HB 0279CS

CHAMBER ACTION



1The Committee on Future of Florida's Families recommends the
2following:
3
4     Committee Substitute
5     Remove the entire bill and insert:
6
A bill to be entitled
7An act relating to the education of children found to be
8dependent or in shelter care; creating s. 39.0016, F.S.;
9providing definitions; providing for interpretation of the
10act; requiring an agreement between the Department of
11Children and Family Services and the Department of
12Education to facilitate the delivery of services or
13programs to children known to the department; requiring
14the Department of Children and Family Services to enter
15into agreements with district school boards or other local
16educational entities regarding education and related
17services for children known to the department; specifying
18provisions of such agreements; requiring education
19training components; amending s. 1002.22, F.S.;
20authorizing access to student records; providing an
21effective date.
22
23Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
24
25     Section 1.  Section 39.0016, Florida Statutes, is created
26to read:
27     39.0016  Education of children known to the department.--
28     (1)  As used in this section, the term:
29     (a)  "Child known to the department" means a child who is
30found to be dependent or a child in shelter care.
31     (b)  "Department" means the Department of Children and
32Family Services or a community-based care lead agency acting on
33behalf of the Department of Children and Family Services, as
34appropriate.
35     (2)  The provisions of this section establish goals and not
36rights. Nothing in this section shall be interpreted as
37requiring the delivery of any particular service or level of
38service in excess of existing appropriations. No person shall
39have a cause of action against the state or any of its
40subdivisions, agencies, contractors, subcontractors, or agents
41based upon this section becoming law or failure by the
42Legislature to provide adequate funding for the achievement of
43these goals. Nothing in this section shall require the
44expenditure of funds to meet the goals established in this
45section except funds specifically appropriated for such purpose.
46     (3)  The department shall enter into an agreement with the
47Department of Education regarding the education and related care
48of children known to the department. Such agreement shall be
49designed to provide educational access to children known to the
50department, for the purpose of facilitating the delivery of
51services or programs to children known to the department. The
52agreement shall avoid duplication of services or programs,
53combining resources to maximize the availability or delivery of
54services or programs.
55     (4)  The department shall enter into agreements with
56district school boards or other local educational entities
57regarding education and related services for children known to
58the department who are of school age and children known to the
59department who are younger than school age but who would
60otherwise qualify for services from the district school board.
61Such agreements shall include, but not be limited to:
62     (a)  A requirement that the department shall:
63     1.  Enroll children known to the department in school. The
64agreement shall provide for continuing the enrollment of a child
65known to the department at the same school where possible, with
66the goal of avoiding disruption of education.
67     2.  Notify the appropriate school and school district of
68the names and phone numbers of the caregiver and caseworker of a
69child known to the department for child safety purposes.
70     3.  Establish a protocol for the department to share
71information about a child known to the department with the
72school district, consistent with the Family Educational Rights
73and Privacy Act, since the sharing of information will assist
74each agency in obtaining education and related services for the
75benefit of the child known to the department.
76     4.  Notify the school district of the department's case
77planning for a child known to the department, both at the time
78of plan development and plan review. Within the plan development
79or review process, the school district may provide information
80regarding the child known to the department if the school
81district deems it desirable and appropriate.
82     (b)  A requirement that the district school board shall:
83     1.  Provide the department with a general listing of the
84services and information available from the district school
85board, including, but not limited to, the current Sunshine State
86Standards, the Surrogate Parent Training Manual, and other
87resources accessible through the Department of Education or
88local school districts to facilitate educational access for a
89child known to the department.
90     2.  Identify all educational and other school and school
91district provided services that the school district believes are
92reasonably necessary to meet the educational needs of a child
93known to the department.
94     3.  Determine whether transportation is available for a
95child known to the department when such transportation will
96avoid a change in school assignment due to a change in
97residential placement. Recognizing that continued enrollment in
98the same school throughout the time spent in out-of-home care by
99a child known to the department is preferable unless enrollment
100in the same school would be unsafe or otherwise impractical, the
101department, the district school board, and the Department of
102Education shall assess the availability of federal, charitable,
103or grant funding for such transportation.
104     4.  Provide individualized student intervention or an
105individual educational plan when a determination has been made
106through legally appropriate criteria that intervention services
107are required. The intervention or individual educational plan
108must include strategies to enable the child known to the
109department to maximize the attainment of educational goals.
