Alaska § 14.03.410 - Early education programs; grants.

§ 14.03.410. Early education programs; grants.

 (a) The department shall provide training and assistance to develop and improve district-wide early education programs that comply with standards adopted by the board under AS 14.07.165 (a)(5).

 (b) The department may award a grant to provide funding for a three-year period for the development or improvement of a district-wide early education program to a district that has not received a grant under this section, applies in a format prescribed by the department, provides the information required under (g) of this section, and is eligible for a grant as specified under (c) of this section. Unless the legislature appropriates another amount, total grant funding awarded to districts under this subsection may not exceed $3,000,000 in a fiscal year.

 (c) The department shall rank the performance of each district in the state in accordance with the accountability system and performance designations required under AS 14.03.123 . When approving grants under (b) of this section, the department shall prioritize eligible districts with lower performance based on the department's ranking of districts under this subsection. A district is eligible for a grant if the department determines an insufficient number of children in the district attend high quality child care programs, including head start programs, early education programs provided by a local government, and early education programs provided by child development agencies, that        (1) meet or exceed the standards adopted by the board under AS 14.07.165 (a)(5); and

 (2) would continue operating after development of a district early education program.

 (d) If the department does not approve the early education program of a district awarded a grant under (b) of this section by the end of the district's three-year grant period, the department may provide a one-year remediation grant to allow the district one additional fiscal year to meet the early education program standards adopted by the board under AS 14.07.165 (a)(5). If the district is unable to meet the early education program standards at the end of that fiscal year, the department may, in the discretion of the commissioner, provide an additional remediation grant to allow the district not more than one additional fiscal year to meet the standards. Nothing in this section prohibits a district from using its own funds to continue the remediation process.

 (e) A student in an early education program may not be counted in a district's ADM under AS 14.17.500 unless the department has approved the program.

 (f) A grant under this section is subject to appropriation, but may not supplant other early education funding available to districts.

 (g) Before applying for a grant under (b) of this section, a district shall, to avoid duplicate programs and facilitate resource sharing to improve early education within the district, consult with each local and tribal head start program within the district's boundaries. An application submitted under (b) of this section must include documentation establishing that the district consulted with each local and tribal head start program within the district.

 (h) In this section,        (1) “ADM” has the meaning given in AS 14.17.990 ;

 (2) “district” has the meaning given in AS 14.17.990 ;

 (3) “early education program” means a program, the primary function of which is educational, for children who are four and five years of age and who have not attended a public school kindergarten.