(a) In addition to the records required by § 6-18-213, a record of students who have left school without having completed requirements for high school graduation shall be kept by each school district of the state on forms provided by the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education or on forms approved by the Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education as being suitable for the purpose of showing data on students who leave school without having completed the requirements for high school graduation.
(b)
(1) Such records shall identify the student by name and last known address.
(2) The records shall show, as to each student in grades seven through twelve (7-12) inclusive who had been reported in attendance by the school district for the previous attendance reporting period but who is no longer reported as attending school in that school district, the following information:
(A) School site;
(B) Date of birth;
(C) Gender;
(D) Racial or ethnic identification;
(E) Educational handicapping condition, if any; and
(F) Reason for leaving.
(3) Reporting forms shall include but not be limited to the following reasons for leaving school:
(A) Enrollment in another accredited public, private, or parochial school program leading to a high school diploma;
(B) Failing grades;
(C) Lack of interest;
(D) Conflict with school;
(E) Suspension or expulsion;
(F) Economic hardship;
(G) Pregnancy or marriage;
(H) Peer conflict;
(I) Incarceration;
(J) Alternative plans other than those listed; or
(K) None of the reasons listed herein is known to apply.
(c) To the extent possible, the school district shall determine the reasons for a student's leaving school from the student or from the student's parent, guardian, or other responsible person and shall inform the student that any information obtained will be shared with the division and other governmental agencies.
(d)
(1)
(A) Each school district in the state shall file a report on students leaving school without having completed the requirements for high school graduation as a part of its official attendance report filed with the division for each quarterly period.
(B) The school shall keep the data on file as part of the basic attendance records in the district for a period of three (3) years.
(2) Each school district may provide the regional selective service agency with information on students leaving school without having graduated, including each student's name, date of birth, and last known address.
(e) The State Board of Education shall develop such forms and shall promulgate such rules and procedures as may be required to implement the intent of this section.
(f) To provide for more accurate, comparable, and timely dropout and school-leaver statistics and to facilitate inclusion in the national education data system, the forms, rules, and procedures shall be developed and implemented in such a way as to allow for conformity with existing or revised collection processes for the data by the National Center for Education Statistics.