E2SSB 5244 -
By Committee on Education
NOT CONSIDERED
Strike everything after the enacting clause and insert the following:
"NEW SECTION. Sec. 1 A new section is added to chapter 28A.600
RCW to read as follows:
(1) The office of the superintendent of public instruction shall
convene a discipline task force to develop standard definitions for
causes of student disciplinary actions taken at the discretion of the
school district. The task force must also develop data collection
standards for disciplinary actions that are discretionary and for
disciplinary actions that result in the exclusion of a student from
school. The data collection standards must include data about
education services provided while a student is subject to a
disciplinary action, the status of petitions for readmission to the
school district when a student has been excluded from school, credit
retrieval during a period of exclusion, and school dropout as a result
of disciplinary action.
(2) The discipline task force shall include representatives from
the K-12 data governance group, the educational opportunity gap
oversight and accountability committee, the state ethnic commissions,
the governor's office of Indian affairs, the office of the education
ombudsman, school districts, and other education and advocacy
organizations.
(3) The office of the superintendent of public instruction and the
K-12 data governance group shall revise the statewide student data
system to incorporate the student discipline data collection standards
recommended by the discipline task force, and begin collecting data
based on the revised standards in the 2015-16 school year.
Sec. 2 RCW 28A.600.015 and 2006 c 263 s 701 are each amended to
read as follows:
(1) The superintendent of public instruction shall adopt and
distribute to all school districts lawful and reasonable rules
prescribing the substantive and procedural due process guarantees of
pupils in the common schools. Such rules shall authorize a school
district to use informal due process procedures in connection with the
short-term suspension of students to the extent constitutionally
permissible: PROVIDED, That the superintendent of public instruction
deems the interest of students to be adequately protected. When a
student suspension or expulsion is appealed, the rules shall authorize
a school district to impose the suspension or expulsion temporarily
after an initial hearing for no more than ten consecutive school days
or until the appeal is decided, whichever is earlier. Any days that
the student is temporarily suspended or expelled before the appeal is
decided shall be applied to the term of the student suspension or
expulsion and shall not limit or extend the term of the student
suspension or expulsion. A suspension or expulsion of a student may
not be for an indefinite period of time, and a school district may not
suspend the provision of educational services to a student as a
disciplinary measure.
(2) Short-term suspension procedures may be used for suspensions of
students up to and including, ten consecutive school days.
(3) Emergency expulsions must end or be converted to another form
of corrective action within ten school days from the date of the
emergency removal from school. Notice and due process rights must be
provided to students when an emergency expulsion is converted to
another form of corrective action.
(4) A school district may not impose a disciplinary action that
results in the suspension of educational services to a student. A
student may be excluded from a particular classroom or instructional or
activity area for the period of suspension, but the school district
must provide an opportunity for the student to receive educational
services in an alternative manner, which may include services provided
through an alternative program, at an alternative school, or at an
alternative location within the student's regular school.
Sec. 3 RCW 28A.600.020 and 2006 c 263 s 706 are each amended to
read as follows:
(1) The rules adopted pursuant to RCW 28A.600.010 shall be
interpreted to ensure that the optimum learning atmosphere of the
classroom is maintained, and that the highest consideration is given to
the judgment of qualified certificated educators regarding conditions
necessary to maintain the optimum learning atmosphere.
(2) Any student who creates a disruption of the educational process
in violation of the building disciplinary standards while under a
teacher's immediate supervision may be excluded by the teacher from his
or her individual classroom and instructional or activity area for all
or any portion of the balance of the school day, or up to the following
two days, or until the principal or designee and teacher have
conferred, whichever occurs first. Except in emergency circumstances,
the teacher first must attempt one or more alternative forms of
corrective action. In no event without the consent of the teacher may
an excluded student return to the class during the balance of that
class or activity period or up to the following two days, or until the
principal or his or her designee and the teacher have conferred.
