ATTACHMENT III
Summary of Public Comments and Agency Responses Related to Proposed New 19 TAC Chapter 102, Educational Programs, Subchapter EE, Commissioner's Rules Concerning Pilot Programs, §102.1056, Dropout Recovery Pilot Program
A number of individuals, including school officials, members of the Texas Senate and House of Representatives, and other interested organizations, submitted comments and inquiries regarding the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program.
ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS
Comment: Several individuals and representatives of the Coalition of Public Schools, the Texas American Federation of Teachers, the Association of Texas Professional Educators, the Texas Freedom Network, the Texas Association of School Boards, the Texas Association of School Administrators, and the Texas State Teachers Association, commented that private schools should not be included as eligible applicants under the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program. Many commenters stated that public funds should not be awarded to private schools. Two commenters stated that the definition of eligible applicants was expanded from private schools to nonprofit organizations in response to legislative criticism received after the program was announced; however, this action did not fully alleviate the concerns centered around the state directly funding private schools and is inconsistent with other programs authorized under House Bill (HB) 2237.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees that public funds should not be awarded to private nonprofit schools under this program. Eligible applicants for the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program may include private schools; however, the program also allows for participation by a variety of other entities, such as public school districts and open-enrollment charter schools, along with nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher education, county departments of education, education service centers, and nonprofit organizations with experience in educational programs. This definition was further clarified in the Request for Application (RFA) issued July 1, 2008. The agency has determined that there is no single proven strategy for recovering dropouts; rather, each category of eligible organization brings different strengths, expertise, and experience with a variety of strategies and programs. National research on dropout recovery programs verifies that a wide range of program options provides students who have dropped out with the best opportunity to reconnect and succeed.
Comment: The Texas Public Policy Foundation and the Americans for Prosperity Foundation expressed support for exploring new methods and solutions for dropouts. Both mentioned that students can fall through the cracks in the current public education system that offers limited alternatives.
Agency Response: The agency agrees with offering multiple strategies for recovering dropouts.
Comment: The Texas Classroom Teachers Association requested that eligible applicants be limited to only those entities with the ability to award a high school diploma or that have articulation agreements with institutions of higher education.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees with the comment that eligible applicants should be limited to those entities with the ability to award a high school diploma and the comment that eligible applicants should have articulation agreements with institutions of higher education. Students who have dropped out of school may be interested in attaining college readiness in the shortest amount of time possible without having to earn a high school diploma. If an applicant chooses to offer students a college readiness program, it must offer students the opportunity to earn a General Educational Development (GED) credential, achieve a passing score on a Texas Success Initiative (TSI) testing instrument or earn a TSI exemption based on a score on an alternative test, and either earn credit for a college course within an institution of higher education's core curriculum or earn advanced technical credit listed in the Advanced Technical Credit Statewide Articulated Crosswalk. Programs do not need to have an articulation agreement with an institution of higher education to offer a college readiness program; they need only have a partnership with an institution of higher education to allow students the opportunity to take college courses at no cost to the students in the program.
Comment: The Texas Classroom Teachers Association supported the requirement in subsection (b)(3)(A) that to be awarded a grant an applicant must have been operating as an eligible entity for at least three years prior to the time of the grant application.
Agency Response: The agency agrees.
Comment: The Association of Texas Professional Educators commented that operators of a private kindergarten or elementary school would not be well-equipped to serve the unique needs of secondary school dropouts.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees. Educational experience, whether at the secondary or elementary level, will provide eligible applicants with the background necessary to develop dropout recovery programs. Since this is a competitive grant program, all applications will be reviewed and scored, and only those applicants with the highest scores will be considered for funding. Applicants that propose to implement research-based strategies will receive priority points, and all applicants are required to demonstrate experience with at-risk students or school dropouts as a requirement of the grant application.
