Arkansas Code of 1987 (2023) › Title 6 - EDUCATION (§§ 6-1-101 — 6-87-104) › Subtitle 3 - SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS (§§ 6-40-101 — 6-48-104) › Chapter 44 - ADULT LITERACY (§§ 6-44-201 — 6-44-308) › Subchapter 3 - ARKANSAS ADULT DIPLOMA PROGRAM ACT (§§ 6-44-301 — 6-44-308) › Section 6-44-302 - Definitions

As used in this subchapter:
(1)
"Academic skill intake assessment" means a criterion-referenced assessment of numeracy and literacy skills with high reliability and validity as determined by third-party research that is administered in person or online;
(2)
"Accredited" means an entity that holds an active accreditation from:
(A)
One (1) of the following regional accrediting organizations in the United States:
(i)
Middle States Commission on Higher Education;
(ii)
New England Association of Schools and Colleges;
(iii)
Higher Learning Commission;
(iv)
Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities;
(v)
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges;
(vi)
Accrediting Commission for Schools, Western Association of Schools and Colleges;
(vii)
Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges; or
(viii)
Any successor entities or consolidation or merger of any of the regional accreditors in the United States; or
(B)
Cognia;
(3)
"Adult dropout recovery services" means any type of assistance provided to a student, including without limitation:
(A)
Sourcing, recruitment, and engagement;
(B)
Learning plan development;
(C)
Active teaching; and
(D)
Proactive coaching and mentoring;
(4)
"Approved program provider" means a public, nonprofit, or other entity that satisfies the requirements of §
6-44-304
;
(5)
"Average cost per graduate" means the total amount of Arkansas Adult Diploma Program funding dispersed to an approved program provider for a cohort through the end of the measurement period divided by the total number of graduates from the cohort during the measurement period;
(6)
"Career advising services" means services designed to assist a student in obtaining employment, including without limitation resume development and mock interviews;
(7)
"Career pathways coursework" means one (1) or more courses that help a student enter into or advance within a specific occupation or occupational cluster;
(8)
"Coaching" means proactive communication between an approved program provider and a student related to the student's pace and progress throughout his or her learning plan;
(9)
"Cohort" means the group of students who enter the program between July 1 and June 30 of each program year;
(10)
"Employability skills certification" means a certificate earned by a student's demonstrating professional nontechnical skills through assessment, including without limitation the program standards of the United States Department of Labor's "Skills to Pay the Bills: Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace Success";
(11)
"Graduate" means a student who has successfully completed all of the approved program provider requirements in order to obtain a high school diploma;
(12)
"Graduation rate" means the total number of graduates from a cohort who graduated during a measurement period divided by the total number of students included in the same cohort;
(13)
"Graduation requirements" means course and credit requirements needed to earn a high school diploma from an approved program provider;
(14)
(A)
"High school diploma" means a diploma issued by an accredited institution.
(B)
A high school diploma issued under this subchapter is recognized as a secondary school diploma by this state;
(15)
"Learning plan" means a documented plan for courses or credits needed for each individual in order to complete the program and to fulfill the graduation requirements of an approved program provider;
(16)
"Measurement period" means the two-year period beginning July 1 of the year the cohort begins through June 30 of the subsequent state fiscal year;
(17)
"Mentoring" means a direct relationship between a coach and a student to facilitate the completion of the student's learning plan designed to prepare the student to succeed in the program and the student's future endeavors;
(18)
"Milestones" means the objective measures of progress for which payment is made to an approved program provider under this subchapter, including:
(A)
Earned units of high school credit;
(B)
Attainment of an employability skills certification;
(C)
Attainment of a workforce credential; and
(D)
Attainment of an accredited high school diploma;
(19)
"Request for qualifications" means a request for interested public, nonprofit, or other entities to submit evidence that the entity meets the qualifications established in §
6-44-304
, and if confirmed by the Department of Education, that the requestor is an approved program provider;
(20)
"Student" means a participant in the program who:
(A)
Is twenty-one (21) years of age or older;
(B)
Is a resident of this state; and
(C)
Has not earned a high school diploma;
(21)
"Transcript evaluation" means a documented summary of credits earned in previous public or private accredited high schools compared with the program and approved program provider graduation requirements;
(22)
"Unit of high school credit" means credit awarded based on a student's demonstration that he or she has successfully met the content expectation for the credit area as defined by subject area standards, expectations, or guidelines; and
(23)
"Workforce credential" means a third-party credential that is:
(A)
Part of a sequence of credentials that can be accumulated over time to build an individual's qualifications to advance along a career pathway; or
(B)
A credential that:
(i)
Verifies an individual's qualification or competence; and
(ii)
Is:
(a)
Issued by a third party with the relevant authority to issue the credential; or
(b)
Aligned with high-wage, high-growth jobs in Arkansas, as defined by the Arkansas Workforce Development Board.
Added by Act 2023, No. 546,§ 1, eff. 8/1/2023.