Committee advances School of Innovation Act after hours of debate on waivers and vendor roles

The Budget Review Subcommittee on Primary & Secondary Education & Workforce Development advanced Senate Bill 207, the School of Innovation Act, with a committee substitute after extended debate over waivers for third-party education service providers, teacher certification, and oversight.

Sen. Steve West, sponsor, described the proposal as a new, optional route districts could use to restructure a single school. Under the substitute explained to the committee, a district could enter a three-year contract with an outside provider, maintain routine district control over transportation, facilities, and SEEK funding, and apply for waivers that would remove regulatory barriers inside the school building. Supporters said the approach is modeled on jurisdictions that have used similar strategies to turn around chronically low-performing schools.

Committee members pressed the sponsor on several items. Representative Bojanowski asked how this differs from existing "districts of innovation;" Sen. West said the bill would repeal the old district-of-innovation statute and create a school-level option instead. Members asked what waivers would be available and what could not be waived; West pointed the committee to the substitute language enumerating non-waivable items (including civil rights, federal law, compulsory attendance, and state assessment participation).

Several members expressed concerns about the role of third-party, for-profit providers and about safeguards for instructional quality and public funds. Representative Camille and Representative Bojanowski both said they would vote no, citing worries about allowing up to 25% of teachers in an innovating school to be uncertified and the potential for predatory vendors. Senator West and others said contracting would be at the district’s discretion, that districts would retain audit and financial controls and the SEEK funding flow would remain, and that the three-year contract term would allow districts to terminate providers that underperform.

Supporters and cautioning members agreed on some points: proponents emphasized local control and flexibility for leadership in schools; opponents urged additional guardrails on vendor transparency, teacher qualifications, board accountability and protections for public dollars.

The subcommittee approved SB 207 with the committee substitute; several members recorded brief statements explaining their votes during roll call. Chair Lewis announced that SB 207 "passes with the expression of opinion that the same should pass" and attached the committee substitute and a title amendment for the next step in the legislative process.

The bill’s substitute contains provisions for a repository of high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) coordinated with KDE and a process for districts to evaluate curriculum effectiveness using state testing data over time. The substitute also includes a list of non-waivable statutes and administrative regulations, and requires state Board approval when statutory criteria are met.