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TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING SECTION 59-35-20 SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF EACH SCHOOL DISTRICT SHALL PROVIDE FOR A FOUR-YEAR-OLD KINDERGARTEN PROGRAM IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF THIS STATE AND PROVIDE FOR A WAIVER; AND TO AMEND SECTION 59-19-90, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE SCHOOL BOARDS OF TRUSTEES, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT BOARDS SHALL PROVIDE PROGRAMS FOR FOUR-YEAR-OLDS; TO AMEND SECTION 59-19-125, RELATING TO LEASING OF SCHOOL PROPERTY, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT BOARDS OF TRUSTEES MAY LEASE PROPERTY TO PROVIDE PROGRAMS FOR FOUR-YEAR-OLDS; TO AMEND SECTION 59-19-340, RELATING TO CHILD DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT A BOARD OF TRUSTEES THAT PROVIDES CHILD DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS FOR THREE-YEAR-OLD CHILDREN MAY CONTINUE TO SERVE THOSE CHILDREN; TO AMEND SECTION 59-20-40, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO EDUCATION FINANCE ACT WEIGHTINGS, SO AS TO INCLUDE FOUR- AND FIVE-YEAR-OLDS IN THE KINDERGARTEN WEIGHTING; TO AMEND SECTION 59-63-20, RELATING TO A STUDENT'S AGE OF ATTENDANCE, SO AS TO INCLUDE FOUR-YEAR-OLDS; TO AMEND SECTION 59-63-31, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO ADDITIONAL QUALIFICATIONS FOR ATTENDANCE AT A PUBLIC SCHOOL, SO AS TO INCLUDE FOUR-YEAR-OLDS; AND BY ADDING CHAPTER 154 TO TITLE 59 SO AS TO ENACT THE "SOUTH CAROLINA PREKINDERGARTEN INVESTMENT AND EXPANSION ACT" BY ESTABLISHING A FOUR-YEAR-OLD PREKINDERGARTEN PROGRAM TO BE ADMINISTERED BY THE OFFICE OF FIRST STEPS FOR SCHOOL READINESS TO PROVIDE GRANTS TO PUBLIC AND PRIVATE PROVIDERS TO OPERATE FOUR-YEAR-OLD PREKINDERGARTEN PROGRAMS IN THIS STATE.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Chapter 35, Title 59 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 59-35-20. (A) Beginning with the 2007-08 school year, the board of trustees of each school district shall establish and provide at least a half-day four-year-old kindergarten program. Beginning with the 2009-10 school year, each school district shall provide a full-day four-year-old kindergarten program. Children who are four years old by September first may attend the four-year-old kindergarten program. Children in the four-year-old kindergarten program must be counted in the average daily membership of the public school district. State aid for the four-year-old kindergarten program must be distributed through the formula provided in Section 59-20-40 of the Education Finance Act.
(B) The State Board of Education may waive the four-year-old kindergarten requirement for a particular school district if the board finds that the school district does not have available space and the cost of temporary classroom space cannot be justified.
(C) A child who is eligible to attend the full-day four-year-old kindergarten program may attend the half-day program. The parent shall notify the school district that the child will attend the full-day four-year-old kindergarten program by January thirty-first of the year of the anticipated enrollment date. Parents moving into the district after the notification date may apply for the full-day four-year-old kindergarten program, and the district shall enroll the child in the program on a space available basis. A parent of a child eligible to attend the four-year-old kindergarten program may elect for their child not to attend kindergarten pursuant to Section 59-65-10."
SECTION 2. Section 59-19-90(11) of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"(11) Provide:
(a) a school-age child care childcare program for children aged five through fourteen years that operates before or after the school day, or both, and during periods when school is not in session;
(b) a school-age child care childcare program that operates during periods when school is in session for students who are enrolled in a half-day kindergarten program; or
(c) classrooms, other space, or both, in a school for use by an organization that is operating a school-age child care childcare program before or after the school day, or both, and during periods when school is not in session for children aged five through fourteen years; or
(d) beginning with the 2007-08 school year, the programs in subitems (a), (b), and (c) for children aged four.
All latchkey programs operating pursuant to this item must be licensed."
