§22. Superintendent; functions and duties

The superintendent shall:

(1) Serve as ex officio secretary of the board. As ex officio secretary, he shall have powers and functions assigned by the board, among which shall be the authority with the president of the board, to authenticate and verify official documents of the board and the submission of agenda items for consideration by the board.

(2) Provide the staff services for the board. In that regard the superintendent shall:

(a) Cause all certificates and diplomas that are to be awarded to be prepared by the State Department of Education.

(b) Make recommendations on contracts and agreements to be entered into by the board.

(c) Prepare or obtain all reports required by the board.

(d) Prepare a minimum foundation program, a formula for the equitable allocation of minimum foundation funds to parish and city school systems, and budgets for adoption by the board. Upon adoption by the board of such program, formula, and budget for the ensuing fiscal year, the superintendent shall submit the budget in accordance with R.S. 39:33 and shall submit the minimum foundation program and formula to each member of the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget and to each member of the House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education for review not later than the fifteenth day of March in each year on the forms and in the manner prescribed and accompanied by such other data as the committees may require.

(e) Administer the process prescribed by the board for the review, adoption, procurement, and distribution of free textbooks and other instructional materials and prepare lists of state reviewed textbooks and instructional materials.

(f) Provide all other staff and administrative services needed by the board to carry out its constitutional and statutory mandates.

(3) Implement the policies and programs of the board and the laws affecting schools under the jurisdiction of the board.

(4) Serve as the administrative head of the State Department of Education.

(5) Employ and fix the salaries and duties of employees of the department of education, subject to applicable civil service laws, rules, and regulations, and other applicable laws.

(6) Pursuant to rules, regulations, and policies adopted by the board, offer assistance to local public school officials and the elementary and secondary schools of the state in their efforts to adopt procedures by which (a) courses of study prescribed by the board will be followed, (b) teachers will meet the standards prescribed by the board, and (c) schools will meet the standards for approval which are prescribed by law or by the board. He shall assist the parish and city school boards and teachers in securing the best possible results from their efforts, and in this connection, the public school officials in the various parishes and cities, insofar as practicable in the professional administration of the schools, shall consider the suggestions and directions of the superintendent.

(7)(a) Make an annual report to the board, the governor, and the legislature on the condition of, the progress made, and the improvements needed in the public elementary and secondary schools. The report shall contain the following:

(i) A complete financial report on the receipts and expenditures of the department and of the various schools.

(ii) Data concerning faculty, enrollment, graduates, courses of study, and any other information required to show the condition, progress, and needs of these schools.

(iii) An abstract of the reports of the city, parish, and other local public school superintendents to the state superintendent, as well as all other facts and statistics that are of interest to the public schools.

(iv) A report on the implementation of a total system of choice.

(v) Such other information as is necessary to effectuate the purposes of this Paragraph.

(b) The superintendent shall cause a sufficient number of copies of this report to be printed for distribution to the members of the board, the governor, the members of the legislature, state officials, city, parish, and other local public school boards, libraries, and the superintendents of schools of other states and territories.

(c) Such report shall be submitted to the board, the governor, and the legislature not later than March fifteenth of each year.

(8) File, each year and separately, all papers, reports, and public documents transmitted to him by the parish and city school boards and officials whose duty it is to report to him, and hold them in readiness for examination by the board, the governor, any legislative committee, or any interested citizen requesting any of them. He shall cause a record of all matters pertaining to his office to be kept.

(9) Report to the board any irregularity on the part of a parish or city school board or of any parish or city superintendent of schools of which he has knowledge.

(10) Conduct such conferences and meetings of school officials, superintendents, and teachers as are necessary for the promotion and advancement of education.

NOTE: Paragraph (11) as amended by Acts 2017, No. 224 §1, effective until August 1, 2022.

(11)(a) Prepare a report to provide information that will assist policymakers and the public in assessing the extent to which the state's students have access to quality public education. The superintendent shall submit this report, which shall be in addition to the report required by Paragraph (7) of this Section, not later than December first annually to the House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education. The report shall include school-level information for each public school, including charter schools, for the preceding school year. Such report shall include but need not be limited to data relative to the following:

(i) The type of school.

(ii) The percentage of students who are economically disadvantaged.

(iii) The percentage of students with exceptionalities who have an Individualized Education Program and the percentage of students who have an Individual Accommodation Plan.

(iv) The percentage of students who are racial or ethnic minorities.

(v) The percentage of students who are English language learners.

(vi) The percentage of students who complete Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, or dual-enrollment courses.

(vii) The percentage of students who complete courses included in the core curricula for the Taylor Opportunity Program for Students.

(viii) The percentage of students who complete industry-based certifications.

(ix) The percentage of students in world language immersion programs.

(x) The percentage of students who have access to instruction in the visual and performing arts and the percentage of students who have access to instruction in world languages.

(xi) The percentage of students who have out-of-school suspensions and the percentage of students who have expulsions.

(xii) Results of state assessments administered in grades three through twelve.

(xiii) The percentage of teachers determined to be highly effective.

(xiv) The number of teacher absences.

(b) The report also shall provide aggregate data required by Items (a)(vi) through (xii) of this Paragraph according to the categories of students in Items (a)(ii) through (v) of this Paragraph.

(c) During the 2022 Regular Session of the Legislature, the state superintendent of education shall appear before the House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education to present a summary of the information required by Subparagraph (b) of this Paragraph. This summary shall contain the superintendent's findings and recommendations relative to supporting an equitable system of public elementary and secondary education.

NOTE: Paragraph (11) repealed by Acts 2017, §2, effective August 1, 2022.

(11) Repealed by Acts 2017, No. 224, §2, effective August 1, 2022.

(12)     Perform such other functions as provided by law.

Acts 1975, No. 274, §1. Amended by Acts 1976, No. 455, §1; Acts 1982, No. 625, §1; Acts 1986, No. 72, §1; Acts 1989, No. 244, §1; Acts 2003, No. 763, §1, eff. June 27, 2003; Acts 2011, No. 333, §1; Acts 2012, No. 2, §1; Acts 2015, No. 389, §1, eff. July 1, 2015; Acts 2017, No. 224, §§1, 2, eff. August 1, 2022.

NOTE: For effective date, See Acts 1986, No. 72, §2.