1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to education; establishing a grant program to
1.3 	increase student achievement and help school sites
1.4 	identify and train parents and community leaders to
1.5 	hold the school and the school district accountable
1.6 	for achieving high academic standards; appropriating
1.7 	money.
1.8 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.9 	Section 1. GRANT PROGRAM TO BUILD A COMMUNITY-BASED
1.10 	ALLIANCE OF SCHOOLS FOR INCREASING STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT.
 1.11 		Subdivision 1.Establishment. A grant program is
1.12 	established to increase student achievement and help school
1.13 	sites identify and train education stakeholders, including
1.14 	parents and community leaders among others, to hold the school
1.15 	and the school district accountable for achieving high academic
1.16 	standards.
1.17 		Subd. 2.Eligibility. An applicant for a grant must be a
1.18 	public school site that has a student population where at least
1.19 	45 percent of the enrolled students are eligible to receive a
1.20 	free or reduced price meal or at least 4.7 percent of the
1.21 	enrolled students are limited English proficiency students who
1.22 	have received five or fewer years of English language learner
1.23 	services.  An applicant also must enter into a partnership with
1.24 	a business organization, a labor organization and
1.25 	community-based education stakeholders to focus on restructuring
1.26 	the educational practices at the school site.  The partnership
2.1 	must include parents, teachers, school administrators, students,
2.2 	community leaders, public officials and a nonprofit
2.3 	community-based organization able to train, develop and organize
2.4 	parents and community leaders into a constituency capable of
2.5 	holding the school and the school district accountable for
2.6 	achieving high academic standards.
2.7 		Subd. 3.Application process. To obtain a grant under
2.8 	this section, a school must submit an application to the
2.9 	commissioner of education in the form and manner determined by
2.10 	the commissioner.  The application must identify the members of
2.11 	the school partnership under subdivision 2 and describe how the
2.12 	school proposes to train, develop and organize parents,
2.13 	community leaders and others into a constituency able to
2.14 	restructure the school to improve student achievement and hold
2.15 	the school and the school district accountable for achieving
2.16 	high academic standards.  The commissioner may require
2.17 	additional information from a school applicant.
2.18 		Subd. 4.Grant review, award, proceeds. (a) When
2.19 	reviewing the application, the commissioner must determine
2.20 	whether all the requirements in subdivisions 2 and 3 are met and
2.21 	whether the applicant is able to meet all the requirements in
2.22 	paragraph (c).
2.23 	(b) The commissioner may award grants of up to $50,000 per
2.24 	eligible school applicant on a first come, first served basis to
2.25 	the extent funds are available under section 2.
2.26 	(c) A grant recipient must periodically demonstrate to the
2.27 	commissioner during the term of its grant program that the
2.28 	school is successfully:
2.29 	(1) using the grant proceeds to restructure the school site
2.30 	to improve academic achievement;
2.31 	(2) developing effective strategies to improve academic
2.32 	standards; and 
2.33 	(3) implementing a plan to develop, train and organize
2.34 	teachers, parents and community leaders to understand academic
2.35 	standards and to hold the school and school district accountable
2.36 	for achieving high academic standards and demonstrating
3.1 	continuous progress in achieving higher academic performance.
3.2 		Subd. 5.Report to legislature. The commissioner must
3.3 	use information from grant recipients to determine how and how
3.4 	well the recipients succeeded in improving student achievement
3.5 	and holding the school and the school district accountable for
3.6 	achieving high academic standards under this program and must
3.7 	recommend to the education committees of the legislature by
3.8 	February 15, 2007, whether or not to extend or expand this
3.9 	program.
3.10 	
EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective July 1, 2005.

3.11 	Sec. 2. APPROPRIATION.
 3.12 	$....... is appropriated from the general fund to the
3.13 	commissioner of education in fiscal year 2006 for the purposes
3.14 	of section 1.  This appropriation does not cancel but is
3.15 	available until June 30, 2007.

3.16 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective July 1, 2005.