Florida Senate - 2018                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. CS for HB 7055
       
       
       
       
       
       
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                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
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       The Committee on Appropriations (Baxley) recommended the
       following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment to Amendment (240726) (with title
    2  amendment)
    3  
    4         Between lines 608 and 609
    5  insert:
    6         Section 12. Present paragraph (c) of subsection (9) of
    7  section 1002.37, Florida Statutes, is amended, and a new
    8  paragraph (c) is added to that subsection, to read:
    9         1002.37 The Florida Virtual School.—
   10         (9)
   11         (c)Industry certification examinations, national
   12  assessments, and statewide assessments offered by the school
   13  district must be available to all Florida Virtual School
   14  students.
   15         (d)(c) Unless an alternative testing site is mutually
   16  agreed to by the Florida Virtual School and the school district
   17  or as contracted under s. 1008.24, all industry certification
   18  examinations, national assessments, and statewide assessments
   19  must be taken at the school to which the student would be
   20  assigned according to district school board attendance areas. A
   21  school district must provide the student with access to the
   22  school’s testing facilities and the date and time of the
   23  administration of each examination or assessment.
   24         Section 13. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) and paragraph
   25  (d) of subsection (8) of section 1002.45, Florida Statutes, are
   26  amended to read:
   27         1002.45 Virtual instruction programs.—
   28         (2) PROVIDER QUALIFICATIONS.—
   29         (a) The department shall annually publish online a list of
   30  providers approved to offer virtual instruction programs. To be
   31  approved by the department, a provider must document that it:
   32         1. Is nonsectarian in its programs, admission policies,
   33  employment practices, and operations;
   34         2. Complies with the antidiscrimination provisions of s.
   35  1000.05;
   36         3. Locates an administrative office or offices in this
   37  state, requires its administrative staff to be state residents,
   38  requires all instructional staff to be Florida-certified
   39  teachers under chapter 1012 and conducts background screenings
   40  for all employees or contracted personnel, as required by s.
   41  1012.32, using state and national criminal history records;
   42         4. Provides to parents and students specific information
   43  posted and accessible online that includes, but is not limited
   44  to, the following teacher-parent and teacher-student contact
   45  information for each course:
   46         a. How to contact the instructor via phone, e-mail, or
   47  online messaging tools.
   48         b. How to contact technical support via phone, e-mail, or
   49  online messaging tools.
   50         c. How to contact the administration office via phone, e
   51  mail, or online messaging tools.
   52         d. Any requirement for regular contact with the instructor
   53  for the course and clear expectations for meeting the
   54  requirement.
   55         e. The requirement that the instructor in each course must,
   56  at a minimum, conduct one contact via phone with the parent and
   57  the student each month;
   58         5. Possesses prior, successful experience offering online
   59  courses to elementary, middle, or high school students as
   60  demonstrated by quantified student learning gains in each
   61  subject area and grade level provided for consideration as an
   62  instructional program option. However, for a provider without
   63  sufficient prior, successful experience offering online courses,
   64  the department may conditionally approve the provider to offer
   65  courses measured pursuant to subparagraph (8)(a)2. Conditional
   66  approval shall be valid for 1 school year only and, based on the
   67  provider’s experience in offering the courses, the department
   68  shall determine whether to grant approval to offer a virtual
   69  instruction program;
   70         6. Is accredited by a regional accrediting association as
   71  defined by State Board of Education rule;
   72         7. Ensures instructional and curricular quality through a
   73  detailed curriculum and student performance accountability plan
   74  that addresses every subject and grade level it intends to
   75  provide through contract with the school district, including:
   76         a. Courses and programs that meet the standards of the
   77  International Association for K-12 Online Learning and the
   78  Southern Regional Education Board.
   79         b. Instructional content and services that align with, and
   80  measure student attainment of, student proficiency in the Next
   81  Generation Sunshine State Standards.
   82         c. Mechanisms that determine and ensure that a student has
   83  satisfied requirements for grade level promotion and high school
   84  graduation with a standard diploma, as appropriate;
   85         8. Publishes for the general public, in accordance with
   86  disclosure requirements adopted in rule by the State Board of
   87  Education, as part of its application as a provider and in all
   88  contracts negotiated pursuant to this section:
   89         a. Information and data about the curriculum of each full
   90  time and part-time program.
   91         b. School policies and procedures.
   92         c. Certification status and physical location of all
   93  administrative and instructional personnel.
   94         d. Hours and times of availability of instructional
   95  personnel.
   96         e. Student-teacher ratios.
   97         f. Student completion and promotion rates.
   98         g. Student, educator, and school performance accountability
   99  outcomes;
  100         9. If the provider is a Florida College System institution,
  101  employs instructors who meet the certification requirements for
  102  instructional staff under chapter 1012; and
  103         10. Performs an annual financial audit of its accounts and
  104  records conducted by an independent certified public accountant
