Referred to Concurrent Committees on Education
and Ways and Means
SUMMARY--Creates council for educational technology and authorizes public schools and libraries to apply for grants for educational technology. (BDR 34-1474)
FISCAL NOTE: Effect on Local Government: No.
Effect on the State or on Industrial Insurance: Executive Budget.
EXPLANATION - Matter in italics is new; matter in brackets [ ] is material to be omitted.
AN ACT relating to education; creating the council for educational technology; authorizing public schools and libraries to apply for grants of money for educational technology from the trust fund for educational technology; shifting the responsibility from the superintendent of public instruction to the council to award grants of money from the trust fund; providing under certain circumstances for a reduced rate for usage of electricity attributable to the use of educational technology; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.
Whereas, Educational technology is an effective means of improving the ability of pupils to learn; and
Whereas, Studies of the condition of the availability and accessibility of educational technology in the State of Nevada, including the study conducted by the Milken Institute for Job and Capital Formation, recommend that the State of Nevada take steps to increase the coordination of existing resources for educational technology, improve the incorporation of educational technology into the curriculum of the public schools and provide training to teachers and other educational personnel on the use of educational technology in the classroom; and
Whereas, The schools of the State of Nevada will be better prepared to meet the evolving needs of pupils as they prepare for the 21st century if steps are taken to:
1. Foster collaboration between public elementary and secondary schools and postsecondary educational institutions in the use and development of educational technology;
2. Provide increased access to educational technology to pupils, teachers and other educational personnel;
3. Provide ongoing technological training and support for all persons who use educational technology;
4. Develop an objective program to evaluate the effectiveness of educational technology;
5. Establish a statewide integrated voice, video and data network;
6. Establish and upgrade instructional and informational resources for pupils, teachers and other educational personnel;
7. Establish a statewide data system for pupils;
8. Establish a statewide system for administrative information; and
9. Provide leadership through a newly established coordinating council, to be known as the Council for Educational Technology; and
Whereas, The possibilities offered by increased access and availability of educational technology to the pupils, teachers and other educational personnel of the State of Nevada are likely to be realized with significant and sustained public and private support; now, therefore,
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1 Chapter 393 of NRS is hereby amended by adding thereto the provisions set forth as sections 2 to 15, inclusive, of this act.
Sec. 2 As used in sections 2 to 15, inclusive, of this act, and NRS 393.163, unless the context otherwise requires, the words and terms defined in sections 3, 4 and 5 of this act have the meanings ascribed to them in those sections.
Sec. 3 "Council" means the council for educational technology.
Sec. 4 "Educational technology" includes:
1. Digital electronic equipment;
2. Computer-based networks and peripherals;
3. Equipment with integrated circuitry; and
4. Communication devices,
which are used to enhance teaching or learning in a school or classroom.
Sec. 5 "Public library" has the meaning ascribed to it in NRS 379.0057.
Sec. 6 1. The council for educational technology, consisting of 13 members, is hereby created.
2. The council consists of the superintendent of public instruction, the director of the department of information services and 11 additional members appointed by the governor as follows:
(a) One member who is an administrator in a public school;
(b) One member who is a school teacher in a public elementary school;
(c) One member who is a school teacher in a public secondary school;
(d) One member who is a teacher, instructor or professor in the University and Community College System of Nevada;
(e) One member who represents public libraries and possesses knowledge and experience in the general application of technology;
(f) One member of the news media who possesses knowledge and experience in the general application of technology;
(g) Four members who represent private industry and possess knowledge and experience in the application of technology to business; and
(h) One member of the general public who possesses knowledge and experience in the general application of technology.
The governor shall not make appointments to the council in such a manner as will result in more than one member of the council representing a particular business, organization or entity.
3. The governor shall select a chairman from among the members of the council.
4. After the initial terms, the term of each member of the council is 3 years.
5. The council may appoint such advisory members to the council as it considers necessary to carry out the provisions of sections 2 to 15, inclusive, of this act and NRS 393.163.
