Arkansas Administrative Code
Agency 005 - DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Division 23 - Legal Services ***
Rule 005.23.13-001 - Rules Governing the Public School Choice Act of 2013
Universal Citation: AR Admin Rules 005.23.13-001
Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 9, September, 2024
1.00 PURPOSE
1.01 These rules shall be
known as the Arkansas Department of Education Rules Governing the Public School
Choice Act of 2013
1.02 The purpose
of these rules is to set forth the process and procedures necessary to
administer the Public School Choice Act of 2013.
2.00 AUTHORITY
2.01 The Arkansas State Board of Education
promulgated these rules pursuant to the authority granted to it by Act 1227 of
2013 and Ark. Code Ann. §§
6-11-105 and
25-15-201
etseq.
3.00 DEFINITIONS
As used in these rules:
3.01
"Nonresident District" means a school district other than a student's resident
district;
3.02 "Parent" means a
student's parent, guardian, or other person having custody or care of the
student;
3.03 "Resident district"
means the school district in which the student resides as determined under Ark.
Code Ann. §
6-18-202;
3.04 "Sibling" means each of two (2) or more
children having a parent in common by blood, adoption, marriage, or foster
care; and
3.05 "Transfer student"
means a public school student who transfers to a nonresident district through a
public school choice option under Arkansas Code, Title 6, Chapter 18,
Subchapter 19 and these rules.
4.00 ESTABLISHMENT OF PUBLIC SCHOOL CHOICE PROGRAM
4.01 A public school
choice program is established to enable a student to attend a school in a
nonresident district, subject to the limitations under Ark. Code Ann. §
6-18-1906 and Section 7.00 of these
rules.
4.02 Each school district
shall participate in a public school choice program consistent with Arkansas
Code, Title 6, Chapter 18, Subchapter 19 and these rules.
4.03 These rules do not require a school
district to add teachers, staff, or classrooms, or in any way to exceed the
requirements and standards established by existing law.
4.04 The board of directors of a public
school district shall adopt by resolution specific standards for acceptance and
rejection of applications under Arkansas Code, Title 6, Chapter 18, Subchapter
19 and these rules. The standards:
4.04.1 May
include without limitation the capacity of a program, class, grade level, or
school building;
4.04.2 Shall
include a statement that priority will be given to an applicant who has a
sibling or step sibling who:
4.04.2.1 Resides
in the same household; and
4.04.2.2
Is already enrolled in the nonresident district by choice.
4.04.3 Shall not include an applicant's:
4.04.3.1 Academic achievement;
4.04.3.2 Athletic or other extracurricular
ability;
4.04.3.3 English
proficiency level; or
4.04.3.4
Previous disciplinary proceedings, except that an expulsion from another
district may be included under Ark. Code Ann. §
6-18-510.
4.04.4 A school district receiving transfers
under the Public School Choice Act of 2013 and these rules shall not
discriminate on the basis of gender, national origin, race, ethnicity,
religion, or disability.
4.05 A nonresident district shall:
4.05.1 Accept credits toward graduation that
were awarded by another district; and
4.05.2 Award a diploma to a nonresident
student if the student meets the nonresident district's graduation
requirements.
4.06 The
superintendent of a school district shall cause public announcements to be made
over the broadcast media and either in the print media or on the Internet to
inform parents of students in adjoining districts of the:
4.06.1 Availability of the program;
4.06.2 Application deadline; and
4.06.3 Requirements and procedure for
nonresident students to participate in the program.
5.00 GENERAL PROVISIONS
5.01 The transfer of a
student under the Arkansas Public School Choice Act of 1989 (Ark. Code Ann.
§
6-18-206 [repealed]), is not voided
by Arkansas Code, Title 6, Chapter 18, Subchapter 19 and these rules and shall
be treated as a transfer under Arkansas Code, Title 6, Chapter 18, Subchapter
19 and these rules.
5.02 A student
may accept only one (1) school choice transfer per school year.
5.02.1 A student who accepts a public school
choice transfer may return to his or her resident district during the school
year.
5.02.2 If a transferred
student returns to his or her resident district, the student's transfer is
voided, and the student shall reapply if the student seeks a future school
choice transfer.
5.03 A
transfer student attending a nonresident school under Arkansas Code, Title 6,
Chapter 18, Subchapter 19 and these rules may complete all remaining school
years at the nonresident district.
5.03.1 A
present or future sibling of a student who continues enrollment in the
nonresident district under Section 5.03 of these rules may enroll in or
continue enrollment in the nonresident district until the sibling of the
transfer student completes his or her secondary education, if the district has
the capacity to accept the sibling without adding teachers, staff, or
classrooms or exceeding the regulations and standards established by
law.
