Sen. Kimberly A. Lightford
Filed: 4/14/2016
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1 | AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 237
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2 | AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 237 by replacing | ||||||
3 | everything after the enacting clause with the following:
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4 | "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | ||||||
5 | Course Equity Act. | ||||||
6 | Section 5. Definitions. In this Act: | ||||||
7 | "BHE" means the Board of Higher Education. | ||||||
8 | "Core course" means English/Language Arts I, | ||||||
9 | English/Language Arts II, English/Language Arts III, | ||||||
10 | English/Language Arts IV, AP English Language and Composition | ||||||
11 | or an equivalent dual credit course, English/Literature, and AP | ||||||
12 | English Literature and Composition or an equivalent dual credit | ||||||
13 | course for English Language Arts courses as defined in the | ||||||
14 | State Board's secondary course catalog; Integrated Math I, | ||||||
15 | Integrated Math II, Integrated Math III, General Math, | ||||||
16 | Pre-Algebra, Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, Trigonometry, |
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1 | Precalculus, Calculus, AP Calculus AB or an equivalent dual | ||||||
2 | credit course, and AP Calculus BC or an equivalent dual credit | ||||||
3 | course for Mathematics courses as defined in the State Board's | ||||||
4 | secondary course catalog; Biology, AP Biology or an equivalent | ||||||
5 | dual credit course, Chemistry, AP Chemistry or an equivalent | ||||||
6 | dual credit course, Physics, and AP Physics or an equivalent | ||||||
7 | dual credit course for Life and Physical Science courses as | ||||||
8 | defined in the State Board's secondary course catalog; World | ||||||
9 | History, AP World History or an equivalent dual credit course, | ||||||
10 | U.S. History, AP U.S. History or an equivalent dual credit | ||||||
11 | course, Political Science, Civics, U.S. Government, and AP U.S. | ||||||
12 | Government and Politics or an equivalent dual credit course for | ||||||
13 | Social Sciences and History courses as defined in the State | ||||||
14 | Board's secondary course catalog; Spanish I, Spanish II, | ||||||
15 | Spanish III, Spanish IV, and AP Spanish Language or an | ||||||
16 | equivalent dual credit course for Foreign Language and | ||||||
17 | Literature courses as defined in the State Board's secondary | ||||||
18 | course catalog; Computer Programming, Computer Operations and | ||||||
19 | Programming I, Computer Operations and Programming II, Visual | ||||||
20 | Basic Programming, C++ Programming, Java Programming, Computer | ||||||
21 | Programming - Other Language, Computer Science, AP Computer | ||||||
22 | Science A or an equivalent dual credit course, and AP Computer | ||||||
23 | Science AB or an equivalent dual credit course for Computer and | ||||||
24 | Information Sciences as defined in the State Board's secondary | ||||||
25 | course catalog; Precision Metal Production I, Precision Metal | ||||||
26 | Production II, Machine Shop Technology I, Machine Shop |
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1 | Technology II, Welding Technology I, Welding Technology II, | ||||||
2 | Industrial Maintenance I, and Industrial Maintenance II for | ||||||
3 | Manufacturing courses as defined in the State Board's secondary | ||||||
4 | course catalog; or Electrical Systems I, Electrical Systems II, | ||||||
5 | Electrical Trades I, Electrical Trades II, Industrial | ||||||
6 | Electronics I, and Industrial Electronics II for Architecture | ||||||
7 | and Construction courses as defined in the State Board's | ||||||
8 | secondary course catalog. | ||||||
9 | "Course Equity Catalog" means the website developed for the | ||||||
10 | State Board that provides a listing of all courses authorized | ||||||
11 | and available to students in this State, detailed information | ||||||
12 | about the courses to inform student enrollment decisions, and | ||||||
13 | the ability for students to submit their course enrollments. | ||||||
14 | The data in this catalog must be published online in an open | ||||||
15 | format that can be retrieved, downloaded, indexed, and searched | ||||||
16 | by commonly used web-search applications. As used in this | ||||||
