The School Turnaround and Leadership Development Act is a State Initiative that identifies low performing schools as being in the bottom 3% of schools statewide for two consecutive years regardless of Title I status.
In 2017, the Utah State Legislature amended Senate Bill 234: School Turnaround Amendments(External Web Content) (sponsored by Senator Ann Millner), implementing key changes to the previous Bill. The amended Bill identifies low performing schools as being in the bottom 3% of schools statewide for two consecutive years. The Bill provides for a third party to conduct a school needs assessment and root cause analysis in the identified schools. Funding is awarded directly to the identified Local Education Agency (LEA) to contract with a Utah State Board of Education-approved turnaround expert to develop and implement a school turnaround plan based on the results of the needs assessment and root cause.