H.F. 2268 Section 1. NEW SECTION . 256F.14 Frontier schools. 1 1. The board of directors of a school district, the 2 administrators of an accredited nonpublic school, the board of 3 directors of a community college, the state board of regents, 4 an accredited private institution as defined in section 261.9, 5 or a private nonprofit corporation organized under chapter 504 6 may submit an application to the state board to establish a 7 frontier school. The state board shall adopt rules specifying 8 the criteria for approval of frontier schools. The department 9 shall develop an application process. The applicant shall 10 specify in its application all of the following: 11 a. Mission and instructional focus of the school. 12 b. Organizational structure and management of the school. 13 c. Impact of labor agreements and contracts on the success 14 of the school. 15 d. Roles and responsibilities of all involved 16 constituencies. 17 e. Arrangements for special needs students. 18 f. Connection of the school to the school district. 19 g. Facility and operation costs. 20 h. Methods for measuring results, including but not limited 21 to student achievement results. 22 2. For purposes of this section, “frontier school” means a 23 school that is nonsectarian in its program, admission policies, 24 employment practices, and all other operations. The school is 25 a public school and is part of the state’s system of public 26 education. The primary focus of a frontier school shall be to 27 provide a comprehensive program of instruction for at least one 28 grade or age group from five through eighteen years of age. 29 Frontier schools may be designed to allow significant autonomy 30 to the schools. However, frontier schools shall be accountable 31 for significant results. 32 3. Except as provided in this subsection, frontier schools 33 are exempt from all statutes and rules applicable to a school, 34 a school board, or a school district, although a frontier 35 -1- LSB 6071YH (4) 83 kh/rj 1/ 4

H.F. 2268 school may elect to comply with one or more provisions of 1 statute or rule. However, a frontier school shall meet all 2 applicable state and local health and safety requirements; a 3 frontier school shall be organized and operated as a nonprofit 4 corporation under chapter 504; the provisions of chapters 5 21 and 22 shall apply to meetings and records of a frontier 6 school board; and a frontier school is subject to and shall 7 comply with chapters 216 and 216A relating to civil and human 8 rights, and sections 275.55A, 279.9A, 280.17B, 280.21B, and 9 282.4, relating to suspension and expulsion of a student. 10 The frontier school shall employ or contract with necessary 11 teachers, as defined in section 272.1, who hold a valid license 12 with an endorsement for the type of service for which the 13 teacher is employed. Frontier schools are subject to the same 14 financial audits, audit procedures, and audit requirements as 15 a school district. The audits shall be consistent with the 16 requirements of sections 11.6, 11.14, 11.19, 256.9, subsection 17 19, and section 279.29, except to the extent deviations 18 are necessary because of the program at the school. The 19 department, auditor of state, or the legislative services 20 agency may conduct financial, program, or compliance audits. 21 The provisions of chapter 20 shall not apply to the board of 22 directors of a frontier school or its employees. 23 4. A student enrolled in a frontier school shall be counted, 24 for state school foundation aid purposes, in the student’s 25 district of residence. A student’s residence, for purposes 26 of this section, means a residence under section 282.1. The 27 board of directors of the district of residence shall pay to 28 the frontier school the state cost per pupil for the previous 29 school year, plus any moneys received for the student as a 30 result of the non-English speaking weighting under section 31 280.4, subsection 3, for the previous school year multiplied by 32 the state cost per pupil for the previous year. 33 EXPLANATION 34 This bill provides for the establishment of frontier 35 -2- LSB 6071YH (4) 83 kh/rj 2/ 4

H.F. 2268 schools by any of the following: school districts, accredited 1 nonpublic schools, public and private accredited postsecondary 2 institutions, and private nonprofit corporations. The bill 3 requires the entities to apply to the state board of education, 4 directs the state board to specify criteria for the approval 5 of frontier schools, directs the department of education 6 to develop an application process, and specifies what the 7 applicant must include in the application. 8 The bill defines a frontier school as nonsectarian in its 9 program, admission policies, employment practices, and all 10 other operations. The school is a public school and is part 11 of the state’s system of public education. The primary focus 12 of a frontier school is to provide a comprehensive program of 13 instruction for at least one grade or age group from 5-18 years 14 of age. Frontier schools may be designed to allow significant 15 autonomy to the schools. However, frontier schools shall be 16 accountable for significant results. 17 Frontier schools are exempt from all statutes and rules 18 applicable to a school, a school board, or a school district, 19 except as specified in the bill. A frontier school may elect 20 to comply with one or more provisions of statute or rule. 21 A frontier school must meet all applicable state and local 22 health and safety requirements; be organized and operated as 23 a nonprofit corporation; comply with the open meetings and 24 records laws; comply with civil and human rights laws; comply 25 with Code provisions related to suspension and expulsion of 26 a student; and employ or contract with necessary teachers 27 who hold a valid license with an endorsement for the type of 28 service for which the teacher is employed. Frontier schools 29 are subject to the same financial audits, procedures, and 30 requirements as a school district, except to the extent 31 deviations are necessary because of the program at the school. 32 The provisions of Code chapter 20 relating to collective 33 bargaining shall not apply to the board of directors of a 34 frontier school or its employees. 35 -3- LSB 6071YH (4) 83 kh/rj 3/ 4

H.F. 2268 A student enrolled in a frontier school shall be counted, 1 for state school foundation aid purposes, in the student’s 2 district of residence. The district of residence shall pay to 3 the frontier school the state cost per pupil for the previous 4 school year, plus any moneys received for the student as a 5 result of the non-English speaking weighting for the previous 6 school year multiplied by the state cost per pupil for the 7 previous year. 8 -4- LSB 6071YH (4) 83 kh/rj 4/ 4