17 | definition, "open format" means one that is platform | ||||||
18 | independent, machine readable, and made available to the public | ||||||
19 | without restrictions that would impede the reuse of that | ||||||
20 | information. | ||||||
21 | "Course Equity Program" means the program established | ||||||
22 | under this Act. | ||||||
23 | "Community colleges" means community colleges as defined | ||||||
24 | in the Public Community College Act. | ||||||
25 | "Course provider" means an entity authorized by the State | ||||||
26 | Board to offer individual courses, including, but not limited |
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1 | to, public or private secondary education institutions, | ||||||
2 | education service agencies, private for-profit or | ||||||
3 | not-for-profit providers,
postsecondary education | ||||||
4 | institutions, and career and technical course providers. | ||||||
5 | "Eligible funded student" means any eligible participating | ||||||
6 | student who is currently enrolled in a public school, including | ||||||
7 | a charter school. | ||||||
8 | "Eligible participating student" means any student in | ||||||
9 | grades kindergarten through 12 who resides in this State. | ||||||
10 | "ICCB" means the Illinois Community College Board. | ||||||
11 | "State Board" means the State Board of Education. | ||||||
12 | "School" means a public school included in the definition | ||||||
13 | of "public schools" as defined in the School Code. | ||||||
14 | Section 10. Enrollment. An eligible participating student | ||||||
15 | may enroll in Course Equity Program courses. An eligible funded | ||||||
16 | student may enroll in Course Equity Program courses only if the | ||||||
17 | courses the student wants to enroll in are not offered at the | ||||||
18 | student's school. An eligible funded student may enroll in | ||||||
19 | Course Equity Program courses up to the following level: | ||||||
20 | (1) Unlimited for core courses. | ||||||
21 | (2) At the discretion of the eligible funded student's | ||||||
22 | school for non-core courses. | ||||||
23 | The families of eligible funded students and eligible | ||||||
24 | participating students may pay to enroll in Course Equity | ||||||
25 | Program courses above the levels specified in this Section. |
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1 | Public schools where eligible funded students are enrolled | ||||||
2 | full-time
may review enrollment requests to ensure courses are | ||||||
3 | academically appropriate and logistically feasible, keep the | ||||||
4 | student on track for an on-time graduation, and do not extend a | ||||||
5 | student beyond a full-time course load. Public schools may only | ||||||
6 | reject core course enrollment requests for those reasons.
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7 | Public schools must complete the review and denial process | ||||||
8 | within 5 days after the
student enrolls in the course. Public | ||||||
9 | schools shall inform students and families at the time of | ||||||
10 | denial of their right to appeal any enrollment denials in | ||||||
11 | Course Equity Program courses to their school district's school | ||||||
12 | board, which shall provide a final enrollment decision within 7 | ||||||
13 | calendar days after the appeal hearing. | ||||||
14 | Section 15. Course provider authorization process. The | ||||||
15 | State Board shall: | ||||||
16 | (1) establish an authorization process for non-dual | ||||||
17 | credit course providers that may include multiple | ||||||
18 | opportunities for submission each year; | ||||||
19 | (2) not later than 90 calendar days from the initial | ||||||
20 | submission date, authorize course providers that: | ||||||
21 | (A) meet the criteria established under Section 20 | ||||||
22 | of this Act; and | ||||||
23 | (B) provide courses that offer the instructional | ||||||
24 | rigor and scope required under Section 25 of this Act; | ||||||
25 | (3) not later than 90 calendar days from the initial |
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1 | submission date, provide a written explanation to any | ||||||
2 | course providers that are denied; if a course provider is | ||||||
3 | denied authorization, the provider may apply again in the | ||||||
4 | future; and | ||||||
5 | (4) publish the process established under Section 20 of | ||||||
6 | this Act, including any deadlines and any guidelines | ||||||
