Bill Text: TX SB2023 | 2021-2022 | 87th Legislature | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Relating to providing high-quality tutoring services to public school students, including the creation of the Texas Tutor Corps program, and the use of the compensatory education allotment for certain tutoring services programs.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-05-20 - Not again placed on intent calendar [SB2023 Detail]
Download: Texas-2021-SB2023-Comm_Sub.html
By: Powell | S.B. No. 2023 | |
(In the Senate - Filed March 12, 2021; April 1, 2021, read | ||
first time and referred to Committee on Education; May 3, 2021, | ||
reported adversely, with favorable Committee Substitute by the | ||
following vote: Yeas 10, Nays 0; May 3, 2021, sent to printer.) | ||
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 2023 | By: Powell |
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relating to providing high-quality tutoring services to public | ||
school students, including the creation of the Texas Tutor Corps | ||
program, and the use of the compensatory education allotment for | ||
certain tutoring services programs. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 29, Education Code, is | ||
amended by adding Section 29.0841 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 29.0841. TEXAS TUTOR CORPS PROGRAM. (a) In this | ||
section: | ||
(1) "Hard-to-staff school" means a high-need school | ||
that has a high rate of teacher turnover or a large concentration of | ||
teachers in their first or second year of teaching. | ||
(2) "High-need school" has the meaning assigned by the | ||
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6631). | ||
(3) "Program" means the Texas Tutor Corps program | ||
established under this section. | ||
(b) The agency shall establish and administer a Texas Tutor | ||
Corps program to develop and support a statewide network of tutors, | ||
combat learning loss, and provide grants to school districts and | ||
open-enrollment charter schools that are hard-to-staff schools or | ||
high-need schools, for the purpose of establishing local consortia, | ||
as described by Subsection (e), to collaborate on the provision of | ||
high-quality tutoring services for students enrolled at the | ||
district or school. The program must: | ||
(1) include time for planning and collaboration among | ||
tutors; | ||
(2) match tutors with students based on the tutor's | ||
expertise in a particular subject area or grade level and the | ||
student's subject area tutoring needs or grade level; | ||
(3) include high-quality pre-service training and | ||
ongoing professional support for tutors serving under the program; | ||
(4) be facilitated by the local consortium established | ||
by the district or school; and | ||
(5) provide compensation for tutors. | ||
(c) The following individuals may serve as tutors under the | ||
program: | ||
(1) certified and retired educators; | ||
(2) paraprofessionals and teacher's aides; | ||
(3) recent graduates of educator preparation | ||
programs; | ||
(4) individuals enrolled in state-approved educator | ||
preparation programs; and | ||
(5) postsecondary students enrolled in a certificate | ||
or degree program in the subject area in which the student provides | ||
tutoring under the program. | ||
(d) Tutoring services provided under the program must: | ||
(1) be led by a tutor; | ||
(2) be provided in a one-on-one or small group setting | ||
with a ratio of not more than one tutor for every four students; | ||
(3) occur in multiple sessions of sufficient length | ||
each week to ensure adequate time for delivery of tutoring | ||
services; | ||
(4) be provided during the regular school day or | ||
immediately before or after school and during school vacation | ||
periods; and | ||
(5) align with local standards and curriculum. | ||
(e) For purposes of this section, a local consortium of | ||
community partners: | ||
(1) includes one or more of each of the following | ||
entities, one of which serves as the lead entity of the consortium: | ||
(A) a school district or district campus; | ||
(B) an open-enrollment charter school or charter | ||
school campus; and | ||
(C) a regional education service center; and | ||
(2) may include: | ||
(A) educator preparation programs under Section | ||
21.0442; | ||
(B) community-based organizations; | ||
(C) agencies serving children and youth; | ||
(D) institutions of higher education; | ||
(E) educator organizations; | ||
(F) organizations representing education | ||
professionals; | ||
(G) local governments and local governmental | ||
entities; | ||
(H) student organizations; and | ||
(I) parent organizations. | ||
(f) A school district or open-enrollment charter school | ||
that applies for a grant under this section must include with the | ||
application a description of the methods by which the tutoring to be | ||
provided under the grant will accelerate student learning and | ||
alleviate learning loss resulting from the coronavirus disease | ||
(COVID-19) pandemic. The description must indicate whether the | ||
district or school plans to implement a high-quality tutoring | ||
program. | ||
(g) A school district or open-enrollment charter school | ||
awarded a grant under this section may use the grant money to pay | ||
for: | ||
(1) training tutors and placing tutors at district or | ||
