GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

EXTRA SESSION 1994

H	1 

HOUSE BILL 219*

Short Title:  Alternative Schools Grants/Assignment. 	(Public)
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Sponsors: Representatives Russell; Alphin, Bowman, Edwards, Gardner, Ives, Nichols, J. Preston, Sexton, and Wood.
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Referred to:  Education.
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February 14, 1994

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO APPROPRIATE FUNDS FOR AN ALTERNATIVE SCHOOLS GRANT PROGRAM AND TO PERMIT JUDGES TO ASSIGN STUDENTS TO ALTERNATIVE SCHOOLS.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1. (a)	There is appropriated from the General Fund to Aid to Local School Administrative Units the sum of thirty million dollars ($30,000,000) for the 1994-95 fiscal year to provide grants of one-time funds for local school administrative units to enable them to establish or expand alternative school programs.  An alternative school program is a program for students whose behaviors make it appropriate to serve them outside of a standard classroom setting.  Characteristics of the program may include smaller classes and lower student/teacher ratios, school-to-work transition activities, modification of curriculum and instruction to meet individual needs, flexible scheduling, and necessary academic, vocational, and support services for students and their families.  Services may also include appropriate measures to teach responsibility, good citizenship, and respect for rules and authority.
These funds shall be used only to construct, renovate, or otherwise provide  facilities for the program and for equipment, materials, supplies, and other one-time expenses of establishing or expanding the alternative school program.  The maximum amount of each grant shall be five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000).
(b) A local school administrative unit may apply for a grant, or two or more adjacent local school administrative units may apply jointly for a grant.
(c) An applicant for a grant shall submit to the State Board of Education an application that includes the following information:
(1)	An assessment of the need for the establishment or expansion of an alternative school program in the local school administrative unit.
(2)	A detailed plan for the establishment or expansion of, and for the operation of, the alternative school program.  Applicants are encouraged to include in this plan two approaches for serving students, one for students whose behaviors are disruptive and threaten school safety and one for students who (i) are not achieving at their full potential, (ii) are at risk of academic failure, and (iii) would profit from the alternative school setting.
(3)	A statement of how the grant funds would be used and what other resources would be used for the establishment or expansion of, and for and operation of, the program.
(4)	A process for assessing on an annual basis the success of the alternative school program in meeting the needs of students assigned to it and enabling them to return to a standard classroom setting, to a job training program, or to gainful employment.
(d) In reviewing grant applications, the State Board of Education shall consider the need for the establishment or expansion of an alternative school program in the local school administrative unit, the likelihood that the plan will result in the establishment or expansion of, and the operation of, a program that will benefit the students assigned to it, and the level of commitment of the local school administrative unit to the successful establishment or expansion of, and the operation of, the program.  The State Board shall also attempt to give grants to local school administrative units that do not currently have alternative school programs, that are located geographically throughout the State, that have different demographic profiles, and that propose different plans for establishing or expanding, and operating the alternative school program.  The State Board shall select initial grant recipients as soon as possible and shall select all grant recipients prior to January 1, 1996.  
(e) The Department of Public Instruction shall provide technical assistance to grant applicants and recipients of the development of plans for the development or expansion of  alternative school programs and on the implementation of those plans.
(f) The State Board of Education shall report to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee prior to March 15, 1995, and prior to January 15, 1996, on how the funds are being used and on assistance provided to local school administrative units by the Department of Public Instruction.
Sec. 2. G.S. 7A-648 is amended to add a new subdivision to read:
"(4)	Unless the juvenile is a child with special needs pursuant to Article 9 of Chapter 115C of the General Statutes and notwithstanding any law to the contrary, order that the juvenile attend an alternative school program in the local school administrative unit if the juvenile has been expelled or suspended by the local board of education or the judge finds that the juvenile's behavior makes it appropriate for the juvenile to attend an alternative school and it is in the best interest of the juvenile and the local school administrative unit for the juvenile to attend an alternative school.  
	If the juvenile is a child with special needs pursuant to Article 9 of Chapter 115C of the General Statutes, request the child's local educational agency to have the appropriateness of the child's placement reconsidered in light of the judge's finding that the juvenile's behavior makes it more appropriate for the juvenile to attend an alternative school and it is in the best interest of the juvenile and the local school administrative unit for the juvenile to attend an alternative school." 
Sec. 3.  G.S. 115C-366(b) reads as rewritten:
"(b)	Each local board of education shall assign to a public school each student qualified for assignment under this section.  Except as otherwise provided by G.S. 7A-648(4) or any other provision of law, the authority of each board of education in the matter of assignment of children to the public schools shall be full and complete, and its decision as to the assignment of any child to any school shall be final."
Sec. 4. G.S. 115C-391(e) reads as rewritten:
"(e)	A decision of a local board under subsection (c) or (d) is final and, except as provided in this subsection, is subject to judicial review in accordance with Article 4 of Chapter 150B of the General Statutes.  A person seeking judicial review shall file a petition in the superior court of the county where the local board made its decision.
The decision may also be modified in accordance with G.S. 7A-648(4)."
Sec. 5.  This act becomes effective July 1, 1994.