LEGISLATIVE INTENT
Comment: Several individuals and two members of the Texas Senate and one member of the Texas House of Representatives, as well as representatives of the Coalition of Public Schools, the Texas American Federation of Teachers, the Association of Texas Professional Educators, the Texas Association of School Administrators, the Texas Freedom Network, and the Texas State Teachers Association, commented that the award of public funds to private schools was not the intent of the Texas Legislature when it passed HB 2237. Many commenters likened this to development of a voucher program which was opposed by the Texas Legislature and clearly set forth in an amendment to HB 1, passed by record vote on March 29, 2007. The amendment states that no funds appropriated under HB 1 were intended to pay for a public education voucher program if the state funds are used to pay for tuition vouchers.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees that the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program is like a voucher program. The Dropout Recovery Pilot Program allows a variety of entities to apply for funds to serve students who have already dropped out of a Texas public school. The agency has determined that all Texas students deserve the opportunity to be successful in life after high school, and the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program offers innovative ways to serve these students, including programs at private nonprofit schools. This program is an effort to bring students back into schools and does not divert any Foundation School Program money from school districts. A voucher program provides funds to parents to pay for their child to attend a school of their choice. This program does not provide funds to parents; instead, it provides funds to eligible organizations.
Comment: Several individuals and two members of the Texas Senate and one member of the Texas House of Representatives, as well as representatives of the Coalition of Public Schools, the Texas American Federation of Teachers, the Association of Texas Professional Educators, the Texas Freedom Network, the Texas Association of School Administrators, and the Texas State Teachers Association, commented that the agency was acting beyond its authority to countermand the intent of the Texas Legislature.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees. HB 2237, 80th Texas Legislature, 2007, created a nine-member High School Completion and Success Initiative Council (Council) composed of the commissioner of education, the commissioner of higher education, and seven distinguished members appointed from lists of nominees provided by the Office of the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and the Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives. In response to its legislative charge, the Council adopted a strategic plan, which includes groundbreaking intervention programs, like the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program, targeting students who have already dropped out of Texas public schools. Texas Education Code (TEC), §39.361(c), states that the commissioner of education shall consider the Council's recommendations for programs and based on those recommendations may award grants to school districts, open-enrollment charter schools, institutions of higher education, regional education service centers, and nonprofit organizations to meet the goals of the Council's strategic plan. Additionally, TEC, §39.361(d)(2), expressly states that the commissioner of education may not award discretionary funds appropriated for high school completion and success except in conformance with the Council's strategic plan.
COMPLIANCE AND ACCOUNTABILITY
Comment: A representative from the Texas Freedom Network testified that the commissioner does not have the authority to approve different groups as accredited.
Agency Response: The agency agrees with this Comment: The rule for this program does not claim authority for the commissioner to approve accreditation of different groups; rather, the rule states, in subsection (b)(3)(B)(ii)(III), that an applicant that is acting as the fiscal agent and that issues high school diplomas must have earned accreditation through the TEA or an accrediting entity operating as a member of the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission, or have been accredited by another accrediting entity that is approved by the commissioner of education.
Comment: Several individuals commented regarding accountability of the grantees of the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program. A representative of the East Austin Military Veterans' Coalition commented that the TEA is not monitoring this program for compliance.
Agency Response. The agency disagrees. The RFA for the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program requires each applicant to describe in the application an evaluation plan/design for monitoring the implementation of the program on an ongoing basis and for determining whether the program met its stated goals and objectives and achieved the desired results based on the established performance indicators. By submitting a grant application, the applicant agrees to comply with any reporting and evaluation requirements that may be established by the TEA, and all grantees are required to submit progress reports and expenditure reports on a regular basis. Additionally, program requirements that must be addressed by every applicant include the following: compliance with state requirements for criminal background checks for all staff, compliance with all relevant federal laws and regulations, and compliance with all TEA requirements. Technical assistance will be provided to grantees to assist grantees in the implementation of program requirements. The RFA also provides for on-site monitoring of the grantee under Part 4, Standard Application System, Schedule #6A, General Provisions and Assurance, Section G, Monitoring.
Comment: The Texas Association of School Administrators, the Texas Association of School Boards, and the Association of Texas Professional Educators, commented that private entities are not held to the same accountability standards as the public schools, nor does the commissioner have the power to sanction a private entity or recover state funding should the grantee violate grant requirements.
Agency Response: The agency agrees that private entities are not held to the same statewide accountability standards as public schools. For this reason, the rule allows only private schools accredited by an accrediting entity operating as a member of the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission (TEPSAC) or another accrediting entity approved by the commissioner of education to apply for this program. TEPSAC specifies that for a non-public school to be certified, its operations, curriculum, staffing, and instruction must be sufficiently comparable to those of public schools. In addition, to receive accreditation, the TEPSAC requires a non-public school to employ a testing program sufficiently comparable to the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS). Additionally, with the exception of the start-up funding, this program provides payments to grantees only upon demonstration of student performance.