5.04 The transfer
student or the transfer student's parent is responsible for the transportation
of the transfer student to and from the school in the nonresident district
where the transfer student is enrolled.
5.04.1 The nonresident district may enter
into a written agreement with the student, the student's parent, or the
resident district to provide the transportation.
5.04.2 The State Board of Education may
resolve disputes concerning transportation arising under Section 5.04 of these
rules.
5.05 For purposes
of determining a school district's state aid, a transfer student is counted as
part of the average daily membership of the nonresident district where the
transfer student is enrolled.
6.00 APPLICATION FOR TRANSFER
6.01 If a student seeks to attend a school in
a nonresident district, the student's parent shall submit an application:
6.01.1 To the nonresident district with a
copy to the resident district;
6.01.2 On the form that is attached to these
rules as Attachment 1; and
6.01.3
Postmarked no later than June 1 of the year in which the student seeks to begin
the fall semester at the nonresident district.
6.02 By August 1 of the school year in which
the student seeks to enroll in a nonresident district under Arkansas Code,
Title 6, Chapter 18, Subchapter 19 and these rules, the superintendent of the
nonresident district shall notify the parent and the resident district in
writing as to whether the student's application has been accepted or rejected.
The notification shall be sent via First-Class Mail to the address on the
application.
6.02.1 If the application is
rejected, the superintendent of the nonresident district shall state in the
notification letter the reason for the rejection.
6.02.2 If the application is accepted, the
superintendent of the nonresident district shall state in the notification
letter:
6.02.2.1 A reasonable deadline by
which the student shall enroll in the nonresident district and after which the
acceptance notification is null; and
6.02.2.2 Instructions for the renewal
procedures established by the nonresident district.
7.00 LIMITATIONS
7.01 If the provisions of
Arkansas Code, Title 6, Chapter 18, Subchapter 19 and these rules conflict with
a provision of an enforceable desegregation court order or a district's
court-approved desegregation plan regarding the effects of past racial
segregation in student assignment, the provisions of the order or plan shall
govern.
7.02 A school district
annually may declare an exemption under Arkansas Code, Title 6, Chapter 18,
Subchapter 19 and these rules if the school district is subject to the
desegregation order or mandate of a federal court or agency remedying the
effects of past racial segregation.
7.02.1 An
exemption declared by a board of directors under Section 7.02 of these rules is
irrevocable for one (1) year from the date the school district notifies the
Department of Education of the declaration of exemption.
7.02.2 After each year of exemption, the
board of directors may elect to participate in public school choice under
Arkansas Code, Title 6, Chapter 18, Subchapter 19 and these rules if the school
district's participation does not conflict with the school district's federal
court-ordered desegregation program.
7.02.3 A school district shall notify the
Department of Education by April 1 if in the next school year the school
district intends to:
7.02.3.1 Declare an
exemption under Section 7.02 of these rules; or
7.02.3.2 Resume participation after a period
of exemption.
7.02.3.3 A school
district shall provide the notifications under Section 7.02.3.1 or 7.02.3.2 to:
Office of the Commissioner
ATTN: Arkansas Public School Choice Act
Four Capitol Mall
Little Rock, AR 72201
7.03 There is established a numerical net
maximum limit on school choice transfers each school year from a school
district, less any school choice transfers into the school district under
Arkansas Code, Title 6, Chapter 18, Subchapter 19 and these rules of not more
than three percent (3%) of the school district's three-quarter average daily
membership for the immediately preceding school year.
7.03.1 For the purpose of determining the
percentage of school choice transfers under Section 7.03 of these rules,
siblings who are counted in the numerator as transfer students shall count as
one (1) student, and siblings who are counted in the denominator as part of the
average daily membership shall count as one (1) student.
7.03.2 Annually by June 1, the Department of
Education shall report to each school district the net maximum number of school
choice transfers for the current school year.
7.03.3 If a student is unable to transfer due
to the limits under Section 7.03 of these rules, the resident district shall
give the student priority for a transfer in the following year in the order
that the resident district receives notices of applications under Ark. Code
Ann. §
6-18-1905 and Section 6.00 of these
rules, as evidenced by a notation made by the district on the applications
indicating date and time of receipt.
8.00 APPEAL, DATA COLLECTION AND REPORTING
8.01 A student whose
application for a transfer under Ark. Code Ann. §
6-18-1905 and Section 6.00 of these
rules is rejected by the nonresident district may request a hearing before the
State Board of Education to reconsider the transfer.
