Title 38, Educational Institutions.

The Mayor shall submit to the Council by September 30 of each year, beginning in 2008, a capacity audit of pre-k programs for all sectors, to be used by OSSE to determine the: (1) Number of children for whom pre-k is not available and whose parents would send them to pre-k but fo…

(a) The Mayor shall submit to the Council by September 30 of each year, beginning in 2009, an annual report on the status of pre-k for all sectors, accompanied, in 2009, by the independent quality evaluation required by § 38-271.03, which shall include OSSE’s assessment of the: (…

(a) Local funding for pre-k programs shall not supplant any funding sources used prior to July 18, 2008, for education programs for children of pre-k age. (b)(1) For each provider that meets the high-quality standards established pursuant to this chapter, local funding shall be a…

(a) Within 45 days of March 8, 2011, the Mayor shall establish and convene a State Early Childhood Development Coordinating Council (“Coordinating Council”) to: (1) Improve collaboration and coordination among entities carrying out federally funded and District-funded pre-k and o…

(a) The OSSE shall develop high-quality content standards and program requirements that pre-k programs that receive funds under this chapter are required to meet by September 1, 2014. (b) The program requirements shall include: (1) An adult-to-child ratio of one-to-8 for children…

(a) By July 2009, each pre-k program in the District shall have completed an evaluation, by an independent evaluator, and a financial audit to determine its standing in relation to the required HQ standards. (b) Within 30 days of July 18, 2008, the Mayor shall submit to the Counc…

(a) The OSSE shall establish and administer a grant program to assist existing and new pre-k programs in public schools, public charter schools, and CBOs in meeting the required HQ standards. Each grant shall be a 2-year grant. (b) The OSSE shall establish the criteria for eligib…

(a) The OSSE shall conduct, by September 30th of each year, an evaluation of all pre-k programs to establish existing capacity. (b) By September 2009, and every 5 years thereafter, the OSSE shall submit to the Mayor and the Council a 5-year strategic expansion plan, including an …

(a) To be eligible for enrollment in pre-k, a child shall be a resident of the District and be of pre-k age, or become 3 years of age on or before September 30th of the program year. (b) Except as provided in subsection (c) of this section, priority enrollment shall be first to c…

(a) Beginning in school year 2015-2016, no student of pre-k age may be expelled from any publicly funded community-based organization, school in the District of Columbia Public Schools system, or public charter school that provides pre-k care and education services to pre-k age c…

(a) The University of the District of Columbia: (1) Shall establish a Higher Education Incentive grant program for the purpose of increasing the number of pre-k teachers and assistant pre-k teachers working in elementary and secondary education in public schools, public charter s…

(a) The authority to establish the HEI program and the HEI scholarship program is transferred from the OSSE to the University of the District of Columbia. (b) By March 1, 2010, any real and personal property, positions, assets, and records relating to the HEI program or the HEI s…

(a) In addition to awarding HEI grants, the University of the District of Columbia may establish and administer a scholarship-award program for qualified individuals who have an interest in the pre-k education field. In exchange for a commitment to teach in the pre-k-education sy…

(a)(1) There is established as a nonlapsing fund the Higher Education Incentive Grant Fund, which shall be a separate program line within the University of the District of Columbia budget. All funds deposited into the HEIG fund shall not revert to the unrestricted fund balance of…

(a) The Mayor, pursuant to subchapter I of Chapter 5 of Title 2 [§ 2-501 et seq.], shall issue rules to implement the provisions of this chapter. The proposed rules shall be submitted to the Council for a 30-day period of review, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, legal holidays, and …

For the purposes of this chapter, the term: (1) “Child and Adult Care Food Program” or “CACF Program” means the program authorized by section 17 of the National School Lunch Act, approved October 7, 1975 (89 Stat. 522; 42 U.S.C. § 1766). (2) “Child development facility” means a l…

(a) There is established as a special fund the Healthy Tots Fund (“Fund”), which shall be administered by OSSE in accordance with this section. (b)(1) The Fund shall be funded by annual appropriations, which shall be deposited into the Fund. The money deposited into the Fund, and…

(a) If 50% or more children in a licensed child development facility are eligible to participate in the CACF Program, the facility shall participate in the program unless OSSE grants it an exemption pursuant to subsection (b) of this section. (b) To be eligible for an exemption, …

(a) The OSSE shall: (1) Provide training to support the efforts of a child development facility to meet the requirements of this chapter; (2) Monitor the progress of a child development facility in complying with this chapter during the facility’s licensing process and record col…

The Department of Parks and Recreation shall, to the extent feasible, partner with child development facilities to allow the facilities to use District recreation centers, fields, playgrounds, and other facilities on occasions that do not conflict with the Department of Parks and…

This chapter shall apply as of October 1, 2015.

