SB 646 — Increasing non-traditional instruction days for WV teachers

CS for SB 646 WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION Committee Substitute for Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 646 ByBYSENATORFULLER SenatorsANROSE Fuller and Rose [Reported March 7,24, 2025, from the Committee on Education]Finance] CS for CS for SB 646 A BILL to amend and reenact §18-5-45 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to increasing from five to 10 the number of days, commonly referred to as non-traditional instruction days, a county board can deliver instruction through alternative methods when schools are closed due to inclement weather or other unforeseen circumstances and those days be considered instructional days, subject to approval of its plan by the state board;

defining terms;

making technical corrections;

(A) Instruction is offered to students for at least thetheminimum minimum number of minutes as follows:

CS for CS for SB 646 (2) "Cocurricular activities" are activities that are closely related to identifiable academic programs or areas of study that serve to complement academic curricula as further defined by the 1 CS for SB 646 state board;

"Co-curricular activities" are activities that are closely related to identifiable academic programs or areas of study that serve to complement academic curricula as further defined by the state board;

"Instruction delivered through alternative methods" means a plan developed by a county board and approved by the state board for teachers to assign and grade work to be completed by students on days when schools are closed due to inclement weather or other unforeseen circumstances;

"Instructional day" means a day within the instructional term which meets the following criteria:

(A) Instruction is offered to students for at least theminimum number of minutes as follows:

(i) For early childhood programs as provided in §18-5-44(d) of this code;

(ii) For schools with grade levels kindergarten through and including grade five, 315 minutes of instructional time per day;

(iii) For schools with grade levels six through and including grade eight, 330 minutes of instructional time per day;

and (iv) For schools with grade levels nine through and including grade 12, 345 minutes of instructional time per day.

(B) Instructional time is used for instruction and co-curricular activities;

and (C) Other criteria as the state board determines appropriate.

CS for CS for SB 646 “Out-of-calendar day” means anonpaid day thatis not included as a part ofthe minimumemployment term.

(3) The school calendar shall provide for one180 hundred eighty separate instructional days or an equivalent amount of instructional time as provided in this section.

(1) An employment term that excludes Saturdays and Sundays and consists of at least two200 hundred days, which need not be successive.

The beginning and closing dates of the employment term may not exceed forty-eight48 weeks;

(2) Within the employment term, an instructional term for students of no less than one180 hundred eighty separate instructional days, which includes an inclement weather and emergencies plan designed to guarantee an instructional term for students of no less than one180 hundred eighty separate instructional days, subject to the following:

(A) A county board may increase the length of the instructional day as defined in this section by at least thirty30 minutes per day to ensure that it achieves at least an amount of instructional time equivalent to one180 hundred and eighty separate instructional days within its school calendar and:

(ii) Plan within its school calendar and not subject to cancellation and rescheduling as 2 CS for SB 646 instructional days up to an additional five days or equivalent portions of days, without students present, to be used as determined by the county board exclusively for activities by educators at the school level designed to improve instruction;

and CS for CS for SB 646 (iii) Apply any additional equivalent time to recover time lost due to late arrivals and early dismissals;

(B) Subject to approval of its plan by the state board, a county board may deliver instruction through alternative methods on up to five ten10 days when schools are closed due to inclement weather or other unforeseen circumstances and these days are instructional days notwithstanding the closure of schools;

and (C) The use of equivalent time gained by lengthening the school day to cancel days lost, and the delivery of instruction through alternative methods, both as defined in this section, shall be considered instructional days for the purpose of meeting the 180 separate day requirement and as employment days for the purpose of meeting the 200200-day day employment term;

and (3) Within the employment term, noninstructional days shall total twenty20 and shall be comprised of the following:

(B) Election day as specified in section§18A-5-2 two, article five, chapter eighteen-a of this code;

(C) Six days to be designated by the county board to be used by the employees outside the school environment, with at least four outside the school environment days scheduled to occur after the one130th hundred and thirtieth instructional day of the school calendar;

3 CS for SB 646 (i) Curriculum development;

CS for CS for SB 646 (iii) Teacher-pupil-parent conferences;

and (vi) At least six two-hour blocks of time for faculty senate meetings with at least one two- hour block of time scheduled in the first month of the employment term, at least one two-hour block of time scheduled in the last month of the employment term and at least one two-hour block of time scheduled in each of the months of October, December, FebruaryFebruary. and April.

and April.

(e) If it is not possible to complete one180 hundred eighty separate instructional days with the current school calendar and the additional five days of instructional time gained by increasing the length of the instructional day as provided in subsection (c) of this section are insufficient to offset the loss of separate instructional days, the county board shall schedule instruction on any available noninstructional day, regardless of the purpose for which the day originally was scheduled, or an out-of-calendar day and the day will be used for instruction of students:

and (4) (5) The five days or equivalent portions of days planned within the school calendar 4 CS for SB 646 exclusively for activities by educators at the school level to improve instruction that are gained by increasing the length of the instructional day as provided in subsection (c) of this section.

CS for CS for SB 646 (f) The instructional term shall commence and terminate on a date selected by the county board.

(g) The state board may not schedule the primary statewide assessment program more than thirty30 days prior to the end of the instructional year unless the state board determines that the nature of the test mandates an earlier testing date.

(h) The following applies to cocurricularco-curricular activities:

(1) The state board shall determine what activities may be considered cocurricular;co-curricular;

(2) The state board shall determine the amount of instructional time that may be consumed by cocurricularco-curricular activities;

(l) In formulation of a school’s calendar, a county school board shall hold at least two public meetings that allow parents, teachers, teacher organizations, businessesbusinesses, and other interested parties within the county to discuss the school calendar.