LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — The highly talked about Arkansas LEARNS Act, also known as Senate Bill 294 (SB294), officially passed in the Senate on Thursday.
The education bill, which has been met with both praise and criticism by many around the state, passed by a margin of 25-7-1, with 2 non-votes.
Gov. Sanders put out a statement on Thursday, shortly after the bill's advancement in the Senate, expressing her excitement.
“Arkansas is one step closer to unleashing the most bold, comprehensive, conservative education reform package in the nation with the Arkansas Senate’s passage of my signature Arkansas LEARNS bill today," Gov. Sanders said in the statement.
Senate Bill 294's passing in the Senate comes shortly after the act was subject to hours of debate and testimony from members of the Senate Education Committee on Wednesday.
Senate Bill 294 was sponsored by more than 20 State Senators and over 50 State Representatives.
The legislation spans over 144 pages and provides a framework for Arkansas' future in education.
Arkansas Democrats responded to the bill's advancement, with a number of local politicians sharing their disapproval for SB294, stating that it's a "rushed" and "flawed" plan.
“Not all of us were afforded the same opportunity to go and talk to the people back home [in our districts] that are going to be affected by this. There is bipartisan agreement that [LEARNS] needs amending before it goes down to the House,” said Sen. Greg Leding.
Other Democratic members criticized the bill, sharing that they believe the LEARNS act is bad for Arkansas educators.
“There is no salary schedule. There is no recognition that toiling in the field makes a difference,” Sen. Linda Chesterfield said. “This bill does away with the Teacher Fair Dismissal protection. When we give public dollars to private schools there is a problem. We don’t have the same ability to monitor those schools, and we were not reassured they will be held to the same standard [as public schools].”
Gov. Sanders introduced the long-awaited plan in early February, covering topics such as teacher pay, school choice, and what's deemed as "indoctrination" in classrooms.
- Staff pay: Teacher's starting salaries will be raised to $50k
- School choice: Students no longer have a "maximum" number of transfers in or out of a school district
- School safety: Training for school officers and educators to improve safety in classrooms
- Indoctrination: Items that would "indoctrinate students with ideologies such as Critical Race Theory"
These four points have been the hallmark of Gov. Sanders' plan for the state's future, as she's frequently pushed back against "indoctrination" of students.
The bill looks to target concepts such as the Critical Race Theory, as it hopes to "provide equal protection" for the students and protect them from discrimination.
In terms of school safety, the bill lines out that public school resource officers will need to complete a 40 hour basic school resource officer training program.
According to the bill, the program is developed, provided, and approved by the state.
To read the bill in its entirety, you can click here to view Senate Bill 294.