House File 40 - Introduced
HOUSE FILE
BY HEDDENS, HUNTER, ABDUL=SAMAD,
FORD, WHITEAD, WENDT,
DOLECHECK, GASKILL, LUKAN,
MURPHY, KELLEY, D. TAYLOR,
BERRY, WHITAKER, PALMER,
and D. OLSON
(COMPANION TO LSB 1343SS
BY DANDEKAR)
Passed House, Date Passed Senate, Date
Vote: Ayes Nays Vote: Ayes Nays
Approved
A BILL FOR
1 An Act relating to the compulsory school attendance age and
2 providing effective dates.
3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
4 TLSB 1343HH 83
5 kh/nh/14
PAG LIN
1 1 Section 1. Section 299.1A, Code 2009, is amended to read
1 2 as follows:
1 3 299.1A COMPULSORY ATTENDANCE AGE.
1 4 1. a. A Except as provided in paragraph "b" and section
1 5 299.2, a child who has reached the age of six and is under
1 6 sixteen through seventeen years of age by September 15 is of
1 7 compulsory attendance age. However, if a child enrolled in a
1 8 school district or accredited nonpublic school reaches the age
1 9 of sixteen on or after September 15, the child remains of
1 10 compulsory age until the end of the regular school calendar.
1 11 b. A child who will receive competent private instruction
1 12 in accordance with chapter 299A and who reaches the age of six
1 13 by September 15 is of compulsory attendance age. A child
1 14 receiving such private instruction is of compulsory attendance
1 15 age until the age of sixteen if the child reaches age sixteen
1 16 on or before September 15. A child receiving such private
1 17 instruction who reaches age sixteen on or after September 15
1 18 remains of compulsory attendance age until the end of the
1 19 school year.
1 20 2. a. An individual who reaches the age of eighteen on or
1 21 after September 15 during the school year and intends to
1 22 terminate school enrollment prior to graduation is encouraged
1 23 to file with the board of directors of the school district or
1 24 the accredited nonpublic school of enrollment a formal
1 25 declaration of intent to terminate school enrollment and, to
1 26 the degree possible, participate in an exit interview pursuant
1 27 to paragraph "b" and complete a survey in accordance with
1 28 paragraph "c". The school district or accredited nonpublic
1 29 school shall make every effort to notify the individual's
1 30 parent or guardian of receipt of the individual's declaration
1 31 of intent to terminate school enrollment.
1 32 b. To the degree possible, a guidance counselor or other
1 33 school personnel designated by the school district or
1 34 accredited nonpublic school shall conduct an exit interview
1 35 with the individual to do all of the following:
2 1 (1) Determine the reasons for the individual's decision to
2 2 terminate school enrollment.
2 3 (2) Discuss actions that could be taken to assist the
2 4 individual to stay in school.
2 5 (3) Inform the individual of opportunities to continue the
2 6 individual's education in a different environment, including
2 7 but not limited to adult education and test preparation
2 8 designed to qualify the individual for a high school
2 9 equivalency diploma.
2 10 c. To the degree possible, the individual and the
2 11 individual's parent or guardian are encouraged to complete a
2 12 survey provided by the school district in a format prescribed
2 13 by the department of education to provide data on the
2 14 individual's reasons for terminating enrollment and actions
2 15 taken by the school to keep the individual enrolled. The
2 16 survey shall include an open=ended question asking why the
2 17 individual is dropping out of school. The school district or
2 18 accredited nonpublic school shall submit the data from the
2 19 completed surveys to the department of education annually.
2 20 Sec. 2. Section 299.2, unnumbered paragraph 1, Code 2009,
2 21 is amended to read as follows:
2 22 Section Sections 299.1 and 299.1A shall not apply to any
2 23 child:
2 24 Sec. 3. Section 299A.8, Code 2009, is amended to read as
2 25 follows:
2 26 299A.8 DUAL ENROLLMENT.
2 27 If a parent, guardian, or legal custodian of a child who is
2 28 receiving competent private instruction under this chapter or
2 29 a child over compulsory age who is receiving private
2 30 instruction submits a request, the child shall also be
2 31 registered in a public school for dual enrollment purposes.
2 32 If the child is enrolled in a public school district for dual
2 33 enrollment purposes, the child shall be permitted to
2 34 participate in any academic activities in the district and
2 35 shall also be permitted to participate on the same basis as
3 1 public school children in any extracurricular activities
3 2 available to children in the child's grade or group, and the
3 3 parent, guardian, or legal custodian shall not be required to
3 4 pay the costs of any annual evaluation under this chapter. If
3 5 the child is enrolled for dual enrollment purposes, the child
3 6 shall be included in the public school's basic enrollment
3 7 under section 257.6. A pupil who is participating only in
3 8 extracurricular activities shall be counted under section
3 9 257.6, subsection 1, paragraph "a", subparagraph (6). A pupil
3 10 enrolled in grades nine through twelve under this section
3 11 shall be counted in the same manner as a shared=time pupil
3 12 under section 257.6, subsection 1, paragraph "a", subparagraph
3 13 (3).
