Florida Senate - 2016                                    SB 1522
       
       
        
       By Senator Stargel
       
       15-01315C-16                                          20161522__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to education; amending s. 1002.41,
    3         F.S.; specifying that a home education program is not
    4         a school district program; authorizing a school
    5         district to provide exceptional student education
    6         related services to certain home education program
    7         students; requiring reporting and funding through the
    8         Florida Education Finance Program; requiring that home
    9         education program students be provided access to
   10         certain courses and programs offered by the school
   11         district; requiring that home education program
   12         students be provided access to certain certifications
   13         and assessments offered by the school district;
   14         providing for a textbook reimbursement for home
   15         education program students; providing for the
   16         disbursement of the reimbursement; requiring that a
   17         home education student be verified by the school
   18         district before award of the reimbursement;
   19         prohibiting a school district from taking certain
   20         actions against a home education program student’s
   21         parent unless such action is required for a school
   22         district program; amending s. 1003.27, F.S.; requiring
   23         a school and school district to comply with specified
   24         provisions before instituting criminal prosecution
   25         against certain parents relating to compulsory school
   26         attendance; amending s. 1007.271, F.S.; prohibiting a
   27         home education articulation agreement from limiting
   28         courses or programs beyond the limitations for other
   29         students; authorizing the agreement to allow
   30         additional courses under certain circumstances;
   31         providing an exemption from the grade point average
   32         requirement for initial enrollment in a dual
   33         enrollment program for certain home education
   34         students; prohibiting articulation agreements for
   35         private schools and home education students from
   36         containing specified payment provisions; requiring
   37         each public postsecondary institution to develop a
   38         comprehensive dual enrollment articulation agreement
   39         for home education students; requiring a specified
   40         committee for each institution to develop the
   41         agreement; amending s. 1009.536, F.S.; specifying
   42         student eligibility for the Florida Gold Seal
   43         Vocational Scholars award; providing an effective
   44         date.
   45          
   46  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   47  
   48         Section 1. Subsections (3) and (9) of section 1002.41,
   49  Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsections (10), (11), (12),
   50  (13), and (14) are added to that section, to read:
   51         1002.41 Home education programs.—
   52         (3) A home education program is not a school district
   53  program and shall be excluded from meeting the requirements of a
   54  school day.
   55         (9) Home education program students may receive Testing and
   56  evaluation services at diagnostic and resource centers shall be
   57  available to home education program students, in accordance with
   58  the provisions of s. 1006.03.
   59         (10) A school district may provide exceptional student
   60  education-related services, as defined in State Board of
   61  Education rule, to a home education program student with a
   62  disability who is eligible for the services and who enrolls in a
   63  public school for the purpose of receiving those related
   64  services. The school district providing the services shall
   65  report each student as a full-time equivalent student in a
   66  manner prescribed by the Department of Education, and funding
   67  shall be provided through the Florida Education Finance Program
   68  pursuant to s. 1011.62.
   69         (11) Home education program students shall be provided
   70  access to career and technical courses and programs offered by
   71  the school district.
   72         (12) Industry certifications, national assessments, and
   73  statewide, standardized assessments offered by the school
   74  district shall be available to home education program students.
   75  Each school district shall notify home education program
   76  students of the available certifications and assessments; the
   77  date, time, and locations for the administration of each
   78  certification and assessment; and the deadline for notifying the
   79  school district of the student’s intent to participate and the
   80  student’s preferred location.
   81         (13) Home education program students shall be provided an
   82  annual textbook reimbursement in the amount of $81.42. The
   83  reimbursement shall be disbursed by an eligible nonprofit
   84  scholarship-funding organization, as defined in s. 1002.395,
   85  selected by the Department of Education. A student’s enrollment
   86  in a home education program must be verified by the student’s
   87  school district before the reimbursement may be awarded.
   88         (14) A school district may not further regulate, exercise
   89  control over, or require documentation from parents of home
   90  education program students beyond the requirements of this
   91  section unless the regulation, control, or documentation is
   92  necessary for participation in a school district program.
   93         Section 2. Subsection (2) of section 1003.27, Florida
   94  Statutes, is amended to read:
   95         1003.27 Court procedure and penalties.—The court procedure
   96  and penalties for the enforcement of the provisions of this
   97  part, relating to compulsory school attendance, shall be as
   98  follows:
   99         (2) NONENROLLMENT AND NONATTENDANCE CASES.—
  100         (a) In each case of nonenrollment or of nonattendance upon
  101  the part of a student who is required to attend some school,
  102  when no valid reason for such nonenrollment or nonattendance is
  103  found, the district school superintendent shall institute a
  104  criminal prosecution against the student’s parent. However,
  105  criminal prosecution may not be instituted against the student’s
  106  parent until the school and school district have complied with
  107  s. 1003.26.
  108         (b) Each public school principal or the principal’s
  109  designee shall notify the district school board of each minor
  110  student under its jurisdiction who accumulates 15 unexcused
  111  absences in a period of 90 calendar days. Each designee of the
  112  governing body of each private school, and each parent whose
  113  child is enrolled in a home education program, may provide the
  114  Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles with the legal
  115  name, sex, date of birth, and social security number of each
  116  minor student under his or her jurisdiction who fails to satisfy
  117  relevant attendance requirements and who fails to otherwise
  118  satisfy the requirements of s. 322.091. The district school
  119  superintendent must provide the Department of Highway Safety and
  120  Motor Vehicles the legal name, sex, date of birth, and social
  121  security number of each minor student who has been reported
  122  under this paragraph and who fails to otherwise satisfy the
  123  requirements of s. 322.091. The Department of Highway Safety and
  124  Motor Vehicles may not issue a driver license or learner’s
  125  driver license to, and shall suspend any previously issued
  126  driver license or learner’s driver license of, any such minor
  127  student, pursuant to the provisions of s. 322.091.
  128         (c) Each designee of the governing body of each private
  129  school and each parent whose child is enrolled in a home
  130  education program may provide the Department of Highway Safety
  131  and Motor Vehicles with the legal name, sex, date of birth, and
  132  social security number of each minor student under his or her
  133  jurisdiction who fails to satisfy relevant attendance
  134  requirements and who fails to otherwise satisfy the requirements
  135  of s. 322.091. The Department of Highway Safety and Motor
  136  Vehicles may not issue a driver license or learner’s driver
  137  license to, and shall suspend any previously issued driver
  138  license or learner’s driver license of, any such minor student,
  139  pursuant to the provisions of s. 322.091.
  140         Section 3. Subsections (22) through (24) are renumbered as
  141  subsections (23) through (25), respectively, paragraph (b) of
  142  subsection (13), subsection (16), and paragraph (n) of
  143  subsection (21) of section 1007.271, Florida Statutes, are
  144  amended, and a new subsection (22) is added to that section, to
  145  read:
  146         1007.271 Dual enrollment programs.—
  147         (13)
  148         (b) Each postsecondary institution shall enter into a home
  149  education articulation agreement with each home education
  150  student seeking enrollment in a dual enrollment course and the
  151  student’s parent. The home education articulation agreement
  152  shall include, at a minimum:
  153         1. A delineation of courses and programs available to
  154  dually enrolled home education students. Courses and programs
  155  may be added, revised, or deleted at any time by the
  156  postsecondary institution. The articulation agreement may not
  157  limit the courses or programs beyond those for other dually
  158  enrolled students, but may allow home education students to take
  159  additional courses on a space available basis.
  160         2. The initial and continued eligibility requirements for
  161  home education student participation, not to exceed those
  162  required of other dually enrolled students. A high school grade
  163  point average may not be required for home education students
  164  who meet the minimum score on a common placement test adopted by
  165  the State Board of Education which indicates that the student is
  166  ready for college-level coursework; however, home education
  167  student eligibility requirements for continued enrollment in
  168  college credit dual enrollment courses must include the
  169  maintenance of the minimum postsecondary grade point average
  170  established by the postsecondary institution.
  171         3. The student’s responsibilities for providing his or her
  172  own instructional materials and transportation.
  173         4. A copy of the statement on transfer guarantees developed
  174  by the Department of Education under subsection (15).
  175         (16) Public school, private school, or home education
  176  program students who meet the eligibility requirements of this
  177  section and who choose to participate in dual enrollment
  178  programs are exempt from the payment of registration, tuition,
  179  and laboratory fees.
  180         (21) Each district school superintendent and each public
  181  postsecondary institution president shall develop a
  182  comprehensive dual enrollment articulation agreement for the
  183  respective school district and postsecondary institution. The
  184  superintendent and president shall establish an articulation
  185  committee for the purpose of developing the agreement. Each
  186  state university president may designate a university
  187  representative to participate in the development of a dual
  188  enrollment articulation agreement. A dual enrollment
  189  articulation agreement shall be completed and submitted annually
  190  by the postsecondary institution to the Department of Education
  191  on or before August 1. The agreement must include, but is not
  192  limited to:
  193         (n) A funding provision that delineates costs incurred by
  194  each entity.
  195         1. School districts shall pay public postsecondary
  196  institutions the standard tuition rate per credit hour from
  197  funds provided in the Florida Education Finance Program when
  198  dual enrollment course instruction takes place on the
  199  postsecondary institution’s campus and the course is taken
  200  during the fall or spring term. When dual enrollment is provided
  201  on the high school site by postsecondary institution faculty,
  202  the school district shall reimburse the costs associated with
  203  the postsecondary institution’s proportion of salary and
  204  benefits to provide the instruction. When dual enrollment course
  205  instruction is provided on the high school site by school
  206  district faculty, the school district is not responsible for
  207  payment to the postsecondary institution. A postsecondary
  208  institution may enter into an agreement with the school district
  209  to authorize teachers to teach dual enrollment courses at the
  210  high school site or the postsecondary institution. A school
  211  district may not deny a student access to dual enrollment unless
  212  the student is ineligible to participate in the program subject
  213  to provisions specifically outlined in this section.
  214         2. Subject to annual appropriation in the General
  215  Appropriations Act, a public postsecondary institution shall
  216  receive an amount of funding equivalent to the standard tuition
  217  rate per credit hour for each dual enrollment course taken by a
  218  student during the summer term.
  219         3. The payment provisions of this paragraph do not apply to
  220  an articulation agreement with a private school or home
  221  education student.
  222         (22) Each public postsecondary institution shall develop a
  223  comprehensive dual enrollment articulation agreement for home
  224  education students and the postsecondary institution. The
  225  president of the institution shall establish an articulation
  226  committee composed of postsecondary education representatives
  227  and home education parents or home education association
  228  representatives for the purpose of developing the agreement.
  229         Section 4. Subsection (1) of section 1009.536, Florida
  230  Statutes, is amended to read:
  231         1009.536 Florida Gold Seal Vocational Scholars award.—The
  232  Florida Gold Seal Vocational Scholars award is created within
  233  the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program to recognize and
  234  reward academic achievement and career preparation by high
  235  school students who wish to continue their education.
  236         (1) A student is eligible for a Florida Gold Seal
  237  Vocational Scholars award if the student meets the general
  238  eligibility requirements for the Florida Bright Futures
  239  Scholarship Program and the student:
  240         (a) Completes the secondary school portion of a sequential
  241  program of studies that requires at least three secondary school
  242  career credits and earns a minimum unweighted grade point
  243  average of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale for secondary school career
  244  courses comprising the career program. On-the-job training may
  245  not be substituted for any of the three required career credits.
  246         (b) Demonstrates readiness for postsecondary education by
  247  earning a passing score on the Florida College Entry Level
  248  Placement Test or its equivalent as identified by the Department
  249  of Education.
  250         (c) Earns a minimum cumulative weighted grade point average
  251  of 3.0, as calculated pursuant to s. 1009.531, on all subjects
  252  required for a standard high school diploma, excluding elective
  253  courses, or has attended a home education program pursuant to s.
  254  1002.41 during grades 11 and 12.
  255         (d) Earns a minimum unweighted grade point average of 3.5
  256  on a 4.0 scale for secondary career courses comprising the
  257  career program.
  258         (d)(e) Beginning with high school students graduating in
  259  the 2011-2012 academic year and thereafter, completes a program
  260  of community service work approved by the district school board,
  261  the administrators of a nonpublic school, or the Department of
  262  Education for home education program students, which shall
  263  include a minimum of 30 hours of service work, and identifies a
  264  social problem that interests him or her, develops a plan for
  265  his or her personal involvement in addressing the problem, and,
  266  through papers or other presentations, evaluates and reflects
  267  upon his or her experience.
  268         Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2016.