§100.13. Expanded academic support

            A. Each school year, each student in grades kindergarten through five who failed to achieve mastery on any statewide assessment administered pursuant to the state's school and district accountability system in reading or math in the previous academic year or performed below grade level on a literacy or numeracy screener in the current academic year shall be provided expanded academic support as provided in this Section.

            B. Each city, parish, or other local public school board shall develop a plan and supporting budget to provide expanded academic support to students identified pursuant to Subsection A of this Section. The plan shall be submitted to the state Department of Education not later than September fifteenth of each year for review and approval.

            C. The department shall review each plan submitted for compliance with applicable federal and state regulations. The department shall provide feedback to the local board if necessary to bring the plan into compliance with applicable regulations.

            D. Each student identified in need of expanded academic support shall be provided one of the following options:

            (1) Prioritized placement in a class taught by a teacher labeled as "highly effective" pursuant to the state's teacher evaluation system, if a highly effective teacher is available in the school.

            (2) High-dosage tutoring to commence no later than thirty days after the student is identified in need of expanded academic support.

            E. High-dosage tutoring provided pursuant to this Section shall meet all of the following criteria:

            (1) Incorporate direct instruction by tutors using formative assessments aligned with grade-level content and Tier 1 classroom instruction.

            (2) Be sustained for a minimum of ten weeks.

            (3) Be provided at least three times per week, in approximately thirty-minute sessions, which shall be embedded in the school day.

            (4) Use assessments throughout the school year to monitor student progress.

            (5) Be based on high-quality instructional materials that are aligned with state content standards and that are specifically designed for supplemental instruction.

            (6) Be individualized and provided at a ratio not higher than four students to one tutor.

            (7) Be provided by a high-quality tutor.

            (8) Be provided by a consistent tutor or by a limited, consistent set of tutors throughout the student's supplemental instruction period.

            (9) Be provided in accordance with guidelines on research-based best practices and effective accelerated instruction strategies developed and provided by the state Department of Education.

            F. For purposes of this Section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:

            (1) "Dosage" means the total duration of tutoring, in hours, and the total number of tutoring sessions that a student receives in an academic year.

            (2) "High-quality instructional materials" means materials that meet all of the following criteria:

            (a) Are included on the state Department of Education's approved curriculum list, including materials created or provided by the department.

            (b) Use instructional resources and formative assessments fully aligned to Louisiana's grade-level content standards for what students should know and be able to do at the end of each school year.

            (c) Provide guidance and support for program implementation.

            (d) Include a high level of student and teacher interaction.

            (e) Are designed to devote the large majority of time to the major work of the grade or course.

            (f) Help students develop conceptual understanding, procedural skill and fluency, and application.

            (g) Make meaningful and purposeful connections that promote focus and coherence by connecting practice standards with content that is emphasized in the standards.

            (h) Offer assessment opportunities that measure progress and elicit direct, observable evidence of the degree to which students can independently demonstrate the assessed grade-specific content standards.

            (3) "High-quality tutor" means an individual who meets at least one of the following criteria:

            (a) A person with training in using high-quality instructional materials and who receives ongoing oversight while providing the high-dosage tutoring.

            (b) Staff of a high-quality tutoring provider.

            (c) Current or retired teachers.

            (d) Trained paraprofessionals.

            G.(1) For the purpose of providing high-dosage tutoring, the state Department of Education shall publish on its website a list of approved high-quality tutoring providers.

            (2) In approving high-quality tutoring providers, the department shall require the tutoring providers to:

            (a) Use high-quality instructional materials that are aligned with research on effective teaching and learning and state content standards.

            (b) Implement high-dosage tutoring practices pursuant to this Section.

            (c) Utilize diagnostic or assessment data to guide instruction.

            (d) Use high-quality tutors who have passed background checks required of school employees.

            (e) Offer tutoring through in-person services or video conferences, or both.

