A N A C T
RELATING TO EDUCATION
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Title 16 of the General Laws entitled "Education" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter:
CHAPTER 53.1
RHODE ISLAND SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT TEAM ACT OF 2000
16-53.1-1. Short title. -- This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the Rhode Island School Improvement Act of 2000.
16-53.1-2. Establishment of school improvement teams. -- (a) The school board or school committees of the respective cities and towns shall establish a school improvement team for each school in the district, and shall develop procedures for the election and appointment of school improvement team members who are appointed after July 1, 2000. Each school improvement team shall be composed of the principal and an appropriately balanced number of teachers, education support employees, students, parents, and other business and community citizens who are representative of the ethnic, racial, and economic community served by the school, provided that vocational-technical center and high school school improvement teams shall include students, and middle and junior high school school improvement teams may include students. Members representing teachers, education support employees, students, and parents shall be selected by their respective peer groups at the school in a fair and equitable:
Business and other community members shall be selected by the school according to a procedure established by the school board. The school board shall review the membership composition of each school improvement team. Should the school board determine that the membership elected by the school is not representative of the ethnic, racial, and economic community served by the school, the board shall appoint additional members to achieve proper representation. For the purposes of school improvement teams, the term "teacher" shall include classroom teachers, certified student services personnel, and media specialists. For purposes of this paragraph, "education support employee" means any person employed by a school who is not defined as instructional or administrative personnel pursuant to law and whose duties require twenty (20) or more hours in each normal working week.
(b) The school board may establish a district school improvement team representative of the district and composed of teachers, students, parents, and other citizens or a district school improvement team which may be comprised of representatives of each school improvement team.
16-53.1-3. Duties of the school improvement teams. -- Each school improvement team shall perform such functions as are prescribed by regulations of the school board or school committee; however, no school improvement team shall have any of the powers and duties now reserved by law to the school board. Each school improvement team shall assist in the preparation and evaluation of the school improvement plans and shall provide such assistance as the principal may request in preparing the school's annual budget and plan as required by law.
16-53.1-4. Severability. -- If any provision of this chapter or the application thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or application of the chapter, which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this chapter are declared to be severable.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.