The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) was signed by President Obama on December 10, 2015, and represents good news for our nation’s schools. This bipartisan measure reauthorizes the 50-year-old Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the nation’s national education law and longstanding commitment to equal opportunity for all students.
The new law builds on key areas of progress in recent years, made possible by the efforts of educators, communities, parents, and students across the country.
For example, today, high school graduation rates are at all-time highs. Dropout rates are at historic lows. And more students are going to college than ever before. These achievements provide a firm foundation for further work to expand educational opportunity and improve student outcomes under ESSA.
The previous version of the law, the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, was enacted in 2002. NCLB represented a significant step forward for our nation’s children in many respects, particularly as it shined a light on where students were making progress and where they needed additional support, regardless of race, income, zip code, disability, home language, or background. The law was scheduled for revision in 2007, and, over time, NCLB’s prescriptive requirements became increasingly unworkable for schools and educators. Recognizing this fact, in 2010, the Obama administration joined a call from educators and families to create a better law that focused on the clear goal of fully preparing all students for success in college and careers.
Congress has now responded to that call.
The Every Student Succeeds Act reflects many of the priorities of this administration.
ESSA Highlights
ESSA includes provisions that will help to ensure success for students and schools. Below are just a few. The law:
Notice for Free & Reduced Lunch
A free or reduced lunch consists of bread, protein, vegetable, fruit, and one carton of milk. The State of Iowa allows only one meal per day. If a student wants two cartons of milk, they must pay for the second carton. If the child brings lunch from home, they must bring a drink, buy a carton of milk for $.45, or get a drink from the water cooler. If parents have a question, please feel free to call the kitchen at Van Allen Elementary (641)774-5048
If at any time during the school year, there is a change of income, you may fill out a free/reduced application to help you and your children with lunch and breakfast needs. Applications are available online www.charitonschools.org. All information is kept confidential.
Use of Video Cameras on School Buses
The Chariton Community School District Board of Directors has authorized the use of video cameras on school district buses. The video cameras will be used to monitor student behavior, to maintain order on the school buses, to promote and maintain a safe environment. Students and parents are hereby notified that the content of the videotapes may be used in a student disciplinary proceeding. The content of the videotapes are confidential student records and will be retained with other student records. Videotapes will only be retained if necessary for use in a student disciplinary proceeding or other matter as determined necessary by the administration. Parents may request to view videotapes of their child if the videotapes are used in a disciplinary proceeding involving their child.
Asbestos Notice
With regard to the requirement of the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act, a copy of the Asbestos Management Plan for each school building is available for review in each school’s office of the principal of each respective facility. A complete set of management plans is available for review in the district’s administrative office at 140 E. Albia Road, Chariton, IA.
Homeless Notice
The Board of Education is responsible for locating, identifying and educating homeless children and youth found within the Chariton Community School District.
Definition of Homeless Child/Youth
The Chariton Community School District will make available to homeless children and youth all services and assistance including, but not limited to, compensatory education, special education, ELL, vocational courses or programs, programs for the gifted and talented, health services, transportation, and food and nutrition programs on the same basis as those services provided to resident students. You can find homeless information on our website at www.charitonschools.org under the Curriculum tab. Please contact Blaine Connelly, Homeless Liaison, at 641-774-5066 ext 2108 regarding specific questions and/or issues.
Notice of Accessibility
The Chariton Community School District will take steps as are necessary to ensure that no qualified handicapped person is denied the benefits of, excluded from participation in, or otherwise subjected to discrimination because of the inaccessibility of educational programs and activities operated by the Chariton Community School District. To obtain information as to the existence and location of services, activities, and facilities that are accessible to handicapped persons, interested persons should contact Larry Achenbach, Superintendent; Chariton Community School District, 140 East Albia Road, P.O. Box 738, Chariton, IA 50049, 641-774-5967.
Equal Educational Opportunity
The board will not discriminate in its educational activities including but not limited to, age, color, creed, national origin, race, religion, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical attributes, physical or mental ability or disability, ancestry, political party preference, political belief, socioeconomic status, or familial status.
The board requires all persons, agencies, vendors, contractors and other persons doing business with or performing services for the district to subscribe to all applicable federal and state laws, executive orders, rules and regulations pertaining to contract compliance and equal opportunity.
