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| Public Act 102-0463 | ||||
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AN ACT concerning education.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section | ||||
2-3.80 as follows:
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(105 ILCS 5/2-3.80) (from Ch. 122, par. 2-3.80)
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Sec. 2-3.80. (a) The General Assembly recognizes that | ||||
agriculture is
the most basic and singularly important | ||||
industry in the State, that
agriculture is of central | ||||
importance to the welfare and economic stability
of the State, | ||||
and that the maintenance of this vital industry requires a
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continued source of trained and qualified individuals for | ||||
employment in
agriculture and agribusiness. The General | ||||
Assembly hereby declares that it
is in the best interests of | ||||
the people of the State of Illinois that a
comprehensive | ||||
education program in agriculture be created and maintained by
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the State's public school system in order to ensure an | ||||
adequate supply of
trained and skilled individuals and to | ||||
ensure appropriate representation of
racial and ethnic groups | ||||
in all phases of the industry. It is the intent
of the General | ||||
Assembly that a State program for agricultural education
shall | ||||
be a part of the curriculum of the public school system K | ||||
through
adult, and made readily available to all school | ||||
districts which may, at
their option, include programs in | ||
education in agriculture as a part of the
curriculum of that | ||
district.
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(b) The State Board of Education shall adopt such rules | ||
and regulations
as are necessary to implement the provisions | ||
of this Section. The rules
and regulations shall not create | ||
any new State mandates on school districts
as a condition of | ||
receiving federal, State, and local funds by those
entities. | ||
It is in the intent of the General Assembly that, although this
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Section does not create any new mandates, school districts are | ||
strongly
advised to follow the guidelines set forth in this | ||
Section.
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(c) The State Superintendent of Education shall assume | ||
responsibility
for the administration of the State program | ||
adopted under this Section
throughout the public school system | ||
as well as the articulation of the
State program to the | ||
requirements and mandates of federally assisted
education. | ||
There is currently within the State Board of Education an
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agricultural education unit to assist school districts in the | ||
establishment
and maintenance of educational programs pursuant | ||
to the provisions of this
Section. The staffing of the unit | ||
shall at all times be comprised of an
appropriate number of | ||
full-time employees who shall serve as program
consultants in | ||
agricultural education and shall be available to provide
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assistance to school districts. At least one consultant shall | ||
be
responsible for the coordination of the State program, as | ||
Head Consultant.
At least one consultant shall be responsible | ||
for the coordination of the
activities of student and | ||
agricultural organizations and associations.
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(d) A committee of 13 agriculturalists representative of | ||
the various and
diverse areas of the agricultural industry in | ||
Illinois shall be established
to at least develop a curriculum | ||
and overview the implementation of the
Build Illinois through | ||
Quality Agricultural Education plans of the Illinois
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Leadership Council for Agricultural Education and to advise
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the State Board of Education on vocational agricultural | ||
education, including the administration of the agricultural | ||
education line item appropriation and agency rulemaking that | ||
affects agricultural education educators. The
committee | ||
Committee shall be composed of the following: | ||
(1) 3 (6) agriculturalists
representing the Illinois | ||
Leadership Council for Agricultural Education; | ||
(2) 3 agriculturalists; | ||
(3) 2 secondary agriculture teachers
(2) Secondary | ||
Agriculture Teachers; | ||
(4) one representative of (1) "Ag In The Classroom" | ||
Teacher; | ||
(5) one community college agriculture teacher (1)
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Community College Agriculture Teacher; | ||
(6) one adult agriculture educator (1) Adult | ||
Agriculture Education
Teacher; | ||
(7) one university agriculture teacher educator (1) | ||
University Agriculture Teacher Educator; and | ||
(8) one FFA representative (1) FFA
Representative. | ||
All members of the committee Committee shall be appointed | ||
by the
Governor by and with the advice and consent of the | ||
Senate. The terms of
all members so appointed shall be for 3 | ||
years, except that of the members
initially appointed, 5 shall | ||
be appointed to serve for terms of one 1 year, 4
shall be | ||
appointed to serve for terms of 2 years, and 4 shall be | ||
appointed
to serve for terms of 3 years. All members of the | ||
committee Committee shall serve
until their successors are | ||
appointed and qualified. Subject to a requirement that | ||
committee members in office before the effective date of this | ||
amendatory Act of 102nd General Assembly may serve the full | ||
term to which they were appointed, the appointment of | ||
committee members to terms that commence on or after the | ||
effective date of this amendatory Act of the 102nd General | ||
Assembly shall be made in a manner that gives effect at the | ||
earliest possible time to the changes that are required by | ||
this amendatory Act of the 102nd General Assembly in the | ||
representative composition of the committee's membership. | ||
Vacancies in terms
shall be filled by appointment of the | ||
Governor with the advice and consent
of the Senate for the | ||
extent of the unexpired term. | ||
The State Board of
Education shall implement a Build | ||
Illinois through Quality Agricultural
Education plan following | ||
receipt of these recommendations, which
shall be made | ||
available on or before March 31, 1987.
Recommendations shall | ||
include, but not be limited to, the development of a
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curriculum and a strategy for the purpose of establishing a | ||
source of
trained and qualified individuals in agriculture, a | ||
strategy for
articulating the State program in agricultural | ||
education throughout the
public school system, and a consumer | ||
education outreach strategy regarding
the importance of | ||
agriculture in Illinois. | ||
The committee of agriculturalists
shall serve without | ||
compensation.
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(e) A school district that offers a secondary agricultural | ||
education program that is approved for State and federal | ||
funding must ensure that, at a minimum, all of the following | ||
are available to its secondary agricultural education | ||
students: | ||
(1) An instructional sequence of courses approved by | ||
the State Board of Education. | ||
(2) A State and nationally affiliated FFA (Future | ||
Farmers of America) chapter that is integral to | ||
instruction and is not treated solely as an | ||
extracurricular activity. | ||
(3) A mechanism for ensuring the involvement of all | ||
secondary agricultural education students in formal, | ||
supervised, agricultural-experience activities and | ||
programs.
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(f) Nothing in this Section may prevent those secondary | ||
agricultural education programs that are in operation before | ||
January 1, 2007 (the effective date of Public Act 94-855) this | ||
amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly and that do not | ||
have an active State and nationally affiliated FFA chapter | ||
from continuing to operate or from continuing to receive | ||
funding from the State Board of Education.
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(Source: P.A. 94-855, eff. 1-1-07; revised 8-24-20.)
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