Bill > H464

This bill aims to improve student achievement by allowing the commissioner of elementary and secondary education to designate schools as "challenge," "underperforming," or "chronically underperforming" based on student performance data and school reviews, with limitations on the number of schools that can receive these designations. For schools designated as "challenge" schools, a collaborative process involving the school committee and teachers' union will be initiated to negotiate potential waivers to collective bargaining agreements to facilitate the creation of a "turnaround plan." This plan, developed by a local stakeholder group including educators, administrators, and parents, will focus on student outcomes and may include strategies to address social services, health needs, and workforce development, with measurable goals for improvement. The bill also introduces new categories of Horace Mann charter schools (Horace Mann I, II, and III) with varying approval processes and modifies regulations regarding charter school admissions, including provisions for opt-out lotteries and preferences for at-risk students, while also establishing caps on charter school tuition payments as a percentage of a district's net school spending over several fiscal years and creating a working group to address charter school transportation.