(a)  Persons or entities eligible to submit an application to establish a district charter school shall be limited to:

(1)  Existing public schools;

(2)  Groups of public school personnel;

(3)  Public school districts; or

(4)  A group of school districts.

(b)  No existing public school shall be converted into a district charter school unless a majority of the parents and/or guardians of the students currently assigned to the school and two- thirds (?) of the certified teaching personnel currently assigned to the school approve the proposed charter, as provided in § 16-77.2-2.

(c)  School professionals employed by a local or regional school committee or the State of Rhode Island shall be entitled to a two (2) year leave of absence, without compensation, in order to be employed in a district charter school, provided this leave shall be extended upon request for an additional two (2) years. At any time during or upon completion of this leave of absence, a school professional may return to work in the school district in the position in which he or she was previously employed or a comparable position. This leave of absence shall not be deemed to be an interruption of service for purposes of seniority and teachers’ retirement.

(d)  No child shall be required to attend a district charter school nor shall any teacher be required to teach in a district charter school. The school committee shall make accommodations to facilitate the transfer of students who do not wish to participate in the district charter school into other public schools. It shall also make accommodations for those students who wish to participate to transfer into the district charter school as space permits. If the total number of students who are eligible to attend and apply to a district charter school is greater than the number of spaces available, the charter school shall conduct a lottery to determine which students shall be admitted.