1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to education; modifying grant award procedure 
  1.3             of community crime prevention programs; establishing 
  1.4             the learn and earn graduation incentives grant 
  1.5             program; appropriating money; amending Minnesota 
  1.6             Statutes 1996, section 119A.31, subdivisions 1 and 2; 
  1.7             proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, 
  1.8             chapter 126. 
  1.9   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.10     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 119A.31, 
  1.11  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  1.12     Subdivision 1.  [PROGRAMS.] The commissioner shall, in 
  1.13  consultation with the chemical abuse and violence prevention 
  1.14  council, administer a grant program to fund community-based 
  1.15  programs that are designed to enhance the community's sense of 
  1.16  personal security and to assist the community in its crime 
  1.17  control and prevention efforts.  Examples of qualifying programs 
  1.18  include, but are not limited to, the following: 
  1.19     (1) community-based programs designed to provide services 
  1.20  for children aged 8 to 13 who are juvenile offenders or who are 
  1.21  at risk of becoming juvenile offenders.  The programs must give 
  1.22  priority to: 
  1.23     (i) juvenile restitution; 
  1.24     (ii) prearrest or pretrial diversion, including through 
  1.25  mediation; 
  1.26     (iii) probation innovation; 
  1.27     (iv) teen courts, community service; or 
  2.1      (v) post incarceration alternatives to assist youth in 
  2.2   returning to their communities; 
  2.3      (2) community-based programs designed to provide at-risk 
  2.4   children and youth aged 8 to 13 with after-school and summer 
  2.5   enrichment activities; 
  2.6      (3) community-based programs designed to discourage young 
  2.7   people from involvement in unlawful drug or street gang 
  2.8   activities such as neighborhood youth centers; 
  2.9      (4) neighborhood block clubs and innovative community-based 
  2.10  crime prevention programs; 
  2.11     (5) community- and school-based programs designed to enrich 
  2.12  the educational, cultural, or recreational opportunities of 
  2.13  at-risk children and youth, including programs designed to keep 
  2.14  at-risk youth from dropping out of school and encourage school 
  2.15  dropouts to return to school; 
  2.16     (6) community-based programs designed to intervene with 
  2.17  juvenile offenders who are identified as likely to engage in 
  2.18  repeated criminal activity in the future unless intervention is 
  2.19  undertaken; 
  2.20     (7) community-based collaboratives that coordinate multiple 
  2.21  programs and funding sources to address the needs of at-risk 
  2.22  children and youth, including, but not limited to, 
  2.23  collaboratives that address the continuum of services for 
  2.24  juvenile offenders and those who are at risk of becoming 
  2.25  juvenile offenders; 
  2.26     (8) programs that are proven successful at increasing the 
  2.27  rate of school success or the rate of post-secondary education 
  2.28  attendance for high-risk students, including, but not limited 
  2.29  to, the learn and earn graduation incentives program under 
  2.30  section 126.79; 
  2.31     (9) community-based programs that provide services to 
  2.32  homeless youth; 
  2.33     (10) programs designed to reduce truancy; ~~and~~ 
  2.34     (11) crime prevention programs that include a change in the 
  2.35  school district start times for high school or middle school 
  2.36  students; and 
  3.1      (12) other community- and school-based crime prevention 
  3.2   programs that are innovative and encourage substantial 
  3.3   involvement by members of the community served by the program.  
  3.4      Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 119A.31, 
  3.5   subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  3.6      Subd. 2.  [GRANT PROCEDURE.] A local unit of government ~~or~~, 
  3.7   a nonprofit community-based entity, or a community-based 
  3.8   collaborative consisting of a public school district, 
  3.9   representatives of parent associations, teachers, local law 
  3.10  enforcement, social service agencies, and youth residing in the 
  3.11  public school district may apply for a grant by submitting an 
  3.12  application with the commissioner.  The applicant shall specify 
  3.13  the following in its application: 
  3.14     (1) a description of each program for which funding is 
  3.15  sought; 
  3.16     (2) outcomes and performance indicators for the program; 
  3.17     (3) a description of the planning process that identifies 
  3.18  local community needs, surveys existing programs, provides for 
  3.19  coordination with existing programs, and involves all affected 
  3.20  sectors of the community; 
  3.21     (4) the geographical area to be served by the program; 
  3.22     (5) statistical information as to the number of arrests in 
  3.23  the geographical area for violent crimes and for crimes 
  3.24  involving schedule I and II controlled substances.  "Violent 
  3.25  crime" includes a violation of or an attempt or conspiracy to 
  3.26  violate any of the following laws:  sections 609.185; 609.19; 
  3.27  609.195; 609.20; 609.205; 609.21; 609.221; 609.222; 609.223; 
  3.28  609.228; 609.235; 609.24; 609.245; 609.25; 609.255; 609.2661; 
  3.29  609.2662; 609.2663; 609.2664; 609.2665; 609.267; 609.2671; 
  3.30  609.268; 609.342; 609.343; 609.344; 609.345; 609.498, 
  3.31  subdivision 1; 609.561; 609.562; 609.582, subdivision 1; 
  3.32  609.687; or any provision of chapter 152 that is punishable by a 
  3.33  maximum sentence greater than ten years; and 
  3.34     (6) the number of economically disadvantaged youth in the 
  3.35  geographical areas to be served by the program. 
  3.36     The commissioner shall give priority to funding 
  4.1   community-based collaboratives, programs that demonstrate 
  4.2   substantial involvement by members of the community served by 
  4.3   the program and programs that either serve the geographical 
  4.4   areas that have the highest crime rates, as measured by the data 
  4.5   supplied under clause (4), or serve geographical areas that have 
  4.6   the largest concentrations of economically disadvantaged youth.  