(3) In order to preserve a beneficial learning environment for all
students and to maintain good order and discipline in each classroom,
every school district board of directors shall provide that written
procedures are developed for administering discipline at each school
within the district. Such procedures shall be developed with the
participation of ((parents)) families and the community, and shall
provide that the teacher, principal or designee, and other authorities
designated by the board of directors, make every reasonable attempt to
involve the ((parent)) family or guardian and the student in the
resolution of student discipline problems. Such procedures shall
provide that students may be excluded from their individual classes or
activities for periods of time in excess of that provided in subsection
(2) of this section if such students have repeatedly disrupted the
learning of other students. The procedures must be consistent with the
rules of the superintendent of public instruction and must provide for
early involvement of ((parents)) families in attempts to improve the
student's behavior.
(4) The procedures shall assure, pursuant to RCW 28A.400.110, that
all staff work cooperatively toward consistent enforcement of proper
student behavior throughout each school as well as within each
classroom.
(5)(a) A principal ((shall)) may consider imposing long-term
suspension or expulsion as a sanction when deciding the appropriate
disciplinary action for a student who, after July 27, 1997:
(((a))) (i) Engages in two or more violations within a three-year
period of RCW 9A.46.120, 28A.320.135, 28A.600.455, 28A.600.460,
28A.635.020, 28A.600.020, 28A.635.060, or 9.41.280((, or 28A.320.140));
or
(((b))) (ii) Engages in one or more of the offenses listed in RCW
13.04.155.
(b) The principal shall communicate the disciplinary action taken
by the principal to the school personnel who referred the student to
the principal for disciplinary action.
(6) Any corrective action involving a suspension or expulsion from
school for more than ten days must have an end date no later than the
end of the academic term in which the student exhibited behavior
leading to a corrective action. In consultation with families and
guardians of students subject to corrective action, school districts
shall make reasonable efforts to assist students in returning to an
educational setting prior to and no later than the end date of the
corrective action. Where warranted based on public health or safety,
a school district may petition the superintendent of public
instruction, pursuant to policies and procedures adopted by the
superintendent of public instruction, for authorization to exceed the
academic term limitation provided in this subsection. The
superintendent of public instruction shall adopt rules outlining the
limited circumstances in which a school district may petition the
superintendent of public instruction to exceed the academic term
limitation, including safeguards to ensure that the district has made
every effort to plan for the student's return to school and that the
student's extended expulsion from the district does not impair the
student's constitutional right to education. In adopting rules and
reviewing petitions to exceed the academic term limitation, the
superintendent of public instruction must assure that students receive
educational services while serving a suspension or expulsion. A
petition to exceed the academic term limitation shall not be granted by
the superintendent of public instruction if a school district does not
provide educational services to a student serving a suspension or
expulsion.
(7) As provided in RCW 28A.600.015, a school district may not
impose disciplinary action that results in the suspension of
educational services to a student.
Sec. 4 RCW 28A.600.410 and 1992 c 155 s 1 are each amended to
read as follows:
It is the intent of the legislature to minimize the use of out-of-school suspension and expulsion and its impact on student achievement
by reducing the number of days that students are excluded from school
due to disciplinary action. Student discipline should not impair a
student's constitutional right to education.
School districts are encouraged to find alternatives to suspension
including reducing the length of a student's suspension conditioned by
the commencement of counseling or other treatment services. Consistent
with current law, the conditioning of a student's suspension does not
obligate the school district to pay for the counseling or other
treatment services except for those stipulated and agreed to by the
district at the inception of the suspension.
Sec. 5 RCW 28A.600.460 and 1997 c 266 s 9 are each amended to
read as follows:
(1) School district boards of directors shall adopt policies that
restore discipline to the classroom. Such policies must provide for at
least the following: Allowing each teacher to take disciplinary action
to correct a student who disrupts normal classroom activities, abuses
or insults a teacher as prohibited by RCW 28A.635.010, willfully
disobeys a teacher, uses abusive or foul language directed at a school
district employee, school volunteer, or another student, violates
school rules, or who interferes with an orderly education process.
Disciplinary action may include but is not limited to: Oral or written
reprimands; written notification to parents of disruptive behavior, a
copy of which must be provided to the principal.
(2) A student committing an offense under chapter 9A.36, 9A.40,
9A.46, or 9A.48 RCW when the activity is directed toward the teacher,
shall not be assigned to that teacher's classroom for the duration of
the student's attendance at that school or any other school where the
teacher is assigned.
