, when received, a written statement from
the parent or legal guardian stating the reason for

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his or her decision to withdraw his or her child.
(E) In the case of the determination of a serious
safety threat to a child or others or in the case of
behaviors listed in subsection (d) of Section 10-22.6
of this Code, the temporary removal of a child from
attendance in group settings may be used. Temporary
removal of a child from attendance in a group setting
shall trigger the process detailed in subparagraphs
(A), (B), and (C) of this paragraph (7), with the child
placed back in a group setting as quickly as possible.
(F) Early childhood programs may utilize and the
State Board of Education, the Department of Human
Services, and the Department of Children and Family
Services shall recommend training, technical support,
and professional development resources to improve the
ability of teachers, administrators, program
directors, and other staff to promote social-emotional
development and behavioral health, to address
challenging behaviors, and to understand trauma and
trauma-informed care, cultural competence, family
engagement with diverse populations, the impact of
implicit bias on adult behavior, and the use of
reflective practice techniques. Support shall include
the availability of resources to contract with infant
and early childhood mental health consultants.
(G) Beginning on July 1, 2018, early childhood

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programs shall annually report to the State Board of
Education, and, beginning in fiscal year 2020, the
State Board of Education shall make available on a
biennial basis, in an existing report, all of the
following data for children from birth to age 5 who are
served by the program:
(i) Total number served over the course of the
program year and the total number of children who
left the program during the program year.
(ii) Number of planned transitions to another
program due to children's behavior, by children's
race, gender, disability, language, class/group
size, teacher-child ratio, and length of program
day.
(iii) Number of temporary removals of a child
from attendance in group settings due to a serious
safety threat under subparagraph (E) of this
paragraph (7), by children's race, gender,
disability, language, class/group size,
teacher-child ratio, and length of program day.
(iv) Hours of infant and early childhood
mental health consultant contact with program
leaders, staff, and families over the program
year.
(H) Changes to services for children with an
individualized education program or individual family

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service plan shall be construed in a manner consistent
with the federal Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act.
The State Board of Education, in consultation with the
Governor's Office of Early Childhood Development and the
Department of Children and Family Services, shall adopt
rules to administer this paragraph (7).
(b) (Blank).
(c) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Section,
grantees may serve children ages 0 to 12 of essential workers
if the Governor has declared a disaster due to a public health
emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the Illinois Emergency
Management Agency Act. For the purposes of this subsection,
essential workers include those outlined in Executive Order
20-8 and school employees. The State Board of Education shall
adopt rules to administer this subsection.
(Source: P.A. 103-111, eff. 6-29-23.)
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1,
2024.