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92_HB3711 LRB9211208NTcd 1 AN ACT regarding schools. 2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 3 represented in the General Assembly: 4 Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing 5 Sections 10-19 and 34-18 as follows: 6 (105 ILCS 5/10-19) (from Ch. 122, par. 10-19) 7 Sec. 10-19. Length of school term; experimental 8 programs. 9 (a) Each school board shall annually prepare a calendar 10 for the school term, specifying the opening and closing dates 11 and providing a minimum term of at least 185 days to insure 12 176 days of actual pupil attendance, computable under Section 13 18-8.05, except that for the 1980-1981 school year only 175 14 days of actual pupil attendance shall be required because of 15 the closing of schools pursuant to Section 24-2 on January 16 29, 1981 upon the appointment by the President of that day as 17 a day of thanksgiving for the freedom of the Americans who 18 had been held hostage in Iran. Any days allowed by law for 19 teachers' institute but not used as such or used as parental 20 institutes as provided in Section 10-22.18d shall increase 21 the minimum term by the school days not so used. Except as 22 provided in Section 10-19.1, the board may not extend the 23 school term beyond such closing date unless that extension of 24 term is necessary to provide the minimum number of computable 25 days or to comply with subsection (d) of this Section. In 26 case of such necessary extension school employees shall be 27 paid for such additional time on the basis of their regular 28 contracts. A school board may specify a closing date earlier 29 than that set on the annual calendar when the schools of the 30 district have provided the minimum number of computable days 31 under this Section and, if applicable, have complied with -2- LRB9211208NTcd 1 subsection (d) of this Section. Nothing in this Section 2 prevents the board from employing superintendents of schools, 3 principals and other nonteaching personnel for a period of 12 4 months, or in the case of superintendents for a period in 5 accordance with Section 10-23.8, or prevents the board from 6 employing other personnel before or after the regular school 7 term with payment of salary proportionate to that received 8 for comparable work during the school term. 9 (b) A school board may make such changes in its calendar 10 for the school term as may be required by any changes in the 11 legal school holidays prescribed in Section 24-2. 12 (c) A school board may make changes in its calendar for 13 the school term as may be necessary to reflect the 14 utilization of teachers' institute days as parental institute 15 days as provided in Section 10-22.18d. 16 (d) If the schools of a district are closed for more 17 than 15 school days because employees are on strike, then the 18 school board must change its calendar for the school term to 19 include an additional school day for each school day in which 20 the schools were closed because of the strike. 21 (e) With the prior approval of the State Board of 22 Education and subject to review by the State Board of 23 Education every 3 years, any school board may, by resolution 24 of its board and in agreement with affected exclusive 25 collective bargaining agents, establish experimental 26 educational programs, including but not limited to programs 27 for self-directed learning or outside of formal class 28 periods, which programs when so approved shall be considered 29 to comply with the requirements of this Section as respects 30 numbers of days of actual pupil attendance and with the other 31 requirements of this Act as respects courses of instruction. 32 (Source: P.A. 91-96, eff. 7-9-99.) 33 (105 ILCS 5/34-18) (from Ch. 122, par. 34-18) -3- LRB9211208NTcd 1 Sec. 34-18. Powers of the board. The board shall 2 exercise general supervision and jurisdiction over the public 3 education and the public school system of the city, and, 4 except as otherwise provided by this Article, shall have 5 power: 6 1. To make suitable provision for the establishment 7 and maintenance throughout the year or for such portion 8 thereof as it may direct, not less than 9 months, of 9 schools of all grades and kinds, including normal 10 schools, high schools, night schools, schools for 11 defectives and delinquents, parental and truant schools, 12 schools for the blind, the deaf and the crippled, schools 13 or classes in manual training, constructural and 14 vocational teaching, domestic arts and physical culture, 15 vocation and extension schools and lecture courses, and 16 all other educational courses and facilities, including 17 establishing, equipping, maintaining and operating 18 playgrounds and recreational programs, when such programs 19 are conducted in, adjacent to, or connected with any 20 public school under the general supervision and 21 jurisdiction of the board; provided, however,that in 22 allocating funds from year to year for the operation of 23 all attendance centers within the district, the board 24 shall ensure that supplemental general State aid funds 25 are allocated and applied in accordance with Section 18-8 26 or 18-8.05 and provided that if the schools of the 27 district are closed for more than 15 school days because 28 employees are on strike, then the board must change its 29 calendar for the school term to include an additional 30 school day for each school day in which the schools were 31 closed because of the strike. To admit to such