Alabama § 16-6H-17 - Evaluation by External Consultant; Request for Proposals Process; Review Panels; Comprehensive Evaluation Plan; Annual Report.

§ 16-6H-17. Evaluation by External Consultant; Request for Proposals Process; Review Panels; Comprehensive Evaluation Plan; Annual Report.

(a) Beginning January 15, 2023, the Executive Committee of the Alabama STEM Council shall employ an external consultant to evaluate this chapter, the work of mathematics coaches, and the implementation and outcomes. The external consultant shall be selected through an open request for proposals process adopted by the executive committee. Each proposal shall be reviewed by a panel of key stakeholders, chosen by the executive committee, and shall be assessed using a defined set of priority indicators. The executive committee shall appoint a panel of 11 stakeholders to review each proposal. The membership of each panel shall include all of the following:

(1) The Director of the Alabama STEM Council.

(2) An elementary public school based mathematics coach.

(3) Two public elementary mathematics educators.

(4) Two parents of students who are enrolled in and attending a public K-5 school.

(5) The Director of AMSTI, or his or her designee.

(6) One AMSTI elementary mathematics specialist.

(7) One elementary public school principal.

(8) One instructor employed by a public two-year or four-year institution of higher education, with experience teaching elementary mathematics methods.

(9) Two additional members appointed by the Executive Director of the Alabama STEM Council.

(b) The appointing authorities shall coordinate their appointments to assure the panel membership is inclusive and reflects the racial, gender, geographic, urban, rural, and economic diversity of the state.

(c) The external consultant shall design and adopt a comprehensive evaluation plan to help with both the success and sustainability of the K-5 mathematics coach endorsement program. The plan shall include, but not be limited to, defining measures, developing instruments, using instruments to collect data, analyzing data, the quarterly and annual reporting of findings, and the development and implementation of a measurement sustainability plan. The findings of the external consultant shall be used to recommend any adjustments that need to be made for the continuous improvement of both the quality of implementation and assurance of desired outcomes. The evaluation shall also include a cost benefit return on investment study.

(d) The external consultant shall compile and submit an annual report on or before January 30, and quarterly reports no later than the last day of the month following each quarter, to all of the following: The Governor, Lieutenant Governor, State Board of Education, Speaker of the House of Representatives, President Pro Tempore of the Senate, Chair of the House Ways and Means Education Committee, Chair of the Senate Finance and Taxation Education Committee, Chair of the House Education Policy Committee, Chair of the Senate Education Policy Committee, Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Minority Leader of the Senate, Director of the Office of Mathematics Improvement, and the Executive Committee of the Alabama STEM Council. Copies of all annual and quarterly reports shall be conspicuously published on the website of both the Alabama STEM Council and the department.

(e) Continued funding dedicated to K-5 mathematics coaches shall be contingent on measurable performance growth, as determined by the evaluations of the external consultant.

(f) The State Superintendent of Education and the Director of the Office of Mathematics Improvement shall comply with all requests for data and information from the external consultant and shall make every effort to assist with any recommended improvements.