House Bill 753

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 37-9-13, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE QUALIFICATIONS FOR THE OFFICE OF SCHOOL DISTRICT SUPERINTENDENT; TO CREATE A SPECIAL COMMITTEE FOR THE PURPOSE OF REVIEWING SUPERINTENDENTS WHO DO NOT POSSESS THE QUALIFICATIONS ESTABLISHED FOR AUTOMATIC CANDIDACY FOR SUPERINTENDENT; TO AUTHORIZE THE SPECIAL COMMITTEE TO CONDUCT ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS TO DETERMINE ELIGIBILITY OF SUCH CANDIDATES; TO REQUIRE A THREE-YEAR PROBATIONARY PERIOD FOR CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS HIRED AS SUPERINTENDENTS IN CERTAIN DISTRICTS; TO REQUIRE THE SUPERINTENDENT UNDER PROBATION TO DEMONSTRATE PROGRESS IN THE DISTRICT AND TO UNDERGO THE MINIMUM AMOUNT OF PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT TO ADDRESS ACCOUNTABILITY DEFICIENCIES IN THE FIRST YEAR OF EMPLOYMENT; TO REQUIRE THE SPECIAL COMMITTEE TO REVIEW THE PROGRESS OF THE SUPERINTENDENT AT THE COMPLETION OF THE PROBATIONARY PERIOD; TO PROVIDE THAT A SUPERINTENDENT REMOVED FROM OFFICE FOR FAILURE TO IMPROVE THE ACCOUNTABILITY RATING IS NOT AUTOMATICALLY DISQUALIFIED FROM BEING CONSIDERED AS A PROSPECTIVE CANDIDATE IN ANOTHER SCHOOL DISTRICT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

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

SECTION 1. Section 37-9-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-9-13. (1) Each school district shall have a superintendent of schools, selected in the manner provided by law. No person shall be eligible to the office of superintendent of schools unless such person shall hold a valid administrator's license issued by the State Department of Education and shall have classroom or administrative experience of not less than six (6) years which shall include at least three (3) years of administrative experience as a school building principal (a) in a school with an "A" or "B" accountability rating, beginning with the 2018-2019 academic year, or (b) in a school that increased its accountability rating by a letter grade during the period, not to exceed eight (8) years, in which the principal was employed as principal at the school, or (c) in a school with a comparable accountability rating or improvement in another state within an eight-year period, which shall be verified by the * * *~~Mississippi~~ State Department of Education. Persons who hold a valid administrator's license issued by the State Department of Education and have classroom or administrative experience of not less than twelve (12) years, which shall include six (6) years of administrative experience as a school building principal shall be exempt from provisions (a), (b) and (c) of this subsection.

(2) From and after January 1, 2019, in all public school districts, the local school board shall appoint the superintendent of schools of such district. At the expiration of the term of any county superintendent of education elected at the November 2015 general election, the county superintendent of education of said county shall not be elected but shall thereafter be appointed by the local school board in the manner provided in Section 37-9-25. However, in the event that a vacancy in the office of the superintendent of schools elected at the November 2015 general election shall occur before January 1, 2019, the office of superintendent of schools shall immediately become an appointed position, and the local school board shall appoint the superintendent of the school district. The superintendent of schools shall have the general powers and duties to administer the schools within his district as prescribed in Section 37-9-14 et seq., Mississippi Code of 1972.

(3) As an alternative to the qualifications prescribed in subsection (1) of this section, the State Board of Education is authorized * * * to create a special committee to review prospective superintendent candidates that do not meet the qualifications established in subsection (1) of this section. The committee is empowered to meet with the appropriate school board and the candidates in an administrative hearing to determine the eligibility of the candidates through a review of their qualifications. The school board and the candidates will be allowed to testify at the hearing on the merits of consideration.

(4) Prospective superintendent candidates who qualify under subsection (1) of this section and who apply to lower performance districts, or who are approved through the process prescribed in subsection (3) of this section, shall be given a three-year probationary period upon being hired. During the probationary period, the superintendent must demonstrate progress in the district of hire and must have acquired the minimum amount of professional development necessary to address the district's accountability issues within the first year of serving as superintendent. The special committee created in subsection (3) of this section, upon completion of the required probationary period, shall review the progress in the specific district and remove the probationary status if the district has made substantial improvement. If the superintendent is removed from office of superintendent based on his or her inability to improve the rating of the district, he or she shall not be automatically disqualified from being considered as a prospective candidate for another school district in the state.

( * * *45) The provisions of this section shall be applicable to any superintendent of schools selected on or after July 1, * * *~~2017~~ 2018, who has not previously served as a superintendent or assistant superintendent within the last five (5) years.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2018.