Reference is to Printer's Date 02/28/19-H.
Amend the bill, as and if amended, PART III, creation of zero to twenty committee, by deleting PART III in its entirety and inserting:
SECTION 5. Title 1 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
Section 1-12-110. (A)
There is established within the Office of
the Governor the 'Special Council on Revitalizing Education'
which is created to:
(1)
monitor the state education and workforce pipeline to
continually determine the education and training levels required
by the State's employers;
(2)
identify and recommend improvements regarding efficiency
and cooperation of agencies and programs throughout the
education and workforce pipeline; and
(3)
report findings and recommendations to the Governor and
General Assembly on a continuous basis.
(B)(1) The council
shall consist of ten members. The Governor shall serve as
chairman of the council. The Governor may delegate the position
and duties of chairman of the council to the Lieutenant
Governor. The other members must be appointed as follows:
(a)
three members appointed by the Governor;
(b)
one member appointed by the Speaker of the House;
(c)
one member appointed by the Chairman of the House Ways and
Means Committee;
(d)
one member appointed by the Chairman of the House
Education and Public Works Committee;
(e)
one member appointed by the President of the Senate;
(f)
one member appointed by the Chairman of the Senate Finance
Committee; and
(g)
one member appointed by the Chairman of the Senate
Education Committee.
(2)
Council members may not concurrently serve as a member of
the General Assembly.
(C) Appointed members
must have a background in early childhood education, K-12
education, higher education, business, workforce development, or
economic development. Provided that two members must be a
current or retired highly-effective teacher with one of those
teachers appointed from the member allotment, provided herein,
for the House of Representatives and one from the member
allotment, provided herein, for the Senate.
(D) A member of the
council shall serve for a term of five years and until their
successors are appointed and qualified.
(E) A vacancy must be
filled in the manner of the original appointment for the
unexpired term.
(F) The Governor shall
hire an executive director. The executive director must possess
a background in at least one of the following: early childhood
education, K-12 education, higher education, business, workforce
development, or economic development. The Governor shall
appropriate staff to fulfill the requirements of this section.
This section takes effect upon the appropriation of funding for
the positions by the General Assembly.
(G) A member of the
council may serve no more than two consecutive terms. A member
having served two consecutive terms may be eligible for
reappointment one year after the expiration of his second
term.
(H) The council may
elect other officers from among its members as necessary.
(I) A quorum for
transacting business shall consist of a majority of the
membership as constituted at the time of a meeting.
(J) A vacancy on the
council does not impair the right of the remaining members to
exercise all the powers of the council.
(K) A member of the
council is entitled to such per diem, mileage, and subsistence
as is provided by law for boards, commissions, and
committees.
(L) Initial
appointments must be made by August 1, 2020, at which time the
Governor or his designee shall call the first meeting.
Section 1-12-120.
Before October 1, 2021, the council shall establish a
series of benchmarks that must include, but are not limited to
the following:
(1) access to quality
early learning, as determined by the council, including the
number of three and four-year old children in quality
early-learning settings;
(2) third grade reading
proficiency, including the percentage of third grade students
who score 'Meets' or 'Exceeds Expectations' on the SC Ready
assessment, or its successor;
(3) eighth grade
mathematics, including the percentage of eighth grade students
who score 'Meets' or 'Exceeds Expectations' on the SC Ready
assessment, or its successor;
(4) high school
graduation rates, including the percentages of students who
graduated in four and five years;
(5) youth
nonparticipation, including the percentage of South Carolina
residents between sixteen and eighteen years of age who are not
going to school on the secondary level or in adult education,
not in the military, or not otherwise working;
(6) post-high school
enrollment, including the percentage of South Carolina high
school graduates who are in postsecondary education the semester
after graduation from high school or are gainfully employed;
and
(7) post-high school
education attainment, including the percentage of South Carolina
residents ages twenty-two through sixty-five who have completed
a two-or four-year degree, or have received a nationally
recognized certification as determined by the Department of
Commerce.
Section 1-12-130. With assistance and consultation from the Department of Administration, the council shall create a publicly accessible website that reports the information required in Section 1-12-120. The council shall add language explaining the benchmarks and annually shall update the website to show the progress of the State toward meeting each goal.
Section 1-12-140. Beginning in 2021, the council annually, before December first, shall provide a comprehensive report to the Governor and General Assembly that specifically identifies areas within the education and workforce pipeline where state agencies and other publically funded entities are failing to meet the benchmarks identified in this section. The council shall provide recommendations regarding ways that state and local efforts can be improved, ways that collaboration and cooperation among state and local agencies and resources can be increased, and efforts underway or being considered in other states that address the noted areas of concern. The council also shall recommend legislation it considers necessary." /
Renumber sections to conform.
Amend title to conform.