Act No. 123

Public Acts of 2006

Approved by the Governor

April 20, 2006

Filed with the Secretary of State

April 20, 2006

EFFECTIVE DATE: April 20, 2006

STATE OF MICHIGAN

93RD LEGISLATURE

REGULAR SESSION OF 2006

Introduced by Reps. Palmer, Mortimer, Taub, Ball, Vander Veen, Robertson, Caul, Pavlov, Garfield, Marleau, LaJoy, Meyer, Stakoe and Acciavatti

ENROLLED HOUSE BILL No. 5606

AN ACT to amend 1976 PA 451, entitled "An act to provide a system of public instruction and elementary and secondary schools; to revise, consolidate, and clarify the laws relating to elementary and secondary education; to provide for the organization, regulation, and maintenance of schools, school districts, public school academies, intermediate school districts, and other public school entities; to prescribe rights, powers, duties, and privileges of schools, school districts, public school academies, intermediate school districts, and other public school entities; to provide for the regulation of school teachers and certain other school employees; to provide for school elections and to prescribe powers and duties with respect thereto; to provide for the levy and collection of taxes; to provide for the borrowing of money and issuance of bonds and other evidences of indebtedness; to establish a fund and provide for expenditures from that fund; to provide for and prescribe the powers and duties of certain state departments, the state board of education, and certain other boards and officials; to provide for licensure of boarding schools; to prescribe penalties; and to repeal acts and parts of acts," by amending section 1280 (MCL 380.1280), as amended by 2003 PA 275, and by adding section 1278b.

The People of the State of Michigan enact:

Sec. 1278b. (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section or section 1278a, beginning with pupils entering grade8 in 2006, as part of the requirements under section 1278a the board of a school district or board of directors of a public school academy shall not award a high school diploma to a pupil unless the pupil has successfully completed all of the following credit requirements of the Michigan merit standard before graduating from high school:

(a) At least 4 credits in English language arts that are aligned with subject area content expectations developed by the department and approved by the state board under this section.

(b) At least 3 credits in science that are aligned with subject area content expectations developed by the department and approved by the state board under this section, including completion of at least biology and either chemistry or physics. The legislature strongly encourages pupils to complete a fourth credit in science, such as forensics, astronomy, Earth science, agricultural science, environmental science, geology, physics or chemistry, physiology, or microbiology.

(c) The credit requirements specified in section 1278a(1)(a).

(2) If a pupil successfully completes 1 or more of the high school credits required under subsection (1) or under section 1278a(1) before entering high school, the pupil shall be given high school credit for that credit.

(3) For the purposes of this section and section 1278a, the department shall do all of the following:

(a) Develop subject area content expectations that apply to the credit requirements of the Michigan merit standard that are required under subsection (1)(a) and (b) and section 1278a(1)(a)(i) and (ii) and develop guidelines for the remaining credit requirements of the Michigan merit standard that are required under this section and section1278a(1)(a), for the online course or learning experience required under section 1278a(1)(b), and for the requirements for a language other than English under section 1278a(2). All of the following apply to these subject area content expectations and guidelines:

(i) All subject area content expectations shall be consistent with the state board recommended model core academic curriculum content standards under section 1278. Subject area content expectations or guidelines shall not include attitudes, beliefs, or value systems that are not essential in the legal, economic, and social structure of our society and to the personal and social responsibility of citizens of our society. The subject area content expectations shall require pupils to demonstrate critical thinking skills.

(ii) The subject area content expectations and the guidelines must be approved by the state board under subsection(4).

(iii) The subject area content expectations shall state in clear and measurable terms what pupils are expected to know upon completion of each credit.

(iv) The department shall complete the development of the subject area content expectations that apply to algebraI and the guidelines for the online course or learning experience under section 1278a(1)(b) not later than August 1, 2006.

(v) The department shall complete development of the subject area content expectations or guidelines that apply to each of the other credits required in the Michigan merit standard under subsection (1) and section 1278a(1)(a) not later than 1 year before the beginning of the school year in which a pupil entering high school in 2007 would normally be expected to complete the credit.

(vi) If the department has not completed development of the subject area content expectations that apply to a particular credit required in the Michigan merit standard under subsection (1) or section 1278a(1)(a) by the date required under this subdivision, a school district or public school academy may align the content of the credit with locally adopted standards.

(vii) Until all of the subject area content expectations and guidelines have been developed by the department and approved by the state board, the department shall submit a report at least every 6 months to the senate and house standing committees responsible for education legislation on the status of the development of the subject area content expectations and guidelines. The report shall detail any failure by the department to meet a deadline established under subparagraph (iv) or (v) and the reasons for that failure.

