2023 Colorado Revised Statutes › Title 22 - EDUCATION (§§ 22-1-101 — 22-108-109) › SCHOOL DISTRICTS (§§ 22-30-101 — 22-38-115) › Article 30.7 - ONLINE EDUCATION PROGRAMS (§§ 22-30.7-101 — 22-30.7-113) › Section 22-30.7-111 - Learning centers - memoranda of understanding - rules - appeal process

(1)
(a)
A multi-district online school that intends to provide instruction to students within one or more learning centers shall, before providing such instruction, seek to enter into a memorandum of understanding with each school district in which the multi-district online school intends to provide instruction within a learning center.
(b)
A multi-district online school that intends to provide instruction to students within a learning center shall notify the school district in which the proposed learning center is located of the multi-district online school's intention in writing at least ninety days before the multi-district online school intends to commence providing such instruction. The notice must include the standard MOU form that addresses, at a minimum, the following information as it applies to each learning center to be located within the school district:
(I)
A description of any curricula that will be offered by the multi-district online school at the learning center;
(II)
The proposed location of the learning center;
(III)
The grade levels to be served at the learning center;
(IV)
The number of students projected to attend the multi-district online school at the learning center;
(V)
Any building permits or certifications of building safety that may be required by law;
(VI)
A list of all staff positions at the learning center, including a description of duties for each position;
(VII)
Measures to ensure compliance with state and federal laws concerning educator licensing, fingerprint-based criminal history record checks, and name-based judicial record checks;
(VIII)
The name of and contact information for the multi-district online school and the names of and contact information for all learning center administrators; and
(IX)
The plans for one or more public meetings to be held prior to the opening of a learning center.
(c)
Within forty-five days after receiving the notice and standard MOU form from a multi-district online school pursuant to paragraph (b) of this subsection (1), the school district and the multi-district online school shall meet to discuss the terms of the memorandum of understanding, based on the standard MOU form provided with the notice. The school district and the multi-district online school may mutually agree to change the information in the standard MOU form provided with the notice or to include information in the memorandum of understanding in addition to that included in the standard MOU form.
(d)
Within forty-five days after receiving the notice and the standard MOU form pursuant to paragraph (b) of this subsection (1), the school district and the multi-district online school shall hold at least one public meeting at which they shall receive public input concerning location of one or more learning centers within the school district.
(e)
No later than forty-five days after the school district receives the notice and standard MOU form pursuant to paragraph (b) of this subsection (1), the school district shall notify the multi-district online school, the online division, and the state board in writing of the school district's decision whether to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the multi-district online school for operation of a learning center within the school district. If the school district does not provide notice of its decision within forty-five days, the standard MOU form provided by the multi-district online school with the notice shall become effective on the forty-sixth day following the school district's receipt of the notice and standard MOU form, and the multi-district online school may proceed under the terms of the standard MOU form as provided to the school district.
(f)
A school district may refuse to enter into a memorandum of understanding with a multi-district online school for the operation of a learning center within the school district only if:
(I)
The standard MOU form provided by the multi-district online school fails to satisfy the requirements described in paragraph (b) of this subsection (1); or
(II)
The school district reasonably determines that the multi-district online school is contrary to the best interests of the pupils, parents, community, or school district.
(g)
If a school district refuses to enter into a memorandum of understanding with a multi-district online school for operation of a learning center, the multi-district online school may appeal the school district's decision to the state board pursuant to the provisions of subsection (6) of this section.
(h)
Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the contrary, a multi-district online school that seeks to operate a learning center within a school district shall not be required to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the school district if the school district is the authorizer of the multi-district online school.
(i)
Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the contrary, a school district and a multi-district online school may mutually agree in writing to decline to enter into a memorandum of understanding.
(j)
To ensure that all students have a reasonable opportunity to benefit from online education, a school district and a multi-district online school shall make good faith efforts to craft and enter into a memorandum of understanding pursuant to the provisions of this section.
