SB-1075, As Passed Senate, December 4, 2014

SUBSTITUTE FOR

SENATE BILL NO. 1075

A bill to amend 1976 PA 451, entitled

"The revised school code,"

by amending sections 1278 and 1279g (MCL 380.1278 and 380.1279g),

section 1278 as amended by 2004 PA 596 and section 1279g as amended

by 2008 PA 349, and by adding section 1168.

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

Sec. 1168. (1) The board of a school district or board of

directors of a public school academy shall ensure that the school

district's or public school academy's social studies curriculum for

grades 8 to 12 includes age- and grade-appropriate instruction

about genocide, including, but not limited to, the Holocaust. The

legislature recommends a combined total of 6 hours of this

instruction during grades 8 to 12.

(2) Subsection (1) does not preclude a school district or

public school academy from including instruction described in

subsection (1) in other subject areas.

(3) The governor's council on genocide and Holocaust education

is created as a temporary commission described in section 4 of

article V of the state constitution of 1963.

(4) The governor's council on genocide and Holocaust education

shall consist of 15 members appointed by the governor. Members

shall be individuals who have a particular interest or expertise in

genocide education or Holocaust education, or both.

(5) If the governor determines that sufficient private funding

is available for the operations of the governor's council on

genocide and Holocaust education, the governor shall appoint the

members of the governor's council on genocide and Holocaust

education within 60 days after the effective date of this section.

(6) If a vacancy occurs on the governor's council on genocide

and Holocaust education, the governor shall make an appointment for

the unexpired term in the same manner as the original appointment.

(7) The governor may remove a member of the governor's council

on genocide and Holocaust education for incompetence, dereliction

of duty, malfeasance, misfeasance, or nonfeasance in office, or any

other good cause.

(8) The first meeting of the governor's council on genocide

and Holocaust education shall be called by the governor. At the

first meeting, the governor's council on genocide and Holocaust

education shall elect from among its members a chairperson and

other officers as it considers necessary or appropriate. After the

first meeting, the governor's council on genocide and Holocaust

education shall meet at least quarterly, or more frequently at the

call of the chairperson or if requested by 8 or more members.

(9) A majority of the members of the governor's council on

genocide and Holocaust education appointed and serving constitute a

quorum for the transaction of business at a meeting of the council.

A majority of the members present and serving are required for

official action of the council. A member may not vote by proxy.

(10) The business that the governor's council on genocide and

Holocaust education may perform shall be conducted at a public

meeting of the council held in compliance with the open meetings

act, 1976 PA 267, MCL 15.261 to 15.275.

(11) A writing prepared, owned, used, in the possession of, or

retained by the governor's council on genocide and Holocaust

education in the performance of an official function is subject to

the freedom of information act, 1976 PA 442, MCL 15.231 to 15.246.

(12) Members of the governor's council on genocide and

Holocaust education shall serve without compensation. However, if

funding is available for this purpose from private sources, members

of the council may be reimbursed for their actual and necessary

expenses incurred in the performance of their official duties as

members of the council.

(13) State funds shall not be used for the operations of the

governor's council on genocide and Holocaust education.

(14) The governor's council on genocide and Holocaust

education shall do all of the following:

(a) Identify, to the extent possible, all sources of

strategies and content for providing and enhancing genocide

education to students.

(b) Advise the superintendent of public instruction, school

districts, public school academies, and nonpublic schools in this

state on strategies and content for providing and enhancing

genocide education to students.

resources to train teachers in providing genocide education to

students and share these programs and resources with the

superintendent of public instruction, school districts, public

school academies, and nonpublic schools in this state.

(d) Promote, within the schools and general population of this

state, implementation of genocide education. This duty includes,

but is not limited to, both of the following:

(i) In accordance with 2004 PA 10, engendering and coordinating

events, activities, and education that will appropriately

memorialize the victims of the Holocaust, such as observance of

Holocaust remembrance day and the Days of Remembrance.

(ii) Engendering and coordinating events, activities, and

education that will appropriately memorialize the victims of other

genocides.

(e) Secure private funding for the governor's council on

genocide and Holocaust education. The governor's council on

genocide and Holocaust education may also apply for and accept

grants and receive gifts, donations, and other financial support

from private sources, in accordance with state law, for the purpose

of carrying out its duties under this section.

(f) Carry out any other tasks that it considers to be

advisable to support the ability of this state to meet its goals in

providing genocide education.

(g) Submit an annual report to the legislature on the progress

and status of the council.