school campuses; | ||
(2) supporting tutors to work with small groups of | ||
students; | ||
(3) matching tutors with students and mentors; | ||
(4) providing adequate compensation to tutors and | ||
mentors; | ||
(5) purchasing instructional materials and | ||
connectivity resources, including Internet access and devices | ||
capable of connecting to the Internet; | ||
(6) providing transportation for students attending | ||
the tutoring program; | ||
(7) providing meals and snacks for students attending | ||
the tutoring program; and | ||
(8) providing facilities for conducting the tutoring | ||
program. | ||
(h) In awarding grants under this section, the | ||
commissioner: | ||
(1) must consider the quality of the tutoring proposed | ||
to be provided; | ||
(2) may leverage federal funding to pay for the costs | ||
under the program; | ||
(3) must consider the amount of funds distributed to | ||
the school district or open-enrollment charter school under Chapter | ||
48; | ||
(4) must use any funds appropriated or otherwise | ||
available for the purposes of this program; | ||
(5) shall prioritize applicants that: | ||
(A) have established a local consortium that | ||
includes an educator preparation program under Section 21.0442; | ||
(B) are hard-to-staff schools; | ||
(C) serve a high percentage of students who | ||
qualify for compensatory education, as determined by the | ||
commissioner; and | ||
(D) place an emphasis on in-person tutoring; and | ||
(6) shall require as a condition of each grant that the | ||
recipient agree to use the grant to supplement and not supplant any | ||
money allocated by the recipient for existing instruction or | ||
tutoring programs. | ||
(h-1) In awarding grants under this section for the | ||
2021-2022 school year, the commissioner may, to the extent | ||
authorized by state and federal law, leverage federal funding | ||
received through the elementary and secondary school emergency | ||
relief fund that is designated for use by the agency under the | ||
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Pub. L. No. 116-260), and | ||
the American Rescue Plan of 2021 (Pub. L. No. 117-2). This | ||
subsection expires September 1, 2022. | ||
(i) The commissioner may accept gifts, grants, or donations | ||
from any public or private source for purposes of this section. | ||
(j) Notwithstanding Subsection (b), the commissioner is | ||
required to establish the program under this section only if the | ||
legislature appropriates money specifically for that purpose. If | ||
the legislature does not appropriate money specifically for that | ||
purpose, the commissioner may, but is not required to, establish | ||
the program under this section using other appropriations available | ||
for that purpose. | ||
(k) A tutor providing services under the program is immune | ||
from civil liability to the same extent as a professional employee | ||
of a school district under Section 22.0511. | ||
(l) This section expires September 1, 2023. | ||
SECTION 2. Section 25.085(d), Education Code, is amended to | ||
read as follows: | ||
(d) Unless specifically exempted by Section 25.086, a | ||
student enrolled in a school district must attend: | ||
(1) an extended-year program for which the student is | ||
eligible that is provided by the district for students identified | ||
as likely not to be promoted to the next grade level or tutorial | ||
classes required by the district under Section 29.0841 [ |
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(2) an accelerated reading instruction program to | ||
which the student is assigned under Section 28.006(g); | ||
(3) an accelerated instruction program to which the | ||
student is assigned under Section 28.0211; | ||
(4) a basic skills program to which the student is | ||
assigned under Section 29.086; or | ||
(5) a summer program provided under Section 37.008(l) | ||
or Section 37.021. | ||
SECTION 3. Section 29.088, Education Code, is amended by | ||
amending Subsections (b) and (c) and adding Subsection (b-1) to | ||
read as follows: | ||
(b) Before providing a program under this section, the board | ||
of trustees of a school district must adopt a policy for: | ||
(1) determining student eligibility for participating | ||
in the program that: | ||
(A) prescribes the grade level or course a | ||
student must be enrolled in to be eligible; and | ||
(B) provides for considering teacher | ||
recommendations in determining eligibility; | ||
(2) ensuring that parents of or persons standing in | ||
parental relation to eligible students are provided notice of the | ||
program; | ||
(3) ensuring that eligible students are encouraged to | ||
attend the program; | ||
(4) ensuring that the program is offered at one or more | ||
locations in the district that are easily accessible to eligible | ||
students; [ |
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(5) measuring student progress on completion of the | ||
program; and | ||
(6) ensuring that all instruction, intervention, and | ||
support is provided by an appropriately qualified educator or | ||
person enrolled in an educator preparation program. | ||
(b-1) For a school year before the 2023-2024 school year, | ||
the board of trustees of a school district shall include in the | ||
policy adopted under Subsection (b) an outline of how the program | ||
