AB 104 — Pupil instruction: retention, grade changes, and exemptions.

Summary

(1) Existing law requires the governing board of a school district and a county superintendent of schools to adopt policies regarding pupil promotion and retention, and requires a pupil to be promoted or retained only as provided for in those policies. Until June 30, 2023, existing law makes certain funds available to school districts, county offices of education, charter schools, and state special schools for expenditure by August 31, 2022, for certain activities, including offering supplemental instruction and support, as prescribed. For the 2021–22 academic year, this bill would require a school district, county office of education, or charter school to implement a supplemental policy regarding the retention of pupils who, in the 2020–21 academic year, received deficient grades, as specified, for at least 12 of the pupil's coursework, except for pupils enrolled in grade 12 during the 2020–21 academic year. The bill would require a school district, county office of education, or charter school, as part of that policy and within 30 calendar days of receiving a written retention consultation request from a parent, to conduct the consultation with the parent, the pupil, the administrator, and a teacher, and would require the consultation to include a discussion of all available learning recovery options, research on the effects of retention and the benefits of particular interventions and supports, and consideration of the pupil's academic data and any other information relevant to whether retention is in the pupil's best interests, academically and socially. The bill would require a retention decision to be consistent with a pupil's individualized education program. The bill would require, regardless of the retention decision, the pupil to be offered specific interventions and supports. The bill would also require, if the decision is to not retain the pupil, the pupil to be offered access to prior semester courses in which the pupil received a D or F letter grade in the 2020–21 academic year, some other form of credit recovery, or other supports as specified. The bill would require a school district, county office of education, or charter school to notify the requesting parent of its retention decision within 10 calendar days of the consultation. By imposing new duties on school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law requires the governing board of a school district to prescribe regulations requiring the evaluation of a pupil's achievement for each marking period. When a teacher provides the pupil with a grade for a course, existing law requires the grade, in the absence of clerical or mechanical mistake, fraud, bad faith, or incompetency, to be final. Existing law prohibits the governing board of a school district or the superintendent of the district from ordering a change in the pupil's grade unless the teacher who determined the grade is given an opportunity, to the extent practicable, to be included in all discussions relating to the grade change. This bill would authorize the parent, guardian, or education rights holder of a pupil, or, for a pupil who is 18 years of age or older, the pupil, who was enrolled in high school and enrolled in a course during the 2020–21 school year to apply to the pupil's school district, county board of education, or charter school to change the letter grade for that course to a Pass or No Pass grade on the pupil's transcript. The bill would require the school district, county office of education, or charter school to make the requested change, as specified. The bill would require the California State University, and encourage private postsecondary institutions and the University of California, to accept, and to notify the State Department of Education whether the institution will accept, those changed transcripts for admission purposes. The bill would require the department to develop the application for the grade change request and to provide related assistance to school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools. By requiring local educational agencies to perform specified duties regarding the grade change option, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) Existing law requires a school district or charter school to exempt certain categories of pupils who transfer between schools any time after completion of the 2nd year of high school, or who participate in a specified newcomer program, from all coursework and other requirements adopted by the governing body of the school district or charter school that are in addition to certain statewide coursework requirements unless the school district or charter school makes a finding that the pupil is reasonably able to complete the graduation requirements of the school district or charter school in time to graduate from high school by the end of the pupil's 4th year of high school. Existing law requires a school district or charter school to take specified actions if it determines the pupil is reasonably able to complete those graduation requirements within the pupil's 5th year of high school. This bill would require a school district, charter school, or county office of education to exempt all pupils who, in the 2020–21 school year, were in their 3rd or 4th year of high school and who are not on track to graduate in 4 years from all coursework and other requirements adopted by the governing body of a school district, charter school, or county office of education that are in addition to the statewide coursework requirements, and to separately provide, for all pupils who, in the 2020–21 school year, were in their 3rd or 4th year of high school and who are not on track to graduate in the 2020–21 or 2021–22 school year, the opportunity to complete the statewide coursework required for graduation, which may include, among other opportunities for completion of the coursework, a 5th year of instruction. By requiring local educational agencies to perform additional duties in complying with the exemption requirements, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (4) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above. (5) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

Bill Text

• Chaptered 07/01/21 - Chaptered Current pdf July 01, 2021
• Enrolled 06/21/21 - Enrolled pdf June 21, 2021
• Amended 06/02/21 - Amended Senate pdf June 02, 2021
• Amended 05/18/21 - Amended Senate pdf May 18, 2021
• Amended 04/08/21 - Amended Assembly pdf April 08, 2021
• Amended 03/16/21 - Amended Assembly pdf March 16, 2021
• Amended 01/21/21 - Amended Assembly pdf January 21, 2021
• Amended 01/12/21 - Amended Assembly pdf January 12, 2021
• Introduced 12/11/20 - Introduced pdf December 11, 2020
• AB104 View text html

Action History

1. July 01, 2021

   Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 41, Statutes of 2021.

2. July 01, 2021

   Approved by the Governor.

3. June 21, 2021

   Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4:30 p.m.

4. June 21, 2021

   Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 76. Noes 0. Page 2037.).

5. June 17, 2021

   In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending. May be considered on or after June 19 pursuant to Assembly Rule 77.

6. June 17, 2021

   Read third time. Urgency clause adopted. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 37. Noes 0. Page 1542.).

7. June 14, 2021

   Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

8. June 10, 2021

   From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (June 10).

9. June 02, 2021

   Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

10. June 01, 2021

    From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 6. Noes 0.) (May 27).

11. May 24, 2021

    Joint Rules 61 and 62 suspended. (Page 1211.)

12. May 18, 2021

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on ED.

13. May 12, 2021

    Referred to Com. on ED.

14. April 15, 2021

    In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.

15. April 15, 2021

    Read third time. Urgency clause adopted. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 77. Noes 0. Page 1031.).

16. April 12, 2021

    Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

17. April 08, 2021

    Read second time and amended. Ordered returned to second reading.

18. April 07, 2021

    From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended. (Ayes 14. Noes 0.) (April 7).

19. March 26, 2021

    From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (March 24). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

20. March 17, 2021

    Re-referred to Com. on ED.

21. March 16, 2021

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on ED. Read second time and amended.

22. January 27, 2021

    In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.

23. January 25, 2021

    Re-referred to Com. on ED.

24. January 21, 2021

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on ED. Read second time and amended.

25. January 13, 2021

    Re-referred to Com. on ED.

26. January 12, 2021

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on ED. Read second time and amended.

27. January 11, 2021

    Referred to Com. on ED.

28. January 11, 2021

    Read first time.

29. December 12, 2020

    From printer. May be heard in committee January 11.

30. December 11, 2020

    Introduced. To print.

Sponsors

• McCarty · Cosponsor
• Cottie Petrie-Norris · Cosponsor
• Ting · Cosponsor
• Wilk · Cosponsor
• Jeff Gonzalez · Primary

Votes

Subjects