Statement of Work

Private Academic Schools Regulatory Project

State Board of Private Academic Schools

December 1, 2015 – June 30, 2016

Requirements:

  • Must be a registered Commonwealth Supplier
  • Four (4) years of professional experience in basic education including experience in the areas of curriculum, staffing, facility and resource requirements involved in school operations.
  • Masters or Doctoral degree in education, education leadership or education administration or equivalent experience.
  • Documented successful project management in at least two cases, including the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to lead, guide and manage project activities in order to meet project requirements and complete deliverables.
  • Two writing samples that demonstrate the ability to summarize information describe and document the rationale used to arrive at decisions, and use concise wording to formulate prescriptive and definitive language.
  • At least two references that confirm the bidder’s prior success as a facilitator of direct and efficient communication to define complex problems and issues enable work group members to work toward common goals, engage in group decision-making, consensus building and formulating shared solutions.

Summary: The existing regulations of the State Board of Private Academic Schools (Board) are codified as Part II of Title 22 Pa. Code. The existing seven chapters that comprise the Board’s regulations include:

  • Chapter 51. General Provisions;
  • Chapter 53. Nursery Schools and Kindergartens;
  • Chapter 55. Elementary Schools (Grades 1 to 8);
  • Chapter 57. Secondary Schools (Grades 9 to 12);
  • Chapter 59. Special Education Schools;
  • Chapter 61. Tutoring Centers; and
  • Chapter 63. Educational Testing and Remedial Centers

The Board initially promulgated regulations in 1968. The existing regulations were last amended in 1991. The Board’s authority to promulgate regulations is established in Section 14 of the Private Academic Schools Act (24 P. S. § 6714)(Act 11 of 1988).

During the past eight to twelve years, Board members and staff at the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) worked on draft revisions to the regulations. An internal work group met with stakeholders and developed draft changes and edits to the Board’s existing regulations; however, these efforts never culminated in a rulemaking. More recently, a working committee of the current Board has been reviewing and modifying the proposed changes and edits.

Scope of Work

Changes to the regulations being considered by the Board working committee are extensive and substantive. PDE staff has also identified substantive policy issues that need to be developed and crafted into therevisions. The list of subjectareas to be addressed in the process of reviewing and revising the Board’s regulations include:

  1. Thorough review, update,revision and improvement ofthe existing seven chapters;
  1. Analysis and incorporation of adjustments to the fee schedule to generate sufficient funds for Board and PDE staff to implementBoard regulations and policies, conduct licensing operations and sustain Board activities;
  1. Incorporation of early childhood development and educationstandards;
  1. Establishment of contemporary special education principles and requirements;
  1. Review of private academic school teacher certification requirements and other Board policies, and incorporation, as appropriate, of these policies and standards into the revised regulations;
  1. Formulation of appropriate requirements for schools that operate Alternative Education for Disruptive Youth (AEDY) programs; and
  1. Researching and including references to related regulations promulgated by the Departments of Labor and Industry, Health and Human Services (universal building codes, immunization requirements, school health and safety, child care facility standards, etc.).

The primary objectives of this project are to:

  1. Review, edit and finalizethe revisions developed by the Board, Board counsel and PDE staff for presentation to the Board. Subsequent to such approval and as required by the Board during the term of the contract, the Contractor will also prepare, edit and revise these draft regulations as may be required as part of the subsequent review of the regulations by the Office of General Counsel, Office of Attorney General, the Independent Regulatory Review Commission (IRRC) and any publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
  1. Research, develop and incorporate draft language as needed to augment the Board’s work and respond to policy concerns relating to fee schedules, early childhood development and education, special education and AEDY.

The Contractor Shall:

  1. Develop an updated set of revised Board regulations for each of 22 Pa. Code Chapters 51, 53, 55, 57, 59, and 61 (i.e., the latter being a consolidated/merged version of the existing Chapters 61 and 63) for presentation to the Board and PDE staff, which shall include:

a)Revisions discussed during meetings of the Board as well as revisions formulated based on input provided by PDE staff and individual Board members.The revisions to be addressed shall include but not be limited to the following areas:

1)Incorporating early childhood development and education standards;

2)Establishing contemporary special education principles and requirements;

3)Reviewing private academic school teacher certification requirements and otherBoard policies, and incorporating those policies and standards into the regulations;

4)Formulating appropriate requirements for schools operating Alternative Education for Disruptive Youth (AEDY) programs; and

5)Inclusion of references to related regulations promulgated by the Departments of Labor and Industry, Health and Human Services (universal building codes, immunization requirements, school health and safety, child care facility standards, etc.);

b)Such other revisions identified by the Contractor as being necessary;

c)Revisions to the schedule of fees specified in 22 Pa. Code §§ 51.4 and 51.36 (relating to License and Director)based on the identified costs of regulation (i.e., as determined by Board member and PDE staff costscovering the three most recent completed fiscal years) and any new fees which may be deemed necessary and/or advisable, with the intent of the revised fees covering 50 percent of the identified costs of regulation.

  1. Develop and revise a crosswalk table for each of the above chapters delineating each revision and explaining the rationale for each revision.
  2. Present the latest versions of the revised regulations, updated crosswalk tables and redlines showing changes to revised regulations and crosswalks to the Board, Board Counsel and PDE staff at meetings convened for the purpose of considering and approving the revised regulations to proceed toward initial rulemaking. Updated revisions of revised regulations, crosswalk tables and redlines shall be delivered to Board members and PDE sufficiently in advance of such meetings to allow for adequate review of these documents consistent with deadlines set by the Board Chair.
  1. Edit and proofread the revised regulations at each step in order to assure completeness and accuracy, and ensure that the revised versions are consistent with the regulatory organization scheme (i.e., numbered or lettered by section and subsection) in order to ready them for presentation to the Board and PDE staff.
  2. Prepare, edit and revise the draft regulations and crosswalks and assist with the preparation of other materials as may be requested by the Board as part of the subsequent review of the regulations by the Office of General Counsel, Office of Attorney General, the Independent Regulatory Review Commission (IRRC) and any publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin

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