H97 - 2015 Appropriations Act, Sec. 11.9: Transforming Principal Preparation (SL 2015-241)

Overview: Sec. 11.9 of S.L. 2015-241 establishes a competitive grant program for the preparation of school principals. The State Education Assistance Authority (SEAA) is directed to administer the program through an agreement with a private nonprofit corporation.

By November 1, 2015, the SEAA must issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a private, nonprofit corporation (that meets several requirements articulated in this section) to contract with the SEAA for the administration of the program, including making recommendations for the award of grants.

By January 15, 2016, the SEAA must select a nonprofit corporation (selected nonprofit) with which to enter into a contract and report to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee (JLEOC) on the selection by February 1, 2016.

The selected nonprofit must issue, no later than March 1, 2016, an initial RFP with guidelines and criteria for the grants and in their response to the RFP, applicants must submit certain information. The selected nonprofit must evaluate the grant applicants by giving priority to those with a record of preparing principals that demonstrates:

• Improvement in student achievement.
• Placing school leaders in eligible schools.
• A proposed focus on, and if applicable, a record of serving high-need schools, high-needs local school administrative units, or both.
• A detailed plan and commitment to share lessons learned and to improve the capacity of other entities in reaching similar outcomes.

The selected nonprofit must recommend grant recipients to the SEAA by June 1, 2016, and the use of the grant funds is limited.

The selected nonprofit must recommend to the SEAA the duration and renewal of grants. However, grants may not be more than five years in duration and a grant renewal may be based upon performance.

Grant recipients must submit an annual report to the selected nonprofit, beginning in the third year of the grant, with any information requested by the selected nonprofit. Whenever practicable, grant recipients should make all materials developed as part of the program and with grant funds publically available.

By June 1, 2016, the State Board of Education (SBE) must adopt a policy to provide for a specific licensure process applicable to school administrators who provide documentation to the SBE of successful completion of a principal preparation program selected for a grant pursuant to this section.

The selected nonprofit must provide to the SBE the required collected data annually. By September 15, 2021, the SBE must revise, as necessary, the licensure requirements for school administrators and the standards for approval of school administrator preparation programs after evaluating the data collected by the grant recipients. By November 15, 2021, the SBE must report to the JLEOC on any changes made to the licensure requirements for school administrators and the standards for approval of school administrator preparation programs.

This section became effective July 1, 2015.