| (a) Definitions. The following words and terms, when
used in this section, shall have the following meanings, unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise.
(1) Benchmarks--The standards for program implementation
that are included in the blueprints.
(2) Blueprint--The document that outlines the College
and Career Readiness School Models (CCRSM) requirements, including
benchmarks, design elements, artifacts, and outcomes-based measures.
(3) Business or industry partner--Employers who enter
into a formal agreement with a Pathways in Technology Early College
High School (P-TECH) to support work-based learning (WBL).
(4) Design elements--The processes, structures, or
services within each benchmark that a CCRSM campus must fulfill.
(5) Designated campus--A CCRSM campus with six or more
years of implementation that has met outcomes-based measures (OBMs)
necessary for designation.
(6) Designated with Distinction campus--A CCRSM campus
with seven or more years of implementation that has met Designated
with Distinction OBMs.
(7) Early College High School (ECHS)--A school established
under Texas Education Code (TEC), §29.908, that enables a student
in Grade 9, 10, 11, or 12 who is at risk of dropping out of school,
as defined by TEC, §29.081, or who wishes to accelerate completion
of high school to combine high school courses and college-level courses.
An ECHS program must provide for a course of study that, on or before
the fifth anniversary of a student's first day of high school, enables
a participating student to receive both a high school diploma and
either an applied or academic associate degree, with a completed field
of study curriculum, as defined by TEC, §61.823, that is transferable
toward a baccalaureate degree at one or more general academic teaching
institutions, as defined by TEC, §61.003.
(8) Institution of higher education (IHE)--An institution
of higher education has the meaning assigned by TEC, §61.003.
(9) Needs improvement campus--A CCRSM campus with six
or more years of implementation that has not met OBMs necessary for
designation.
(10) Optional Flexible School Day Program (OFSDP)--A
program approved by the commissioner of education to provide flexible
hours and days of attendance for eligible students in Grades 9-12,
as defined in §129.1027 of this title (relating to Optional Flexible
School Day Program).
(11) Outcomes-based measures--The data indicators related
to access, achievement, and attainment that a CCRSM campus is required
to meet to achieve a status of Designated or Designated with Distinction.
(12) Pathways in Technology Early College High School--A
school established under TEC, §29.553, that enables a student
in Grades 9, 10, 11, or 12 who is at risk of dropping out of school,
as defined by TEC, §29.081, or who wishes to accelerate completion
of high school to combine high school and postsecondary courses. A
P-TECH program must be open enrollment and provide for a course of
study that, on or before the sixth anniversary of a student's first
day of high school, enables a participating student to receive both
a high school diploma and an associate degree, a two-year postsecondary
certificate, or an industry certification, and must include a work-based
education program.
(13) Planning campus--A CCRSM campus with zero years
of implementation.
(14) Provisional campus--A CCRSM campus with one to
five years of implementation.
(15) School district--For the purposes of this section,
the definition of school district includes an open- enrollment charter
school.
(16) Work-based education program--Practical, hands-on
activities or experiences through which a learner interacts with industry
professionals in a workplace that may be an in-person, virtual, or
simulated setting. Learners prepare for employment or advancement
along a career pathway by completing purposeful tasks that develop
academic, technical, and employability skills. A work-based education
program is also known as work-based learning.
(b) Conditions for approval of CCRSM status.
(1) Conditions for approval of a Planning campus.
(A) Applicant eligibility. Any school district may
submit a separate application on behalf of each campus it requests
to be considered as a Planning campus.
(B) Application process. A school district must submit
each application in accordance with the program application cycle
(PAC) procedures determined by the commissioner.
(C) Planning campus timeline. A planning campus shall
be eligible to apply for Provisional campus status after the mandatory
planning year.
(2) Conditions for approval of a Provisional campus.
(A) Applicant eligibility. Any Planning campus or approved
provisional campus may submit an application to be considered as a
Provisional campus.
(B) Application process. Any Planning campus or approved
Provisional campus must submit each application in accordance with
the PAC procedures determined by the commissioner.
(C) Provisional campus timeline. A Provisional campus
shall be eligible to apply to renew its status as a Provisional campus
yearly for up to five years.
(3) Conditions for approval of a Designated campus.
(A) Applicant eligibility. A Provisional campus entering
its fifth year of operation may submit an application on behalf of
the campus it requests to be considered as a Designated campus.
(B) Application process. A prospective Designated campus
must submit each application in accordance with the PAC procedures
determined by the commissioner. Campuses must meet access, achievement,
and attainment OBM criteria and implement all design elements in order
to receive CCRSM Designated status.
(C) Designated campus timeline. A Designated campus
shall be eligible to apply to renew its status as a Designated campus
yearly.
(4) Conditions for approval of a Designated with Distinction
campus.
(A) Applicant eligibility. A Designated campus may
qualify for Designated with Distinction status in one or more of the
following OBM distinction criteria areas beginning in its seventh
year of operation:
(i) access;
(ii) achievement; and
(iii) attainment.
(B) Application process. A prospective Designated with
Distinction campus must submit each application in accordance with
the PAC procedures determined by the commissioner. The campus application
in the PAC will serve as the Designated with Distinction application.
Campuses must meet access, achievement, and attainment designated
with distinction OBM criteria and implement all design elements in
order to receive CCRSM Designated with Distinction status.
(C) Designated with Distinction campus timeline. A
Designated with Distinction campus shall qualify to renew its status
as a Designated with Distinction campus yearly.
(c) Needs Improvement and revocation of CCRSM status.
(1) Determination of CCRSM Needs Improvement status.
If the conditions of approval for CCRSM Designated status are not
met, including failure to meet the required OBM designated criteria,
the CCRSM campus will be classified as a CCRSM Needs Improvement campus.
(2) Needs Improvement campus timeline. A Needs Improvement
campus is required to remain in the Needs Improvement status for a
period of three school years following campus notification of the
Needs Improvement status. During the three years of Needs Improvement
status, the campus is required to complete the PAC for Needs Improvement
progress reports.
(3) Needs Improvement progress monitoring. During the
three years of Needs Improvement status, the campus will receive targeted
technical assistance at no cost to the CCRSM to improve OBMs.
(4) Fulfillment of CCRSM Needs Improvement requirements.
Following completion of the three-year Needs Improvement period and
upon successfully meeting the OBM designation criteria, the CCRSM
will move out of the Needs Improvement status and into the Designated
or Designated with Distinction status.
(5) Revocation of CCRSM status. Following completion
of the mandatory three years of Needs Improvement status, if a CCRSM
does not successfully meet the OBM designation criteria, the authorization
of the campus as a CCRSM will be revoked and the campus will be removed
from the CCRSM network.
(d) Notification timeline. TEA will notify each applicant
of its selection or non-selection as a CCRSM Planning, Provisional,
Designated, Designated with Distinction, or Needs Improvement campus.
The designation notification will be sent no later than the summer
following the submission of the campus application in the PAC. Campuses
selected for Planning, Provisional, Designated, and Designated with
Distinction status will be publicly identified on TEA's website and
will be identified as such in designation status notification Cont'd... |
