North Carolina § 115C-218 - 94. Identification of low-performing and continually low-performing charter schools.

§ 115C-218. 94. Identification of low-performing and continually low-performing charter schools.

Identification of Low-Performing Charter Schools. - The State Board of Education shall identify low-performing charter schools on an annual basis. Low-performing charter schools are those that earn an overall school performance grade of D or F and a school growth score of "met expected growth" or "not met expected growth" as defined by G.S. 115C-83.15. Identification of Continually Low-Performing Charter Schools. - The State Board of Education shall identify continually low-performing charter schools on an annual basis. A continually low-performing charter school is a charter school that has been designated by the State Board as low-performing for at least two of three consecutive years. History (2016-79, s. 1.7(a); 2017-57, s. 7.26(i).) Editor's Note. - Session Laws 2016-79, s. 1.7(d), provides: "A charter school identified as inadequate that developed and is following a strategic plan required by G.S. 115C-218.95(b)(1) , as repealed by this section, shall not be required to continue the strategic plan during the 2016-2017 school year and thereafter if that charter school has not been identified as low-performing under G.S. 115C-218.94 ." Session Laws 2016-79, s. 3, provides: "It is the intent of the General Assembly to study and revise the standards for identifying low-performing charter schools." Session Laws 2016-79, s. 4, made this section effective June 30, 2016, and applicable beginning with the 2016-2017 school year. Session Laws 2017-57, s. 7.26( l ), made the amendment to subsection (a) of this section by Session Laws 2017-57, s. 7.26(i), applicable beginning with the 2017-2018 school year. Session Laws 2017-57, s. 1.1, provides: "This act shall be known as the 'Current Operations Appropriations Act of 2017.'" Session Laws 2017-57, s. 39.6, is a severability clause. Session Laws 2020-3, s. 2.1, as amended by Session Laws 2020-49, s. 3(a), provides: "For the purposes of this Part, the following definitions apply: "(1) Authority. - State Education Assistance Authority. "(2) Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) emergency. - The period beginning March 10, 2020, and continuing until the Governor signs an executive order rescinding Executive Order No. 116 (Declaration of a State of Emergency to Coordinate Response and Protective Actions to Prevent the Spread of COVID-19). "(3) Federal testing waiver. - The testing waiver granted to the State Board of Education by the United States Department of Education for the 2019-2020 school year, pursuant to section 8401(b) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended, which, pursuant to G.S. 115C-174.11 , eliminated the collection of certain student assessment data for the 2019-2020 school year. "(4) Modified calendar school. - A school that a local board designated as having a modified calendar for the 2003-2004 school year or any school that was part of a planned program in the 2003-2004 school year for a system of modified calendar schools, so long as the school operates under a modified calendar. "(5) State Board. - The State Board of Education. "(6) Year-round school. - A school with a single or multi-track instructional calendar that was adopted prior to March 1, 2020, and provides instructional days in compliance with Section 2.11(b)(1) of this Part throughout the entire school calendar year, beginning July 1 and ending June 30, by utilizing at least one of the following plans: "a. A plan dividing students into four groups and requiring each group to be in school for assigned and staggered quarters each school calendar year. "b. A plan providing students be scheduled to attend an average of between 44 and 46 instructional days followed by an average of between 15 and 20 days of vacation, repeated throughout the school calendar year. "c. A plan dividing the school calendar year into five nine-week sessions of classes and requiring each student to attend four assigned and staggered sessions out of the five nine-week sessions to complete the student's instructional year." Session Laws 2020-3, s. 2.2, provides: "The purpose of this Part is to clarify or modify certain requirements in consideration of actions and circumstances related to the COVID-19 emergency, including, but not limited to, the federal testing waiver and the closure of schools for in-person instruction during the 2019-2020 school year." Session Laws 2020-3, s. 2.5(a), provides: "Low-Performing Schools. - Notwithstanding G.S. 115C-105.37 and G.S. 115C-218.94(a) , for the 2020-2021 school year, the following applies: "(1) The State Board shall not identify additional low-performing schools based on data from the 2019-2020 school year. "(2) Schools previously identified as low-performing based on data from the 2018-2019 school year shall continue to be identified as low-performing. "(3) Previously identified low-performing schools shall continue to carry out the final plan approved by the local board of education pursuant to G.S. 115C-105.37(a1) . "(4) The State Board and the local board of education shall continue to provide online access to each low-performing school's plan in accordance with G.S. 115C-105.37(a1)(5) . "(5) The written parental notice required by G.S. 115C-105.37(b) is not required to be provided again, but local boards of education of low-performing schools shall include with their online final plans a brief explanation that low-performing identification continues pending assessment data from the 2020-2021 school year." Session Laws 2020-3, s. 2.5(b), provides: "Continually Low-Performing Schools. - Notwithstanding G.S. 115C-105.37 A and G.S. 115C-218.94(b) , for the 2020-2021 school year, the following applies: "(1) The State Board shall not identify additional continually low-performing schools based on data from the 2019-2020 school year. "(2) Schools previously identified as continually low-performing based on data from the 2018-2019 school year shall continue to be identified as continually low-performing. "(3) Previously identified continually low-performing schools shall continue to carry out the plan approved by the State Board pursuant to G.S. 115C-105.37 A(a). "(4) Assistance and intervention levels provided for the 2019-2020 school year based on designation as low-performing for two years under G.S. 115C-105.37 A(b) or low-performing for three years under G.S. 115C-105.37 A(c) shall continue. "(5) Local boards of education may request to reform a continually low-performing school in accordance with G.S. 115C-105.37 B." Session Laws 2020-3, s. 5, is a severability clause. Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2017-57, s. 7.26(i), effective July 1, 2017, substituted "earn an overall" for "receive a" in subsection (a). For applicability, see editor's note.