Senate committee substitute to the 2nd edition makes the following changes.
Organizes the act into Parts.
Part I.
Amends new GS 115C-218.124 to allow a nonprofit that has a school code for in-person instruction in addition to a school code for a remote charter academy to provide all financial reporting for both school codes jointly in a form directed by the Department of Public Instruction.
Part II.
Eliminates the proposed changes to Section 8.35(e), SL 2014-100, as amended, regarding the funding of the virtual charter school pilot program.
Makes a technical change to the effective date provision.
Part III.
Adds the following new content. Amends GS 115D-3, establishing a procedure for the State Board of Community Colleges (State Board) to elect a President of the Community Colleges System. Requires at least three final candidates to be submitted to the full State Board from which the Board must conduct a vote, whereby the candidate who receives a majority of votes of the entire State Board is elected, subject to legislative confirmation pursuant to new GS 115D-3.1. Eliminates the catch-all provision in current law that grants the State Board all other powers, duties, and responsibilities delegated to the State Board of Education affecting the Community College System Office not otherwise stated in GS Chapter 115D.
Enacts GS 115D-3.1, requiring the State Board to submit the name of the person elected as President for confirmation to the presiding officers of each NCGA chamber by the fifteenth day following the election. Requires the NCGA to adopt a joint resolution to confirm or deny confirmation. Prohibits the person elected from serving as President until a joint resolution is adopted, but permits serving as interim-President. Deems the confirmation denied if no joint resolution is adopted by the thirtieth day following receipt of the name by presiding officers. Bars persons denied confirmation from serving as President or interim-President.
Makes organizational changes to the effective date provisions.
Changes the act's titles.
Bill Summaries: H149 REMOTE & VIRTUAL CHARTER/CC PRES CONFIRMATION. (NEW)
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Bill H 149 (2023-2024)Summary date: Apr 4 2023 - View Summary
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Bill H 149 (2023-2024)Summary date: Mar 7 2023 - View Summary
House committee substitute to the 1st edition makes the following changes. Amends GS 115C-218.120 to now specify that a charter that includes a remote charter academy may do any of the following three things: (1) Provide only remote instruction to enrolled students served by the charter. (2) Provide remote instruction to students enrolled in the remote charter academy and provide in-person instruction to other students served by the charter. (3) Provide enrolled students both remote instruction and in-person instruction. Specifies that a student who receives more than half of the student's instruction through remote instruction will be classified as enrolled in the charter's remote charter academy.
Amends GS 115C-218.121 to specify that a board of directors must require an application to secure parental consent prior to enrollment of a student in a remote charter academy. (Was, charter school.) Adds language prohibiting remote charter academies from denying admission to any student solely because the student is a child with a disability. Amends GS 115-218.122 to specify that the licensure requirements and evaluation for employees of remote charter schools must be the same as required by GS 115C-218.90. (Was, the same as required of in-person employees of charter schools.) Amends GS 115C-218.124 to specify that the requirement that the Board approve a minimum of two statewide charter academies is beginning with the 2026-27 school year and thereafter.
Expands the scope of the exemption of the remote learning limitations under GS 115C-84.3 by adding Part 7 of Article 14A to list.
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Bill H 149 (2023-2024)Summary date: Feb 20 2023 - View Summary
Adds new Part 7, Remote Charter Academies, in Article 14A of GS Chapter 115C, providing as follows.
Allows a nonprofit, as a part of an application or modification of a charter, to apply to the State Board of Education (Board) for approval to include a remote charter academy that meets the Part's requirements as part of the nonprofit's charter. Allows a charter that includes a remote charter academy to enroll students for both in-person instruction and in the remote charter academy. Requires the nonprofit to designate which of the following enrollment areas the remote charter academy will use, a statewide remote charter academy that admits students in accordance with charter school admission requirements in GS 115C-218.45, or a regional remote charter academy that admits students only from the county in which the charter school is located and the counties geographically contiguous to that county. Provides that a remote charter academy provides instruction primarily online using a combination of synchronous and asynchronous instruction delivered to students in a remote location outside of the school facility. Allows a remote charter academy to include any combination of grade levels.
