§ 829 - Prekindergarten education; rules - Vermont Statutes

§ 829. Prekindergarten education; rules

The commissioner of education and the commissioner for children and families shall jointly develop and agree to rules and present them to the state board of education for adoption under chapter 25 of Title 3 as follows:

(1) To ensure that, before a school district begins or expands a prekindergarten education program that intends to enroll students who are included in its average daily membership, the district engage the community in a collaborative process that includes an assessment of the need for the program in the community and an inventory of the existing service providers.

(2) To ensure that, if a school district begins or expands a prekindergarten education program that intends to include any of the students in its average daily membership, the district shall use existing qualified service providers to the extent that existing qualified service providers have the capacity to meet the district's needs effectively and efficiently.

(3) To require that the school district provides opportunities for effective parental participation in the prekindergarten education program.

(4) To establish a process by which a parent or guardian residing in the district or a provider, or both, may request a school district to enter into a contract with a provider located in or outside the district.

(5) To identify the services and other items for which state funds may be expended when prekindergarten children are counted for purposes of average daily membership, such as tuition reduction, quality improvements, or professional development for school staff or private providers.

(6) To ensure transparency and accountability by requiring private providers under contract with a school district to report costs for prekindergarten programs to the school district and by requiring school districts to report these costs to the commissioner of education.

(7) To require school districts to include identifiable costs for prekindergarten programs and essential early education services in their annual budgets and reports to the community.

(8) To require school districts to report to the departments their annual expenditures made in support of prekindergarten care and education, with distinct figures provided for expenditures made from the general fund, from the education fund, and from all other sources, which shall be specified.

(9) To provide an appeal process for parent, guardian, or provider to challenge an action of the school district when the appellant believes that the district is in violation of state statute or rules regarding prekindergarten education.

(10) To establish the minimum quality standards necessary for a district to include prekindergarten children within its average daily membership. At a minimum, the standards shall include the following requirements:

(A) The prekindergarten education program, whether offered by or through the district, shall have received:

(i) National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) accreditation; or

(ii) At least four stars in the department for children and families STARS system with at least two points in each of the five arenas; or

(iii) Three stars in the STARS system if the provider has developed a plan, approved by the commissioner for children and families and the commissioner of education, to achieve four or more stars within three years with at least two points in each of the five arenas, and the provider has met intermediate milestones; and

(B) A licensed center shall employ or contract for the services of at least one teacher who is licensed and endorsed in early childhood education or in early childhood special education under chapter 51 of this title; and

(C) A registered home shall receive regular, active supervision and training from a teacher who is licensed and endorsed in early childhood education or in early childhood special education under chapter 51 of this title.

(11) To establish a process for documenting the progress of children enrolled in prekindergarten programs and to require public and private providers to use the process to collect and report child progress data to the commissioner of education on an annual basis. (Added 2007, No. 62, § 3; amended 2007, No. 132 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.)