2016 -- H 7845 SUBSTITUTE A

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LC005265/SUB A

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2016

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION-COMPULSORY ATTENDANCE

     

     Introduced By: Representatives O'Brien, McKiernan, Almeida, Carnevale, and Marshall

     Date Introduced: March 03, 2016

     Referred To: House Health, Education & Welfare

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Section 16-2-27 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-2 entitled "School

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Committees and Superintendents [See Title 16 Chapter 97 - The Rhode Island Board of

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Education Act]" is hereby amended to read as follows:

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     16-2-27. Eligibility for attendance -- Kindergarten. -- Every child who has attained or

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will have attained five (5) years of age on or before September 1 of any school year shall be

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eligible to attend kindergarten during all the days that the kindergartens are in session during the

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school year. If a child is enrolled in kindergarten, the attendance requirements of §16-19-1 shall

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apply.

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     SECTION 2. Section 16-19-1 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-19 entitled

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"Compulsory Attendance [See Title 16 Chapter 97 - The Rhode Island Board of Education Act]"

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is hereby amended to read as follows:

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     16-19-1. Attendance required. -- (a) Every child who has completed or will have

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completed six (6) years of life on or before September 1 of any school year, or is enrolled in

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kindergarten, and has not completed eighteen (18) years of life shall regularly attend some public

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day school during all the days and hours that the public schools are in session in the city or town

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in which the child resides. Every person having under his or her control a child as described in

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this section shall cause the child to attend school as required by this section, and for every neglect

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of this duty the person having control of the child shall be fined not exceeding fifty dollars

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($50.00) for each day or part of a day that the child fails to attend school, and if the total of these

 

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days is more than thirty (30) school days during any school year, then the person shall, upon

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conviction, be imprisoned not exceeding six (6) months or shall be fined not more than five

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hundred dollars ($500), or both; provided, that if the person so charged shall prove that the child

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has attended for the required period of time a private day school approved by the commissioner of

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elementary and secondary education pursuant to § 16-60-6(10), or a course of at-home instruction

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approved by the school committee of the town where the child resides, or has been accepted into

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an accredited postsecondary education program, or has obtained a waiver under subsection (b) of

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this section, or that the physical or mental condition of the child was such as to render his or her

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attendance at school inexpedient or impracticable, or that the child was excluded from school by

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virtue of some other general law or regulation, then attendance shall not be obligatory nor shall

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the penalty be incurred.

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      (b) A waiver to the compulsory attendance requirement may be granted by the

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superintendent only upon proof that the pupil is sixteen (16) years of age or older and has an

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alternative learning plan for obtaining either a high school diploma or its equivalent.

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      (1) Alternative learning plans shall include age-appropriate academic rigor and the

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flexibility to incorporate the pupil's interests and manner of learning. These plans may include,

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but are not limited to, such components or combination of components of extended learning

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opportunities as independent study, private instruction, performing groups, internships,

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community service, apprenticeships, and online courses that are currently funded and available to

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the school department and/or the community.

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      (2) Alternative learning plans shall be developed, and amended if necessary, in

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consultation with the pupil, a school guidance counselor, the school principal and at least one

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parent or guardian of the pupil, and submitted to the superintendent for approval.

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      (3) If the superintendent does not approve the alternative learning plan, the parent or

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guardian of the pupil may appeal such decision to the school committee. A parent or guardian

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may appeal the decision of the school committee to the commissioner of education pursuant to

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chapter 39 of title 16.

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      (c) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to limit or otherwise interfere with the rights

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of teachers and other school employees to collectively bargain pursuant to chapters 9.3 and 9.4 of

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title 28 or to allow any school committee to abrogate any agreement reached by collective

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bargaining.

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      (d) No school shall use a student's truancy or absenteeism as the sole basis for using an

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out-of-school suspension as a disciplinary action.

 

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     SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION-COMPULSORY ATTENDANCE

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     This act would broaden the law on compulsory school attendance so that it would apply

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to all children enrolled in kindergarten.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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