Title 6, Education

(a) Every student and teacher in the public schools participating in any of the following courses is required to wear industrial-quality eye protective devices at all times while participating in the following courses or laboratories:(1) Vocational or industrial arts shops or lab…

(a) (1) It shall be unlawful for any member of the board of directors, administrator, or employee of a public school to knowingly authorize the participation of students in an event or activity held at a location where some students would be excluded or not given equal treatment …

(a) A public school in this state shall observe a one-minute period of silence at the beginning of school each school day. (b) During the period of silence a student may, without interfering with or distracting another student:(1) Reflect;(2) Pray; or(3) Engage in a silent activi…

(a) It is found and determined by the General Assembly that granting local school districts greater flexibility in scheduling instructional time can reap educational benefits for the students and financial rewards for the school district. It is the intent of this section to autho…

(a) The Division of Elementary and Secondary Education shall cooperate with and assist local school districts in this state in the establishment of a program to inform students about healthcare coverage under the ARKids First Program Act, § 20-77-1101 et seq. (b) The informationa…

(a) (1) By May 1 of each year, the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education shall identify school districts that are underperforming in the area of direct-service Medicaid billing.(2) The division shall direct identified school districts to increase direct-service Medicaid …

(1) The General Assembly finds:(1) It is the duty of the State of Arkansas to provide a general, suitable, and efficient system of free public schools to the children of the state under Arkansas Constitution, Article 14, § 1;(2) The General Assembly is obligated to ensure the pro…

(a) (1) As used in this section, “public school” means:(A) A school that is part of a public school district under the control and management of a local school district board of directors; or(B) An open-enrollment public charter school.(2) “Public school” includes the Arkansas Sc…

(a) (1) The State Board of Education shall promulgate rules to require that:(A) Each school campus have an automated external defibrillator;(B) Appropriate school personnel be adequately trained on an ongoing basis; and(C) Each school-sponsored sporting event for grades seven thr…

(a) The State Board of Education, after consultation with the Department of Health, shall develop rules based on guidelines for automated external defibrillator and cardiopulmonary resuscitation training that incorporates at least the following:(1) Healthcare provider oversight, …

(a) After each regular, fiscal, or extraordinary session of the General Assembly, the board of directors of each public school district in the state and the superintendent of the school district shall review the acts of the General Assembly for that session to determine whether a…

(a) (1) As used in this section, “floor plan” means a document containing:(A) A schematic drawing of facilities and property used by each public school in the school district, including the configuration of rooms, spaces, and other physical features of buildings;(B) The location …

(a) A superintendent may delay the start time or release early a school or schools in the school district due to any of the following emergency circumstances:(1) Inclement weather;(2) Contagious disease outbreak; or(3) Utility outage. (1) Inclement weather; (2) Contagious disease…

(a) If a superintendent closes school for a regularly scheduled school day due to exceptional or emergency circumstances such as a contagious disease outbreak, inclement weather, or other acts of God, the superintendent may make up missed school days by adding time to the beginni…

(a) A school district board of directors may accept from a local law enforcement agency with jurisdiction a school resource officer to assist with school security, safety, emergency preparedness, emergency response, or any other responsibility assigned to the school resource offi…

(a) (1) (A) The Division of Elementary and Secondary Education or the Division of Career and Technical Education may require a school district or public school to submit data and other information deemed necessary to assure that a school district or public school is in compliance…

(1) The score on statewide student assessments for an English learner student:(1) Shall not be counted for growth or achievement purposes in the accountability ratings of a public school or public school district if the English learner student has been enrolled in a public school…

(a) A superintendent of a public school district is immune from civil liability and suit for damages for the enforcement of policies adopted by the board of directors of the public school district if the policies are in compliance with state or federal law. (b) Personnel of the D…

(a) This section shall be known and may be cited as the “Patriotic Access to Students in Schools Act”. (b) As used in this section, “patriotic society” means any youth group listed in Title 36 of the United States Code, as it existed on January 1, 2017. (c) (1) Beginning with the…

(a) Beginning in the 2019-2020 school year, each public school shall provide bleeding control training as a component of a health course to be taught to students in grades nine through twelve (9-12). (b) The State Board of Education, in consultation with the Department of Health,…

(a) For the purposes of this section, “minor” means a:(1) Child who is under eighteen (18) years of age; or(2) Person who is eighteen (18) years of age or older and a student in a public secondary school. (1) Child who is under eighteen (18) years of age; or (2) Person who is eig…

(a) The General Assembly finds that the students of the Natural State are the state's greatest resource. (b) The last Wednesday in September of each year shall be recognized as “A Day of Prayer for Arkansas Students”. (c) The Governor shall:(1) Annually proclaim the last Wednesda…

