Illinois Administrative Code › Title 23 - EDUCATION AND CULTURAL RESOURCES › Part 227 - GIFTED EDUCATION › Section 227.20 - Submission of Proposal; Plan

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 28, July 12, 2024
As used in this Part, a "proposal" means the plan for gifted
				education that is required under Section 14A-30 of the School Code, accompanied
				by the additional materials applicants will be required to submit in response
				to a Request for Proposals (RFP) as described in Section 14A-45 of the School
				Code and this Section.
a) When
			 sufficient State funding is expected to be available to support local programs
			 of gifted education, the State Superintendent of Education shall issue an RFP.
			 To be considered for funding, an eligible entity shall submit for approval by
			 the State Superintendent a plan for its program that incorporates all the
			 elements required by Section 14A-30 of the School Code and meets the specific
			 requirements of this subsection (a).
1) In
			 order to demonstrate compliance with Section 14A-30(2) of the School Code, each
			 plan shall include programs of instruction in English language arts and
			 mathematics and may include programs of instruction in additional subjects.
			 Each plan shall indicate whether the program will be unified across the
			 subjects offered or students will be identified gifted on a subject-by-subject
			 basis and shall provide a description of the curriculum and instructional
			 materials to be used, the grades to be served in the various subjects to be
			 offered, and the program's approach to the development of higher-level skills,
			 as required by Section 14A-30(11) and (12) of the School Code.
2) In order to demonstrate compliance with
			 the requirements of Section 14A-30 of the School Code related to identification
			 of the students to be served, each plan shall:
A) demonstrate that:
i) active consideration is given to the
			 potential eligibility of students who are identified as having
			 disabilities;
ii) multiple
			 assessment instruments will be used for the purposes of identifying a student
			 for accelerated placement of each eligible student; and
iii) a selection process designed to help
			 identify gifted and talented students in an inclusive and equitable manner who
			 are members of underrepresented groups, including low-income students, minority
			 students, students with disabilities, twice-exceptional students, and English
			 Learners;
B) provide
			 evidence that the measures to be used in each curricular area, when taken
			 together, provide equivalent rigor in the identification of students as gifted
			 and talented; and
C) discuss how
			 the measures to be used in each subject area correspond to the level of
			 attainment prerequisite to students' participation in the program.
3) In order to demonstrate
			 compliance with Sections 14A-25 and 14A-30(7) of the School Code, each plan
			 shall include evidence that:
A) the ranking
			 process for each subject area, or across subject areas, as applicable, is
			 applied in the same manner to the scores achieved by all students;
B) if any program's capacity is inadequate to
			 serve the entire number of students identified as eligible, the method of
			 selecting those who will participate considers only the composite scores and
			 their ranking;
C) the applicant has
			 a procedure for accommodating students who were not available when the relevant
			 assessment measures were administered but who may be eligible to participate in
			 the program;
D) in identifying the
			 locations where the program will be offered, consideration has been given to
			 the needs of students who are members of underrepresented groups; and
E) local norms of score ranges on assessments
			 are taken into consideration when identifying students for accelerated
			 placement.
4) In order
			 to demonstrate compliance with the requirement of Section 14A-30(8) of the
			 School Code, each plan shall describe the appeals process that will be
			 available when students are not identified as gifted and talented or are not
			 selected to be served by a program, including evidence that each appeal will be
			 considered:
A) by an individual not involved
			 in the original decision and at an equal or higher level of authority within
			 the applicant organization;
B)
			 using information in accordance with the requirements of subsection (a)(3);
			 and
C) in time for the student to
			 be placed into the program at the beginning of the next semester, if the appeal
			 results in the student's identification and selection.
5) In order to demonstrate compliance with
			 the requirement of Section 14A-30(16) of the School Code, each plan shall
			 identify the qualifications held by the teachers who will be assigned to the
			 program, provided that:
A) each teacher
			 employed shall be qualified under Section
			 227.25
			 after no more than three years of teaching in any program funded pursuant to
			 this Part; and
B) each teacher not
			 qualified under Section
			 227.25
			 shall complete some portion of the requirements chosen during each year of the
			 grace period permitted under subsection (a)(6)(A).
6) In order to demonstrate compliance with
			 Section 14A-30(9) of the School Code, each plan shall:
A) describe the steps the applicant will take
			 to inform parents and other members of the public of:
i) the existence and scope of the
			 program;
ii) the methods used for
			 identifying students who are gifted and talented and in selecting participants
			 for the program; and
iii) the
			 availability of the appeals process established pursuant to subsection (a)(4);
			 and
B) provide a
			 rationale for the applicant's outreach plans, with specific reference to the
			 linguistic or cultural needs of any segments of the population that may not be
			 readily informed of the program.