Repost: Signatures gathered for the 2012 ballot
Posted Tuesday, March 6, 2012
From Open Forum, on Nov. 3, 2011:
ASBSD was on hand as officials from Moving South Dakota Forward submitted nearly 34,000 signatures in support of a ballot measure to dedicated new sales tax revenue to K-12 education and Medicaid.
Moving South Dakota Forward submits 33,850 petitions from Associated School Boards of SD on Vimeo.
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Legislation saves voluntary academic programs
Posted Friday, March 2, 2012
South Dakota school districts can continue to charge for
voluntary pre-k, driver education and summer school programs, thanks to
legislation signed into law Thursday by Gov. Dennis Daugaard.
State auditors took exception last year to school districts
that charged for the voluntary programs, arguing that school districts lacked
legal authority to assess fees. That position was later backed by the South
Dakota Department of Education and the Attorney General’s office, though the
state’s top lawyer did not issue an official opinion.
To clarify existing school district practice, ASBSD drafted
and helped usher HB 1195 through the legislative process. The bill allows
schools to charge a fee for programming “before or after the regular school
term or school day, including weekends.” The language also grants permission to
charge a fee for “early childhood services for any child his is under the age
of compulsory attendance.”
The legislation also requires any fees collected to be
deposited into the public enterprise fund, a provision intended to clarify that
the funds raised can’t be used to supplement general fund programs. The law
also states that fees may not charge fees for extracurricular activities.
Opponents of the measure were concerned about what they said
was broad language relating to pre-k, arguing that the language would allow for
K-12 schools to operate a host of day care and other non-education related
services. ASBSD pushed back against that contention, saying schools were only
seeking to clarify authority to charge for pre-k programs that already benefit
students.
The measure cleared the House of Representatives on a 55-12
vote, and passed through the Senate on a 25-6 vote. South Dakota school board
members voted last November to make the fee authority issue an advocacy
priority for the upcoming year.
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State sets deadline for open enrollment, allows local option
Posted Thursday, March 1, 2012
South Dakota students will only be able to open-enroll at
the beginning of a semester unless school boards determine special
circumstances exist, members of the South Dakota House of Representatives
decided Wednesday.
Legislators agreed to amendments on HB 1189, and voted 65-4
to send the bill to the governor’s desk.
If signed into law, open
enrollment requests may only be accepted before the last Friday in September or
the last Friday in January. If a request is granted outside of those dates, the
transfer will occur at the beginning of the next semester. The deadlines don’t
apply if the student wants to attend an alternative school, is moving into the
district, or if a school board determines that “special circumstances” exist
that make the transfer necessary.
The law does not impact transfers of students to different
schools within a school district.
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