| 1 | Representative Murman offered the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Amendment (with title amendment) |
| 4 | Between lines 37 and 38, insert: |
| 5 | Section 2. Section 39.0016, Florida Statutes, is created |
| 6 | to read: |
| 7 | 39.0016 Education of children known to the department.-- |
| 8 | (1) As used in this section, the term: |
| 9 | (a) "Child known to the department" means a child who is |
| 10 | found to be dependent or a child in shelter care. |
| 11 | (b) "Department" means the Department of Children and |
| 12 | Family Services or a community-based care lead agency acting on |
| 13 | behalf of the Department of Children and Family Services, as |
| 14 | appropriate. |
| 15 | (2) The provisions of this section establish goals and not |
| 16 | rights. Nothing in this section shall be interpreted as |
| 17 | requiring the delivery of any particular service or level of |
| 18 | service in excess of existing appropriations. No person shall |
| 19 | have a cause of action against the state or any of its |
| 20 | subdivisions, agencies, contractors, subcontractors, or agents |
| 21 | based upon this section becoming law or failure by the |
| 22 | Legislature to provide adequate funding for the achievement of |
| 23 | these goals. Nothing in this section shall require the |
| 24 | expenditure of funds to meet the goals established in this |
| 25 | section except funds specifically appropriated for such purpose. |
| 26 | (3) The department shall enter into an agreement with the |
| 27 | Department of Education regarding the education and related care |
| 28 | of children known to the department. Such agreement shall be |
| 29 | designed to provide educational access to children known to the |
| 30 | department, for the purpose of facilitating the delivery of |
| 31 | services or programs to children known to the department. The |
| 32 | agreement shall avoid duplication of services or programs, |
| 33 | combining resources to maximize the availability or delivery of |
| 34 | services or programs. |
| 35 | (4) The department shall enter into agreements with |
| 36 | district school boards or other local educational entities |
| 37 | regarding education and related services for children known to |
| 38 | the department who are of school age and children known to the |
| 39 | department who are younger than school age but who would |
| 40 | otherwise qualify for services from the district school board. |
| 41 | Such agreements shall include, but not be limited to: |
| 42 | (a) A requirement that the department shall: |
| 43 | 1. Enroll children known to the department in school. The |
| 44 | agreement shall provide for continuing the enrollment of a child |
| 45 | known to the department at the same school where possible, with |
| 46 | the goal of avoiding disruption of education. |
| 47 | 2. Notify the appropriate school and school district of |
| 48 | the names and phone numbers of the caregiver and caseworker of a |
| 49 | child known to the department for child safety purposes. |
| 50 | 3. Establish a protocol for the department to share |
| 51 | information about a child known to the department with the |
| 52 | school district, consistent with the Family Educational Rights |
| 53 | and Privacy Act, since the sharing of information will assist |
| 54 | each agency in obtaining education and related services for the |
| 55 | benefit of the child known to the department. |
| 56 | 4. Notify the school district of the department's case |
| 57 | planning for a child known to the department, both at the time |
| 58 | of plan development and plan review. Within the plan development |
| 59 | or review process, the school district may provide information |
| 60 | regarding the child known to the department if the school |
| 61 | district deems it desirable and appropriate. |
| 62 | (b) A requirement that the district school board shall: |
| 63 | 1. Provide the department with a general listing of the |
| 64 | services and information available from the district school |
| 65 | board, including, but not limited to, the current Sunshine State |
| 66 | Standards, the Surrogate Parent Training Manual, and other |
| 67 | resources accessible through the Department of Education or |
| 68 | local school districts to facilitate educational access for a |
| 69 | child known to the department. |
| 70 | 2. Identify all educational and other school and school |
| 71 | district provided services that the school district believes are |
| 72 | reasonably necessary to meet the educational needs of a child |
| 73 | known to the department. |
| 74 | 3. Determine whether transportation is available for a |
| 75 | child known to the department when such transportation will |
| 76 | avoid a change in school assignment due to a change in |
| 77 | residential placement. Recognizing that continued enrollment in |
| 78 | the same school throughout the time spent in out-of-home care by |
| 79 | a child known to the department is preferable unless enrollment |
| 80 | in the same school would be unsafe or otherwise impractical, the |
| 81 | department, the district school board, and the Department of |
| 82 | Education shall assess the availability of federal, charitable, |
