H. B. 4022
(By Delegates Mezzatesta and Williams)
[Introduced January 11, 2002; referred to the
Committee on Education then Finance.]
A BILL to amend article two, chapter eighteen of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by
adding thereto a new section, designated section thirty-five,
relating to establishing a more formal method to fund programs
that strengthen student learning ability; requiring the state
board to establish a process with certain elements and
promulgate a rule to implement section.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article two, chapter eighteen of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section
thirty-five, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION.
§18-2-35. Programs to strengthen student learning ability.
(a) The Legislature finds that schools that have implemented programs to strengthen student learning ability are reporting
statistically significant improvement in the statewide test scores
in reading, language and math of students referred to the programs.
Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature through this section
to establish a more formal method to fund programs that strengthen
student learning ability.
(b) The state board shall establish a program for
strengthening student learning ability that includes the following:
(1) A procedure for schools to apply for funds to implement
programs to strengthen student learning ability in accordance with
the provisions of this section;
(2) Specific factors for determining the need for each school
applying for funds in accordance with subsection (e) of this
section;
(3) A method for judging applications for funds on a
competitive basis; and
(4) A determination of the maximum percentage of total funds
appropriated for the purposes of this section which may be
distributed for use in grades six through twelve so that the
priority for program implementation is at the prekindergarten and
elementary levels.
(c) Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section, a
school is not eligible to receive an award of funds appropriated
for the purposes of this section unless the proposed program includes the following:
(1) Assessment of the cognitive abilities of students;
(2) Physical screening that identifies barriers to a student's
ability to learn;
(3) Development of a student-specific program to improve
student learning ability based on the results of the assessment and
physical screening;
(4) Administration of learning development exercises that
strengthen the ability of students to learn; and
(5) An evaluation of the program's impact, including factors
such as student test scores and other measures of student
performance, the program's impact on special education referrals,
program cost and other information considered important for judging
the value of the program.
(d) A school is eligible to receive an award of funds
appropriated for the purposes of this section for the
implementation of an early childhood system to strengthen student
learning abilities that includes cognitive/perceptual exercises for
all children which are clearly based on the same intellectual
premise, and are intended to address for all students the same
developmental needs, as the more individual specific remedies
required for programs under subsection (c) of this section. The
programs shall include a method for evaluating program impact using
appropriate measures of early childhood student development and progress.
(e) All the funds appropriated for the purposes of this
section shall be distributed to schools based upon need as
determined by the state board. In determining need, the state
board may consider such things as the assessment test scores of the
students, percentage of students who are enrolled in special
education programs, dropout rates, attendance rates, the number of
at-risk students, monetary and in-kind resources available from
other sources that will be committed to the program and any other
indicators the state board determines appropriate.
(f) The state board shall promulgate a rule pursuant to
article three-b, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code to implement
the provisions of this section.
(g) Nothing in this section requires any specific level of
funding by the Legislature.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.