            (f) Provide evidence of impact on student outcomes disaggregated by student groups according to race, gender, ethnicity, economically disadvantaged students, English language learner status, disability status, and geographic location. Tutoring providers may demonstrate impact through either adherence to the program's model design by aligning with the components of high-dosage tutoring or by having evidence of positive and statistically significant gains in student learning outcomes based on a well-designed randomized controlled trial or quasi-experimental design that provides the basis for evidence of causal program impact and which is conducted by an external third-party researcher.

            (g) Serve a population of students in grades kindergarten through five and offer tutoring in math or reading and literacy.

            (h) Demonstrate tutor experience and content expertise.

            (i) Establish per-student costs.

            (j) Specify whether available tutoring models are in-person, virtual, or hybrid and the geographic regions where services can be provided.

            (3) Approved providers listed by the department shall be exempt from the state procurement laws.

            H. Within fifteen calendar days of a student being enrolled in high-dosage tutoring, the parent shall be provided a written plan detailing the high-dosage tutoring that will be provided, including information on who will provide the instruction and when the instruction will be provided. The plan shall include specific dates for progress reports and information on the parent's role in accelerating the student's learning. The information shall be provided in a way that is accessible to the student's parent or legal guardian.

            I.(1) Each city, parish, or other local public school board shall provide a report by June first of each year to the state Department of Education on the following data regarding eligible and participating students:

            (a) The number of individual students identified as needing expanded academic support and related student metrics including tutoring subject, grade level, prior performance on the state assessment, and demographic information.

            (b) The number of individual students provided each type of expanded academic support and related student metrics including tutoring subject, grade level, attendance, dosage, prior performance on the state assessment, and demographic information.

            (c) The number of individual students who failed to achieve mastery on any statewide assessment administered pursuant to the state's school and district accountability system or performed below grade level on a literacy or numeracy screener during each school year and who continue to need additional academic support and related student metrics including tutoring subject, grade level, attendance, dosage, prior performance on the state assessment, and demographic information.

            (d) A list of the high-quality tutoring providers and any teachers used by the local board to offer the expanded academic supports.

            (e) A summary of how the school day has been restructured to offer the expanded academic supports.

            (f) The amount and source of private, federal, state, or local funds spent on providing expanded academic supports and how funding was used by the local education agency to provide high-dosage tutoring.

            (2) By July first of each year, the department shall publish the following report on its website:

            (a) A summary of the information required by Paragraph (1) of this Subsection reported by each school, each school system, and aggregate of all schools statewide, including:

            (i) How data required under this Paragraph has changed over time.

            (ii) The number of students who received high-dosage tutoring.

            (iii) The dosage and attendance of students who received high-dosage tutoring in the program.

            (iv) The number of students eligible for high-dosage tutoring.

            (b) Data on achievement and growth outcomes from participating students.

            (c) Program successes and challenges.

            (d) Recommendations for policy changes in future years in order to ensure that every child in Louisiana can access high-dosage tutoring as needed.

            (e) An overview of actions taken to support every local education agency to ensure that high-dosage tutoring is available to every eligible child in Louisiana.

            J. The department shall create reporting templates, procedures, and definitions for reporting metrics for city, parish, and other local public school boards to use in collecting and reporting tutoring-related data to the department including changes in academic performance of participating students disaggregated by student groups according to race, gender, ethnicity, economically disadvantaged students, English language learner status, disability status, and geographic location. To the extent possible, the department shall leverage existing reporting processes and systems to reduce the reporting burden on local education agencies and public charter schools.

            K. The department shall provide training, technical assistance, and guidance, including but not limited to the topic of sustaining high-dosage tutoring through existing funding streams, to city, parish, and other local public school boards conducting in-school high-dosage tutoring with a priority focus on effective schedule management.

            L. The determination of whether students are in need of additional expanded academic support shall not be used in evaluating teacher performance or determining school or district accountability scores and letter grades.

            M. Local school boards shall utilize available state and federal funds to implement the provisions of this Section. If such funding is not available, a local school board shall not be obligated to provide funding to continue the expanded academic support provided for in this Section.

            Acts 2021, No. 294, §1; Acts 2023, No. 458, §1; Acts 2024, No. 771, §1.