(15) With respect to its duties, the governor's council on

genocide and Holocaust education is an advisory body only. There is

no right or obligation on the part of this state or its

subdivisions, officials, or employees to implement the findings or

recommendations of the governor's council on genocide and Holocaust

education unless further legislation is enacted that specifically

authorizes implementation of those findings or recommendations.

(16) As used in this section:

(a) "Genocide" means any of the following acts committed with

intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical,

racial, or religious group, as such: killing members of the group;

causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;

deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated

to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;

imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; or

forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

(b) "Holocaust" means the systematic, bureaucratic, state-

sponsored persecution and murder of approximately 6,000,000 Jews

and 5,000,000 other individuals by the Nazi regime and its

collaborators.

Sec. 1278. (1) In addition to the requirements for

accreditation under section 1280 specified in that section, if the

board of a school district wants all of the schools of the school

district to be accredited under section 1280, the board shall

provide to all pupils attending public school in the district a

core academic curriculum in compliance with subsection (3) in each

of the curricular areas specified in the state board recommended

model core academic curriculum content standards developed under

subsection (2). The state board model core academic curriculum

content standards shall encompass academic and cognitive

instruction only. For purposes of this section, the state board

model core academic curriculum content standards 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.

(2) Recommended model core academic curriculum content

standards shall be developed and periodically updated by the state

board, shall be in the form of knowledge and skill content

standards that are recommended as state standards for adoption by

public schools in local curriculum formulation and adoption, and

shall be distributed to each school district in the state. The

recommended model core academic curriculum content standards shall

set forth desired learning objectives in math, science, reading,

history, geography, economics, American government, and writing for

all children at each stage of schooling and be based upon the

"Michigan K-12 program standards of quality" to ensure that high

academic standards, academic skills, and academic subject matters

are built into the instructional goals of all school districts for

all children. The state board shall ensure that the recommended

model core academic curriculum content standards for history for

grades 8 to 12 include learning objectives concerning genocide,

including, but not limited to, the Holocaust. The state board also

shall ensure that the Michigan educational assessment program and

the Michigan merit examination are based on the state recommended

model core curriculum content standards, are testing only for

proficiency in basic and advanced academic skills and academic

subject matter, and are not used to measure pupils' values or

attitudes.

(3) The board of each school district, considering academic

curricular objectives defined and recommended pursuant to

subsection (2), shall do both of the following:

(a) Establish a core academic curriculum for its pupils at the

elementary, middle, and secondary school levels. The core academic

curriculum shall define academic objectives to be achieved by all

pupils and shall be based upon the school district's educational

mission, long-range pupil goals, and pupil performance objectives.

The core academic curriculum may vary from the model core academic

curriculum content standards recommended by the state board

pursuant to subsection (2).

(b) After consulting with teachers and school building

administrators, determine the aligned instructional program for

delivering the core academic curriculum and identify the courses

and programs in which the core academic curriculum will be taught.

(4) The board may supplement the core academic curriculum by

providing instruction through additional classes and programs.

(5) For all pupils, the subjects or courses, and the delivery

of those including special assistance, that constitute the

curriculum the pupils engage in shall assure the pupils have a

realistic opportunity to learn all subjects and courses required by

the district's core academic curriculum. A subject or course

required by the core academic curriculum pursuant to subsection (3)

shall be provided to all pupils in the school district by a school

district, a consortium of school districts, or a consortium of 1 or

more school districts and 1 or more intermediate school districts.

(6) To the extent practicable, the state board may adopt or

develop academic objective-oriented high standards for knowledge

and life skills, and a recommended core academic curriculum, for

special education pupils for whom it may not be realistic or

desirable to expect achievement of initial mastery of the state

board recommended model core academic content standards objectives

or of a high school diploma.

(7) The state board shall make available to all nonpublic

schools in this state, as a resource for their consideration, the

model core academic curriculum content standards developed for

public schools pursuant to subsection (2) for the purpose of

assisting the governing body of a nonpublic school in developing

its core academic curriculum.

(8) Excluding special education pupils, pupils having a

learning disability, and pupils with extenuating circumstances as

determined by school officials, a pupil who does not score

satisfactorily on the 4th or 7th grade Michigan educational

assessment program reading test shall be provided special

assistance reasonably expected to enable the pupil to bring his or

her reading skills to grade level within 12 months.

(9) Any course that would have been considered a nonessential

elective course under Snyder v Charlotte School Dist, 421 Mich 517

(1984), on April 13, 1990 shall continue to be offered to resident

pupils of nonpublic schools on a shared time basis.

(10) As used in this section, "genocide" and "Holocaust" mean

those terms as defined in section 1168.

Sec. 1279g. (1) The board of a school district or board of

directors of a public school academy shall comply with this section

and shall administer the Michigan merit examination to pupils in

grade 11, and to pupils in grade 12 who did not take the complete

Michigan merit examination in grade 11, as provided in this

section.

(2) For the purposes of this section, the department of

technology, management, and budget shall contract with 1 or more

providers to develop, supply, and score the Michigan merit

examination. The Michigan merit examination shall consist of all of

the following:

(a) Assessment instruments that measure English language arts,

mathematics, reading, and science and are used by colleges and

universities in this state for entrance or placement purposes. This

shall include a writing component in which the pupil produces an

extended writing sample. The Michigan merit examination shall not

require any other extended writing sample.

(b) One or more tests from 1 or more test developers that

assess a pupil's ability to apply at least reading and mathematics

skills in a manner that is intended to allow employers to use the

results in making employment decisions. The department of

technology, management, and budget and the superintendent of public

instruction shall ensure that any test or tests selected under this

subdivision have all the components necessary to allow a pupil to

be eligible to receive the results of a nationally recognized

evaluation of workforce readiness if the pupil's test performance

is adequate.

(d) Any other component that is necessary to obtain the

approval of the United States department of education to use the

Michigan merit examination for the purposes of the no child left

behind act of 2001, Public Law 107-110.

(3) In addition to all other requirements of this section, all

of the following apply to the Michigan merit examination:

(a) The department of technology, management, and budget and

the superintendent of public instruction shall ensure that any

contractor used for scoring the Michigan merit examination supplies

an individual report for each pupil that will identify for the

pupil's parents and teachers whether the pupil met expectations or

failed to meet expectations for each standard, to allow the pupil's

parents and teachers to assess and remedy problems before the pupil

moves to the next grade.

(b) The department of technology, management, and budget and

the superintendent of public instruction shall ensure that any

contractor used for scoring, developing, or processing the Michigan

merit examination meets quality management standards commonly used

in the assessment industry, including at least meeting level 2 of

the capability maturity model developed by the software engineering

institute of Carnegie Mellon university for the first year the

Michigan merit examination is offered to all grade 11 pupils and at

least meeting level 3 of the capability maturity model for

subsequent years.

the superintendent of public instruction shall ensure that any

contract for scoring, administering, or developing the Michigan

merit examination includes specific deadlines for all steps of the

assessment process, including, but not limited to, deadlines for

the correct testing materials to be supplied to schools and for the

correct results to be returned to schools, and includes penalties

for noncompliance with these deadlines.

(d) The superintendent of public instruction shall ensure that

the Michigan merit examination meets all of the following:

(i) Is designed to test pupils on grade level content

expectations or course content expectations, as appropriate, in all

subjects tested.

(ii) Complies with requirements of the no child left behind act

of 2001, Public Law 107-110.

(iii) Is consistent with the code of fair testing practices in

education prepared by the joint committee on testing practices of

the American psychological association.

(iv) Is factually accurate. If the superintendent of public

instruction determines that a question is not factually accurate

and should be excluded from scoring, the state board and the

superintendent of public instruction shall ensure that the question

is excluded from scoring.

(4) A school district or public school academy that operates a

high school shall include on each pupil's high school transcript

all of the following:

(a) For each high school graduate who has completed the

Michigan merit examination under this section, the pupil's scaled

score on each subject area component of the Michigan merit

examination.

(b) The number of school days the pupil was in attendance at

school each school year during high school and the total number of

school days in session for each of those school years.

(5) The superintendent of public instruction shall work with

the provider or providers of the Michigan merit examination to

produce Michigan merit examination subject area scores for each

pupil participating in the Michigan merit examination, including

scaling and merging of test items for the different subject area

components. The superintendent of public instruction shall design

and distribute to school districts, public school academies,

intermediate school districts, and nonpublic schools a simple and

concise document that describes the scoring for each subject area

and indicates the scaled score ranges for each subject area.

(6) The Michigan merit examination shall be administered each

year after March 1 and before June 1 to pupils in grade 11. The

superintendent of public instruction shall ensure that the Michigan

merit examination is scored and the scores are returned to pupils,

their parents or legal guardians, and schools not later than the

beginning of the pupil's first semester of grade 12. The returned

scores shall indicate at least the pupil's scaled score for each

subject area component and the range of scaled scores for each

subject area. In reporting the scores to pupils, parents, and

schools, the superintendent of public instruction shall provide

standards-specific, meaningful, and timely feedback on the pupil's

performance on the Michigan merit examination.

