Proposed 2021 bill would shutter ‘underperforming schools’ in Missouri

Missouri’s underperforming K-12 schools could be forced to transfer students to other schools, allow the district to authorize a charter school to replace it, or be shuttered if it does not show improvements.

Senate Bill 133, sponsored by Sen. Cindy O’Laughlin, R-Shelbina, would require the state’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to publish an annual ranking of Missouri K-12 schools performing within the bottom 5 percent of state schools under standards set by the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).