  4.7   Up to 2.5 percent of the appropriation may be used by the 
  4.8   commissioner to administer the program. 
  4.9      Sec. 3.  [126.79] [LEARN AND EARN GRADUATION INCENTIVES 
  4.10  PROGRAM.] 
  4.11     Subdivision 1.  [ESTABLISHMENT.] (a) The commissioner, in 
  4.12  consultation with the evaluation committee, shall establish the 
  4.13  learn and earn graduation incentives grant program to assist 
  4.14  local communities in their efforts to decrease youth crime and 
  4.15  unintended adolescent pregnancy and to increase the 
  4.16  opportunities for at-risk youth to obtain secondary education 
  4.17  degrees and to pursue post-secondary education goals. 
  4.18     (b) Before grants are awarded, the commissioner shall meet 
  4.19  and consult with the evaluation committee concerning its 
  4.20  evaluation of and recommendations on grant proposals.  The 
  4.21  evaluation committee shall consist of the attorney general, a 
  4.22  representative of the business community, a teacher selected by 
  4.23  the Minnesota education association and the Minnesota federation 
  4.24  of teachers, a school administrator selected by the association 
  4.25  of secondary school principals, a representative selected by 
  4.26  each of the council on affairs of Chicano/Latino people, the 
  4.27  council on Black Minnesotans, the council on Asian-Pacific 
  4.28  Minnesotans, and the Indian affairs council, a law enforcement 
  4.29  representative selected by the Minnesota peace and police 
  4.30  officers association, and a representative of the Minnesota 
  4.31  office on adolescent pregnancy prevention. 
  4.32     Subd. 2.  [SCHOOL DISTRICT ELIGIBILITY.] A school district, 
  4.33  in collaboration with representatives of parent associations, 
  4.34  teachers, local law enforcement, social service agencies, and 
  4.35  youth residing in the school district, is eligible for a grant 
  4.36  under this section.  An applicant shall specify how it shall 
  5.1   operate a learn and earn graduation incentives program that 
  5.2   provides the following to participating students: 
  5.3      (1) 250 hours each school year, outside of regular school 
  5.4   hours, in basic competency skills such as reading, writing, 
  5.5   math, science, and social studies; 
  5.6      (2) 250 hours each school year providing service to the 
  5.7   community, as designed and authorized by the learn and earn 
  5.8   coordinator; and 
  5.9      (3) 250 hours each school year of cultural enrichment and 
  5.10  personal development including, but not limited to, 
  5.11  participating in community cultural events; developing life 
  5.12  skills for use in the home, workplace, and community; learning 
  5.13  to set goals; managing time; and making appropriate behavior 
  5.14  choices for varying social situations. 
  5.15     Subd. 3.  [GRANT PROCEDURE.] The grant procedure shall be 
  5.16  as provided in section 119A.31, subdivision 2. 
  5.17     Subd. 4.  [PROGRAM INCENTIVES.] (a) As an incentive to 
  5.18  completing the program, each participating student shall receive:
  5.19     (1) a stipend for each hour spent in a program component 
  5.20  activity, plus a monetary bonus upon completion of each activity 
  5.21  component during each of the program's four years; and 
  5.22     (2) a scholarship to any public Minnesota post-secondary 
  5.23  institution equal to the amount of the total of all stipends and 
  5.24  completion bonuses earned by the participating student under 
  5.25  clause (1) during the four years of the program. 
  5.26     (b) As an incentive to maximize student participation in 
  5.27  the program, each program coordinator shall be paid a stipend 
  5.28  for each hour spent by each student in a program component 
  5.29  activity, plus a monetary bonus upon each student's completion 
  5.30  of each activity component during each of the program's four 
  5.31  years. 
  5.32     Subd. 5.  [PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION.] (a) Each learn and earn 
  5.33  graduation incentives program shall be administered by the 
  5.34  school district, in coordination with representatives of the 
  5.35  community, including local law enforcement agencies. 
  5.36     (b) Each program shall be staffed with a coordinator whose 
  6.1   job responsibilities include maintaining contact with all 
  6.2   participating students, maintaining contact with the families of 
  6.3   the participating students, arranging for all cultural 
  6.4   enrichment opportunities, identifying opportunities for 
  6.5   community services, recordkeeping regarding the hours of 
  6.6   activity components completed by each participating student, and 
  6.7   other administrative duties as necessary.  If at all possible, 
  6.8   the program coordinator shall make a commitment to fulfill these 
  6.9   responsibilities for at least four years to provide continuity 
  6.10  of adult contact to the participating students. 
  6.11     Subd. 6.  [STUDENT ELIGIBILITY.] A student is eligible to 
  6.12  participate in the learn and earn graduation incentives program 
  6.13  if the student: 
  6.14     (1) is enrolled in a participating school district; 
  6.15     (2) is entering the ninth grade; and 
  6.16     (3) is a member of a household that meets the financial 
  6.17  criteria to qualify for public assistance. 
  6.18     Subd. 7.  [REPORT.] The commissioner shall make a report as 
  6.19  provided under section 119A.31, subdivision 3. 
  6.20     Sec. 4.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
  6.21     $10,000,000 is appropriated in fiscal year 1998 from the 
  6.22  general fund to the commissioner of children, families, and 
  6.23  learning to provide grants for the learn and earn graduation 
  6.24  incentives program.