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S. 815
STATUS INFORMATION
General Bill
Sponsors: Senators Setzler, Courson, Short, Matthews, Rankin, Hayes, Sheheen, Drummond and Ford
Document Path: l:\council\bills\nbd\11746ab07.doc
Introduced in the Senate on June 5, 2007
Introduced in the House on April 24, 2008
Currently residing in the House Committee on Ways and Means
Summary: Four-year-old kindergarten
HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS
Date Body Action Description with journal page number
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6/5/2007 Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-26
6/5/2007 Senate Referred to Committee on Education SJ-26
2/20/2008 Senate Committee report: Favorable with amendment Education
SJ-13
2/21/2008 Senate Committed to Committee on Finance SJ-63
4/8/2008 Senate Committee report: Favorable Finance SJ-4
4/22/2008 Senate Committee Amendment Amended and Adopted SJ-20
4/22/2008 Senate Read second time SJ-20
4/23/2008 Senate Read third time and sent to House SJ-31
4/23/2008 Scrivener's error corrected
4/24/2008 House Introduced and read first time HJ-14
4/24/2008 House Referred to Committee on Education and Public Works HJ-14
4/29/2008 House Recalled from Committee on Education and Public Works
HJ-42
4/29/2008 House Committed to Committee on Ways and Means HJ-42
View the latest legislative information at the LPITS web site
VERSIONS OF THIS BILL
6/5/2007
2/20/2008
4/8/2008
4/22/2008
4/23/2008
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT AMENDED AND ADOPTED
April 22, 2008
S. 815
Introduced by Senators Setzler, Courson, Short, Matthews, Rankin, Hayes, Sheheen, Drummond and Ford
S. Printed 4/22/08--S. [SEC 4/23/08 5:06 PM]
Read the first time June 5, 2007.
TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING ARTICLE 2 TO CHAPTER 35, TITLE 59 SO AS TO CREATE A FULL-DAY, FOUR-YEAR-OLD KINDERGARTEN, TO DEFINE CERTAIN TERMS, TO PROVIDE REQUIREMENTS FOR STUDENT ELIGIBILITY AND PRIORITY FOR ADMISSION, TO PROVIDE DUTIES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND OTHER STATE AGENCIES, TO PROVIDE FUNDING AND REPORTING REQUIREMENTS, TO PROVIDE THAT ENROLLMENT IS A MATTER OF PARENTAL DISCRETION, TO PROVIDE THAT A FEE OR TUITION MAY NOT BE CHARGED, TO PROVIDE A PARENTING EDUCATION PROGRAM, AMONG OTHER THINGS; AND TO DESIGNATE SECTION 59-35-10 AS ARTICLE 1, CHAPTER 35, TITLE 59 AND ENTITLED "FIVE-YEAR-OLD KINDERGARTEN".
Amend Title To Conform
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 59-35-310. (A) There are created full-day, four-year-old kindergartens to offer private and state supported, public full-day, four-year-old kindergarten educational services to children considered at-risk. The kindergartens shall focus on the developmental and learning support that children must have to be ready for school, and also must incorporate parenting education.
(B) As used in this article:
(1) 'At-risk' means a child whose family's annual income at the time of application is not more than one hundred eighty-five percent of the federal poverty guidelines as promulgated annually by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, making the child eligible for the free or reduced price lunch program, or a child who is eligible for Medicaid.
(2) 'Department' means the South Carolina Department of Education.
(3) 'First Steps' means the Office of First Steps to School Readiness as provided in this title.
(4) 'Program' means a full-day education service provided by a public or private provider to serve at-risk, four-year-old children.
(5) 'Research based' means supported by nationally published, peer-reviewed research.
(6) 'Provider' means a state-approved public or private program.
(7) 'Public provider' means a public school approved program pursuant to this article.
(8) 'Private provider' means a provider who is not a public school but is approved to deliver a program pursuant to this article.
(9) 'Resident school district' means the public school district where the child resides.
(10) 'School year' means a one hundred eighty-day instructional period.
(11) 'Parent' means a natural parent, adoptive parent, or legal guardian of a child.
Section 59-35-320. (A) For the 2008-2009 school year, the targeted funded cost per child for full-day, four-year-old kindergarten is four thousand ninety-three dollars. The per child cost is intended to be increased annually by the current year's rate of inflation as determined by the Division of Research and Statistics of the Budget and Control Board for the Education Finance Act. An enrolled child must be funded on a pro-rata basis determined by the length of their enrollment. The targeted transportation cost per enrolled child requiring transportation services is five hundred fifty dollars. For the equipping of new classrooms the targeted per classroom cost is ten thousand dollars. Funding of up to two thousand five hundred dollars may be provided annually for the procurement of consumable and other materials in established classrooms.
(B) The amounts provided in this section are subject to appropriation by the General Assembly.
