COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
H. B. 2472
(By Delegates Brown and Douglas)
(Originating in the House Committee on Education)
[March 26, 1993]
A BILL to amend article two, chapter eighteen of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended,
by adding thereto a new section, designated section
thirteen-h, relating to the education of juveniles in the
custody of the department of health and human resources;
responsibility of state board of education to develop
programs and policies; responsibility of county boards;
accreditation and standards for on-grounds schools; and
transfer of funds.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article two, chapter eighteen of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section
thirteen-h, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION.
§18-2-13h. Responsibility for provision of educational services
for juveniles in the custody of the department of
health and human resources; responsibilities of
state and county boards of education; accreditationand standards for on-grounds schools; transfer of
funds.
The state board is responsible for developing and monitoring
programs for the education of all school-age juveniles in the
custody of the department of health and human resources and
placed in foster homes or residential facilities within the state
through proceedings under article five or six of chapter forty-
nine of this code. As used in this section, "residential
facility" means a place or institution either operated by the
state or any county of the state, or licensed by the office of
social services of the department of health and human resources,
and used for the lawful custody and treatment of juveniles.
"Class of facilities" means a classification established by this
code or a licensing classification for licensed or approved
facilities established by regulation of the department of health
and human resources. "On-grounds school" means a school
contained within the campus of a licensed facility. "School-age
juvenile" means any individual who is entitled to attend or who
would, if not institutionalized, be entitled to attend the public
schools in accordance with (1) section five of this article; (2)
sections fifteen and eighteen, article five of this chapter; or
(3) section one, article twenty of this chapter.
The state board shall:
(a) Develop standards for the provision of educational
services by county boards of education pursuant to section five,
article five-b, chapter forty-nine of this code, to status
offenders housed in rehabilitative facilities;
(b) Develop standards for the provision of educationalservices at on-grounds schools to juveniles who have been
adjudicated delinquent for conduct which would be a crime if
committed by an adult. The standards shall include provision for
enrollment in programs available to public school students in the
county and transfer to public schools for juveniles whose needs
and progress indicate that such enrollment or transfer is
necessary or desirable;
(c) Establish criteria for assessing whether the needs of
juveniles or any class of juveniles at any facility or class of
facilities require the provision of services at an on-grounds
school, and may require the closure of on-grounds schools at
licensed facilities;
(d) Require county boards of education to furnish identified
programs and other services to juveniles in any residential
facility or class of facilities;
(e) Develop procedures and policies for follow-up of
juveniles released to their home communities and transfer of
juveniles to public schools;
(f) Develop a plan for servicing the special educational
needs of abused or neglected children in the custody of the
department of health and human resources and placed in foster
homes; and
(g) Develop and implement a program for the accreditation of
on-grounds schools.
None of the provisions required under (a) through (g) shall
be implemented without input and comment from the Department of
Health and Human Resources, private providers and others having
an integral interest in the population served as determined bythe state board.
Accreditation standards for on-grounds schools may vary in
accordance with the mission of a particular class of facilities
and the special educational needs of the children served, and on-
grounds schools accredited pursuant to this section are
specifically exempt from the provisions of section five, article
two-e of this chapter. On-grounds schools are specifically
exempt from the requirements of article six of this chapter. The
provisions of article twenty of this chapter are specifically
made applicable to juveniles enrolled in on-grounds schools. Any
on-grounds educational program shall provide (1) instruction by
certified teachers, (2) flexibility in instructional programs in
accordance with the educational needs of the children served, (3)
individual planning for each child in residence for thirty days
or longer, (4) emphasis on basic skills, (5) access to vocational
education for juveniles whose needs and progress indicate that
vocational education is necessary or desirable and (6) provision
for enrollment in programs available in local public schools and
provision of services by local public schools for juveniles whose
needs and progress indicate that such enrollment or services is
necessary or desirable.
When placement or release of a juvenile to or from a
facility or foster home results in transfer between an on-grounds
school and a public school or from one public school to another,
the transfer shall be effected in accordance with policies of the
state board and in a manner that will ensure continuous
attendance at school. Any transfer policy adopted by the state
board shall require (1) speedy transmission, by electronic meansor otherwise, of records and (2) verbal contact between the
sending and receiving school.
The department of health and human resources shall require
provision of adequate space for educational programs as a
condition for licensure of residential facilities having on-
grounds schools. When a new residential facility is being
created for the target population covered in this sub-section,
written consent of the state board is required as a condition of
establishing an on-grounds school. The state board is not
required to construct, improve, or maintain any building,
improvement to real estate or fixtures attached thereto at any
on-grounds school. The construction of school buildings and
capital improvements financed pursuant to article nine-d of this
chapter at residential facilities operated by the state or any
county of the state is not prohibited. The state board and
county boards shall furnish, share or lend, in accordance with
policies of the state board developed pursuant to this section,
library services, computer or other equipment or access to
equipment for the provision of educational services at on-grounds
schools to juveniles whose needs and progress indicate that such
services are necessary or desirable.
All policies and programs developed and implemented with
respect to a residential facility shall be developed with
communication, cooperation and participation by and between the
state board, the office of social services of the department of
health and human resources, the county board, the local public
schools and the facility. County boards of education shall
furnish all programs and services identified and required by thestate board.
Programs and policies developed pursuant to this section
shall provide (1) adequate and appropriate educational
opportunity to juveniles in residential facilities and (2)
educational placements of juveniles that ensure consideration of
less restrictive alternative placements. Adequate and
appropriate educational opportunity requires educational services
on a twelve month basis for certain juveniles as determined by
standards developed by the state board in consultation with the
office of social services. Twelve month programs will be
implemented to the extent funds are provided therefor or made
available. The state board may develop standards permitting
summer enrichment or alternative education opportunity programs
which vary in hours and content from the regular school year
program for a facility or class of facilities, except that
programs for guided reading and basic literacy skills shall be
included in any summer program.
The full-time director of educational services employed by
the department of education pursuant to the provisions of section
thirteen-f of this article has the primary responsibility for the
implementation of this section. Accreditation standards for on-
grounds schools at residential facilities shall be developed by
the office of accreditation of the state board in consultation
with the director of educational services. Classroom teachers
and other school personnel shall be hired and provided as
necessary for all juveniles enrolled in on-grounds schools at any
residential facility by the county board of education in the
county where the facility is located. However, at on-groundsschools providing educational services primarily to juveniles
who have been adjudicated delinquent for conduct which would be
a crime if committed by an adult, classroom teachers and other
school personnel shall be hired and provided as necessary by the
state board. The daily rate of pay of educational personnel
employed in residential facilities shall be equivalent to the
daily rate of pay of the comparable position in the public
schools of the county where the facility is located,
Provided:
That all education personnel employed in the residential
facilities shall be afforded all rights, privileges and benefits
established for education personnel under article seven, chapter
eighteen-a of this code.
On the effective date of this section, the department of
health and human resources shall identify and transfer to the
department of education, by interdepartmental transfer, all funds
identified as state funding used for funding in classrooms for
juveniles in residential facilities.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.