CO Code § 22-35-108 (2021)
2021 Colorado Code|Title 22 - Education|Article 35 - Concurrent Enrollment Programs Act|§ 22-35-108. Accelerating Students Through Concurrent Enrollment Program - Objectives - Selection Criteria - Rules

     There is hereby established the accelerating students through concurrent enrollment program. Beginning in the 2010-11 school year, the department shall administer the ASCENT program pursuant to the provisions of this section and guidelines established by the board pursuant to subsection (4) of this section. The objectives of the ASCENT program are to:   Increase the percentage of students who participate in postsecondary education, especially among low-income and traditionally underserved populations;    Decrease the number of students who do not complete high school;    Decrease the amount of time that is required for a student to complete a postsecondary degree or certificate;    Reduce state expenditures for public education; and    Increase the number of educational pathways available to students.       Notwithstanding any other provision of this article, a qualified student who is designated by the department to be an ASCENT program participant pursuant to subsection (2) of this section may concurrently enroll in postsecondary courses, including academic courses and career and technical education courses, in the year directly following the year in which he or she was enrolled in the twelfth grade of a local education provider.         Subject to available appropriations, the department may designate as an ASCENT program participant any qualified student who:   Has completed or is on schedule to complete at least twelve credit hours of postsecondary course work prior to the completion of his or her twelfth-grade year;    Is not in need of a developmental education course;    Has been selected for participation in the ASCENT program by his or her high school principal or equivalent school administrator;    Has been accepted into a postsecondary degree program at an institution of higher education;    Has satisfied any other selection criteria established by guidelines established by the board pursuant to subsection (4) of this section; and    Has not been designated an ASCENT program participant in any prior year.       Repealed.      Repealed. (c) (I) Repealed.    The department, as part of its annual budget request to the general assembly, shall report the total number of potential ASCENT program participants for the following school year.    Repealed.    The department shall not designate a greater number of ASCENT program participants for a school year than the number of participants that the general assembly approves for funding in the annual general appropriation act for the applicable budget year.            The local education provider of a qualified student who is designated by the department as an ASCENT program participant may include the student in the district's funded pupil count, or, in the case of a student enrolled in an institute charter school, in the school's accounting district, as provided in section 22-54-103 (7).    A local education provider that receives extended high school funding, as described in section 22-54-104 (4.7), in a budget year for ASCENT program participants may expend the funding on behalf of ASCENT program participants who enroll in an institution of higher education during that budget year and on behalf of ASCENT program participants who, by May 1 of that budget year, are admitted to an institution of higher education to participate in the ASCENT program during the next budget year.    The local education provider shall certify to the department by May 10 of each year the list of ASCENT program participants who are admitted to an institution of higher education to participate in the ASCENT program during the next budget year. At the end of the budget year in which the local education provider receives the extended high school funding for ASCENT program participants, the local education provider shall remit to the department any remaining amount of the funding that the local education provider is not using for an ASCENT program participant who is included on the certified list.       The board shall establish guidelines for the administration of the ASCENT program, including but not limited to selection criteria that the department may use pursuant to subparagraph (V) of paragraph   of subsection (2) of this section to designate qualified students as ASCENT program participants.       For the purposes of part 5 of article 11 of this title 22 concerning school accountability reports, the department shall include ASCENT program participants in the reporting requirements, regardless of whether an ASCENT program participant has completed his or her graduation requirements.      Repealed.    For purposes of applying the provisions of article 11 of this title 22 concerning school accountability and reporting graduation rates, a qualified student who is an ASCENT program participant shall be counted in the enrolling school district's or institute charter school's graduation rate in the school year in which the student completes the school district's or institute charter school's minimum high school graduation requirements. The state board of education shall promulgate rules for schools and school districts to follow in satisfying state and federal reporting requirements concerning the enrollment status of ASCENT program participants. To the extent practicable, the rules must ensure that schools and school districts are not adversely affected in calculating and reporting the completion of high school graduation requirements by qualified students who have been designated by the department as ASCENT program participants. The rules must include, at a minimum, reporting requirements relating to:   The provisions of article 7 of this title 22 concerning educational accountability; and    The provisions of article 11 of this title 22 concerning educational accreditation.           History. Source: L. 2009: Entire article R&RE,(HB 09-1319), ch. 286, p. 1311, § 1, effective May 21; IP(1)(a), (1)(a)(III), and (1)(b) amended,(SB 09-285), ch. 425, p. 2374, § 6, effective June 4. L. 2013: (2)(c)(III) amended,(SB 13-108), ch. 116, p. 399, § 3, effective April 8; IP(2)(a) and (2)(c)(II) amended, (2)(c)(I) and (2)(c)(III) repealed, and (2)(c)(IV) added,(HB 13-1219), ch. 104, p. 363, § 12, effective August 7. L. 2015: (3) amended,(SB 15-138), ch. 188, p. 624, § 1, effective May 13; (3) amended,(HB 15-1270), ch. 195, p. 659, § 7, effective August 5. L. 2017: (5) and (6)(b) amended and (6)(a) repealed,(HB 17-1294), ch. 327, p. 1754, § 1, effective June 5. L. 2019: (2)(a)(II) amended,(HB 19-1206), ch. 133, p. 603, § 13, effective April 25.    Editor's note:   Subsection (2)(b)(II) provided for the repeal of subsection (2)(b), effective July 1, 2012. (See L. 2009, p. 1311 .)   Cross references:   For the legislative declaration in the 2013 act amending subsection (2)(c)(III), see section 1 of chapter 116, Session Laws of Colorado 2013. For the legislative declaration in HB 19-1206, see section 1 of chapter 133, Session Laws of Colorado 2019.