will combat learning loss caused by the coronavirus disease | ||
(COVID-19) pandemic. This subsection expires September 1, 2023. | ||
(c) The commissioner by rule shall: | ||
(1) prescribe a procedure that a school district must | ||
follow to apply for and receive funding for a program under this | ||
section; | ||
(2) adopt guidelines for determining which districts | ||
receive funding if there is not sufficient funding for each | ||
district that applies; | ||
(3) require each district providing a program to | ||
report student performance results to the commissioner within the | ||
period and in the manner prescribed by the rule; [ |
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(4) based on district reports under Subdivision (3) | ||
and any required analysis and verification of those reports, | ||
disseminate to each district in this state information concerning | ||
instructional methods that have proved successful in improving | ||
student performance in mathematics; and | ||
(5) require each district providing a program under | ||
this section to submit a description of the methods by which the | ||
program will accelerate student learning, including whether the | ||
district plans to implement a high-quality tutoring program. | ||
SECTION 4. Sections 29.090(b) and (c), Education Code, are | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
(b) Before providing a program under this section, the board | ||
of trustees of a school district must adopt a policy for: | ||
(1) determining student eligibility for participating | ||
in the program that: | ||
(A) prescribes the grade level or course a | ||
student must be enrolled in to be eligible; and | ||
(B) provides for considering teacher | ||
recommendations in determining eligibility; | ||
(2) ensuring that parents of or persons standing in | ||
parental relation to eligible students are provided notice of the | ||
program; | ||
(3) ensuring that eligible students are encouraged to | ||
attend the program; | ||
(4) ensuring that the program is offered at one or more | ||
locations in the district that are easily accessible to eligible | ||
students; [ |
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(5) measuring student progress on completion of the | ||
program; and | ||
(6) ensuring that all instruction, intervention, and | ||
support is provided by an appropriately qualified educator or | ||
person enrolled in an educator preparation program. | ||
(c) The commissioner by rule shall: | ||
(1) prescribe a procedure that a school district must | ||
follow to apply for and receive funding for a program under this | ||
section; | ||
(2) adopt guidelines for determining which districts | ||
receive funding if there is not sufficient funding for each | ||
district that applies; | ||
(3) require each district providing a program to | ||
report student performance results to the commissioner within the | ||
period and in the manner prescribed by the rule; [ |
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(4) based on district reports under Subdivision (3) | ||
and any required analysis and verification of those reports, | ||
disseminate to each district in this state information concerning | ||
instructional methods that have proved successful in improving | ||
student performance in science; and | ||
(5) require each district providing a program under | ||
this section to submit a description of the methods by which the | ||
program will accelerate student learning, including whether the | ||
district plans to implement a high-quality tutoring program. | ||
SECTION 5. Section 29.091, Education Code, is amended by | ||
adding Subsection (c-1) to read as follows: | ||
(c-1) In addition to the requirements provided by | ||
Subsection (c), to be eligible to participate in the program for a | ||
school year before the 2023-2024 school year, a school district | ||
must participate in a local consortium described under Section | ||
29.0841 that supports the Texas Tutor Corps program under that | ||
section. This subsection expires September 1, 2023. | ||
SECTION 6. Section 48.104, Education Code, is amended by | ||
adding Subsection (j-2) to read as follows: | ||
(j-2) In addition to other purposes for which funds | ||
allocated under this section may be used, those funds may also be | ||
used to pay costs associated with tutoring services provided under | ||
the Texas Tutor Corps program under Section 29.0841. This | ||
subsection expires September 1, 2023. | ||
SECTION 7. Sections 29.084 and 29.094, Education Code, are | ||
repealed. | ||
SECTION 8. This Act applies beginning with the 2021-2022 | ||
school year. | ||
SECTION 9. The Texas Education Agency is required to | ||
implement this Act only if the legislature appropriates money | ||
specifically for that purpose. If the legislature does not | ||
appropriate money specifically for that purpose, the agency may, | ||
but is not required to, implement this Act using other money | ||
available for that purpose. | ||
SECTION 10. This Act takes effect immediately if it | ||
receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each | ||
house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. | ||
If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate | ||
effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2021. | ||
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