New York Codes, Rules and Regulations › Title 8 - EDUCATION DEPARTMENT › Chapter II - Regulations of the Commissioner › Subchapter I - Scholarships and Grants › Part 154 - Services for Pupils with Limited English Proficiency › Subpart 154-2 - Services for English Language Learners for Programs Operated in the 2015-2016 School Year and Thereafter › Section 154-2.3 - School district responsibilities

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 28, July 10, 2024
The provisions of this section shall apply to programs
						operated in the 2015-16 school year and thereafter. All students who are
						English language learners who are enrolled in districts receiving foundation
						aid shall be entitled to receive services in accordance with subdivisions 2 and
						2-a of section 3204  of the Education Law.
(a)
Initial and reentry process and
					 determination of English proficiency.
Each school district shall implement the following
						identification process and steps to determine if a student is an English
						language learner upon a student's initial enrollment or reentry in a New York
						State public school. If, after the completion of any step, it is determined
						that a student is not an English language learner, the remaining steps of the
						initial enrollment and/or reentry process shall not be completed.
(1) Step 1. Administration of the home
					 language questionnaire by qualified personnel as defined in section
					 154-2.2(u)  of this
					 Subpart to parents or persons in parental relation to determine if a language
					 other than English is spoken at home.
(2) Step 2: An individual interview with the
					 student by qualified personnel in English and the student's home language, and
					 a review of the student's abilities or work samples in reading and writing in
					 English and the home language and math that are collected or generated during
					 the interview, and for students reentering the New York State public school
					 system, a review of prior experience in home language and/or English
					 instruction, to determine if the student shall be administered the statewide
					 English language proficiency identification assessment and to determine the
					 student's grade level of literacy in their home language and grade level in
					 math.
(3) Step 3. Students who have
					 a disability, follow a process, as specified in Subpart 154-3 of this Part, to
					 determine whether the student shall take the statewide English language
					 proficiency identification assessment and whether the student should be
					 identified as an English language learner.
(4) Step 4. Administration of a statewide
					 English language proficiency identification assessment as prescribed by the
					 commissioner, except for such students defined in paragraph (3) of this
					 subdivision for whom it has determined that such assessment is not
					 appropriate.
(5) If the student
					 receives a score below a State designated level of proficiency established by
					 the commissioner on the Statewide English language proficiency identification
					 assessment, or in the case of a student with a disability, the process defined
					 in Subpart 154-3 of this Part has led to a determination that the student shall
					 be initially identified as an English language learner, within five school days
					 of such identification, the school district must provide the student, if the
					 student is 18 years of age or older, or the student's parent or person in
					 parental relation written notice of such identification determination the right
					 to seek review of such identification determination pursuant to subdivision (b)
					 of this section.
(6) If the student
					 is identified as an English language learner, and step 2 in paragraph (2) of
					 this subdivision indicates that the student has attended schools in the United
					 States (the 50 states and the District of Columbia) for less than 12 months and
					 is two or more years below grade level in literacy in their home language
					 and/or math due to inconsistent or interrupted schooling prior to arrival in
					 the United States (the 50 states and the District of Columbia), the student
					 shall also be identified as a student with inconsistent/interrupted formal
					 education.
(7) The identification
					 process shall commence no later than the date of the student's initial
					 enrollment or reentry in a New York State school district, except that the
					 statewide English language proficiency identification assessment may not be
					 administered before July 15th for students in grades 1-12 enrolling for the
					 start of classes in September. For students enrolling in kindergarten for the
					 start of classes in September, the statewide English language proficiency
					 identification assessment may not be administered before June 1st.
(8) Districts must complete all steps of the
					 identification process in this section prior to the student's final placement
					 in a school. A student shall be provisionally placed in a school until the
					 identification process is completed.
(9) If a student is identified as an English
					 language learner with a disability pursuant to paragraph (3) of this
					 subdivision, each school district shall ensure that:
(i) consistent with the requirements in
					 section 200.3  of this Title, that the
					 committee on special education for such students include at least one
					 individual, certified pursuant to Part 80 of this Title, to provide bilingual
					 services or instruction or teach English to speakers of other languages, who is
					 knowledgeable about the student's English and home language development
					 needs;
(ii) placement in a
					 bilingual education or English as a new language program pursuant to this Part
					 is not refused solely because the student has a disability; and
(iii) assessment procedures that
					 differentiate between language proficiency and disability are implemented in
					 accordance with section
					 200.4(b) and (c) 
					 of this Title.
(10)
					 Repealed