AB855: Bill Text

LRB-3574/2

PG:kmg&kjf:rs

2003 - 2004 LEGISLATURE

2003 Assembly BILL 855

February 19, 2004 - Introduced by Representative Sinicki. Referred to Committee on Education Reform.

AB855,1,9 An Act to renumber 119.23 (2) (b); to renumber and amend 118.165 (1) (c), 119.23 (7) (am) and 119.23 (7) (c); to amend 118.13 (2) (b), 118.13 (3) (a) 3., 118.13 (3) (b) 1., 118.13 (3) (b) 2., 118.13 (4), 118.30 (1g) (a) 1., 118.30 (1g) (c), 118.30 (2) (b) 1. and 2., 118.30 (6), 118.33 (1) (f) 3., 119.23 (7) (a) (intro.) and 119.23 (7) (b); and to create 118.13 (1m), 118.13 (2) (am), 118.165 (1) (c) 2., 118.30 (1g) (a) 3., 118.30 (1s), 118.30 (2) (b) 5., 118.33 (1) (f) 2m., 118.33 (6) (c), 119.23 (2) (b) 2., 119.23 (6m), 119.23 (7) (d), 119.23 (7m) (b) to (d) and 119.23 (10) of the statutes; relating to: the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program and providing a penalty.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

This bill makes a number of changes in the laws governing the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP), under which a pupil who resides in the city of Milwaukee may attend a private school at state expense under certain conditions. The changes include the following:

Private school requirements

Currently, in order to qualify as a private school under the law, an institution's educational program must provide at least 875 hours of instruction each school year. This bill provides that if the program offers kindergarten it must provide at least 437 hours of instruction in kindergarten each school year.

The bill also provides that upon request of the Department of Public Instruction (DPI), which administers the MPCP, a private school must demonstrate to DPI's satisfaction that the private school's educational program meets all of the statutory criteria to be a private school. In addition to offering a specified number of hours of instruction each school year (as mentioned above), current law requires all of the following:

1. That the primary purpose of the educational program be to provide private or religious based instruction.

2. That the program be privately controlled.

3. That the program provide a sequentially progressive curriculum of fundamental instruction in reading, language arts, mathematics, social studies, science, and health.

4. That the program not be operated for the purpose of circumventing the compulsory school attendance law.

5. That the pupils in the program return annually to the homes of their parents or guardians for at least two months of summer vacation, or that the institution be licensed as a child welfare agency by the Department of Health and Family Services.

Standards and school requirements

Current law requires each private school participating in the MPCP to meet at least one of the following standards:

1. At least 70 percent of the pupils in the program must advance one grade level each year.

2. The private school's average attendance rate for pupils in the program must be at least 90 percent.

3. At least 80 percent of the pupils in the program must demonstrate significant academic progress.

4. At least 70 percent of the families of pupils in the program must meet parent-involvement criteria established by the private school.

This bill requires each private school participating in the program to meet at least three of the above standards and to annually submit to DPI, a report describing the school's status with respect to the fourth standard.

Pupil assessments

Current law requires each school board to adopt either its own academic standards or the academic standards contained in the governor's executive order issued on January 13, 1998, and to administer fourth, eighth, and tenth grade examinations to fourth, eighth, and tenth grade pupils enrolled in the school district, including pupils enrolled in charter schools (other than independent charter schools) located in the school district. Identical provisions exist under current law for independent charter schools.

Under current law, the fourth, eighth, and tenth grade examinations are not required to be administered to pupils participating in the MPCP.

This bill provides that the governing body of a private school participating in the MPCP must adopt academic standards and administer fourth, eighth, and tenth grade examinations to pupils enrolled in the private school. The governing body may either adopt the DPI examinations or develop its own.

Under current law, each school board must administer to all pupils enrolled in the school district in the third grade, including pupils enrolled in charter schools (other than independent charter schools) located in the school district, a standardized reading test developed by DPI. The independent charter schools are required to administer this test to their third grade pupils. Private schools participating in the MPCP are not required to administer this test. This bill imposes this requirement on these private schools.