(b) Develop and implement a process for developing the subject area content expectations and guidelines required under this section. This process shall provide for all of the following:

(i) Soliciting input from all of the following groups:

(A) Recognized experts in the relevant subject areas.

(B) Representatives from 4-year colleges or universities, community colleges, and other postsecondary institutions.

(C) Teachers, administrators, and school personnel who have specialized knowledge of the subject area.

(D) Representatives from the business community.

(E) Representatives from vocational and career and technical education providers.

(F) Government officials, including officials from the legislature.

(G) Parents of public school pupils.

(ii) A review of the subject area content expectations or guidelines by national experts.

(iii) An opportunity for the public to review and provide input on the proposed subject area content expectations or guidelines before they are submitted to the state board for approval. The time period allowed for this review and input shall be at least 15 business days.

(c) Determine the basic level of technology and internet access required for pupils to complete the online course or learning experience requirement of section 1278a(1)(b), and submit that determination to the state board for approval.

(d) Not later than 3 years after the effective date of this section, develop or select and approve assessments that may be used by school districts and public school academies to determine whether a pupil has successfully completed a credit required under the Michigan merit standard under subsection (1) or section 1278a(1)(a). The assessments for each credit shall measure a pupil's understanding of the subject area content expectations or guidelines that apply to the credit. The department shall develop or select and approve assessments for at least each of the following credits: algebra I, geometry, algebra II, Earth science, biology, physics, chemistry, grade 9 English, grade 10 English, grade 11 English, grade 12 English, world history, United States history, economics, and civics.

(e) Develop and make available material to assist school districts and public school academies in implementing the requirements of this section and section 1278a. This shall include developing guidelines for alternative instructional delivery methods as described in subsection (7).

(4) The state board shall approve subject area content expectations and guidelines developed by the department under subsection (3) before those subject area content expectations and guidelines may take effect. The state board also shall approve the basic level of technology and internet access required for pupils to complete the online course or learning experience requirement of section 1278a(1)(b).

(5) The parent or legal guardian of a pupil may request a personal curriculum for the pupil that modifies certain of the Michigan merit standard requirements under subsection (1) or section 1278a(1)(a). If all of the requirements under this subsection for a personal curriculum are met, then the board of a school district or board of directors of a public school academy may award a high school diploma to a pupil who successfully completes his or her personal curriculum even if it does not meet the requirements of the Michigan merit standard required under subsection (1) and section 1278a(1)(a). All of the following apply to a personal curriculum:

(a) The personal curriculum shall be developed by a group consisting of the pupil, at least 1 of the pupil's parents or the pupil's legal guardian, and the pupil's high school counselor or another designee qualified under section 1233 or 1233a selected by the high school principal.

(b) The personal curriculum shall incorporate as much of the subject area content expectations of the Michigan merit standard required under subsection (1) and section 1278a(1)(a) as is practicable; shall establish measurable goals that the pupil must achieve while enrolled in high school and shall provide a method to evaluate whether the pupil achieved these goals; and shall be aligned with the pupil's educational development plan developed under subsection (11).

(c) Before it takes effect, the personal curriculum must be agreed to by the pupil's parent or legal guardian and by the superintendent of the school district or chief executive of the public school academy or his or her designee.

(d) The pupil's parent or legal guardian shall be in communication with each of the pupil's teachers at least once each calendar quarter to monitor the pupil's progress toward the goals contained in the pupil's personal curriculum.

(e) Revisions may be made in a personal curriculum if the revisions are developed and agreed to in the same manner as the original personal curriculum.

(f) The English language arts credit requirements of subsection (1)(a) and the science credit requirements of subsection (1)(b) are not subject to modification as part of a personal curriculum under this subsection.

(g) Except as otherwise provided in this subdivision, the mathematics credit requirements of section 1278a(1)(a)(i) may be modified as part of a personal curriculum only after the pupil has successfully completed at least 2-1/2 credits of the mathematics credits required under that section and only if the pupil successfully completes at least 3-1/2 total credits of the mathematics credits required under that section before completing high school. The requirement under that section that a pupil must successfully complete at least 1 mathematics course during his or her final year of high school enrollment is not subject to modification as part of a personal curriculum under this subsection. The algebra II credit required under that section may be modified as part of a personal curriculum under this subsection only if the pupil has successfully completed at least 2 credits of the mathematics credits required under section 1278a(1)(a)(i) and meets 1 or more of the following:

(i) Has successfully completed the same content as 1 semester of algebra II, as determined by the department.

