Bill Text: NJ S3169 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Revises the date for submission of school district applications for designation as a choice district.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-12-12 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Education Committee [S3169 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2010-S3169-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator SHIRLEY K. TURNER
District 15 (Mercer)
SYNOPSIS
Revises the date for submission of school district applications for designation as a choice district.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the interdistrict public school choice program and amending P.L.2010, c.65.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 4 of P.L.2010, c.65 (C.18A:36B-17) is amended to read as follows:
4. a. A proposed choice district shall submit an application to the commissioner no later than [April] June 30 in the year prior to the school year in which the choice program will be implemented; except that for the first year of implementation of the program pursuant to P.L.2010, c.65 (C.18A:36B-14 et seq.), the application shall be submitted no later than the date specified by the commissioner. The application shall include, but not be limited to, the following information:
(1) a description of programs and schools and the number of student openings in each school identified by grade level which are available for selection;
(2) the provision for the creation of a parent information center;
(3) a description of the student application process and any criteria required for admission; and
(4) an analysis of the potential impact of the program on student population diversity in all potential participating districts and a plan for maintaining diversity in all potential participating districts, which plan shall not be used to supersede a court-ordered or administrative court-ordered desegregation plan.
The commissioner shall notify a choice district of the approval or disapproval of its application no later than July 30, and the reasons for disapproval shall be included in the notice; except that for the first year of implementation of the program pursuant to P.L.2010, c.65 (C.18A:36B-14 et seq.), notification shall be no later than the date specified by the commissioner.
The commissioner shall notify the State Board of Education of the approval of a choice district application and the State board shall include a public notice of the approval on the next agenda for its public monthly meeting.
b. The commissioner may take appropriate action, consistent with State and federal law, to provide that student population diversity in all districts participating in a choice district program is maintained. Student population diversity shall include, but not be limited to, the ethnic, racial, economic, and geographic diversity of a district's student population. The actions may include, but need not be limited to:
(1) directing a choice district to take appropriate steps to implement successfully the district's plan for maintaining student population diversity;
(2) restricting the number of choice students from a sending district or the authority of a choice district to accept choice students in the future; and
(3) revoking approval of the choice district. Any choice student who is attending a designated school in a choice district at the time of the commissioner's revocation of approval shall be entitled to continue to be enrolled in that school until graduation.
(cf: P.L.2010, c.65, s.4)
2. Section 7 of P.L.2010, c.65 (C.18A:36B-20) is amended to read as follows:
7. a. The parents or guardian of a student shall notify the sending district of the student's intention to participate in the choice program and shall submit an application to the choice district, indicating the school the student wishes to attend, no later than the date specified by the commissioner. To be eligible to participate in the program, a student shall be enrolled at the time of application in grades preschool through [12] 11 in a school of the sending district and have attended school in the sending district for at least one full year immediately preceding enrollment in the choice district, provided that a "sending district" includes any school district that a student in a particular district of residence is required by law to attend. The one-year requirement shall not apply to a student enrolling in preschool or kindergarten in the choice district, if that student has a sibling enrolled in the choice district. Openings in a designated school of a choice district shall be on a space-available basis, and if more applications are received for a designated school than there are spaces available, a lottery shall be held to determine the selection of students. Preference for enrollment may be given to:
(1) siblings of students who are enrolled in a designated school; and
(2) choice students graduating from grade 8 who wish to enroll with their eighth grade cohort in a choice high school.
If there is an opening in a designated school of a choice district and there is no student who is enrolled in a sending district who meets the attendance requirements of this subsection, including a student who has been placed on a waiting list based on a lottery held in the choice district, then the choice district may fill that opening with a public school student who does not meet the attendance requirements of this subsection, a home-schooled student, or a nonpublic school student.
b. A choice district may evaluate a prospective student on the student's interest in the program offered by a designated school. The district shall not discriminate in its admission policies or practices on the basis of athletic ability, intellectual aptitude, English language proficiency, status as a handicapped person, or any basis prohibited by State or federal law.
c. A choice district shall not prohibit the enrollment of a student based upon a determination that the additional cost of educating the student would exceed the amount of additional State aid received as a result of the student's enrollment. A choice district may reject the application for enrollment of a student who has been classified as eligible for special education services pursuant to chapter 46 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes if that student's individualized education program could not be implemented in the district, or if the enrollment of that student would require the district to fundamentally alter the nature of its educational program, or would create an undue financial or administrative burden on the district.
d. A student whose application is rejected by a choice district shall be provided with a reason for the rejection in the letter of notice. The appeal of a rejection notice may be made to the commissioner.
e. Once a student is enrolled in a designated school, the student shall not be required to reapply each school year for enrollment in any designated school of the choice district and shall continue to be permitted to be enrolled until graduation. A student shall be permitted to transfer back to a school of the sending district at any time or may apply to a different choice district during the next application period.
f. A choice district shall accept all of the credits earned toward graduation by a student in the schools of the sending district.
g. A choice district shall notify a sending district upon the enrollment of a choice student resident in that district.
(cf: P.L.2010, c.65, s.7)
3. (New section) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 4 of P.L.2010, c.65 (C.18A:36B-17) or any other section of law to the contrary, in order to be designated a choice district and enroll choice students for the 2012-2013 school year, a school district may submit its application to the commissioner to be designated as a choice district by January 15, 2012. The commissioner shall notify the choice district of the approval or disapproval of the application and shall make such adjustments to the choice student application cycles established pursuant to State Board of Education regulations as may be necessary.
4. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill amends the "Interdistrict Public School Choice Program Act," P.L.2010, c.65, to adjust the date by which a school district may submit an application to the Commissioner of Education to be designated as a choice district. Under current law a school district must submit its application by April 30 of the year prior to the school year in which the choice program will be implemented. Under this bill a school district would be required to submit its application by June 30. Also, the deadline for the submission of an application is extended to January 15, 2012 for those districts which want to begin to enrolling choice students in the 2012-2013 school year.
The bill also:
(1) provides that preference for enrollment in a choice high school will be given to students graduating from grade 8 who wish to enroll with their eighth grade class cohort in a choice high school;
(2) adds home-schooled students to those students who may be admitted to a choice school when a choice district is not able to fill its openings with public school students who meet the attendance requirements;
(3) provide that a student must be enrolled in grades preschool through 11 in a school of the sending district, as opposed to grades preschool through 12, in order to participate in the choice program; and
(4) clarifies that a student is permitted to transfer from a choice school back to the sending district at any time.