High school diplomas; grade promotion

Under current law, each school board and the operator of each independent charter school must develop written policies specifying criteria for granting a high school diploma. Neither a school board nor the operator of an independent charter school may grant a high school diploma to any pupil unless the pupil has satisfied the criteria. Similarly, each school board and each independent charter school must adopt policies specifying criteria for promoting a pupil from the fourth grade to the fifth grade and from the eighth grade to the ninth grade. A pupil may not be promoted unless he or she satisfies the promotion criteria.

This bill imposes upon private schools participating in the MPCP the same prohibitions against graduation and promotion (for pupils attending the private school under the MPCP) that are imposed upon school boards and independent charter schools.

Religious activities

Current law prohibits a private school that is participating in the MPCP from requiring a pupil attending the private school under the program to participate in any religious activity if the pupil's parent or guardian requests that the pupil be exempt from the activity.

This bill requires each private school participating in the MPCP to adopt a policy implementing the requirement described above. The private school must include in the policy a list of the school activities that it has determined are religious activities for the purpose of the exemption requirement. The list must include religious worship, religious instruction, and any school activity that the private school has determined is sectarian, proselytizing, or religiously doctrinal in nature. The bill requires each MPCP school to provide a copy of its policy to each person who expresses an interest in attending the private school under the program and annually to DPI.

The bill directs each MPCP school to ensure that a pupil who is exempt from participating in a religious activity is not present in the room in which the activity occurs. The bill also directs each MPCP school to provide a pupil who is exempt from religious activities with a sufficient number of hours of instruction to meet the statutory requirement for all private schools (at least 875 hours of instruction each school year) and to enable the pupil to advance from grade to grade.

Nondiscrimination

Current law prohibits public schools from discriminating against pupils on the basis of sex, race, religion, national origin, ancestry, creed, pregnancy, marital or parental status, sexual orientation, or physical, mental, emotional, or learning disability. In addition, each school board must adopt policies and procedures implementing this nondiscrimination requirement.

This bill extends the nondiscrimination requirement to schools participating in the MPCP. The bill also requires each MPCP school to develop written policies and procedures to implement the nondiscrimination requirement and to provide each applicant to a school with all of the following: 1) a list of the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of the members of the governing body of the school; 2) a notice stating whether the school is an organization run for profit or not for profit, and, if the school is run not for profit, proof of its federal tax-exempt status; 3) a copy of the appeals process used if the school rejects an applicant for admission; 4) a statement that the school agrees to be subject to the open meetings and open records requirements applicable to public bodies; and 5) a copy of the school's nondiscrimination policies and procedures. In addition, upon request of any person, the school must provide the information above, as well as the number of pupils enrolled in the previous school year, pupil scores on standardized tests administered in the previous school year, and the number of pupils who were expelled or who failed to graduate in the previous school year.

Limitation on enrollment

The bill provides that no more then 65 percent of a private school's enrollment may consist of MPCP pupils.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB855, s. 1 Section 1. 118.13 (1m) of the statutes is created to read:

AB855,4,8 118.13 (1m) No person who wishes to attend a private school under s. 119.23 may be denied admission to that school and no pupil who is attending a private school under s. 119.23 may be denied participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be discriminated against in any curricular, extracurricular, pupil services, recreational, or other program or activity of that school because of the person's sex, race, religion, national origin, ancestry, creed, pregnancy, marital or parental status, sexual orientation, or physical, mental, emotional, or learning disability.

AB855, s. 2 Section 2. 118.13 (2) (am) of the statutes is created to read:

AB855,5,6 118.13 (2) (am) Each private school participating in the program under s. 119.23 shall develop written policies and procedures to implement this section and submit them to the state superintendent. The policies and procedures shall provide for receiving and investigating complaints regarding possible violations of this section, for making determinations as to whether this section has been violated, and for ensuring compliance with this section.

AB855, s. 3 Section 3. 118.13 (2) (b) of the statutes is amended to read: