Section 3301.163. Third-grade reading guarantee for scholarship students

(A) Beginning July 1, 2015, any third-grade student who attends a chartered nonpublic school with a scholarship awarded under either the educational choice scholarship pilot program, prescribed in sections 3310.01 to 3310.17, or the pilot project scholarship program prescribed in sections 3313.974 to 3313.979 of the Revised Code, shall be subject to the third-grade reading guarantee retention provisions under division (A)(2) of section 3313.608 of the Revised Code, including the exemptions prescribed by that division. For purposes of determining if a child with a disability is exempt from retention under this section, an individual services plan created for the child that has been reviewed by either the student's school district of residence or the school district in which the chartered nonpublic school is located and that specifies that the student is not subject to retention shall be considered in the same manner as an individualized education program or plan under section 504 of the "Rehabilitation Act of 1973," 87 Stat. 355, 29 U.S.C. 794, as amended, as prescribed by division (A)(2) of section 3313.608 of the Revised Code.

As used in this section, "child with a disability" and "school district of residence" have the same meanings as in section 3323.01 of the Revised Code.

(B)

(1) Each chartered nonpublic school that enrolls students in any of grades kindergarten through three and that accepts students under the educational choice scholarship pilot program or the pilot project scholarship program shall adopt policies and procedures for the annual assessment of the reading skills of those students. Each school may use the diagnostic assessment to measure reading ability for the appropriate grade level prescribed in division (D) of section 3301.079 of the Revised Code. If the school uses such assessments, the department of education shall furnish them to the chartered nonpublic school.

(2) For each student identified as having reading skills below grade level, the school shall do both of the following:

(a) Provide to the student's parent or guardian, in writing, all of the following:

(i) Notification that the student has been identified as having a substantial deficiency in reading;

(ii) Notification that if the student attains a score in the range designated under division (A)(3) of section 3301.0710 of the Revised Code on the assessment prescribed under that section to measure skill in English language arts expected at the end of third grade, the student shall be retained unless the student is exempt under division (A)(1) of section 3313.608 of the Revised Code.

(b) Provide intensive reading instruction services, as determined appropriate by the school, to each student identified under this section.

(C) Each chartered nonpublic school subject to this section annually shall report to the department the number of students identified as reading at grade level and the number of students identified as reading below grade level.

Added by 130th General Assembly File No. TBD, HB 487, §1, eff. 9/17/2014.