22.1-199.1 - Programs designed to promote educational opportunities. - Virginia Statutes

§ 22.1-199.1. Programs designed to promote educationalopportunities.

A. The General Assembly finds that Virginia educationalresearch supports the conclusion that poor children are more at risk ofeducational failure than children from more affluent homes and that reducedpupil/teacher ratios and class sizes result in improved academic performanceamong young children; to this end, the General Assembly establishes a long-termgoal of reducing pupil/teacher ratios and class sizes for grades K throughthree in those schools in the Commonwealth with high or moderate concentrationsof at-risk students.

With such funds as are provided in the appropriation act forthis purpose, there is hereby established the statewide voluntary pupil/teacherratio and class size reduction program for the purpose of reaching thelong-term goal of statewide voluntary pupil/teacher ratio and class sizereductions for grades K through three in schools with high or moderateconcentrations of at-risk students, consistent with the provisions provided inthe appropriation act.

In order to facilitate these primary grade ratio and classsize reductions, the Department of Education shall calculate the state fundingof these voluntary ratio and class size reductions based on the incrementalcost of providing the lower class sizes according to the greater of thedivision average per-pupil cost of all divisions or the actual divisionper-pupil cost. Localities shall provide matching funds for these voluntary ratioand class size reductions based on the composite index of local ability to pay.School divisions shall notify the Department of Education of their intention toimplement the reduced ratios and class sizes in one or more of their qualifyingschools by August 1 of each year. By March 31 of each year, school divisionsshall forward data substantiating that each participating school has acomplying pupil/teacher ratio.

In developing each proposed biennium budget for publiceducation, the Board of Education shall include funding for these ratios andclass sizes. These ratios and class sizes shall be included in the annualbudget for public education.

B. The General Assembly finds that educational technology isone of the most important components, along with highly skilled teachers, inensuring the delivery of quality public school education throughout theCommonwealth. Therefore, the Board of Education shall strive to incorporatetechnological studies within the teaching of all disciplines. Further, the GeneralAssembly notes that educational technology can only be successful if teachersand administrators are provided adequate training and assistance. To this end,the following program is established.

With such funds as are appropriated for this purpose, theBoard of Education shall award to the several school divisions grants forexpanded access to educational technology. Funding for educational technologytraining for instructional personnel shall be provided as set forth in theappropriation act.

Funds for improving the quality and capacity of educationaltechnology shall also be provided as set forth in the appropriation act,including, but not limited to, (i) funds for providing a technology resourceassistant to serve every elementary school in this Commonwealth beginning onJuly 1, 1998, (ii) funds for implementing the Family Involvement in Technologyprogram as established in § 22.1-212.2:3, and (iii) funds to maintain thecurrency of career and technical education programs. Any local school board acceptingfunds to hire technology resource assistants, implement the Family Involvementin Technology program or maintain currency of career and technical educationprograms shall commit to providing the required matching funds, based on thecomposite index of local ability to pay.

Each qualifying school board shall establish an individualizedtechnology plan, which shall be approved by the Superintendent of PublicInstruction, for integrating technology into the classroom and into schoolwideinstructional programs, including career and technical education programs. Thegrants shall be prioritized as follows:

1. In the 1994 biennium, the first priority for these fundsshall be to automate the library media centers and provide network capabilitiesin Virginia's elementary, middle and high schools, or combination thereof, inorder to ensure access to the statewide library and other information networks.If any elementary, middle or high school has already met this priority, the1994 biennium grant shall be used to provide other educational technologiesidentified in the relevant division's approved technology plan, such asmultimedia and telecomputing packages, integrated learning systems, laptopcomputer loan programs, career and technical education laboratories or otherelectronic techniques designed to enhance public education and to facilitateteacher training in and implementation of effective instructional technology.The Board shall also distribute, as provided in the appropriation act, funds tosupport the purchase of electronic reference materials for use in the statewideautomated reference system.

2. In the 1996 biennium and thereafter, the first priority forfunding shall be consistent with those components of the Board of Education'srevised six-year technology plan which focus on (i) retrofitting and upgradingexisting school buildings to efficiently use educational technology; (ii)providing (a) one network-ready multimedia microcomputer for each classroom,(b) a five-to-one ratio of pupils to network-ready microcomputers, (c) graphingcalculators and relevant scientific probes/sensors as required by the Standardsof Learning, and (d) training and professional development on availabletechnologies and software to all levels and positions, including professionaldevelopment for personnel delivering career and technical education at alllevels and positions; and (iii) assisting school divisions in developingintegrated voice-, video-, and data-connectivity to local, national andinternational resources.

