1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to education; redefining student achievement through learning redesign; 
1.3 	appropriating money;amending Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 123B.04; 
1.4 	proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 123B.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. [123B.0399] PURPOSE; SCHOOLS REDESIGNING LEARNING.
1.7 	To develop the range of knowledge and skills that will permit the young people of 
1.8 	Minnesota to succeed in an increasingly complex and competitive world, the legislature 
1.9 	seeks to encourage districts to test alternatives to the givens of traditional school. The 
1.10 	legislature hopes to empower and encourage districts to authorize "Learning Redesign 
1.11 	Schools" in which students will master not only core academic and career content but will 
1.12 	excel also in other academic areas and will develop the skills needed to think critically and 
1.13 	solve complex problems, to work collaboratively, to communicate effectively, and to learn 
1.14 	continuously. The legislature will require that Learning Redesign Schools demonstrate 
1.15 	their success through multiple, meaningful measures of secondary and postsecondary 
1.16 	accountability. The legislature wishes to spread, and will encourage districts to spread, 
1.17 	such new models of school and approaches to learning where these prove successful, in 
1.18 	the district in which they first appear and beyond.

1.19 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment.

1.20 	Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 123B.04, is amended to read:
1.21 	123B.04 LEARNING REDESIGN SITE ~~DECISION MAKING~~ AGREEMENT; 
1.22 	INDIVIDUALIZED LEARNING AGREEMENT; OTHER AGREEMENTS.
2.1 		Subdivision 1.Definition; redesign initiative. (a) "~~Education~~ Learning redesign
2.2 	 site" means a separate facility~~.~~or a program, grade, or department within a facility or 
2.3 	~~within a~~ district ~~is an education site if the school board recognizes it as a site~~.
2.4 	(b) A school board may seek an agreement with a learning redesign site or a learning 
2.5 	redesign site may seek an agreement with its school board to redesign learning and 
2.6 	redefine student achievement under this section.
2.7 		Subd. 1a.Individualized learning ~~and instruction~~; improved student 
2.8 	achievement. To ~~promote~~ redefine student achievement by promoting individualized 
2.9 	learning ~~and instruction and improve student achievement~~ under subdivisions 4 and 4a, a 
2.10 	~~participating~~ school board under this section may ~~consider how to~~:
2.11 	(1) assist a ~~school~~ learning redesign site ~~to~~ adapt ~~instruction~~ learning programs to the 
2.12 	needs and aptitudes of individual students, including non-English language speakers and 
2.13 	students in poverty, among other students, and establish goals and standards for individual 
2.14 	students in addition to the state academic standards applicable to all students;
2.15 	(2) coordinate the pace of ~~instruction and~~ learning with the needs and aptitudes of 
2.16 	individual students at a ~~school~~ learning redesign site;
2.17 	(3) provide useful data and assist with research in developing and improving 
2.18 	innovative, cost-effective, research-based individualized learning, instruction, and 
2.19 	assessment under this section and section 124D.10;
2.20 	(4) demonstrate and help evaluate instructional alternatives to age-based grade 
2.21 	progression, including applied and project-based learning and adult basic education, 
2.22 	among other alternatives;
2.23 	(5) more effectively motivate students and teachers by expanding teachers' roles and 
2.24 	responsibilities, among other possibilities; and
2.25 	(6) expand use of learning technology to support individualized learning, instruction, 
2.26 	assessment, and achievement.
2.27 		Subd. 2.Agreement. (a) The school board and a ~~school~~ learning redesign site 
2.28 	may enter into an agreement under this section ~~solely~~ to develop and implement an 
2.29 	individualized learning and achievement contract under subdivision 4.
2.30 	(b) Upon the request of ~~60 percent of~~ the school board or licensed employees ~~of~~ at a 
2.31 	learning redesign site ~~or a school site decision-making team~~, the school board ~~shall~~ and a 
2.32 	learning redesign site team may enter into ~~discussions to reach~~ an agreement concerning 
2.33 	~~the~~ governance, management, education accountability, or control ~~of~~ at the ~~school~~ learning 
2.34 	redesign site. A ~~school site decision-making team may include the~~ school principal, 
2.35 	teachers in the school or their designee, other employees in the school, representatives 
2.36 	and parents of pupils in the school, ~~or~~ and other members in the community at a learning 
3.1 	redesign site are eligible to participate in this process as learning redesign site team 