SECTION 3. Section 59-19-125 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 59-19-125. Each district board of trustees may lease any school property for a rental that the board considers reasonable or permit the free use of school property for:
(1) civic or public purposes; or
(2) the operation of a school-age child care childcare program for children aged five four through fourteen years that operates before or after the school day, or both, and during periods when school is not in session, if the property is not needed for school purposes. Under this section the board may enter into a long-term lease with a corporation, community service organization, or other governmental entity, if the corporation, organization, or other governmental entity will use the property to be leased for civic or public purposes or for a school-age child care childcare program. However, if the property subject to a long-term lease is being paid for from money in the district's debt service fund, then all proceeds from the long-term lease must be deposited in that school district's debt service fund so long as the property has not been paid for."
SECTION 4. Section 59-19-340 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 59-19-340. The board of trustees of each school district may establish and provide for the education of children who will attain the age of four on or before September first of the applicable school year in child development programs. The board of trustees of school districts having child development programs serving three and four-year-olds on the date of enactment of this section may continue to serve three-year-old children."
SECTION 5. Section 59-20-40(1)(c)(1) of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 49 of 2005, is further amended to read:
"(1) Four and five-year old kindergarten pupils 1.30"
SECTION 6. Section 59-63-20 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 59-63-20. It is not lawful for any person who is less than five four or more than twenty-one years of age to attend any of the public schools of this State, including kindergarten, except that:
(1) Persons over twenty-one years of age may attend night schools;
(2) When a pupil is in the graduating class and becomes twenty-one years of age before graduation, he is permitted to complete the term if otherwise qualified to do so;
(3) Students may enter kindergarten in the public schools of this State if they will attain the age of five four on or before September first of the applicable school year or have substantially initiated a public school kindergarten program in another state that has a different attendance age requirement from South Carolina;
(4) Students may not enter the first grade in the public schools of this State unless they will attain the age of six on or before September first of the applicable school year or have substantially initiated a first grade program in another state that has a different attendance age requirement from South Carolina or have attended a public school kindergarten program for one full school year;
(5) The restrictions in this section may be waived by the local board of school trustees in any proper case. However, that if the provisions of items (3) and (4) of this section are not complied with, the school district is not entitled to receive any state aid for any students who fail to meet these requirements;
(6) Four-year-olds may attend optional child development programs and All three-year-old, four-year-old, and five-year-old children with disabilities in accordance with their individual education program, may participate in any public education preschool program, including optional child development programs. Children with disabilities served in four-year-old optional child development programs may be counted for funding under both funding sources."
SECTION 7. Section 59-63-31(B) of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"(B) A child between five four and twenty-one years of age is entitled to continue attending a particular public school or a successor school in the same school district without charge if the:
(1) child has been attending the school or a predecessor school in the same district prior to being taken into custody by the Department of Social Services or prior to being moved from one placement to another by the department;
(2) Department of Social Services places the child outside the school district or school attendance zone in a foster home or residential community-based facility licensed or operated by the department; and
(3) Department of Social Services has determined that it is in the child's best interests for the child to continue attending the school, and that transportation for the child to and from the school is reasonably available.
In addition to the requirements of this subsection, the child also shall satisfy the requirements of Section 59-63-30(d) and (e)."
SECTION 8. Title 59 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
Section 59-154-10. (A) This chapter is known and may be cited as the 'South Carolina Prekindergarten Investment and Expansion Act'.
(B) It is the intent of the General Assembly that on a voluntary basis the State Department of Education and the Office of First Steps to School Readiness shall provide more opportunities for quality early childhood education and prekindergarten experiences in South Carolina.
(C) Nothing in this chapter may be construed to make enrollment in these programs mandatory.
(D) Each provider selected is authorized to and may provide for enrollment in prekindergarten programs for any at-risk child residing in its district who is four years of age on or before September first. Any child may enroll in a program when an insufficient number of at-risk children are enrolled to fill a specific classroom.
(E) The State Board of Education shall promulgate regulations to define when a child is 'at risk' and may promulgate regulations to aid in the implementation of this chapter.
Section 59-154-20. (A) Beginning with fiscal year 2006-2007, the Office of First Steps, based on applications it receives from interested public and private providers, shall select providers based on available funding to provide a four-year-old prekindergarten classroom program during that year. In selecting providers, preference must be given to providers located in or near a school district that is granted a waiver from implementing a four-year-old prekindergarten program pursuant to Section 59-35-20. The Office of First Steps shall work in consultation with school districts that are granted waivers to select providers in or near those school districts. Also, in selecting providers, preference must be given to providers establishing programs for at-risk children not served by an existing program, and, in selecting public providers, preference must be given to those providers who operate programs in a nonschool setting in conjunction with other partners.