Requires parental consent for a student to be assigned to attend a remote charter academy. Requires a remote charter academy to identify characteristics for successful remote learning and establish criteria for admittance, with this information provided to parents. Prohibits denying admission on the basis of disability. Requires an admitted student's IEP team to plan for a successful student entry and for accommodations necessary to provide for a free appropriate public education in the remote charter academy. Allows a charter school providing in-person instruction to reassign a student to in-person instruction if it is determined by the board of directors that in-person instruction would better ensure the student's academic success.
Specifies, that except as provided, a remote charter academy must meet the same requirements as for other charter schools. Requires a remote charter academy to provide enrolled students with (1) needed hardware and software; (2) access to a learning management platform that enables monitoring of student performance and school-owned devices, and allows video conferencing and supervised text-based chat; (3) internet access during instructional hours, evenings, and weekends; (4) technical support during instructional hours; (5) for children with an IEP, adaptive or assistive devices, transportation, and in-person services as required by that program or plan. Allows requiring students to attend in person to fulfill State-mandated student assessments and allows optional in-person meetings between students and instructors or parents and instructors. Requires remote charter academy employees to meet the same licensure and evaluation requirements as required for in-person employees of charter schools. Requires sufficient digital teaching and learning support staff, including specified individuals.
Set out information that a nonprofit seeking to provide a remote charter academy must submit to the Board as part of its application. Requires the Board to review and approve a charter or modification for the creation of a remote charter academy that meets the Part's requirements for a term of five years. Requires approval of at least two statewide remote charter academies.
Requires an approved remote charter academy to adhere to the plan approved by the Board unless the board of trustees obtains a charter modification. Allows applying for renewal of the remote charter academy for additional terms of five years. Requires the Board, in considering a renewal, to consider compliance with this Part and the remote charter academy's success in the prior five years.
Requires the Board to evaluate the success of approved remote charter academies, measured by school performance scores and grades, retention rates, attendance rates, and, for grades 9-12, high school completion and dropout rates. Requires the Board to report annually in November to the specified NCGA committee on the academies and on any recommended statutory changes.
Makes organizational changes to GS Chapter 115C by moving the specified statutes into Part 1 of Article 14A, Governance and Applications for Charter Schools; into Part 2 of Article 14A, Operation of Charter Schools; into Part 3 of Article 14A, Evaluation of Charter Schools; into Part 4 of Article 14A, Funding of Charter Schools; into Part 5 of Article 14A, Reporting on Charter Schools; and into Part 6 of Article 14A, Charter Schools Pre-K Programs.
Amends Section 8.35 of SL 2014-100, as amended, by extending the length of the Board's pilot program that authorizes the operation of two virtual charter schools serving students in K-12 by one year so that it now ends with the 2025-26 (was, 2024-25) school year. Also amends the maximum enrollment of schools participating in the pilot for 2023-24 so that the maximum is the authorized student enrollment for that participating school for the 2021-22 school year plus enrollment growth of up to 20% of that enrollment; provides that for the remaining years of the pilot, the participating schools may increase enrollment in accordance with GS 115C-218.7(b) (which specifies that enrollment growth of greater than 20% is considered a material revision of the charter if the charter is currently identified as low-performing while greater than 30% is considered a material revision of the charter for any charter school that is not identified as low-performing. Prohibits approving a material revision for enrollment growth of greater than 20% for a low-performing charter and allows additional enrollment growth of greater than 30% for schools that are not low-performing only if specified findings are made.) Amends the provisions governing funding provided to the schools participating in the pilot to: (1) no longer exclude the allocation for low-wealth counties supplemental funding and the allocation for small county supplemental funding from the amount allocated that is based on the average per pupil allocation for average daily membership from the local school administrative unit allotments in which the charter school is located and (2) no longer set the amount of local funds provided to participating schools under GS 115C-218.105(c) at the lesser of $790 per pupil or the amount computed in accordance with GS 115C-218.105(c). Allows a virtual charter school that participated in the pilot program to be eligible to apply to the Board for a charter renewal as a remote charter academy. Applies beginning with the 2023-24 school year.
Applies to applications for new charters and charter modifications beginning with the 2023-24 school year.