After three packed weeks of bill introductions and testimony, both the House and Senate Omnibus Education Policy Bills passed out of committee for their first deadline. HF 3066 DE and SF 2744 A5 are designed to include policy changes that do not have state-level cost impacts. View side-by-side comparison of bills.
Some of the more significant proposed policy changes include:
- Personal Learning Plans would be required for students who are not proficient in 3rd grade reading (SF 2744, Art 2, Section 5)
- ECFE (Early Childhood Family Education) and ABE (Adult Basic Education) teachers would be defined as “teachers” under the continuing contract law (SF 2744, Art 7, Section 10)
- The Commissioner of Education would be prohibited from surveying students on health behaviors other than student safety and engagement (HF 3066 DE Art 2, Section 26). This would affect the scope of the Adolescent Health Survey administered every three years for the past 30+ years.
- Two or more districts would be able to enter into a Career and Technical Education (CTE) Partnership with profit and nonprofit organizations (HF 3066 DE Art 2, Section 29) This replaces the current Innovation Zone language.
- The Chancellor of MNSCU would be tasked with determining scores on high school Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment tests (MCAs) that indicate future success in 2- and 4-year credit bearing courses (HF 3066 Art 2, Section 6).
Both bills include:
- A K-12 teacher license legislative task force composed of 12 legislators
- Inclusion of gifted and talented policies and staff development report in the World’s Best Workforce (WBWF) report
SF 3066 calls for state-level working groups on the Fair Pupil Dismissal Act and CTE licensure. Learn more in side-by-side comparison of bills.
Since there is no state cost impact for district level work, SF 2744 calls for the following additional district level reports/publications and advisory committees. Learn more in side-by-side comparison.
- World’s Best Workforce Site Advisory Team
- District Assessment Advisory Committee (Districts can use an existing committee)
- Report on process to examine distribution of effective, experienced teachers
- Report on demographics of licensed teachers
- Report on number of community experts
- Report on PK-6 class sizes
- Report on efforts to evaluate and ID students with dyslexia
- Report on efforts to evaluate and ID students with convergence insufficiency disorder
- Inform high school students and parents that if the student’s MCA scores are below “proficiency” level, high school is free until the student turns 21 or graduates, whichever comes first
- Publish on web site a comprehensive test schedule
- Quarterly report to MDE on students who have been secluded
- Annual, rather than biennial, LTFM plans submitted to MDE
Voice of Greater Minnesota Education
As these bills move through the rest of the session, MREA will work to help legislative leaders and conferees separate the wheat from the chaff: those policies which have a good chance of truly improving educational outcomes for students versus those which add unnecessary reports and paperwork for teachers and administrators. MREA members are invited to have similar conversations with your legislators.