| 83 | or grant funding for such transportation. |
| 84 | 4. Provide individualized student intervention or an |
| 85 | individual educational plan when a determination has been made |
| 86 | through legally appropriate criteria that intervention services |
| 87 | are required. The intervention or individual educational plan |
| 88 | must include strategies to enable the child known to the |
| 89 | department to maximize the attainment of educational goals. |
| 90 | (c) A requirement that the department and the district |
| 91 | school board shall cooperate in accessing the services and |
| 92 | supports needed for a child known to the department who has or |
| 93 | is suspected of having a disability to receive an appropriate |
| 94 | education consistent with the Individuals with Disabilities |
| 95 | Education Act and state implementing laws, rules, and |
| 96 | assurances. Coordination of services for a child known to the |
| 97 | department who has or is suspected of having a disability may |
| 98 | include: |
| 99 | 1. Referral for screening. |
| 100 | 2. Sharing of evaluations between the school district and |
| 101 | the department where appropriate. |
| 102 | 3. Provision of education and related services appropriate |
| 103 | for the needs and abilities of a child known to the department. |
| 104 | 4. Coordination of services and plans between the school |
| 105 | and the residential setting to avoid duplication or conflicting |
| 106 | service plans. |
| 107 | 5. Appointment of a surrogate parent, consistent with the |
| 108 | Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, for educational |
| 109 | purposes for a child known to the department who qualifies as |
| 110 | soon as the child is determined to be dependent and without a |
| 111 | parent to act for the child. The surrogate parent shall be |
| 112 | appointed by the school district without regard to where the |
| 113 | child known to the department is placed so that one surrogate |
| 114 | parent can follow the education of the child known to the |
| 115 | department during his or her entire time in state custody. |
| 116 | 6. For each child known to the department who is 14 years |
| 117 | of age or older, transition planning by the department and all |
| 118 | providers, including the department's independent living program |
| 119 | staff, to meet the requirements of the local school district for |
| 120 | educational purposes. |
| 121 | (5) The department shall incorporate an education |
| 122 | component into all training programs of the department regarding |
| 123 | children known to the department. Such training shall be |
| 124 | coordinated with the Department of Education and the local |
| 125 | school districts. The department shall offer opportunities for |
| 126 | education personnel to participate in such training. Such |
| 127 | coordination shall include, but not be limited to, notice of |
| 128 | training sessions, opportunities to purchase training materials, |
| 129 | proposals to avoid duplication of services by offering joint |
| 130 | training, and incorporation of materials available from the |
| 131 | Department of Education and local school districts into the |
| 132 | department training when appropriate. The department training |
| 133 | components shall include: |
| 134 | (a) Training for surrogate parents to include how the |
| 135 | ability to learn of a child known to the department is affected |
| 136 | by abuse, abandonment, neglect, and removal from the home. |
| 137 | (b) Training for parents in cases in which reunification |
| 138 | is the goal, or for preadoptive parents when adoption is the |
| 139 | goal, so that such parents learn how to access the services a |
| 140 | child known to the department needs and the importance of their |
| 141 | involvement in the education of a child known to the department. |
| 142 | (c) Training for caseworkers and foster parents to include |
| 143 | information on the right of a child known to the department to |
| 144 | an education, the role of an education in the development and |
| 145 | adjustment of a child known to the department, the proper ways |
| 146 | to access education and related services for a child known to |
| 147 | the department, and the importance and strategies for parental |
| 148 | involvement in education for the success of a child known to the |
| 149 | department. |
| 150 | (d) Training of caseworkers regarding the services and |
| 151 | information available through the Department of Education and |
| 152 | local school districts, including, but not limited to, the |
| 153 | current Sunshine State Standards, the Surrogate Parent Training |
| 154 | Manual, and other resources accessible through the Department of |
| 155 | Education or local school districts to facilitate educational |
| 156 | access for a child known to the department. |
| 157 | Section 3. Paragraph (d) of subsection (3) of section |
| 158 | 1002.22, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 159 | 1002.22 Student records and reports; rights of parents and |
| 160 | students; notification; penalty.-- |
| 161 | (3) RIGHTS OF PARENT OR STUDENT.--The parent of any |
| 162 | student who attends or has attended any public school, area |
