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HB 1938

Schools; directing school districts to conduct an annual fitness assessment.

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Dave Rader and 1 co-sponsor

HB 1938 requires districts to publish annual strategic and school plans centered on literacy and targeted supports, with parental involvement and DESE oversight.

Second Reading referred to Education Committee then to Appropriations Committee
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Bill Summary · HB 1938

Summary — HB 1938 (Arkansas, 95th General Assembly, Regular Session 2025)

Note on source material: The provided documents include text from multiple, unrelated measures (including an Illinois bill and an item titled about a suffrage restoration). This summary focuses on the Arkansas measure whose text amends Arkansas Code Title 6 (K–12 education) and for which a Fiscal Impact Statement (4/1/25) was prepared.

Purpose / Intent

HB 1938 would revise Arkansas law to (1) strengthen requirements for school- and district-level planning, including parental involvement and literacy efforts; (2) clarify responsibilities of the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE); and (3) require annual district strategic plans and cooperative review processes to align uses of funding and supports for schools identified under federal accountability.

Key provisions and statutory changes

  • Amends § 6-15-1702(a): Requires each public school district and each public school, in collaboration with parents, to include a parental involvement plan within the school-level improvement plan (the plan must reflect family needs and engagement programs).
  • Amends § 6-15-2904: Updates language on DESE responsibility to develop and implement a comprehensive accountability system for Arkansas public schools/districts (text in the file is partially redlined; main intent is to affirm DESE role in assessment, standards, and support-level identification).
  • Amends § 6-15-2914 (school-level improvement plans and district support plans):
    • Requires schools to submit school-level improvement plans to their district by May 1 annually (for implementation the following school year).
    • Requires inclusion of a literacy plan (aligned to district needs and based on the science of reading) for districts and open-enrollment charter schools.
    • Requires parental involvement plan inclusion and public posting of school-level plans by August 1.
    • District support plans (for districts receiving Level 2–5 supports) must be submitted to DESE annually by September 1 and posted to the district website within 10 days of submission.
    • A district literacy plan is required when ≥40% of students scored “in need of support” in prior-year summative reading assessment; the literacy plan must set reading goals and describe funding prioritization (including use of Enhanced Student Achievement Funding under §6-20-2305).
    • Requires monitoring and annual evaluation of implementation fidelity and goal progress.
  • Adds § 6-15-2919 (new — District strategic plans / unified application system):
    • Requires each district and open-enrollment charter to submit a district strategic plan to DESE annually by June 30 for the upcoming school year.
    • District strategic plans must include (at minimum): a literacy and mathematics plan addressing supports/acceleration based on student data; information on prioritization/intended use of funding (including Enhanced Student Achievement Funding); and how the district will support schools identified for targeted/comprehensive federal supports under ESSA (as of Jan 1, 2025).
    • Educational service cooperatives must review/monitor member district strategic plans; DESE will collaborate with cooperatives to review plans and approve proposed funding use.
    • Districts/charters must post approved strategic plans on their websites by October 1.
    • The bill directs DESE to create a (truncated in the file) unified application/system to promote efficiency and reduce duplication in plan implementation.

Who is affected

  • Public school districts, individual public schools, and open-enrollment public charter schools in Arkansas.
  • Parents and families (through increased emphasis on parental involvement).
  • DESE and educational service cooperatives (expanded review, approval, and collaborative roles).
  • Schools identified for targeted or comprehensive support under ESSA (greater explicit planning/monitoring of district support).

Fiscal and procedural notes

  • Fiscal Impact Statement (Arkansas Department of Education, 4/1/25): No fiscal impact reported.
  • Deadlines inserted/clarified in statute:
    • School-level plans to districts by May 1 annually.
    • School-level plans posted by August 1.
    • District strategic plan submission to DESE by June 30.
    • District support plans to DESE by September 1.
    • Approved district strategic plans posted by October 1.
  • Source document is truncated in places (notably the unified application/system description), so some implementation details are incomplete in the available text.

Legislative status / procedural caveat

The metadata provided contains mixed and conflicting action records (including items from another state and other bills). The header lists “Died In Committee,” and committee activity (public hearing 3/26/25; testimony recorded; left pending) is shown; other action entries appear to refer to a different bill or jurisdiction. Consult official Arkansas legislative records or the Arkansas General Assembly website for final status and any enacted version text.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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