BP BHEAD INT H [atlas:bill]

AN ACT Relating to technology grants; adding new sections to chapter 28A.650 RCW; and creating a new section.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature recognizes that prudent use of technology can result in increased student learning. Further, the use of technology is an emerging technique in the educational process, and there is a need to test new approaches of its use through pilot projects in order to establish effectiveness and details for educational best practices.

The legislature also recognizes that special circumstances can occur and selected school districts may need temporary assistance to acquire equipment and provide opportunities for staff to acquire skills necessary to effectively use technology to improve student learning.

School districts are currently allocated resources for nonemployee-related costs sufficient for purposes of basic education. The purpose of this act is to provide temporary assistance beyond basic education for technology needs of qualifying school districts through conditions established in this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. To the extent funds are provided in the omnibus appropriations act, technology grants shall be provided to qualifying school districts, consortia of school districts, or educational service districts. School districts and educational service districts are eligible for grants if they either have an ongoing program emphasizing specific approaches to learning assisted by technology or are identified by the center for the improvement of student learning based on best practices and:

(1) The school district shall match state funds on a fifty percent basis with a combination of:

(a) Contributions through partnerships with technology companies, educational service districts, institutions of higher education, community and technical colleges, or any other organization with expertise in applications of technology to learning that is willing to assist school districts in applying technology to the learning process through in-kind assistance; and

(b) School district funds; and

(2) The district has plans and means for evaluating the short and long-term student learning resulting from the technology-based strategies of the district.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. Priority for award of funds awarded under section 4 of this act will be to (1) school districts most in need of assistance due to financial limits and (2) school districts least prepared to take advantage of technology as a means of improving student learning. The superintendent of public instruction, in consultation with the technology education committee created in section 4 of this act, shall propose options to the committee for identifying and prioritizing districts according to award criteria in subsections (1) and (2) of this section. Options for review criteria to be considered by the superintendent of public instruction include, but are not limited to, free and reduced lunches, levy revenues, ending fund balances, equipment inventories, and surveys of technology preparedness.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. (1) The superintendent of public instruction shall appoint a technology education committee to develop an application and review process for awarding the technology grants established in section 2 of this act. The committee shall be appointed by the superintendent and shall consist of representatives from technology companies, technology coordinators representing educational service districts, school districts, higher education, and other relevant occupations. The superintendent shall select the chair of the committee.

(2) The technology committee shall identify the priority of projects and level of funding to the superintendent of public instruction. To the extent funds are available, the superintendent shall award technology grants according to the priority listing of districts recommended by the technology education committee.

(3) Projects funded through awards under this section may be part of multiyear projects extending beyond the effective dates of appropriations provided for the purposes of sections 2 through 4 of this act if the district commits to maintaining the project with matching funds beyond the funding period of the appropriations act funding the project.

(4) Subject to available funding, the superintendent of public instruction shall award the first round of projects by July 1, 1997. No more than fifty percent of funds provided for awards under this section may be awarded in the first round of awards.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. The superintendent of public instruction, in consultation with the appropriate committees of the legislature, shall specify the data that projects need to report in order for the superintendent of public instruction to provide a progress report to the legislature by December 15th of each year for which an appropriation is provided for sections 2 through 4 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. Sections 2 through 5 of this act are each added to chapter 28A.650 RCW.