(2)
A memorandum of understanding entered into by a school district and a multi-district online school pursuant to the provisions of this section shall be effective for three years. A school district and a multi-district online school may enter into an unlimited number of successive memoranda of understanding.
(3)
If a school district and a multi-district online school enter into a memorandum of understanding pursuant to the provisions of this section, the memorandum of understanding shall include consideration of all learning centers that the multi-district online school proposes, at the time the memorandum of understanding is crafted, to operate within the school district, and the memorandum of understanding shall supersede any memorandum of understanding previously entered into by the school district and the multi-district online school.
(4)
(a)
If a multi-district online school is operating a learning center within a school district under the terms of a memorandum of understanding, and the multi-district online school seeks to operate an additional learning center within the school district, which additional learning center is not contemplated in an existing memorandum of understanding, the multi-district online school shall provide notice to the school district of the multi-district online school's intention to operate an additional learning center. The notice shall include the standard MOU form.
(b)
Upon receiving notice from a multi-district online school as described in paragraph (a) of this subsection (4), the school district shall decide whether to seek to craft a new memorandum of understanding with the multi-district online school, and the school district shall notify the multi-district online school of the school district's decision within thirty days after receiving the notice described in paragraph (a) of this subsection (4).
(c)
(I)
If the multi-district online school receives notice within thirty days that the school district has decided to seek to craft a new memorandum of understanding, the multi-district online school and the school district shall seek to craft a new memorandum of understanding pursuant to the provisions of this section.
(II)
If the multi-district online school does not receive notice within thirty days after the school district's decision, or the multi-district online school receives notice that the school district has decided not to seek to craft a new memorandum of understanding, the multi-district online school may begin to operate the additional learning center.
(5)
On or before October 1, 2007, the state board shall approve the standard MOU form, which shall, at a minimum, include the information specified in paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of this section. The standard MOU form approved by the state board shall be based on the standard MOU form recommended by the online division pursuant to section
22-30.7-103(3)(d)
.
(6)
(a)
On or before January 1, 2008, the state board shall promulgate rules establishing procedures and timelines by which a multi-district online school may appeal to the state board a decision by a school district to refuse to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the multi-district online school for the operation of a learning center within the school district.
(b)
If the state board determines that a school district's decision to refuse to enter into a memorandum of understanding was contrary to the best interests of the pupils, parents, community, or school district, the state board shall issue an order directing the school district to enter into a final memorandum of understanding with the multi-district online school regarding the placement of one or more learning centers within the school district and to use the standard MOU form provided with the notice pursuant to paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of this section as the basis for the final memorandum of understanding.
(c)
Upon receiving notice from a multi-district online school that the multi-district online school is appealing a decision by a school district to refuse to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the multi-district online school, the state board shall resolve the dispute within forty-five days by either affirming the school district's decision or issuing an order directing the school district to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the multi-district online school, as described in paragraph (b) of this subsection (6).
(7)
Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the contrary, a multi-district online school that operates one or more learning centers within a school district as of January 1, 2007, may continue to operate learning centers within the school district until August 1, 2008, without entering into a memorandum of understanding with the school district. A multi-district online school that operates one or more learning centers within a school district as of January 1, 2007, shall provide notification to the school district on or before September 1, 2007, of any learning centers being operated by the multi-district online school within the school district. The notice shall include the information described in subparagraphs (I) through (VIII) of paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of this section.
Amended by 2022 Ch. 114,§26, eff. 4/21/2022.
Amended by 2019 Ch. 125,§25, eff. 4/18/2019.
L. 2007: Entire article added, p. 1080, § 1, effective July 1. L. 2008: (6)(b) amended, p. 1899, § 76, effective August 5. L. 2012: Entire section amended, (HB 12-1240), ch. 258, p. 1326, § 43, effective June 4. L. 2019: IP(1)(b) and (1)(b)(VII) amended, (HB 19-1166), ch. 547, p. 547, § 25, effective April 18.