The agency agrees that the commissioner of education does not have the authority to sanction a private entity. The rule provides the commissioner of education the authority of revocation. The commissioner of education may revoke the grant award for the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program for various factors, such as noncompliance with the rule or program assurances, failure to submit required reports, failure to participate in data collection and audits, failure to meet grant performance standards, and/or failure to provide required information for TEA evaluation of the grant.
The agency agrees that the right of recovery of state funding was not directly granted in the rule. The agency has added language in subsection (n) at adoption to explicitly allow recovery of state funds.
OTHER ISSUES
Comment: The Association of Texas Professional Educators submitted a list of ways in which the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program differs from the Collaborative Dropout Reduction Pilot Program, including the total amount of available funds, the requirement for matching funds, the commitment for continuing efforts beyond the life of the grant, and the timeframe for preparation, submission, and review of the applications.
Agency Response: The agency agrees that differences between the two programs exist. These are intended to be separate programs. The Collaborative Dropout Reduction Pilot Program targets at-risk students with intervention strategies. The Dropout Recovery Pilot Program focuses on creating innovative programs for students who have already dropped out of Texas public schools. Funding amounts and match requirements for the Collaborative Dropout Reduction Pilot Program were dictated by statutory requirements. Compressed grant application timelines for the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program resulted from the adoption in March 2008 of the High School Completion and Success Initiative Council Strategic Plan by the statutorily-created High School Completion and Success Initiative Council.
Comment: The Association of Texas Professional Educators expressed concerns that the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program provides for no collaborative efforts with other public or private entities, no requirement for applicants to have a large population of economically disadvantaged students, and extra points for research-based strategies but no requirement that services have a foundation in scientifically proven methods.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees that the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program provides for no collaborative efforts with public or private entities. The RFA gives priority points for applicants that demonstrate collaboration with local partners. The agency agrees that the rule does not require applicants to have a large population of economically disadvantaged students, but the agency has determined that programs targeting students who have already dropped out of school will necessarily serve a number of economically disadvantaged students. The agency agrees that the RFA provides priority points for research-based strategies but does not require scientifically proven methods. The agency does not require scientifically proven methods as a basis for priority points because most of the scientifically-based research focuses on dropout prevention not recovery.
Comment: A private citizen who is also a Texas certified public school teacher suggested that eligible applicants for the program be expanded to include students in a home school environment as these students who have dropped out would be able to obtain individual attention and the kind of encouragement that would help them to complete their secondary education.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees. The program conforms with the strategic plan adopted by the High School Completion and Success Initiative Council. The TEC, §39.361(d)(2), expressly states that the commissioner of education may not award discretionary funds appropriated for high school completion and success except in conformance with the Council's strategic plan. In accordance with the TEC, §39.361(c), the Council's strategic plan provides recommendations for grant awards only to school districts, open-enrollment charter schools, institutions of higher education, regional education service centers, and nonprofit organizations.
Comment: The Round Rock Independent School District (ISD) commented that the rule should include more clarity regarding the distribution of performance funding. The district stated that the additional clarity would provide districts more information and guidance to determine whether or not to apply for the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees. The purpose of the rule is to outline the framework of the overall program that is proposed. Detailed information that would assist potential applicants in making their decision about whether to submit an application is more appropriately located within the RFA. Detailed information about performance funding can be found in the current RFA.
Comment: The Round Rock ISD requested adding "completion rate" as an element of the eligibility requirements.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees. Rather than limit the program to specific school districts with low completion rates, a variety of service providers, within certain areas of the state with high dropout rates, are given the opportunity to apply to serve eligible students.
Comment: The Association of Texas Professional Educators and a representative of the Texas Freedom Network commented that the student eligibility requirements are insufficient to prevent parents from withdrawing their children from public school and holding them out until they are eligible for the program in order to enroll them in private school the next school year.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees. To be eligible for this program, a student must have been absent or withdrawn from a Texas public school for 30 consecutive school days and, during that time of absence, not been enrolled in a public school, private school, or home school. Parents are unlikely to withdraw their children from school for a full six weeks, at the risk of truancy charges, in order to enroll their children in a program designed specifically to serve school dropouts operated by a private school.
