SECTION 160.522 - Currently, school districts are required to produce an annual accountability report card for each school building, distribute copies to the households with students, and make copies available to other members of the public upon request. This section transfers the responsibility for producing the report card to DESE, specifying that there will be report cards for each district, each public school building in a district, and each charter school. The report card will be designed to satisfy federal and state statistical disclosure requirements about academic achievement, finances, staff, and other indicators.

This section makes changes to the contents of the report card and clarifies existing requirements. The requirement to report participation rates in several programs and activities is removed. The report card must disclose each school that has been identified as a priority school under state law or as needing improvement or requiring specific improvement measures under federal law. Districts must provide the report card information by December 1, or as soon as it is ready, and give preference to distribution methods that will include the information with other important information, such as student report cards.

This section is identical to the HCS/HB 297.

SECTION 168.104 - The current definition of "teacher" in the teacher tenure act includes certified teachers who teach at the pre-kindergarten level.

This section modifies the aforementioned definition by requiring that such prekindergarten teachers, in order to fit the definition of teacher, must teach in a prekindergarten program in which no fees are charged to parents and guardians.

This section is identical to the perfected SCS/SB 266.

SECTIONS 168.211 and 168.261 - These sections regard the superintendent and teachers of the St. Louis Public school system.

These sections alter the current statutory requirement that the superintendent's supervision of the school system be subject the control of the board and instead asserts that the superintendent's supervision of the school system be subject to policies established by the board.

Current law mandates that the superintendent hire a treasurer, a commissioner of school buildings, and as many associate and assistant superintendents as the superintendent deems necessary. These sections alter the aforementioned mandate so that the superintendent has the option as to whether to fill such positions.

Current law requires that only the district’s teaching appointments and promotions be based on merit. Under the provisions of these sections, all of the district's employee appointments and promotions will be merit based.

These sections are identical to the perfected SB 298.

SECTION 168.221 - Currently, both metropolitan school district teachers and principals are included in the section of the metropolitan school district's teacher tenure statute which outlines procedures regarding reductions in force. This section removes school principals from the section.

This section is identical to the perfected SB 299.

SECTION 168.515 - Current law states that when a school district interrupts its career ladder program and in a subsequent school year renews its participation, the district must reenter the program on the cost-sharing basis specified in statute.

This section would allow any school district that participated in the career ladder program prior to the 2001-2002 school year but ceased its participation at any time from July 1, 2001, to July 1, 2005, to resume participation in the program at the same matching level for which the district qualified during its last year of participation, provided that the district reenters the program no later than July 1, 2006.

This section is identical to the perfected SB 285.

DONALD THALHUBER