Amendment #1043 to H4000

MA Alliance on Teen Pregnancy Competetive Grant Pilot

Representatives Khan of Newton, Gregoire of Marlborough, Madden of Nantucket, Gordon of Bedford, Heroux of Attleboro, Collins of Boston, Decker of Cambridge, Kocot of Northampton, Farley-Bouvier of Pittsfield, Mannal of Barnstable, Devers of Lawrence, Livingstone of Boston and O'Day of West Boylston move to amend the bill by adding the following section:

“SECTION XXXX. Chapter 76 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 21 the following section:-

For a competitively bid statewide grant pilot administered by the department of elementary and secondary education for the implementation of an expectant and parenting student liaison modeled after an evidence-based program at Chelsea High School shall be made available for a public school district with students in grade 7 or higher in a municipality with an annual birth rate to women ages 13 to 19, inclusive, greater than 15 births per 1,000.

Each school shall post on its website the name and contact information of its expectant and parenting student liaison. The duties of the expectant and parenting student liaison may be in addition to other duties the liaison may have. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the expectant and parenting student liaison shall have access to the school records necessary for the liaison to assist the expectant or parenting student with the development of a plan for the student to graduate from high school.

The department of public health shall calculate the annual birth rate and annual total number of births to women ages 13 to 19, inclusive, of each municipality. No later than July 31,2014, the department of public health shall notify the department of its findings. No later than August 15, 2014, the department shall notify those school districts whose annual birth rate or annual total number of births to women ages 13 to 19, inclusive, may apply for the competitive grant to implement the designation of an expectant and parenting student liaison in the 2015-2016 school year.

Each expectant and parenting student liaison shall, in close consultation with an expectant or parenting student, create an individualized plan for graduation that (i) is designed to ensure the student meets graduation requirements, (ii) includes flexible class scheduling and alternative credit accumulation options, as needed, and (iii) furthers the student’s post-graduation college or career goals. As needed, the plan shall also include a proposed end date for the student’s maternity or paternity leave of absence. The liaison shall present the advantages and disadvantages of each education option available to the student, without coercing or steering the student in any direction, and work with the student to determine which options best meet the student’s needs. If flexible class scheduling and alternative credit accumulation options are not available in the student’s school or district, the liaison shall work with the student to find such options. With the consent of the student, the liaison shall make a reasonable attempt to engage a family member in the development of the plan and any modifications to it. If such a family member is not available or if the student does not consent to the involvement of a family member, the liaison shall make a reasonable attempt to engage an adult outside of the student’s family in the development or modification of the plan, provided that the student consents to such involvement.

The liaison shall review the plan with the student at designated points during the school year and assess the student’s progress toward each graduation requirement and post-graduation goal. The liaison and student shall modify the plan from time to time as appropriate.

Before, during and after a student’s maternity or paternity leave of absence, the liaison shall attempt to connect a student with academic and social-emotional supports within and outside of the school, including but not limited to child care, health care, transportation, flexible scheduling, alternative credit accumulation options, and parenting and life skills classes. The liaison shall follow up with the student to ensure he or she has obtained needed supports and shall, where necessary, work in partnership with community-based organizations to assist and advocate for the student in obtaining support services. The expectant and parenting student liaison shall inform each expectant and parenting student of the student’s rights under Title IX.

Each school district shall ensure that each expectant and parenting student liaison receives training from an organization with expertise in the needs and rights of expectant and parenting students. This training shall include but not be limited to the rights of expectant and parenting students under federal law, information on graduation requirements, flexible scheduling options, alternative education options, community resources for expectant and parenting teens, and the importance of encouragement and support of their educational success.

(e) The expectant and parenting student liaison or Title IX coordinator shall annually report to the superintendent the known number of parenting students in the school, a summary of the academic achievement of these students, the number who graduate from high school, the number who drop out of school, and the number who enroll in post-secondary educational programs. Each superintendent shall annually report this data for the school district to the department. The department shall use its existing data collection tools to obtain this information from districts and shall modify those tools, as necessary, to obtain the information. The department shall post on its website aggregate statewide data and shall make district level data available upon request except for data from districts that report fewer than 5 parenting students. The department shall develop guidelines for a review of the progress being made by each district participating in the grant program. Each district in the grant program shall participate in any evaluation or accountability process implemented by or authorized by the department. The department shall prepare and submit a report describing and analyzing the implementation of the pilot program in all participating districts. The report shall include, but not be limited to, the number of participating school districts, schools and local community agencies; the number of students served and the type and duration of those services; the progress made by those students toward attaining a high school diploma or general educational development; and the number of students served who have attained a high school diploma or passed the general educational development test. The department shall file its annual report no later than September 1 of 2016 by filing the same with the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate who shall forward a copy of the report to the joint committee on education.

(f) School staff shall encourage but shall not force or coerce an expectant or parenting student to inform his or her parents or guardians of the student’s status.

(g) Nothing in this section shall supersede or replace rights or remedies under any other general or special law, nor shall this section create a private right of action”.