Public Act 094-0507
 		





SB0010 Enrolled
LRB094 04952 RAS 34981 b






    AN ACT concerning education.

 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:


 
    Section 5. The State Finance Act is amended by adding 
Section
5.640 as follows:


 
    (30 ILCS 105/5.640 new)


    Sec. 5.640. The Parental Participation Pilot Project Fund. 
This Section is repealed on December 31, 2010.

 
    Section 10. The School Code is amended  by adding Section 
2-3.137 as follows:
 
    (105 ILCS 5/2-3.137  new)
    Sec. 2-3.137. Parental participation pilot project.

    (a) By the beginning of the 2006-2007 school year, the 
State Board of Education shall by rule establish a parental 
participation pilot project to provide grants to the lowest 
performing school districts to help such districts improve 
parental participation through activities, including, but not 
limited to, parent-teacher conferences, open houses, family 
nights, volunteer opportunities, and family outreach 
materials.
    (b) The pilot project shall be for a period of at least 4 
school years. The State Board shall establish a procedure and 
develop criteria for the administration of the pilot project. 
In administering the pilot project, the State Board shall do 
the following:

        (1) select participating school districts or schools;

        (2) define the conditions for the distribution and use
    
    of grant funds;
        (3) enter into contracts as necessary to implement the
    
    pilot project; and

        (4) monitor local pilot project implementation.

    (c) The Parental Participation Pilot Project Fund is 
created as a special fund in the State treasury. All money in 
the Parental Participation Pilot Project Fund shall be used, 
subject to appropriation, by the State Board for the pilot 
project. To implement the pilot project, the State Board may 
use any funds appropriated by the General Assembly for the 
purposes of the pilot project as well as any gift, grant, or 
donation given for the pilot project. The State Board may 
solicit and accept a gift, grant, or donation of any kind from 
any source, including from a foundation, private entity, 
governmental entity, or institution of higher education, for 
the implementation of the pilot project.

    The State Board shall use pilot project funds for grants to 
low-performing school districts to encourage parental 
participation.

    The State Board may not allocate more than $250,000 
annually for the pilot project. The pilot project may be 
implemented only if sufficient funds are available under this 
Section for that purpose.

    (d) A school district may apply to the State Board for the 
establishment of a parental participation pilot project for the 
entire district or for a particular school or group of schools 
in the district.

    The State Board shall select 4 school districts to 
participate in the pilot project. One school district shall be 
located in the City of Chicago, one school district shall be 
located in that portion of Cook County that is located outside 
of the City of Chicago, one school district shall be located in 
the area that makes up the counties of DuPage, Kane, Lake, 
McHenry, and Will, and one school district shall be located in 
the remainder of the State.

    The State Board shall select the participating districts 
and schools for the pilot project based on each district's or 
school's need for the pilot project. In selecting participants, 
the State Board shall consider the following criteria:

        (1) whether the district or school has any of the 
    following
    problems and whether those problems can be 
    mitigated or addressed
    through enhanced parental 
    participation:
            (A) low rates of satisfactory performance on
        
        assessment instruments under Section 2-3.64 of this
        
        Code;

            (B) high rates of low-income students, limited 
        English proficient students, dropouts, chronically 
        truant students, and student mobility; or

            (C) low student attendance rates; and

        (2) the methods the district or school will use to 
    measure the progress of the pilot project in the district 
    or school in accordance with subsection (f) of this 
    Section.

    (e) Each participating school district or school shall 
establish a parental participation committee to assist in 
developing and implementing the parental participation pilot 
project.

    The school board of a participating district or of a 
district in which a participating school is located shall 
appoint individuals to the committee. The committee may be 
composed of any of the following:

        (1) educators;

        (2) district-level administrators;

        (3) community leaders;

        (4) parents of students who attend a participating 
    school; or

        (5) any other individual the school board finds 
    appropriate.

    The committee shall develop an academic improvement plan 
that details how the pilot project should be implemented in the 
participating district or school. In developing the academic 
improvement plan, the committee shall consider the educational 
problems in the district or school that could be mitigated 
through the implementation of the pilot project.

    The committee shall recommend to the school board how the 
pilot project funds should be used to implement the academic 
improvement plan. The committee may recommend annually any 
necessary changes in the academic improvement plan to the 
school board. The State Board must approve the academic 
improvement plan or any changes in the academic improvement 
plan before disbursing pilot project funds to the school board.

    (f) The school board of each school district participating 
in the pilot project shall send an annual progress report to 
the State Board no later than August 1 of each year that the 
district is participating in the pilot project. The report must 
state in detail the type of plan being used in the district or 
school and the effect of the pilot project on the district or 
school, including the following:

        (1) the academic progress of students who are 
    participating in the pilot project, as measured by 
    performance on assessment instruments;
        (2) if applicable, a comparison of student progress in 
    a school or classroom that is participating in the pilot 
    project as compared with student progress in the schools or 
    classrooms in the district that are not participating in 
    the pilot project;
        (3) any elements of the pilot project that contribute 
    to improved student performance on assessment instruments 
    administered under Section 2-3.64 of this Code or any other 
    assessment instrument required by the State Board;

        (4) any cost savings and improved efficiency relating 
    to school personnel;
        (5) any effect on student dropout and attendance rates;

        (6) any effect on student enrollment in higher 
    education;

        (7) any effect on teacher performance and retention;
        (8) any improvement in communications among students, 
    teachers, parents, and administrators;

        (9) any improvement in parental involvement in the 
    education of the parent's child; and
        (10) any effect on community involvement and support 
    for the district or school.

    (g) After the expiration of the 4-year pilot project, the 
State Board shall review the pilot project, based on the annual 
reports the State Board receives from the school boards of 
participating school districts, conduct a final evaluation, 
and report its findings to the General Assembly no later than 
December 31, 2010.

    (h) This Section is repealed on December 31, 2010.

 

    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
becoming law.