110     (c)  A requirement that the department and the district
111school board shall cooperate in accessing the services and
112supports needed for a child known to the department who has or
113is suspected of having a disability to receive an appropriate
114education consistent with the Individuals with Disabilities
115Education Act and state implementing laws, rules, and
116assurances. Coordination of services for a child known to the
117department who has or is suspected of having a disability may
118include:
119     1.  Referral for screening.
120     2.  Sharing of evaluations between the school district and
121the department where appropriate.
122     3.  Provision of education and related services appropriate
123for the needs and abilities of a child known to the department.
124     4.  Coordination of services and plans between the school
125and the residential setting to avoid duplication or conflicting
126service plans.
127     5.  Appointment of a surrogate parent, consistent with the
128Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, for educational
129purposes for a child known to the department who qualifies as
130soon as the child is determined to be dependent and without a
131parent to act for the child. The surrogate parent shall be
132appointed by the school district without regard to where the
133child known to the department is placed so that one surrogate
134parent can follow the education of the child known to the
135department during his or her entire time in state custody.
136     6.  For each child known to the department who is 14 years
137of age and older, transition planning by the department and all
138providers, including the department's independent living program
139staff, to meet the requirements of the local school district for
140educational purposes.
141     (5)  The department shall incorporate an education
142component into all training programs of the department regarding
143children known to the department. Such training shall be
144coordinated with the Department of Education and the local
145school districts. The department shall offer opportunities for
146education personnel to participate in such training. Such
147coordination shall include, but not be limited to, notice of
148training sessions, opportunities to purchase training materials,
149proposals to avoid duplication of services by offering joint
150training, and incorporation of materials available from the
151Department of Education and local school districts into the
152department training when appropriate. The department training
153components shall include:
154     (a)  Training for surrogate parents to include how the
155ability to learn of a child known to the department is affected
156by abuse, abandonment, neglect, and removal from the home.
157     (b)  Training for parents in cases in which reunification
158is the goal, or for preadoptive parents when adoption is the
159goal, so that such parents learn how to access the services a
160child known to the department needs and the importance of their
161involvement in the education of a child known to the department.
162     (c)  Training for caseworkers and foster parents to include
163information on the right of a child known to the department to
164an education, the role of an education in the development and
165adjustment of a child known to the department, the proper ways
166to access education and related services for a child known to
167the department, and the importance and strategies for parental
168involvement in education for the success of a child known to the
169department.
170     (d)  Training of caseworkers regarding the services and
171information available through the Department of Education and
172local school districts, including, but not limited to, the
173current Sunshine State Standards, the Surrogate Parent Training
174Manual, and other resources accessible through the Department of
175Education or local school districts to facilitate educational
176access for a child known to the department.
177     Section 2.  Paragraph (d) of subsection (3) of section
1781002.22, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
179     1002.22  Student records and reports; rights of parents and
180students; notification; penalty.--
181     (3)  RIGHTS OF PARENT OR STUDENT.--The parent of any
182student who attends or has attended any public school, area
183technical center, or public postsecondary educational
184institution shall have the following rights with respect to any
185records or reports created, maintained, and used by any public
186educational institution in the state. However, whenever a
187student has attained 18 years of age, or is attending a
188postsecondary educational institution, the permission or consent
189required of, and the rights accorded to, the parents of the
190student shall thereafter be required of and accorded to the
191student only, unless the student is a dependent student of such
192parents as defined in 26 U.S.C. s. 152 (s. 152 of the Internal
193Revenue Code of 1954). The State Board of Education shall adopt
194rules whereby parents or students may exercise these rights:
195     (d)  Right of privacy.--Every student shall have a right of
196privacy with respect to the educational records kept on him or
197her. Personally identifiable records or reports of a student,
198and any personal information contained therein, are confidential
199and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1). No state or
200local educational agency, board, public school, technical
201center, or public postsecondary educational institution shall
202permit the release of such records, reports, or information
203without the written consent of the student's parent, or of the
204student himself or herself if he or she is qualified as provided
205in this subsection, to any individual, agency, or organization.
206However, personally identifiable records or reports of a student
207may be released to the following persons or organizations
208without the consent of the student or the student's parent:
209     1.  Officials of schools, school systems, technical
210centers, or public postsecondary educational institutions in
211which the student seeks or intends to enroll; and a copy of such
212records or reports shall be furnished to the parent or student
213upon request.
214     2.  Other school officials, including teachers within the
215educational institution or agency, who have legitimate
216educational interests in the information contained in the
217records.
218     3.  The United States Secretary of Education, the Director
219of the National Institute of Education, the Assistant Secretary
220for Education, the Comptroller General of the United States, or
221state or local educational authorities who are authorized to
222receive such information subject to the conditions set forth in
223applicable federal statutes and regulations of the United States
224Department of Education, or in applicable state statutes and
225rules of the State Board of Education.
