§ 2901. Success for all students in the general education environment
(a) It is the policy of the state that each local school district develop and maintain, in consultation with parents, a comprehensive system of education that will result, to the extent appropriate, in all students succeeding in the general education environment. A comprehensive system of education includes a full range of services and accommodations that are needed by students in the district. These services could include a separate alternative program if the district finds that some of its students could be better served in an environment outside the classroom, or if the district finds that separate placement is the best way to provide services to a student who is disrupting the class or having difficulty learning in a traditional school setting for educational, emotional, or personal reasons and thereby impairing the ability of the classroom teacher to provide quality services to that student or to other students. This chapter does not replace or expand entitlements created by federal law, nor is it the intent of this chapter to create a higher standard for maintaining a student in the general classroom than the standard created in the following federal laws: 20 U.S.C. § 1401 et seq., Individuals with Disabilities Act; 29 U.S.C. § 794, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act; and 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq., Americans with Disabilities Act.
(b) [Repealed.]
(c) No individual entitlement or private right of action is created by this section. (Added 1989, No. 230 (Adj. Sess.), § 4; amended 1995, No. 157 (Adj. Sess.), § 8; 1999, No. 113 (Adj. Sess.), § 9; 2009, No. 44, § 40, eff. May 21, 2009.)
§ 2902. Educational support system and educational support team
(a) Within each school district's comprehensive system of educational services, each public school shall develop and maintain an educational support system for students who require additional assistance in order to succeed or to be challenged in the general education environment. For each school it maintains, a school district board shall assign responsibility for developing and maintaining the educational support system either to the superintendent pursuant to a contract entered into under section 267 of this title or to the principal. The educational support system shall, at a minimum, include an educational support team and a range of support and remedial services, including instructional and behavioral interventions and accommodations.
(b) The educational support system shall:
(1) Be integrated to the extent appropriate with the general education curriculum.
(2) Be designed to increase the ability of the general education system to meet the needs of all students.
(3) Be designed to provide students the support needed regardless of eligibility for categorical programs.
(4) Provide clear procedures and methods for addressing student behavior that is disruptive to the learning environment and include educational options, support services, and consultation or training for staff where appropriate. Procedures may include removal of a student from the classroom or the school building for as long as appropriate, consistent with state and federal law and the school's policy on student discipline, after reasonable effort has been made to support the student in the regular classroom environment.
(5) Ensure collaboration with families, community supports, and the system of health and human services.
(c) The educational support team for each public school in the district shall be composed of staff from a variety of teaching and support positions and shall:
(1) Determine which enrolled students require additional assistance to be successful in school or to complete secondary school based on indicators set forth in guidelines developed by the commissioner, such as academic progress, attendance, behavior, or poverty. The educational support team shall pay particular attention to students during times of academic or personal transition.
(2) Identify the classroom accommodations, remedial services, and other supports that have been provided to the identified student.
(3) Assist teachers to plan for and provide services and accommodations to students in need of classroom supports or enrichment activities.
(4) Develop an individualized strategy, in collaboration with the student's parents or legal guardian whenever possible, to assist the identified student to succeed in school and to complete his or her secondary education.
(5) Maintain a written record of its actions.
(6) Report no less than annually to the commissioner, in a form the commissioner prescribes, on the ways in which the educational support system has addressed the needs of students who require additional assistance in order to succeed in school or to complete secondary school and on the additional financial costs of complying with this subsection (c).
(d) No individual entitlement or private right of action is created by this section.
(e) The commissioner shall establish guidelines for teachers and administrators in following federal laws relating to provision of services for children with disabilities and the implementation of this section.
(f) It is the intent of the general assembly that a gifted and talented student shall be able to take advantage of services that an educational support team can provide. It is not the intent of the general assembly that funding under chapter 101 of this title shall be available for a gifted and talented student unless the student has been otherwise determined to be a student for whom funding under that chapter is available. (Added 1989, No. 230 (Adj. Sess.), § 4; amended 1995, No. 157 (Adj. Sess.), § 9; 1997, No. 87 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; 1999, No. 113 (Adj. Sess.), § 10; No. 117 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; 2009, No. 44, § 40, eff. May 21, 2009.)
§ 2903. Preventing early school failure; reading instruction
(a) Statement of policy. The ability to read is critical to success in learning. Children who fail to read by the end of the first grade will likely fall further behind in school. The personal and economic costs of reading failure are enormous both while the student remains in school and long afterward. All students need to receive systematic reading instruction in the early grades from a teacher who is skilled in teaching reading through a variety of instructional strategies that take into account the different learning styles and language backgrounds of the students. Some students may require intensive supplemental instruction tailored to the unique difficulties encountered.
(b) Foundation for literacy. The state board of education, in collaboration with the agency of human services, higher education, literacy organizations, and others, shall develop a plan for establishing a comprehensive system of services for early education in the first three grades to ensure that all students learn to read by the end of the third grade. The plan shall be updated at least once every five years following its initial submission in 1998.
(c) Reading instruction. A public school that offers instruction in grades one, two, or three shall provide highly effective, research-based reading instruction to all students. In addition, a school shall provide:
(1) Supplemental reading instruction to any enrolled student in grade four whose reading proficiency falls below third grade reading expectations, as defined under subdivision 164(9) of this title.
(2) Supplemental reading instruction to any enrolled student in grades 5-12 whose reading proficiency creates a barrier to the student's success in school.
(3) Support and information to parents and legal guardians. (Added 1997, No. 60, § 9, eff. June 26, 1997; amended 2009, No. 44, § 40, eff. May 21, 2009.)
§ 2904. Reports
Annually, each superintendent shall report to the commissioner in a form prescribed by the commissioner, on the status of the educational support systems in each school in the supervisory union. The report shall describe the services and supports that are a part of the education support system, how they are funded, and how building the capacity of the educational support system has been addressed in the school action plans, and shall be in addition to the report required of the educational support team in subdivision 2902(c)(6) of this chapter. The superintendent's report shall include a description and justification of how funds received due to Medicaid reimbursement under section 2959a of this title were used. (Added 1999, No. 117 (Adj. Sess.), § 3; amended 2005, No. 54, § 14; 2009, No. 44, § 40, eff. May 21, 2009.)