SECTIONS 63050-63056 - California Statutes

EDUCATION CODE

SECTION 63050-63056

63050. There is hereby established the Pilot Project for
Categorical Education Program Flexibility under which a school
district selected to participate in the pilot project shall have
flexibility as described in this chapter in the expenditure of the
funding the school district receives for the categorical education
programs listed in the following three clusters:
(a) The school improvement and staff development cluster
consisting of the following programs:
(1) Administrator training and education as set forth in Article 3
(commencing with Section 44681) of Chapter 3.1 of Part 25.
(2) Bilingual Teacher Training and Assistance as set forth in
Article 4 (commencing with Section 52180) of Chapter 7 of Part 28.
(3) Demonstration programs in intensive instruction as set forth
in Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 58600) of Part 31.
(4) Early Intervention for School Success as set forth in Article
4.5 (commencing with Section 58685) of Chapter 9 of Part 29.
(5) Intersegmental Staff Development. For the purposes of this
chapter, intersegmental staff development shall not include any of
the following:
(A) The English Language Acquisition Program pursuant to Chapter 4
(commencing with Section 400) of Part 1.
(B) The Professional Development Institutes pursuant to Article 2
(commencing with Section 99220) of Chapter 5 of Part 65.
(6) High school coach training as set forth in Article 4.5
(commencing with Section 35179) of Chapter 2 of Part 21.
(7) Miller-Unruh Basic Reading Act of 1965 as set forth in Chapter
2 (commencing with Section 54100) of Part 29.
(8) Reader services for the blind as set forth in Article 8.5
(commencing with Section 45370) of Chapter 5 of Part 25.
(9) School-based management and advanced career opportunities for
classroom teachers as set forth in Article 12 (commencing with
Section 44666) of Chapter 3 of Part 25.
(10) School development plans and resource consortia as set forth
in Article 1 (commencing with Section 44670.1) of, and Article 2
(commencing with Section 44680) of, Chapter 3.1 of Part 25.
(11) Improvement of elementary and secondary education as set
forth in Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 52000) of Part 28.
(12) Specialized secondary program grants as set forth in Chapter
6 (commencing with Section 58800) of Part 31.
(13) Student vocational education organizations as set forth in
subdivision (b) of Section 19632 of the Business and Professions
Code.
(14) Gifted and Talented Pupils as set forth in Chapter 8
(commencing with Section 52200) of Part 28.
(b) The alternative and compensatory education cluster consisting
of the following programs:
(1) Agricultural vocational education incentives as set forth in
Article 7.5 (commencing with Section 52460) of Chapter 9 of Part 28.
(2) California Indian education centers as set forth in Article 6
(commencing with Section 33380) of Chapter 3 of Part 20.
(3) Dropout prevention as set forth in Article 6 (commencing with
Section 52890) of, and Article 7 (commencing with Section 52900) of,
Chapter 12 of Part 28, Article 7 (commencing with Section 54720) of
Chapter 9 of Part 29, and Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 58550)
of Part 31.
(4) Economic Impact Aid as set forth in Article 2 (commencing with
Section 54020) of Chapter 1 of Part 29.
(5) Foster youth programs as set forth in Chapter 11.3 (commencing
with Section 42920) of Part 24.
(6) Opportunity classes and programs as set forth in Article 2.3
(commencing with Section 48643) of Chapter 4 of Part 27.
(7) Tenth grade counseling as set forth in Sections 48431.6 and
48431.7.
(c) The school district improvement cluster consisting of the
following programs:
(1) Home-to-school transportation as set forth in Article 10
(commencing with Section 41850) of Chapter 5 of, and Article 4.5
(commencing with Section 42290) of Chapter 7 of, Part 24.
(2) Voluntary desegregation as set forth in Section 42247 and
42249.
(3) Year-round school grants as set forth in Article 3 (commencing
with Section 42260) of Chapter 7 of Part 24.

63051. (a) The Superintendent of Public Instruction, with the
approval of the State Board of Education, shall select not more than
75 school districts that apply to participate in the pilot project
established pursuant to this chapter.
(b) Each school district that applies to participate in the pilot
project established pursuant to this chapter shall submit a project
budget with the application. The project budget shall specify how
categorical program funding will be allocated or reallocated under
the pilot project. No school district may participate in the pilot
project unless the district's proposed plan is approved by the State
Board of Education.
(c) The superintendent shall determine the 25 largest school
districts in the state on the basis of pupil enrollment as of October
1999. From this list, the superintendent shall select no more than
one school district from the largest five school districts and no
more than four school districts from the remaining 20 largest school
districts to participate in the pilot project. If more than one of
the largest five school districts applies, or more than four school
districts from the remaining 20 school districts applies, the
superintendent shall select those school districts to participate in
the pilot project by lottery.
(d) After making selections pursuant to subdivision (b), the
superintendent may select up to 70 additional participants from
applicant school districts. The superintendent shall ensure that
participating school districts are broadly representative of the
state, including small school districts, urban school districts,
rural school districts, suburban school districts, elementary school
districts, high school districts, and unified school districts.
(e) A school district approved for participation shall have a
minimum of five years of expenditure flexibility as described in this
chapter commencing on and after the 2000-01 fiscal year.

