House File 264 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 264 BY FORRISTALL A BILL FOR An Act relating to foreign language unit requirements under the 1 educational standards applicable to school districts. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 1028YH (1) 84 kh/sc

H.F. 264 Section 1. Section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph f, Code 1 2011, is amended to read as follows: 2 f. Four sequential units of one foreign language other than 3 American sign language. 4 (1) Provision of instruction in American sign language 5 shall be in addition to and not in lieu of provision of 6 instruction in other foreign languages. 7 (2) The department may waive the third and fourth years 8 of the foreign language requirement on an annual basis upon 9 the request of the board of directors of a school district 10 or the authorities in charge of a nonpublic school if the 11 board or authorities are able to prove that a licensed teacher 12 was employed and assigned a schedule that would have allowed 13 students to enroll in a foreign language class, the foreign 14 language class was properly scheduled, students were aware 15 that a foreign language class was scheduled, and no students 16 enrolled in the class. 17 (3) If the syllabus for any of the four sequential units of 18 a foreign language offered by a school district in accordance 19 with this lettered paragraph is equivalent to a community 20 college course syllabus for instruction in the foreign 21 language, the school district and the community college may 22 participate in the district-to-community college sharing or 23 concurrent enrollment program established pursuant to section 24 261E.8, and be eligible for funding under section 257.11, 25 subsection 3, for any foreign language unit offered by the 26 school district that is equivalent to the community college 27 foreign language course as provided in this subparagraph (3). 28 Sec. 2. Section 257.11, subsection 3, paragraph b, 29 subparagraph (1), Code 2011, is amended to read as follows: 30 (1) Supplementing, not supplanting, high school courses 31 required to be offered pursuant to section 256.11, subsection 32 5 , except as provided in section 256.11, subsection 5, 33 paragraph “f” , subparagraph (3) . 34 EXPLANATION 35 -1- LSB 1028YH (1) 84 kh/sc 1/ 2

H.F. 264 This bill allows a school district offering four sequential 1 units of a foreign language in grades nine through 12, as 2 required under the educational standards by which schools 3 are accredited, to participate in and receive supplementary 4 weighting under the district-to-community college sharing or 5 concurrent enrollment program for any foreign language unit it 6 offers if the unit’s syllabus is equivalent to the community 7 college’s foreign language course syllabus. 8 Currently, the Code prohibits school districts from 9 receiving supplementary weighting for entering into an 10 agreement with a community college to provide such a course to 11 the school district’s students. The only exceptions to the 12 restriction are for career and technical education courses. 13 -2- LSB 1028YH (1) 84 kh/sc 2/ 2