7 | applicable to the submission and authorization process for | ||||||
8 | providers. | ||||||
9 | If the State Board determines that there are insufficient | ||||||
10 | funds available for evaluating and authorizing course | ||||||
11 | providers and administering the Course Equity Program, it may | ||||||
12 | charge applicant providers a fee up to, but no greater than, | ||||||
13 | the amount of the costs in order to ensure that evaluation, | ||||||
14 | authorization, and administration of the Course Equity Program | ||||||
15 | occurs. | ||||||
16 | The ICCB shall establish a separate authorization process | ||||||
17 | for dual credit courses offered by community colleges. The BHE | ||||||
18 | shall establish a separate authorization process for dual | ||||||
19 | credit courses offered by public and private universities. The | ||||||
20 | ICCB and BHE shall collaborate and establish authorization | ||||||
21 | processes that are identical to the extent practicable. | ||||||
22 | If the ICCB or BHE determines that there are insufficient | ||||||
23 | funds available for evaluating and authorizing course | ||||||
24 | providers and administering the Course Equity Program, it may | ||||||
25 | charge applicant providers a fee up to, but no greater than, | ||||||
26 | the amount of the costs in order to ensure that evaluation, |
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1 | authorization, and administration of the Course Equity Program | ||||||
2 | occurs. | ||||||
3 | Section 20. Course provider authorization criteria. To be | ||||||
4 | authorized to offer a course through the Course Equity Program, | ||||||
5 | a provider must: | ||||||
6 | (1) comply with all applicable antidiscrimination | ||||||
7 | provisions, as well as applicable State and federal student | ||||||
8 | data privacy provisions, such as the federal Family | ||||||
9 | Educational Rights and Privacy Act; | ||||||
10 | (2) provide an assurance that all online information | ||||||
11 | and resources for courses are fully accessible for students | ||||||
12 | of all abilities, including that: | ||||||
13 | (A) all of the courses submitted for approval are | ||||||
14 | reviewed to ensure they meet legal accessibility | ||||||
15 | standards; | ||||||
16 | (B) the provider has policies and activities to | ||||||
17 | ensure its organizational and course websites meet | ||||||
18 | accessibility requirements; and | ||||||
19 | (C) the provider has no gateway exam or test in | ||||||
20 | which a specific score is required to participate in | ||||||
21 | Course Equity Program courses beyond
completion of | ||||||
22 | prerequisite coursework or demonstrated mastery of | ||||||
23 | prerequisite
material; | ||||||
24 | (3) demonstrate either: | ||||||
25 | (A) prior evidence of delivering quality outcomes |
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1 | for students, as demonstrated by completion rates, | ||||||
2 | student level growth, proficiency, or other | ||||||
3 | quantifiable outcomes; or | ||||||
4 | (B) for a course provider applying to offer a | ||||||
5 | subject or grade level for the first time, a detailed | ||||||
6 | justification, in a manner determined by the State | ||||||
7 | Board, ICCB, or BHE, as applicable, of
how its | ||||||
8 | organization's subject matter, instructional, or | ||||||
9 | technical expertise
will lead to successful outcomes | ||||||
10 | for students; | ||||||
11 | (4) ensure instructional and curricular quality | ||||||
12 | through a detailed curriculum and student performance | ||||||
13 | accountability plan that aligns with and measures student | ||||||
14 | attainment of relevant State academic standards or other | ||||||
15 | relevant standards in courses without State academic | ||||||
16 | standards; and | ||||||
17 | (5) provide assurances that the course provider shall | ||||||
18 | electronically provide, in a manner and format determined | ||||||
19 | by the State Board, ICCB, or BHE, as applicable, a detailed | ||||||
20 | student record of enrollment, performance, completion, and | ||||||
21 | grading information with the school systems where eligible | ||||||
22 | participating students are enrolled full time. | ||||||
23 | A provider offering dual credit courses shall be exempt | ||||||
24 | from item (C) of paragraph (2) of this Section. | ||||||
25 | Section 25. Course quality reviews. The State Board shall |
