Amended Substitute House Bill No. 70 Summary

• Authorizes school districts and community schools to initiate a community learning center process beginning with the 2015-2016 school year to provide comprehensive educational, developmental, family, and health services to students and families.

• Revises academic distress commission requirements, establishing commissions for districts that receive an overall grade of "F" for three consecutive years or have had a commission in existence for at least four years under the former law.

• Grants chief executive officers appointed by academic distress commissions broad powers over district operations including hiring, budget creation, curriculum decisions, and collective bargaining negotiations.

• Establishes a transition process allowing districts to exit academic distress commission oversight when achieving a grade of "C" or higher and maintaining that grade for two consecutive years.

• Expands the educational choice scholarship pilot program to make scholarships available to students in districts subject to academic distress commissions and those with persistently low-performing schools based on graduation rates and literacy progress measures.