3 14 Sec. 4. SCHOOL DISTRICT COMPULSORY ATTENDANCE SUPPORT
3 15 REVIEW. The board of directors of each school district shall,
3 16 during the school year beginning July 1, 2009, convene a
3 17 working group comprised of educational and community
3 18 stakeholders to review financial and programmatic supports for
3 19 students affected by an increase in the compulsory attendance
3 20 age from sixteen through seventeen. The working group shall
3 21 consider, at a minimum, the necessity of expansion of support
3 22 programs and services for such students, web=based at=risk
3 23 academy courses, summer school offerings, credit recovery
3 24 efforts, mentoring and tutoring services, before and after
3 25 school supports, career academies, and at=risk allowable
3 26 growth provisions, and the use of the instructional support
3 27 levy. The working group shall include in the comprehensive
3 28 school improvement plan submitted to the department of
3 29 education in accordance with section 256.7, subsection 21, a
3 30 plan for addressing the needs of students at risk of dropping
3 31 out, including any proposed changes to the local program or
3 32 funding priorities.
3 33 Sec. 5. COMPULSORY ATTENDANCE WORKING GROUP. The
3 34 department of education shall convene a working group
3 35 comprised of the director of the department of education, or
4 1 the director's designee, and other education stakeholders
4 2 appointed by the department to review supports for students
4 3 affected by an increase in the compulsory attendance age from
4 4 sixteen to eighteen years of age. The working group shall
4 5 consider, at a minimum, the necessity of expansion of support
4 6 programs and services for such students, online at=risk
4 7 academy courses, career academies, and current at=risk
4 8 allowable growth provisions, and full funding of the
4 9 instructional support levy. The working group shall submit
4 10 its findings and recommendations, including any proposed
4 11 changes in policy or statute, to the state board of education
4 12 and the general assembly by January 15, 2010.
4 13 Sec. 6. STATE MANDATE FUNDING SPECIFIED. In accordance
4 14 with section 25B.2, subsection 3, the state cost of requiring
4 15 compliance with any state mandate included in this Act shall
4 16 be paid by a school district from state school foundation aid
4 17 received by the school district under section 257.16. This
4 18 specification of the payment of the state cost shall be deemed
4 19 to meet all the state funding=related requirements of section
4 20 25B.2, subsection 3, and no additional state funding shall be
4 21 necessary for the full implementation of this Act by and
4 22 enforcement of this Act against all affected school districts.
4 23 Sec. 7. EFFECTIVE DATES. The section of this Act
4 24 providing for a compulsory attendance working group takes
4 25 effect July 1, 2009, and the remainder of the Act takes effect
4 26 July 1, 2010.
4 27 EXPLANATION
4 28 This bill raises the compulsory school attendance age from
4 29 16 to 17 for students other than those receiving competent
4 30 private instruction. The bill encourages students, other than
4 31 those who received competent private instruction, who reach
4 32 age 18 on or after September 15 and intend to leave school, to
4 33 file with the school district or accredited nonpublic school a
4 34 formal declaration of intent to terminate school enrollment
4 35 and, to the degree possible, participate in an exit interview
5 1 and complete a survey that will provide data annually to the
5 2 department of education regarding the reasons students are
5 3 terminating enrollment.
5 4 The school district or nonpublic school must make every
5 5 effort to notify the individual's parent or guardian of a
5 6 student's intent to terminate enrollment. To the degree
5 7 possible, in conducting the exit interview, school personnel
5 8 must determine the reasons for the individual's decision to
5 9 terminate school enrollment, discuss actions that could be
5 10 taken to assist the individual to stay in school, and inform
5 11 the individual of opportunities to continue the individual's
5 12 education in a different environment, including but not
5 13 limited to adult education and test preparation designed to
5 14 qualify the individual for a high school equivalency diploma.
5 15 The survey must include an open=ended question asking why the
5 16 student is dropping out.
5 17 The bill directs each school district to convene a working
5 18 group during the 2009=2010 school year to review financial and
5 19 programmatic supports for students affected by the increase in
5 20 the compulsory age of attendance. The working group must
5 21 include in the school district's comprehensive school
5 22 improvement plan a plan for addressing the needs of students
5 23 at risk of dropping out.
5 24 The bill also directs the department of education to
5 25 convene a compulsory attendance working group. The working
5 26 group is to review supports for affected students and to
5 27 consider the necessity of expanding support programs and
5 28 services, online at=risk academy courses, career academies,
5 29 current at=risk allowable growth provisions, and full funding
5 30 of the instructional support levy. The working group must
5 31 submit a report to the general assembly and the department of
5 32 education by January 15, 2010.
5 33 The bill includes technical amendments to eliminate a
5 34 reference to the compulsory attendance age for purposes of
5 35 dual enrollment and to exempt children who meet conditions
6 1 existing in Code section 299.2.
6 2 The provision relating to the compulsory attendance working
6 3 group takes effect July 1, 2009, while the remainder of the
6 4 bill takes effect July 1, 2010.
6 5 The bill may include a state mandate as defined in Code
6 6 section 25B.3. The bill requires that the state cost of any
6 7 state mandate included in the bill be paid by a school
6 8 district from state school foundation aid received by the
6 9 school district under Code section 257.16. The specification
6 10 is deemed to constitute state compliance with any state
6 11 mandate funding=related requirements of Code section 25B.2.
6 12 The inclusion of this specification is intended to reinstate
6 13 the requirement of political subdivisions to comply with any
6 14 state mandates included in the bill.
6 15 LSB 1343HH 83
6 16 kh/nh/14