Arkansas Administrative Code
Agency 005 - DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Division 23 - Legal Services ***
Rule 005.23.15-003 - ADE Rules Governing the Public School Choice Act of 2015
Universal Citation: AR Admin Rules 005.23.15-003
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 2015.
1.02 The
purpose of these rules is to set forth the process and procedures necessary to
administer the Public School Choice Act of 2015.
2.00 AUTHORITY
2.01 The Arkansas State Board of Education
promulgated these rules pursuant to the authority granted to it by Ark. Code
Ann. §
6-18-1901 et seq., as amended by
Act 560 of 2015, and Ark. Code Ann. §§
6-11-105 and
25-15-201 et
seq.
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 in kindergarten through grade twelve (12) 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 in kindergarten through grade twelve (12) 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 May include
a claim of a lack of capacity by a school district only if the school district
has reached at least ninety percent (90%) of the maximum authorized student
population in a program, class, grade level, or school building under federal
law, state law, the rules for standards of accreditation, or other applicable
regulations;
4.04.3 Shall include a
statement that priority will be given to an applicant who has a sibling or
stepsibling who:
4.04.3.1 Resides in the same
household; and
4.04.3.2 Is already
enrolled in the nonresident district by choice.
4.04.4 Shall not include an applicant's:
4.04.4.1 Academic achievement;
4.04.4.2 Athletic or other extracurricular
ability;
4.04.4.3 English
proficiency level; or
4.04.4.4
Previous disciplinary proceedings, except that an expulsion from another
district may be included under Ark. Code Ann. §
6-18-510.
4.04.5 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]) or the Public
School Choice Act of 2013, 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 and applies for a school choice transfer under Ark. Code
Ann. §
6-18-1905 may enroll in the
nonresident district 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.
5.03.2 A present or future sibling of a
student who continues enrollment in the nonresident district and who enrolls in
the nonresident district under Section 5.03 of these rules may complete all
remaining years at the nonresident district.
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 which
shall notify the resident district of the filing of the application;
6.01.2 On the form that is attached to these
rules as Attachment 1; and
6.01.3
Postmarked no later than May 1 of the year in which the student seeks to begin
the fall semester at the nonresident district.
6.02 A nonresident district that receives an
application under Section 6.01 of these rules shall, upon receipt of the
application, place a date and time stamp on the application that reflects the
date and time the nonresident district received the application.
6.03 A nonresident district shall review and
make a determination on each application in the order in which the application
was received by the nonresident district.
6.04 Before accepting or rejecting an
application, a nonresident district shall determine whether one of the
limitations under Ark. Code Ann. §
6-18-1906 and Section 7.00 of these
rules applies to the application.
6.05 By July 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.
6.05.1 If the application is rejected, the
superintendent of the nonresident district shall state in the notification
letter the reason for the rejection.
6.05.2 If the application is accepted, the
superintendent of the nonresident district shall state in the notification
letter a reasonable deadline by which the student shall enroll in the
nonresident district and after which the acceptance notification is
null.
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.
7.01.1 If a school district
claims a conflict under Section 7.01 of these rules, the school district shall
immediately submit proof from a federal court to the Department of Education
that the school district has a genuine conflict under an active desegregation
order or active court-approved desegregation plan with the interdistrict school
choice provisions of this subchapter.
7.01.2 A school district shall provide the
information required under Section 7.01.1 of these rules to:
Office of the Commissioner
ATTN: Arkansas Public School Choice Act
Four Capitol Mall
Little Rock, AR 72201
7.02 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 enrollment that exists in the school district as
of October 15 of the immediately preceding school year.
7.02.1 For the purpose of determining the
percentage of school choice transfers under Section 7.02 of these rules,
siblings who are counted in the numerator as transfer students shall count as
one (1) student.
7.02.2 A student
eligible to transfer to a nonresident district under Ark. Code Ann.
§§
6-15-430(c)(l),
6-18-227, or
6-21-812 shall not count against
the cap of three percent (3%) of the resident or nonresident
district.
7.02.3 Annually by
December 15, the Department of Education shall report to each school district
the net maximum number of school choice transfers for the next school
year.
7.02.4 If a student is unable
to transfer due to the limits under Section 7.02 of these rules, the resident
district shall give the student priority for a transfer in the first school
year in which the district is no longer subject to Ark. Code Ann. §
6-18-1906(b)(l)
and Section 7.02 of these rules 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 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:
9.01 A staff member of the
Arkansas Department of Education shall introduce the agenda item.
9.02 All persons wishing to testify before
the State Board of Education shall first be placed under oath by the
Chairperson of the State Board.
9.03 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.
9.04 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.
9.05 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.
9.06 Every witness may be subject to direct
examination, cross examination and questioning by the State Board of
Education.
9.07 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).
9.08 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).
9.09 The nonresident school district shall
have the burden of proof in proving the basis for denial of the
transfer.
9.10 The State Board of
Education may sustain the rejection of the nonresident district or grant the
appeal.
9.11 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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