FILE: H-2.4a
PUBLIC SCHOOL CHOICE
PUBLIC SCHOOL CHOICE
The Central Community School Board is required by both Federal law and the Louisiana School Accountability Program to develop and maintain a Public School Choice policy for any school with a School Performance Score (SPS) below levels set by the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE). School Choice allows eligible students to transfer to an academically acceptable school. Subgroup component refers to the testing performance within a specified subgroup of students.
Once schools eligible to receive students have been identified (those schools that are labeled academically acceptable), a school-site utilization study shall be conducted as needed in all schools to determine the extent to which capacity exists to possibly accommodate students from schools offering choice, including students with special needs and/or students with disabilities.
The Superintendent and staff shall be responsible for developing and managing a School Choice Plan, which shall determine the schools to which students may transfer, which students shall have priority in transferring, and all other regulations and procedures for supervising school choice within the school district.
Notification
Notification of parents of their school choice options shall be sent as early as possible, but not later than the first day of the school year for the schools that are required to offer choice. If there are no choice options available, this information shall be included in the notification sent parents.
Eligibility of Students
All students in a school required to offer choice shall be eligible to transfer. However, the School Board shall give priority to the lowest achieving students from low-income families, as determined by the School Board.
LOUISIANA PUBLIC SCHOOL CHOICE
General
In
accordance with La.
Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:4035.1, Louisiana Public
School Choice provides for the right of a parent or legal
guardians to enroll his/her child in a school other than the school
to which the child was scheduled to be enrolled, if the school
at which the child was most recently enrolled received a School
Performance Score of "D" or "F" in the most
recent school year, and the school in which the child is seeking
to be enrolled received a School Performance Score of "A",
"B" or "C" in the most recent school year,
pursuant to the state's school and district accountability system. As
La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:4035.1 provides for certain
variable eligibility criterion, any enrollment based upon the
Louisiana Public School Choice option shall be considered
an annual enrollment and shall not obligate the School Board to
allow for enrollment beyond one (1) school year.
The School Board shall define “capacity” for each school, and determine a transfer request period which shall begin no later than March first and end no earlier than March twenty-eighth, annually. Prior to the transfer request period, the School Board shall notify parents and legal guardians of students enrolled in schools that received a D or F school performance letter grade of the following:
The provisions of the Louisiana Public School Choice
policy;
Schools under the jurisdiction of the School Board that
received an A, B, or C school performance letter grade, if
any;
The process for submitting student transfer requests;
and,
The page on the Louisiana Department of Education’s website that contains school performance data.
Single Point of Contact
A
parent or guardian wishing to exercise the public school choice
option who resides and intends on continuing to reside during
the upcoming school year inside or outside of the Central Community
School District shall contact the School Board’s Supervisor of
Child Welfare and Attendance. This shall be the only
office authorized to process an application to enroll under La.
Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:4035.1.
A
birth certificate, identification and/or proof of guardianship
shall be provided at the time of application.
An
application for enrollment shall serve as consent for the School
Board to obtain the
records and information necessary to determine the eligibility/ineligibility
of the student.
Applications shall be time/date stamped to establish timeliness of filing.
Verification of Initial Eligibility
Documentation
of the prior school enrollment of the student shall be provided;
such as report
card or official correspondence.
The
School Board shall verify that the school in which the student
was most recently enrolled or would have otherwise attended, received
school performance letter grade of a "D" or "F".
The
parent or guardian shall identify the school for which the student
seeks enrollment, and the School Board shall verify that such
school received a letter grade of "A'', "B'', or "C"
for the most recent school year.
Eligibility shall be determined on an annual basis.
Verification of Capacity
The
primary obligation of the School Board shall be to provide for
the enrollment of students who reside
within the Central Community School District. Therefore,
the School Board shall not enroll students wishing to transfer
under this policy to the extent that such enrollment may conflict
with this primary obligation.
Upon
receipt of a Louisiana Public School Choice application
for enrollment, the School Board shall verify whether the
school for which the student seeks enrollment has sufficient capacity.
The
capacity verification shall take into account grade level and
special program requirement, such as gifted and talented or special
needs and shall be made on a school-by-school basis after the
official student count on October 1 of each school year.
For
purposes of determining capacity, as determined by School Board
staffing policy, and school which has an anticipated enrollment
of greater than 80% of its optimal total student capacity, in
the grade in which the student seeks to enroll, shall be deemed
to have insufficient capacity to allow for a Louisiana Public
School Choice enrollment. Any school that has portables
or modular buildings shall be considered at capacity.
Upon
such a determination, the parent shall be advised that the school
for which enrollment is sought
has insufficient capacity.
The verification of capacity shall be an annual determination for the re-enrollment of students for each subsequent year.
Excess Applications
In
the event the number of applications for enrollment exceeds the
capacity in any particular school, students enrolled in the school
for the prior year shall have preference.
If, after enrolling all prior year students, applicants exceed the remaining capacity, applicants shall be selected in order of timeliness of application until capacity is no longer available.
Athletic Eligibility
Principals and athletic directors
shall be responsible for contacting the Louisiana High School Athletic
Association (LHSAA) to determine the eligibility of the student for
participation in varsity sports. In order to participate
in varsity sports sanctioned by the LHSAA, students shall have written
approval of the LHSAA.
Transportation
Parents and guardians of
students who do not reside within the Central Community School District
shall be responsible
for the transportation
of students to and from the school where the student is enrolled.
Ineligibility
A student meeting any of the following shall be ineligible to enroll as a student under the provisions of this policy:
The
student was expelled for disciplinary reasons in the current
or preceding school year;
The
student was suspended more than once in the current or preceding
school year;
The
student was involved in more than one fight or other act of
violence on school grounds or at a school sponsored event
in the preceding school year;
The
student was found in possession of any illicit drug or narcotic
on school grounds in the current or preceding school year;
The student had more than ten (10) unexcused absences during the current or preceding school year.
After enrollment, a student shall be ineligible to continue enrollment as a student under the provisions of Louisiana Public School Choice if any of the following apply:
The student is suspended more than once during the school
year;
The student is expelled for disciplinary reasons during
the school year;
The student is involved in more than one fight or other
act of violence on school grounds during the school year;
The student is found in possession of any illicit drug
or narcotic on school grounds during the school year;
The student has more than ten (10) unexcused absences during the school year.
Revised: November 8, 2021
Revised: May 9, 2022
Ref: La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§17:105, 17:4035.1
Louisiana School, District, and State Accountability System, Bulletin 111, Louisiana Department of Education
Board minutes, 10-27-14, 11-8-21, 5-9-22
Central Community School Board