Comment: The Texas Association of School Boards commented that the rule does not include a provision that would prohibit private, nonprofit grantees from denying enrollment to applicants who fail to meet their criteria even though funded with state funds.
Agency Response: The agency agrees. No grantee, including school districts and charter schools, under the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program is prohibited from denying enrollment to students who fail to meet their eligibility requirements as specified in their grant application. However, the General Provisions and Assurances included in the RFA require that the contractor abide by all federal laws, including laws and regulations related to discriminatory practices. See page 47 in Part IV: Standard Application System of the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program RFA.
Comment: The Texas Classroom Teachers Association commented that the word "or" should be deleted and replaced with "and" to clarify the expectation that all programs should be geared towards earning a high school diploma. The association further stated that the goal of the program should be limited to attainment of a high school diploma and not provide for college readiness as an outcome.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees. Although the agency agrees that a high school diploma is an important outcome, it may not be an appropriate outcome for every dropout. Many of the students who have dropped out of school may be interested in attaining a GED in order to move on to college in the shortest amount of time possible, or because they have made multiple unsuccessful attempts to earn a high school diploma. Further, many dropouts are over age and some have not met the high school credit requirements, making returning to high school to complete a diploma program unlikely. In order to serve these students effectively, college readiness is the outcome best suited to their individual needs and situation.
Comment: The Texas Classroom Teachers Association stated their concern that obtaining a GED was an outcome that triggered a payment under the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program when the education and accountability system is moving away from treating or viewing a GED as equivalent to a high school diploma. The association further questioned the need for the "Other funding" provision in subsection (f)(4), based upon the association's interpretation that GED-granting institutions would receive funding for the student's completion of a GED.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees that obtaining a GED triggers a payment under this grant program. Grantees will not receive performance payments or completion payments for students who acquire only the GED credential. To receive a completion payment, the student must have earned a GED and have achieved a passing score on a TSI testing instrument or earned an exemption for an alternative TSI test and earned college credit.
Comment: The Texas Classroom Teachers Association commented that subsections (a)(8) and (b)(2) allow an ineligible nonprofit organization to participate in a local program through a shared service arrangement without the review and scrutiny received by an eligible applicant. The association further stated that allowing for "inappropriate subcontractors hired through shared service arrangements may not be in the best interests of the students."
Agency Response: The agency disagrees that nonprofit organizations participating in the program through a shared service arrangement are not subjected to the same review and scrutiny as single entity eligible applicants. Shared service arrangements transfer the responsibility of scrutinizing program partners to the grantee that is held responsible for the actions of each member entity. Under the RFA, shared service arrangements must provide full disclosure in their application of the members of the shared service arrangement; a description of the responsibilities of the fiscal agent and each SSA member, to include the refund liability that may result from on-site monitoring or audits and the final disposition of equipment, facilities, and materials purchased for this project from grant funds; certification that the information contained in their application is correct and complete; and that payments to members of shared service arrangements are expended in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. Additionally, the fiscal agent under the shared service arrangement accepts responsibility for the refund for any exceptions taken as a result of on-site monitoring or audits and maintains the signed agreement which must be on file with the fiscal agent for review and which gives the fiscal agent recourse to the member agencies in the event of any discrepancy(ies) that may occur. Further, shared service arrangements are a method of ensuring that local nonprofit organizations partnering to provide social services necessary to the retention and success of dropout recovery are held accountable for all applicable program requirements as well as on-site monitoring and/or audits.
Comment: The Texas Classroom Teachers Association expressed support for the definition of a dropout for the purposes of this program specified in subsection (a)(3)(B) and (C). The association also expressed support for the language in subsection (b)(3), including subparagraph (A), which requires an applicant awarded a grant to have been operating as an eligible entity for at least three years prior to the time of the grant application.
Agency Response: The agency agrees.
Comment: The Texas Classroom Teachers Association commented that the rule should specify the length of the grant in order to facilitate the planning of interested parties.
Agency Response: The agency disagrees. Information regarding the length of the Dropout Recovery Pilot Program is included in the RFA, which is the appropriate document for conveying the requirements for each grant cycle. The rule, as written, does not preclude the possibility of subsequent funding or multi-year programs in the future.
For additional information, email rules@tea.state.tx.us.