This funding may be used to implement a local schooldivision's long-range technology plan, at the discretion of the relevant schoolboard, if the local plan meets or exceeds the goals and standards of theBoard's revised six-year technology plan and has been approved by theSuperintendent of Public Instruction.

3. The Departments of Education, Information Technology, andGeneral Services shall coordinate master contracts for the purchase by localschool boards of the aforementioned educational technologies and referencematerials.

4. Beginning on July 1, 1998, a technology replacement programshall be, with such funds as may be appropriated for this purpose, implementedto replace obsolete educational hardware and software. As provided insubsection D of § 22.1-129, school boards may donate obsolete educationaltechnology hardware and software which are being replaced. Any such donationsshall be offered to other school divisions and to preschool programs in theCommonwealth, or to public school students as provided in guidelines to bepromulgated by the Board of Education. Such guidelines shall include criteriafor determining student eligibility and need; a reporting system for thecompilation of information concerning the number and socioeconomic characteristicsof recipient students; and notification of parents of the availability of suchdonations of obsolete educational hardware and software.

5. In fiscal year 2000, the Board of Education shall, withsuch funds as are appropriated for this purpose, contract for the developmentor purchase of interactive educational software and other instructionalmaterials designed as tutorials to improve achievement on the Standards ofLearning assessments. Such interactive educational software and other instructionalmaterials may be used in media centers, computer laboratories, libraries,after-school or before-school programs or remedial programs by teachers andother instructional personnel or provided to parents and students to be used inthe home. This interactive educational software and other instructionalmaterials shall only be used as supplemental tools for instruction,remediation, and acceleration of the learning required by the K through 12Standards of Learning objectives.

Consistent with school board policies designed to improveschool-community communications and guidelines for providing instructionalassistance in the home, each school division shall strive to establish a voicemail communication system after regular school hours for parents, families, andteachers by the year 2000.

C. The General Assembly finds that effective preventionprograms designed to assist children at risk of school failure and dropout arepractical mechanisms for reducing violent and criminal activity and forensuring that Virginia's children will reach adulthood with the skillsnecessary to succeed in the twenty-first century; to this end, the followingprogram is hereby established. With such funds as are appropriated for thispurpose, the General Assembly hereby establishes a grant program to bedisbursed by the Department of Education to schools and community-basedorganizations to provide quality preschool programs for at-risk four-year-oldswho are unserved by Head Start programs and for at-risk five-year-olds who arenot eligible to attend kindergarten.

The grants shall be used to provide at least half-day servicesfor the length of the school year for at-risk four-year-old children who areunserved by Head Start programs and for at-risk five-year-olds who are not eligibleto attend kindergarten. The services shall include quality preschool education,health services, social services, parental involvement including activities topromote family literacy, and transportation.

The Department of Education, in cooperation with such otherstate agencies that may coordinate child day care and early childhood programs,shall establish guidelines for quality preschool education and criteria for theservice components, consistent with the findings of the November 1993 study bythe Board of Education, the Department of Education, and the Council on ChildDay Care and Early Childhood Programs.

The guidelines for quality preschool education and criteriafor preschool education services may be differentiated according to the agency providingthe services in order to comply with various relevant federal or staterequirements. However, the guidelines for quality preschool education and thecriteria for preschool education services shall require when such services arebeing provided by the public schools of the Commonwealth, and may require forother service providers, that (i) one teacher shall be employed for any classof nine students or less, (ii) if the average daily membership in any classexceeds nine students but does not exceed 18, a full-time teacher's aide shallbe assigned to the class, and (iii) the maximum class size shall be 18students.

School divisions may apply for and be granted waivers fromthese guidelines by the Department of Education.

During the 1995-1996 fiscal year, the Board of Educationshall, with such funds as are appropriated for this purpose, distribute grants,based on an allocation formula providing the state share of the grant perchild, as specified in the appropriation act, for 30 percent of the unservedat-risk four-year-olds in the Commonwealth pursuant to the funding provided inthe appropriation act.

