Source: http://delcode.delaware.gov/sessionlaws/ga144/chp327.shtml
Timestamp: 2014-07-30 09:05:31
Document Index: 36490980

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 160', '§ 161', '§ 167', '§ 168', '§ 171', '§ 162', '§ 163', '§ 164', '§ 165', '§ 166', '§ 165', '§ 167', '§ 168', '§ 169', '§ 168', '§ 170', '§ 171', '§ 172', '§ 173', '§ 174', '§ 175', '§ 176', '§ 177']

CHAPTER 327 State of Delaware - Search and Services/Information
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 14 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE :
Section 1. Amend Title 14, Chapter 1 of the Delaware Code by enacting as a new Subchapter IV Interstate Compact on Education for Children of Military Families, the following:
“ Subchapter IV. Interstate Compact on Education for Children of Military Families.
§ 160. PURPOSE
It is the purpose of this compact to remove barriers to educational success imposed on children of military families because of frequent moves and deployment of their parents by: A. Facilitating the timely enrollment of children of military families and ensuring that they are not placed at a disadvantage due to difficulty in the transfer of education records from the previous school district(s) or variations in entrance/age requirements. B. Facilitating the student placement process through which children of military families are not disadvantaged by variations in attendance requirements, scheduling, sequencing, grading, course content or assessment.
H. Promoting flexibility and cooperation between the educational system, parents and the student in order to achieve educational success for the student.
§ 161. DEFINITIONS
A. ‘Active duty’ means: full-time duty status in the active uniformed service of the United States, including members of the National Guard and Reserve on active duty orders pursuant to 10 U.S.C. Section 1209 and 1211.
B. ‘Children of military families’ means: a school-aged child(ren), enrolled in Kindergarten through Twelfth (12th) grade, in the household of an active duty member.
C. ‘Compact commissioner’ means: the voting representative of each compacting state appointed pursuant to § 167 of this compact.
D. ‘Deployment’ means: the period one (1) month prior to the service members’ departure from their home station on military orders though six (6) months after return to their home station.
E. ‘Education(al) records’ means: those official records, files, and data directly related to a student and maintained by the school or local education agency, including but not limited to records encompassing all the material kept in the student's cumulative folder such as general identifying data, records of attendance and of academic work completed, records of achievement and results of evaluative tests, health data, disciplinary status, test protocols, and individualized education programs.
F. ‘Extracurricular activities’ means: a voluntary activity sponsored by the school or local education agency or an organization sanctioned by the local education agency. Extracurricular activities include, but are not limited to, preparation for and involvement in public performances, contests, athletic competitions, demonstrations, displays, and club activities.
G. ‘Interstate Commission on Educational Opportunity for Military Children’ means: the commission that is created under § 168 of this compact, which is generally referred to as Interstate Commission.
H. ‘Local education agency’ means: a public authority legally constituted by the state as an administrative agency to provide control of and direction for Kindergarten through Twelfth (12th) grade public educational institutions.
I. ‘Member state’ means: a state that has enacted this compact.
J. ‘Military installation’ means: means a base, camp, post, station, yard, center, homeport facility for any ship, or other activity under the jurisdiction of the Department of Defense, including any leased facility, which is located within any of the several States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Northern Marianas Islands and any other U.S. Territory. Such term does not include any facility used primarily for civil works, rivers and harbors projects, or flood control projects.
K. ‘Non-member state’ means: a state that has not enacted this compact.
L. ‘Receiving state’ means: the state to which a child of a military family is sent, brought, or caused to be sent or brought.
M. ‘Rule’ means: a written statement by the Interstate Commission promulgated pursuant to § 171 of this compact that is of general applicability, implements, interprets or prescribes a policy or provision of the Compact, or an organizational, procedural, or practice requirement of the Interstate Commission, and has the force and effect of statutory law in a member state, and includes the amendment, repeal, or suspension of an existing rule.
N. ‘Sending state’ means: the state from which a child of a military family is sent, brought, or caused to be sent or brought.
