SR 156

2026 Regular Session  ENROLLED
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 156
BY SENATOR BARTHELEMY
  A RESOLUTION
To urge and request the state Department of Education to study implementation and
       accountability implications of student nonenrollment determinations.
       WHEREAS, R.S. 17:10.1 provides for a school accountability system for public
schools and school systems and requires the State Board of Elementary and Secondary
Education (BESE) to develop and implement a uniform system to measure and report school
and school district performance; and
       WHEREAS, current law requires that public school systems be assigned performance
scores based on multiple indicators, including student achievement, academic growth, and
graduation rates, and uses those scores to classify schools with a letter grade; that schools
are annually evaluated, and those identified as low-performing are subject to interventions
and improvement requirements; and
       WHEREAS, according to the state Department of Education, beginning in the 2025-
2026 school year, schools and districts will be measured using a simple, easy-to-understand
scorecard built around three expectations for every student: Grow: students should make
meaningful academic progress every year; Achieve: students should reach proficiency in key
subjects; and Thrive: students should graduate on time and be prepared for college, career,
or service; this system replaces an outdated model that had become too complex, difficult
to explain, and disconnected from Louisiana's long-term goals for student readiness; and
       WHEREAS, today there is no uniform and standardized process for traditional public
school systems to determine and document when a student is nonenrolled due to
incarceration or unknown whereabouts; and
       WHEREAS, when a student is determined to be nonenrolled due to incarceration or
unknown whereabouts, the student is counted as enrolled for purposes of state accountability
systems as of the date of determination, which negatively affects the school and school
district's performance; and
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SR NO. 156  ENROLLED
  WHEREAS, since Louisiana has adopted a revised school accountability system that
raises expectations for students, simplifies how school performance is measured, and makes
it easier for families and the public to understand how schools are preparing students for life
after graduation, it is only fitting that the state Department of Education study
implementation and accountability implications of student nonenrollment determinations.
  THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
does hereby request the state Department of Education study implementation and
accountability implications of student nonenrollment determinations.
  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this study shall include, at a minimum, the
following:
  (1) Establishment of a uniform and standardized process for traditional public school
systems to determine and document when a student is nonenrolled due to incarceration or
unknown whereabouts.
  (2) A process comprised of documented, reasonable, and good-faith efforts to locate
and verify the student's enrollment status, and to specify minimum documentation
requirements, timelines, and verification procedures to ensure consistency and accuracy
across school systems.
  (3) Effects associated with counting a student determined to be nonenrolled for
purposes of state accountability systems as of the date of determination on schools and
school districts after a good-faith effort is made to locate and verify the student's enrollment
status.
  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the state Department of Education shall submit
a written report of the findings of the study, and a summary of the statistics and data required
for the conduct of the study, to the Senate Committee on Education not later than February
15, 2027.
  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to
superintendent of the state Department of Education.
  PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
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