(ii) Elects to complete the same content as algebra II over 2 years, with a credit awarded for each of those 2 years, and successfully completes that content.

(iii) Enrolls in a formal career and technical education program or curriculum and in that program or curriculum successfully completes the same content as 1 semester of algebra II, as determined by the department.

(h) The social science credit requirements of section 1278a(1)(a)(ii) may be modified as part of a personal curriculum only if all of the following are met:

(i) The pupil has successfully completed 2 credits of the social science credits required under section 1278a(1), including the civics course described in section 1166(2).

(ii) The modification requires the pupil to complete 1 additional credit in English language arts, mathematics, or science or 1 additional credit in a language other than English. This additional credit must be in addition to the number of those credits otherwise required under subsection (1) and section 1278a(1) or under section 1278a(2).

(i) The health and physical education credit requirement under section 1278a(1)(a)(iii) may be modified as part of a personal curriculum only if the modification requires the pupil to complete 1 additional credit in English language arts, mathematics, or science or 1 additional credit in a language other than English. This additional credit must be in addition to the number of those credits otherwise required under subsection (1) and section 1278a(1) or under section 1278a(2).

(j) The visual arts, performing arts, or applied arts credit requirement under section 1278a(1)(a)(iv) may be modified as part of a personal curriculum only if the modification requires the pupil to complete 1 additional credit in English language arts, mathematics, or science or 1 additional credit in a language other than English. This additional credit must be in addition to the number of those credits otherwise required under subsection (1) and section 1278a(1) or under section 1278a(2).

(k) If a pupil is at least age 18 or is an emancipated minor, the pupil may act on his or her own behalf under this subsection.

(l) This subsection does not apply to a pupil enrolled in a high school that is designated as a specialty school undersection 1278a(5) and that is exempt under that section from the English language arts requirement under subsection(1)(a) and the social science credit requirement under section 1278a(1)(a)(ii).

(6) If a pupil receives special education services, the pupil's individualized education program, in accordance with the individuals with disabilities education act, title VI of Public Law 91-230, shall identify the appropriate course or courses of study and identify the supports, accommodations, and modifications necessary to allow the pupil to progress in the curricular requirements of this section and section 1278a, or in a personal curriculum as provided under subsection (5), and meet the requirements for a high school diploma.

(7) The board of a school district or board of directors of a public school academy that operates a high school shall ensure that each pupil is offered the curriculum necessary for the pupil to meet the curricular requirements of this section and section 1278a. The board or board of directors may provide this curriculum by providing the credits specified in this section and section 1278a, by using alternative instructional delivery methods such as alternative course work, humanities course sequences, career and technical education, industrial technology courses, or vocational education, or by a combination of these. School districts and public school academies that operate career and technical education programs are encouraged to integrate the credit requirements of this section and section 1278a into those programs.

(8) If the board of a school district or board of directors of a public school academy wants its high school to be accredited under section 1280, the board or board of directors shall ensure that all elements of the curriculum required under this section and section 1278a are made available to all affected pupils. If a school district or public school academy does not offer all of the required credits, the board of the school district or board of directors of the public school academy shall ensure that the pupil has access to the required credits by another means, such as enrollment in a postsecondary course under the postsecondary enrollment options act, 1996 PA 160, MCL 388.511 to 388.524; enrollment in an online course; a cooperative arrangement with a neighboring school district or with a public school academy; or granting approval under section 6(6) of the state school aid act of 1979, MCL 388.1606, for the pupil to be counted in membership in another school district.

(9) If a pupil is not successfully completing a credit required for graduation under this section and section 1278a, or is identified as being at risk of withdrawing from high school, then the pupil's school district or public school academy shall notify the pupil's parent or legal guardian or, if the pupil is at least age 18 or is an emancipated minor, the pupil, of the availability of tutoring or other supplemental educational support and counseling services that may be available to the pupil under existing state or federal programs, such as those programs or services available under section 31a of the state school aid act of 1979, MCL 388.1631a, or under the no child left behind act of 2001, Public Law 107-110.

(10) To the extent required by the no child left behind act of 2001, Public Law 107-110, the board of a school district or public school academy shall ensure that all components of the curricular requirements under this section and section 1278a are taught by highly qualified teachers. If a school district or public school academy demonstrates to the department that the school district or public school academy is unable to meet the requirements of this section because the school district or public school academy is unable to hire enough highly qualified teachers, the department shall work with the school district or public school academy to develop a plan to allow the school district or public school academy to hire enough highly qualified teachers to meet the requirements of this section.