8.01.1 A request for a hearing before the
State Board of Education shall be in writing and shall be postmarked no later
than ten (10) calendar days, excluding weekends and legal holidays, after the
student or the student's parent receives a notice of rejection of the
application under Ark. Code Ann. §
6-18-1905 and Section 6.00 of these
rules and shall be mailed to:
Office of the Commissioner
ATTN: Arkansas Public School Choice Act Appeals
Four Capitol Mall
Little Rock, AR 72201
8.01.2 Contemporaneously with the filing of
the written appeal with the Office of the Commissioner, the student or
student's parent must also mail a copy of the written appeal to the
superintendent of the nonresident school district.
8.01.3 In its written appeal, the student or
student's parent shall state his or her basis for appealing the decision of the
nonresident district.
8.01.4 The
student or student's parent shall submit, along with its written appeal, a copy
of the notice of rejection from the nonresident school district.
8.01.5 As part of the review process, the
student or student's parent may submit supporting documentation that the
transfer would be in the best educational, social, or psychological interest of
the student.
8.01.6 The nonresident
district may submit, in writing, any additional information, evidence, or
arguments supporting its rejection of the student's application by mailing such
response to the State Board of Education. Such response shall be postmarked no
later than ten (10) days after the nonresident district receives the student or
parent's appeal. The response of the nonresident district shall be mailed to:
Office of the Commissioner
ATTN: Arkansas Public School Choice Act Appeals
Four Capitol Mall
Little Rock, AR 72201
8.01.7 Contemporaneously with the filing of
its response with the Office of the Commissioner, the nonresident district must
also mail a copy of the response to the student or student's parent.
8.01.8 If the State Board of Education
overturns the determination of the nonresident district on appeal, the State
Board of Education shall notify the parent, the nonresident district, and the
resident district of the basis for the State Board of Education's
decision.
8.02 The
Department of Education shall collect data from school districts on the number
of applications for student transfers under Section 8.00 of these rules and
study the effects of school choice transfers under Arkansas Code, Title 6,
Chapter 18, Subchapter 19 and these rules, including without limitation the net
maximum number of transfers and exemptions, on both resident and nonresident
districts for up to two (2) years to determine if a racially segregative impact
has occurred to any school district.
8.03 Annually by October 1, the Department of
Education shall report its findings from the study of the data under Section
8.02 of these rules to the Senate Committee on Education and the House
Committee on Education.
9.00 EFFECTIVE DATE
The provisions of the Arkansas Public School Choice Act of 2013 and these rules shall remain in effect until July 1,2015.
10.00 STATE BOARD HEARING PROCEDURES
The following procedures shall apply to hearings conducted by the State Board of Education pursuant to Ark. Code Ann. § 6-18-1907 and Section 8.00 of these rules:
10.01 A staff member of the
Arkansas Department of Education shall introduce the agenda item.
10.02 All persons wishing to testify before
the State Board of Education shall first be placed under oath by the
Chairperson of the State Board.
10.03 Each party shall have the opportunity
to present an opening statement of no longer than five (5) minutes, beginning
with the nonresident school district. The Chairperson of the State Board may,
for good cause shown and upon request of either party, allow either party
additional time to present their opening statements.
10.04 Each party shall be given twenty (20)
minutes to present their cases, beginning with the nonresident school district.
The Chairperson of the State Board may, for good cause shown and upon request
of either party, allow either party additional time to present their
cases.
10.05 The State Board of
Education, at its discretion, shall have the authority to require any person
associated with the application to appear in person before the State Board as a
witness during the hearing. The State Board of Education may accept testimony
by affidavit, declaration or deposition.
10.06 Every witness may be subject to direct
examination, cross examination and questioning by the State Board of
Education.
10.07 For the purposes
of the record, documents offered during the hearing by the nonresident district
shall be clearly marked in sequential, numeric order (1,2,3).
10.08 For the purposes of the record,
documents offered during the hearing by the appealing party shall be clearly
marked in sequential, alphabetic letters (A,B,C).
10.09 The nonresident school district shall
have the burden of proof in proving the basis for denial of the
transfer.
10.10 The State Board of
Education may sustain the rejection of the nonresident district or grant the
appeal.
10.11 The State Board of
Education may announce its decision immediately after hearing all arguments and
evidence or may take the matter under advisement. The State Board shall provide
a written decision to the Department of Education, the appealing party, the
nonresident district and the resident district within fourteen (14) days of
announcing its decision under this section.
ATTACHMENT 1
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