During the 1996-1997 fiscal year and thereafter, grants shallbe distributed, with such funds as are appropriated for this purpose, based onan allocation formula providing the state share of the grant per child, asspecified in the appropriation act, for at least 60 percent of the unservedat-risk four-year-olds and five-year-olds who are not eligible to attendkindergarten in the Commonwealth, such 60 percent to be calculated by addingservices for 30 percent more of the unserved at-risk children to the 30 percentof unserved at-risk children in each locality provided funding in theappropriation act.

Local school boards may elect to serve more than 60 percent ofthe at-risk four-year-olds and may use federal funds or local funds for thisexpansion or may seek funding through this grant program for such purposes.Grants may be awarded, if funds are available in excess of the funding for the60 percent allocation, to expand services to at-risk four-year-olds beyond the60 percent goal.

In order for a locality to qualify for these grants, the localgoverning body shall commit to providing the required matching funds, based onthe composite index of local ability to pay. Localities may use, for thepurposes of meeting the local match, local or other nonstate expenditures forexisting qualifying programs and shall also continue to pursue and coordinateother funding sources, including child care subsidies. Funds received throughthis program shall be used to supplement, not supplant, any local fundscurrently provided for preschool programs within the locality.

D. The General Assembly finds that local autonomy in makingdecisions on local educational needs and priorities results in effectivegrass-roots efforts to improve education in the Commonwealth's public schoolsonly when coupled with sufficient state funding; to this end, the followingblock grant program is hereby established. With such funds as are provided inthe appropriation act, the Department of Education shall distribute blockgrants to localities to enable compliance with the Commonwealth's requirementsfor school divisions in effect on January 1, 1995. Therefore, for the purposeof such compliance, the block grant herein established shall consist of a sumequal to the amount appropriated in the appropriation act for the coveredprograms, including the at-risk add-on program; dropout prevention,specifically Project YES; Project Discovery; English as a second languageprograms, including programs for overage, nonschooled students; Advancement ViaIndividual Determination (AVID); the Homework Assistance Program; programsinitiated under the Virginia Guaranteed Assistance Program, except that suchfunds shall not be used to pay any college expenses of participating students;Reading Recovery; and school/community health centers. Each school board mayuse any funds received through the block grant to implement the coveredprograms and other programs designed to save the Commonwealth's children fromeducational failure.

E. In order to reduce pupil/teacher ratios and class sizes inelementary schools, from such funds as may be appropriated for this purpose,each school board may employ additional classroom teachers, remedial teachers,and reading specialists for each of its elementary schools over therequirements of the Standards of Quality. State and local funding for suchadditional classroom teachers, remedial teachers, and reading specialists shallbe apportioned as provided in the appropriation act.

F. Pursuant to a turnaround specialist program administered bythe Department of Education, local school boards may enter into agreements withindividuals to be employed as turnaround specialists to address thoseconditions at the school that may impede educational progress and effectivenessand academic success. Local school boards may offer such turnaround specialistsor other administrative personnel incentives such as increased compensation,improved retirement benefits in accordance with Chapter 6.2 (§ 51.1-617 etseq.) of Title 51.1, increased deferred compensation in accordance with §51.1-603, relocation expenses, bonuses, and other incentives as may bedetermined by the board.

G. The General Assembly finds that certain schools haveparticular difficulty hiring teachers for certain subject areas and that theneed for such teachers in these schools is particularly strong. Accordingly inan effort to attract and retain high quality teachers, local school boards mayoffer instructional personnel serving in such schools as a member of a middleschool teacher corps administered by the Department of Education incentivessuch as increased compensation, improved retirement benefits in accordance withChapter 6.2 (§ 51.1-617 et seq.) of Title 51.1, increased deferred compensationin accordance with § 51.1-603, relocation expenses, bonuses, and otherincentives as may be determined by the board.

For purposes of this subsection, "middle school teachercorps" means licensed instructional personnel who are assigned to a localschool division to teach in a subject matter in grades six, seven, or eightwhere there is a critical need, as determined by the Department of Education.The contract between such persons and the relevant local school board shallspecify that the contract is for service in the middle school teacher corps.

(1995, c. 852; 1996, c. 974; 1997, cc. 357, 394, 617, 686,923; 1998, cc. 828, 901, 902; 1999, cc. 456, 680; 2000, cc. 93, 506; 2001, cc.483, 484; 2004, c. 436.)