(3) A student who commits an offense under chapter 9A.36, 9A.40,
9A.46, or 9A.48 RCW, when directed toward another student, may be
removed from the classroom of the victim for the duration of the
student's attendance at that school or any other school where the
victim is enrolled. A student who commits an offense under one of the
chapters enumerated in this section against a student or another school
employee, may be expelled or suspended.
(4) Nothing in this section is intended to limit the authority of
a school under existing law and rules to expel or suspend a student for
misconduct or criminal behavior. However, as provided in RCW
28A.600.015, a school district may not impose disciplinary action that
results in the suspension of educational services to a student.
(5) All school districts must collect data on disciplinary actions
taken in each school and must record such actions using the statewide
student data system, based on the data collection standards established
by the office of the superintendent of public instruction and the K-12
data governance group. The information shall be made available to the
public upon request((. This collection of)), but any public release of
such data shall not include personally identifiable information
including, but not limited to, a student's social security number,
name, or address.
Sec. 6 RCW 43.41.400 and 2012 c 229 s 585 are each amended to
read as follows:
(1) An education data center shall be established in the office of
financial management. The education data center shall jointly, with
the legislative evaluation and accountability program committee,
conduct collaborative analyses of early learning, K-12, and higher
education programs and education issues across the P-20 system, which
includes the department of early learning, the superintendent of public
instruction, the professional educator standards board, the state board
of education, the state board for community and technical colleges, the
workforce training and education coordinating board, the student
achievement council, public and private nonprofit four-year
institutions of higher education, and the employment security
department. The education data center shall conduct collaborative
analyses under this section with the legislative evaluation and
accountability program committee and provide data electronically to the
legislative evaluation and accountability program committee, to the
extent permitted by state and federal confidentiality requirements.
The education data center shall be considered an authorized
representative of the state educational agencies in this section under
applicable federal and state statutes for purposes of accessing and
compiling student record data for research purposes.
(2) The education data center shall:
(a) In consultation with the legislative evaluation and
accountability program committee and the agencies and organizations
participating in the education data center, identify the critical
research and policy questions that are intended to be addressed by the
education data center and the data needed to address the questions;
(b) Coordinate with other state education agencies to compile and
analyze education data, including data on student demographics that is
disaggregated by distinct ethnic categories within racial subgroups,
and complete P-20 research projects;
(c) Collaborate with the legislative evaluation and accountability
program committee and the education and fiscal committees of the
legislature in identifying the data to be compiled and analyzed to
ensure that legislative interests are served;
(d) Annually provide to the K-12 data governance group a list of
data elements and data quality improvements that are necessary to
answer the research and policy questions identified by the education
data center and have been identified by the legislative committees in
(c) of this subsection. Within three months of receiving the list, the
K-12 data governance group shall develop and transmit to the education
data center a feasibility analysis of obtaining or improving the data,
including the steps required, estimated time frame, and the financial
and other resources that would be required. Based on the analysis, the
education data center shall submit, if necessary, a recommendation to
the legislature regarding any statutory changes or resources that would
be needed to collect or improve the data;
(e) Monitor and evaluate the education data collection systems of
the organizations and agencies represented in the education data center
ensuring that data systems are flexible, able to adapt to evolving
needs for information, and to the extent feasible and necessary,
include data that are needed to conduct the analyses and provide
answers to the research and policy questions identified in (a) of this
subsection;
(f) Track enrollment and outcomes through the public centralized
higher education enrollment system;
(g) Assist other state educational agencies' collaborative efforts
to develop a long-range enrollment plan for higher education including
estimates to meet demographic and workforce needs;
(h) Provide research that focuses on student transitions within and
among the early learning, K-12, and higher education sectors in the P-20 system; ((and))
(i) Prepare a regular report on the educational and workforce
outcomes of youth in the juvenile justice system, using data
disaggregated according to RCW 28A.300.042, and by age; and
(j) Make recommendations to the legislature as necessary to help
ensure the goals and objectives of this section and RCW 28A.655.210 and
28A.300.507 are met.
