Governor Greg Abbott signed SB 149 into law on May 11, 2015, making it effective immediately. Region 7ESC has worked together to create the Senate Bill 149 webpage. You will find many resources, information, and contacts to assist you. Click here to view.
Texas Education Agency posted a letter to the Administrator Addressed on May 11th regarding changes in graduation requirements based on the signing of Senate Bill 149.
“There are immediate and significant changes to the state’s assessment graduation requirements, first effective with this year’s graduating 12th grade class. Emergency commissioner rules to amend the assessment graduation requirements have been filed with the Texas Register and are effective immediately.
The emergency commissioner’s rules can be viewed at the following link: http://goo.gl/sNV43P
SB 149 has revised the state’s assessment graduation requirements for students enrolled in the 11th or 12th grade for the 2014-2015, 2015-2016, or 2016-2017 school years.
• A student who has failed the EOC assessment graduation requirements for no more than two courses may receive a Texas high school diploma if the student has qualified to graduate by means of an individual graduation committee (IGC).
• Under the legislation, a student may not graduate under an IGC if the student did not take each required EOC assessment or a commissioner-approved substitute assessment for each course for which there is an EOC assessment.
• Regardless of any IGC action, a district must still provide a student an opportunity to retake an EOC if the student has not previously achieved satisfactory performance on an EOC or substitute assessment for that subject.
• SB 149 also allows a student who did not pass the Algebra I and/or English II EOC assessment(s) a second time to use the Texas Success Initiative (TSI) assessment to meet the EOC requirement for the corresponding course. A student must receive a TSI score indicating readiness to enroll in entry-level freshman coursework.
In a written statement released by his office, the governor said:
“The Class of 2015 is the first graduating class required to pass the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) end-of-course exams in order to graduate. While it is critical that the state appropriately holds public schools and districts accountable for delivering the best possible education, we must protect Texas students from being penalized as a result of evolving testing standards. SB 149 protects students from undue penalization, and guarantees that students who meet specified requirements are able to graduate.”
The law requires districts and open-enrollment charter schools to establish an Individual Graduation Committee for each student who has successfully completed all the SBOE-identified curriculum requirements (or those of the commissioner’s transition plan) to graduate in 2014-15 or 2015-16 (the law expires September 1, 2017) but who has failed up to two STAAR end-of-course exams. The committee, to be established at the end of or after the student’s 11th grade year, will determine whether the student qualifies to graduate.
The committee must include the student’s:
principal or principal’s designee
teacher of each course for which the student failed an EOC exam
department chair or lead teacher supervising the teacher of the course
student’s parent, person standing in parental relation, an advocate, or the student, if 18 years old or older or an emancipated minor
The committee must recommend additional requirements the student must meet to be eligible to graduate, including additional remediation, as well as completion of a project related to the subject area of the course(s) for which the student failed the EOC exam(s), or preparation of portfolio work samples in the subject area of the course. The law allows students to submit previously completed coursework to satisfy a recommended requirement.
The committee must also consider the recommendation of the student’s teacher for the course in which the student failed the EOC exam, the student’s grade in the course, the student’s score on the failed EOC exam, the student’s performance on any additional requirements recommended by the committee, the number of hours of remediation the student has attended, the student’s attendance rate, and other factors.
Read the law.
EMERGENCY AMENDMENT EFFECTIVE DATE: The commissioner is required by the TEC, §39.025, to adopt rules concerning the assessment graduation requirements to receive a Texas high school diploma. The emergency rule amendment is necessary to conform state assessment rules with the mandate to apply SB 149 provisions immediately to the graduating class of 2015. The amendment to 19 TAC §101.3022 was filed as adopted on an emergency basis effective May 11, 2015.
PROPOSED AMENDMENT EFFECTIVE DATE: August 16, 2015. Emergency adoption of the amendment to 19 TAC §101.3022 does not preclude the proposal and adoption of the amendment to follow the normal rulemaking procedures.
PUBLIC COMMENTS: The public comment period on the proposal begins May 29, 2015, and ends June 29, 2015.
For additional information, click the green box below to see contacts at Region 7 ESC.
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