ARKANSAS DIVISION OF ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION RULES GOVERNING ACT 1240 WAIVERS
Effective Date: July 6, 2020
1.00 REGULATORY AUTHORITY
1.01 The State Board of Education enacted
these rules pursuant to its authority as set forth in Ark. Code Ann
§§ 6-11-105, 6-15-103, and 25-15-201 et seq.
2.00 DEFINITIONS
2.01 "Division" means the Division of
Elementary and Secondary Education of the Arkansas Department of
Education.
2.02 "State Board" means
the State Board of Education.
3.00 REQUESTS FOR WAIVER
3.01 A district may petition the State Board
of Education for all or some of the waivers granted to an open-enrollment
public charter school.3.01.1 Prior to
requesting a waiver, the school district board of directors must adopt a
resolution authorizing the request for the waiver.
3.02 Districts may only request waivers that
enhance student learning opportunities, promote innovation, or increase
equitable access to effective teachers.3.02.1
Waivers requested for the sole purpose avoid violations of the Standards for
Accreditation shall not be granted.
3.03 The petition shall include, without
limitation:3.03.1 The name of the
open-enrollment public charter school that holds the waiver(s);
3.03.2 A list of the waiver(s) that the
district seeks to have granted, including
3.03.2.1 The proposed Standards for
Accreditation;
3.03.2.2 The
proposed Division Rules;
3.03.2.3
The proposed statutes of the Arkansas Code.
3.03.3 The proposed duration of the requested
waiver(s);
3.03.4 A signed copy of
the resolution adopted by the school district's board of directors authorizing
the district to request the waiver;
3.03.5 Evidence of stakeholder involvement
including teachers and student families;
3.03.6 The grades, schools, and classes to
which the proposed waiver(s) apply; and
3.03.7 A detailed rationale for the request
including but not limited to:3.03.7.1 How the
waiver(s) enhance student learning opportunities, promote innovation, or
increase equitable access to effective teachers;
3.03.7.2 How students will be served
and
3.03.7.3 How the district will
monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the waiver.
3.04 The petition must be submitted
to the Division's Charter School Office on the approved request form.
3.04.1 The request form shall be available on
the Division's website.
3.05 A district may not request any of the
following waivers:3.05.1 Monitoring
compliance with Title 6 of the Arkansas Code, as determined by the
Commissioner;
3.05.2 Public school
accountability under Title 6 of the Arkansas Code;
3.05.3 High school graduation requirements as
established by the State Board;
3.05.4 Special education programs as provided
by Title 6 of the Arkansas Code;
3.05.5 Conducting criminal background checks
for employees as provided by Title 6 of the Arkansas Code;
3.05.6 Health and safety codes as established
by the State Board and local governmental entities;
3.05.7 Arkansas Qualified Teacher
Requirements;
3.05.8 Ethical
guidelines and prohibitions as established by Ark. Code Ann. § 6-24-101 et
seq., and any other controlling state or federal law regarding ethics or
conflicts of interest; and
3.05.9
Reporting through the Arkansas Public School Computer Network applications as
provided under Title 6 of the Arkansas Code.
3.06 A district may request a...