schools 32 without charge foreign exchange students who are 33 participants in an organized exchange student program 34 which is authorized by the board. The board shall permit -4- LRB9211208NTcd 1 all students to enroll in apprenticeship programs in 2 trade schools operated by the board, whether those 3 programs are union-sponsored or not. No student shall 4 be refused admission into or be excluded from any course 5 of instruction offered in the common schools by reason of 6 that student's sex. No student shall be denied equal 7 access to physical education and interscholastic athletic 8 programs supported from school district funds or denied 9 participation in comparable physical education and 10 athletic programs solely by reason of the student's sex. 11 Equal access to programs supported from school district 12 funds and comparable programs will be defined in rules 13 promulgated by the State Board of Education in 14 consultation with the Illinois High School Association. 15 Notwithstanding any other provision of this Article, 16 neither the board of education nor any local school 17 council or other school official shall recommend that 18 children with disabilities be placed into regular 19 education classrooms unless those children with 20 disabilities are provided with supplementary services to 21 assist them so that they benefit from the regular 22 classroom instruction and are included on the teacher's 23 regular education class register; 24 2. To furnish lunches to pupils, to make a 25 reasonable charge therefor, and to use school funds for 26 the payment of such expenses as the board may determine 27 are necessary in conducting the school lunch program; 28 3. To co-operate with the circuit court; 29 4. To make arrangements with the public or 30 quasi-public libraries and museums for the use of their 31 facilities by teachers and pupils of the public schools; 32 5. To employ dentists and prescribe their duties 33 for the purpose of treating the pupils in the schools, 34 but accepting such treatment shall be optional with -5- LRB9211208NTcd 1 parents or guardians; 2 6. To grant the use of assembly halls and 3 classrooms when not otherwise needed, including light, 4 heat, and attendants, for free public lectures, concerts, 5 and other educational and social interests, free of 6 charge, under such provisions and control as the 7 principal of the affected attendance center may 8 prescribe; 9 7. To apportion the pupils to the several schools; 10 provided that no pupil shall be excluded from or 11 segregated in any such school on account of his color, 12 race, sex, or nationality. The board shall take into 13 consideration the prevention of segregation and the 14 elimination of separation of children in public schools 15 because of color, race, sex, or nationality. Except that 16 children may be committed to or attend parental and 17 social adjustment schools established and maintained 18 either for boys or girls only. All records pertaining to 19 the creation, alteration or revision of attendance areas 20 shall be open to the public. Nothing herein shall limit 21 the board's authority to establish multi-area attendance 22 centers or other student assignment systems for 23 desegregation purposes or otherwise, and to apportion the 24 pupils to the several schools. Furthermore, beginning in 25 school year 1994-95, pursuant to a board plan adopted by 26 October 1, 1993, the board shall offer, commencing on a 27 phased-in basis, the opportunity for families within the 28 school district to apply for enrollment of their children 29 in any attendance center within the school district which 30 does not have selective admission requirements approved 31 by the board. The appropriate geographical area in which 32 such open enrollment may be exercised shall be determined 33 by the board of education. Such children may be admitted 34 to any such attendance center on a space available basis -6- LRB9211208NTcd 1 after all children residing within such attendance 2 center's area have been accommodated. If the number of 3 applicants from outside the attendance area exceed the 4 space available, then successful applicants shall be 5 selected by lottery. The board of education's open 6 enrollment plan must include provisions that allow low 7 income students to have access to transportation needed 8 to exercise school choice. Open enrollment shall be in 9 compliance with the provisions of the Consent Decree and 10 Desegregation Plan cited in Section 34-1.01; 11 8. To approve programs and policies for providing 12 transportation services to students. Nothing herein shall 13 be construed to permit or empower the State Board of 14 Education to order, mandate, or require busing or other 15 transportation of pupils for the purpose of achieving 16 racial balance in any school; 17 9. Subject to the limitations in this Article, to 18 establish and approve system-wide curriculum objectives 19 and standards, including graduation standards, which 20 reflect the multi-cultural diversity in the city and are 21 consistent with State law, provided that for all purposes 22 of this Article courses or proficiency in American Sign 23 Language shall be deemed to constitute courses or 24 proficiency in a foreign language; and to employ 25 principals and teachers, appointed as provided in this 26 Article, and fix their compensation. The board shall 27 prepare such reports related to minimal competency 28 testing as may be requested by the State Board of 29 Education, and