PROPOSED RULES
PUBLIC INSTRUCTION
Original Notice.
Preproposal statement of inquiry was filed as WSR 07-14-001.
Title of Rule and Other Identifying Information: WAC 392-121-188 Instruction provided under contract.
Hearing Location(s): Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, Old Capitol Building, 600 South Washington, Olympia, WA, on October 10, 2007, at 10:30 a.m.
Date of Intended Adoption: October 11, 2007.
Submit Written Comments to: Mitch Thompson, Old Capitol Building, P.O. Box 47200, Olympia, WA 98504-7200, e-mail Mitch.Thompson@k12.wa.us, fax (360) 725-6306, by September 14, 2007.
Assistance for Persons with Disabilities: Contact Clarice Nnanabu, TTY (360) 664-3631 or (360) 725-6271.
Purpose of the Proposal and Its Anticipated Effects, Including Any Changes in Existing Rules: To modify the WAC to allow community and technical colleges to be able to report at-risk students who are taking high school level courses by course credits rather than by the amount of seat time for the class.
Reasons Supporting Proposal: Community and technical colleges are serving high school at-risk and drop-out students. Presently, the rules make them report the students on a seat-time basis, instead of a credit type basis. These colleges don't track seat time, so this becomes a huge burden to them. This rule changes the FTE calculation for these at-risk and drop-out students to make it easier for the colleges to claim the students for funding.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 28A.150.290(1).
Rule is not necessitated by federal law, federal or state court decision.
Name of Proponent: Office of superintendent of public instruction, governmental.
Name of Agency Personnel Responsible for Drafting: Mitch Thompson, Old Capitol Building, 600 South Washington, Olympia, WA, (360) 725-6306; Implementation: Calvin W. Brodie, Old Capitol Building, 600 South Washington, Olympia, WA, (360) 725-6300; and Enforcement: Jennifer Priddy, Old Capitol Building, 600 South Washington, Olympia, WA, (360) 725-6292.
No small business economic impact statement has been prepared under chapter 19.85 RCW. Not applicable.
A cost-benefit analysis is not required under RCW 34.05.328.
Dr. Terry Bergeson
State Superintendent
OTS-9730.1
AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending Order 99-01, filed 3/25/99,
effective 4/25/99)
WAC 392-121-188
Instruction provided under contract.
School districts have general authority to contract for the
services of individuals to provide instruction, subject to
applicable state and federal laws and local collective
bargaining agreements. School districts also have authority
to enter into interdistrict cooperative agreements for
instructional services with other school districts under RCW 28A.225.250. However, when a school district contracts with
an entity other than a school district and that entity employs
staff to provide basic education instruction claimed by the
school district for state basic education funding, the
requirements of this section also apply. Instruction provided
by such an entity (hereafter called the contractor) may be
counted as a course of study and claimed by the school
district for state funding if the following requirements are
met:
(1) The school district board of directors in accordance with RCW 28A.320.015 adopts a resolution that concludes it is in the best interest of the students to expand the options available by providing an appropriate basic education program pursuant to the contract and sets forth the rationale in support of the conclusion;
(2) The school district retains full responsibility for compliance with all state and federal laws;
(3) The contractor complies with all relevant state and federal laws that are applicable to the school district;
(4) The contractor provides instruction free of sectarian or religious influence or control.
(5) The contractor serves the students at no cost to the student for tuition and fees and enrollment is voluntary and no student or person is unlawfully excluded from participation on the grounds of race, creed, color, national origin, sex, marital status, or presence of any sensory, mental, or physical handicap;
(6) Each student is enrolled in the school district reporting the enrollment and each high school student is working toward course credits which satisfy high school graduation requirements;
(7) If the contractor is a state higher education institution, a state funded education center, or any other state funded entity, the contractor is not claiming enrollment of the student or receiving direct state support for the contracted instruction reported pursuant to this section.
(8) The curriculum is approved by the district;
(9) The contractor provides enrollment reports to the school district that comply with this chapter;
(10) The contractor maintains and has available for audit or review by the school district, state, or federal authorities documentation of enrollment, hours of instructional activity participated in by the students, personnel data, and financial data including all revenues and expenditures pertaining to the contract with the school district;
(11) If a contractor other than an institution of higher education at any time during the school year serves more than twenty-five students which equals more than one quarter of one percent (.0025) of the district's annual average full-time equivalent enrollment claimed for basic education funding the school district reports the certificated instructional employees of the contractor funded with any state moneys or federal moneys that flow through the school district as required by the SPI annual personnel reporting system for calculation of state funding, staff ratios and statistics;
(12) If the contract is with an entity other than an institution of higher education, for the students served pursuant to the contract, the contractor maintains a ratio of full-time equivalent certificated instructional staff serving the annual average full-time equivalent students reported for basic education funding pursuant to this section which is at least equal to the district's basic education funding ratio for the grade level of the students being reported for basic education funding pursuant to this section;
(13) The school district and contractor execute a written contract which is consistent with this section, and which sets forth the duties of the contractor in detail sufficient to hold the contractor accountable to the school district;
(14) The school district and contractor establish a process for periodic on-site monitoring by the school district for compliance with this section and other terms of the contract between the school district and contractor;
(15) Contracts for services for students with disabilities shall comply with WAC 392-172-220 and 392-172-222;
(16) Full-time equivalent enrollment reported for students served under a contract with a higher education institution shall be based on the number of hours of instruction meeting the criteria in WAC 392-121-107 (1)(a) provided by staff of the higher education institution under the contract. This section does not apply to running start enrollment, which is governed by chapter 392-169 WAC or at-risk programs meeting the standards of subsection (18) of this section; and
(17) When a school district contracts for an alternative learning experience program and the contractor exercises primary responsibility for the student's written learning plan, the program shall be for academically at-risk students and shall comply with RCW 28A.150.305. Enrollment in these programs shall be reported pursuant to WAC 392-121-182.
(18) Full-time equivalent enrollment reported for students served under contract with a community or technical college as defined in RCW 28B.50.030 shall be based on the credits generated by the student consistent with WAC 392-169-025 if the program meets the following standards:
(a) The student is earning credits applicable to a high school diploma.
(b) The program is focused on serving credit deficient students.
(c) The student population served is considered at-risk and meet the following criteria:
(i) The students have already dropped out of high school; or
(ii) The students have not demonstrated success in the traditional high school environment.
[Statutory Authority: 1997 c 265 § 6 and RCW 28A.150.290. 99-08-008 (Order 99-01), § 392-121-188, filed 3/25/99, effective 4/25/99. Statutory Authority: RCW 28A.150.290. 95-18-097, § 392-121-188, filed 9/6/95, effective 10/7/95; 95-01-013, § 392-121-188, filed 12/8/94, effective 1/8/95.]