North Carolina § 115C-269 - 45. Sanctions.

§ 115C-269. 45. Sanctions.

Accountability Statuses. - The State Board shall at least annually review the accountability status of each EPP. The State Board shall adopt rules necessary for the sanction of EPPs that do not meet accountability standards or comply with State law or rules. The rules shall provide for the assignment of warned, probation, or revoked statuses according to the following criteria: Warned. - An EPP shall be assigned warned status if the program meets any of the following criteria: Fails to meet the performance standards set by the State Board for the overall performance of all its students on any of the indicators set forth in G.S. 115C-269.35(a) in any one year. Fails to meet the performance standards in any two sex, race, or ethnicity demographic groups on any of the indicators set forth in G.S. 115C-269.35(a) in any one year. Fails to meet the performance standards for any one sex, race, or ethnicity demographic group on any of the indicators set forth in G.S. 115C-269.35(a) for two consecutively measured years, regardless of whether the deficiency is in the same standard. The State Board determines that the EPP has violated applicable laws or rules that should result in warned status. Probation. - An EPP shall be assigned probation status if the program meets any of the following criteria: Fails to meet the performance standards set by the State Board for the overall performance of all its students on any of the indicators set forth in G.S. 115C-269.35(a) for two consecutively measured years. Fails to meet the performance standards in any three sex, race, or ethnicity demographic groups on any of the indicators set forth in G.S. 115C-269.35(a) in any one year. Fails to meet the performance standards for any one sex, race, or ethnicity demographic group on any of the indicators set forth in G.S. 115C-269.35(a) for three consecutively measured years, regardless of whether the deficiency is in the same standard. The State Board determines that the EPP has violated applicable laws or rules that should result in probation status. Revoked. - An EPP shall be assigned revoked status and its approval to recommend students for educator licensure revoked if it meets any of the following criteria: Is assigned probation status for three consecutively measured years. Has been on probation status for one year and the State Board determines that revoking the program's approval is reasonably necessary to achieve the purposes of this Article. Revocation. - Any revocation of an EPP's accountability status shall meet the following criteria: Complies with the requirements of notice as described in subsection (f) of this section. Upon assignment of revoked status of EPP approval, the EPP shall not admit new students, but may complete the training of students already admitted by the program and recommend them for licensure. If necessary, the State Board and other EPPs shall cooperate to assist the previously admitted students of the revoked EPP to complete their training. A revocation shall be effective for a period of at least two years. After two years, the program may seek initial authorization to prepare educators for licensure. Range of Sanctions. - In addition to revocation as provided in subsections (a) and (b) of this section, the rules described in subsection (a) of this section shall provide for the State Board to assign other sanctions deemed necessary, including one or more of the following: Requiring the EPP to obtain technical assistance approved by the State Board. Requiring the EPP to obtain professional services under contract with another entity. Appointing a monitor to participate in and report to the State Board on the activities of the EPP. Managing the EPP's enrollment. Small Group Exception. - Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, the State Board of Education shall adopt a rule to establish a small group exception for circumstances in which there is a risk of identifying individual program participants. The rule shall include the number of students necessary to qualify for the exception and the alternative method of performance assessment and assignment of sanctions. The rule may provide for measuring performance of small student groups cumulatively over multiple years for EPP accountability purposes. Particular Fields of Licensure. - Any sanction authorized or required to be taken against an EPP under subsection (c) of this section may also be taken with regard to a program for a particular field of licensure authorized to be offered by an EPP. Costs. - Any costs associated with the sanctions under subsection (c) of this section shall be paid by the EPP. Notice, Hearing, and Appeal. - The State Board shall give written notice to the EPP by certified mail of an EPP's revocation of authorized status, including a written explanation of the basis for the revocation. An EPP may commence a contested case as provided in Article 3 of Chapter 150B of the General Statutes as to the revocation by the State Board. History (2017-189, s. 