HEA 1395 Summary

• Qualified school districts and high schools are exempted from most Indiana education statutes effective July 1, 2016, but remain subject to requirements regarding teacher contracts, salaries, continuing education, student assessments, graduation requirements, special education, and financial reporting.

• School corporations cannot receive decreased state funding based on their status as qualified districts or qualified high schools, or because of implementing allowed waivers.

• ISTEP program test scores must be reported to the state board by July 1 of the year administered, and scoring must measure student achievement against state academic standards without reflecting scorer judgment about student values.

• School corporations must promptly provide students and parents with ISTEP scores, copies of non-multiple choice questions and prompts, scored responses, and anchor papers/rubrics; parents may request rescoring of student responses.

• A 23-member panel is established to study alternatives to ISTEP and submit recommendations by December 1, 2016, including feasibility of alternative tests, reduced testing time, cost reduction, test transparency, Every Student Succeeds Act compliance, and teacher evaluation impacts; the ISTEP chapter expires July 1, 2017.