20-7-1201. Montana digital academy — purposes — governance. (1) There is a Montana digital academy at a unit of the Montana university system. The purpose of the Montana digital academy is to enhance the state‘s system of education and support the development of the full educational potential of each person consistent with the provisions of Article X, section 1(1), of the Montana constitution.

(2)The purposes of the Montana digital academy are to shall:

(a)make remote instruction opportunities available to all school-age children through public school districts in the state, including students who are enrolled on a part-time basis. Remote instruction opportunities provided through the academy must include:

(i)remote instruction developed in Montana and provided by highly qualified educators licensed in Montana; and

(ii)additional high-quality remote instruction offerings through the Montana digital academy clearinghouse under 20-7-1203.

(b)maximize access to high-quality remote instruction through flexibility in licensure and endorsement. Remote instructors may include teachers who are licensed and endorsed in Montana or elsewhere in the area of instruction taught. When the remote instructor is not licensed and endorsed in Montana or elsewhere, the school district providing remote instruction through the academy shall assign an individual with a class 1, 2, 3, or 4 license under 20-4-106 to facilitate pupil access to the remote instruction.

(c)provide courses that empower pupils to become community, college, and career ready, including but not limited to:

(i)core subject matters required under accreditation standards or school board policy;

(ii)innovative educational programs, as defined in 15-30-3102; and

(iii)proficiency-based courses.

(3)The Montana digital academy is governed by a board as follows:

(a)The voting members of the governing board include:

(i)a member of the board of regents or a designee;

(ii)a member of the board of public education or a designee;

(iii)the superintendent of public instruction or a designee;

(iv)a trustee of a Montana school district appointed by the governor from a list of three candidates provided by a state professional organization of school district trustees; and

(v)the governor or a designee

(b)The nonvoting members of the governing board include:

(i)a member of the senate appointed by the president of the senate in consultation with the presiding officer of the senate education standing committee and the vice presiding officer of the joint appropriations education standing subcommittee;

(ii)a member of the house of representatives appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives in consultation with the presiding officer of the house of representatives education standing committee and the presiding officer of the joint appropriations education standing subcommittee;

(iii)a Montana-licensed and Montana-endorsed classroom teacher appointed by the voting members of the governing board;

(iv)a Montana-licensed school district administrator appointed by the voting members of the governing board in consultation with a state professional organization of school administrators; and

(v)the program director provided for in subsection (5).

(4)The governing board shall select one of the legislators appointed pursuant to subsection (3)(b)(i) or (3)(b)(ii) to be the presiding officer of the governing board and select a vice presiding officer to 2-year terms without limitation on the number of terms.

(5)The governing board shall hire a program director and a curriculum director. The program director shall develop and, upon approval of the governing board, implement and publish policies and guidelines for the Montana digital academy pertaining to:

(a)course offerings;

(b)software and hardware selection;

(c)instructor selection;

(d)partnering school agreements;

(e)instructor training and curriculum development;

(f)course evaluation;

(g)grant opportunities; and

(h)other activities that are essential to the success of a statewide distance learning program.

(6)The governing board shall provide a biennial report to the education interim committee and education interim budget committee in accordance with the provisions of 5-11-210. The report must include but is not limited to the following information:

(a)the number of students served and number of enrollments;

(b)a list of school districts served, including data about size and geographic location of the districts served;

(c)the number and type of courses offered, including a breakdown of:

(i)regular courses;

(ii)dual credit, advanced placement, and college courses;

(iii)credit recovery courses; and

(iv)courses offering industry-recognized credentials;

(d)the number of credits earned, including a breakdown of:

(i)regular credits;

(ii)dual credit, advanced placement, and college credits;

(iii)credit recovery credits;

(iv)industry-recognized credentials; and

(v)career and technical education credits;

(e)information about third-party services provided through the clearinghouse and a breakdown of enrollments in Montana digital academy courses compared to enrollments in third-party courses;

(f)results of student satisfaction surveys; and

(g)any recommendations for proposed legislation.