(7) A school district or public school academy shall

administer the complete Michigan merit examination to a pupil only

once and shall not administer the complete Michigan merit

examination to the same pupil more than once. If a pupil does not

take the complete Michigan merit examination in grade 11, the

school district or public school academy shall administer the

complete Michigan merit examination to the pupil in grade 12. If a

pupil chooses to retake the college entrance examination component

of the Michigan merit examination, as described in subsection

(2)(a), the pupil may do so through the provider of the college

entrance examination component and the cost of the retake is the

responsibility of the pupil unless all of the following are met:

(a) The pupil has taken the complete Michigan merit

examination.

(b) The pupil did not qualify for a Michigan promise grant

under section 6 of the Michigan promise grant act, 2006 PA 479, MCL

390.1626, based on the pupil's performance on the complete Michigan

merit examination.

breakfast, lunch, or milk, as determined under the Richard B.

Russell national school lunch act, 42 USC 1751 to ~~1769i.~~1769j.

(d) The pupil has applied to the provider of the college

entrance examination component for a scholarship or fee waiver to

cover the cost of the retake and that application has been denied.

(e) After taking the complete Michigan merit examination, the

pupil has not already received a free retake of the college

entrance examination component paid for either by this state or

through a scholarship or fee waiver by the provider.

(8) The superintendent of public instruction shall ensure that

the length of the Michigan merit examination and the combined total

time necessary to administer all of the components of the Michigan

merit examination are the shortest possible that will still

maintain the degree of reliability and validity of the Michigan

merit examination results determined necessary by the

superintendent of public instruction. The superintendent of public

instruction shall ensure that the maximum total combined length of

time that schools are required to set aside for pupils to answer

all test questions on the Michigan merit examination does not

exceed 8 hours if the superintendent of public instruction

determines that sufficient alignment to applicable Michigan merit

curriculum content standards can be achieved within that time

limit.

(9) A school district or public school academy shall provide

accommodations to a pupil with disabilities for the Michigan merit

examination, as provided under section 504 of title V of the

rehabilitation act of 1973, 29 USC 794; subtitle A of title II of

the Americans with disabilities act of 1990, 42 USC 12131 to 12134;

the individuals with disabilities education act amendments of 1997,

Public Law 105-17; and the implementing regulations for those

statutes. The provider or providers of the Michigan merit

examination and the superintendent of public instruction shall

mutually agree upon the accommodations to be provided under this

subsection.

(10) To the greatest extent possible, the Michigan merit

examination shall be based on grade level content expectations or

course content expectations, as appropriate. Not later than July 1,

2008, the department shall identify specific grade level content

expectations to be taught before and after the middle of grade 11,

so that teachers will know what content will be covered within the

Michigan merit examination.

(11) A child who is a student in a nonpublic school or home

school may take the Michigan merit examination under this section.

To take the Michigan merit examination, a child who is a student in

a home school shall contact the school district in which the child

resides, and that school district shall administer the Michigan

merit examination, or the child may take the Michigan merit

examination at a nonpublic school if allowed by the nonpublic

school. Upon request from a nonpublic school, the superintendent of

public instruction shall direct the provider or providers to supply

the Michigan merit examination to the nonpublic school and the

nonpublic school may administer the Michigan merit examination. If

a school district administers the Michigan merit examination under

this subsection to a child who is not enrolled in the school

district, the scores for that child are not considered for any

purpose to be scores of a pupil of the school district.

(12) In contracting under subsection (2), the department of

technology, management, and budget shall consider a contractor that

provides electronically-scored essays with the ability to score

constructed response feedback in multiple languages and provide

ongoing instruction and feedback.

(13) The purpose of the Michigan merit examination is to

assess pupil performance in mathematics, science, social studies,

and English language arts for the purpose of improving academic

achievement and establishing a statewide standard of competency.

The assessment under this section provides a common measure of data

that will contribute to the improvement of Michigan schools'

curriculum and instruction by encouraging alignment with Michigan's

curriculum framework standards and promotes pupil participation in

higher level mathematics, science, social studies, and English

language arts courses. These standards are based upon the

expectations of what pupils should learn through high school and

are aligned with national standards.

(14) In addition to the other requirements of this section and

the requirements of 1970 PA 38, MCL 388.1081 to 388.1086, beginning

with assessments conducted during the 2015-2016 school year, the

superintendent of public instruction shall ensure that the Michigan

merit examination social studies component and the M-STEP and any

successor state assessment for social studies, as appropriate,

include questions related to the learning objectives in the state

board recommended model core academic curriculum standards

concerning genocide, including, but not limited to, the Holocaust.

(15) ~~(14)~~ As used in this section: