(a) If a school has a grade of D or F on student performance for the absolute student achievement standard or on progress on improved student achievement as determined by the office, the office, in the audit report on an individual school, shall report findings and recommend appropriate levels of interventions for that school, based on a scale of increasingly severe interventions, to the State Board of Education. The State Board of Education shall prescribe the appropriate level of intervention and may include one or more of the following increasingly severe interventions:

(1) Issuing public notice of the deficiency to the local board of education;

(2) Ordering a hearing to be conducted at the school by the local board of education with the participation of the school council for the purpose of notifying the public of the unacceptable performance, the improvements in performance expected by the office, and the interventions that may be imposed under this Code section if the performance does not improve within a designated period of time and of soliciting public comment on the initial steps being taken to improve performance;

(3) Ordering the preparation of an intensive student achievement improvement plan that addresses each academic excellence indicator for which the school's performance is unacceptable, the submission of the plan to the director for approval, and implementation of the plan;

(4) Appointing a Department of Education school improvement team to:

(A) Conduct a comprehensive on-site evaluation of each low-performing school to determine the cause for the school's low performance and lack of progress that includes presentations by the chairperson of the local board of education, the school principal, a parent member of the local school council, and other school personnel;

(B) Recommend actions, including reallocation of resources and technical assistance, changes in school procedures or operations, staff development focused on student achievement for instructional and administrative staff, intervention for individual administrators or teachers, waivers from state statutes or rules, extended instruction time for low-performing students, smaller class size for low-performing students, or other actions the team considers appropriate;

(C) Assist in the development of an intensive school improvement plan focused on student achievement required by paragraph (3) of this subsection; and

(D) Assist the director in monitoring the progress of the school in implementing the intensive school improvement plan focused on student achievement;

(5) If a school has received a grade of D or F for a period of two consecutive years or more, appointing a school master or management team to oversee and direct the duties of the principal of the school in relation to the school until school performance improves and the school is released from intervention by the director, with the cost of the master or management team to be paid by the state; or

(6) If a school has received a grade of D or F for a period of three consecutive years or more, the State Board of Education shall implement one or more of the following interventions or sanctions, in order of severity:

(A) Removal of school personnel on recommendation of the master or the school improvement team, including the principal and personnel whose performance has continued not to produce student achievement gains over a three-year period as a condition for continued receipt of state funds for administration;

(B) Allow for the implementation of a state charter school through the designation by the State Board of Education;

(C) Mandate the complete reconstitution of the school, removing all personnel, appointing a new principal, and hiring all new staff. Existing staff may reapply for employment at the newly reconstituted school but shall not be rehired if their performance regarding student achievement has been negative for the past three years;

(D) Mandate that the parents have the option to relocate the student to other public schools in the local school system to be chosen by the parents of the student with transportation costs borne by the system; or

(E) Mandate a monitor, master, or management team in the school that shall be paid by the district.

(b) The State Board of Education shall clearly define the powers and duties of a master or management team appointed to oversee the operations of a school.

(c) A school improvement team appointed under this Code section may consist of currently employed or retired teachers, principals, other educational professionals, Department of Education school improvement employees, or local school superintendents recognized for excellence in their roles and appointed by the State Board of Education to serve as members of a team.

(d) The State Board of Education shall annually report by June 30 of each year the status of the interventions imposed on low-performing schools to the office with recommendations regarding ending, extending, or upgrading the interventions on those schools. The director shall review and respond to the report.