Mr. Pedone of Worcester, Stanley of Waltham, Alicea of Charlton, Lantigua of Lawrence, DiNatale of Fitchburg, Story of Amherst, O’Day of West Boylston, Basile of Boston, Donelan of Orange, Spellane of Worcester, Fresolo of Worcester, Fernandes of Milford, Timilty of Milton, Grant of Beverly, Walsh of Dorchester, Kennedy of Brockton, Speliotis of Danvers, Moran of Boston, Canessa of New Bedford, Smola of Palmer, Turner of Dennis, Rice of Gardner, McMurtry of Dedham, Richardson of Framingham, Sullivan of Fall River, L’Italien of Andover, Haddad of Somerset, Kujawski of Webster, Creedon of  Brockton, Sannicandro of Ashland, McCarthy of East Bridgewater, Rush of Boston, Callahan of Sutton, Finegold of Andover, Atkins of Concord, Rodrigues of Westport, Binienda of Worcester, Koutoujian of Waltham, Ehrlich of Marblehead, Canavan of Brockton, Verga of Gloucester, Keenan of Salem, Wallace of Boston, Atsalis of Barnstable, Reinstein of Revere, Flanagan of Leominster, Patrick of Falmouth, Quinn of Dartmouth, Straus of Mattapoisett, Walz of Boston, Guyer of Dalton, Allen of Boston, Walsh of Lynn, Welch of West Springfield, Provost of Somerville, Toomey of Cambridge, Fennell of Lynn, Honan of Boston, Speranzo of Pittsfield, and Kocot of Northampton move to amend the bill by striking item 7061-9412 and inserting in place thereof the following section:

“7061-9412 For grants to cities, towns, and regional school districts for the purpose of planning for and implementing expanded learning time in the form of longer school days or school years at selected schools; provided, that implementation grants shall only be provided under this item to schools and districts which submitted qualifying applications which were approved by the department in fiscal year 2008; provided further, that in approving expanded learning time implementation grant applications, preference shall be given to districts with high poverty rates or a high percentage of students scoring in levels I or II on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System, those districts with proposals that have the greatest potential for district-wide impact, those districts that plan to utilize partnerships with community-based organizations and institutions of higher education, and those districts with proposals that include a comprehensive restructuring of the entire school day and/or year to maximize the use of the additional learning time; provided further, that the department shall approve implementation proposals that include an appropriate mix of additional time spent on core academics, additional time spent on enrichment opportunities such as small group tutoring, homework help, music, arts, sports, physical activity, health and wellness programs, and project-based experiential learning, and additional time for teacher preparation and/or professional development; provided further, that the department shall only approve implementation proposals that assume not more than $1,400 per pupil per year in future state appropriations of expanded learning time implementation funds; provided further, that in schools where an above average number of students are categorized as having substantial special needs the department may exceed the $1,400 per pupil per year limit; provided further, that the department shall review all qualified proposals and award approved grants not later than August 15, 2008; provided further, that the department may expend funds on planning grants, technical assistance to planning and implementing districts, and on the formal evaluation of the initiative as part of the department’s School Redesign: Expanding Learning Time to Support Student Success grant; provided further, that to be qualifying, planning grant applications must contain, but need not be limited, to the process the district will use to create an expanded learning time implementation plan, the stated intent to convert one or more schools into an expanded learning time school that adds, on a mandatory basis for all students, no less than 300 more hours to the school schedule that is standard for the applying district; the rationale for expanding learning time including specific goals, the anticipated number of schools and students that will participate in the expanded learning time initiative; provided further, that all school districts are eligible to apply for planning grants but not less than 60 per cent of said grants shall be awarded to qualifying districts where 25 per cent or more of students are eligible for free or reduced-price meals under the federally funded school meals program; provided further, that in awarding such grants, the department shall support the inclusion of districts not given such priority in order to demonstrate the efficacy and value of the program across a broad range of districts and schools relative to the socioeconomic status and achievement levels of students they educate; provided further, that the department shall review all qualified proposals and award planning grants not later than December 1, 2008; provided further that not less than $15,000 shall be awarded to each district approved by the department in the form of an expanded learning time planning grant; provided further, that upon being awarded said planning grants each district will create a detailed expanded learning time implementation proposal; provided further, that teachers, parents, community members, and partner organizations participate in the development of said implementation proposal; provided further, that not less than $200,000 shall be expended by the department to evaluate the impact and effectiveness of the program; provided further, that the department shall issue an annual report, not later than February 1, 2009 on the implementation of plans in all participating districts; provided further, that said report shall include, but not be limited to: the names of schools and school districts participating; the number of students attending these schools and the nature and type of changes made in participating schools as a result of this program; provided further, that the report shall also include an anticipated budget for this program for the next fiscal year and a breakdown of the distribution of the $1,400 per student by school; provided further, that said report shall be provided to the secretary of administration and finance, the senate president, the speaker of the house, the chairs of the house and senate committees on ways and means and the house and senate chairs of the joint committee on education; provided further, that for the purpose of this item, appropriated funds my be expended through August 31st, 2009 to allow for planning and implementation during the summer months; provided further, that any grant funds distributed from this item to a city, town, or regional school district shall be deposited with the treasurer of such city, town, or regional school district and held in a separate account and shall be expended by the school committee of such city, town, or regional school district without further appropriation, notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary; and provided further, that no funds shall be expended for personnel costs at the department of education; provided further, that not more than $200,000 shall be expended on planning grants for the purpose of developing plans to expand learning time in the form of innovative Summer Semester programs that provide high-quality learning and educational opportunities designed to improve student academic outcomes, develop 21st century skills, and engage students in enrichment programs not otherwise available to them during the summer months; provided further, that applicants for Summer Semester planning grants shall be public-private partnerships between private community-based programs and public school districts where any member of the partnership may serve as the fiscal agent; provided further, that the department shall fund only those applications which contain accountability systems and measurable outcomes, under guidelines to be determined by the department in consultation with the department of early education and care; provided further, that not less than $20,000 of this amount shall be awarded to each successful Summer Semester planning grant applicant; provided further, that funds from this item shall be used for planning activities including, but not limited to the convening of a summer semester planning and design committee that includes representatives from local community-based organizations, schools, teachers, business leaders, child-care and after-school organizations, parents, and locally-based youth workers; provided further, that upon the award of the Summer Semester planning grants, each grantee shall conduct a planning process and feasibility study and create a Summer Semester implementation proposal and shall submit the proposal to the department for review; provided further, that the department shall review all qualifying implementation proposals and determine eligibility for Summer Semester implementation grants; provided further, that to qualify an implementation proposal shall (1) include a summer semester program of not less than 6 weeks and 150 total hours for each participating student, (2) include a comprehensive budget that assumes not more than $5 per student per hour in future state appropriations for Summer Semester implementation grants, (3) be located on a school site, a community-based site, or some combination of both, and (4) other information that the department may require; and provided further, that any grant funds distributed from this item to a city, town or regional school district shall be deposited with the treasurer of the city, town or regional school district and held in a separate account and shall be expended by the school committee of the city, town or regional school district without further appropriation, notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary ..........................................$26,000,000”