in addition shall monitor and approve 30 special education and bilingual education programs and 31 policies within the district to assure that appropriate 32 services are provided in accordance with applicable State 33 and federal laws to children requiring services and 34 education in those areas; -7- LRB9211208NTcd 1 10. To employ non-teaching personnel or utilize 2 volunteer personnel for: (i) non-teaching duties not 3 requiring instructional judgment or evaluation of pupils, 4 including library duties; and (ii) supervising study 5 halls, long distance teaching reception areas used 6 incident to instructional programs transmitted by 7 electronic media such as computers, video, and audio, 8 detention and discipline areas, and school-sponsored 9 extracurricular activities. The board may further utilize 10 volunteer non-certificated personnel or employ 11 non-certificated personnel to assist in the instruction 12 of pupils under the immediate supervision of a teacher 13 holding a valid certificate, directly engaged in teaching 14 subject matter or conducting activities; provided that 15 the teacher shall be continuously aware of the 16 non-certificated persons' activities and shall be able to 17 control or modify them. The general superintendent shall 18 determine qualifications of such personnel and shall 19 prescribe rules for determining the duties and activities 20 to be assigned to such personnel; 21 11. To provide television studio facilities in not 22 to exceed one school building and to provide programs for 23 educational purposes, provided, however, that the board 24 shall not construct, acquire, operate, or maintain a 25 television transmitter; to grant the use of its studio 26 facilities to a licensed television station located in 27 the school district; and to maintain and operate not to 28 exceed one school radio transmitting station and provide 29 programs for educational purposes; 30 12. To offer, if deemed appropriate, outdoor 31 education courses, including field trips within the State 32 of Illinois, or adjacent states, and to use school 33 educational funds for the expense of the said outdoor 34 educational programs, whether within the school district -8- LRB9211208NTcd 1 or not; 2 13. During that period of the calendar year not 3 embraced within the regular school term, to provide and 4 conduct courses in subject matters normally embraced in 5 the program of the schools during the regular school term 6 and to give regular school credit for satisfactory 7 completion by the student of such courses as may be 8 approved for credit by the State Board of Education; 9 14. To insure against any loss or liability of the 10 board, the former School Board Nominating Commission, 11 Local School Councils, the Chicago Schools Academic 12 Accountability Council, or the former Subdistrict 13 Councils or of any member, officer, agent or employee 14 thereof, resulting from alleged violations of civil 15 rights arising from incidents occurring on or after 16 September 5, 1967 or from the wrongful or negligent act 17 or omission of any such person whether occurring within 18 or without the school premises, provided the officer, 19 agent or employee was, at the time of the alleged 20 violation of civil rights or wrongful act or omission, 21 acting within the scope of his employment or under 22 direction of the board, the former School Board 23 Nominating Commission, the Chicago Schools Academic 24 Accountability Council, Local School Councils, or the 25 former Subdistrict Councils; and to provide for or 26 participate in insurance plans for its officers and 27 employees, including but not limited to retirement 28 annuities, medical, surgical and hospitalization benefits 29 in such types and amounts as may be determined by the 30 board; provided, however, that the board shall contract 31 for such insurance only with an insurance company 32 authorized to do business in this State. Such insurance 33 may include provision for employees who rely on treatment 34 by prayer or spiritual means alone for healing, in -9- LRB9211208NTcd 1 accordance with the tenets and practice of a recognized 2 religious denomination; 3 15. To contract with the corporate authorities of 4 any municipality or the county board of any county, as 5 the case may be, to provide for the regulation of traffic 6 in parking areas of property used for school purposes, in 7 such manner as is provided by Section 11-209 of The 8 Illinois Vehicle Code, approved September 29, 1969, as 9 amended; 10 16. To provide, on an equal basis, access to the 11 school campus to the official recruiting representatives 12 of the armed forces of Illinois and the United States for 13 the purposes of informing students of the educational and 14 career opportunities available in the military if the 15 board has provided such access to persons or groups whose 16 purpose is to acquaint students with educational or 17 occupational opportunities available to them. The board 18 is not required to give greater notice regarding the 19 right of access to recruiting representatives than is 20 given to other persons and groups; 21 17. (a) To sell or market any computer program 22 developed by an employee of the school district, provided 23 that such employee developed the computer program as a 24 direct result of his or her duties with the school 25 district or through the utilization of the school 26 district resources or facilities. The employee who 27 developed the computer program shall be entitled to share 28 in the proceeds of such sale or marketing of the computer 29 program. The distribution of such proceeds between the 30 employee and the school district shall be as agreed upon 31 by the employee and the school district, except that 32 neither the employee nor the school district may receive 33 more than 90% of such proceeds. The negotiation for an 34 employee who is represented by an exclusive bargaining -10- LRB9211208NTcd 1 representative may be conducted by such bargaining 2 representative at the employee's request. 