(3) The department of early learning, superintendent of public
instruction, professional educator standards board, state board of
education, state board for community and technical colleges, workforce
training and education coordinating board, student achievement council,
public four-year institutions of higher education, department of social
and health services, and employment security department shall work with
the education data center to develop data-sharing and research
agreements, consistent with applicable security and confidentiality
requirements, to facilitate the work of the center. The education data
center shall also develop data-sharing and research agreements with the
administrative office of the courts to conduct research on educational
and workforce outcomes using data maintained under RCW 13.50.010(11)
related to juveniles. Private, nonprofit institutions of higher
education that provide programs of education beyond the high school
level leading at least to the baccalaureate degree and are accredited
by the Northwest association of schools and colleges or their peer
accreditation bodies may also develop data-sharing and research
agreements with the education data center, consistent with applicable
security and confidentiality requirements. The education data center
shall make data from collaborative analyses available to the education
agencies and institutions that contribute data to the education data
center to the extent allowed by federal and state security and
confidentiality requirements applicable to the data of each
contributing agency or institution.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 7 A new section is added to chapter 28A.600
RCW to read as follows:
(1) School districts should make efforts to have suspended or
expelled students return to the educational setting they were suspended
or expelled from as soon as possible. School districts should convene
a school reenrollment meeting with the student and the student's family
or guardians within twenty days of the student's long-term suspension
or expulsion, but no later than five days before the student's
enrollment, to discuss a plan to reenroll and reengage the student in
a school program.
(2) In developing a reenrollment and reengagement plan, school
districts should consider shortening the length of time that the
student is suspended or expelled, other forms of corrective action, and
supportive interventions that aid in the student's academic success and
keep the student engaged and on track to graduate. School districts
must create a reenrollment and reengagement plan tailored to the
student's individual circumstances, including consideration of the
incident that led to the student's long-term suspension or expulsion.
The plan should aid the student in taking the necessary steps to remedy
the situation that led to the student's suspension or expulsion.
(3) Any reenrollment meetings conducted by the school district
involving the suspended or expelled student and his or her family or
guardians are not intended to replace a petition for readmission.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 8 Nothing in chapter . . ., Laws of 2013 (this
act) prevents a public school district, law enforcement agencies, or
law enforcement personnel from enforcing laws protecting health and
human safety."
Correct the title.
EFFECT: Makes the following changes to the underlying bill:
Replaces the data collection elements of the bill with the creation
of a discipline task force that must develop standard definitions of
student disciplinary actions and requires OSPI and the K-12 Data
Governance Group to revise the statewide data system to incorporate
student discipline data collection standards recommended by the task
force and begin collecting that data in the 2015-16 school year.
Prohibits school districts from suspending the provision of
educational services to a student as a disciplinary measure or imposing
a disciplinary action that results in the suspension of educational
services.
Requires that school districts provide an opportunity for a student
to receive educational services in an alternative manner.
Replaces the one year limitation for corrective actions with a
requirement that corrective actions have an end date no later than the
end of the academic term in which the student exhibited the behavior
leading to a corrective action.
Modifies the authority for OSPI to grant exemptions beyond the
academic term limitation to require OSPI to adopt rules outlining the
limited circumstances in which it will grant exemptions and assuring
that students receive educational services.
Prohibits OSPI from granting exemptions to the corrective action
end date requirement unless school districts provided educational
services during the suspension or expulsion.
Replaces the term "reentry" with the term "reenrollment" when
referring to plans and meetings between students serving corrective
action, parents or guardians, and school districts.
Removes the requirement that WSSDA develop a model policy for
school districts to implement changes to suspension and expulsion
policies.
Modifies the requirement that principals must consider long-term
suspension after students engage in certain behavior to provide that
principals may consider long-term suspensions in those circumstances.
Removes dress and grooming code violations from the list of laws
which principals may consider imposing a long-term suspension for if a
student violates two or more times in a three year period.
Replaces the term parents with the term family or families as
individuals that schools will involve to plan for student reenrollment
with school programs.
Adds to the duties of the Education Data Center a requirement that
they prepare a regular report on the educational and workforce outcomes
of youth in the juvenile justice system, using disaggregated data and
also develop data-sharing and research agreements with the
administrative office of the courts to conduct research on educational
and workforce outcomes of the same youth.
Specifies that school reenrollment meetings should occur no later
than five days prior to a student's reenrollment.