O. ‘State’ means: a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Northern Marianas Islands and any other U.S. Territory.
P. ‘Student’ means: the child of a military family for whom the local education agency receives public funding and who is formally enrolled in Kindergarten through Twelfth (12th) grade.
Q. ‘Transition’ means: (1) the formal and physical process of transferring from school to school; or
(2) the period of time in which a student moves from one school in the sending state to another school in the receiving state.
R. ‘Uniformed service(s)’ means: the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard as well as the Commissioned Corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and Public Health Services.
S. ‘Veteran’ means: a person who served in the uniformed services and who was discharged or released there from under conditions other than dishonorable.
§ 162. APPLICABILITY
(1) active duty members of the uniformed services as defined in this compact, including members of the National Guard and Reserve on active duty orders pursuant to 10 U.S.C. Section 1209 and 1211;
(1) inactive members of the national guard and military reserves;
§ 163. EDUCATIONAL RECORDS & ENROLLMENT
A. Unofficial or ‘hand-carried’ education records – In the event that official education records cannot be released to the parents for the purpose of transfer, the custodian of the records in the sending state shall prepare and furnish to the parent a complete set of unofficial educational records containing uniform information as determined by the Interstate Commission. Upon receipt of the unofficial education records by a school in the receiving state, the school shall enroll and appropriately place the student based on the information provided in the unofficial records pending validation by the official records, as quickly as possible.
B. Official education records/transcripts - Simultaneous with the enrollment and conditional placement of the student, the school in the receiving state shall request the student’s official education record from the school in the sending state. Upon receipt of this request, the school in the sending state will process and furnish the official education records to the school in the receiving state within ten (10) days or within such time as is reasonably determined under the rules promulgated by the Interstate Commission.
C. immunizations – Compacting states shall give thirty (30) days from the date of enrollment or within such time as is reasonably determined under the rules promulgated by the Interstate Commission, for students to obtain any immunization(s) required by the receiving state. For a series of immunizations, initial vaccinations must be obtained within thirty (30) days or within such time as is reasonably determined under the rules promulgated by the Interstate Commission.
D. Kindergarten and First grade entrance age – Students shall be allowed to continue their enrollment at grade level in the receiving state commensurate with their grade level (including Kindergarten) from a local education agency in the sending state at the time of transition, regardless of age. A student that has satisfactorily completed the prerequisite grade level in the local education agency in the sending state shall be eligible for enrollment in the next highest grade level in the receiving state, regardless of age. A student transferring after the start of the school year in the receiving state shall enter the school in the receiving state on their validated level from an accredited school in the sending state.
§ 164. PLACEMENT & ATTENDANCE
A. Course placement - When the student transfers before or during the school year, the receiving state school shall initially honor placement of the student in educational courses based on the student’s enrollment in the sending state school and/or educational assessments conducted at the school in the sending state if the courses are offered. Course placement includes but is not limited to Honors, International Baccalaureate, Advanced Placement, vocational, technical and career
pathways courses. Continuing the student’s academic program from the previous school and promoting placement in academically and career-challenging courses should be paramount when considering placement. This does not preclude the school in the receiving state from performing subsequent evaluations to ensure appropriate placement and continued enrollment of the student in the course(s).
B. Educational program placement – The receiving state school shall initially honor placement of the student in educational programs based on current educational assessments conducted at the school in the sending state or participation/placement in like programs in the sending state. Such programs include, but are not limited to: (1) gifted and talented programs; and
(2) English as a second language (ESL). This does not preclude the school in the receiving state from performing subsequent evaluations to ensure appropriate placement of the student.
C. Special education services – (1) In compliance with the federal requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), 20 U.S.C.A. Section 1400 et seq, the receiving state shall initially provide comparable services to a student with disabilities based on his/her current Individualized Education Program (IEP); and
(2) In compliance with the requirements of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C.A. Section 794, and with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C.A. Sections 12131-12165, the receiving state shall make reasonable accommodations and modifications to address the needs of incoming students with disabilities, subject to an existing 504 or Title II Plan, to provide the student with equal access to education. This does not preclude the school in the receiving state from performing subsequent evaluations to ensure appropriate placement of the student.
