Sub. S.B. No. 358 Summary

• Suspends state report card ratings, overall letter grades, and school rankings for 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years; previous and subsequent year ratings remain relevant for sanctions and penalties.

• Waives state standardized assessment requirements for 2019-2020 school year; for 2020-2021, waives most assessments unless federal waiver denied, then only end-of-course exams required.

• Allows students in 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 to use final course grades in lieu of end-of-course examination scores for high school diploma requirements.

• Establishes process for school districts under academic distress commissions to submit proposals for transition out of commission control, with review by committee consisting of Governor, House and Senate education committee chairs.

• Grants high school seniors on track to graduate in 2019-2020 or 2020-2021 school years automatic diplomas if they completed their curriculum as of March 17, 2020; exempts third-grade reading retention from solely academic performance-based decisions.