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TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING ARTICLE 3 TO CHAPTER 152 OF TITLE 59 SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR A FULL-DAY, FOUR-YEAR-OLD PREKINDERGARTEN PROGRAM FOR AT-RISK CHILDREN TO BE ADMINISTERED BY FIRST STEPS, TO PROVIDE FOR THE CURRICULUM, TO PROVIDE FOR THE COLLECTION OF DATA REGARDING THE PROGRAM, TO PROVIDE FOR AN EVALUATION FOR THE PROGRAM, AND TO PROVIDE THAT THE FIRST STEPS TO SCHOOL READINESS BOARD OF TRUSTEES SHALL PROMULGATE REGULATIONS; AND TO DESIGNATE SECTIONS 59-152-10 THROUGH 59-152-160 AS ARTICLE 1, FIRST STEPS.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Sections 59-152-10 through 59-152-160 of the 1976 Code are designated as Article 1, First Steps.
SECTION 2. Chapter 152, Title 59 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
Section 59-152-310. The First Steps to School Readiness Board of Trustees shall establish prekindergarten programs in the State. The board and the Office of First Steps to School Readiness shall develop, implement, and monitor the prekindergarten programs established pursuant to this Article.
Section 59-152-320. As used in this Article:
(1) 'Board' means the First Steps to School Readiness Board of Trustees established pursuant to Section 20-7-9710.
(2) 'Office' or 'Office of First Steps' means the Office of First Steps to School Readiness.
(3) 'Prekindergarten program' or 'First Steps prekindergarten program' means the four-year-old prekindergarten program established by the First Steps to School Readiness Board of Trustees.
Section 59-152-330. (A) The First Steps prekindergarten program must be open to students who are at risk for learning problems and school failure including but not limited to students:
(1) who are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch;
(2) who were low birth-weight babies;
(3) whose parents have less than a high school education;
(4) who do not speak English as their first language; and
(5) who need protective services.
(B) Each classroom must have:
(1) at least sixteen students, but not more than twenty students;
(2) a lead teacher with a four-year degree in early childhood education or a closely related area; and
(3) an assistant teacher with preservice or inservice training in early childhood education.
(C) The program must be six and one-half hours in length and must be based on the one-hundred-eighty-day school calendar of the school district in which the program is located.
(D) The curriculum for the program must be a research-based preschool curriculum aligned with school success. The curriculum must focus on critical child development skills including literacy, numeracy, and social and emotional development, and also must include physical activity and nutrition.
(E) The program shall provide health and developmental screenings and assessments and, when necessary, direct referral to community-based services.
Section 59-152-340. The Office of First Steps to School Readiness shall develop a responsive technical assistance system for program personnel that focuses on professional development related to critical child development skills enumerated in the prekindergarten program curriculum.
Section 59-152-350. The Office of First Steps to School Readiness shall develop and implement a data system to monitor the prekindergarten programs established pursuant to this Article to include measures of the:
(1) number of children served;
(2) program curriculum used;
(3) assessments used;
(4) length of school day;
(5) type of parent education programs; and
(6) nature of service coordination.
Section 59-152-360. The Education Oversight Committee shall establish and maintain a collaborative evaluation of the prekindergarten programs established pursuant to this Article. The Education Oversight Committee shall include a research-based formative and comprehensive program evaluation and an assessment of student success in early elementary grades. The evaluation must be for a period of five years, at which time the Education Oversight Committee shall report to the First Steps to School Readiness Board of Trustees and the General Assembly.
Section 59-152-370. The Office of First Steps shall provide parents with sufficient and understandable information to determine which provider to use for his child.
Section 59-152-380. The First Steps to School Readiness Board of Trustees shall promulgate regulations necessary to carry out the duties and intent of this article."
SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
This web page was last updated on Tuesday, June 23, 2009 at 2:43 P.M.