Florida Senate - 2025                      CS for CS for SB 1402
       
       
        
       By the Appropriations Committee on Pre-K - 12 Education; the
       Committee on Education Pre-K - 12; and Senator Yarborough
       
       
       
       
       602-02902-25                                          20251402c2
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to students enrolled in dropout
    3         retrieval programs; amending s. 1002.45, F.S.;
    4         revising assessment and accountability requirements
    5         for a virtual instruction program provider; providing
    6         that a virtual instruction program provider operating
    7         exclusively as a dropout retrieval program is exempt
    8         from specified requirements; amending s. 1003.53,
    9         F.S.; providing that dropout retrieval programs serve
   10         a specified group of students; requiring a dropout
   11         retrieval program to choose to receive a school grade
   12         or school improvement rating; providing an effective
   13         date.
   14          
   15  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   16  
   17         Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (7) of section
   18  1002.45, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   19         1002.45 Virtual instruction programs.—
   20         (7) ASSESSMENT AND ACCOUNTABILITY.—
   21         (a) Each approved virtual instruction program provider
   22  contracted pursuant to this section must:
   23         1. Participate in the statewide assessment program under s.
   24  1008.22 and in the state’s education performance accountability
   25  system under s. 1008.31.
   26         2. Receive a school grade under s. 1008.34 or a school
   27  improvement rating under s. 1008.341, as applicable, for each
   28  district with which it contracts, based on the assessment scores
   29  of all students served within the school district. The school
   30  improvement rating received by each approved virtual instruction
   31  program provider shall be based upon the aggregated assessment
   32  scores of all students served by the provider statewide. Each
   33  approved virtual instruction program provider shall receive a
   34  district grade pursuant to s. 1008.34 based upon the aggregated
   35  assessment scores of all students served by the provider
   36  statewide and a separate school grade or school improvement
   37  rating for each school district with which it contracts based
   38  upon the assessment scores of all students served within the
   39  school district. A virtual instruction program provider
   40  operating exclusively as a dropout retrieval program as
   41  described in s. 1003.53(7) is exempt from the district grade
   42  requirement of this paragraph. The department shall publish the
   43  school grade or school improvement rating received by each
   44  approved virtual instruction program provider on its Internet
   45  website. The department shall develop an evaluation method for
   46  providers of part-time programs which includes the percentage of
   47  students making learning gains, the percentage of students
   48  successfully passing any required end-of-course assessment, the
   49  percentage of students taking Advanced Placement examinations,
   50  and the percentage of students scoring 3 or higher on an
   51  Advanced Placement examination.
   52         Section 2. Present subsection (7) of section 1003.53,
   53  Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (8), and a new
   54  subsection (7) is added to that section, to read:
   55         1003.53 Dropout prevention and academic intervention.—
   56         (7) Dropout retrieval programs serve students who have
   57  officially withdrawn from high school before graduation and who
   58  are not engaged in the education system at the time of
   59  enrollment in the program. Each dropout retrieval program shall
   60  choose to receive a school grade under s. 1008.34 or a school
   61  improvement rating under s. 1008.341.
   62         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.