House Bill (HB) 1842 was passed in the 84th Texas Legislative Session. This law gives Texas public school districts an opportunity to modify state requirements to meet the needs of their students. As a District of Innovation, Paint Rock ISD will have the increased flexibility necessary to customize student learning experiences. Every student is unique. If implemented properly, the unprecedented innovation enabled by HB 1842 can create a different schooling experience for every child. As a school district that puts the needs of students first, Paint Rock ISD cherishes the ability to make important educational decisions locally.
PRISD seeks, via this process, to fully bring to life the district’s vision for the future. Parents, community and business partners are being involved in he process of developing our innovation plan, providing feedback regarding what they want for their children’s educational experience. As we begin to transform their dreams for their children into reality, local educators and district officials must be positioned to leverage allowed flexibility and reduce or avoid barriers that could otherwise prevent us from doing our best work on their behalf.
This plan requires us to evolve, to think drastically differently about critical systems in place in our school district. HB 1842 allows us to re-examine, free of unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles, how we teach, how we recruit and retain talent, how we organize ourselves, how we involve our families, how we grow as a learning organization, and what kinds of educational experiences we provide.
HB 1842 allows districts to exempt themselves from a limited subset of requirements imposed by the Texas Education Code (TEC) “that inhibit the goals of the plan and from which the district should be exempted on adoption of the plan. . .”. The purpose of HB 1842 is to spur innovation in school districts, and it the desire of Paint Rock ISD to become a more innovative district as a result of pursuing District of Innovation status. Because PRISD seeks to make best use of local control of educational decisions for the benefit of students, we seek exemption from a number of TEC provisions including, but not limited to, matters under the following topics/subjects: (Details are available by contacting the PRISD Superintendent’s Office or on the PRISD web site (www.paintrockisd.net or the Official Paint Rock ISD Facebook Page).
- Uniform School Start Date
- Minimum Minutes of Instruction and Length of School Day
- Class Size in Pre-Kindergarten through 4th Grade
- 90 Percent Attendance Rule
- Teacher Certification
- Probationary Contracts
- Planning and Preparation Time
- School Day Interruptions & Limits on Time for Remedial Tutorials
- District-Level Planning & Decision Making
- Disciplinary Alternative Education Programs/Suspensions
- Inter-District Transfers
- Teacher Mentors
- Drug-Free School/Student Drug Testing/DAEP for Positive Drug Tests
- School District Depositories Contract
- Energy Efficient Light Bulbs in Instructional Facilities
- Others
PRISD will be holding a Public meeting at 4pm on Tuesday, March 21, 2017, in the Paint Rock School Library for the community, parents,… to give their input on the proposed “District of Innovation” plan.