D. Placement flexibility – Local education agency administrative officials shall have flexibility in waiving course/program prerequisites, or other preconditions for placement in courses/programs offered under the jurisdiction of the local education agency.
E. Absence as related to deployment activities – A student whose parent or legal guardian is an active duty member of the uniformed services, as defined by the compact, and has been called to duty for, is on leave from, or immediately returned from deployment to a combat zone or combat support posting, shall be granted additional excused absences at the discretion of the local education agency superintendent to visit with his or her parent or legal guardian relative to such leave or deployment of the parent or guardian.
§ 165. ELIGIBILITY
A. Eligibility for enrollment:
(3) A transitioning military child, placed in the care of a non-custodial parent or other person standing in loco parentis who lives in a jurisdiction other than that of the custodial parent, may continue to attend the school in which he/she was enrolled while residing with the custodial parent.
B. Eligibility for extracurricular participation - State and local education agencies shall facilitate the opportunity for transitioning military children’s inclusion in extracurricular activities, regardless of application deadlines, to the extent they are otherwise qualified.
§ 166. GRADUATION
A. Waiver requirements – Local education agency administrative officials shall waive specific courses required for graduation if similar course work has been satisfactorily completed in another local education agency or shall provide reasonable justification for denial. Should a waiver not be granted to a student who would qualify to graduate from the sending school, the local education agency shall provide an alternative means of acquiring required coursework so that graduation may occur on time.
B. Exit exams - States shall accept: (1) exit or end-of-course exams required for graduation from the sending state; or
( 2) national norm referenced achievement tests; or
(3) alternative testing, in lieu of testing requirements for graduation in the receiving state. In the event the above alternatives cannot be accommodated by the receiving state for a student transferring in his or her Senior year, then the provisions of § 165, Section C shall apply.
C. Transfers during Senior year – Should a military student transferring at the beginning or during his or her Senior year be ineligible to graduate from the receiving local education agency after all alternatives have been considered, the sending and receiving local education agencies shall ensure the receipt of a diploma from the sending local education agency, if the student meets the graduation requirements of the sending local education agency. In the event that one of the states in question is not a member of this compact, the member state shall use best efforts to facilitate the on-time graduation of the student in accordance with Sections A and B of this Section.
§ 167. STATE COORDINATION
A. Each member state shall, through the creation of a State Council or use of an existing body or board, provide for the coordination among its agencies of government, local education agencies and military installations concerning the state’s participation in, and compliance with, this compact and Interstate Commission activities. While each member state may determine the membership of its own State Council, its membership must include at least: the state superintendent of education, superintendent of a school district with a high concentration of military children, representative from a military installation, one (1) representative each from the legislative and executive branches of government, and other offices and stakeholder groups the State Council deems appropriate. A member state that does not have a school district deemed to contain a high concentration of military children may appoint a superintendent from another school district to represent local education agencies on the State Council.
§ 168. INTERSTATE COMMISSION ON EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY FOR MILITARY CHILDREN
The member states hereby create the ‘Interstate Commission on Educational Opportunity for Military Children’. The activities of the Interstate Commission are the formation of public policy and are a discretionary state function. The Interstate Commission shall:
(B) Consist of one Interstate Commission voting representative from each member state who shall be that state’s compact commissioner.
(1) Each member state represented at a meeting of the Interstate Commission is entitled to one vote. (2) A majority of the total member states shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business, unless a larger quorum is required by the bylaws of the Interstate Commission.
(C) Consist of ex-officio, non-voting representatives who are members of interested organizations. Such ex-officio members, as defined in the bylaws, may include but not be limited to, members of the representative organizations of military family advocates, local education agency officials, parent and teacher groups, the U.S. Department of Defense, the Education Commission of the States, the Interstate Agreement on the Qualification of Educational Personnel and other interstate compacts affecting the education of children of military members.