(11) The board of a school district or board of directors of a public school academy shall ensure that each pupil in grade 7 is provided with the opportunity to develop an educational development plan, and that each pupil has developed an educational development plan before he or she begins high school. An educational development plan shall be developed by the pupil under the supervision of the pupil's school counselor or another designee qualified under section 1233 or 1233a selected by the high school principal and shall be based on a career pathways program or similar career exploration program.

(12) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, if a school district or public school academy is unable to implement all of the curricular requirements of this section and section 1278a for pupils entering grade 9 in 2007 or is unable to implement another requirement of this section or section 1278a, the school district or public school academy may apply to the department for permission to phase in 1 or more of the requirements of this section or section 1278a. To apply, the school district or public school academy shall submit a proposed phase-in plan to the department. The department shall approve a phase-in plan if the department determines that the plan will result in the school district or public school academy making satisfactory progress toward full implementation of the requirements of this section and section 1278a. If the department disapproves a proposed phase-in plan, the department shall work with the school district or public school academy to develop a satisfactory plan that may be approved. However, if legislation is enacted that adds section 1290 to allow school districts and public school academies to apply for a contract that waives certain state or federal requirements, then this subsection does not apply but a school district or public school academy may take action as described in subsection (13). This subsection does not apply to a high school that is designated as a specialty school under section 1278a(5) and that is exempt under that section from the English language arts requirement under subsection (1)(a) and the social science credit requirement under section 1278a(1)(a)(ii).

(13) If a school district or public school academy does not offer all of the required credits or provide options to have access to the required credits as provided under subsection (8) and if legislation is enacted that adds section 1290 to allow school districts and public school academies to apply for a contract that waives certain state or federal requirements, then the school district or public school academy is encouraged to apply for a contract under section 1290. The purpose of a contract described in this subsection is to improve pupil performance.

(14) This section and section 1278a do not prohibit a pupil from satisfying or exceeding the credit requirements of the Michigan merit standard under this section and section 1278a through advanced studies such as accelerated course placement, advanced placement, dual enrollment in a postsecondary institution, or participation in the international baccalaureate program or an early college/middle college program.

(15) Not later than April 1 of each year, the department shall submit an annual report to the legislature that evaluates the overall success of the curriculum required under this section and section 1278a, the rigor and relevance of the course work required by the curriculum, the ability of public schools to implement the curriculum and the required course work, and the impact of the curriculum on pupil success, and that details any activities the department has undertaken to implement this section and section 1278a or to assist public schools in implementing the requirements of this section and section 1278a.

Sec. 1280. (1) The board of a school district that does not want to be subject to the measures described in this section shall ensure that each public school within the school district is accredited.

(2) As used in subsection (1), and subject to subsection (6), "accredited" means certified by the superintendent of public instruction as having met or exceeded standards established under this section for 6 areas of school operation: administration and school organization, curricula, staff, school plant and facilities, school and community relations, and school improvement plans and student performance. The building-level evaluation used in the accreditation process shall include, but is not limited to, school data collection, self-study, visitation and validation, determination of performance data to be used, and the development of a school improvement plan.

(3) The department shall develop and distribute to all public schools proposed accreditation standards. Upon distribution of the proposed standards, the department shall hold statewide public hearings for the purpose of receiving testimony concerning the standards. After a review of the testimony, the department shall revise and submit the proposed standards to the superintendent of public instruction. After a review and revision, if appropriate, of the proposed standards, the superintendent of public instruction shall submit the proposed standards to the senate and house committees that have the responsibility for education legislation. Upon approval by these committees, the department shall distribute to all public schools the standards to be applied to each school for accreditation purposes. The superintendent of public instruction shall review and update the accreditation standards annually using the process prescribed under this subsection.

(4) The superintendent of public instruction shall develop and distribute to all public schools standards for determining that a school is eligible for summary accreditation under subsection (6). The standards shall be developed, reviewed, approved, and distributed using the same process as prescribed in subsection (3) for accreditation standards, and shall be finally distributed and implemented not later than December 31, 1994.