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1 | establish a course review and
approval process for non-dual | ||||||
2 | credit providers. The process may be implemented by the State | ||||||
3 | Board or by an entity
designated by the State Board. The ICCB | ||||||
4 | and BHE shall collaborate and establish course review and | ||||||
5 | approval processes for dual credit courses that are identical | ||||||
6 | to the extent practicable. In order to be approved and added to | ||||||
7 | the Course Equity Catalog, a course must: | ||||||
8 | (1) be, at a minimum, the equivalent in instructional | ||||||
9 | rigor and scope to a course that is provided in a | ||||||
10 | traditional classroom setting; | ||||||
11 | (2) be aligned to relevant State academic standards or | ||||||
12 | industry standards; | ||||||
13 | (3) possess an assessment component for determining | ||||||
14 | student proficiency, as well as student growth if | ||||||
15 | applicable; and | ||||||
16 | (4) be designed and implemented consistently with | ||||||
17 | standards established by the State Board. | ||||||
18 | Section 30. Provider and course monitoring and | ||||||
19 | reauthorization. | ||||||
20 | (a) The initial authorization of the course provider and | ||||||
21 | approved courses shall be for a period of one year. | ||||||
22 | (b) Providers must annually report, in such a manner as | ||||||
23 | directed by the State Board or by the ICCB and BHE if they are a | ||||||
24 | dual credit provider: | ||||||
25 | (1) student enrollment data, including ethnic, income, |
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1 | and gender demographics; | ||||||
2 | (2) student outcomes, growth measures if available, | ||||||
3 | proficiency rates, and completion rates for each subject | ||||||
4 | area and grade level; and | ||||||
5 | (3) student and parental feedback on overall | ||||||
6 | satisfaction and quality. | ||||||
7 | (c) After the first year of the initial authorization | ||||||
8 | period, the State Board shall conduct a thorough review of the | ||||||
9 | course provider's activities and the academic performance of | ||||||
10 | the students enrolled in courses offered by the course | ||||||
11 | provider. | ||||||
12 | (d) If the performance of the students enrolled in courses | ||||||
13 | offered by the course provider does not meet agreed-upon | ||||||
14 | performance standards at any time, the course provider shall be | ||||||
15 | placed on probation and be required to submit a plan for | ||||||
16 | improvement. The State Board, ICCB, or BHE, as applicable, | ||||||
17 | shall determine the terms of probation, specifically including | ||||||
18 | the results the course provider must achieve to return to good | ||||||
19 | standing. Course providers shall have a minimum of 90 days to | ||||||
20 | achieve the results indicated in their terms of probation. The | ||||||
21 | State Board, ICCB, or BHE, as applicable, shall, at their sole | ||||||
22 | discretion, determine if the course provider has met the | ||||||
23 | specified results required for the course provider to return to | ||||||
24 | good standing. If a course provider fails to return to good | ||||||
25 | standing within the timeframe cited in its terms of probation, | ||||||
26 | the State Board, ICCB, or BHE, as applicable, may terminate its |
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1 | status as a course provider. A course provider terminated as a | ||||||
2 | result of being put on probation may not
reapply to become a | ||||||
3 | course provider. | ||||||
4 | (e) After the initial one year authorization period, the | ||||||
5 | State Board, ICCB, or BHE may reauthorize the course provider | ||||||
6 | for additional periods of up to 3 years after thorough review | ||||||
7 | of the course provider's activities and the achievement of | ||||||
8 | students enrolled in courses offered by the course provider. | ||||||
9 | (f) The State Board, ICCB, or BHE may exclude a course | ||||||
10 | provided by an authorized provider at any time if the State | ||||||
11 | Board, ICCB, or BHE, as applicable, determines that: | ||||||
12 | (1) the course is no longer adequately aligned with | ||||||
13 | State academic standards; | ||||||
14 | (2) the course no longer provides a detailed and | ||||||
15 | quality curriculum and accountability plan; or | ||||||
16 | (3) the course fails to deliver outcomes as measured by | ||||||