For the purposes of this chapter, the term: (1) “Adult” means a person who is 18 years of age, or older. (2) “Adult student” means a student who is at least 18 years old, or who has been emancipated from parental control by marriage, operation of statute, or the order of a court …

(a) In the case of: (1) each adult who attends a public school of the District of Columbia and does not reside in the District of Columbia; and (2) each child who attends such a public school and does not have a parent, guardian, custodian, or other primary caregiver who resides …

(a) The State Education Office shall take such action as may be necessary to determine which of the persons, attending or desiring to attend the public schools of the District of Columbia, for whom tuition shall be paid as required by § 38-302, and said State Education Office is …

(a) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed so as to affect the authority vested in the Commissioners of the District of Columbia by Reorganization Plan No. 5 of 1952 (66 Stat. 824). The performance of any function vested by this chapter in the Commissioners of the District of…

Nothing contained in this chapter shall be construed as preventing the Board of Education from requiring students of the District of Columbia Teachers College to pay tuition, and the said Board is authorized, in its discretion, to require the payment of tuition by the students of…

All students enrolled in District of Columbia public schools and public charter schools funded by the District of Columbia or a student for whom educational services are paid by the District of Columbia shall provide proof of residency in the District or pay tuition pursuant to §…

A student entitled to enrollment without payment of nonresident tuition shall be either: (1) A child who is otherwise eligible for admission to the DCPS or a public charter school, and who qualifies for free instruction under one of the following categories: (A) A child who is in…

(a) The residency status of each student enrolling in a DCPS school or public charter school funded by the District of Columbia or a student for whom educational services are paid by the District of Columbia shall be established by October 5, or within 10 days of the time of init…

(a) Documentation satisfactory to establish District residency for local school verification and certification must be delivered to the school principal or to his or her employee designee either by the person seeking to enroll the student or by that person’s appointed representat…

(a) A person seeking to enroll a student as an other primary caregiver shall provide documentation that establishes his or her status as an other primary caregiver in conjunction with documentation that establishes the caregiver’s residency status pursuant to §§ 38-308 and 38-309…

(a) The Board of Education and the chartering authorities shall establish such procedures as they deem appropriate to establish residency and other primary caregiver status in cases where persons seeking to enroll students in schools under their supervision are unable to prove re…

The fact that a parent or caregiver of a student has provided satisfactory evidence of residency or other primary caregiver status pursuant to this chapter shall not prevent a principal or other school administrator, a chartering authority, or the Office of the State Superintende…

(a) The Office of the State Superintendent of Education shall establish a hotline to receive tips and information regarding the non-District residence, or other primary caregiver status, of a parent or a primary caregiver of a student in a District of Columbia public school or a …

(a) There is established as a nonlapsing fund the Student Residency Verification Fund (“Fund”), which shall be used for the purposes set forth in subsection (b) of this section. All funds deposited in the Fund, and any interest earned on those funds, shall not revert to the unres…

The Mayor shall submit a report to the Council on the status of residency fraud investigations and the levying and collection of fines and retroactive tuition within 30 days of May 9, 2012, and on an annual basis thereafter. The report for each local education agency shall includ…

The Mayor shall promulgate rules pursuant to this chapter. The proposed rules shall be submitted to the Council for a 45-day period of review, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, holidays, and days of Council recess. If the Council does not approve or disapprove the proposed rules, in …

(a) There is established within the State Board of Education an Office of Ombudsman for Public Education, which shall be headed by an ombudsman appointed by the State Board of Education. (b)(1) The Ombudsman shall be a District resident within 180 days of appointment. (2) The Omb…

The Ombudsman shall: (1) Be appointed without regard to party affiliation; (2) Be appointed on the basis of integrity; (3) Possess a demonstrated ability to analyze issues and matters of law, administration, and policy; (4) Possess experience in the field of social work, counseli…

The Ombudsman shall: (1) Provide outreach to current and prospective public school students and their parents or guardians, and to further this purpose, have the cooperation of all individuals within the public school system; (2) Encourage communication between public schools and…

The Ombudsman shall: (1) Have access to books, records, files, reports, findings, and all other papers, items, or property (“documents”) belonging to or in use by all departments, agencies, instrumentalities, and employees of public schools necessary to facilitate the purpose of …

(a) The Ombudsman shall not: (1) Disclose personally identifiable information regarding a student without the specific written consent of the student or parent, as required by federal and local law; (2) Disclose the substance of a conversation with any teacher or other official o…

(a) The Office of Ombudsman shall provide complaint resolution services, which shall be available to current and prospective public school students and their parents or guardians. (b) Participation in complaint resolution services provided by the Office of Ombudsman shall be volu…

(a) The control of the public schools in the District of Columbia by the Board of Education shall extend to include the negotiation and approval of use, license, and lease agreements, with or without monetary consideration, with respect to the use of public school buildings and p…

The Board of Education shall submit to the Mayor of the District of Columbia and the Council of the District of Columbia, not later than January 15th of each year, a report covering all activities with respect to public school buildings and grounds that were undertaken during the…

The Board of Education may by regulation require persons and organizations, other than District of Columbia and federal agencies, holding use agreements or lease agreements with the Board of Education to carry public liability insurance including protection of the interests of th…