(5) The standards for accreditation or summary accreditation under this section shall include as criteria pupil performance on Michigan education assessment program (MEAP) tests and on the Michigan merit examination under section 1279g and, until the Michigan merit examination has been fully implemented, the percentage of pupils achieving state endorsement under section 1279, but shall not be based solely on pupil performance on MEAP tests or the Michigan merit examination or on the percentage of pupils achieving state endorsement under section 1279. The standards shall also include as criteria multiple year change in pupil performance on MEAP tests and the Michigan merit examination and, until after the Michigan merit examination is fully implemented, multiple year change in the percentage of pupils achieving state endorsement under section 1279. If it is necessary for the superintendent of public instruction to revise accreditation or summary accreditation standards established under subsection (3) or (4) to comply with this subsection, the revised standards shall be developed, reviewed, approved, and distributed using the same process as prescribed in subsection (3).

(6) If the superintendent of public instruction determines that a public school has met the standards established under subsection (4) or (5) for summary accreditation, the school is considered to be accredited without the necessity for a full building-level evaluation under subsection (2).

(7) If the superintendent of public instruction determines that a school has not met the standards established under subsection (4) or (5) for summary accreditation but that the school is making progress toward meeting those standards, or if, based on a full building-level evaluation under subsection (2), the superintendent of public instruction determines that a school has not met the standards for accreditation but is making progress toward meeting those standards, the school is in interim status and is subject to a full building-level evaluation as provided in this section.

(8) If a school has not met the standards established under subsection (4) or (5) for summary accreditation and is not eligible for interim status under subsection (7), the school is unaccredited and subject to the measures provided in this section.

(9) Beginning with the 2002-2003 school year, if at least 5% of a public school's answer sheets from the administration of the Michigan educational assessment program (MEAP) tests are lost by the department or by a state contractor and if the public school can verify that the answer sheets were collected from pupils and forwarded to the department or the contractor, the department shall not assign an accreditation score or school report card grade to the public school for that subject area for the corresponding year for the purposes of determining state accreditation under this section. The department shall not assign an accreditation score or school report card grade to the public school for that subject area until the results of all tests for the next year are available.

(10) Subsection (9) does not preclude the department from determining whether a public school or a school district has achieved adequate yearly progress for the school year in which the answer sheets were lost for the purposes of the no child left behind act of 2001, Public Law 107-110. However, the department shall ensure that a public school or the school district is not penalized when determining adequate yearly progress status due to the fact that the public school's MEAP answer sheets were lost by the department or by a state contractor, but shall not require a public school or school district to retest pupils or produce scores from another test for this purpose.

(11) The superintendent of public instruction shall annually review and evaluate for accreditation purposes the performance of each school that is unaccredited and as many of the schools that are in interim status as permitted by the department's resources.

(12) The superintendent of public instruction shall, and the intermediate school district to which a school district is constituent, a consortium of intermediate school districts, or any combination thereof may, provide technical assistance, as appropriate, to a school that is unaccredited or that is in interim status upon request of the board of the school district in which the school is located. If requests to the superintendent of public instruction for technical assistance exceed the capacity, priority shall be given to unaccredited schools.

(13) A school that has been unaccredited for 3 consecutive years is subject to 1 or more of the following measures, as determined by the superintendent of public instruction:

(a) The superintendent of public instruction or his or her designee shall appoint at the expense of the affected school district an administrator of the school until the school becomes accredited.

(b) A parent, legal guardian, or person in loco parentis of a child who attends the school may send his or her child to any accredited public school with an appropriate grade level within the school district.

(c) The school, with the approval of the superintendent of public instruction, shall align itself with an existing research-based school improvement model or establish an affiliation for providing assistance to the school with a college or university located in this state.

(d) The school shall be closed.

(14) The superintendent of public instruction shall evaluate the school accreditation program and the status of schools under this section and shall submit an annual report based upon the evaluation to the senate and house committees that have the responsibility for education legislation. The report shall address the reasons each unaccredited school is not accredited and shall recommend legislative action that will result in the accreditation of all public schools in this state.

(15) Beginning with the 2008-2009 school year, a high school shall not be accredited by the department unless the department determines that the high school is providing or has otherwise ensured that all pupils have access to all of the elements of the curriculum required under sections 1278a and 1278b. If it is necessary for the superintendent of public instruction to revise accreditation or summary accreditation standards established under subsection (3) or (4) to comply with the changes made to this section by the amendatory act that added this subsection, the revised standards shall be developed, reviewed, approved, and distributed using the same process as prescribed in subsection (3).

Enacting section 1. This amendatory act does not take effect unless Senate Bill No. 1124 of the 93rd Legislature is enacted into law.

This act is ordered to take immediate effect.

Clerk of the House of Representatives

Secretary of the Senate

Approved

Governor