6. For each day or portion of a day during which a member of the council who was appointed by the governor attends a meeting of the council or is otherwise engaged in the work of the council, he is entitled to receive the per diem allowance and travel expenses provided for state officers and employees generally.
Sec. 7 The council shall:
1. Adopt policies for the internal management and system of governance of the council.
2. Adopt and maintain, in cooperation with the department, a plan for the use of educational technology in the public schools and revise the plan as it considers necessary.
3. Establish standards and procedures to evaluate the effectiveness of the plan for the use of educational technology and revise those standards and procedures as it considers necessary.
4. After the adoption of the plan for the use of educational technology in the public schools, facilitate and coordinate the purchasing, licensing and leasing of technological equipment and other resources necessary to carry out the plan.
5. Adopt regulations that set forth the standards by which the council will determine which applicants will receive grants of money from the trust fund for educational technology pursuant to sections 8 to 11, inclusive, of this act.
6. On or before December 31 of each even-numbered year, prepare a written report which includes, without limitation:
(a) A description of the availability and accessibility of educational technology in the:
(1) Public schools, including, without limitation, the incorporation of educational technology in the curriculum of the public schools; and
(2) Public libraries;
(b) Any recommendations of the council for the further use of educational technology; and
(c) Any revisions that the council incorporated into the plan for the use of educational technology in the 2 years immediately preceding the date on which the report is submitted.
The report must be submitted to the governor and to the director of the legislative counsel bureau for transmission to the majority leader of the senate, the minority leader of the senate, the speaker of the assembly and the minority leader of the assembly.
7. Adopt regulations as the council considers necessary to carry out the provisions of sections 2 to 15, inclusive, of this act, and NRS 393.163.
Sec. 8 1. On or before November 1 of each year, the board of trustees of a school district may submit an application to the council for a grant of money for the establishment of a plan to incorporate educational technology into the curriculum used by the schools in the school district from the trust fund for educational technology. The application must include:
(a) A statement describing how the school district will use educational technology, including, without limitation, how the school district will incorporate educational technology into the following courses of study:
(1) English, including reading, composition and writing;
(2) Mathematics;
(3) Science; and
(4) Social studies;
(b) A statement describing the educational technology that the school district requires to carry out its plan;
(c) A written estimate of the money that the school district requires to carry out its plan; and
(d) A schedule which sets forth the time during which the plan will be carried out.
2. The council shall consider all applications that are received on or before November 1 and determine, based upon the need of the applicant and in accordance with the regulations adopted by the council pursuant to subsection 5 of section 7 of this act, whether the applicant will receive a grant of money from the trust fund for educational technology. If the council approves an application, the council shall, on or before January 1, determine how much money will be awarded to the applicant based upon the amount of money that is available in the trust fund in that year for such grants.
3. The submission of an application by the board of trustees of a school district pursuant to this section does not make the applicant ineligible for a grant of money pursuant to section 9 or 10 of this act.
Sec. 9 1. On or before April 1 of each year, the board of trustees of a school district may apply for a grant of money for the incorporation of educational technology into the curriculum used by the schools in the school district from the trust fund for educational technology. Such an application must include:
(a) Proof satisfactory to the council that the applicant will continue to provide money for educational technology in an amount which is equal to at least 90 percent of the total amount of money that the applicant provided for that purpose for the immediately preceding 3 years, excluding any other grants of money from the trust fund for educational technology;
(b) A plan for the maintenance and upgrade, if necessary, of educational technology that is purchased with the grant of money;
(c) A plan to provide training for school teachers, administrators and other educational personnel in the use of educational technology in the classroom;
(d) A plan for incorporating the educational technology into the curriculum which is used by the schools in the school district;
(e) A plan which describes the method by which the school district will ensure the accessibility of educational technology to each pupil, teacher and other educational personnel of the school district; and
(f) Any other information required by the council.
