BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



          SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
                              Senator Carol Liu, Chair
                                2015 - 2016  Regular 

          Bill No:             AB 2306            
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          |Author:    |Frazier                                              |
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          |Version:   |June 14, 2016                            Hearing     |
          |           |Date:    June 29, 2016                               |
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          |Urgency:   |No                     |Fiscal:    |Yes              |
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          |Consultant:|Lynn Lorber                                          |
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          Subject:  Juvenile court school pupils


          NOTE:  This bill was previously heard by this Committee on June  
          8, 2016, where testimony was taken but no vote was taken.  This  
          bill has since been amended to remove the section of the bill  
          relating to transition policy planning.

            SUMMARY
          
          This bill requires a school district to exempt a student who  
          transfers from a juvenile court school any time after completion  
          of grade 10 from local graduation requirements that are in  
          addition to the coursework required by the State.

            BACKGROUND
          
          Existing law:

          1)   Requires students to successfully complete specified  
               courses as a condition of graduating from high school, and  
               authorizes school districts to impose coursework  
               requirements that are in addition to those prescribed by  
               the State.  (Education Code § 51225.3)

          2)   Requires school districts to exempt a student in foster  
               care or a student who is homeless, who transfers between  
               schools any time after the completion of the student's  
               second year of high school, from all locally-imposed  
               graduation requirements.  (EC § 51225.1(a))







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          3)   Excludes students from this exemption if the school  
               district makes a finding that the student is reasonably  
               able to complete the local graduation requirements in time  
               to graduate by the end of the student's fourth year of high  
               school.  
          (EC § 51225.1(a))

          4)   Requires school districts to notify, within 30 calendar  
               days of the date the foster youth transfers into a school,  
               the student, the person holding educational rights, and the  
               student's social worker or probation officer of the  
               availability of the exemption and whether the student  
               qualifies.  (EC § 51225.1(d))

          5)   Requires school districts to notify, within 30 calendar  
               days of the date the homeless youth transfers into a  
               school, the student, the person holding 


          educational rights, and the local educational agency (LEA)  
          liaison for homeless youth of the availability of the exemption  
          and whether the student qualifies.  
          (EC § 51225.1(d))

          6)   Requires schools to continue to apply the exemption for a  
               foster youth after the termination of the court's  
               jurisdiction, and for a homeless student if the student is  
               no longer homeless, while the student is enrolled in that  
               school or if the student transfers to another school or  
               school district.  (EC § 51225.1(j))

          7)   Establishes juvenile court schools, administered by county  
               boards of education, to provide public schools in juvenile  
               halls, juvenile homes, day centers, juvenile ranches,  
               juvenile camps, regional youth educational facilities or in  
               any group home housing 25 or more youth.  (EC § 48645, et  
               seq.)

          8)   Requires each school district and county office of  
               education to accept for credit full or partial coursework  
               satisfactorily completed by a student while attending a  
               public school, juvenile court school, or non-public school  
               or agency.  








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          (EC § 48645.5)

          9)   Requires the school district of residence to issue a  
               diploma of graduation from the school the student last  
               attended, if a student completes the graduation requirement  
               of his or her school district of residence while being  
               detained.  Existing law authorizes, in the alternative, the  
               county superintendent of schools to issue the diploma.  (EC  
               § 48645.5)

            ANALYSIS
          
          This bill requires a school district to exempt a student who  
          transfers from a juvenile court school any time after completion  
          of grade 10 from local graduation requirements that are in  
          addition to the coursework required by the State.  Specifically,  
          this bill:

          1)   Requires a school district to exempt a former juvenile  
               court school student who transfers between schools any time  
               after the completion of the student's second year of high  
               school from all coursework and other requirements adopted  
               by the governing board that are in addition to the  
               statewide coursework requirements.

          2)   Provides that a school district is not required to exempt a  
               former juvenile court school student from local graduation  
               requirements if the school district makes a finding that  
               the student is reasonably able to complete the  
               locally-imposed graduation requirements in time to graduate  
               by the end of the student's fourth year of high school.

          3)   Requires the exemption to continue to apply after the  
               termination of the court's jurisdiction over the student  
               while he or she is enrolled in school or if the student  
               transfers to another school or school district.

          4)   Extends existing requirements related to determining if a  
               student is reasonably able to complete the local graduation  
               requirements within the student's fifth year of high  
               school, notification of eligibility for the exemption,  
               notification of how the 
               exemption may affect admission to postsecondary education  
               and the prohibition on transferring a student solely to be  








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               eligible for the exemption.

          5)   Requires the county office of education to issue a diploma  
               of graduation to a student who completes the statewide  
               coursework requirements for graduation while attending a  
               juvenile court school, and prohibits the county office of  
               education from requiring the student to complete coursework  
               or other requirements that are in addition to the statewide  
               coursework requirements.

          6)   Extends to former juvenile court school students existing  
               provisions that prohibit school districts or county offices  
               of education from requiring specified youth to retake a  
               course if the student has satisfactorily completed, and  
               enrollment in courses when partial credit is awarded.

          7)   Defines "former juvenile court school pupil" as a student  
               who, upon completion of the student's second year of high  
               school, transfers to a school district from a juvenile  
               court school.  

          8)   States legislative intent that students in juvenile court  
               schools have a rigorous curriculum that includes a course  
               of study preparing them for high school graduation and  
               career entry and fulfilling the requirements for admission  
               to the University of California and California State  
               University.

          STAFF COMMENTS
          
          1)   Need for the bill.  According to the author, "Juvenile  
               court school pupils often fall through the cracks when it  
               comes to high school graduation.  When a pupil's school  
               district has implemented graduation requirements in  
               addition to statewide requirements, the pupil often does  
               not have time to complete those requirements when they have  
               in fact completed statewide requirements, thus leaving them  
               without a diploma."

          2)   Parity.  This bill extends policies and procedures for  
               graduation requirements and completed coursework to  
               students who transfer from a juvenile court school that are  
               currently provided to students who are in foster care or  
               who are homeless. 








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          3)   Fiscal impact.  According to the Assembly Appropriations  
               Committee, this bill would impose unknown, likely minor,  
               Proposition 98 state reimbursable mandated costs for county  
               offices of education to issue diplomas to students that  
               complete statewide coursework requirements for graduation  
               while attending juvenile court schools.  There should be  
               minor workload associated with determining if the student  
               meets statewide graduation requirements.

            SUPPORT
          
          Anti-Recidivism Coalition
          California School Boards Association
          California State PTA
          Los Angeles County Office of Education
          Los Angeles LGBT Center
          National Association of Social Workers, California Chapter
          Small School Districts' Association
          Youth Law Center

            OPPOSITION
           
           None received.

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