North Carolina § 115C-75 - 13. Innovation zones.

§ 115C-75. 13. Innovation zones.

If a local board of education transfers a qualifying school to the ISD, the local board of education may ask the State Board of Education to be allowed to create an innovation zone (i) for up to three low-performing schools within its local school administrative unit or (ii) if the local school administrative unit has more than thirty-five percent (35%) of the schools identified in the unit as low-performing, for some or all of the low-performing schools located in the unit. The innovation zone created by a local board of education must include all of the following: Development of a clear and specific plan for improving schools within the innovation zone. Establishment of an innovation zone office with a leader selected in consultation with the ISD Superintendent to be appointed by the local board of education and approved by the State Board of Education to govern and lead the schools in the innovation zone. Attraction of high-quality staff at schools in the innovation zone through the use of incentives, favorable working conditions, and development of partnerships to develop human capital. Accountability for those schools based on established benchmarks and goals for student achievement and for support services provided by the local school administrative unit based on metrics established by the innovation zone office for effective and efficient delivery. Support for those schools by the innovation zone office to ensure priority in services from the local school administrative unit, pursuit of outside funding, and technical support, including support from external partners. A local board of education may maintain an innovation zone created as provided in subsection (a) for up to five consecutive years. The State Board of Education may terminate the innovation zone as follows: Early termination of innovation zone based on performance. - If, during the five-year period, the average of the annual percentage growth of the schools within the innovation zone does not exceed the average annual percentage growth of other low-performing schools for three consecutive years, the State Board of Education, upon the recommendation of the ISD Superintendent, may terminate the innovation zone at the conclusion of the academic year. Nonrenewal of innovation zone based on performance. - If, by the end of the five-year period, the average annual percentage growth of the schools within the innovation zone over the five-year period does not exceed the average annual percentage growth of other low-performing schools during the same term, the State Board of Education shall not permit the local board of education to continue the innovation zone. State Board of Education optional extension of innovation zone for three years. - If, by the end of the five-year period, the schools within the innovation zone remain low-performing schools but have exceeded the average annual percentage growth of other low-performing schools, the State Board of Education, upon the recommendation of the ISD Superintendent in his or her discretion, may allow continuation of the innovation zone for an additional three years. Local board of education option to extend innovation zone for three years. - If, by the end of the five-year period, the schools within the innovation zone receive a grade of C or higher under G.S. 115C-12(9)c1., the local board of education shall have the option to extend the innovation zone for another three years. Repealed by Session Laws 2019-248, s. 1(a), effective November 11, 2019. The State Board of Education shall grant, upon recommendation of the ISD Superintendent, such requests for the creation of an innovation zone. The State Board of Education shall also authorize the local board of education the flexibility to operate the schools within the innovation zone with the same exemptions from statutes and rules as a charter school authorized under Article 14A of this Chapter and with exemptions from local board of education policies as needed to ensure autonomy under the guidance of the innovation zone office for financial, programmatic, staffing, and time allocation decisions. History (2016-110, s. 1; 2017-57, s. 7.26E(a), (f); 2018-145, s. 27(b); 2019-248, s. 1(a).) Editor's Note. - Session Laws 2016-110, s. 4, as amended by Session Laws 2017-57, s. 7.26E(d), provides: "Evaluation of the Innovative School District and Other Innovation Models. - The State Board of Education shall contract during the 2017-2018 school year with an independent research organization to evaluate the implementation and effectiveness of the following: "(1) The Innovative School District in turning around low-performing schools beginning with the 2018-2019 school year through the 2022-2023 school year, including the innovation zone established in Section 4.5 of this act. The State Board of Education shall require IS operators to provide the independent research organization with requested data to conduct the evaluation. The independent research organization shall include an analysis on the impact of public versus private funding in the effectiveness of the Innovative School District. "(2) Innovation zones in turning around low-performing schools beginning with the 2017-2018 school year through the 2022-2023 school year. The State Board of Education shall require local boards of education granted innovation zones to provide the independent research organization with requested data to conduct the evaluation. "The independent research organization shall report its interim findings to the State Board of Education annually no later than February 15, beginning in 2018, and shall submit a final report no later than February 15, 2024. The State Board of Education shall provide the report of the independent research commission, along with any recommended legislative changes, to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee annually no later than March 1, beginning in 2018 until submission of the final report in 2024." Session Laws 2016-110, s. 4.5, provides: "The State Board of Education shall authorize the Charlotte-Mecklenburg (CMS) Board of