1.1    .................... moves to amend H.F. No. 2475, the committee engrossment, as
1.2follows:
1.3Page 41, line 23, delete "21,761,000" and insert "21,791,000"
1.4Page 42, after line 10, insert:
1.5    " (1) $30,000 in fiscal year 2009 is for determining how the educational achievement
1.6of low-income students and students of color is impacted by education issues related
1.7to rigorous preparation and coursework, educators' professional development, English
1.8language learners, special education, GRAD tests, and the use of valid and reliable data on
1.9student preparation for post secondary academic and career opportunities under sections 59
1.10and 60. This amount is not added to the base appropriation for fiscal year 2010 and later."
1.11Page 42, line 13, delete "298,000" and insert "268,000"
1.12Page 42, line 32, delete "150,000" and insert "120,000"
1.13Page 47, after line 29, insert:

1.14    "Sec. 59. SCHOOL DISTRICT PLANS TO IMPROVE STUDENTS'
1.15ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT.
1.16    Subdivision 1. District academic achievement plan; priorities. (a) A school
1.17district experiencing disparities in academic achievement is encouraged to develop a
1.18short and long-term plan encompassing one through four years to significantly improve
1.19students' academic achievement that uses concrete measures to eliminate differences in
1.20academic performance among groups of students defined by race, ethnicity, and income.
1.21The plan must:
1.22    (1) reflect a research-based understanding of high-performing educational systems
1.23and best educational practices;
1.24    (2) include innovative and practical strategies and programs, whether existing or
1.25new, that supplement district initiatives to increase students' academic achievement under
1.26state and federal educational accountability requirements; and
2.1    (3) contain valid and reliable measures of student achievement that the district uses
2.2to demonstrate the efficacy of the district plan to the commissioner of education.
2.3    (b) A district must address the elements under section 47, paragraph (a), to the
2.4extent those elements are implicated in the district's plan.
2.5    (c) A district must identify in its plan the strategies and programs the district has
2.6implemented and found effective in improving students' academic achievement.
2.7    (d) The district must include with the plan the amount of expenditures necessary
2.8to implement the plan. The district must indicate how current resources are used to
2.9implement the plan, including, but not limited to, state-limited English proficiency aid
2.10under Minnesota Statutes, section 124D.65; integration revenue under Minnesota Statutes,
2.11section 124D.86; early childhood family education revenue under Minnesota Statutes,
2.12section 124D.135; school readiness aid under Minnesota Statutes, section 124D.16; basic
2.13skills revenue under Minnesota Statutes, section 126C.10, subdivision 4; extended time
2.14revenue under Minnesota Statutes, section 126C.10, subdivision 2a; and alternative
2.15compensation revenue under Minnesota Statutes, section 122A.415.
2.16    Subd. 2. Plan. (a) A school district by October 1, 2008, must submit its plan in
2.17electronic format to the commissioner of education, consistent with subdivision 1.
2.18    (b) The commissioner of education must analyze the commonalities and differences
2.19of the district plans and the effective strategies and programs districts have implemented
2.20to improve students' academic achievement, and submit the analysis and underlying data
2.21to the advisory task force on improving students' academic achievement under section
2.2247 by November 1, 2008, and also report the substance of the analyses to the education
2.23policy and finance committees of the legislature by January 1, 2009.
2.24EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment.

2.25    Sec. 60. ADVISORY TASK FORCE ON IMPROVING STUDENTS'
2.26ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT.