(a) This section shall be known and may be cited as the “Star-Spangled Banner Act”. (b) The General Assembly finds that:(1) It is of the utmost importance that Arkansas youth learn the importance of the national anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner”;(2) The regular playing of “The S…

(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, a public school district or open-enrollment public charter school that sponsors or supervises an overnight trip involving a public school student shall ensure that a public school student attending the overnight trip eithe…

(a) As used in this section, “natural, protective, or cultural hairstyle” includes without limitation afros, dreadlocks, twists, locs, braids, cornrow braids, Bantu knots, curls, and hair styled to protect hair texture or for cultural significance. (b) A school district administr…

(a) This section shall be known and may be cited as the “Religious Viewpoint Antidiscrimination Act”. (b) A public school district:(1) Shall treat a public school student's voluntary expression, if any, of a religious viewpoint on an otherwise permissible subject in the same mann…

(a) This section shall be known and may be cited as the “Religious Rights at Public Schools Act of 2025”. (b) At the beginning of each school year, each public school district and open-enrollment public charter school shall provide each enrolled student and individual employed by…

(a) The State Board of Education shall be composed of nine (9) members: (1) (1) Two (2) members to be selected from each of the congressional districts of the state as they exist at the time of appointment; and(2) One (1) member to be appointed at large from within the state. (1)…

(a) (1) Subject to confirmation by the Governor, the State Board of Education is empowered to employ a person to act as the Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education and who shall be the administrative head of the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education.(2) The co…

(a) The State Board of Education shall elect one (1) of its number chair, one (1) vice chair, and such other officers as the state board deems necessary to perfect its organization. (b) The Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education shall act as ex officio secretary of th…

(a) The State Board of Education shall meet a minimum of six (6) times annually. (b) In any of its meetings before the end of the calendar year, the state board shall determine the meeting dates for the following year. (c) (1) Special meetings may be called by the chair of the st…

(a) The State Board of Education shall:(1) Have general supervision of the public schools of the state;(2) Recommend courses of study for the public schools and teacher training institutions;(3) Issue licenses based upon credentials presented by applicants for licenses to teach i…

The State Board of Education shall adopt a seal, and the seal shall be used by the Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education to authenticate documents or copies of documents as the state board or commissioner may deem advisable.

(a) The State Board of Education shall prescribe a uniform system of records to be kept by the school directors, principals, and teachers of schools. (b) All the school officials and employees listed in subsection (a) of this section shall make reports to the Commissioner of Elem…

(a) The State Board of Education shall keep in the office of the Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education a complete record of the minutes of its meetings and other proceedings and annually shall make a report to the Governor that shall embody the report of the commissi…

The State Board of Education is empowered to make plans, promulgate rules, and seek waivers for flexibility as necessary for this state to meet the requirements of a law enacted by the United States Congress for general education, including without limitation the Elementary and S…

(a) (1) The General Assembly accepts all federal aid to education that may be provided by the United States Congress.(2) The State Board of Education is designated as the state educational authority for the purpose of representing the state in the administration of funds provided…

The State Board of Education is authorized to enter into and carry out such contractual agreements and arrangements with local school districts and other agencies as may be found necessary to implement any and all sections of Pub. L. No. 89-10, as amended, and other federal progr…

(a) The Commission for Arkansas Public School Academic Facilities and Transportation is granted authority to prescribe principles, standards, and criteria to be followed in setting up priority of projects, provided that such principles, standards, and criteria are not in conflict…

Copies of any papers or documents on file in the office of the Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education authenticated by him or her with the seal of the State Board of Education shall be admissible in evidence with the same effect as the original.

(a) The State Board of Education is authorized to provide supervision, accreditation, and other services essential to the development of desirable educational programs for children at the elementary and secondary levels who are residents in institutions under the control of a pub…

(a) (1) Acts 1991, No. 1034, authorizes the Board of Trustees of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System to provide a loan to the Department of Education, now known as the “Division of Elementary and Secondary Education”, for a statewide computer system capable of linking all publ…

The General Assembly finds that the State of Arkansas has provided the encouragement and the financial means to build a foundation for an information technology network linking local school districts and the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education. The General Assembly fur…

The Arkansas Geographic Information Systems Office shall keep for the Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education a map showing the school districts with their boundaries.

(a) (1) As used in this section:(A) “Arkansas Public School Computer Network” or “APSCN” means the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education's computer network system for public school district reporting of financial management data and student management data to the Divisio…

(a) (1) Each school district shall make the following information and data easily identified on its website or the website of the school district's education service cooperative, if the education service cooperative maintains the school district's website:(A) Current comprehensiv…