Education to create an innovation zone among Project LIFT schools and Beacon Initiative schools, as provided in G.S. 115C-75.13 , for the 2017-2018 through 2021-2022 school years. Notwithstanding G.S. 115C-75.13 , the CMS innovation zone may include up to five low-performing schools. For the purposes of this section, Project LIFT schools are those schools within the feeder area for West Charlotte High School governed by the collaborative agreement between the CMS Board of Education and Project Leadership and Investment for Transformation. Beacon Initiative schools are those schools designated by the CMS Board of Education to participate in the Beacon Initiative Partnership between the CMS Board of Education and the University of Virginia." Session Laws 2016-110, s. 5, as amended by Session Laws 2017-57, s. 7.11(c), provides: "There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Public Instruction four hundred thousand dollars ($400,000) in recurring funds for the 2016-2017 fiscal year for salary and benefits for the ISD Superintendent, staff, and other expenses associated with the ISD. Any funds appropriated for this purpose that are unexpended at the end of the 2016-2017 fiscal year shall not revert but shall remain available for one-time, start-up expenses of the ISD until the end of the 2017-2018 fiscal year. There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Public Instruction five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) for the 2016-2017 fiscal year to contract with an independent research organization to conduct the evaluation required in Section 4 of this act. Funds appropriated to the Department of Public Instruction for the 2016-2017 fiscal year for the evaluation shall not revert at the end of the fiscal year but shall remain available until expended." Session Laws 2016-110, s. 6, as amended by Session Laws 2017-57, s. 7.26E(e), and Session Laws 2018-97, s. 2.13, provides: "Beginning with the 2018-2019 fiscal year, from the funds appropriated to the Department of Public Instruction each fiscal year for the award of innovation zone model grants, the State Board of Education shall, upon recommendation of the ISD Superintendent, award innovation zone model grants of up to one hundred fifty thousand dollars ($150,000) per fiscal year for five years to local boards of education who (i) have been authorized to adopt the innovation zone model by the State Board of Education for up to three schools or for a local school administrative unit with more than thirty-five percent (35%) of schools within the unit identified as low-performing and (ii) provide a dollar-for-dollar match with non-State funding for the requested grant amount. Innovation zone model grants shall be directed by local boards of educations to the innovation zone office to address specific issues in innovation zone schools. Notwithstanding any other provision of law or a provision of the Committee Report described in Section 39.2 of S.L. 2017-57 to the contrary, for the 2018-2019 fiscal year only, the Department may also use these funds to cover the administrative costs of the Innovative School District during the 2018-2019 fiscal year." Session Laws 2016-110, s. 7, provides: "This act becomes effective only if funds are appropriated by the Current Operations Appropriations Act of 2016 for the Achievement School District." The appropriation was made in the reserve for pending legislation in the budget bill. Session Laws 2016-110, s. 8, as amended by Session Laws 2017-57, s. 7.26E(f), as amended by Session Laws 2018-145, s. 27(b), and as amended by Session Laws 2019-248, s. 1(f), provides: "This act is effective when it becomes law [July 22, 2016] and supervision of innovative schools by the Innovative School District shall begin with the 2018-2019 school year. In the discretion of the State Board of Education (i) the ISD Superintendent may not be required during the 2017-2018 school year to recommend qualifying schools for inclusion in the ISD for the 2018-2019 school year and (ii) the time line for selection of innovative schools for the 2018-2019 school year provided in G.S. 115C-75.7 may be varied, but in no event may the local board of education's decision occur later than April 1, 2018." Session Laws 2017-57, s. 1.1, provides: "This act shall be known as the 'Current Operations Appropriations Act of 2017.'" Session Laws 2017-57, s. 39.4, provides: "Except for statutory changes or other provisions that clearly indicate an intention to have effects beyond the 2017-2019 fiscal biennium, the textual provisions of this act apply only to funds appropriated for, and activities occurring during, the 2017-2019 fiscal biennium." Session Laws 2017-57, s. 39.6, is a severability clause. Session Laws 2019-248, s. 3, made amendments by Session Laws 2019-248, s. 1(a), effective November 11, 2019, and applicable beginning with schools identified as qualifying schools for the 2019-2020 school year, based on data from the 2018-2019 school year. Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2017-57, s. 7.26E(a), effective July 1, 2017, substituted "ISD" for "ASD" throughout the section; in subsection (a), inserted "(i)" and added clause (ii) in the first paragraph and inserted "upon recommendation of the ISD Superintendent" in the second paragraph; in subdivision (b)(2), inserted "recommended by the ISD Superintendent to be"; and added subsection (d). Session Laws 2019-248, s. 1(a), in subsection (a), deleted "continually" after "three"; added "unit" before "or (ii)"; added "some or" after "low-performing, for"; in subdivision (b)(2), substituted "recommended by" for "selected in consultation with"; deleted "continually" throughout subsection (c); and deleted subsection (d), which read: "A low-performing school in an innovation zone, created as provided in clause (ii) of subsection (a) of this section, shall become an innovative school if that low-performing school does not exceed expected growth in the last two years of the five consecutive years in the innovation zone." For effective date and applicability, see editor's note. §§ 115C-76 through 115C-80: Reserved for future codification purposes.