2. The council shall consider all applications that are received on or before April 1 and determine, based upon the need of the applicant and in accordance with the regulations adopted by the council pursuant to subsection 5 of section 7 of this act, whether an applicant will receive a grant of money. If the council approves an application, the council shall, on or before June 1, determine how much money will be awarded to the applicant based upon the amount of money that is available in the trust fund in that year for such grants.
3. The submission of an application by the board of trustees of a school district pursuant to this section does not make the applicant ineligible for a grant of money pursuant to section 8 or 10 of this act.
Sec. 10 1. On or before June 1 of each year, the board of trustees of a school district may apply for a grant of money for the research and development of educational technology from the trust fund for educational technology. An application must include proof satisfactory to the council that the applicant:
(a) Has established a relationship with another school district or postsecondary institution which will facilitate the sharing of educational technology;
(b) Has designed an innovative method that is capable of being adopted by other public schools to improve the accessibility, teaching and learning of educational technology; and
(c) Has special needs and circumstances which warrant the award of a grant to the applicant.
2. The council shall consider all applications that are received on or before June 1 and determine, based upon the competitive standards set forth in the regulations adopted by the council pursuant to subsection 5 of section 7 of this act, whether an applicant will receive a grant of money. If the council approves an application, the council shall, on or before July 1, determine how much money will be awarded to the applicant based upon the amount of money that is available in the trust fund in that year for such grants.
3. The submission of an application by the board of trustees of a school district pursuant to this section does not make the applicant ineligible for a grant of money pursuant to section 8 or 9 of this act.
Sec. 11 1. On or before June 1 of each year, the state librarian may submit an application to the council for a grant of money for the incorporation of educational technology in the public libraries from the trust fund for educational technology. An application must include:
(a) Proof satisfactory to the council that the applicant will continue to provide money for educational technology in the public libraries in an amount which is at least equal to the total amount provided for that purpose in the immediately preceding 3 years;
(b) A plan for the maintenance and upgrade, if necessary, of educational technology that is purchased with the grant of money;
(c) A plan to provide training for librarians in the use of educational technology in the public libraries;
(d) A plan that describes how educational technology will be incorporated and used in the public libraries, including, without limitation, a schedule which sets forth the time during which the plan will be carried out; and
(e) Any other information required by the council.
2. The council shall consider the application and determine, on or before July 1, how much money, if any, will be awarded to the state librarian based upon the amount of money that is available in the trust fund in that year for such grants.
Sec. 12 1. The board of trustees of a school district that receives a grant of money pursuant to section 8 of this act shall adopt a plan for the incorporation of educational technology in the school district. The plan must set forth the manner in which the board of trustees will:
(a) Train school teachers, administrators and other educational personnel in the use of educational technology in the classroom;
(b) Acquire the educational technology for which the grant of money was awarded;
(c) Make such changes as are necessary for the incorporation of educational technology, including, without limitation, ensuring that the electrical systems of the schools in the school district have the capacity to provide sufficient connection to the educational technology;
(d) Provide technical support as is necessary for the maintenance of the educational technology; and
(e) Meet such other requirements as are considered necessary by the council.
Such a plan for incorporation of educational technology must include a schedule that sets forth the times during which each phase of the plan will be carried out.
2. On or before August 1 of each year, the board of trustees of the school district shall submit a written report to the council which describes the progress of the school district in carrying out the plan for incorporation of educational technology.
Sec. 13 On or before August 1 of each year, the board of trustees of a school district that receives a grant of money pursuant to section 10 of this act shall submit a written report to the council which describes the progress of the school district in the research and development of educational technology for which the grant of money was awarded.
Sec. 14 The board of trustees of a school district that receives a grant of money pursuant to section 8, 9 or 10 of this act shall develop a plan to incorporate any requirements contained in:
1. Plans for improvement;
2. Plans for development; and
3. Other plans,
relating to educational technology which are required by this state or the Federal Government.
