Expanded opportunity pilot program.

WORKING DRAFT
2009
STATE OF
WYOMING
09LSO-0229.E1

HOUSE BILL
NO.
HB0033

Expanded opportunity pilot program.

Sponsored by:
Representative(s) Hammons, Craft, Jaggi, McOmie and Wallis and Senator(s)
Anderson
, J., Coe, Massie and Von Flatern

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to
public education; establishing a grant program funding pilot projects
during the 2009
‑
2010 academic year that provide innovative education delivery to students at

risk of dropping out of high school prior to graduation; delegating program administration to the Wyoming community college commission
;
imposing reporting requirements upon grant recipients; providing an appropriation; and
providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of
Wyoming
:

Section 1.

(a)

One hundred
sixty

thousand
dollars ($1
6
0,000.00) is appropriated from the public school foundation program account to the Wyoming community college commission to be expended for
the
expanded opportunity pilot program
established and
authorized under this section. This appropriation shall be for the period beginning with th
e effective date of this act
and ending June 30, 2010.

(b)

The expanded opportunity pilot program is established under this section to provide programs targeted at reducing high school drop-out rates through a
collaborative
effort between
Wyoming

community colleges and
Wyoming

public high schools
situated within the colleges
'
defined service area
.

Programs eligible for grant awards under this section shall
consist of the following programs which
comply with requirements and criteria established by the commission
in consultation with
th
e department of education:

(i)

Concurrent and dual high school-community college enrollment education programs targeted at students identified as gifted and talented and at

risk of dropping out of high school;

(ii)

Concurrent and dual high school-community college enrollment career-technical education programs targeted at students identified as at

risk of drop
p
ing out of high school;

(iii)

E
ducation programs
delivered innovatively
through
such options as
coordinated
electronic system technology or at times beyond regular school hours or sessions which facilitate students attempting to complete necessary course work fulfilling high school graduation requirements;

(iv)

Programs providing basic educational requirements necessary for entry into
and success in
post-secondary level academic and career-technical
education programs which target participation by identified student populations at

risk of dropping out of high school;

(v)

Additional innovative programs providing educational opportunities to identified at-risk students through combined high school-community college
collaborative
efforts.

(c)

The commission shall provide sufficient notification to community college
s
and school districts of the grant program
established under this section
and shall
develop requirements and criteria
governing program administration in sufficient time to enable program application by July 1, 2009.
Program requirements and criteria
shall in addition to application procedures and required program components
and content
, prescribe uniform methodology for
identification
of students at

risk of dropping out of high school prior to graduation.

A
lthough eligible programs are targeted to student populations at

risk of dropping out of high school,
the commission shall not exclusively limit enrollment in
an eligible
program to at-risk students
only
.

(
d
)

Each
Wyoming
community college may apply
to the
commission
for a grant award
under this section on a form, in a manner and within a time period specified by
the
commission
,
which shall be applied to expanded opportunity programs offered during the 2009-2010 academic year. Applications shall
identify each qualified high school participating in the
program and shall at minimum include a description of the proposed expanded opportunity program, the specialized student population to which the program is targeted, an outline of the necessary steps in college-high school
collaboration
and a summary of the program components and educational strategies to be employed.

(e)

From the amount appropriated under subsection (a) of this section, t
he commission shall award expanded opportunity program grants
among applications filed
under this section by
not later than
August 15, 2009. Each grant award
ed
to any one (1) qualifying program shall not exceed fifty thousand dollars ($50,000.00)
, which shall be distributed by the commission to selected applicants on or before August 31, 2009, to enable program delivery during the 2009
‑
2010 academic year.

(f)

In addition to subsection (e) of this section, the commission may expend up to
ten
thousand dollars ($
1
0,000.00) for administering this section, including the acquisition of contractual services necessary to draft
program
requirements and criteria
and to develop uniform methodology for use in the identification of students at

risk of dropping out of high school prior to graduation
.

(
g
)

Each recipient college shall report by
July 1, 2010, to the
commission
on expenditures of grant awards distributed under this section together with information on the expanded opportunity program provided under the award, the program strategies employed and the impact of the program on at-risk student populations and an evaluation of the effectiveness of the program on reducing high school drop-out rates. Not later than August 1, 2010, the commission shall compile the reports and present the compilation to the joint education interim committee together with recommendations pertaining to program continuation and funding.

Section 2.

This act is effective immediately upon co
m
pletion of all acts necessary for a bill to become law as provided by Article 4, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constit
u
tion.

(END)

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HB0033