THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

INTRODUCED BY ROEBUCK, CLYMER, COHEN, BELFANTI, BISHOP, GRUCELA, HARKINS, LONGIETTI, MILNE, M. O'BRIEN, K. SMITH, YOUNGBLOOD, BRADFORD, BROWN, CALTAGIRONE, DONATUCCI, FABRIZIO, FRANKEL, FREEMAN, GEORGE, HENNESSEY, HESS, JOSEPHS, KORTZ, LENTZ, MANN, McGEEHAN, MUNDY, PASHINSKI, READSHAW, SIPTROTH, STURLA, VULAKOVICH AND WATERS, JUNE 5, 2009

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, JUNE 5, 2009  

AN ACT

Providing for data collection relating to dropouts by the

Department of Education.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1.  Preliminary Provisions

Section 101.  Short title.

Section 102.  Findings.

Section 103.  Definitions.

Chapter 3.   Data Collection

Section 301.   Powers and duties.

Section 302.  Data collection and reporting.

Chapter 7.  Administration

Section 701.  Reporting.

Chapter 11.  Miscellaneous Provisions

Section 1101.  Effective date.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

CHAPTER 1

PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS

Section 101.  Short title.

This act shall be known and may be cited as the Drop-out Data

Collection Act.

Section 102.  Findings.

The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:

(1)  Significant discrepancies in school district

reporting, drop-out statistics and graduation rate formulas

exist nationwide.

(2)  The United States Secretary of Education recently

announced that the United States Department of Education will

require all states to use a Federal formula for the

calculation of drop-out and graduation rates.

(3)  The Pennsylvania Department of Education's

statistics between the 1995-1996 and 2005-2006 school years

show that drop-out rates in this Commonwealth may have

decreased Statewide, but serious questions exist regarding

the uniformity in reporting, and therefore, the reliability

of that data.

Section 103.  Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this act shall

have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Charter school."  The term shall have the same meaning as in

section 1703-A of the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14),

known as the Public School Code of 1949.

"Cyber charter school."  The term shall have the same meaning

as in section 1703-A of act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14),

known as the Public School Code of 1949.

"Department."  The Department of Education of the

Commonwealth.

"Graduation gap."  The percentage of students who entered the

ninth grade and did not graduate from the same high school in

the same school district four years later.

"School district."  The term shall have the same meaning as

in section 102 of the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14),

known as the Public School Code of 1949.

"School entity."  The term shall have the same meaning as in

section 1101-A of the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14),

known as the Public School Code of 1949.

CHAPTER 3

DATA COLLECTION

Section 301.  Powers and duties.

The department shall have the following powers and duties:

(1)  To create by the 2009-2010 school year a Statewide

definition of "dropout," if none is provided by Federal

statute, regulation or guideline and, in accordance with any

Federal statute, regulation or guideline, report the

graduation rates, drop-out rates and graduation-gap rates in

this Commonwealth.

(2)  To implement and maintain a high-quality data

collection and reporting system that accurately accounts for

all students when calculating high school graduation and

drop-out rates in accordance with Federal regulations or

guidelines. The reporting system shall include the

calculation of graduation rates, drop-out rates and the

graduation-gap rates in all school entities, charter schools

and cyber charter schools.

(3)  To serve as a clearinghouse of information, policies

and strategies aimed at decreasing the number of dropouts. 

(4)  To require school entities, charter schools and

cyber charter schools to report student drop-out information

to the department using the department's data collection

system.

Section 302.  Data collection and reporting.

(a)  Categories.--Pursuant to section 301, data collected by

the department on drop-out rates, graduation rates and

graduation-gap rates shall be disaggregated in the following

categories:

(1)  Limited English proficiency.

(2)  Low income.

(3)  Special education.

(4)  Gifted education.

(5)  Race/ethnicity.

(6)  School entity.

(7)  Charter school or cyber charter school.

(8)  Gender.

(9)  Geographic area.

(10)  Other categories as determined by the department.

(b)  Availability.--The department shall ensure that the data

collection and reporting system be accurate, uniform and

accessible to school entities, charter schools, cyber charter

schools and Commonwealth residents via the department's publicly

accessible Internet website.

CHAPTER 7

ADMINISTRATION

Section 701.  Reporting.

Beginning in the 2010-2011 school year and each school year

thereafter, the department shall annually prepare a report and

provide a copy of the report to the Education Committee of the

Senate and the Education Committee of the House of

Representatives and shall post a copy of the report on the

department's publicly accessible Internet website by September 1

of each year, that contains, at a minimum, the following:

(1)  All drop-out rates, graduation rates and graduation-

gap rates reported by school entities, charter schools and

cyber charter schools, including school-level data,

disaggregated by the factors used to identify an at-risk

student and the following classifications:

(i)  Limited English proficiency.

(ii)  Low income.

(iii)  Special education.

(iv)  Gifted education.

(v)  Race/ethnicity.

(vi)  Gender.

(vii)  School entity.

(viii)  Geographic area.

(2)  Highest grade level completed and age prior to

dropping out.

(b)  Uniform reporting.--School entities, charter schools and

cyber charter schools shall use the definitions and formulas

established by the department if no Federal statute, regulation

or guideline exists when reporting the graduation rates,

drop-out rates and graduation-gap rates to the department.

School entities, charter schools and cyber charter schools shall

report these rates annually, as required by the department, on a

form to be developed and provided by the department.

(c)  Guidelines and standards.--The department may develop

any guidelines or standards necessary to implement the

requirements of this act.

CHAPTER 11

MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Section 1101.  Effective date.

This act shall take effect July 1, 2009, or immediately,

whichever is later.