Sec. 15 The department shall:
1. Provide administrative support to the council;
2. Provide information to the state board concerning plans, policies, programs and activities relating to educational technology; and
3. Support the incorporation of the plan for the use of educational technology adopted by the council pursuant to subsection 2 of section 7 of this act in all the public schools in this state.
Sec. 16 NRS 393.163 is hereby amended to read as follows:
393.1631. The trust fund for educational technology is hereby created in the state general fund. The trust fund must be administered by the superintendent of public instruction. The superintendent may accept gifts and grants of money from any source for deposit in the trust fund. Any such money may be expended in accordance with the terms and conditions of the gift or grant, or in accordance with subsection 3.
2. The interest and income earned on the money in the trust fund must be credited to the trust fund.
3. [The money in the trust fund may be used only to provide grants of money to individual public schools to be used in kindergarten through 12th grade to obtain and maintain hardware and software for computer systems, equipment for transfer of data by modem through connection to telephone lines, and other educational technology as may be approved by the superintendent of public instruction for use in classrooms.] Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, each year the council may distribute:
(a) Not more than 5 percent of the money that is available in the trust fund for that fiscal year to school districts for the establishment of plans to incorporate educational technology into the curriculum of the schools pursuant to section 8 of this act.
(b) Any or all of the money that is available in the trust fund for that fiscal year to school districts for the incorporation of educational technology into the curriculum of the schools pursuant to section 9 of this act.
(c) Not more than 10 percent of the money that is available in the trust fund for that fiscal year to school districts for the research and development of educational technology pursuant to section 10 of this act.
(d) Not more than 2 percent of the money that is available in the trust fund for that fiscal year to the state librarian for the incorporation of educational technology in the public libraries pursuant to section 11 of this act.
During the first fiscal year of each biennium, the council shall not distribute more than 50 percent of the money that is available in the trust fund on July 15.
4. Each year, the council may use not more than 1 percent of the money that is available in the trust fund on July 15 to:
(a) Contract for such services as it considers necessary to carry out the provisions of this section and sections 2 to 15, inclusive, and 22 of this act.
(b) Contribute toward programs approved by this state which will expand the incorporation of educational technology in the public schools.
5. The principal of the trust fund must not be reduced to less than $3,000,000.
Sec. 17 NRS 333.490 is hereby amended to read as follows:
333.4901. The chief shall secure, warehouse and distribute throughout the state federal donable surplus property to tax-supported or nonprofit schools and other health and educational institutions, to organizations for emergency management, to volunteer fire departments, and to such other institutions or activities as are eligible pursuant to federal law to acquire such property. The chief may make such certifications, develop and sign such plans of operation, take such action and enter into such contracts and undertakings for and in the name of the state as are authorized or required by federal law or regulations in connection with the receipt, warehousing and distribution of federal donable surplus property received by him. He may adopt regulations, prescribe requirements, and take the necessary action to assure maximum utilization by and benefit to eligible institutions and organizations from the federal donable surplus property. He [shall] may charge the schools and institutions receiving donable surplus property secured through the purchasing division, the charge to be a percentage of the cost of acquisition or of the fair value of the item requested sufficient to repay part or all of the cost of transportation and other costs incurred in acquisition of the property.
2. All money received by the chief pursuant to this section must be deposited in the state treasury for credit to the surplus property administration account, which is hereby created in the state general fund. The interest and income earned on the money in the account must be credited to the account. All expenses for the distribution of federal surplus property must be paid from the account as other claims against the state are paid.
3. The chief may discontinue temporarily or terminate entirely the operation of purchasing and distributing donable surplus property at any time when there is not a sufficient flow of property to make continued employment of personnel for this purpose beneficial to the state.
Sec. 18 Chapter 379 of NRS is hereby amended by adding thereto a new section to read as follows:
1. The state librarian may apply for grants of money for the incorporation of educational technology in the public libraries pursuant to section 11 of this act.