Section 59-35-330. (A) Beginning with the 2008-2009 fiscal year, the Education Oversight Committee shall receive funds provided by the General Assembly to support the annual collection of and continuous evaluation of data related to full-day, four-year-old kindergarten. The Education Oversight Committee is to submit to the General Assembly an evaluation of the first two years of the program by December 31, 2010, and every two years through school year 2015-2016, after which evaluations must be submitted to the General Assembly every five years.
(B) This ongoing evaluation must examine the program's quality and impact. Based on information, data, and evaluation results, the Education Oversight Committee shall include recommendations for program improvement as part of its report. The report must include, at least, information and recommendations on lead teacher qualifications, student attendance, pupil-teacher ratio, parental involvement, accreditation, professional development, and school readiness. In evaluating the program impact, the evaluation must include, at least, student test performance by content and developmentally appropriate measures of progress from kindergarten through twelfth grade.
(C) To aid in this evaluation, the Education Oversight Committee shall determine the data necessary and both public and private providers are required to submit the necessary data as a condition of continued participation in and funding of the program. The department and First Steps must assist in the data collection and long-term evaluation by developing a method for tracking a child enrolled in a program offered by a private provider.
Section 59-35-340. (A) For the 2008-2009 school year, a program must be available by approved public and private providers to children having attained the age of four years on or before September first of the school year and meeting the at-risk criteria established in this article with priority given:
(1) first, to continuing four-year-old kindergarten programs approved and funded as part of the Child Development Education Pilot Program; and
(2) second, with any funds remaining, a student must be served according to the percentage of poverty of the student's annual family income expressed as a percentage of federal poverty guidelines, with first priority given to a student whose family income is at the lowest level.
(B) A qualified applicant in an income priority category must be served before an applicant in the next priority category may be served.
(C) If available space permits, children with medically diagnosed developmental delays may be deemed eligible for participation once all income eligible children have been served.
Section 59-35-350. (A) A child's enrollment in a program is optional and within a parent's discretion.
(B) In order to enroll their child in one of the South Carolina Child Development Four-Year-Old Education Programs, the parent or guardian of each eligible child must complete and submit an application to the approved provider of choice. The application must be submitted on forms prescribed in this article and must be accompanied by the following:
(1) a copy of the child's birth certificate;
(2) proof of the child's immunization;
(3) evidence of the child's eligibility for the program based on annual family income or a statement of Medicaid eligibility; and
(4) all other information required by the approving agency.
(C) The application must be made to a provider according to a timetable established by the department and First Steps. A timetable must be the same for a public and private provider and be made public at least thirty days before the date by which an application may be submitted, although a provider may receive an application throughout the year. A child moving into this State during a school year may apply for admission to a program and enroll in a program when space becomes available, subject to the priority criteria in Section 59-35-340.
(D) A parent who desires to enroll his child in a public provider program outside the child's resident school attendance zone or district may do so on a space available basis and must be responsible for transporting the child to and from the provider. A private provider program may delineate the boundaries within which they are willing to provide transportation to eligible children.
(E) A student who enrolls in the program is expected to attend the program as required by mandatory attendance requirements of this chapter. A provider may revoke the enrollment of a student who fails to comply with these mandatory attendance requirements after documenting at least two communications, at least one of which must be a certified letter, with the parent or guardian, which indicate objectively that attendance requirements are not adhered to, and only if a waiting list of eligible applicants to the program exists. A qualified student may be admitted into the program pursuant to the provisions of this chapter when a student previously enrolled in the program has their enrollment revoked due to non-attendance.
Section 59-35-360. (A) Subject to the department's approval and based on need, a local school board of trustees must establish a program to serve an at-risk student residing in a school district. A center seeking to become a private provider of a program must apply to First Steps for approval.
(B) A provider must:
(1) comply with any law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability, race, creed, color, gender, national origin religion, ancestry, and need for a special education service;
(2) comply with all state and local health and safety laws;
(3) comply with all applicable state laws requiring a criminal background check for an employee;
(4) exclude from employment a person legally prohibited from working with children;
(5) comply with any state law or federal law, or any other requirement specific to a program provider;
(6) be accountable for meeting an education need of a child and at least quarterly reporting the child's progress to his parent;
(7) comply with required program, reporting, and assessment criteria;
(8) maintain an individual student record for a child enrolled in the program, including assessment data, health data, teacher observations, and parent conferences;
(9) determine whether to offer an extended day service for a child enrolled in the program; and
(10) obtain approval, registration, or licensure from the Department of Social Services.
(C) A board must consider the provider's student capacity before a program may be established. The board may not begin construction on additional classroom space if another provider within the school district has available classroom space.
Section 59-35-370. The department and First Steps shall:
(1) develop a provider application form, a child enrollment form, a list of data collection needed to implement and evaluate a program, an annual budget, and a procedure for distributing funding provided by the General Assembly; and
(2) establish criteria for awarding new classroom equipping grants, for a parenting education program required by this chapter, and for allowing a child to be retained.
Section 59-65-380. A provider may not charge a tuition or fee for a program.