  105  which is in accordance with rules adopted by the Auditor
  106  General, is conducted in compliance with generally accepted
  107  auditing standards, and includes a report on financial
  108  statements presented in accordance with generally accepted
  109  accounting principles.
  110         (8) ASSESSMENT AND ACCOUNTABILITY.—
  111         (d) An approved provider’s contract is automatically must
  112  be terminated if the provider earns two consecutive receives a
  113  school grades grade of “D” or “F” under s. 1008.34 after all
  114  school grade appeals are final or receives two consecutive a
  115  school improvement ratings rating of “Unsatisfactory” under s.
  116  1008.341 for 2 years during any consecutive 4-year period or has
  117  violated any qualification requirement pursuant to subsection
  118  (2); however, the State Board of Education may grant the
  119  provider a waiver of termination. A provider that has a contract
  120  terminated under this paragraph may not be an approved provider
  121  for a period of at least 1 year after the date upon which the
  122  contract was terminated and until the department determines that
  123  the provider is in compliance with subsection (2) and has
  124  corrected each cause of the provider’s low performance.
  125         Section 14. Subsection (13) and paragraph (b) of subsection
  126  (24) of section 1007.271, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  127         1007.271 Dual enrollment programs.—
  128         (13)(a) The dual enrollment program for a home education
  129  student, including, but not limited to, students with
  130  disabilities, consists of the enrollment of an eligible home
  131  education secondary student in a postsecondary course creditable
  132  toward an associate degree, a career certificate, or a
  133  baccalaureate degree. To participate in the dual enrollment
  134  program, an eligible home education secondary student must:
  135         1. Provide proof of enrollment in a home education program
  136  pursuant to s. 1002.41.
  137         2. Be responsible for his or her own instructional
  138  materials and transportation unless provided for in the
  139  articulation agreement.
  140         3. Sign a home education articulation agreement pursuant to
  141  paragraph (b).
  142         (b) Each postsecondary institution eligible to participate
  143  in the dual enrollment program pursuant to s. 1011.62(1)(i) must
  144  enter into a home education articulation agreement with each
  145  home education student seeking enrollment in a dual enrollment
  146  course and the student’s parent. By August 1 of each year, the
  147  eligible postsecondary institution shall complete and submit the
  148  home education articulation agreement to the Department of
  149  Education. The home education articulation agreement must
  150  include, at a minimum:
  151         1. A delineation of courses and programs available to
  152  dually enrolled home education students. Courses and programs
  153  may be added, revised, or deleted at any time by the
  154  postsecondary institution.
  155         2. The initial and continued eligibility requirements for
  156  home education student participation, not to exceed those
  157  required of other dually enrolled students.
  158         3. The student’s responsibilities for providing his or her
  159  own instructional materials and transportation.
  160         4. A copy of the statement on transfer guarantees developed
  161  by the Department of Education under subsection (15).
  162         (24)
  163         (b) Each public postsecondary institution eligible to
  164  participate in the dual enrollment program pursuant to s.
  165  1011.62(1)(i) must enter into a private school articulation
  166  agreement with each eligible private school in its geographic
  167  service area seeking to offer dual enrollment courses to its
  168  students, including, but not limited to, students with
  169  disabilities. By August 1 of each year, the eligible
  170  postsecondary institution shall complete and submit the private
  171  school articulation agreement to the Department of Education.
  172  The private school articulation agreement must include, at a
  173  minimum:
  174         1. A delineation of courses and programs available to the
  175  private school student. The postsecondary institution may add,
  176  revise, or delete courses and programs at any time.
  177         2. The initial and continued eligibility requirements for
  178  private school student participation, not to exceed those
  179  required of other dual enrollment students.
  180         3. The student’s responsibilities for providing his or her
  181  own instructional materials and transportation.
  182         4. A provision clarifying that the private school will
  183  award appropriate credit toward high school completion for the
  184  postsecondary course under the dual enrollment program.
  185         5. A provision expressing that costs associated with
  186  tuition and fees, including registration, and laboratory fees,
  187  will not be passed along to the student or the private school
  188  that the student attends.
  189         6.A provision stating whether the private school will
  190  compensate the postsecondary institution for the standard
  191  tuition rate per credit hour for each dual enrollment course
  192  taken by its students.
  193  
  194  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
  195  And the title is amended as follows:
  196         Between lines 3383 and 3384
  197  insert:
  198         1002.37, F.S.; requiring school districts to provide
  199         Florida Virtual School students access to certain
  200         examinations and assessments and certain information;
  201         amending s. 1002.45, F.S.; revising documentation
  202         requirements for virtual education providers;
  203         providing for the automatic termination of a virtual
  204         instruction provider’s contract under certain
  205         circumstances; authorizing the State Board of
  206         Education to grant a waiver of such termination;
  207         amending s. 1007.271, F.S.; deleting a requirement for
  208         a home education student to provide his or her own
  209         instructional materials; revising the requirements for
  210         home education and private school articulation
  211         agreements; amending s.