PRINTER'S NO. 924
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
SENATE BILL
No.
827
Session of
2015
INTRODUCED BY DINNIMAN, TEPLITZ, RAFFERTY AND FONTANA,
MAY 14, 2015
REFERRED TO EDUCATION, MAY 14, 2015
AN ACT
Amending the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), entitled "An
act relating to the public school system, including certain
provisions applicable as well to private and parochial
schools; amending, revising, consolidating and changing the
laws relating thereto," in pupils and attendance, further
providing for reports of enrollments, attendance and
withdrawals and public and private schools.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Section 1332 of the act of March 10, 1949
(P.L.30, No.14), known as the Public School Code of 1949,
amended January 14, 1970 (1969 P.L.468, No.192), is amended to
read:
Section 1332. Reports of Enrollments; Attendance and
Withdrawals; Public and Private Schools.--(a) Every principal
or teacher in every public school, and every principal, teacher
or tutor in every school other than a public school, and in
every institution for children, and every private teacher in
every school district, shall[,]:
(1) immediately after their admission to such school or
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institution, or at the beginning of such private teaching,
regardless of whether such admission is prior to the first day
of the school district's school year or at any time thereafter,
furnish to the district superintendents, attendance officers,
home and school visitors, or secretaries of the boards of school
directors of the districts wherein the [parents or guardians of
such children] parent, guardian or other person having control
or charge of any child or children of compulsory school age
reside, lists of the names and residences of all children
[between six (6) and] under eighteen (18) years of age enrolled
in such school or institution, or taught by such private
teachers; [and]
(2) shall further report at once to such district
superintendent, or secretary of the board of school directors,
the name and date of withdrawal of any such pupil withdrawing
from any such school or institution, or from such private
instruction, if such withdrawal occurs during the period of
compulsory attendance in said district[.]; and
(3) shall further report at the end of each reporting period
to such district superintendent, or secretary of the board of
school directors, the total number of such end of reporting
period progress reports, whether by report card or otherwise,
that were issued to its students.
(b) Every principal or teacher in a school other than a
public school, and every private teacher, shall also report at
once to the superintendent, attendance officer, home and school
visitor, or secretary of the board of school directors of the
district, any such child who has been absent three (3) days, or
their equivalent, during the term of compulsory attendance,
without lawful excuse.
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(c) (1) Pursuant to the requirements of 22 Pa. Code 11.41
(relating to school district policies and rules), the board of
school directors shall formally adopt, as part of its written
rules concerning district child accounting, attendance and
admission, a policy for providing the parent, guardian or other
person having control or charge of any child of compulsory
school age an opportunity to update residence and contact
information that is recorded in the student record of the child.
(2) The policy shall include, at a minimum, a process to
periodically request throughout the school year the residence of
the child and all contact information of the parent, guardian or
other such person with control or charge of the child that shall
occur when each report on the child's progress or level of
achievement in specific classes, course content or curriculum is
issued, whether by report card or otherwise, unless the
reporting periods are less than three (3) times a school year or
exceed four (4) times a school year.
(3) If the reporting periods are less than three (3) times a
school year or exceed four (4) times a school year, the policy
shall require a process of request that occurs every sixty (60)
days of the school year that provides the parent, guardian or
other such person with control or charge of the child the
opportunity to update the contact information and the child's
residence.
(d) (1) On the first day of each school year, the district
superintendents, attendance officers, home and school visitors
or secretaries of the boards of school directors of the
districts with the list of names furnished to them pursuant to
subsection (a)(1) and (2) shall total the number of students
enrolled for the school year in each such school in the
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district. The total number of students recorded shall
immediately be reported to the department listed in the form of
the total enrollment for each individual such school and the
cumulative total for the school district.
(2) Starting at the end of the first reporting period of the
school year and at the end of each such subsequent reporting
period thereafter until the final reporting period of the school
year occurs, the district superintendents, attendance officers,
home and school visitors or secretaries of the boards of school
directors of the districts at any district with reporting
periods that occur three (3) times or four (4) times a school
year, whether by report card or otherwise, shall:
(i) review all the lists of names furnished to them under
subsection (a)(1) and (2), to recalculate and record the total
number of students enrolled in each such school in the district,
as well as recalculate the cumulative total of the school
district as of the date of recalculation;
(ii) compare the total number of end of reporting period
progress reports most recently issued and furnished pursuant to
subsection (a)(3) to the total recorded enrollment numbers in
subclause (i) for each respective school, for the purpose of
counting and recording any difference between the two numbers in
each such school; and
(iii) report to the department immediately whenever there
are differences recorded in subclause (ii), to be listed in the
form of the total number of differences for each individual such
school with an explanation of the difference, and further,
whenever any recalculated numbers of enrollment recorded in
subclause (i) have changed from the number last reported in the
school year to the department, whether calculated and reported
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pursuant to clause (1) or subclause (i), to be listed in the
form of the total enrollment numbers that were recorded in
subclause (i) for each individual such school and the cumulative
total for the school district with a notation of the difference
in amount enrolled.
(3) In the event that the reporting period is less than
three (3) times a school year or exceeds four (4) times a school
year, the district superintendents, attendance officers, home
and school visitors or secretaries of the boards of school
directors of the districts shall perform the requirements set
forth in clause (2)(i), (ii) and (iii) sixty (60) days after the
first day of the school year and every sixty (60) days
thereafter until the last day of the school year.
(4) Within thirty (30) days after the last day of each
school year, the district superintendents, attendance officers,
home and school visitors or secretaries of the boards of school
directors of the districts shall determine from the list of
names and residences furnished to them in subsection (a)(1) and
the name and date of withdrawal of any such pupil withdrawing
furnished to them in subsection (a)(2) for the purpose of
recording:
(i) the total number of students who left any such school in
the school district during the school year without transferring
to any other such school in the school district; and
(ii) the total number of students who transferred between
schools which are assigned to the same school or system leader,
whether public or not public, or between like institutions or
private instruction, within the school district during the
school year with a tally provided of the number of transfers
that were between two public schools, were transfers into public
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schools or were transfers out of public schools.
(5) The numbers recorded under clause (4)(i) and (ii) shall
be reported to the department within thirty (30) days of the
last day of the school year.
(e) For the purpose of this section, the following words and
phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this subsection
unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Contact information" shall mean the address, telephone
number, e-mail address or any other available electronic means
of communication of the parent, guardian or other such person
with control or charge of the child of compulsory school age and
is subject to further definition by any individual board of
school directors to include the identification of additional
similar type of information as needed.
"Department" shall mean the Department of Education of the
Commonwealth.
"Reporting period" shall mean the repeated cycle of days that
the child's progress or level of achievement in specific
classes, course content or curriculum is assessed for the
purpose of issuing an account thereof at the end of such cycle
to the parent, guardian or other such person with control or
charge of the child of compulsory school age.
"School" shall mean every public school, every school other
than a public school, every institution for children and every
teacher of private instruction in every school district subject
to this section.
"School year" shall mean the period within the fiscal year of
July 1 to June 30 of at least one hundred eighty (180)
instructional days or, if approved by the secretary, a period of
less than one hundred eighty (180) instructional days in which a
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meritorious educational program of at least nine hundred (900)
hours at the elementary level and nine hundred ninety (990)
hours at the secondary level is offered.
Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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