2. As used in this section, "educational technology" has the meaning ascribed to it in section 4 of this act.
Sec. 19 Chapter 704 of NRS is hereby amended by adding thereto a new section to read as follows:
1. The commission shall adopt regulations that require each public utility which provides electric service to a school district or public library to reduce a portion of the rate charged for electricity to each school district and public library that uses educational technology. The reduced rate must apply only to the portion of the use of electricity by the school district or public library that is attributable to the use of educational technology by the schools in the school district or the public library. The reduced rate must equal 60 percent of the customary rate for usage, unless a greater reduction is required by federal law or federal regulation. The regulations adopted by the commission must:
(a) Include, without limitation, a formula by which a public utility will determine the percentage of the usage of a school district or public library that is attributable to the use of educational technology; and
(b) Ensure that the reduced revenue that results from the reduced rate is not recovered by a utility by increasing the rate of basic service which is charged to its residential customers.
2. As used in this section, "educational technology" has the meaning ascribed to it in section 4 of this act.
Sec. 20 The governor shall appoint the members of the council for educational technology established pursuant to section 6 of this act to serve initial terms as follows:
1. Four of the members appointed must be appointed to terms commencing on July 1, 1997, and expiring on June 30, 1998;
2. Four of the members appointed must be appointed to terms commencing on July 1, 1997, and expiring on June 30, 1999; and
3. Three of the members appointed must be appointed to terms commencing on July 1, 1997, and expiring on June 30, 2000.
Sec. 21 1. On or before October 1, 1997, the council for educational technology shall adopt the plan for the use of educational technology in the public schools in accordance with subsection 2 of section 7 of this act.
2. On or before July 1, 1998, the council for educational technology shall establish standards and procedures to evaluate the effectiveness of the plan for the use of educational technology in the public schools in accordance with subsection 3 of section 7 of this act.
Sec. 22 1. On or before January 1, 1999, the department of education shall contract with an independent consultant to evaluate the condition of educational technology in the public schools in this state. The evaluation must include, without limitation:
(a) The availability and accessibility of educational technology in the public schools;
(b) The availability and accessibility of training for school teachers, administrators and other educational personnel in the use of educational technology in the classroom;
(c) The incorporation of educational technology in the curriculum used by the public schools;
(d) A description of programs that are designed to increase the incorporation of educational technology in the public schools and in the curriculum used by the public schools;
(e) A determination of whether the council for educational technology and the plan for the use of educational technology in the public schools adopted by the council have reduced or eliminated the duplication of technological resources and services;
(f) A determination of whether the council for educational technology and the plan for the use of educational technology in the public schools adopted by the council has increased the accessibility and availability of educational technology to pupils in the public schools; and
(g) Any other information requested by the department of education or the council for educational technology.
2. On or before February 1, 2000, the department of education shall provide a copy of the evaluation conducted by the independent consultant to:
(a) The council for educational technology;
(b) The director of the legislative counsel bureau for transmission to:
(1) The majority leader of the senate;
(2) The minority leader of the senate;
(3) The speaker of the assembly; and
(4) The minority leader of the assembly;
(c) Each public school that received a grant pursuant to section 8, 9, 10 or 11 of this act; and
(d) The governor.
3. The council for educational technology may contribute toward costs incurred by the department of education in carrying out the provisions of this section if money is available in the trust fund for educational technology pursuant to subsection 4 of NRS 393.163.
Sec. 23 NRS 393.165 is hereby repealed.
Sec. 24 1. This section and section 6 of this act become effective upon passage and approval.
2. Sections 1 to 5, inclusive, and 7 to 23, inclusive, of this act become effective on July 1, 1997.
TEXT OF REPEALED SECTION
393.165Program to obtain grants of money from trust fund. The department shall, by regulation, establish a program whereby individual public schools may apply to the superintendent of public instruction for grants of money from the trust fund for educational technology.