2.27    (a) An advisory task force on improving students' academic achievement is
2.28established to review the plans submitted to the commissioner of education under section
2.2946 and recommend to the education committees of the legislature a proposal for improving
2.30students' academic achievement and eliminating differences in academic performance
2.31among groups of students defined by race, ethnicity, and income. The task force members
2.32must at least consider how the following education-related issues impact the educational
2.33achievement of low-income students and students of color:
2.34    (1) rigorous preparation and coursework and how to (i) effectively invest in early
2.35childhood and parent education, (ii) increase academic rigor and high expectations on
3.1elementary and secondary students in schools serving a majority of low-income students
3.2and students of color, and (iii) provide parents, educators, and community members with
3.3meaningful opportunities to collaborate in educating students in schools serving a majority
3.4of low-income students and students of color;
3.5    (2) professional development for educators and how to (i) provide stronger financial
3.6and professional incentives to attract and retain experienced, bilingual, and culturally
3.7competent teachers and administrators in schools serving a majority of low-income
3.8students and students of color, (ii) recruit and retain teachers of color, and (iii) develop and
3.9include cultural sensitivity and interpersonal and pedagogical skills training that teachers
3.10need for effective intercultural teaching;
3.11    (3) English language learners and how to (i) use well-designed tests, curricula,
3.12and English as a second language programs and services as diagnostic tools to develop
3.13effective student interventions, (ii) monitor students' language capabilities, (iii) provide
3.14academic instruction in English that supports students' learning and is appropriate
3.15for students' level of language proficiency, and (iv) incorporate the perspectives and
3.16contributions of ethnic and racial groups, consistent with Minnesota Statutes, section
3.17120B.022, subdivision 1, paragraph (b);
3.18    (4) special education and how to (i) incorporate linguistic and cultural sensitivity
3.19into special education diagnosis and referral, (ii) increase the frequency and quality of
3.20prereferral interventions, and (iii) decrease the number of minority and nonnative English
3.21speaking students inappropriately placed in special education;
3.22    (5) GRAD tests and how to (i) incorporate linguistic and cultural sensitivity into the
3.23reading and math GRAD tests, and (ii) develop interventions to meet students' learning
3.24needs; and
3.25    (6) valid and reliable data and how to use data on student on-time graduation rates,
3.26student dropout rates, documented disciplinary actions, and completed and rigorous course
3.27work indicators to determine how well-prepared low-income students and students of
3.28color are for postsecondary academic and career opportunities.
3.29    The task force also must examine the findings of a 2008 report by Minnesota
3.30superintendents on strategies for creating a world-class educational system to establish
3.31priorities for improving students' academic achievement. The task force may consider
3.32other related matters at its discretion.
3.33    (b) The commissioner of education must convene the first meeting of the advisory
3.34task force on improving students' academic achievement by July 1, 2008. The task force
3.35members must adopt internal procedures and standards for subsequent meetings. The task
3.36force is composed of the following members:
4.1    (1) a representative from a Twin Cities metropolitan area school district, a suburban
4.2school district, a school district located in a regional center, and a rural school district, all
4.3four representatives appointed by the state demographer based on identified concentrations
4.4of low-performing, low-income students and students of color;
4.5    (2) a faculty member of a teacher preparation program at the University of
4.6Minnesota's College of Education and Human Development, appointed by the college
4.7dean or the dean's designee;
4.8    (3) a faculty member from the urban teachers program at Metropolitan State
4.9University appointed by the university president or the president's designee;
4.10    (4) a faculty member from a Minnesota State Colleges and Universities teacher
4.11preparation program located outside the Twin Cities metropolitan area, appointed by
4.12the chancellor or the chancellor's designee;
4.13    (5) a classroom teacher appointed by Education Minnesota;
4.14    (6) an expert in early childhood care and education appointed by a state early
4.15childhood organization;
4.16    (7) a member from each state council representing a community of color, appointed
4.17by the respective council;
4.18    (8) a curriculum specialist with expertise in providing language instruction for
4.19nonnative English speakers, appointed by a state curriculum organization;
4.20    (9) a special education teacher, appointed by a state organization of special education
4.21educators;
4.22    (10) a parent of color, appointed by a state parent-teacher organization;
4.23    (11) a district testing director appointed by a recognized Minnesota assessment
4.24group composed of assessment and evaluation directors and staff and researchers; and
4.25    (12) a Department of Education staff person with expertise in school desegregation
4.26matters appointed by the commissioner of education or the commissioner's designee.
4.27    A majority of task force members, at their discretion, may invite other representatives
4.28of interested public or nonpublic organizations, Minnesota's communities of color, and
4.29stakeholders in local and state educational equity to become task force members. A
4.30majority of task force members must be persons of color.
4.31    (c) Members of the task force serve without compensation. By February 15,
4.322009, the task force must submit a written proposal to the education policy and finance
4.33committees of the legislature on how to significantly improve students' academic
4.34achievement.
4.35    (d) The advisory task force expires on February 16, 2009.
4.36EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective the day following final enactment."
5.1Renumber the sections in sequence and correct the internal references
5.2Amend the title accordingly