A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to make modifications related to the UNIVERSITY of north carolina laboratory schools and to appropriate funds for their operation.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 116‑239.5 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:
"(e)	In addition to all other immunities provided to them by applicable State law, the Subcommittee, chancellor, the constituent institution, an advisory board, and a laboratory school, and their members, employees, and agents shall be entitled to the specific immunities provided for in Chapter 115C of the General Statutes applying to the State Board of Education, Superintendent of Public Instruction, a local board of education, a local school administrative unit, and their members and employees. Any such immunity to liability established by this subsection shall not extend to gross negligence, wanton conduct, or intentional wrongdoing that would otherwise be actionable. Immunity established by this subsection shall be deemed to be waived to the extent of indemnification under Article 31A and Article 31B of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes and to the extent sovereign immunity is waived under the Tort Claims Act, as set forth in Article 31 of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 116‑239.7(b) reads as rewritten:
"(b)	Resolution by the Subcommittee to Approve a Laboratory School. – The Subcommittee shall adopt a resolution upon the approval of each laboratory school, which shall include the following:
(1)	Name of the laboratory school.
(2)	The local school administrative unit in which the laboratory school shall be located.
(3)	A term of operation for the laboratory school of five years from the date of initial operation. At the end of the initial five years of operation, the Subcommittee shall renew the term of operation for additional five‑year periods under the resolution if the laboratory school is still located in a local school administrative unit that has twenty‑five percent (25%) or more of the schools located in the unit identified as low‑performing under G.S. 115C‑105.37, or if the Subcommittee renews a waiver of this requirement under subsection (a2) of this section. If the laboratory school is no longer (i) located in a qualifying local school administrative unit or (ii) meeting the purposes of this Article under a waiver at the end of five years, the Subcommittee may renew the term of operation for additional five‑year periods under the resolution if the Subcommittee finds the school is successfully meeting its mission to improve student performance and provide valuable exposure and training for teachers and principals in the constituent institution's educator preparation program. The Subcommittee may terminate operation of any laboratory school during the initial term of operation or during a five‑year renewal period if the Subcommittee finds it is failing to meet expected progress toward meeting the mission of the school consistent with the requirements of this Article. The Subcommittee shall notify the Board of Governors of the end of the term of operation of a laboratory school and request designation of additional constituent institutions with educator preparation programs to establish a laboratory school in accordance with the provisions of this Article."
SECTION 3.  G.S. 116‑239.8(b)(4) reads as rewritten:
"(4)	Operation and Maintenance of Laboratory Schools. – The chancellor and the local school administrative unit shall do the following for the operation and maintenance of the laboratory school:
a.	Facilities and leases. – The local school administrative unit in which the laboratory school is located shall lease adequate facilities to the constituent institution for use as a laboratory school. The lease shall include use of or access to any existing buildings, parking areas, playgrounds, driveways required for ingress and egress, furniture, classroom space, a cafeteria or multipurpose room, moveable equipment, appliances, playground materials, including a library collection, instructional materials and classroom and other technology equipment necessary to operate the laboratory school. Lease payments by the constituent institution shall not exceed one dollar ($1.00), and the lease term shall be terminated if the laboratory school ceases operation. It is the obligation of the local school administrative unit to maintain the facilities and premises of the laboratory school, at its cost, and to keep them in good repair and tenantable condition by providing, at its cost, all routine custodial services and routine facilities maintenance services, including routine indoor maintenance, routine mowing, trimming, and maintenance of exterior landscaping and snow removal, and timely repair of the facilities and premises. The chancellor is authorized to execute the lease agreement and memoranda of agreement for the operation of a laboratory school, but in no event shall any of the agreements expand the costs to be borne by the constituent institution for the operation of a laboratory school beyond those expressly provided for in this Article.
b.	Technology. – In the event a constituent institution provides technological upgrades to a laboratory school, the local school administrative unit may purchase a technology upgrade from the constituent institution upon the closure of the laboratory school. The local school administrative unit in which the laboratory school is located shall provide, at its cost, technology support for the PowerSchool application as provided by the State Board of Education pursuant to G.S. 115C‑12(18), systems administration, service desk support, and technician support related to the operation of the laboratory school. The chancellor shall arrange for the provision of these services from the local school administrative unit.
c.	Transportation. – The local school administrative unit in which the laboratory school is located shall provide, at its cost, transportation to students who reside in the local school administrative unit and attend the laboratory school, including any students who are homeless and require assistance pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 11301, et seq., the McKinney‑Vento Homeless Assistance Act. The requirement to provide transportation to students residing in the local school administrative unit shall (i) apply regardless of where a laboratory school student resides in the unit or how the unit's transportation policies and practices are applied to other students and (ii) include providing transportation of students and personnel for laboratory school extracurricular activities and educational trips in the same manner as other schools in the unit for that school year. The chancellor shall arrange for the provision of these services from the local school administrative unit.