17 | course completion, proficiency, or student academic growth | ||||||
18 | on State or nationally accepted assessments. | ||||||
19 | Section 35. Interstate course reciprocity. The State | ||||||
20 | Board, ICCB, or BHE may enter into a reciprocity
agreement with | ||||||
21 | other states for the purpose of authorizing and approving high | ||||||
22 | quality providers and courses for the Course Equity Program and | ||||||
23 | the operation of the Course Equity Catalog. | ||||||
24 | Section 40. Responsibilities of State Board, ICCB, and BHE. |
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1 | (a) The State Board shall: | ||||||
2 | (1) publish the criteria required under Section 20 of | ||||||
3 | this Act for courses that may be offered through the Course | ||||||
4 | Equity Program; | ||||||
5 | (2) be responsible for creating the Course Equity | ||||||
6 | Catalog; | ||||||
7 | (3) publish a link to the Course Equity Catalog in a | ||||||
8 | prominent location on the State Board's website, which | ||||||
9 | shall include a listing of courses offered by authorized | ||||||
10 | providers available through the Course Equity Program, a | ||||||
11 | detailed description of the courses, and any available | ||||||
12 | student completion and outcome data; | ||||||
13 | (4) establish and publish a timeframe or specific dates | ||||||
14 | by which students are able to withdraw from a course | ||||||
15 | provided through the Course Equity Program without the | ||||||
16 | student, school district, or course provider incurring a | ||||||
17 | penalty; and | ||||||
18 | (5) maintain on the State Board's official website, in | ||||||
19 | a prominent location, an informed choice report; each | ||||||
20 | report under this Section must: | ||||||
21 | (A) be updated within 30 calendar days after | ||||||
22 | additional provider authorizations; | ||||||
23 | (B) describe each course offered through the | ||||||
24 | Course Equity Program and include information such as | ||||||
25 | course requirements and the school year calendar for | ||||||
26 | the course, including any options for continued |
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1 | participation outside of the standard school year | ||||||
2 | calendar; | ||||||
3 | (C) include student and parental comments and | ||||||
4 | feedback as detailed under Section 30 of this Act; and | ||||||
5 | (D) be published online in an open format that can | ||||||
6 | be retrieved, downloaded, indexed, and searched by | ||||||
7 | commonly used web-search applications; an open format | ||||||
8 | shall be one that is platform independent, machine | ||||||
9 | readable, and made available to the public without | ||||||
10 | restrictions that would impede the reuse of that | ||||||
11 | information. | ||||||
12 | (b) The ICCB shall: | ||||||
13 | (1) publish the criteria required under Section 20 of | ||||||
14 | this Act for dual credit courses offered by community | ||||||
15 | colleges through the Course Equity Program; | ||||||
16 | (2) publish a link to the Course Equity Catalog in a | ||||||
17 | prominent location on the ICCB's website, which shall | ||||||
18 | include a listing of courses offered by authorized | ||||||
19 | providers available through the Course Equity Program, a | ||||||
20 | detailed description of the courses, and any available | ||||||
21 | student completion and outcome data; | ||||||
22 | (3) establish and publish a timeframe or specific dates | ||||||
23 | by which students are able to withdraw from a course | ||||||
24 | provided through the Course Equity Program without the | ||||||
25 | student, school district, or course provider incurring a | ||||||
26 | penalty; and |
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1 | (4) maintain on the ICCB's official website, in a | ||||||
2 | prominent location, an informed choice report as | ||||||
3 | previously outlined in this Section. | ||||||
4 | (c) The BHE shall: | ||||||
5 | (1) publish the criteria required under Section 20 of | ||||||
6 | this Act for dual credit courses offered by public and | ||||||
7 | private universities and colleges through the Course | ||||||
8 | Equity Program; | ||||||
9 | (2) publish a link to the Course Equity Catalog in a | ||||||
10 | prominent location on the BHE's website, which shall | ||||||
11 | include a listing of courses offered by authorized | ||||||
12 | providers available through the Course Equity Program, a | ||||||