63052. (a) A school district participating in the pilot project is
exempt from the program requirements and regulations for those
categorical education programs listed in Section 63050.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a school district
participating in the pilot project shall receive the same amount of
funds for the categorical programs constituting the three clusters
described in Section 63050 while participating in the pilot project
as the school district received for those programs in the year prior
to participation in the pilot project, plus growth and cost-of-living
adjustments if approved in the annual Budget Act. However, nothing
in this section shall be construed to allow program expansion for any
of the categorical programs contained in the clusters specified in
Section 63050 that are also included in subdivision (b) of Section
63051. All funding for those programs is suspended for the duration
of the district's pilot program participation.
(c) A school district participating in the pilot project shall not
be entitled to receive, and may not receive, funding in replacement
of categorical funds that have been redirected or otherwise reduced
pursuant to this chapter. This subdivision may not be construed to
prevent a school district from receiving funds that the district is
otherwise eligible to receive for cost-of-living adjustments, or
growth adjustments that are allocated in accordance with this code,
unless otherwise provided for in the annual budget process.

63053. (a) Each school district participating in the pilot project
shall annually report to the State Department of Education
information requested pursuant to this section, in order to determine
the following:
(1) Revisions to categorical program implementation and local
allocation of funds made pursuant to the district's participation in
the pilot project.
(2) Academic progress of pupils, as determined by test scores,
grades assigned, and other measures, reported by grade level.
(b) Each school district participating in the pilot project shall
separately report to the State Department of Education assessment
data for English language learners, pupils who qualify for
compensatory education, gifted pupils, pupils by gender, and all
numerically significant ethnic and socioeconomically disadvantaged
subgroups within schools. A numerically significant ethnic or
socioeconomically disadvantaged subgroup is a subgroup that
constitutes at least 15 percent of a school's total pupil population
and consists of at least 30 pupils. For the purposes of this section,
assessment data shall include test results and related information
from all testing conducted pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with
Section 60600) of Part 33, Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 60850)
of Part 33, and any other standardized testing administered by the
participating district.
(c) The State Department of Education shall report to the Governor
and the education policy and fiscal committees of both houses of the
Legislature on the pilot projects established pursuant to this
chapter in accordance with the following schedule:
(1) By February 1, 2002, the State Department of Education shall
submit a summative report of information collected pursuant to
subdivisions (a) and (b).
(2) By February 1, 2003, the State Department of Education shall
submit a preliminary evaluation of the pilot projects, prepared in
accordance with subdivision (d).
(3) By February 1, 2004, the State Department of Education shall
submit a summative report of information collected pursuant to
subdivisions (a) and (b).
(4) By February 1, 2005, the State Department of Education shall
submit a final evaluation of the pilot projects, prepared in
accordance with subdivision (d).
(d) The State Department of Education shall prepare, or contract
for the preparation of, evaluations of the pilot projects established
pursuant to this chapter. Among other matters, these evaluations
shall be designed to assess the effect of the pilot projects, if any,
on pupil achievement, including the achievement of those groups of
pupils for whom assessment data is separately reported pursuant to
subdivision (b). Preliminary and final evaluations shall be submitted
pursuant to subdivision (c). It is the intent of the Legislature
that funds be provided in appropriate budget acts to conduct the
evaluations required by this section and that further direction for
conduct of the evaluations may be provided through instructions
attached to those appropriations.
(e) The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall convene a group
consisting of a representative of the Secretary for Education and
representatives from the State Department of Education, Office of the
Legislative Analyst, and the Department of Finance, to advise the
State Department of Education regarding the evaluation of the pilot
projects established by this chapter.
(f) After the initial two-year period, the oversight group
convened pursuant to subdivision (e) shall review the academic
progress of pupils and make a recommendation to the State Board of
Education regarding a district's continued participation in the pilot
project.

63054. (a) A school district approved for participation in the
pilot project may expend the funds from the programs in the school
improvement and staff development cluster to improve the quality of
instruction and to improve pupil performance and shall expend those
funds in a manner that is consistent with the intent of those
programs taken as a whole.
(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a) of Section 63052, a school
district is not exempt from the program requirements concerning
schoolsite plans and councils.
(c) The schoolsite council and the governing board of the school
district shall approve the schoolsite expenditure plans and budgets
for the funds received for the purposes of the school improvement and
staff development cluster.

63055. A school district approved for participation in the pilot
project may expend the funds from the programs in the alternative and
compensatory education cluster to support alternative education
settings and compensatory services provided that those settings and
services are consistent with the intent of the programs composing the
alternative and compensatory education cluster. Participating school
districts shall continue to allocate funds in the alternative and
compensatory education cluster to schools with the largest number or
percentage of pupils in need of alternative and compensatory
education.

63056. A school district approved for participation in the pilot
project may expend the funds from the programs in the school district
improvement cluster for any high priority program that the district
considers will improve pupil performance or will be a more effective
use of resources.