d.	Food services. – The local school administrative unit in which the laboratory school is located shall administer, at its cost, the National School Lunch Program for the laboratory school in accordance with G.S. 115C‑264. The chancellor shall arrange for the provision of these services from the local school administrative unit.
e.	Student support services. – The local school administrative unit in which the laboratory school is located shall provide, at its cost, all student support services for the operation of the laboratory school, including (i) services required by the Department of Public Instruction for children with disabilities, (ii) children and family support services, including social worker and school nurse services, (iii) other health services, including dental screenings, vision screenings, and similar health services that apply to other students enrolled in the local school administrative unit, (iv) parent involvement coordinator services, and (v) school counselor services. The chancellor shall arrange for the provision of these services from the local school administrative unit."
SECTION 4.  G.S. 116‑239.9 reads as rewritten:
"§ 116‑239.9.  Student admissions and assignment.
(a)	A child shall be eligible to attend a laboratory school if the child resides in the local school administrative unit in which a laboratory school is located and meets at least one of the following criteria:
(1)	Is assigned to a low‑performing school, as defined by G.S. 115C‑105.37 at the time of the student's application.
(2)	Did not meet expected growth in the prior school year based on one or more indicators listed in subsection (c1) of this section.
(3)	Is the sibling of a child who is eligible under subdivision (1) or (2) of this subsection.
(4)	Is the child of a laboratory school employee.
(b)	No local board of education shall require any student enrolled in the local school administrative unit to attend a laboratory school.
(c)	During each period of enrollment, the laboratory school shall enroll an eligible student under subsection (a) of this section who submits a timely application, up to the capacity of a program, class, grade level, or building, in the order in which applications are received. Once enrolled, students are not required to reapply in subsequent enrollment periods. The laboratory school may give enrollment priority to the sibling of an enrolled student who attended the laboratory school in the prior school year.
(c1)	For the purposes of this Article, any of the following shall serve as indicators that a student did not meet expected student growth in the prior school year: (i) grades, (ii) observations, (iii) diagnostic and formative assessments, (iv) State assessments, or (v) other factors, including reading on grade level.
(c2)	Notwithstanding the requirements of subsection (a) of this section, if a laboratory school has not reached enrollment capacity in a program, class, grade level, or building by March 1, prior to the start of the next school year, the laboratory school may enroll children who reside in the local school administrative unit in which the laboratory school is located but do not meet one of the criteria set forth in subdivisions (1) through (4) of subsection (a) of this section for up to twenty percent (20%) of the total capacity of the program, class, grade level, or building.
(d)	Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, a laboratory school may refuse admission to any student who has been expelled or suspended from a public school under G.S. 115C‑390.5 through G.S. 115C‑390.11 until the period of suspension or expulsion has expired.
(e)	Within one year after a laboratory school begins operation, the laboratory school shall make reasonable efforts in the recruitment process for the population of the school to reasonably reflect the racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic composition of the general population of the students residing within the local school administrative unit in which the school is located. A laboratory school shall not unlawfully discriminate when making admissions determinations."
SECTION 5.  Section 11.6(d) of S.L. 2016‑94, as amended by Section 4 of S.L. 2017‑117, reads as rewritten:
"SECTION 11.6.(d)  Notwithstanding G.S. 116‑239.5, (i) at least six laboratory schools shall be established pursuant to Article 29A of Chapter 116 of the General Statutes, as enacted by this section, and in operation by the beginning of the 2020‑2021 school year and (ii) at least an additional three laboratory schools shall be established pursuant to Article 29A of Chapter 116 of the General Statutes and in operation by the beginning of the 2022‑2023 school year."
SECTION 6.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Board of Governors of The University of North Carolina the sum of eight hundred ninety‑five thousand dollars ($895,000) in nonrecurring funds for the 2020‑2021 fiscal year to be allocated to constituent institutions operating laboratory schools pursuant to Article 29A of Chapter 116 of the General Statutes during the 2020‑2021 school year on a pro rata basis to be used for laboratory school lease and facilities maintenance costs, technology costs, transportation services costs, food services costs, and student support services costs incurred by the laboratory schools.
SECTION 7.  Section 6 of this act becomes effective July 1, 2020. The remainder of this act is effective when it becomes law. Section 1 of this act applies to an action or omission of an action occurring on or after the date this act becomes law. Section 4 of this act applies beginning with the 2020‑2021 school year. Section 3 of this act applies to a memorandum of understanding entered into on or after the date this act becomes law and applies beginning with the 2021‑2022 school year and subsequent school years.