2(i); 2019-149, ss. 1.5, 2.) Editor's Note. - Session Laws 2017-189, s. 7(a) made this section effective July 27, 2017, and applicable beginning with the 2017-2018 school year. Session Laws 2017-189, s. 7(f), provides: "(f) The State Board shall not assign an accountability status to any EPP during the 2018-2019, 2019-2020, or 2020-2021 school years but may require technical assistance to an EPP at the EPP's expense based on reported performance measures. The State Board shall only assign the accountability statuses of 'warned' and 'probation' during the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 school years. The State Board may assign the accountability status of 'revoked' beginning with the 2023-2024 school year." Session Laws 2019-149, s. 3.5, provides: "The State Board of Education, in consultation with the Professional Educator Preparation and Standards Commission (PEPSC), shall study the inclusion as a performance measure for EPPs the two-year retention rate for individuals who completed the EPP and became initially licensed and employed in a North Carolina public school. By February 15, 2020, the State Board shall submit a report on the study, including a recommended retention-rate performance standard for EPPs, to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee. The State Board shall not implement the two-year retention rate as a performance measure without express authorization from the General Assembly." Session Laws 2019-149, s. 4, provides: "By October 1, 2019, the State Board of Education shall adopt the rule required by G.S. 115C-269.45(c1) , as enacted by this act, and shall report on the rule to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee. The State Board shall apply the rule beginning with data collected from the 2018-2019 academic year for the purposes of the annual report made available to the public by December 15, 2019, and annually thereafter, pursuant to G.S. 115C-269.50 ." Session Laws 2020-3, s. 2.1, as amended by Session Laws 2020-49, s. 3(a), provides: "For the purposes of this Part, the following definitions apply: "(1) Authority. - State Education Assistance Authority. "(2) Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) emergency. - The period beginning March 10, 2020, and continuing until the Governor signs an executive order rescinding Executive Order No. 116 (Declaration of a State of Emergency to Coordinate Response and Protective Actions to Prevent the Spread of COVID-19). "(3) Federal testing waiver. - The testing waiver granted to the State Board of Education by the United States Department of Education for the 2019-2020 school year, pursuant to section 8401(b) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended, which, pursuant to G.S. 115C-174.11 , eliminated the collection of certain student assessment data for the 2019-2020 school year. "(4) Modified calendar school. - A school that a local board designated as having a modified calendar for the 2003-2004 school year or any school that was part of a planned program in the 2003-2004 school year for a system of modified calendar schools, so long as the school operates under a modified calendar. "(5) State Board. - The State Board of Education. "(6) Year-round school. - A school with a single or multi-track instructional calendar that was adopted prior to March 1, 2020, and provides instructional days in compliance with Section 2.11(b)(1) of this Part throughout the entire school calendar year, beginning July 1 and ending June 30, by utilizing at least one of the following plans: "a. A plan dividing students into four groups and requiring each group to be in school for assigned and staggered quarters each school calendar year. "b. A plan providing students be scheduled to attend an average of between 44 and 46 instructional days followed by an average of between 15 and 20 days of vacation, repeated throughout the school calendar year. "c. A plan dividing the school calendar year into five nine-week sessions of classes and requiring each student to attend four assigned and staggered sessions out of the five nine-week sessions to complete the student's instructional year." Session Laws 2020-3, s. 2.2, provides: "The purpose of this Part is to clarify or modify certain requirements in consideration of actions and circumstances related to the COVID-19 emergency, including, but not limited to, the federal testing waiver and the closure of schools for in-person instruction during the 2019-2020 school year." Session Laws 2020-3, s. 2.22(e), provides: "Sanctions. - Notwithstanding G.S. 115C-269.45(c) , the State Board shall not consider data that was not practicably available related to the 2019-2020 school year when assigning sanctions for an EPP under G.S. 115C-269.45(c) ." Session Laws 2020-3, s. 5, is a severability clause. Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2019-149, ss. 1.5 and 2, effective July 22, 2019, substituted "any one" for "a" before "sex" and deleted "demographic group or" before "standard" in both sub-subdivisions (a)(1)c and (a)(2)c; and added subsection (c1).