3.2 	members. ~~A school site decision-making~~ The team must include at least one parent of a 
3.3 	pupil in the school~~. For purposes of formation of a new site, a school site decision-making~~ 
3.4 	~~team may be a team of~~, teachers ~~that is recognized by the board as a site. The school~~ 
3.5 	~~site decision-making team shall include~~ who must be a majority of the team members,
3.6 	 the school principal ~~or~~, and, where applicable, the other person ~~having general~~ most 
3.7 	directly responsible for control and supervision of the ~~school. The site decision-making~~ 
3.8 	~~team~~ learning redesign site. The team must reflect the diversity of the ~~education~~ learning 
3.9 	redesign site or district. ~~At least one-half of the members shall be employees of the~~ 
3.10 	~~district, unless an employee is the parent of a student enrolled in the school site, in which~~ 
3.11 	~~case the employee may elect to serve as a parent member of the site team.~~
3.12 	(c) ~~School~~ Learning redesign site ~~decision-making~~ agreements ~~must~~ may delegate 
3.13 	powers, duties, ~~and broad management~~ or other responsibilities to site teams and involve 
3.14 	staff members, students as appropriate, and parents in decision making.
3.15 	(d) An agreement shall include a statement of powers, duties, responsibilities, and 
3.16 	authority to be delegated to and within the learning redesign site.
3.17 	(e) An agreement may include:
3.18 	(1) an achievement contract according to subdivision 4;
3.19 	(2) where applicable, a mechanism to allow principals~~,~~ or a learning redesign site 
3.20 	~~leadership~~ team~~, or other persons having general control and supervision of the school,~~ to 
3.21 	make decisions ~~regarding~~ about how financial and personnel resources are best allocated 
3.22 	at the learning redesign site and from whom goods or services are purchased;
3.23 	(3) a mechanism to implement parental involvement programs under section 
3.24 	124D.895 and to provide for effective parental communication ~~and feedback~~ on this 
3.25 	involvement at the learning redesign site level;
3.26 	(4) a provision that would allow the team to ~~determine~~ advise the school board about
3.27 	 who is hired into licensed and nonlicensed positions at the learning redesign site;
3.28 	(5) where applicable, a provision that would allow teachers to choose the principal 
3.29 	or other person having general control at the learning redesign site;
3.30 	(6) ~~an amount of~~ any revenue allocated to the learning redesign site under 
3.31 	subdivision 3; and
3.32 	(7) any other powers and duties determined appropriate by the board and the 
3.33 	learning redesign site team.
3.34 	The school board of the district remains the legal employer under clauses (4) and (5).
4.1 	(f) Any powers or duties not delegated to the ~~school~~ learning redesign site 
4.2 	~~management~~ team in the ~~school site management~~ learning redesign site agreement shall 
4.3 	remain with the school board.
4.4 	(g) Approved agreements shall be filed with the commissioner. If a ~~school board~~ 
4.5 	~~denies a request or the school~~ learning redesign site and school board fail to reach an 
4.6 	agreement ~~to enter into a school site management agreement~~, the school board and the 
4.7 	learning redesign site team shall each provide ~~a copy of the request and~~ the reasons for ~~its~~ 
4.8 	~~denial~~ failing to agree to the commissioner.
4.9 		Subd. 2a.Grant program established. ~~(h)~~ (a) A learning redesign site 
4.10 	~~decision-making~~ grant program is established, consistent with this ~~subdivision~~ section, to 
4.11 	allow learning redesign sites to implement an agreement that at least:
4.12 	(1) notwithstanding subdivision 3, allocates to the learning redesign site ~~all~~ a grant 
4.13 	award or revenue ~~that is~~ attributable to the students at that site;
4.14 	(2) includes a provision, consistent with current law and the collective bargaining 
4.15 	agreement in effect, that allows the learning redesign site team to ~~decide~~ advise the school 
4.16 	board about who is selected from within the district for licensed and nonlicensed positions 
4.17 	at the learning redesign site and to ~~make~~ advise about faculty and staff assignments ~~in~~
4.18 	 at the learning redesign site; and
4.19 	(3) includes a completed performance agreement under subdivision 4.
4.20 	(b) Consistent with subdivision 5, the commissioner shall establish the form and 
4.21 	manner of the application for a grant and annually, at the end of each fiscal year, report to 
4.22 	the house of representatives and senate committees having jurisdiction over education 
4.23 	on the progress of the program.
4.24 		Subd. 3.Revenue and cost allocation. Where applicable, revenue for a fiscal year 
4.25 	received or receivable by the district shall be allocated to ~~education~~ learning redesign
