STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6791--A
2015-2016 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
April 2, 2015
___________
Introduced by M. of A. PEOPLES-STOKES, BRINDISI, FAHY, MAYER, LAVINE,
McDONALD, ARROYO, STECK, CRESPO, SKARTADOS, MAGNARELLI, BLAKE, NOLAN,
COOK, JOYNER, GUNTHER, LIFTON, BRONSON, CAHILL, RYAN, JAFFEE, SKOUFIS,
GALEF, ORTIZ -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. SIMON, SOLAGES -- read
once and referred to the Committee on Education -- recommitted to the
Committee on Education in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 --
committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to establishing the
community schools act; and making an appropriation therefor
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "community
2 schools act".
3 § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 3602-g to
4 read as follows:
5 § 3602-g. Community schools grant program. 1. There is hereby estab-
6 lished within the department a community schools grant program to fund
7 the planning, implementation, improvement and evaluation of community
8 schools. The purpose of this program shall be:
9 a. to ensure high-quality educational opportunities and improved
10 educational outcomes for all students through investment in community
11 schools;
12 b. to establish sustainable community schools with engaging and
13 culturally relevant curriculum, health, social and emotional services,
14 positive discipline practices such as restorative justice, and transfor-
15 mational parent and community engagement, as a comprehensive solution to
16 problems facing public schools, especially in poor communities; and
17 c. to document and evaluate lessons learned from community schools
18 programs to develop a set of best practices to be shared locally, state-
19 wide and nationally.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10074-05-6
A. 6791--A 2
1 2. a. Within amounts appropriated therefor, the commissioner is hereby
2 authorized and directed to award competitive grants pursuant to this
3 section to eligible school districts or in a city with a population of
4 one million or more an eligible entity to implement, beginning in the
5 two thousand sixteen--two thousand seventeen school year, a plan that
6 targets school buildings as community hubs to deliver co-located or
7 school-linked academic, health, mental health, nutrition, counseling,
8 legal and/or other services to students and their families in a manner
9 that will lead to improved educational and other outcomes. In a city
10 with a population of one million or more, eligible entities shall mean
11 the city school district of the city of New York, or not-for-profit
12 organizations, which shall include not-for-profit community based organ-
13 izations. An eligible entity that is a not-for-profit may apply for a
14 community school grant provided that it collaborates with the city
15 school district of the city of New York and receives the approval of the
16 chancellor of the city school district of the city of New York.
17 b. A request for proposal process shall be used in awarding such
18 grants and shall begin no later than June first, two thousand sixteen.
19 Prior to awarding such grants, the commissioner shall develop the
20 following:
21 (i) the scoring rubric by which such proposals will be evaluated,
22 provided that such grants shall be awarded based on factors including,
23 but not limited to: measures of school district need; measures of the
24 need of the students to be served by each of the school districts; the
25 school district's proposal to target the highest need schools and
26 students; the sustainability of the proposed community schools program;
27 and proposal quality; and the factors delineated in paragraph c of this
28 subdivision;
29 (ii) the form and manner by which applications will be submitted;
30 (iii) the manner by which calculation of the amount of the award will
31 be determined;
32 (iv) the timeline for the review of applications; and
33 (v) program implementation phases that will trigger payment of set
34 percentages of the total award.
35 c. In assessing proposal quality, in addition to the scoring rubric,
36 the commissioner shall take into account factors including, but not
37 limited to:
38 (i) the extent to which the school district's proposal would provide
39 such community services through partnerships with local governments and
40 non-profit organizations;
41 (ii) the extent to which the proposal would provide for delivery of
42 such services directly in school buildings;
43 (iii) the extent to which the proposal articulates how such services
44 would facilitate measurable improvement in student and family outcomes;
45 (iv) the extent to which the proposal articulates and identifies how
46 existing funding streams and programs would be used to provide such
47 community services; and
48 (v) the extent to which the proposal ensures the safety of all
49 students, staff and community members in school buildings used as commu-
50 nity hubs.
51 d. Each school site referenced in a proposal shall be:
52 (i) a low performance school, performing in the lowest fifteen percent
53 of schools statewide;
54 (ii) a school with a graduation rate of less than sixty percent over
55 the last three years; or
A. 6791--A 3
1 (iii) deemed by the department a school in poverty that would benefit
2 from the grant program.
3 e. A response to a request for proposals issued pursuant to this
4 subdivision may be submitted by a single school district or jointly by a
5 consortium of two or more school districts, or in a city with a popu-
6 lation of one million or more, an eligible entity.
7 f. The amount of the grant award shall be determined by the commis-
8 sioner, except that no single district may be awarded more than forty
9 percent of the total amount of grant awards made pursuant to this
10 section; and provided further that the maximum award to any individual
11 community school site shall be five hundred thousand dollars per year;
12 and provided further that the amount awarded will be paid out in set
13 percentages over time upon successful implementation of each phase of a
14 school district's approved proposal; and provided further that none of
15 the grants awarded pursuant to this section may be used to supplant
16 existing funding.
17 3. a. The commissioner is authorized to award planning grants for a
18 term of one year. Grantees who complete a plan that meets the require-
19 ments for demonstrated readiness pursuant to paragraph b of this subdi-
20 vision shall then be awarded an operational grant for a term of five
21 years which shall be renewable at the discretion of the commissioner.
22 b. Grants shall be awarded for the two thousand sixteen--two thousand
23 seventeen school year to applicants based upon the factors in subdivi-
24 sion two of this section. The commissioner is hereby authorized to award
25 grants for planning of not more than two hundred thousand dollars for a
26 one-year period. At the end of this period, grantees shall meet the
27 following requirements for demonstrated readiness:
28 (i) the establishment of a school leadership team for each covered
29 school site of thirteen to fifteen people which shall include: the prin-
30 cipal, one community-based partner, at least three parents or guardians
31 with at least one student currently enrolled in the school, selected by
32 the parent body, at least three teachers selected through a process
33 established by their respective collective bargaining units, one school
34 employee including a guidance counselor, social worker or school nurse
35 selected through a process established by their respective collective
36 bargaining units, at least two community members, two students, current-
37 ly enrolled at the covered school and elected by the student body, if
38 the grantee is a high school and two representatives from institutions
39 of higher education selected, if applicable, through a process estab-
40 lished by their respective collective bargaining units. The school lead-
41 ership team shall conduct a comprehensive needs assessment of the school
42 and surrounding community. The school leadership team shall also develop
43 a shared vision for the school with the school and local community
44 through a community school action plan that includes tangible short-term
45 changes and three- to five-year reform objectives and meets the require-
46 ments of subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph.
47 (A) The school leadership team shall hold at least two public hearings
48 as part of its comprehensive needs assessment and community school
49 action plan development process for the purpose of soliciting public
50 input and shall take additional steps to solicit public input as it
51 deems appropriate.
52 (B) The school leadership team shall also make a public presentation
53 of the community school action plan stating how it addresses student,
54 community and school needs. Such presentation shall include the opportu-
55 nity for public feedback and input on the community school action plan.
A. 6791--A 4
1 (C) The school leadership team shall issue annual recommendations to
2 school leadership and the local school district. Such school leadership
3 team reports and the community school action plan shall be made avail-
4 able to the public on the school's and the school district's websites
5 and shall be provided to the legislature;
6 (ii) the hiring of a resource coordinator to coordinate services at
7 each covered school site. A grantee proposing to cover more than one
8 school shall also hire a program director to coordinate activities
9 across school sites. Resource coordinators and program directors shall
10 work with school leadership and the school leadership team to deliver
11 programs and services; and
12 (iii) the submission to the department of a community school action
13 plan for each covered school that includes the following:
14 (A) the comprehensive needs assessment of the school and community as
15 reported by the school leadership team;
16 (B) a plan to implement a restorative justice model designed to reduce
17 suspensions. For purposes of this section, "restorative justice" shall
18 mean school discipline policies that shall reduce suspensions, address
19 the causes of student misbehavior and replace punitive approaches with
20 alternative methods that focus on conflict resolution skills, building
21 positive relationships, using restorative practices, and creating
22 collaboration among teachers, parents and students;
23 (C) a plan to provide a minimum of four of the following community
24 school programs:
25 (1) early childhood education;
26 (2) academic support and enrichment activities, including expanded
27 learning time;
28 (3) summer or after-school enrichment and learning experiences;
29 (4) programs under the head start act, including early head start
30 programs;
31 (5) teacher home visiting and/or home visitation services by other
32 professionals;
33 (6) programs that promote parental involvement and family literacy,
34 including the reading first and early reading first programs authorized
35 under part B of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
36 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6361 et seq.);
37 (7) mentoring and other youth development programs, including peer
38 mentoring and conflict mediation;
39 (8) parent leadership development activities;
40 (9) parenting education activities;
41 (10) child care services;
42 (11) community service and service-learning opportunities;
43 (12) programs that provide assistance to students who have been
44 truant, suspended, or expelled;
45 (13) job training, internship opportunities, and career counseling
46 services;
47 (14) adult education, including instruction in English as a second
48 language;
49 (15) juvenile crime prevention and rehabilitation programs;
50 (16) specialized instructional support services;
51 (17) homeless prevention services; or
52 (18) other programming designed to meet school and community needs
53 identified through the school leadership team; and
54 (D) a plan to provide for school-based health services including
55 primary health care, dental care, nutrition services and mental,
A. 6791--A 5
1 emotional and behavioral health services at the covered school or
2 schools.
3 c. Grantees that have demonstrated readiness to begin operation of a
4 sustainable community school program shall be awarded the community
5 schools operational grant for the two thousand seventeen--two thousand
6 eighteen school year. The commissioner is hereby authorized to award
7 operational grants of not more than five hundred thousand dollars per
8 school for each year of the five-year grant period. Operational grants
9 shall supplement existing services and funds.
10 d. The commissioner shall contract with a non-profit organization with
11 a successful track record of supporting community schools to provide
12 technical support and assistance to the school and the school leadership
13 team in order to ensure the successful design, planning and implementa-
14 tion of this program.
15 4. a. Every grantee shall file an annual report with the commissioner,
16 in such form and with such data as the commissioner prescribes detailing
17 the expenditure of grant funds, together with an analysis of the
18 school's efforts to integrate community school programming at each
19 covered school site, challenges encountered, the impact of such program-
20 ming on participating children and adults and recommendations for
21 improvement. Such report shall also document the number of students
22 receiving services, retention rates, academic achievement, local fiscal
23 savings and increased access to services. The department shall evaluate
24 such reports and aggregate the data provided.
25 b. The department shall report annually on the operation and effec-
26 tiveness of the community schools grant program to the governor, the
27 temporary president of the senate and the speaker of the assembly begin-
28 ning one year after the effective date of this section. Such report
29 shall detail the impact of community schools statewide and include anal-
30 ysis of the effectiveness of implementing community school action plans,
31 identify any federal, state, or local law impeding such implementation,
32 the degree to which there has been an increase in available services and
33 an analysis of cost-savings in areas including but not limited to public
34 health, safety and education. Data in the report shall be made available
35 to the public in machine-readable formats and such report shall be made
36 publicly available at covered school sites and on the department's
37 website.
38 5. No modification of any collective bargaining agreement shall be
39 made, nor shall any new terms and conditions of employment be estab-
40 lished, except through negotiations pursuant to article fourteen of the
41 civil service law.
42 § 3. The sum of two hundred fifty million dollars ($250,000,000), or
43 so much thereof as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated to the
44 education department from any moneys in the state treasury in the gener-
45 al fund to the credit of the local assistance account not otherwise
46 appropriated, and made immediately available, for the purpose of carry-
47 ing out the provisions of this act for the 2016-2017 school year. Such
48 sum shall be payable on the audit and warrant of the state comptroller
49 on vouchers certified or approved by the commissioner of education, or
50 his or her duly designated representative, in the manner prescribed by
51 law.
52 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
