The purpose of this chapter is to establish as a matter of policy and priority that: Each Maryland public school will provide every student equitable access to the educational rigor, resources, and supports that are designed to maximize the student’s academic success and social/emotional well-being; Each local school system’s procedures and practices provide for educational equity and ensure that there are no obstacles to accessing educational opportunities for any student; and Achievement will improve for all Maryland students and achievement gaps will be eliminated. This chapter applies to all local school systems, the Maryland State Department of Education, and entities that provide educational services to children birth—age 21, including licensed childcare facilities and programs. In this chapter, the following terms have the meanings indicated. Terms Defined. “Accountability measures” means those Maryland accountability framework indicators in place to guarantee oversight of opportunities, resources, and educational rigor that will lead to achievement for all students. “Educational equity” means that every student has access to the opportunities, resources, and educational rigor they need throughout their educational career to maximize academic success and social/emotional well-being and to view each student’s individual characteristics as valuable. “Educational opportunities” means all students have access to rigorous, well-rounded academic programs and experiences that enrich their educational career and prepare them for academic and career success. “Equity lens” means that for any program, practice, decision, or action, the impact on all students is addressed, with strategic focus on marginalized student groups. “Individual characteristics” means the characteristics of each individual student, which include but are not limited to: Ability (cognitive, social/emotional, and physical); Ethnicity; Family structure; Gender identity and expression; Language; National origin; Nationality; Race; Religion; Sexual orientation; and Socio-economic status. The Maryland State Department of Education shall establish systems of structure and support for school systems, students, teachers, and other stakeholders that ensure educational equity and excellence. Each local school system shall develop an educational equity policy and regulations, to be reviewed every 3 years, with the goal of providing educational equity to all students. The policy and regulations shall: Be designed to create and maintain environments that are equitable, fair, safe, diverse, and inclusive; Be based on the goal of providing educational equity for all students; Direct the identification and utilization of resources to provide equitable access to educational opportunities and services, by among other steps, the use of disaggregated student data to analyze trends and identify gaps and equitable solutions; Identify partnerships with the Maryland State Department of Education, local government agencies, and stakeholders to support educational equity; Provide tailored and differentiated professional learning to build capacity for cultural responsiveness to address areas of inequity identified by the school system; Ensure equitable access to effective teachers for all students; Require that an equity lens be used in all staff recruiting, hiring, retention, and promotion processes; Require that an equity lens be used in reviews of staff, curriculum, pedagogy, professional learning, instructional materials, and assessment design; Provide the access and opportunity for all students to successfully read on level by the end of grade 2; Direct that equity be addressed in the Local Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Consolidated Strategic Plan; Identify the school system’s process for analyzing data to develop goals, objectives, strategies, and timelines for the implementation of equitable and culturally competent practices in each school; Identify the method of evaluation to measure the effect of equitable practices in the school system and schools; and Designate an individual responsible for the facilitation, monitoring, and implementation of the system equity initiatives within the Local ESSA Consolidated Strategic Plan. Each local school system shall: Address implementation of the equity policy through its Local ESSA Consolidated Strategic Plan; Beginning September 1, 2019, include its equity initiatives as an integrated component of its Local ESSA Consolidated Strategic Plan; and Beginning September 1, 2020, and every 3 years thereafter, in its Local ESSA Consolidated Strategic Plan, submit to the State Superintendent an analysis of the results of the accountability measures related to data collected on achieving equity goals and objectives that will be published and made accessible to the public. The Maryland State Department of Education shall: Conduct needs assessments for the Department and local school systems; Convene the Network for Equity and Excellence in Education with representation from each local school system and other stakeholders to review Statewide progress and to develop implementation and peer review guidelines for this chapter; Develop a guide for implementation of equity initiatives at the local level which includes sample components of high-quality equity policies, guidance around how to apply an equity lens within priority birth—age 21 focus areas as defined by the Department, and strategies on how to measure and evaluate the application of an equity lens; and Review and assess progress of the Department and local school systems on implementing the requirements of this chapter. Beginning December 1, 2020, and every 3 years thereafter, the State Superintendent shall report progress on the implementation of this chapter to the State Board, publish the data, and make it easily accessible for public viewing. Beginning in 2020 and annually thereafter, the State Board of Education and the Superintendent will recognize schools, school staff, and local school systems that demonstrate the most significant advances in promoting equity and excellence. Education Article, §2-205(c) and (h), Annotated Code of Maryland Effective date: November 18, 2019 (46:23 Md. R. 1066)