(E) Establish an executive committee, whose members shall include the officers of the Interstate Commission and such other members of the Interstate Commission as determined by the bylaws. Members of the executive committee shall serve a one year term. Members of the executive committee shall be entitled to one vote each. The executive committee shall have the power to act on behalf of the Interstate Commission, with the exception of rulemaking, during periods when the Interstate Commission is not in session. The executive committee shall oversee the day-to-day activities of the administration of the compact including enforcement and compliance with the provisions of the compact, its bylaws and rules, and other such duties as deemed necessary. The U.S. Dept. of Defense, shall serve as an ex-officio, nonvoting member of the executive committee.
(G) Public notice shall be given by the Interstate Commission of all meetings and all meetings shall be open to the public, except as set forth in the rules or as otherwise provided in the compact. The Interstate Commission and its committees may close a meeting, or portion thereof, where it determines by two-thirds vote that an open meeting would be likely to:
(1) Relate solely to the Interstate Commission’s internal personnel practices and procedures;
(7) Specifically relate to the Interstate Commission’s participation in a civil action or other legal proceeding.
(H) Cause its legal counsel or designee to certify that a meeting may be closed and shall reference each relevant exemptible provision for any meeting, or portion of a meeting, which is closed pursuant to this provision. The Interstate Commission shall keep minutes which shall fully and clearly describe all matters discussed in a meeting and shall provide a full and accurate summary of actions taken, and the reasons therefore, including a description of the views expressed and the record of a roll call vote. All documents considered in connection with an action shall be identified in such minutes. All minutes and documents of a closed meeting shall remain under seal, subject to release by a majority vote of the Interstate Commission.
(I) Collect standardized data concerning the educational transition of the children of military families under this compact as directed through its rules which shall specify the data to be collected, the means of collection and data exchange and reporting requirements. Such methods of data collection, exchange and reporting shall, insofar as it reasonably possible, conform to current technology and coordinate its information functions with the appropriate custodian of records as identified in the bylaws and rules.
(J) Create a process that permits military officials, education officials and parents to inform the Interstate Commission if and when there are alleged violations of the compact or its rules or when issues subject to the jurisdiction of the compact or its rules are not addressed by the state or local education agency. This Section shall not be construed to create a private right of action against the Interstate Commission or any member state.
§ 169. POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE INTERSTATE COMMISSION
(B) To promulgate rules and take all necessary actions to effect the goals, purposes and obligations as enumerated in this compact. The rules shall have the force and effect of statutory law and shall be binding in the compact states to the extent and in the manner provided in this compact.
(C) To issue, upon request of a member state, advisory opinions concerning the meaning or interpretation of the interstate compact, its bylaws, rules and actions.
(D) To enforce compliance with the compact provisions, the rules promulgated by the Interstate Commission, and the bylaws, using all necessary and proper means, including but not limited to the use of judicial process.
(E) To establish and maintain offices which shall be located within one (1) or more of the member states.
(H) To establish and appoint committees including, but not limited to, an executive committee as required by § 168, Section E, which shall have the power to act on behalf of the Interstate Commission in carrying out its powers and duties hereunder.
(I) To elect or appoint such officers, attorneys, employees, agents, or consultants, and to fix their compensation, define their duties and determine their qualifications; and to establish the Interstate Commission’s personnel policies and programs relating to conflicts of interest, rates of compensation, and qualifications of personnel.
(L) To sell, convey, mortgage, pledge, lease, exchange, abandon, or otherwise dispose of any property, real, personal or mixed.
(P) To coordinate education, training and public awareness regarding the compact, its implementation and operation for officials and parents involved in such activity.
(Q) To establish uniform standards for the reporting, collecting and exchanging of data.
§ 170. ORGANIZATION AND OPERATION OF THE INTERSTATE COMMISSION
(7) Providing ‘start up’ rules for initial administration of the compact.
