(a) The State Board of Education shall develop a five-year implementation plan with appropriate goals and strategies to achieve resource equity and equality of opportunity, increase student achievement, reduce racial, ethnic and economic isolation, improve effective instruction and encourage greater parental and community involvement in all public schools of the state. The implementation plan shall: (1) Include methods for significantly reducing over a five-year period any disparities among school districts in terms of resources, staff, programs and curriculum, student achievement and community involvement that negatively impact student learning, (2) provide for monitoring by the Department of Education of the progress made in reducing such disparities, and (3) include proposals for minority staff recruitment, including but not limited to, alternative certification, mentoring programs, involvement of the community-technical colleges and efforts by regional educational service centers.
(b) Prior to developing the plan, the State Board of Education shall conduct a state-wide assessment of the disparities among local and regional school districts and make comparisons to relevant national standards or regional accreditation standards, in the areas of: (1) Resources, including educational materials, supplies, equipment, textbooks, library materials, facilities and expenditures by category and in total; (2) staff, including the education and experience of teachers, staff-student ratios, the racial and ethnic characteristics of staff, minority staff recruitment and a comparison of the racial diversity of school staffs to the racial diversity of the region where the school is located; (3) program and curriculum, including course offerings, requirements, enrollments in advanced, special and compensatory education, programs and services to students with limited English proficiency and an analysis of such programs and services in terms of the recommendations of the bilingual education task force, policies on student assignment and promotion, extracurricular activities and student participation, goals and objectives and content and performance standards, opportunities for summer school, school-to-career transition, alternative education, as defined in section 10-74j, alternative educational opportunities, and parent-student choice of school or program; (4) student achievement, including the effect of social promotional policies on student achievement, state and national assessments, dropout rates, attendance, graduation follow-up data, artistic, athletic and community service accomplishments, other documentation of student success, and success in reducing the racial, ethnic and economic isolation of students; and (5) community involvement, including parent and family contact with the school and teachers, business partnerships, joint programs with community agencies, town-wide preschool coordination, opportunities for adult basic education and parenting education.
(c) (1) The State Board of Education shall report, in accordance with section 11-4a, on the plan developed pursuant to this section to the Governor and the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education by February 1, 1998. The report shall: (A) Include the results of the assessment conducted pursuant to subdivisions (1) and (2) of subsection (b) of this section, (B) include recommendations for changes in state law, budget proposals and administrative actions, where appropriate, that would assist in reducing the disparities among school districts and increasing the accountability of school districts, and (C) identify the responsibility of individual boards of education to achieve the goals as specified in subsection (a) of this section in their school districts. (2) On or before January 1, 1999, the State Board of Education shall so report, to the Governor and said committee on (A) the assessment conducted pursuant to subdivisions (3) to (5), inclusive, of subsection (b) of this section, (B) include recommendations described in subparagraph (B) of subdivision (1) of this subsection and (C) identify the responsibility of individual boards of education to take specific action to improve conditions in their school districts. (3) On or before January 1, 2001, and biennially thereafter, the State Board of Education shall so report to the Governor and said committee on the progress made in reducing the disparities among school districts and the remaining barriers to and recommendations for achieving the goals specified in subsection (a) of this section.
(P.A. 97-290, S. 4, 29; P.A. 15-133, S. 6.)
History: P.A. 97-290 effective July 1, 1997; P.A. 15-133 amended Subsec. (b)(3) by replacing “alternative programs” with “alternative education, as defined in section 10-74j, alternative educational opportunities”, effective July 1, 2015.
Structure Connecticut General Statutes
Title 10 - Education and Culture
Chapter 163 - State Board of Education. Department of Education
Section 10-1. - Appointment of board members.
Section 10-2a. - Student Advisory Council on Education.
Section 10-3. - Prosecuting agents to enforce school laws.
Section 10-3b. - Annual report to the General Assembly re State Education Resource Center.
Section 10-4a. - Educational interests of state identified.
Section 10-4c. - State board to monitor state grants to local and regional boards.
Section 10-4d. - Advisory committee on educational equity.
Section 10-4e. - Coordination and planning for educational technology.
Section 10-4f. - State Board of Education. Copyright authority.
Section 10-4g. - Parental and community involvement in schools; model program; school-based teams.
Section 10-4h. - Grant program for telecommunications projects.
Section 10-4l. - Advisory committee on school district reporting requirements.
Section 10-4m. - Commission on Educational Excellence.
Section 10-4n. - Committee on Educational Equity and Excellence.
Section 10-4s. - Reports and evaluations re school governance councils and reconstituted schools.
Section 10-4t. - Reports and evaluations re school governance councils.
Section 10-4u. - Parent Trust Fund.
Section 10-4v. - Innovation waivers. Procedural requirements. Legislative review.
Section 10-5a. - Educational technology and high school graduation requirements.
Section 10-5b. - Department of Education web site.
Section 10-5c. - Academic advancement program.
Section 10-5e. - Development or approval of end of the school year examinations.
Section 10-7e. - Occupational schools in existence on October 1, 1979.
Section 10-7v. - Digital Citizenship, Internet Safety and Media Literacy Advisory Council.
Section 10-8b. - Teacher shortages.
Section 10-8c. - Accelerated cross endorsement. Former teacher certification.
Section 10-9. - Bequests for educational purposes.
Section 10-9a. - Misuse of state funds or resources. Civil action by department.
Section 10-10. - Acquisition of federal surplus property.
Section 10-10b. - Inclusion of state-assigned student identifier on all official student documents.
Section 10-10c. - Uniform system of accounting. Chart of accounts. Audit.
Section 10-10d. - Regulations re fiscal accountability data collection report.
Section 10-10f. - Minimum budget requirement calculation worksheet.
Section 10-10h. - Document re resources for students and families.
Section 10-11a. - Allocation to meet matching requirements of federal acts.
Section 10-12. - State Board of Vocational Education.
Section 10-13. - Appointment of physicians for technical education and career schools.
Section 10-13a. - Fees at technical institutes.