2007 California Education Code Chapter 10. Local Improvement Program

CA Codes (edc:58950-58956)

58950.  (a) The Local Improvement Program is hereby established as a
pilot program. The State Board of Education may select school
districts, applying on behalf of public schools that provide
instruction in kindergarten or any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive, to
voluntarily participate in the Local Improvement Program in
accordance with criteria that the state board may adopt. The number
of schools participating in the program for all school districts
approved by the state board may not exceed 5 percent of the total
number of public schools, in no more than 15 school districts, that
provide instruction in kindergarten or any of grades 1 to 12,
inclusive. Participating school districts shall allocate
instructional program funding to participating schools with maximum
flexibility in the development and implementation of schoolsite
funding in order to support and improve pupil learning.
   (b)  As a condition of voluntary participation, the governing
board of a participating school district shall develop and implement
policies and procedures pursuant to this chapter that support the
schoolsite goals and objectives of the participating schools.



58951.  The governing board of each participating school district
shall develop and implement policies and procedures to increase
site-level decisionmaking at participating schools to enable all of
the following:
   (a) Parents, community members representing the diverse racial,
ethnic, gender, and socioeconomic backgrounds, the school pupil
population, teachers and secondary school pupils, schoolsite
administrators, the various categories of school employees, and other
school staff to set goals, objectives, and expenditure priorities
for improving instruction at that school, and to participate in
decisionmaking regarding policies and procedures. It is the intent of
the Legislature to ensure meaningful access by, and participation
of, parents in the design and governance of a schoolsite, and, to
enable the participation of parents who traditionally have not
participated in school governance.
   (b) Schoolsite teachers and school level administrators to design
and implement policies and procedures consistent with the goals and
objectives established pursuant to subdivision (a), including, but
not limited to, all of the following:
   (1) Selection and assignment of certificated and noncertificated
school personnel in accordance with Chapter 5 (commencing with
Section 45100) of Part 25.
   (2) Development and enrichment of instructional courses that build
upon state-adopted content and performance standards in order to
provide rigorous instruction for all pupils, including the
implementation of diverse instructional approaches to respond to the
variety of pupil learning needs.
   (3) Expenditure of funds for instruction, including, but not
limited to, instructional materials, staff training, and personnel.



58952.  Participating school districts may, on behalf of one or more
participating schools, request to waive any provision of the
Education Code, or any regulation enacted pursuant to authority
granted by the Education Code, if the waiver is requested in
accordance with Article 3 (commencing with Section 33050) of Chapter
1 of Part 20. A waiver may be approved only if it is necessary to
facilitate the pilot program established by this chapter.



58953.  (a) The application of a school district, on behalf of one
or more schools within the district, to participate shall demonstrate
the manner in which parent education, information, and support will
be provided for parents of all racial, ethnic, gender, or
socioeconomic backgrounds to encourage their involvement in the
development and implementation of the program and so that parents may
be involved in decisionmaking and support for the instructional
program of their child or children.
   (b) A school principal, acting with the consent of the schoolsite
council, or any other representative body constituted pursuant to the
requirements of Section 58951, may apply on behalf of his or her
school to the governing board of the school district to participate
in the Local Improvement Program. A school district may only apply to
participate in the Local Improvement Program on behalf of schools or
consortia of schools that apply to take part in the program.
   (c) A participating school district shall provide information that
is required by the Superintendent to conduct the evaluation required
by Section 58954.



58954.  (a) Subject to the availability of funds specifically
appropriated for this section, the Superintendent shall evaluate, or
contract for the evaluation of, the effectiveness of the Local
Improvement Program and annually report that evaluation to the state
board, the Secretary for Education, the Department of Finance, the
Legislative Analyst, the Assembly Committee on Education, and the
Senate Committee on Education. The evaluation shall include a
determination whether pupils and school communities have benefited
from the provision of instructional program funding to participating
schools with maximum flexibility. The Superintendent shall make
recommendations concerning whether a local improvement program should
be continued.
   (b) It is the intent of the Legislature that the evaluation
include all of the following:
   (1) An assessment of the nature, scope, and quality of the
implementation of a local improvement program.
   (2) A recommendation regarding needed modifications in statutes,
policy, or procedure, in order to support and assist implementation
of a local improvement program.
   (3) An assessment of the effectiveness of a local improvement
program in supporting and improving pupil learning as measured by
both pupil performance, and pupil, parent, and school employee
satisfaction, with pupil learning, school organization, governance,
and management.
   (4) Information regarding changes in roles or responsibilities
among participating individuals, including teachers, administrators,
other school staff, parents, pupils, and participating entities
including businesses, postsecondary educational institutions, and
educational organizations.



58955.  The department shall provide staff assistance to the state
board as necessary for the purpose of establishing, monitoring, and
evaluating a local improvement program.



58956.  This chapter shall become inoperative on June 30, 2010, and
is repealed as of January 1, 2011, unless a later enacted statute,
that becomes operative before January 1, 2011, deletes or extends
these dates.