SENATE BILL 214
55th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2022
INTRODUCED BY
Bill B. O'Neill and Linda M. Lopez
AN ACT
RELATING TO PUBLIC EDUCATION; SPECIFYING HOW INSTRUCTIONAL TIME IS CALCULATED FOR K-5 PLUS AND EXTENDED LEARNING TIME PROGRAMS.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
SECTION 1. Section 22-8-23.10 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2019, Chapter 206, Section 16 and Laws 2019, Chapter 207, Section 16, as amended) is amended to read:
"22-8-23.10. EXTENDED LEARNING TIME PROGRAM.--
A. A school district or charter school is eligible for additional program units if it establishes within its department-approved educational plan a schoolwide extended learning time program that meets the requirements of this section.
B. Program eligibility requires:
(1) except as provided in Subsections C and D of this section, [a minimum of one hundred ninety instructional days per school year, or] ten additional instructional days per school year or one thousand forty-five instructional hours for kindergarten through sixth grade or one thousand one hundred forty instructional hours for seventh through twelfth grades, whichever requires the addition of the fewest number of instructional days, with at least five and one-half instructional hours per instructional day for kindergarten through sixth grade and at least six instructional hours per day for seventh through twelfth grade;
(2) after-school program opportunities for academic learning, extracurricular or enrichment programming for students that do not supplant federally funded programs; and
(3) a minimum of eighty noninstructional hours per school year for professional development for instructional staff.
C. An extended learning time program in a school district operating a four-day school week in fiscal year 2019 or in a school district with fewer than one thousand MEM operating a four-day school week may include:
(1) a minimum of one hundred sixty instructional days per school year or eight additional instructional days per school year, whichever requires the addition of the fewest number of instructional days, with at least six and one-half hours per instructional day for kindergarten through sixth grade and at least seven instructional hours per instructional day for seventh through twelfth grade;
(2) after-school program opportunities for academic learning, extracurricular or enrichment programming for students that do not supplant federally funded programs; and
(3) a minimum of eighty noninstructional hours per school year for professional development for instructional staff.
D. With department approval, an elementary school that qualifies for extended learning time program units that also has a qualifying K-5 plus program may structure the school year to provide the additional instructional days required pursuant to the applicable subsection of this section by extending the total number of instructional hours provided by the elementary school by no fewer than fifty-five additional instructional hours.
E. The additional instructional days required for an extended learning time program shall be implemented for all students in a participating public school and shall be considered an extended school calendar for all students in each participating school.
F. A school district or charter school that qualified for extended learning time program units in the prior fiscal year shall not be required to add more instructional days in the current school year than it did in the prior school year to qualify for program units in the current school year if the school district or charter school provides the same or more total instructional days and total instructional hours than it provided in the prior school year.
G. The number of additional units to which a school district or charter school is entitled under this section is computed in the following manner:
MEM x 0.11."SECTION 2. Section 22-13D-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2019, Chapter 206, Section 3 and Laws 2019, Chapter 207, Section 3, as amended) is amended to read:
"22-13D-2. K-5 PLUS--ELIGIBILITY--REQUIREMENTS.--
A. A school district or charter school may apply to participate in the K-5 plus program and is eligible to receive program units for students enrolled in elementary schools approved by the department to participate in the K-5 plus program. In approving schools for participation in K-5 plus, the department shall prioritize elementary schools:
(1) in which eighty percent or more of the elementary school's students are eligible for free or reduced-fee lunch;
(2) that are low-performing elementary schools; and
(3) that meet criteria established by department rule.
B. Each K-5 plus school shall:
(1) except as provided in Subsection C of this section, provide no fewer than [two hundred five instructional days per school year, or] twenty-five additional instructional days per school year or one thousand one hundred twenty-eight instructional hours for kindergarten through fifth grade, whichever requires the addition of the fewest number of instructional days, to all elementary school students enrolled in the elementary school;
(2) provide a good-faith attempt to keep students with the same teacher and cohort of students during K-5 plus and the regular school year and minimize mid-year transfers to only those transfers that are in the best interest of the student;
(3) include additional professional development for teachers teaching at a K-5 plus school in how young children learn to read; and
(4) be considered an extended school calendar for all students in each participating school.
C. An elementary school operating a four-day school week shall provide no fewer than one hundred seventy-five instructional days per school year or twenty additional instructional days per school year, whichever requires the addition of the fewest number of instructional days to all elementary students enrolled in the elementary school.
D. A school district or charter school that qualified for K-5 plus program units in the prior fiscal year shall not be required to add more instructional days to the current school year to qualify for program units in the current school year if the school district or charter school provides the same or more total instructional days and total instructional hours than it provided in the prior school year.
E. An elementary school is ineligible for K-5 plus program units if it fails to meet the requirements of this section."
SECTION 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions of this act is July 1, 2022.
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