§302A-411  Junior kindergarten and
kindergarten program; establishment; attendance.  (a)  The department shall
establish and maintain junior kindergartens and kindergartens with a program of
instruction as a part of the public school system; provided that:



(1)  Attendance shall not be mandatory; and



(2)  Charter schools shall be excluded from mandatory
participation in the program.



(b)  The department shall establish a two-tier
junior kindergarten and kindergarten program to support the range of developmental
abilities of children in junior kindergarten and kindergarten.  Schools shall
not move students between junior kindergarten and kindergarten, except in cases
where the movement is warranted and based on appropriate assessments determined
by:



(1)  A qualified teacher with early childhood
education background or experience; and



(2)  The formative and summative assessment of a
student's academic, physical, social, and emotional abilities,



provided that, beginning with the 2010-2011 school
year, the department shall use successful assessment tools and protocols for
determining a student's initial placement and for decision making about a
student's movement between tiers and into grade one.  Junior kindergarten
students may graduate directly to grade one when promotion is based on
appropriate assessments and other progress data collected over time.



(c)  Beginning with the 2004-2005 school year,
a child who will be at least five years of age on or before December 31 of the
school year may attend a public school kindergarten.  Beginning with the 2006-2007 school year, a child who will be
at least five years of age on or before August 1 of the school year may attend
a public school kindergarten.  Beginning with the 2006-2007 school year, a
child who will be at least five years of age after August 1 and before January
1 of the school year may attend a public school junior kindergarten.



(d)  The department may accept gifts to
establish and maintain junior kindergartens and kindergartens. [L 1996, c 89,
pt of §2; am L 1997, c 362, §1; am L 2004, c 219, §2; am L 2006, c 298, §9; am
L 2009, c 194, §2]



 



Cross References



 



  Early childhood education facilities; identifying sites, see
§302A-1506.5.