| 163 | technical center, or public postsecondary educational |
| 164 | institution shall have the following rights with respect to any |
| 165 | records or reports created, maintained, and used by any public |
| 166 | educational institution in the state. However, whenever a |
| 167 | student has attained 18 years of age, or is attending a |
| 168 | postsecondary educational institution, the permission or consent |
| 169 | required of, and the rights accorded to, the parents of the |
| 170 | student shall thereafter be required of and accorded to the |
| 171 | student only, unless the student is a dependent student of such |
| 172 | parents as defined in 26 U.S.C. s. 152 (s. 152 of the Internal |
| 173 | Revenue Code of 1954). The State Board of Education shall adopt |
| 174 | rules whereby parents or students may exercise these rights: |
| 175 | (d) Right of privacy.--Every student shall have a right of |
| 176 | privacy with respect to the educational records kept on him or |
| 177 | her. Personally identifiable records or reports of a student, |
| 178 | and any personal information contained therein, are confidential |
| 179 | and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1). No state or |
| 180 | local educational agency, board, public school, technical |
| 181 | center, or public postsecondary educational institution shall |
| 182 | permit the release of such records, reports, or information |
| 183 | without the written consent of the student's parent, or of the |
| 184 | student himself or herself if he or she is qualified as provided |
| 185 | in this subsection, to any individual, agency, or organization. |
| 186 | However, personally identifiable records or reports of a student |
| 187 | may be released to the following persons or organizations |
| 188 | without the consent of the student or the student's parent: |
| 189 | 1. Officials of schools, school systems, technical |
| 190 | centers, or public postsecondary educational institutions in |
| 191 | which the student seeks or intends to enroll; and a copy of such |
| 192 | records or reports shall be furnished to the parent or student |
| 193 | upon request. |
| 194 | 2. Other school officials, including teachers within the |
| 195 | educational institution or agency, who have legitimate |
| 196 | educational interests in the information contained in the |
| 197 | records. |
| 198 | 3. The United States Secretary of Education, the Director |
| 199 | of the National Institute of Education, the Assistant Secretary |
| 200 | for Education, the Comptroller General of the United States, or |
| 201 | state or local educational authorities who are authorized to |
| 202 | receive such information subject to the conditions set forth in |
| 203 | applicable federal statutes and regulations of the United States |
| 204 | Department of Education, or in applicable state statutes and |
| 205 | rules of the State Board of Education. |
| 206 | 4. Other school officials, in connection with a student's |
| 207 | application for or receipt of financial aid. |
| 208 | 5. Individuals or organizations conducting studies for or |
| 209 | on behalf of an institution or a board of education for the |
| 210 | purpose of developing, validating, or administering predictive |
| 211 | tests, administering student aid programs, or improving |
| 212 | instruction, if such studies are conducted in such a manner as |
| 213 | will not permit the personal identification of students and |
| 214 | their parents by persons other than representatives of such |
| 215 | organizations and if such information will be destroyed when no |
| 216 | longer needed for the purpose of conducting such studies. |
| 217 | 6. Accrediting organizations, in order to carry out their |
| 218 | accrediting functions. |
| 219 | 7. School readiness coalitions and the Florida Partnership |
| 220 | for School Readiness in order to carry out their assigned |
| 221 | duties. |
| 222 | 8. For use as evidence in student expulsion hearings |
| 223 | conducted by a district school board pursuant to the provisions |
| 224 | of chapter 120. |
| 225 | 9. Appropriate parties in connection with an emergency, if |
| 226 | knowledge of the information in the student's educational |
| 227 | records is necessary to protect the health or safety of the |
| 228 | student or other individuals. |
| 229 | 10. The Auditor General and the Office of Program Policy |
| 230 | Analysis and Government Accountability in connection with their |
| 231 | official functions; however, except when the collection of |
| 232 | personally identifiable information is specifically authorized |
| 233 | by law, any data collected by the Auditor General and the Office |
| 234 | of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability is |
| 235 | confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) and |
| 236 | shall be protected in such a way as will not permit the personal |
| 237 | identification of students and their parents by other than the |
| 238 | Auditor General, the Office of Program Policy Analysis and |
| 239 | Government Accountability, and their staff, and such personally |
| 240 | identifiable data shall be destroyed when no longer needed for |
| 241 | the Auditor General's and the Office of Program Policy Analysis |