226     4.  Other school officials, in connection with a student's
227application for or receipt of financial aid.
228     5.  Individuals or organizations conducting studies for or
229on behalf of an institution or a board of education for the
230purpose of developing, validating, or administering predictive
231tests, administering student aid programs, or improving
232instruction, if such studies are conducted in such a manner as
233will not permit the personal identification of students and
234their parents by persons other than representatives of such
235organizations and if such information will be destroyed when no
236longer needed for the purpose of conducting such studies.
237     6.  Accrediting organizations, in order to carry out their
238accrediting functions.
239     7.  School readiness coalitions and the Florida Partnership
240for School Readiness in order to carry out their assigned
241duties.
242     8.  For use as evidence in student expulsion hearings
243conducted by a district school board pursuant to the provisions
244of chapter 120.
245     9.  Appropriate parties in connection with an emergency, if
246knowledge of the information in the student's educational
247records is necessary to protect the health or safety of the
248student or other individuals.
249     10.  The Auditor General and the Office of Program Policy
250Analysis and Government Accountability in connection with their
251official functions; however, except when the collection of
252personally identifiable information is specifically authorized
253by law, any data collected by the Auditor General and the Office
254of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability is
255confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) and
256shall be protected in such a way as will not permit the personal
257identification of students and their parents by other than the
258Auditor General, the Office of Program Policy Analysis and
259Government Accountability, and their staff, and such personally
260identifiable data shall be destroyed when no longer needed for
261the Auditor General's and the Office of Program Policy Analysis
262and Government Accountability's official use.
263     11.a.  A court of competent jurisdiction in compliance with
264an order of that court or the attorney of record pursuant to a
265lawfully issued subpoena, upon the condition that the student
266and the student's parent are notified of the order or subpoena
267in advance of compliance therewith by the educational
268institution or agency.
269     b.  A person or entity pursuant to a court of competent
270jurisdiction in compliance with an order of that court or the
271attorney of record pursuant to a lawfully issued subpoena, upon
272the condition that the student, or his or her parent if the
273student is either a minor and not attending a postsecondary
274educational institution or a dependent of such parent as defined
275in 26 U.S.C. s. 152 (s. 152 of the Internal Revenue Code of
2761954), is notified of the order or subpoena in advance of
277compliance therewith by the educational institution or agency.
278     12.  Credit bureaus, in connection with an agreement for
279financial aid that the student has executed, provided that such
280information may be disclosed only to the extent necessary to
281enforce the terms or conditions of the financial aid agreement.
282Credit bureaus shall not release any information obtained
283pursuant to this paragraph to any person.
284     13.  Parties to an interagency agreement among the
285Department of Juvenile Justice, school and law enforcement
286authorities, and other signatory agencies for the purpose of
287reducing juvenile crime and especially motor vehicle theft by
288promoting cooperation and collaboration, and the sharing of
289appropriate information in a joint effort to improve school
290safety, to reduce truancy and in-school and out-of-school
291suspensions, and to support alternatives to in-school and out-
292of-school suspensions and expulsions that provide structured and
293well-supervised educational programs supplemented by a
294coordinated overlay of other appropriate services designed to
295correct behaviors that lead to truancy, suspensions, and
296expulsions, and that support students in successfully completing
297their education. Information provided in furtherance of such
298interagency agreements is intended solely for use in determining
299the appropriate programs and services for each juvenile or the
300juvenile's family, or for coordinating the delivery of such
301programs and services, and as such is inadmissible in any court
302proceedings prior to a dispositional hearing unless written
303consent is provided by a parent or other responsible adult on
304behalf of the juvenile.
305     14.  The Department of Children and Family Services or a
306community-based lead agency acting on behalf of the Department
307of Children and Family Services, as appropriate.
308
309This paragraph does not prohibit any educational institution
310from publishing and releasing to the general public directory
311information relating to a student if the institution elects to
312do so. However, no educational institution shall release, to any
313individual, agency, or organization that is not listed in
314subparagraphs 1.-14. 1.-13., directory information relating to
315the student body in general or a portion thereof unless it is
316normally published for the purpose of release to the public in
317general. Any educational institution making directory
318information public shall give public notice of the categories of
319information that it has designated as directory information with
320respect to all students attending the institution and shall
321allow a reasonable period of time after such notice has been
322given for a parent or student to inform the institution in
323writing that any or all of the information designated should not
324be released.
325     Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2004.


CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.