2021 -- S 0827 SUBSTITUTE A | |
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LC002272/SUB A | |
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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND | |
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY | |
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2021 | |
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A N A C T | |
RELATING TO EDUCATION -- ESTABLISHMENT OF CHARTER PUBLIC SCHOOLS | |
(SEE TITLE 16 CHAPTER 97 -- THE RHODE ISLAND BOARD OF EDUCATION ACT) | |
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Introduced By: Senators Cano, Quezada, Seveney, Kallman, Valverde, F Lombardi, | |
Date Introduced: April 23, 2021 | |
Referred To: Senate Education | |
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: | |
1 | SECTION 1. Sections 16-77-2.1, 16-77-5.1 and 16-77-6.1 of the General Laws in Chapter |
2 | 16-77 entitled "Establishment of Charter Public Schools [See Title 16 Chapter 97 - The Rhode |
3 | Island Board of Education Act]" are hereby amended to read as follows: |
4 | 16-77-2.1. Definitions. |
5 | As used in this chapter, the following words shall have the following meanings: |
6 | (1) "District charter schools" means schools created by existing public schools, groups of |
7 | public school personnel, public school districts, or a group of school districts. |
8 | (2) "Independent charter schools" means schools created by: (I)(i) Rhode Island nonprofit |
9 | organizations provided that these nonprofit organizations shall have existed for at least two (2) |
10 | years and must exist for a substantial reason other than to operate a school; or (ii) Colleges or |
11 | universities within the State of Rhode Island. |
12 | (3) "Mayoral academies" means schools created by a mayor of any city or town within the |
13 | State of Rhode Island, acting by or through a nonprofit organization (regardless of the time said |
14 | nonprofit organization is in existence) to establish a mayoral academy as hereinafter described in |
15 | chapter 16-77.4 ("Mayoral Academies"). For purposes of this chapter the term "mayor" shall |
16 | include any elected town administrator. |
17 | (4) "Charter public schools" means district charter schools, independent charter schools, or |
18 | mayoral academies. |
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1 | (5) "Board of regents" means the Rhode Island board of regents for elementary and |
2 | secondary education. |
3 | (6) "Commissioner" means the Rhode Island commissioner of elementary and secondary |
4 | education. |
5 | (7) "Sending school district" means the district where the student attending or planning to |
6 | attend a charter public school resides. |
7 | (8) "Educationally disadvantaged students" means all or a subset of the following: students |
8 | who are economically disadvantaged; students with disabilities; limited English proficient students; |
9 | migrant children; abused or neglected children; and children experiencing homelessness. |
10 | (9) "Students who are economically disadvantaged" means students who qualify for free |
11 | or reduced lunch. |
12 | (10) "Students with disabilities" means students who are eligible to receive services under |
13 | the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. |
14 | (11) "Limited English proficient students" means students who require assistance with |
15 | acquisition of the English language. |
16 | (12) "Abused or neglected children" means children whose physical or mental health or |
17 | welfare is harmed, or threatened with harm, by his or her parent or other person responsible for his |
18 | or her welfare, pursuant to § 40-11-2. |
19 | (13) "Children experiencing homelessness" refers to children or youth experiencing the |
20 | conditions defined in regulations issued by the commissioner under § 16-64-2 to comply with the |
21 | federal Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act. |
22 | 16-77-5.1. Oversight by commissioner. |
23 | (a) Individuals or groups may complain to a charter public school's governing body |
24 | concerning any claimed violation of the provisions of this chapter by the school. If, after presenting |
25 | their complaint to the governing body, the individuals or groups believe their complaint has not |
26 | been adequately addressed, they may submit their complaint to the commissioner who shall hear |
27 | and decide the issue pursuant to §§ 16-39-1 and 16-39-2. |
28 | (b) Charter public school approval for establishment or continuation shall be for up to a |
29 | five-year (5) period. In either case, council on elementary and secondary education approval is |
30 | required. Approval shall not be given unless the charter public school uses a lottery weighted in |
31 | favor of at least three (3) subsets of educationally disadvantaged students, identified in § 16-77- |
32 | 2.1(8), when selecting students for enrollment. |
33 | (c) Local, written support shall be required for a proposed charter that is a network charter |
34 | school as defined herein. "Written support" means a resolution or ordinance granted by the town or |
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1 | city council for each proposed sending district where the council considers the fiscal and |
2 | educational welfare of the municipality and students after at least one public hearing. |
3 | (d) A charter public school, as defined in § 16-77-2.1, shall be considered a network charter |
4 | school if the charter public school encompasses, or will encompass, elementary and secondary |
5 | schools or multiple elementary or multiple secondary schools. |
6 | (e) Charter public schools, as defined in § 16-77-2.1(4) and authorized as of the effective |
7 | date of this act [July 13, 2016], shall be exempt from subsection (c) of this section and shall not |
8 | require local, written support under subsection (c) for any proposed expansion or charter renewal. |
9 | (f) A proposed charter, or amendment to a charter for expansion, may proceed through the |
10 | approval process by removing districts that have not provided written support, in accordance with |
11 | this section, from the catchment area and may be approved with the remaining districts in the |