4.26 	 sites based on the agreement between the school board and the learning redesign site 
4.27 	~~decision-making~~ team. Revenue shall remain allocated to ~~each~~the learning redesign 
4.28 	site until used by the site. The site teams and the board may enter an agreement that 
4.29 	permits the district to provide services and retain the revenue required to pay for the 
4.30 	services provided. The district remains responsible for legally entering into contracts 
4.31 	and expending funds. For the purposes of this subdivision, "allocation" means that the 
4.32 	determination of the use of the revenue shall be under the control of the site. The district 
4.33 	~~may charge the accounts of~~ must enter into an agreement with each site establishing the 
4.34 	actual costs of goods and services from the general or capital funds attributable to the site.
5.1 		Subd. 4.Achievement contract. A school board may enter a written 
5.2 	~~education~~ learning redesign site achievement contract with each learning redesign site 
5.3 	~~decision-making~~ team for: 
5.4 	(1) setting individualized learning and achievement measures and short- and 
5.5 	long-term educational goals for each student at that site; 
5.6 	(2) recognizing each student's educational needs and aptitudes and levels of 
5.7 	academic attainment, whether on grade level or above or below grade level, so as to 
5.8 	improve student performance through such means as a cost-effective, research-based 
5.9 	formative assessment system designed to promote individualized learning and assessment; 
5.10 	(3) using student performance data to diagnose a student's academic strengths and 
5.11 	weaknesses and indicate to the student's teachers the specific skills and concepts that 
5.12 	need to be introduced to the student and developed through academic instruction or 
5.13 	applied learning, organized by strands within subject areas and linked to state and local 
5.14 	academic standards during the next year, consistent with the student's short- and long-term 
5.15 	educational goals; ~~and~~
5.16 	(4) assisting the ~~education~~ learning redesign site if progress in achieving student or 
5.17 	contract goals or other performance expectations or measures agreed to by the board and 
5.18 	the learning redesign site ~~decision-making~~ team are not realized or implemented; and
5.19 	(5) defining broader objectives to be used by the site and the measures used to assess 
5.20 	the site's achievement of those objectives.
5.21 		Subd. 4a.Additional site agreements premised on successful achievement 
5.22 	contracts. A school board that enters into a written education achievement contract 
5.23 	with a ~~school~~ learning redesign site under subdivision 4 where the student performance 
5.24 	data at the site demonstrate at least three consecutive school years of improved student 
5.25 	achievement consistent with the terms of the achievement contract ~~may~~ must seek to 
5.26 	establish a similar achievement contract ~~with~~ at other ~~school sites in the~~ district sites.
5.27 		Subd. 5.Commissioner's role; grant awards and evaluation. (a) The 
5.28 	commissioner must encourage districts to enter into a learning redesign site agreement 
5.29 	under this section and may award grants to applicants that have entered into such 
5.30 	an agreement. Grant amounts may not exceed $....... per resident pupil unit in the 
5.31 	learning redesign site in the prior school year. The commissioner shall award grants on 
5.32 	a first-come-first-served basis to eligible applicants the commissioner determines have 
5.33 	met grant program requirements.
5.34 	(b) The commissioner ~~of education~~, in consultation with appropriate educational 
5.35 	organizations, shall:
6.1 	(1) upon request, provide technical support for districts and learning redesign sites 
6.2 	with agreements under this section;
6.3 	(2) conduct and compile research on and evaluate the effectiveness of ~~site decision~~ 
6.4 	~~making~~ learning redesign site agreements; and
6.5 	(3) ~~periodically~~ annually report to the education committees of the legislature on 
6.6 	~~and evaluate~~ the effectiveness of the site ~~management~~ agreements and how to apply the 
6.7 	positive outcomes of learning redesign on a statewide basis.

6.8 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective for fiscal year 2014 and later.

6.9 	Sec. 3. APPROPRIATIONS; LEARNING REDESIGN SITE GRANTS.
 6.10 	 $....... in fiscal year 2014 and $....... in fiscal year 2015 are appropriated from the 
6.11 	general fund to the commissioner of education for learning redesign site grants under 
6.12 	Minnesota Statutes, section 123B.04. Any unexpended funds in the first year do not 
6.13 	cancel but are available in the second year.

6.14 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective July 1, 2013.