South Carolina Code 59-40-111. Alternative Education Campus
(1) severe limitations that preclude appropriate administration of the assessments administered pursuant to federal and state requirements;
Terms Used In South Carolina Code 59-40-111
- charter school: means a public, nonreligious, nonhome-based, nonprofit corporation forming a school that operates by sponsorship of a public school district, the South Carolina Public Charter School District, or a public or independent institution of higher learning, but is accountable to the board of trustees, or in the case of technical colleges, the area commission, of the sponsor which grants its charter. See South Carolina Code 59-40-40
- Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
- Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
- Sponsor: means the South Carolina Public Charter School District Board of Trustees, the local school board of trustees in which the charter school is to be located, as provided by law, a public institution of higher learning as defined in § 59-103-5, or an independent institution of higher learning as defined in § 59-113-50, from which the charter school applicant requested its charter and which granted approval for the charter school's existence. See South Carolina Code 59-40-40
(2) fifty percent or more of students having Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) in accordance with federal regulations or a demonstrated need for specific services or specialized instruction as defined in § 59-40-50, and the school shall provide the needed evidence-based specialized instruction, interventions, services, support, and accommodations based on the needs of the students; or
(3) eighty-five percent or more of enrolled students meeting the definition of a "high-risk" student including students who:
(a) have been adjudicated as juvenile delinquents or who are awaiting disposition of charges that may result in adjudication;
(b) have dropped out of school or who have not been continuously enrolled and regularly attending any school for at least one semester before enrolling in this school;
(c) have been expelled from school or who have engaged in behavior that would justify expulsion;
(d) have documented histories of personal drug or alcohol use or who have parents or guardians with documented dependencies on drugs or alcohol;
(e) have documented histories of personal street gang involvement or who have immediate family members with documented histories of street gang involvement;
(f) have documented histories of child abuse or neglect;
(g) have parents or guardians in prison or on parole or probation;
(h) have documented histories of domestic violence in the immediate family;
(i) have documented histories of repeated school suspensions;
(j) are under the age of twenty years who are parents or pregnant women;
(k) are homeless, as defined in the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act; or
(l) have a documented history of a serious psychiatric or behavioral disorder including, but not limited to, an eating disorder or a history of suicidal or self-injurious behaviors.
(B) Such schools must be classified as AECs by their sponsor.
(C) A high-poverty rating alone shall not qualify any charter school for status as an AEC.
(D) Charter school applicants seeking such a designation shall provide sufficient information in their charter application to allow the authorizer to make a determination as to whether that classification applies.
(E) Charter schools already in operation may seek AEC classification by petitioning their sponsor.
(F) Charter schools receiving an AEC designation either before or after opening, shall be held to applicable state and federal accountability standards along with the academic performance standards and expectations established by written agreement between the sponsor and the school that takes into account the school’s specialized mission and student population with comparisons to any available nationally normed data with similar subsets of students and is included in their annual report in accordance with § 59-40-140(H) and is included in the school report card compiled by the Education Oversight Committee.