(1) (a) A public
school of a school district may submit to its local school board an innovation plan as
described in subsection (3) of this section. A group of public schools of a school
district that share common interests, such as geographical location or educational
focus, or that sequentially serve classes of students as they progress through
elementary and secondary education may jointly submit to their local school board
a plan to create an innovation school zone as described in subsection (4) of this
section.
(b) A local school board shall receive and review each innovation plan or plan
for creating an innovation school zone submitted pursuant to paragraph (a) of this
subsection (1). The local school board shall either approve or disapprove the
innovation plan or plan for creating an innovation school zone within sixty days after
receiving the plan.
(c) If the local school board rejects the plan, it shall provide to the public
school or group of public schools that submitted the plan a written explanation of
the basis for its decision. A public school or group of public schools may resubmit
an amended innovation plan or amended plan for creating an innovation school zone
at any time after denial.
(d) If the local school board approves the plan, it may proceed to seek
designation of the school district as a district of innovation pursuant to section 22-32.5-107.
(2) A local school board may initiate and collaborate with one or more public
schools of the school district to create one or more innovation plans, as described in
subsection (3) of this section, or one or more plans to create innovation school
zones, as described in subsection (4) of this section. In creating an innovation plan
or a plan to create an innovation school zone, the local school board shall ensure
that each public school that would be affected by the plan has opportunity to
participate in creation of the plan. A local school board may approve or create a
plan to create an innovation school zone that includes all of the public schools of
the school district. If the local school board creates an innovation plan or a plan for
creating an innovation school zone, the local school board may seek designation of
the school district as a district of innovation pursuant to section 22-32.5-107.
(3) Each innovation plan, whether submitted by a public school or created by
a local school board through collaboration between the local school board and a
public school, must include the following information:
(a) A statement of the public school's mission and why designation as an
innovation school would enhance the school's ability to achieve its mission;
(b) A description of the innovations the public school would implement,
which may include, but need not be limited to, innovations in school staffing;
curriculum and assessment; class scheduling; use of financial and other resources;
faculty recruitment, employment, evaluation, and compensation; whether the
school will operate as a community school; and implementation of transformational
school strategies such as shared leadership, culturally relevant curriculum, student
and family supports, positive discipline practices, and family and community
engagement;
(c) A listing of the programs, policies, or operational documents within the
public school that would be affected by the public school's identified innovations
and the manner in which they would be affected. The programs, policies, or
operational documents may include, but need not be limited to:
(I) The research-based educational program the public school would
implement;
(II) The length of school day and school year at the public school;
(III) The student promotion and graduation policies to be implemented at the
public school;
(IV) The public school's assessment plan;
(V) The proposed budget for the public school; and
(VI) The proposed staffing plan for the public school.
(d) An identification of the improvements in academic performance that the
public school expects to achieve in implementing the innovations;
(e) An estimate of the cost savings and increased efficiencies, if any, the
public school expects to achieve in implementing its identified innovations;
(f) Evidence that a majority of the administrators employed at the public
school, a majority of the teachers employed at the public school, and a majority of
the school accountability committee for the public school consent to designation as
an innovation school;
(g) A statement of the level of support for designation as an innovation
school demonstrated by the other persons employed at the public school, the
students and parents of students enrolled in the public school, and the community
surrounding the public school;
(h) A description of any statutory sections included in this title or any
regulatory or district policy requirements that would need to be waived for the
public school to implement its identified innovations;
(i) A description of any provision of the collective bargaining agreement in
effect for the personnel at the public school that would need to be waived for the
public school to implement its identified innovations; and
(j) Any additional information required by the local school board of the
school district in which the innovation plan would be implemented.
(4) Each plan for creating an innovation school zone, whether submitted by a
group of public schools or created by a local school board through collaboration
with a group of public schools, shall include the information specified in subsection
(3) of this section for each public school that would be included in the innovation
school zone. A plan for creating an innovation school zone shall also include the
following additional information:
(a) A description of how innovations in the public schools in the school
innovation zone would be integrated to achieve results that would be less likely to
be accomplished by each public school working alone;
(b) An estimate of any economies of scale that would be achieved by
innovations implemented jointly by the public schools within the innovation school
zone;
(c) Evidence that a majority of the administrators and a majority of the
teachers employed at each public school that would be included in the innovation
school zone and a majority of the school accountability committee for each public
school that would be included in the innovation school zone consent to creating the
innovation school zone; and
(d) A statement of the level of support for creating an innovation school zone
demonstrated by the other persons employed at each public school that would be
included in the zone, the students and parents of students enrolled in each public
school that would be included in the zone, and the community in which the local
school board would approve the innovation school zone. In determining the level of
support, each public school shall specifically solicit input concerning the selection
of public schools included in the innovation school zone and the strategies and
procedures that would be used in implementing and integrating the innovations
within the public schools in the zone.
(5) A group of schools that submits a plan to create an innovation school
zone as provided in this section and seeks to have management activities delegated
by the local board to an organization that forms a partnership with the local school
board must, in addition to the provisions specified in subsection (4) of this section,
include the following information in the innovation plan:
(a) An explanation of how alternative governance will help achieve the vision
and goals of the group of schools in a school district;
(b) A description of the organization and the organization's governing board
and governance structure;
(c) A description of the roles and duties of the organization's governing
board, which duties must include, at a minimum, overseeing the implementation of
the innovation plan and supporting academic progress;
(d) A description of the zone staffing structure and management the
organization would provide;
(e) A description of how funds will be used to achieve the mission and
academic performance of the innovation plan;
(f) A description of where an easily accessible link to the federal form 990,
990-EZ, or 990-PF, as required by section 22-44-304, or other relevant financial
information if the organization does not receive a federal form 990, is located on
the zone website;
(g) A description of the terms under and process by which a school within an
innovation school zone may elect to leave the innovation school zone; and
(h) A description of the method the school district will use for determining
the cost of services and a corresponding financial agreement with the innovation
school zone.