3 (b) For the purpose of this paragraph 17: 4 (1) "Computer" means an internally programmed, 5 general purpose digital device capable of 6 automatically accepting data, processing data and 7 supplying the results of the operation. 8 (2) "Computer program" means a series of coded 9 instructions or statements in a form acceptable to a 10 computer, which causes the computer to process data 11 in order to achieve a certain result. 12 (3) "Proceeds" means profits derived from 13 marketing or sale of a product after deducting the 14 expenses of developing and marketing such product; 15 18. To delegate to the general superintendent of 16 schools, by resolution, the authority to approve 17 contracts and expenditures in amounts of $10,000 or less; 18 19. Upon the written request of an employee, to 19 withhold from the compensation of that employee any dues, 20 payments or contributions payable by such employee to any 21 labor organization as defined in the Illinois Educational 22 Labor Relations Act. Under such arrangement, an amount 23 shall be withheld from each regular payroll period which 24 is equal to the pro rata share of the annual dues plus 25 any payments or contributions, and the board shall 26 transmit such withholdings to the specified labor 27 organization within 10 working days from the time of the 28 withholding; 29 19a. Upon receipt of notice from the comptroller of 30 a municipality with a population of 500,000 or more, a 31 county with a population of 3,000,000 or more, the Cook 32 County Forest Preserve District, the Chicago Park 33 District, the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District, 34 the Chicago Transit Authority, or a housing authority of -11- LRB9211208NTcd 1 a municipality with a population of 500,000 or more that 2 a debt is due and owing the municipality, the county, the 3 Cook County Forest Preserve District, the Chicago Park 4 District, the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District, 5 the Chicago Transit Authority, or the housing authority 6 by an employee of the Chicago Board of Education, to 7 withhold, from the compensation of that employee, the 8 amount of the debt that is due and owing and pay the 9 amount withheld to the municipality, the county, the Cook 10 County Forest Preserve District, the Chicago Park 11 District, the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District, 12 the Chicago Transit Authority, or the housing authority; 13 provided, however, that the amount deducted from any one 14 salary or wage payment shall not exceed 25% of the net 15 amount of the payment. Before the Board deducts any 16 amount from any salary or wage of an employee under this 17 paragraph, the municipality, the county, the Cook County 18 Forest Preserve District, the Chicago Park District, the 19 Metropolitan Water Reclamation District, the Chicago 20 Transit Authority, or the housing authority shall certify 21 that (i) the employee has been afforded an opportunity 22 for a hearing to dispute the debt that is due and owing 23 the municipality, the county, the Cook County Forest 24 Preserve District, the Chicago Park District, the 25 Metropolitan Water Reclamation District, the Chicago 26 Transit Authority, or the housing authority and (ii) the 27 employee has received notice of a wage deduction order 28 and has been afforded an opportunity for a hearing to 29 object to the order. For purposes of this paragraph, 30 "net amount" means that part of the salary or wage 31 payment remaining after the deduction of any amounts 32 required by law to be deducted and "debt due and owing" 33 means (i) a specified sum of money owed to the 34 municipality, the county, the Cook County Forest Preserve -12- LRB9211208NTcd 1 District, the Chicago Park District, the Metropolitan 2 Water Reclamation District, the Chicago Transit 3 Authority, or the housing authority for services, work, 4 or goods, after the period granted for payment has 5 expired, or (ii) a specified sum of money owed to the 6 municipality, the county, the Cook County Forest Preserve 7 District, the Chicago Park District, the Metropolitan 8 Water Reclamation District, the Chicago Transit 9 Authority, or the housing authority pursuant to a court 10 order or order of an administrative hearing officer after 11 the exhaustion of, or the failure to exhaust, judicial 12 review; 13 20. The board is encouraged to employ a sufficient 14 number of certified school counselors to maintain a 15 student/counselor ratio of 250 to 1 by July 1, 1990. 