The Williams Settlement, and subsequent legislation, focused on three major areas: Instructional Materials, Facilities and Teacher Certification. Additional requirements are the responsibility of school districts and county superintendents; what is provided here are the requirements directly related to the individual schools. Priority is placed on schools that fall into Deciles 1, 2 and 3 of the Academic Performance Index for base year 2003-04. New data elements will also be incorporated into the School Accountability Report Card (SARC) for these three areas. The role of the county superintendent during the implementation of the settlement is to facilitate understanding of the requirements of the settlement and monitor Decile 1-3 schools in the three areas. The Santa Clara County Office of Education is committed to helping districts and schools implement settlement requirements as easily and practicably as possible. Schools should view the information they are required to supply as they would a "self-study," with the county simply verifying the accuracy of what is reported.
Provisions for the implementation for 2004-05 declare the legislative intent that local education agencies (LEAs) and state agencies begin implementation as soon as practical and with due diligence. However, the state recognizes that due to the late enactment of the measure full implementation of some of the provisions for school terms beginning in 2004-05 may be impractical.
Package of Legislation Passed and Signed by the Governor
SB 550 & AB 2727 - Establishes minimum thresholds regarding school facilities, teacher quality, and instructional materials and an accountability structure to enforce these thresholds.
AB 1550 - Eliminates all Concept 6 schools by July 1, 2012.
AB 3001 - Ensures placement of qualified teachers in low performing schools and enhances an existing oversight mechanism to ensure teachers are appropriately qualified to teach the subject matter to which they have been assigned. Additionally, streamlines the process for highly qualified teachers from out-of-state to obtain jobs in California's schools.
SB 6 - Provides up to $800 million beginning with the 2005-06 fiscal year for Decile 1, 2, or 3 districts according to 2003 API to address emergency facility repair projects. Additionally, provides approximately $25 million to assess the condition of school facilities in the bottom three deciles, commencing in 2004-05.
REQUIRED INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS
The school must ensure that all pupils, including English learners, have sufficient textbooks and instructional materials to use in class and to take home to complete homework assignments. This does not mean two textbooks. Sufficient textbooks or instructional materials do not include photocopied sheets from only a portion of a textbook or instructional material to address shortages. Sufficient textbooks or instructional materials must meet the district’s standards for textbooks in the four core subjects of English language arts, mathematics, history/social studies and science. In addition, there must be textbooks for foreign language and health, and, in grades 9-12, science laboratory equipment.
In instances where there are insufficient textbooks, the CDE will purchase the textbooks for the district. If the CDE must purchase instructional materials for a district, the State Board shall issue a public statement indicating the district superintendent and the governing board failed to provide pupils with sufficient textbooks as required by law.
FACILITY MAINTENANCE
The school must ensure that its facilities are clean, safe and in good repair, and that all unforeseeable emergency facilities needs are being addressed. Unforeseeable emergency needs are defined as gas leaks, nonfunctioning heating/air conditioning or ventilation systems, power failures, major sewer line stoppages, pest infestations, broken windows, doors or gates that will not lock, hazardous materials abatement or unforeseen structural damage creating hazardous or uninhabitable conditions. The settlement requires all school districts to include data on these topics in the SARC.
TEACHER MISASSIGNMENTS AND VACANCIES
The county, under current law, monitors schools for teacher assignments and now must also give priority to monitoring Decile 1-3 schools and investigate district and school efforts to ensure that any credentialed teacher in an assignment requiring Crosscultural Language and Academic Development (CLAD), Bilingual CLAD (BCLAD) or SB 1969/395 training has completed the necessary requirements or is otherwise authorized by law to have that assignment. The annual report to the Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) shall also be submitted to the CDE, and shall include information on any classes in Decile 1-3 schools in which 20% or more of the students are English learners and the assigned teacher does not possess the credentials required by law. The CDE will prepare a report for the legislature concerning misassignments.
OTHER SIGNIFICANT REQUIREMENTS OF THE SETTLEMENT
a. Ordering of Textbooks and Instructional Materials.
To the extent practicable, districts shall ensure that instructional materials are ordered before the school year begins. If there is an insufficiency of materials, the board shall take action to ensure each student has sufficient textbooks or instructional materials within two months from the beginning of the school year
b. Complaint System.
Districts must adopt a complaint system (or modify an existing complaint system) to include complaints regarding instructional materials, teacher misassignments/vacancies and facilities. A public notice shall be posted in each classroom outlining parent and guardian complaint rights. Complaints shall be filed with the principal (or designee) of the school, and the principal shall forward certain complaints to the district superintendent (or designee). The school official shall make reasonable efforts to investigate and shall remedy problems within 30 working days. The school official shall report the resolution of the matter to the complainant within 45 working days. Complainants not satisfied may complain directly to the board at the next regular meeting. Quarterly, districts shall provide summaries of complaints and resolutions to the board and county superintendent, which shall be reported at a regular board meeting. Complaints and responses shall be public records.
A notice shall be posted in each classroom that sets forth the textbook sufficiency standard and the facility standards (clean, safe and maintained in good repair). A copy of the Williams notice may be found at http://www.cde.ca.gov/eo/ce/wc/wmsucp.asp. More information on pre-Williams Uniform Complaint Procedures may be found at http://www.cde.ca.gov/re/cp/uc/.
Complaint forms should be made available in school offices as well as the district office.
c. Amendments to the School Accountability Report Card.
The SARC shall be amended to add the number of teacher misassignments and vacancies to the existing assessment of teachers. The field related to "safety, cleanliness and adequacy of school facilities" includes information regarding emergency or urgent school facilities conditions that pose a threat to the health or safety of students.
http://www.cde.ca.gov/ta/ac/sa/
