JEFFERSON CITY — The Senate Education Committee will hold a hearing today, Wednesday, Jan. 28, on Senate Bill 70, legislation sponsored by Sen. Paul LeVota, D-Independence, to address problems associated with the state’s school transfer law. The issue is one of the most urgent facing the Legislature this year and among Sen. LeVota’s top priorities for the 2015 session.
The measure would prohibit the State Board of Education from making decisions regarding a school’s accreditation unless all congressional districts in the state are represented on the board.
The current school transfer law allows an unlimited amount of students from unaccredited districts to transfer into adjacent accredited districts, leading to oversized classrooms in accredited districts. Senate Bill 70 would set limits on the number of students that a receiving accredited district would have to accept from unaccredited districts schools while still allowing for an appeal process to the State Board of Education, among other provisions.
“One of our most important duties as legislators is ensuring that every child in Missouri, regardless of where they live, has a fair shot at a life of opportunity, and we do that through supporting education. And yet right now, there are thousands of students whose futures are in jeopardy because of a lack of comprehensive action on the school transfer issue,” said Sen. LeVota. “The problem I see is a statewide issue, not a regional one.”
Many are now calling on the Legislature to find a solution to the issue before it affects both of Missouri’s major metropolitan areas.
“The school transfer law is a huge problem, but it’s also just a symptom of a deeper one: The lack of commitment on the part of some lawmakers to put education in this state before politics,” said Sen. LeVota. “It’s time for action. The people of Missouri are looking to us, their elected officials, for a solution. We have to do everything in our power to find one. The school transfer issue is bankrupting our schools and tearing our neighborhoods apart. Let’s make sure we’re upholding our duty to the children of our state and get this done.”
Senate Bill 70 contains an emergency clause. If approved, it would go into effect upon receiving the governor’s signature.
For more information on Sen. LeVota’s legislative efforts, click here or visit his Senate website at www.senate.mo.gov/levota. |
