(1) (a) In the third year in which a school district or the institute is accredited with priority improvement plan or lower while on performance watch, the school district or institute, whichever is applicable, shall host a parent and community meeting to discuss the school district's or the institute's accreditation level. The appropriate department personnel shall attend the meeting. The school district or institute personnel and the department personnel shall ensure that the following information is presented at the meeting:
An explanation of the accreditation and accountability system;
The possible outcomes of being on performance watch;
The reasons for which the school district or institute is accredited with priority improvement plan or lower;
The options immediately available to the school district or institute for improvingperformance;
The other school options available to students; and
The actions the state board may require the school district or institute to take if itsperformance does not significantly improve while on performance watch.
Information concerning ways in which parents and members of the community maysupport improvement efforts in the public schools of the school district or institute charter schools may also be presented at the parent and community meeting.
Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (1)(a) of this section to the contrary, aschool district, in consultation with the district accountability committee, or the institute may choose to hold the parent and community meeting in the second year in which the school district or institute is accredited with priority improvement plan or lower while on performance watch.
(2) (a) In the third year in which a public school is required to adopt a priority improvement or turnaround plan while on performance watch, the public meeting required in section 22-32-142 (2) for a district public school and section 22-30.5-520 (2) for an institute charter school must include a parent and community meeting for the public school to discuss the level of performance plan that the public school is required to adopt. The appropriate department personnel shall attend the meeting. The school district or institute personnel and the department personnel shall ensure that the information specified in subsection (1)(a) of this section, as it applies to the public school, is presented at the meeting. The school district or institute shall ensure that the educational leaders at the public school and parents of students enrolled in the public school also have an opportunity to present information concerning the public school.
Information concerning ways in which parents and members of the community may support improvement efforts in the public school may also be presented at the parent and community meeting.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (2)(a) of this section to the contrary, a school district, on behalf of a public school of the school district, or the institute, on behalf of an institute charter school, may choose to hold the parent and community meeting in the second year in which the public school is required to adopt a priority improvement or turnaround plan while on performance watch. The school district may hold the public meeting in the second year only after consulting with the affected school accountability committee and, in the case of a district charter school, obtaining the consent of the governing board of the district charter school. The institute may hold the public meeting in the second year only with the consent of the governing board of the institute charter school and after consulting with the affected school accountability committee.
(3) (a) A school district shall ensure that local school board members, school district personnel, public school personnel, local parent advocacy organizations, and the general community receive information concerning each parent and community meeting held for the school district or for a public school of the school district.
The institute shall ensure that institute board members, institute and institute charterschool personnel, local parent advocacy organizations, and the general community receive information concerning each parent and community meeting held for the institute or for an institute charter school.
Upon the request of a school district or the institute, the department, within existingresources, may provide technical assistance in creating a communication plan for a parent and community meeting for the school district, the institute, or a public school. For a school district or institute meeting, the school district or institute, working with the department, shall individually notify the parents of students enrolled in the public schools of the school district or the institute charter schools of the meeting and invite them to attend. For a public school meeting, the school district or institute shall individually notify the parents of the students enrolled in the public school and invite them to the meeting. The school district or institute shall determine the form of the parental notification in cooperation with the department. If necessary, the department may request proof of distribution to individual parents from the school district or institute.
Source: L. 2018: Entire section added, (HB 18-1355), ch. 324, p. 1946, § 5, effective May 30.