| 242 | and Government Accountability's official use. |
| 243 | 11.a. A court of competent jurisdiction in compliance with |
| 244 | an order of that court or the attorney of record pursuant to a |
| 245 | lawfully issued subpoena, upon the condition that the student |
| 246 | and the student's parent are notified of the order or subpoena |
| 247 | in advance of compliance therewith by the educational |
| 248 | institution or agency. |
| 249 | b. A person or entity pursuant to a court of competent |
| 250 | jurisdiction in compliance with an order of that court or the |
| 251 | attorney of record pursuant to a lawfully issued subpoena, upon |
| 252 | the condition that the student, or his or her parent if the |
| 253 | student is either a minor and not attending a postsecondary |
| 254 | educational institution or a dependent of such parent as defined |
| 255 | in 26 U.S.C. s. 152 (s. 152 of the Internal Revenue Code of |
| 256 | 1954), is notified of the order or subpoena in advance of |
| 257 | compliance therewith by the educational institution or agency. |
| 258 | 12. Credit bureaus, in connection with an agreement for |
| 259 | financial aid that the student has executed, provided that such |
| 260 | information may be disclosed only to the extent necessary to |
| 261 | enforce the terms or conditions of the financial aid agreement. |
| 262 | Credit bureaus shall not release any information obtained |
| 263 | pursuant to this paragraph to any person. |
| 264 | 13. Parties to an interagency agreement among the |
| 265 | Department of Juvenile Justice, school and law enforcement |
| 266 | authorities, and other signatory agencies for the purpose of |
| 267 | reducing juvenile crime and especially motor vehicle theft by |
| 268 | promoting cooperation and collaboration, and the sharing of |
| 269 | appropriate information in a joint effort to improve school |
| 270 | safety, to reduce truancy and in-school and out-of-school |
| 271 | suspensions, and to support alternatives to in-school and out- |
| 272 | of-school suspensions and expulsions that provide structured and |
| 273 | well-supervised educational programs supplemented by a |
| 274 | coordinated overlay of other appropriate services designed to |
| 275 | correct behaviors that lead to truancy, suspensions, and |
| 276 | expulsions, and that support students in successfully completing |
| 277 | their education. Information provided in furtherance of such |
| 278 | interagency agreements is intended solely for use in determining |
| 279 | the appropriate programs and services for each juvenile or the |
| 280 | juvenile's family, or for coordinating the delivery of such |
| 281 | programs and services, and as such is inadmissible in any court |
| 282 | proceedings prior to a dispositional hearing unless written |
| 283 | consent is provided by a parent or other responsible adult on |
| 284 | behalf of the juvenile. |
| 285 | 14. Consistent with the Family Educational Rights and |
| 286 | Privacy Act, the Department of Children and Family Services or a |
| 287 | community-based care lead agency acting on behalf of the |
| 288 | Department of Children and Family Services, as appropriate. |
| 289 |
|
| 290 | This paragraph does not prohibit any educational institution |
| 291 | from publishing and releasing to the general public directory |
| 292 | information relating to a student if the institution elects to |
| 293 | do so. However, no educational institution shall release, to any |
| 294 | individual, agency, or organization that is not listed in |
| 295 | subparagraphs 1.-14. 1.-13., directory information relating to |
| 296 | the student body in general or a portion thereof unless it is |
| 297 | normally published for the purpose of release to the public in |
| 298 | general. Any educational institution making directory |
| 299 | information public shall give public notice of the categories of |
| 300 | information that it has designated as directory information with |
| 301 | respect to all students attending the institution and shall |
| 302 | allow a reasonable period of time after such notice has been |
| 303 | given for a parent or student to inform the institution in |
| 304 | writing that any or all of the information designated should not |
| 305 | be released. |
| 306 |
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| 307 | ================ T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ============= |
| 308 | Between lines 10 and 11, insert: |
| 309 | creating s. 39.0016, F.S.; providing definitions; providing for |
| 310 | interpretation of the act; requiring an agreement between the |
| 311 | Department of Children and Family Services and the Department of |
| 312 | Education to facilitate the delivery of services or programs to |
| 313 | children known to the department; requiring the Department of |
| 314 | Children and Family Services to enter into agreements with |
| 315 | district school boards or other local educational entities |
| 316 | regarding education and related services for children known to |
| 317 | the department; specifying provisions of such agreements; |
| 318 | requiring education training components; amending s. 1002.22, |
| 319 | F.S.; authorizing access to student records; |