13 | detailed description of the courses, and any available | ||||||
14 | student completion and outcome data; | ||||||
15 | (3) establish and publish a timeframe or specific dates | ||||||
16 | by which students are able to withdraw from a course | ||||||
17 | provided through the Course Equity Program without the | ||||||
18 | student, school district, or course provider incurring a | ||||||
19 | penalty; and | ||||||
20 | (4) maintain on the BHE's official website, in a | ||||||
21 | prominent location, an informed choice report as | ||||||
22 | previously outlined in this Section. | ||||||
23 | (d) The State Board, ICCB, and BHE shall jointly submit an | ||||||
24 | annual report on the Course Equity Program and the | ||||||
25 | participation of entities to the Governor and the General | ||||||
26 | Assembly. The report shall, at a minimum, include the following |
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1 | information: | ||||||
2 | (1) the annual number of students participating in | ||||||
3 | courses authorized under this Act and the total number of | ||||||
4 | courses students are enrolled in; | ||||||
5 | (2) the number of authorized providers; | ||||||
6 | (3) the number of authorized courses and the number of | ||||||
7 | students enrolled in each course; | ||||||
8 | (4) the number of courses available by subject; | ||||||
9 | (5) the number of students enrolled in courses by | ||||||
10 | subject; and | ||||||
11 | (6) student outcome data, including completion rates, | ||||||
12 | student learning gains, and student performance on State or | ||||||
13 | nationally accepted assessments, by subject and grade | ||||||
14 | level by provider; this outcome data must be published in a | ||||||
15 | manner that protects student privacy. | ||||||
16 | The State Board, ICCB, and BHE shall note any data not yet | ||||||
17 | available at the time of submission and when the data will | ||||||
18 | become available and include the data in future reports. The | ||||||
19 | report and underlying data shall also be published online in an | ||||||
20 | open format that can be retrieved, downloaded, indexed, and | ||||||
21 | searched by commonly used web-search applications. An open | ||||||
22 | format shall be one that is platform independent, machine | ||||||
23 | readable, and made available to the public without restrictions | ||||||
24 | that would impede the reuse of that information. | ||||||
25 | Section 45. Responsibilities of school district. A school |
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1 | district shall: | ||||||
2 | (1) notify students and parents, as part of any course | ||||||
3 | enrollment period or process, of the availability of Course | ||||||
4 | Equity Program courses in correspondence that is written in | ||||||
5 | simple and accurate language; | ||||||
6 | (2) publish information and eligibility guidelines on | ||||||
7 | the school's and school district's website; and | ||||||
8 | (3) establish policies and procedures whereby, for | ||||||
9 | each eligible participating student, credits earned | ||||||
10 | through the course provider shall appear on each student's | ||||||
11 | official transcript and count fully toward the | ||||||
12 | requirements of any approved diploma. | ||||||
13 | The State Board shall adopt rules necessary to implement | ||||||
14 | this Section, including, but not limited to, the requirements | ||||||
15 | of school districts whose students enroll in courses offered by | ||||||
16 | authorized course providers. | ||||||
17 | Section 50. Funding. Per-course tuition shall be | ||||||
18 | determined as follows: | ||||||
19 | (1) After a provider is authorized to provide courses | ||||||
20 | by the State Board, ICCB, or BHE, as applicable, it shall | ||||||
21 | submit sealed bids to the State Board, ICCB, or BHE, as | ||||||
22 | applicable, for courses it wants to provide. | ||||||
23 | (2) Each sealed bid shall include 3 components: | ||||||
24 | (A) total price, which is the total price the | ||||||
25 | provider wants to charge for the course; |
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1 | (B) base pay, which is the minimum percentage of | ||||||
2 | the total price the provider is willing to receive for | ||||||
3 | the course; and | ||||||
4 | (C) performance pay, which is the percentage of the | ||||||
5 | total price the provider is willing to receive based on | ||||||
