Senate Bill sb0168
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Florida Senate - 2005 SB 168
By Senator Lynn
7-155-05
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to tours by youth of state and
3 county correctional facilities; amending s.
4 945.75, F.S.; requiring that the Department of
5 Corrections and counties allow certain youth to
6 tour state and county correctional facilities
7 under specified conditions; amending s.
8 1003.26, F.S.; authorizing a district school
9 superintendent or a child study team to refer a
10 child to a youth awareness tour of state and
11 county correctional facilities; providing an
12 effective date.
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14 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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16 Section 1. Section 945.75, Florida Statutes, is
17 amended to read:
18 945.75 Tours of state correctional facilities for
19 juveniles.--The Department of Corrections shall develop a
20 program under which a judge may order that juveniles who have
21 committed delinquent acts shall be allowed to tour state
22 correctional facilities by a court order or after a referral
23 by a district school superintendent or a child study team
24 subject to under the terms and conditions established by the
25 department. Each county shall develop a comparable program to
26 allow juveniles to tour county correctional facilities by
27 jails pursuant to a court order or after a referral by a
28 district school superintendent or child study team.
29 Section 2. Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section
30 1003.26, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
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Florida Senate - 2005 SB 168
7-155-05
1 1003.26 Enforcement of school attendance.--The
2 Legislature finds that poor academic performance is associated
3 with nonattendance and that schools must take an active role
4 in enforcing attendance as a means of improving the
5 performance of many students. It is the policy of the state
6 that each district school superintendent be responsible for
7 enforcing school attendance of all students subject to the
8 compulsory school age in the school district. The
9 responsibility includes recommending to the district school
10 board policies and procedures to ensure that schools respond
11 in a timely manner to every unexcused absence, or absence for
12 which the reason is unknown, of students enrolled in the
13 schools. District school board policies must require each
14 parent of a student to justify each absence of the student,
15 and that justification will be evaluated based on adopted
16 district school board policies that define excused and
17 unexcused absences. The policies must provide that schools
18 track excused and unexcused absences and contact the home in
19 the case of an unexcused absence from school, or an absence
20 from school for which the reason is unknown, to prevent the
21 development of patterns of nonattendance. The Legislature
22 finds that early intervention in school attendance matters is
23 the most effective way of producing good attendance habits
24 that will lead to improved student learning and achievement.
25 Each public school shall implement the following steps to
26 enforce regular school attendance:
27 (1) CONTACT, REFER, AND ENFORCE.--
28 (c) If an initial meeting does not resolve the
29 problem, the child study team shall implement interventions
30 that best address the problem. The interventions may include,
31 but need not be limited to:
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Florida Senate - 2005 SB 168
7-155-05
1 1. Frequent communication between the teacher and the
2 family;
3 2. Changes in the learning environment;
4 3. Mentoring;
5 4. Student counseling;
6 5. Tutoring, including peer tutoring;
7 6. Placement into different classes;
8 7. Evaluation for alternative education programs;
9 8. Attendance contracts;
10 9. Referral to other agencies for family services; or
11 10. Referral to participate in a youth awareness tour
12 of a correctional facility under s. 945.75; or
13 11.10. Other interventions, including, but not limited
14 to, a truancy petition under pursuant to s. 984.151.
15 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2005.
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18 SENATE SUMMARY
19 Directs the Department of Corrections and counties to
allow certain youth to tour state and county correctional
20 facilities under specified conditions. Authorizes a
district school superintendent or a child study team to
21 refer a child to a youth awareness tour of state and
county correctional facilities.
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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.