The Florida Senate

1003.01  Definitions.--As used in this chapter, the term:

(1)  "District school board" means the members who are elected by the voters of a school district created and existing pursuant to s. 4, Art. IX of the State Constitution to operate and control public K-12 education within the school district.

(2)  "School" means an organization of students for instructional purposes on an elementary, middle or junior high school, secondary or high school, or other public school level authorized under rules of the State Board of Education.

(3)(a)  "Exceptional student" means any student who has been determined eligible for a special program in accordance with rules of the State Board of Education. The term includes students who are gifted and students with disabilities who are mentally handicapped, speech and language impaired, deaf or hard of hearing, visually impaired, dual sensory impaired, physically impaired, emotionally handicapped, specific learning disabled, hospital and homebound, autistic, developmentally delayed children, ages birth through 5 years, or children, ages birth through 2 years, with established conditions that are identified in State Board of Education rules pursuant to s. 1003.21(1)(e).

(b)  "Special education services" means specially designed instruction and such related services as are necessary for an exceptional student to benefit from education. Such services may include: transportation; diagnostic and evaluation services; social services; physical and occupational therapy; job placement; orientation and mobility training; braillists, typists, and readers for the blind; interpreters and auditory amplification; rehabilitation counseling; transition services; mental health services; guidance and career counseling; specified materials, assistive technology devices, and other specialized equipment; and other such services as approved by rules of the state board.

(4)  "Career and technical education" means education that provides instruction for the following purposes:

(a)  At the elementary, middle, and secondary school levels, exploratory courses designed to give students initial exposure to a broad range of occupations to assist them in preparing their academic and occupational plans, and practical arts courses that provide generic skills that may apply to many occupations but are not designed to prepare students for entry into a specific occupation. Career and technical education provided before high school completion must be designed to enhance both occupational and academic skills through integration with academic instruction.

(b)  At the secondary school level, job-preparatory instruction in the competencies that prepare students for effective entry into an occupation, including diversified cooperative education, work experience, and job-entry programs that coordinate directed study and on-the-job training.

(c)  At the postsecondary education level, courses of study that provide competencies needed for entry into specific occupations or for advancement within an occupation.

(5)(a)  "Suspension," also referred to as out-of-school suspension, means the temporary removal of a student from all classes of instruction on public school grounds and all other school-sponsored activities, except as authorized by the principal or the principal's designee, for a period not to exceed 10 school days and remanding of the student to the custody of the student's parent with specific homework assignments for the student to complete.

(b)  "In-school suspension" means the temporary removal of a student from the student's regular school program and placement in an alternative program, such as that provided in s. 1003.53, under the supervision of district school board personnel, for a period not to exceed 10 school days.

(6)  "Expulsion" means the removal of the right and obligation of a student to attend a public school under conditions set by the district school board, and for a period of time not to exceed the remainder of the term or school year and 1 additional year of attendance. Expulsions may be imposed with or without continuing educational services and shall be reported accordingly.

(7)  "Corporal punishment" means the moderate use of physical force or physical contact by a teacher or principal as may be necessary to maintain discipline or to enforce school rule. However, the term "corporal punishment" does not include the use of such reasonable force by a teacher or principal as may be necessary for self-protection or to protect other students from disruptive students.

(8)  "Habitual truant" means a student who has 15 unexcused absences within 90 calendar days with or without the knowledge or consent of the student's parent, is subject to compulsory school attendance under s. 1003.21(1) and (2)(a), and is not exempt under s. 1003.21(3) or s. 1003.24, or by meeting the criteria for any other exemption specified by law or rules of the State Board of Education. Such a student must have been the subject of the activities specified in ss. 1003.26 and 1003.27(3), without resultant successful remediation of the truancy problem before being dealt with as a child in need of services according to the provisions of chapter 984.

(9)  "Dropout" means a student who meets any one or more of the following criteria:

(a)  The student has voluntarily removed himself or herself from the school system before graduation for reasons that include, but are not limited to, marriage, or the student has withdrawn from school because he or she has failed the statewide student assessment test and thereby does not receive any of the certificates of completion;

(b)  The student has not met the relevant attendance requirements of the school district pursuant to State Board of Education rules, or the student was expected to attend a school but did not enter as expected for unknown reasons, or the student's whereabouts are unknown;

(c)  The student has withdrawn from school, but has not transferred to another public or private school or enrolled in any career and technical, adult, home education, or alternative educational program;

(d)  The student has withdrawn from school due to hardship, unless such withdrawal has been granted under the provisions of s. 322.091, court action, expulsion, medical reasons, or pregnancy; or

(e)  The student is not eligible to attend school because of reaching the maximum age for an exceptional student program in accordance with the district's policy.

The State Board of Education may adopt rules to implement the provisions of this subsection.

(10)  "Alternative measures for students with special needs" or "special programs" means measures designed to meet the special needs of a student that cannot be met by regular school curricula.

(11)(a)  "Juvenile justice education programs or schools" means programs or schools operating for the purpose of providing educational services to youth in Department of Juvenile Justice programs, for a school year comprised of 250 days of instruction distributed over 12 months. At the request of the provider, a district school board may decrease the minimum number of days of instruction by up to 10 days for teacher planning for residential programs and up to 20 days for teacher planning for nonresidential programs, subject to the approval of the Department of Juvenile Justice and the Department of Education.

(b)  "Juvenile justice provider" means the Department of Juvenile Justice or a private, public, or other governmental organization under contract with the Department of Juvenile Justice that provides treatment, care and custody, or educational programs for youth in juvenile justice intervention, detention, or commitment programs.

(12)  "Homeless child" means:

(a)  One who lacks a fixed, regular nighttime residence;

(b)  One who has a primary nighttime residence that is:

1.  A supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations, including welfare hotels, congregate shelters, and transitional housing for the mentally ill;

2.  An institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized; or

3.  A public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings; or

(c)  One who temporarily resides with an adult other than his or her parent because the parent is suffering financial hardship.

A child who is imprisoned, detained, or in the custody of the state pursuant to a state or federal law is not a homeless child.

(13)  "Regular school attendance" means the actual attendance of a student during the school day as defined by law and rules of the State Board of Education. Regular attendance within the intent of s. 1003.21 may be achieved by attendance in:

(a)  A public school supported by public funds;

(b)  A parochial, religious, or denominational school;

(c)  A private school supported in whole or in part by tuition charges or by endowments or gifts;

(d)  A home education program that meets the requirements of chapter 1002; or

(e)  A private tutoring program that meets the requirements of chapter 1002.

History.--s. 111, ch. 2002-387.