Bill Title: Reinserts the contents of the introduced bill with the following changes. Provides that, beginning with the 2027-2028 school year (instead of the 2023-2024 school year), each school board must establish a kindergarten with full-day attendance. Provides that the full-day kindergarten should be developmentally appropriate and provide opportunities for play-based learning. Provides that an elementary or unit school district that does not offer full-day kindergarten as of October 1, 2022, may, by action of the State Board of Education, apply for an extension of the 2027-2028 school year implementation deadline for 2 additional years if one of the specified criteria are met. Creates the Full-Day Kindergarten Task Force. Provides that the Task Force shall conduct a statewide audit to inform the planning and implementation of full-day kindergarten in the State and shall, at a minimum, collect, analyze, and report specified criteria. Provides that the Task Force may recommend for an additional criterion that the State Board of Education may consider in granting a waiver to establish a full-day kindergarten. Sets forth the members of the Task Force and requirements to be a member. Provides that the Task Force shall meet at the call of the State Superintendent of Education or their designee, who shall serve as the chairperson. Provides that the State Board of Education shall provide administrative and other support to the Task Force. Provides that members of the Task Force shall serve without compensation. Provides that the Task Force shall issue an interim report by April 15, 2024 and a final report to the General Assembly and Governor's Office no later than November 15, 2024. Provides that upon issuing the final report, the Task Force is dissolved.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 75-2)
Status: (Passed) 2023-08-02 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 103-0410
[HB2396 Detail]Download: Illinois-2023-HB2396-Chaptered.html
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| Public Act 103-0410
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| HB2396 Enrolled | LRB103 30800 RJT 57293 b |
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AN ACT concerning education.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The School Code is amended by adding Section |
10-22.18e and by changing Sections 10-20.19a and 10-22.18 as |
follows:
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(105 ILCS 5/10-20.19a) (from Ch. 122, par. 10-20.19a)
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Sec. 10-20.19a. Kindergartens. After July 1, 1970, to |
establish and
maintain kindergartens for the instruction of |
children in accordance with
rules and regulations prescribed |
by the State Board of Education. Such
kindergartens may |
provide for either a 1/2 day or a full day of attendance
for |
pupils enrolled therein.
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This Section is repealed on July 1, 2023. |
(Source: P.A. 84-18.)
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(105 ILCS 5/10-22.18) (from Ch. 122, par. 10-22.18)
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Sec. 10-22.18. Kindergartens. |
(a) To establish kindergartens for the
instruction of |
children between the
ages of 4 and 6 years, if in their |
judgment the public interest requires
it, and to pay the |
necessary expenses thereof out of the school funds of
the |
district. Until the 2027-2028 school year, upon Upon petition |
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of at
least 50 parents or guardians of children
between the |
ages of 4 and 6, residing within any school district and within
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one mile of the public school where such kindergarten is |
proposed to be
established, the board of directors shall, if |
funds are available,
establish a kindergarten in connection |
with the public school designated in
the petition and maintain |
it as long as the annual average daily attendance
therein is |
not less than 15. Until the 2027-2028 school year, the The |
board may establish a kindergarten with
half-day attendance or |
with full-day attendance; however, if . If the board |
establishes
full-day kindergarten, it shall also establish |
half-day kindergarten. Beginning with the 2027-2028 school |
year, each school board must establish a kindergarten with |
full-day attendance and may establish a kindergarten with |
half-day attendance. Full-day and half-day kindergarten should |
be developmentally appropriate and provide opportunities for |
play-based learning.
No one shall be employed to teach in a |
kindergarten who does not hold a license
as provided by law.
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(b) An elementary or unit school district that does not |
offer full-day kindergarten as of October 1, 2022, may, by |
action of the State Board of Education, apply for an extension |
of the 2027-2028 school year implementation deadline for 2 |
additional years if one of the following criteria are met: |
(1) the school district is funded below 76% of |
adequacy according to the Evidence-Based Funding formula |
under Section 18-8.15 of this Code in Fiscal Year 2023; |
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(2) the school district is ranked in the top 25% of |
capital funding need by the Full-Day Kindergarten Task |
Force, but has yet to receive capital funding as of the |
date of the application; or |
(3) the school district meets a criterion set by the |
State Board of Education based on the Full-Day |
Kindergarten Task Force's recommendations under subsection |
(b) of Section 10-22.18e of this Code. |
(Source: P.A. 102-894, eff. 5-20-22.)