(B) The Interstate Commission shall, by a majority of the members, elect annually from among its members a chairperson, a vice-chairperson, and a treasurer, each of whom shall have such authority and duties as may be specified in the bylaws. The chairperson or, in the chairperson’s absence or disability, the vice-chairperson, shall preside at all meetings of the Interstate Commission. The officers so elected shall serve without compensation or remuneration from the Interstate Commission; provided that, subject to the availability of budgeted funds, the officers shall be reimbursed for ordinary and necessary costs and expenses incurred by them in the performance of their responsibilities as officers of the Interstate Commission.
(1) The executive committee shall have such authority and duties as may be set forth in the bylaws, including but not limited to:
c. Planning, implementing, and coordinating communications and activities with other state, federal and local government organizations in order to advance the goals of the Interstate Commission.
(D) The Interstate Commission’s executive director and its employees shall be immune from suit and liability, either personally or in their official capacity, for a claim for damage to or loss of property or personal injury or other civil liability caused or arising out of or relating to an actual or alleged act, error, or omission that occurred, or that such person had a reasonable basis for believing occurred, within the scope of Interstate Commission employment, duties, or responsibilities; provided, that such person shall not be protected from suit or liability for damage, loss, injury, or liability caused by the intentional or willful and wanton misconduct of such person.
§ 171. RULEMAKING FUNCTIONS OF THE INTERSTATE COMMISSION
(A) Rulemaking Authority - The Interstate Commission shall promulgate reasonable rules in order to effectively and efficiently achieve the purposes of this Compact. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in the event the Interstate Commission exercises its rulemaking authority in a manner that is beyond the scope of the purposes of this Act, or the powers granted hereunder, then such an action by the Interstate Commission shall be invalid and have no force or effect.
(B) Rulemaking Procedure - Rules shall be made pursuant to a rulemaking process that substantially conforms to the ‘Model State Administrative Procedure Act’, of 1981 Act, Uniform Laws Annotated, Vol. 15, p.1 (2000) as amended, as may be appropriate to the operations of the Interstate Commission.
§ 172. OVERSIGHT, ENFORCEMENT, AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION
(1) The executive, legislative and judicial branches of state government in each member state shall enforce this compact and shall take all actions necessary and appropriate to effectuate the compact’s purposes and intent. The provisions of this compact and the rules promulgated hereunder shall have standing as statutory law.
§ 173. FINANCING OF THE INTERSTATE COMMISSION
(B) The Interstate Commission may levy on and collect an annual assessment from each member state to cover the cost of the operations and activities of the Interstate Commission and its staff which must be in a total amount sufficient to cover the Interstate Commission’s annual budget as approved each year. The aggregate annual assessment amount shall be allocated based upon a formula to be determined by the Interstate Commission, which shall promulgate a rule binding upon all member states.
(D) The Interstate Commission shall keep accurate accounts of all receipts and disbursements. The receipts and disbursements of the Interstate Commission shall be subject to the audit and accounting procedures established under its bylaws. However, all receipts and disbursements of funds handled by the Interstate Commission shall by audited yearly by a certified or licensed public accountant and the report of the audit shall be included in and become part of the annual report of the Interstate Commission.
§ 174. MEMBER STATES, EFFECTIVE DATE AND AMENDMENT
(B) The compact shall become effective and binding upon legislative enactment of the compact into law by no less than ten (10) of the states. The effective date shall be no earlier than December 1, 2007. Thereafter it shall become effective and binding as to any other member state upon enactment of the compact into law by that state. The governors of non-member states or their designees shall be invited to
participate in the activities of the Interstate Commission on a non-voting basis prior to adoption of the compact by all states.
§ 175. WITHDRAWAL AND DISSOLUTION
(1) Once effective, the compact shall continue in force and remain binding upon each and every member state; provided that a member state may withdraw from the compact specifically repealing the statute, which enacted the compact into law.
§ 176. SEVERABILITY AND CONSTRUCTION
§ 177. BINDING EFFECT OF COMPACT AND OTHER LAWS