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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to charter schools and accurately accounting for workforce |
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development statistics. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Chapter 12, Education Code, is amended by adding |
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new Sections 12.141 and 12.142, to read as follows: |
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Sec. 12.141. DROP OUT PREVENTION AND RECOVERY OPEN |
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ENROLLMENT CHARTER HIGH SCHOOLS. (a) To better serve the needs of |
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at-risk students, improve the quality of the available workforce, |
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and increase student success rates in obtaining and maintaining |
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employment, a school that otherwise qualifies as an open enrollment |
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charter school may apply in a form approved by the commissioner to |
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be assessed as an open enrollment charter high school. |
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(b) A compliant application by an open enrollment charter |
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school to be assessed as a Drop Out Prevention and Recovery Charter |
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High School shall be granted if: |
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(1) Fifty percent (50%) or more of its students are 17 |
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years of age or older; and |
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(2) Seventy-five percent (75%) or more of its students |
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are considered to be at risk of dropping out of school, as defined |
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by Section 29.081. |
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Sec. 12.142. ASSESSMENT AND ACCOUNTABILITY OF DROP OUT |
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PREVENTION AND RECOVERY OPEN ENROLLMENT CHARTER HIGH SCHOOLS. (a) |
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Provisions of this Title and other laws made applicable to open |
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enrollment charter schools by Section 12.104 apply to a Drop Out |
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Prevention and Recovery Open Enrollment Charter High School, except |
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as follows: |
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(1) A student who enrolls at a Drop Out Prevention and |
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Recovery Open Enrollment Charter High School shall not be included |
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in calculating the drop out or completion rates for the school |
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unless the student remains enrolled for at least twenty (20) school |
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days. |
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(2) Solely for the purpose of assessing the completion |
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rate for the students, and measuring the success, of a Drop Out |
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Prevention and Recovery Open Enrollment Charter High School in |
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educating older students otherwise excluded from the calculation of |
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the diploma completion rate under NCES standards, a Drop Out |
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Prevention and Recovery Open Enrollment Charter High School may |
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request that the commissioner include all students who graduate |
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from a Drop Out Prevention and Recovery Open Enrollment Charter |
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High School in the calculation of the school's completion rate. The |
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calculation methodology under this Section shall be as follows: |
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Graduates + GED Recipients + Continuers |
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___________________________________________________ |
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Graduates + GED Recipients + Continuers + Dropouts |
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(3) The commissioner may adopt a set of indicators to |
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measure the quality of learning and student achievement at a Drop |
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Out Prevention and Recovery Open Enrollment Charter High School. |
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(b) A Drop Out Prevention and Recovery Open Enrollment |
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Charter High School shall be responsible for reporting the |
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information required to perform the assessments described by this |
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Section, performing the calculation specified in Section |
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12.142(a)(b), and all reasonable costs incurred by the commission |
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in verifying the information and calculation. |
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SECTION 2. This Act applies beginning with the 2013-2014 |
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school year. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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a vote of two-thirds of all of the members elected to each house, as |
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provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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Act takes effect September 1, 2013. |