1. Purpose

2. Establish a formal framework for creating and operating sitegoverned schools within local districts. The aim is to give a school site more decision-making authority over governance, budget, staffing, curriculum, policies, and daily operations, while still being connected to the district’s overall governance structure.

3. Main provisions

4.1 Creation and approval process - A school board may approve sitegoverned schools by issuing a request for proposals that describe the types of schools or education innovations to be created. - Approval requires execution of a sitegoverned school agreement and, if applicable, a memorandum of understanding (MOU). - Proposals can come from current sites seeking a different model (if 60% or more of the site’s teachers support it) or from groups of licensed district professionals (with parents and community members involved). - The board must decide to approve, deny, or request more information within set timelines.

4.2 Governance and autonomy - Approved schools form a sitegoverning council, which may include teachers, administrators (including the principal), parents, students (if appropriate), and community members. - Teachers can be a majority on the sitegoverning council if a majority of teachers at the site choose that. - The sitegoverning council decides leadership (including principal), budget, learning model, curriculum, assessments, and policies (including student promotion, attendance, discipline, and graduation requirements that may exceed district standards). - The site determines the length of the school day/year, and employee work rules (within the terms of applicable employment contracts). - At least 70% of site staff must be selected by the site; staff from the district may be involved but mutual consent is required for hires, including placement of staff on leave. - The school board remains the legal employer of all site staff; teachers and other staff may sign individual work agreements with the sitegoverning council about commitments to the site’s mission and learning program.

4.3 Staffing, leadership, and accountability - The leadership model (including how principal responsibilities are fulfilled) is determined by the sitegoverning council. - If the site uses a self-governing model supervised by a principal, that principal must be properly licensed. - The district retains oversight through performance standards and reporting requirements; the site must meet these standards or face remedies.

4.4 Funding, revenue, and district services - The site’s revenue includes general education funds, local and private sources, referendum funds, federal funds (e.g., federal programs) as agreed in the site agreement. - The district may retain an administrative fee to cover managing district-wide services and functions (including legal, finance, and facilities), and may provide services to the site with revenue retained accordingly. - The site’s budget allocates funds for all staff and site-specific provisions; unspent funds carry over to future years for site use. - The site is responsible for allocating revenue for all staff at the site, under the agreement with the district.

4.5 Grants to support teacher-governed schools - A grant program can support teacher-governed schools, contingent on an approved district-site agreement and a memorandum of understanding with the teachers’ exclusive representative. - Grants include: - Planning grants up to 50,000 in the first year. - Implementation grants up to 100,000 in each of the next two years. - If a site terminates the agreement early, a pro-rated portion of the grant must be returned. - Districts are encouraged to seek matching funds or in-kind contributions. - Districts must post best-practice information online, and the state commissioner must share this information to help other districts adopt similar approaches.

4.6 Exemption from statutes and rules; applicable laws - Sitegoverned schools are exempt from many standard statutes and rules, similar to charter schools, but remain subject to specific statutes and sections (e.g., certain statutory chapters and sections listed in the bill).

4.7 Performance standards and accountability - The site agreement must include performance standards, including: - Student achievement targets using multiple indicators (growth models or value-added growth models). - Clear processes for addressing failures to meet district oversight and accountability requirements. - Additional performance provisions as agreed. - All site agreements must be filed with the state commissioner. - The initial agreement lasts up to three years, with annual reviews and potential renewals of up to five years based on performance.

4.8 Termination and conversion - The school district may terminate the site agreement for: - Failure to meet the agreed provisions after at least two full school years operating under the agreement, - Violations of law, - Other good cause showing imminent risk of irreparable harm to students. - If terminated or not renewed for reasons other than “for cause,” the site may apply to convert to charter school status under Chapter 124E; if chartered, the board would own materials, supplies, and equipment purchased during the site’s operation as a sitegoverned school.

4.9 Miscellaneous - The parties to the sitegoverned school agreement have all available legal remedies beyond the agreement itself. - Other technical details include process for dispute resolution, and the possibility for a community nonprofit to participate as a party to the agreement.

1. Significance and what changes the bill would bring

• Introduces an explicit framework for establishing and governing sitegoverned schools with substantial local control over governance, staffing, curriculum, and operations.
• Establishes a formal sitegoverning council with specific composition rules and a pathway for staffing decisions and leadership structure.
• Creates a dedicated grant program to encourage teacher-led school models, with defined planning and implementation funding and reporting requirements.
• Provides partial exemption from standard state laws and rules, in a manner similar to charter schools, while preserving certain statutory constraints.
• Ties school performance to renewal terms, and gives the district board authority to terminate or require conversion to charter status under specified conditions.

1. Differences from current practice (highlights)
2. Adds a formalized, autonomous school model within traditional districts, distinct from standard district-run schools.
3. Requires a defined agreement between district and site council, with clear autonomies, reporting, and dispute mechanisms.
4. Elevates the role of teachers in governance (potentially majority teacher representation on the site council) and permits tailored school policies and calendars.
5. Establishes a state-ordered grant program to assist with experimentation and organizational redesign at the site level.

Relevant Terms - sitegoverned school, sitegoverning council, site council - district, school board, memorandum of understanding (MOU) - proposal, request for proposals (RFP) - autonomy, autonomies, responsibilities delegated to the site - budget, revenue, general education revenue, federal funds, private funds, referendum revenue - administrative fee, district services, eligibility, allocation of revenue - teacher-governed schools grants, planning grant, implementation grant - growth model, value-added growth model, student achievement targets - performance standards, accountability, renewal, term - termination, conversion to charter, Chapter 124E - exemptions from statutes and rules, charter-like exemption - staff selection, mutual consent, 70 percent teachers, leadership model - licensing, principal as administrator, licensed principal - dispute resolution, remedies, reporting requirements