Section 59-35-390. A provider shall offer a:
(1) complete educational program in accordance with age-appropriate instructional practice and a research-based preschool curriculum aligned with school success. Based on the South Carolina content standards, the department and First Steps may develop or approve school curricula used in a program; and
(2) high-quality, center-based program that at least includes:
(a) employment of a lead teacher who has a two-year degree in early childhood education or a closely related field. A public provider must meet lead teacher requirements as specified in federal statute or regulation;
(b) employment of an education assistant who has a high school degree and pre-service or in-service training in early childhood education;
(c) offering a full-day, center-based program for the school year;
(d) providing an approved research-based preschool curriculum that focuses on critical child development skills, with an emphasis on early literacy, numeracy, social development, and emotional development;
(e) adherence to the professional development requirements of a person providing instruction and classroom support to a child enrolled in a program, including annual participation in at least seven and one-half hours a semester or fifteen hours annually of professional development instruction in strategies and techniques to address the age-appropriate progress of pre-kindergarten students in developing emergent literacy skills, including, but not limited to, oral communication, knowledge of print and letters, phonemic and phonological awareness, and vocabulary and comprehension development; and
(f) maintenance of a classroom with between ten and twenty students who are four years old, and at least one lead teacher. If a classroom has more than ten children, there must be one lead teacher and one education assistant. A waiver of the minimum class size requirement may be granted by the department for a public provider or by First Steps for a private provider.
Section 59-35-400. (A) A provider shall integrate a parenting education program to promote school readiness through strengthening parent involvement in the learning process. A parent education program must include at least:
(1) interactive literacy activities between parents and their children; and
(2) parent training on how to be the primary home teacher for their children and a full partner in the education of their children.
(B) A provider must conduct documented parent conferences at least quarterly to ensure the parent's involvement in the student's life. A provider is not required to conduct an in-person parent conference more than twice a year.
Section 59-35-410. Regarding a private provider approved to offer services pursuant to this article, First Steps shall:
(1) serve as fiscal agent;
(2) verify student enrollment eligibility;
(3) coordinate oversight, monitoring, technical assistance, coordination, and training for classroom providers;
(4) serve as a clearinghouse for information and best practices related to programs;
(5) receive, review, and approve new classroom grant applications based on approved criteria;
(6) coordinate activities and promote collaboration with other private and public, including federal, providers in developing and supporting four-year-old kindergarten programs;
(7) collect and maintain data, as prescribed by the Education Oversight Committee, on children enrolled in private programs;
(8) develop guidelines as necessary for the implementation of a program; and
(9) recruit, review, and approve eligible providers while giving consideration to the provider's availability of permanent space for program service and whether temporary classroom space is necessary to provide a service to a child.
Section 59-35-420. Regarding a public school provider approved to offer services pursuant to this article, the department shall:
(1) serve as its fiscal agent;
(2) verify its student enrollment eligibility;
(3) coordinate oversight, monitoring, technical assistance, coordination, and training for classroom providers;
(4) serve as a clearinghouse for information and best practices related to programs;
(5) receive, review, and approve new classroom grant applications based on approved criteria;
(6) coordinate activities and promote collaboration with other public and private, including federal, providers in developing and supporting four-year-old kindergarten programs;
(7) collection and maintenance of data, as prescribed by the Education Oversight Committee, on children enrolled in public state-funded, full-day and half-day four-year-old kindergarten programs;
(8) develop guidelines as necessary for the implementation of the program; and
(9) recruit, review, and approve eligible providers while giving consideration to the provider's availability of permanent space for program service and whether temporary classroom space is necessary to provide a service to a child.
Section 59-35-430. Pursuant to this article, the South Carolina Department of Social Services shall maintain a list of all approved public and private providers, and provide the department, First Steps, and the Education Oversight Committee information needed to carry out the requirements of this article.
Section 59-35-440. The department, First Steps, the Department of Social Services, Head Start Collaboration Office, and the Education Oversight Committee collaboratively shall establish an ongoing public information campaign to maximize the utilization of public funds available for four-year-old kindergarten by informing the public of the state's program choices, slots available, and educational options. The parties are encouraged to work together to inform the public of all educational opportunities and options available for eligible four-year-old children.
Section 59-35-450. The department and First Steps may promulgate regulations to implement the polices and purposes of this chapter."
SECTION 2. Section 59-35-10 of the 1976 Code is designated Article 1, Chapter 35, Title 59 and entitled "Five-Year-Old Kindergarten".
SECTION 3. If any section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, sentence, clause, phrase, or word of this act is for any reason held to be unconstitutional or invalid, such holding shall not affect the constitutionality or validity of the remaining portions of this act, the General Assembly hereby declaring that it would have passed this act, and each and every section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, sentence, clause, phrase, and word thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more other sections, subsections, paragraphs, subparagraphs, sentences, clauses, phrases, or words hereof may be declared to be unconstitutional, invalid, or otherwise ineffective.
SECTION 4. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
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