16 Each counselor shall spend at least 75% of his work time 17 in direct contact with students and shall maintain a 18 record of such time; 19 21. To make available to students vocational and 20 career counseling and to establish 5 special career 21 counseling days for students and parents. On these days 22 representatives of local businesses and industries shall 23 be invited to the school campus and shall inform students 24 of career opportunities available to them in the various 25 businesses and industries. Special consideration shall 26 be given to counseling minority students as to career 27 opportunities available to them in various fields. For 28 the purposes of this paragraph, minority student means a 29 person who is: 30 (a) Black (a person having origins in any of 31 the black racial groups in Africa); 32 (b) Hispanic (a person of Spanish or 33 Portuguese culture with origins in Mexico, South or 34 Central America, or the Caribbean islands, -13- LRB9211208NTcd 1 regardless of race); 2 (c) Asian American (a person having origins in 3 any of the original peoples of the Far East, 4 Southeast Asia, the Indian Subcontinent or the 5 Pacific Islands); or 6 (d) American Indian or Alaskan Native (a 7 person having origins in any of the original peoples 8 of North America). 9 Counseling days shall not be in lieu of regular 10 school days; 11 22. To report to the State Board of Education the 12 annual student dropout rate and number of students who 13 graduate from, transfer from or otherwise leave bilingual 14 programs; 15 23. Except as otherwise provided in the Abused and 16 Neglected Child Reporting Act or other applicable State 17 or federal law, to permit school officials to withhold, 18 from any person, information on the whereabouts of any 19 child removed from school premises when the child has 20 been taken into protective custody as a victim of 21 suspected child abuse. School officials shall direct 22 such person to the Department of Children and Family 23 Services, or to the local law enforcement agency if 24 appropriate; 25 24. To develop a policy, based on the current state 26 of existing school facilities, projected enrollment and 27 efficient utilization of available resources, for capital 28 improvement of schools and school buildings within the 29 district, addressing in that policy both the relative 30 priority for major repairs, renovations and additions to 31 school facilities, and the advisability or necessity of 32 building new school facilities or closing existing 33 schools to meet current or projected demographic patterns 34 within the district; -14- LRB9211208NTcd 1 25. To make available to the students in every high 2 school attendance center the ability to take all courses 3 necessary to comply with the Board of Higher Education's 4 college entrance criteria effective in 1993; 5 26. To encourage mid-career changes into the 6 teaching profession, whereby qualified professionals 7 become certified teachers, by allowing credit for 8 professional employment in related fields when 9 determining point of entry on teacher pay scale; 10 27. To provide or contract out training programs 11 for administrative personnel and principals with revised 12 or expanded duties pursuant to this Act in order to 13 assure they have the knowledge and skills to perform 14 their duties; 15 28. To establish a fund for the prioritized special 16 needs programs, and to allocate such funds and other lump 17 sum amounts to each attendance center in a manner 18 consistent with the provisions of part 4 of Section 19 34-2.3. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to 20 require any additional appropriations of State funds for 21 this purpose; 22 29. (Blank); 23 30. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act 24 or any other law to the contrary, to contract with third 25 parties for services otherwise performed by employees, 26 including those in a bargaining unit, and to layoff those 27 employees upon 14 days written notice to the affected 28 employees. Those contracts may be for a period not to 29 exceed 5 years and may be awarded on a system-wide basis; 30 31. To promulgate rules establishing procedures 31 governing the layoff or reduction in force of employees 32 and the recall of such employees, including, but not 33 limited to, criteria for such layoffs, reductions in 34 force or recall rights of such employees and the weight -15- LRB9211208NTcd 1 to be given to any particular criterion. Such criteria 2 shall take into account factors including, but not be 3 limited to, qualifications, certifications, experience, 4 performance ratings or evaluations, and any other factors 5 relating to an employee's job performance; and 6 32. To develop a policy to prevent nepotism in the 7 hiring of personnel or the selection of contractors. 8 The specifications of the powers herein granted are not 9 to be construed as exclusive but the board shall also 10 exercise all other powers that they may be requisite or 11 proper for the maintenance and the development of a public 12 school system, not inconsistent with the other provisions of 13 this Article or provisions of this Code which apply to all 14 school districts. 15 In addition to the powers herein granted and authorized 16 to be exercised by the board, it shall be the duty of the 17 board to review or to direct independent reviews of special 18 education expenditures and services. The board shall file a 19 report of such review with the General Assembly on or before 20 May 1, 1990. 21 (Source: P.A. 92-109, eff. 7-20-01.) 22 Section 90. The State Mandates Act is amended by adding 23 Section 8.26 as follows: 24 (30 ILCS 805/8.26 new) 25 Sec. 8.26. Exempt mandate. Notwithstanding Sections 6 26 and 8 of this Act, no reimbursement by the State is required 27 for the implementation of any mandate created by this 28 amendatory Act of the 92nd General Assembly. 29 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 30 becoming law.