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(105 ILCS 5/10-22.18e new) |
Sec. 10-22.18e. Full-Day Kindergarten Task Force. |
(a) The Full-Day Kindergarten Task Force is created for |
the purpose of conducting a statewide audit to inform the |
planning and implementation of full-day kindergarten in the |
State and shall, at a minimum, collect, analyze, and report |
the following: |
(1) the number of elementary and unit school districts |
in the State that are currently offering kindergarten, |
including the number offering full-day kindergarten, the |
number offering part-day kindergarten, and the number |
offering both part-day kindergarten and full-day |
kindergarten; |
(2) the number of students currently enrolled in |
kindergarten in the State, including the number enrolled |
in full-day kindergarten, the number enrolled in part-day |
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kindergarten, the total number enrolled in either part-day |
kindergarten or full-day kindergarten, and the number of |
children on any waitlists for part-day or full-day |
kindergarten; |
(3) for all elementary and unit school districts, an |
estimate of the number of students eligible for |
kindergarten; |
(4) for all elementary and unit school districts that |
do not currently offer full-day kindergarten, an analysis |
of their space utilization rate and an assessment of |
district capacity to provide space for full-day |
kindergarten classrooms; |
(5) for all elementary and unit school districts that |
do not currently offer full-day kindergarten and are found |
to have insufficient capacity to provide space for |
full-day kindergarten classrooms, an estimate of the costs |
associated with providing full-day kindergarten |
classrooms; |
(6) recommendations on how available capital funds for |
full-day kindergarten might be disbursed to school |
districts to prioritize districts most in need of State |
resources; and |
(7) other data or recommendations that would support |
the State or individual school districts in offering |
full-day kindergarten. Such recommendations may include an |
analysis of other start-up or categorical costs associated |
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with offering full-day kindergarten. |
(b) Based on the findings reported under subsection (a) of |
this Section, the Task Force may recommend that the State |
Board of Education consider an additional criterion when |
granting a waiver under subsection (b) of Section 10-22.18 of |
this Code. The State Board of Education shall make a final |
determination regarding this additional factor and provide |
public notice of that determination by no later than July 1, |
2025. |
(c) Members of the Full-Day Kindergarten Task Force shall |
be appointed by no later than October 1, 2023 and shall possess |
the expertise needed to complete the report and |
recommendations. Members appointed to the Task Force must |
reflect the racial, ethnic, and geographic diversity of this |
State. Task Force members shall include all of the following: |
(1) The State Superintendent of Education or the |
Superintendent's designee. |
(2) Three members appointed by the State Board of |
Education with relevant expertise. |
(3) One member who represents the Capital Development |
Board, appointed by the State Superintendent of Education. |
(4) One member from an organization with expertise in |
school construction and facilities financing, appointed by |
the State Superintendent of Education. |
(5) One member from an organization with expertise in |
local, State, and federal tax and budget related issues, |
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appointed by the State Superintendent of Education. |
(6) One member of a statewide professional teachers' |
organization who is a kindergarten teacher, appointed by |
the State Superintendent of Education. |
(7) One member of another statewide professional |
teachers' organization who is a kindergarten teacher, |
appointed by the State Superintendent of Education. |
(8) One member who represents a statewide organization |
of school business officials and has experience overseeing |
schools with kindergarten programs, appointed by the State |
Superintendent of Education. |
(9) One member who represents a statewide organization |
of principals and has experience overseeing schools with |
kindergarten programs, appointed by the State |
Superintendent of Education. |
(10) One member who represents a statewide |
organization of school boards and has experience |
overseeing schools with kindergarten programs, appointed |
by the State Superintendent of Education. |
(11) Three members who are parents of students, one of |
whom is from an urban elementary or unit school district, |
one of whom is from a rural elementary or unit school |
district, and one of whom is from a suburban elementary or |
unit school district, all appointed by the State |
Superintendent of Education. |
(12) One member who represents a statewide |
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organization of school districts and has experience |
overseeing schools with kindergarten programs, appointed |
by the State Superintendent of Education. |
(13) One member who represents an elementary or unit |
school district that is a Tier 3 or Tier 4 school district |
as defined by Section 18-8.15 of this Code and that does |
not currently offer full-day kindergarten, appointed by |
the State Superintendent of Education. |
(14) One member who represents a school district |
serving a community with a
population of 500,000 or more, |
appointed by the State Superintendent of Education. |
(15) One member who represents a rural elementary or |
unit school district, appointed by the State |
Superintendent of Education. |
(d) The Full-Day Kindergarten Task Force shall meet at the |
call of the State Superintendent of Education or the |
Superintendent's designee, who shall serve as the chairperson. |
The State Board of Education shall provide administrative and |
other support to the Task Force. Members of the Task Force |
shall serve without compensation. |
(e) The Full-Day Kindergarten Task Force shall issue an |
interim report by June 30, 2024 and a final report to the |
General Assembly and Governor's Office no later than January |
31, 2025. |
(f) Upon issuing its final report, the Full-Day |
Kindergarten Task Force is dissolved.
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Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
becoming law.
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