(a) The governing board of a school district that maintains one or more schools containing any of grades 7 to 12, inclusive, as a condition for the receipt of inflation adjustments pursuant to Section 42238.02, as implemented by Section 42238.03, shall establish a school district policy regarding participation in extracurricular and cocurricular activities by pupils in grades 7 to 12, inclusive. The criteria, which shall be applied to extracurricular and cocurricular activities, shall ensure that pupil participation is conditioned upon satisfactory educational progress in the previous grading period.
(1) For purposes of this subdivision, “extracurricular activity” means a program that has all of the following characteristics:
(A) The program is supervised or financed by the school district.
(B) Pupils participating in the program represent the school district.
(C) Pupils exercise some degree of freedom in either the selection, planning, or control of the program.
(D) The program includes both preparation for performance and performance before an audience or spectators.
(2) For purposes of this subdivision, an “extracurricular activity” is not part of the regular school curriculum, is not graded, does not offer credit, and does not take place during classroom time.
(3) For purposes of this subdivision, a “cocurricular activity” is defined as a program that may be associated with the curriculum in a regular classroom.
(4) A teacher-graded or required program or activity for a course that satisfies the entrance requirements for admission to the California State University or the University of California is not an extracurricular or cocurricular activity as defined by this section.
(5) For purposes of this subdivision, “satisfactory educational progress” shall include, but not necessarily be limited to, both of the following:
(A) Maintenance of minimum passing grades, which is defined as at least a 2.0 grade point average in all enrolled courses on a 4.0 scale.
(B) Maintenance of minimum progress toward meeting the high school graduation requirements prescribed by the governing board.
(6) For purposes of this subdivision, “previous grading period” does not include a grading period in which the pupil was not in attendance for all, or a majority of, the grading period due to absences excused by the school for reasons such as serious illness or injury, approved travel, or work. In that event, “previous grading period” means the grading period immediately before the grading period or periods excluded pursuant to this paragraph.
(7) A program that has, as its primary goal, the improvement of academic or educational achievements of pupils is not an extracurricular or cocurricular activity as defined by this section.
(8) (A) The governing board of each school district may adopt, as part of its policy established pursuant to this subdivision, provisions that would allow a pupil who does not achieve satisfactory educational progress, as defined in paragraph (5), in the previous grading period to remain eligible to participate in extracurricular and cocurricular activities during a probationary period. The probationary period shall not exceed one semester in length, but may be for a shorter period of time, as determined by the governing board of the school district. A pupil who does not achieve satisfactory educational progress, as defined in paragraph (5), during the probationary period shall not be allowed to participate in extracurricular and cocurricular activities in the subsequent grading period.
(B) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), the governing board of each school district may adopt a policy that would allow a probationary period to exceed one semester in length through the completion of the 2020–21 school year due to the impact of COVID-19.
(9) This subdivision does not preclude the governing board of a school district from imposing a more stringent academic standard than that imposed by this subdivision. If the governing board of a school district imposes a more stringent academic standard, the governing board shall establish the criteria for participation in extracurricular and cocurricular activities at a meeting open to the public pursuant to Section 35145.
(10) The governing board of each school district annually shall review the school district policies adopted pursuant to the requirements of this section.
(b) (1) On or before July 1, 1994, the governing board of each school district, as a condition for the receipt of school apportionments from the State School Fund, shall adopt rules and regulations establishing a policy of open enrollment within the district for residents of the district. This requirement does not apply to a school district that has only one school or a school district with schools that do not serve any of the same grade levels.
(2) The policy shall include all of the following elements:
(A) It shall provide that the parent or guardian of each schoolage child who is a resident in the district may select the schools the child shall attend, irrespective of the particular locations of the child’s residence within the district, except that school districts shall retain the authority to maintain appropriate racial and ethnic balances among their respective schools at the school districts’ discretion or as specified in applicable court-ordered or voluntary desegregation plans.
(B) It shall include a selection policy for a school that receives requests for admission in excess of the capacity of the school that ensures that selection of pupils to enroll in the school is made through a random, unbiased process that prohibits an evaluation of whether a pupil should be enrolled based upon the pupil’s academic or athletic performance. The governing board of a school district shall calculate the capacity of the schools in the district for purposes of this subdivision in a nonarbitrary manner using pupil enrollment and available space. However, school districts may employ existing entrance criteria for specialized schools or programs if the criteria are uniformly applied to all applicants. This subdivision shall not be construed to prohibit school districts from using academic performance to determine eligibility for, or placement in, programs for gifted and talented pupils established pursuant to former Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 52200) of Part 28 of Division 4, as that chapter read on January 1, 2014.
(C) It shall provide that a pupil who currently resides in the attendance area of a school shall not be displaced by pupils transferring from outside the attendance area.
(3) Notwithstanding the requirement of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2) that the policy include a selection policy for a school that receives requests for admission in excess of the capacity of the school that ensures that the selection is made through a random, unbiased process, the policy may include either of the following elements:
(A) (i) It may provide that special circumstances exist that might be harmful or dangerous to a particular pupil in the current attendance area of the pupil, including, but not necessarily limited to, threats of bodily harm or threats to the emotional stability of the pupil, that serve as a basis for granting a priority of attendance outside the current attendance area of the pupil. A finding of harmful or dangerous special circumstances shall be based upon either of the following:
(I) A written statement from a representative of the appropriate state or local agency, including, but not necessarily limited to, a law enforcement official or a social worker, or properly licensed or registered professionals, including, but not necessarily limited to, psychiatrists, psychologists, marriage and family therapists, clinical social workers, or professional clinical counselors.
(II) A court order, including a temporary restraining order and injunction, issued by a judge.
(ii) A finding of harmful or dangerous special circumstances pursuant to this subparagraph may be used by a school district to approve transfers within the district to schools that have been deemed by the school district to be at capacity and otherwise closed to transfers that are not based on harmful or dangerous special circumstances.
(B) It may provide that schools receiving requests for admission shall give priority for attendance to siblings of pupils already in attendance in that school and to pupils whose parent or legal guardian is assigned to that school as their primary place of employment.
(4) To the extent required and financed by federal law and at the request of the pupil’s parent or guardian, each school district shall provide transportation assistance to the pupil.
(Amended by Stats. 2020, Ch. 64, Sec. 1. (AB 908) Effective September 11, 2020.)