JEFFERSON CITY — As I’ve mentioned in previous columns, one of the highest priorities this legislative session concerns the education of our state’s students, especially when you factor in transfer students who reside in unaccredited school districts.

Several measures have been filed this session that were prompted by lawsuits regarding this transfer issue. It was filed by parents who want their children to attend an accredited school, while living in an unaccredited district. Last year, the Missouri Supreme Court upheld the state statute allowing these transfers to occur. Now, lawmakers are trying to find the balance of providing these transfer students with the education they deserve while making the least fiscal impact for both the sending and receiving districts.

The bill I have proposed, Senate Bill 493, addresses several aspects of the unaccredited districts. First, the State Board of Education would oversee the provisionally accredited or unaccredited districts and work to improve the situations at these struggling schools or districts. The bill would also create a statewide achievement district in which struggling districts or individual schools would be under its jurisdiction. Another key point of this bill includes a 12-month residency requirement for students wishing to transfer out at their home district’s expense. In addition, it would require districts accepting transfer students to establish criteria for how many students they could accept, based on class size and facilities available.

Lastly, this bill would give provisionally accredited or unaccredited districts five years to operate without any repercussions, and if these districts fail to make sustained improvement or recover provisional or full accreditation, the State Board of Education would take over operations and make the necessary changes for our children to receive a high quality education. Currently, districts can languish in provisional accreditation status indefinitely.

As chairman of the Senate Education Committee, I plan to hear all bills filled dealing with school transfers. So far, we have heard eight bills on the topic and plan to hear more. This is one of the major issues facing Missouri today.  I am fully committed to crafting legislation that will benefit Missouri’s students.

I would also like to take this chance to commend the teachers and administrators of the 21st District for their untiring support of their districts and students. They are vital to continuing education in our state, and I thank them for their support.

As always, please feel free to contact me or my staff with any questions or concerns at any time. We look forward to hearing your comments and suggestions and trying to answer any questions you may have. You can reach us by phone at 866-277-0882 (toll-free) or 573-751-2272, or by fax at 573-526-7381.