6 | its performance. | ||||||
7 | (3) The State Board, ICCB, or BHE, as applicable, shall | ||||||
8 | review bids according to quality criteria outlined in | ||||||
9 | Section 25 of this Act. | ||||||
10 | (4) If the State Board, ICCB, or BHE, as applicable, | ||||||
11 | believes the first sets of bids do not represent what it | ||||||
12 | believes to be a fair value for a course, it may ask | ||||||
13 | approved providers to submit new bids. Such bids shall take | ||||||
14 | the same form as the initial sealed bids. | ||||||
15 | Transfers of course payments shall be made by the school | ||||||
16 | district in which the student resides to the authorized course | ||||||
17 | provider. A course provider shall receive payment only for the | ||||||
18 | courses in which an
eligible funded student is enrolled. The | ||||||
19 | remaining funds for each student shall remain with the
school | ||||||
20 | district in which the student is enrolled full time. | ||||||
21 | A course provider shall accept the amount agreed to by the | ||||||
22 | course provider and the State Board, ICCB, or BHE, as | ||||||
23 | applicable, as total tuition and fees for the eligible funded | ||||||
24 | student. A course provider may charge tuition to an eligible | ||||||
25 | participating student up to the amount agreed to by the course | ||||||
26 | provider and the State Board. |
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1 | Performance shall be measured based on student outcomes, | ||||||
2 | including course completion, results from independent | ||||||
3 | end-of-course exams, Advanced Placement exams, receipt of | ||||||
4 | industry-recognized credentials, receipt of credit from | ||||||
5 | institutions of higher education, or other externally | ||||||
6 | validated measures. If a course provider does not meet its | ||||||
7 | performance benchmarks as agreed to by the provider and the | ||||||
8 | State Board, ICCB, or BHE, as applicable, the State Board shall | ||||||
9 | return all remaining funds to the school district of the | ||||||
10 | eligible funded student that enrolled in the course. Eligible | ||||||
11 | participating students shall receive a similar refund from the | ||||||
12 | State Board for any courses they enrolled in. | ||||||
13 | Section 55. Course Equity Fund. | ||||||
14 | (a) The Course Equity Fund is created as a special fund in | ||||||
15 | the State treasury. All money in the fund shall be used by the | ||||||
16 | State Board to assist school districts in paying for eligible | ||||||
17 | participating students' enrollment in core courses offered | ||||||
18 | through the Course Equity Program at the following levels: | ||||||
19 | (1) For students attending schools in school districts | ||||||
20 | subject to the Alternate Method or Foundation formula, | ||||||
21 | according to the following formula: the cost of the Course | ||||||
22 | Equity Program course multiplied by 100% less the school | ||||||
23 | district's low-income concentration. | ||||||
24 | (2) For students attending schools in school districts | ||||||
25 | subject to the Flat Grant formula, no assistance may be |
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1 | offered. | ||||||
2 | (b) Subject to the State Officials and Employees Ethics | ||||||
3 | Act, the State Board is authorized to receive and expend gifts, | ||||||
4 | grants, and donations of any kind from any public or private | ||||||
5 | entity to carry out the purposes of this Section. Funds | ||||||
6 | received under this subsection (b) must be deposited into the | ||||||
7 | Course Equity Fund. | ||||||
8 | Section 60. Transportation. School district, parental, and | ||||||
9 | personal transportation costs for student transportation to | ||||||
10 | and from Course Equity Program courses shall be redeemable | ||||||
11 | under Section 120.30 of Title 23 of the Illinois Administrative | ||||||
12 | Code. | ||||||
13 | Section 65. Rules. The State Board may adopt any rules | ||||||
14 | necessary to implement this Act. | ||||||
15 | Section 90. The State Finance Act is amended by adding | ||||||
16 | Section 5.875 as follows: | ||||||
17 | (30 ILCS 105/5.875 new) | ||||||
18 | Sec. 5.875. The Course Equity Fund.
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19 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January | ||||||
20 | 1, 2017.".
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