High School: Expanded Options Program

SB 300 – Expanded Options at A Glance
SB 300, Expanded Options, provides eligible high school students another opportunity for early entry into post-secondary education. It also emphasizes specific provisions and priorities for at-risk students and drop outs. Key features of the bill are listed below, with those items specific to at-risk students and drop outs italicized.

Underage Enrollment Form

Key Features:

• Promotes a seamless education system for students enrolled in grades 11 and 12 to have additional options to continue or complete their education, earn concurrent high school and college credits, and gain early entry into post-secondary education.
• Promotes and supports existing accelerated college credit programs, and supports the development of new programs that are unique to a community’s secondary and post-secondary relationships and resources.
• Any program, agreement or plan in effect (e.g., dual credit, tech-prep, Advanced Placement or other accelerated college credit program) that provides access for public high school students to a post-secondary course is not affected by the Expanded Options Program Act and may continue.
• Provides public funding to the eligible post-secondary institution to offset the cost of tuition, fees, textbooks, equipment and materials for eligible students who participate in the Expanded Options Program.
• For a high school with an enrollment of 1,000 students, each school year no more than 330 quarter credit hours may be awarded to eligible students at the high school under the Expanded Options Program. OAR 581-022-1361 (Temp), & cert. ef. 12-15-05 thru 5-15-06.
• A school district may choose to exceed the cap. If a district chooses not to exceed the cap and has more eligible students than allowed, the school district shall give priority for participation to at-risk students.
• An “at-risk” student is identified as one who qualifies for a free or reduced lunch program.

Who is an “Eligible Student”?

• A student who is enrolled in an Oregon public school and who is in grade 11 or 12 or is 16 years old or older at the time of enrollment in a course under the Expanded Options Program, has developed an educational learning plan, and has not successfully completed four years of high school.
• A student who has completed course requirements for graduation, but who has not received a diploma, may participate in the Expanded Options Program.
• An eligible student who enrolls in the Expanded Options Program may not enroll in eligible post-secondary courses for more than the equivalent of two academic years.
• “Eligible student” does not include a foreign exchange student enrolled in a school under a cultural exchange program.

What is an “Eligible Post-secondary Course”?
What is an “Eligible Post-secondary Institution”?

• “Eligible post-secondary course” means any nonsectarian course or program offered through an eligible post-secondary institution if the course or program may lead to high school completion, a certificate, professional certification, associate degree or baccalaureate degree.
• “Eligible post-secondary course” does not include a duplicate course offered at the student’s resident school.
• “Eligible post-secondary course” includes academic and professional technical courses; and distance education courses.
• “Eligible post-secondary institutions” include community colleges, public Oregon universities, and Oregon Health and Science University.

What does an eligible post-secondary institution need to do?

• Permit eligible Expanded Options students to enroll full-time or part-time.
• Eligible post-secondary institutions may designate individual programs in which eligible students may enroll.
• If an eligible post-secondary institution accepts an eligible Expanded Options student for enrollment, the institution shall provide academic advising to the student as appropriate, and send written notice to the student, the student’s resident school district and the Department of Education within 20 days of acceptance indicating the courses and hours of enrollment offered to the student.
• Eligible post-secondary institutions may enroll an eligible Expanded Options student only in eligible post-secondary courses under the program.
• Eligible post-secondary institutions may not be required to accept a student for enrollment in the program.

What does a school district need to do?

• Prior to February 1 of each year, each school district shall notify all high school students and the students’ parents or guardians of the Expanded Options Program. OAR 581-022-1360 (Temp), & cert. ef. 12-15-05 thru 5-15-06.
• The school district notice must include, but not be limited to, information about:
• Financial arrangements for tuition, textbooks, equipment and materials;
• Available transportation services;
• The effect of enrolling in the Expanded Options Program on the eligible student’s
• The consequences of failing or not completing an eligible post-secondary course; and
• The requirement that participation in the Expanded Options Program is contingent on acceptance by an eligible post-secondary institution.
• Each school district shall establish a process to ensure that all at-risk students and their parents are notified about the Expanded Options Program.
• It shall be the priority for school districts to provide information to high school students who have dropped out of school.

Cost implications:

• Under the Expanded Options program, a student is considered a resident pupil of the school district.
• The school district must negotiate an agreement with the post-secondary institution to pay actual tuition, fees and other required instructional costs of the student.
• A resident school district of an eligible student shall enter into an agreement with an eligible post-secondary institution for the payment of the actual instructional costs associated with the student’s attending a non tuition course or noncredit course at the institution.
• All textbooks, fees, equipment and materials provided to an eligible student and paid for by the school district are the property of the resident school district of the student.
• A school district must spend a minimum of 50% of the districts general purpose grant per extended ADMw per student participating in the program.
• The district may request a waiver if paying the minimum 50% would cause an “extreme financial distress” or if the district already offers dual credit or accelerated credit programs as long as those programs serve all qualified students and there are no charges for at-risk students.
• An eligible post-secondary institution may not charge a student for tuition, fees and other required instructional costs if it receives payment for the student from the school district.
• The school district retains the requirement of providing special education and related services to the eligible student with a disability.
• A resident school district may provide transportation services to eligible students who attend eligible post-secondary institutions within the boundaries of the school district, and any transportation costs incurred by a school district for this purpose shall be considered approved transportation costs.

When:

• The Expanded Options Program shall first be made available to students for the 2006-2007 school year.
• SB 300 requires an annual report on the program to the Joint Boards of Education and the House and Senate Education Committees. The first report must be completed prior to January 1, 2008. Twelve items are listed in that report, including
• Number of students who had dropped out of high school but returned to participate in Expanded Options and earned a diploma.
• Number of students who participated in Expanded Options, categorized by ethnicity and financial status.

A full text of the Expanded Options legislation is available: http://www.leg.state.or.us/05reg/measpdf/sb0300.dir/sb0300.en.pdf

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