12 | catchment area, provided that the application satisfies the requirements of regulations and law. |
13 | However, the charter may be revoked at any time if the school: |
14 | (1) Materially violates provisions contained in the charter; |
15 | (2) Fails to meet or pursue the educational objectives contained in the charter; |
16 | (3) Fails to comply with fiscal accountability procedures as specified in the charter; |
17 | (4) Violates provisions of law that have not been granted variance by the council on |
18 | elementary and secondary education; or |
19 | (5) After three (3) consecutive years of operation, is not a "high-performing charter |
20 | school," defined as a charter public school that has demonstrated overall success, including: (i) |
21 | Substantial progress in improving student achievement; and (ii) The management and leadership |
22 | necessary to establish a thriving, financially viable charter public school. |
23 | (g) After denying, or prior to non-renewing or revoking a charter, the department of |
24 | elementary and secondary education will hold a hearing on the issues in controversy under § 16- |
25 | 39-1. |
26 | (h) The establishment of new charter public schools shall be contingent upon state approval |
27 | and appropriation. |
28 | 16-77-6.1. Additional standards. |
29 | (a) No student tuition or mandatory fees may be charged by any charter public school. |
30 | (b) A charter public school may include any grade up to grade twelve (12) or any |
31 | configuration of those grades, including kindergarten and prekindergarten. If specified in its |
32 | charter, a charter public school may also operate an adult education program, adult high school |
33 | completion program, or general education development testing preparation program. |
34 | (c) It is the intent of the general assembly that priority of consideration be given to charter |
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1 | public school applications designed to increase the educational opportunities of educationally |
2 | disadvantaged and at-risk pupils. |
3 | (d) A student who is not under suspension or expulsion for discipline reasons may |
4 | withdraw from a charter public school at any time and enroll in another public school in the district |
5 | where the student resides as determined by the school committee of the district. A student may be |
6 | suspended or expelled from a charter public school in accordance with the board of regents |
7 | regulations for suspensions and/or expulsions, and other public schools may give full faith and |
8 | credit to that suspension or expulsion. |
9 | (e) The governing body of a charter public school shall be subject to the Open Meetings |
10 | Law, chapter 46 of title 42. |
11 | (f) Charter public schools shall conduct a weighted lottery to determine enrollment. Charter |
12 | public schools may develop their own lottery procedures; provided, that they are consistent with |
13 | applicable federal and state laws, including the following: |
14 | (1) The weights used in the lottery for a particular subset of educationally disadvantaged |
15 | students shall be formulated to meet or exceed the sending school district’s representation for that |
16 | group, as best as possible. |
17 | (2) The weighted lottery shall be designed as an opt-out system: |
18 | (i) All students enrolled in the sending school districts included in the charter public |
19 | school’s catchment area as of March 1 shall be entered into the charter public school’s weighted |
20 | lottery, regardless of whether any student submitted an application for admission to any charter |
21 | public school. |
22 | (ii) Students selected in a charter public school’s lottery shall be notified of their selection |
23 | by the department of elementary and secondary education (department), and shall either accept or |
24 | reject the enrollment. |
25 | (iii) The department shall develop rules and regulations to implement the purposes of this |
26 | section, which shall include, but are not limited to: |
27 | (A) Providing notification, on no fewer than two (2) separate occasions, and in a manner |
28 | and form accessible to a diverse population, about the lottery’s date and time to families that have |
29 | students who will be entered into the charter public school lotteries; |
30 | (B) Contacting families using no fewer than two (2) methods on file with the sending |
31 | school district when a student is selected in a charter public school’s lottery; and |
32 | (C) Providing families with no fewer than two (2) options to accept or reject the student’s |
33 | enrollment. |
34 | (g) By October 1, 2021, and by every October 1 thereafter, the department shall report to |
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1 | the general assembly: |
2 | (1) The number of students in each educationally disadvantaged subset, identified in § 16- |
3 | 77-2.1(8), that were selected in each charter public school’s lottery in each of the previous five (5) |
4 | years; |
5 | (2) The number of students in each educationally disadvantaged subset, identified in § 16- |
6 | 77-2.1(8), that ultimately enrolled in each charter public school in each of the previous five (5) |
7 | academic years; and |
8 | (3) The percentage of total school enrollment that the numbers listed in subsection (g)(2) |
9 | of this section represents. |
10 | SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage. |
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LC002272/SUB A | |
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EXPLANATION | |
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL | |
OF | |
A N A C T | |
RELATING TO EDUCATION -- ESTABLISHMENT OF CHARTER PUBLIC SCHOOLS | |
(SEE TITLE 16 CHAPTER 97 -- THE RHODE ISLAND BOARD OF EDUCATION ACT) | |
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1 | This act would define educationally disadvantaged students. This act would also require |
2 | the use of a weighted lottery for charter school enrollment. |
3 | This act would take effect upon passage. |
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LC002272/SUB A | |
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