(B) The providers selected by the Office of First Steps pursuant to subsection (A) shall receive grant funds from the Office of First Steps in an amount the office shall determine to operate the four-year-old prekindergarten program.
Section 59-154-30. Programs operated pursuant to this chapter shall comply with the following requirements:
(1) a maximum class size of twenty;
(2) at least one certified teacher per classroom certified in early childhood education;
(3) at least one educational assistant per classroom who shall have the minimum of a high school diploma or the equivalent, and at least two years of experience working with children under five years old. The teaching assistant shall have completed the Early Childhood Development Credential (ECD) 101 or enroll and complete this course within twelve months of hire;
(4) a daily minimum of six and one-half hours of quality instructional time;
(5) use of educational, age-appropriate curriculum that is aligned with State Department of Education approved early learning standards and which includes, but is not limited to, literacy, writing, math, and science skills; and
(6) a developmental learning program that addresses the cognitive, physical, emotional, social, and communication areas of child development.
Section 59-154-40. (A) As part of the application process, the Office of First Steps shall include a statement that it has given consideration for how to serve all four-year-old children in the event programs are later authorized for all children, regardless of at-risk status. The long-range plan shall include the proposed sources of local matching funds required under this chapter. Documentation of local financial support also must be considered as a factor in the application process. Public providers are encouraged to collaborate with nonpublic providers where such collaboration provides an efficient means for expansion of prekindergarten classrooms authorized under this chapter.
(B) The Office of First Steps shall establish the procedures for submitting applications and, subject to available funding, programs must be approved on a competitive basis.
Section 59-154-50. Local First Steps offices shall serve as the fiscal agent for the administration of any regional grants awarded to providers in their counties once the Office of First Steps has made the grant award.
Section 59-154-60. (A) Programs established under this chapter are subject to funds being available to the Office of First Steps to provide the grants to the several providers.
(B) After 2006, the Office of First Steps annually shall recommend a funding amount to the General Assembly for those classrooms established under this chapter, provided, that the funding amount for each classroom for the year 2006 is declared to be one hundred twenty thousand dollars for each classroom. The Office of First Steps shall take into account the necessary components required to operate the classrooms, and to the extent the components are also reflected in applicable funding formulas, shall include the same costs per component in recommending the amount of funding for each classroom.
(C) As a condition of receiving grant funds for classrooms pursuant to this chapter, each provider shall provide a matching amount of funds equal to fifteen percent of the grant amount. In addition, other sources of funds, such as grants, federal funds, and private funds may be used by the provider to meet the matching funds requirement under this section. The provider may also meet the matching funds requirement under this section through 'in-kind' matches including, but not limited to, the use of physical facilities, instructional materials, equipment and supplies, food and nutrition services, and transportation services.
(D) No child is required to pay tuition or fees solely for the purpose of enrolling in or attending a prekindergarten program established under this chapter. Nothing in this section prohibits charging fees for childcare that may be provided outside the times of the instructional day provided in these programs.
Section 59-154-70. The Office of First Steps in administering this chapter shall:
(1) administer the prekindergarten classroom application process;
(2) provide oversight, monitoring, technical assistance, coordination, and training for prekindergarten classroom providers;
(3) serve as a clearinghouse for information and best practices related to prekindergarten programs;
(4) coordinate activities and promote collaboration with other public and private providers in developing and supporting prekindergarten programs under this chapter;
(5) review existing standards and recommend needed changes to promote a consistent approval, assessment, and monitoring process for providers of prekindergarten programs established under this chapter;
(6) provide a report to the Governor and the General Assembly on the status of prekindergarten programs under this chapter that shall include, at a minimum, the number, location, and types of providers of prekindergarten classrooms and the number of at-risk students served.
Section 59-154-80. The Education Oversight Committee shall coordinate a study of the effectiveness of prekindergarten programs authorized under this chapter. The Oversight Committee is authorized to engage one or more independent evaluators to assess the effectiveness of these programs. This study shall be completed by January 1, 2008, and forwarded to the Office of First Steps, the Governor, and the General Assembly."
SECTION 9. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
This web page was last updated on Tuesday, June 23, 2009 at 2:09 P.M.