AMENDMENT FOR PRINTED BILL
63ca
___________________ moved that SB 63 be amended as follows:
On the printed bill, delete everything after the enacting clause and insert:
" Section 1. If the Department of Education receives a federal grant under the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Division A, Section 14006, Pub. L. No. 111-5 as amended
to January 1, 2010, the department shall initiate a pilot charter school primarily for American Indian
students from federally recognized tribes that is infused with cultural activities. The curriculum of
the school shall emphasize science, technology, engineering, and mathematics as well as American
Indian culture.
Section 2. Any entity seeking to establish the pilot charter school shall submit a written plan to
the South Dakota Board of Education. The written plan shall include the following:
(1) A detailed business plan for the private charter school;
(2) A mission statement for the school;
(3) A description of the school's organizational structure that shall include an advisory
council of no less than five, but no more than nine members;
(4) A financial plan for the first three years of operation of the school;
(5) A description of the school's location and facilities;
(6) A description of the grade levels that will be served;
(7) An assurance that state content standards will be addressed;
(8) An assurance that federal and state academic accountability measures will be met; and
(9) An outline of the criteria that will be used to measure the effectiveness of the school.
The Board of Education may request revisions to any written plan submitted and may approve
any plan that meets the requirements in this section.
Section 3. Any pilot charter school established pursuant to this Act shall be public, nonsectarian,
nonreligious, nonhome based, and nonprofit.
Section 4. American Indian students from federally recognized tribes shall be given enrollment
priority at the pilot charter school. In its first year of operation, the school may enroll students on
either a first-come, first-served basis, or through a lottery selection process if the total number of
applicants exceeds the number of spaces available at the school. In subsequent years of its operation,
the school shall give preference to:
(1) Students who have been admitted to the pilot charter school through the approved
admission process, and remain in attendance through subsequent grades; and
(2) Siblings of students already admitted to or attending the pilot charter school.
Section 5. Any pilot charter school established pursuant to this Act shall exist as an independent
local education agency. All students enrolled in the pilot charter school shall be counted for the
purposes of determining adequate yearly progress under the terms of the state accountability system
established pursuant to § 13-3-69.
For the purposes of calculating state aid to general education distributed pursuant to chapter 13-13, South Dakota students enrolled in the school shall be counted in the pilot charter school's fall
enrollment, and the state's financial obligation may not exceed the amounts set forth in chapter 13-13.
For the purposes of calculating state aid to special education distributed pursuant to chapter 13-37, any student in need of special education or special education and related services enrolled in the
pilot charter school shall remain the financial responsibility of the student's resident school district.
Section 6. No pilot charter school established pursuant to this Act may generate or request local
property tax revenue from the school district in which the school resides. Any expenditures of the
pilot charter school that result in the acquisition or lease of or additions to real property, plant, or
equipment that would, in a school district, be paid from the school district's capital outlay fund set
forth in § 13-16-6, are the financial responsibility of the entity establishing the pilot charter school.
Section 7. The charter of the pilot charter school shall:
(1) Document compliance with federal, state, and local rules, regulations, and statutes relating
to health, safety, civil rights, and insurance;
(2) Assure that the pilot charter school is nonsectarian in its programs, admissions policies,
employment practices, and all other operations;
(3) Assure that the pilot charter school provides a comprehensive program of instruction for
grades nine through twelve and two years of postsecondary education;
(4) Assure that the pilot charter school meets all state laws and state administrative rules
relating to schools, governing boards, and school districts;
(5) Assure cooperation with the Department of Education or the auditor general in any
financial, program, or compliance audits conducted in addition to those required pursuant
to § 4-11-7.1; and
(6) Document compliance with all federal and state laws relating to the education of children
with disabilities in the same manner as a school district.
The charter of any pilot charter school established pursuant to this Act is effective for five years
and may be amended at the request of the advisory council if the amendments are approved by the
South Dakota Board of Education. A plan for renewal of the pilot charter school must be made to
the Board of Education every five years.
Section 8. Any pilot charter school organized pursuant to this Act is eligible to apply for and
receive federal grant funding.
Section 9. Any pilot charter school organized pursuant to this Act shall participate in the state
retirement system established in chapter 3-12. The school may be exempt from continuing contract
laws set forth in chapter 13-43, and its employee contracts may be collectively bargained.
Section 10. If a student previously enrolled in a pilot charter school enrolls in a public school in
the state, the public school shall accept credits earned by the students in courses or instructional
programs at the pilot charter school in a uniform and consistent manner, and according to the same
criteria used to accept academic credits from other public schools."