Senate Bill 2489

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 37-16-7, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO AUTHORIZE AND DIRECT THE STATE DEPARTMENT TO REPLACE SATP AND PARCC STUDENT ASSESSMENTS WITH THE ACT TEST; TO PROVIDE THAT BEGINNING WITH THE 2014-2015 SCHOOL YEAR STUDENTS SHALL BE REQUIRED TO PASS THE ACT TEST WITH A SATISFACTORY SCORE DETERMINED BY THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION FOR PROMOTION TO GRADE LEVELS AND HIGH-SCHOOL GRADUATION; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 37-16-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-16-7. (1) Each district school board shall establish standards for graduation from its schools which shall include as a minimum:

(a) Mastery of minimum academic skills as measured by assessments developed and administered by the State Board of Education. Beginning with the 2014-2015 school year, the State Department of Education shall not require school districts to administer the Subject Area Testing Program (SATP) test or the multistate Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) test for student promotion to grade levels or high-school student graduation purposes, and shall only require school districts to administer the ACT Test at the appropriate grade levels. Upon the effective date of this act, the State Superintendent of Education shall immediately initiate the procedure outlined in the Bylaws of the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) to withdraw the state from the consortium. Students who enter Grade 9 in the 2014-2015 school year and in school years thereafter shall be required to pass the ACT college readiness assessment test with a satisfactory score as determined by the State Board of Education. The State Board of Education is authorized to phase-in satisfactory ACT Test scores for graduation purposes.

(b) Completion of a minimum number of academic credits, and all other applicable requirements prescribed by the district school board.

(c) By school, information on high-school graduation rates. High schools with graduation rates lower than eighty percent (80%) must submit a detailed plan to the Mississippi Department of Education to restructure the high-school experience to improve graduation rates.

(2) A student who meets all requirements prescribed in subsection (1) of this section shall be awarded a standard diploma in a form prescribed by the State Board of Education. Students who meet these requirements but do not pass the required ACT Test will receive a Certificate of Completion which is not equivalent to a standard high-school diploma.

(3) The State Board of Education may only establish student proficiency standards for promotion to grade levels leading to graduation based upon the ACT Test.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2014.