The board will not exclude any otherwise qualified person from employment on the basis of age, color, creed, national origin, race, religion, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical attributes, physical or mental ability or disability, ancestry, political party preference, political belief, socioeconomic status, or familial status. Further, the board affirms the right of all students and staff to be treated with respect and to be protected from intimidation, discrimination, physical harm and harassment.
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) affords parents and students over 18 years of age ("eligible students") certain rights with respect to the student's education records. These rights are:
(1) The right to inspect and review the student's education records within 45 days of the day the school receives a request for access. Parents or eligible students who wish to inspect their child’s or their education records should submit to the school principal a written request that identifies the records they wish to inspect. The school official will make arrangements for access and notify the parent or eligible student of the time and place where the records may be inspected.
(2) The right to request the amendment of the student’s education records that the parent or eligible student believes are inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the student’s privacy rights under FERPA. Parents or eligible students who wish to ask the school to amend their child’s or their education record should write the school principal, clearly identify the part of the record they want changed, and specify why it should be changed. If the school decides not to amend the record as requested by the parent or eligible student, the school will notify the parent or eligible student of the decision and of their right to a hearing regarding the request for amendment. Additional information regarding the hearing procedures will be provided to the parent or eligible student when notified of the right to a hearing.
(3) The right to provide written consent before the school discloses personally identifiable information (PII) from the student’s education records, except that FERPA authorizes disclosure without consent. One exception, which permits disclosure without consent, is disclosure to school officials with legitimate educational interests. A school official is a person employed by the school as an administrator, supervisor, instructor, or support staff member (including health or medical staff and law enforcement unit personnel); a person serving on the School Board; a person or company with whom the school has outsourced services or functions it would otherwise use its own employees to perform (such as an attorney, auditor, medical consultant, or therapist); a parent or student serving on an official committee, such as a disciplinary or grievance committee; or a parent, student, or other volunteer assisting another school official in performing his or her tasks. A school official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibility. Upon request, the school discloses education records without consent to officials of another school district in which a student seeks or intends to enroll, or is already enrolled if the disclosure is for purposes of the student’s enrollment or transfer.
(4) The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures by the school to comply with the requirements of FERPA. The name and address of the Office that administers FERPA are:
Family Policy Compliance Office
U.S. Department of Education
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20202
(5) Directory Information: In compliance with the “Family Rights and Privacy Act of 1974” parents and students should be aware that the following information may be released in regard to any individual student of the Chariton Community School District as necessary or desirability arises: Name, address, telephone listing, date and place of birth, major field of study, participation in officially recognized activities and sports, weight and height of members of athletic teams, date of attendance, degrees and awards received, and the most recent previous school or institution attended by the student.
Any student, parent, or guardian not wanting this information released to the public, must make objection in writing to the principal in charge of the school which the student is attending at the time of registration.
Notification of Rights Under the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA)
PPRA affords parents of elementary and secondary students certain rights regarding the conduct of surveys, collection and use of information for marketing purposes, and certain physical exams. These include the right to:
1. Political affiliations or beliefs of the student or student’s parent;
2. Mental or psychological problems of the student or student’s family;
3. Sex behavior or attitudes;
4. Illegal, anti-social, self-incriminating, or demeaning behavior;
5. Critical appraisals of others with whom respondents have close family relationships;
6. Legally recognized privileged relationships, such as with lawyers, doctors, or ministers;
7. Religious practices, affiliations, or beliefs of the student or parents; or
8. Income, other than as required by law to determine program eligibility.
•Receive notice and an opportunity to opt a student out of –
1. Any other protected information survey, regardless of funding;
2. Any non-emergency, invasive physical exam or screening required as a condition of attendance, administered by the school or its agent, and not necessary to protect the immediate health and safety of a student, except for hearing, vision, or scoliosis screenings, or any physical exam or screening permitted or required under State law; and
3. Activities involving collection, disclosure, or use of personal information obtained from students for marketing or to sell or otherwise distribute the information to others.
•Inspect, upon request and before administration or use –
1. Protected information surveys of students and surveys created by a third party;
2. Instruments used to collect personal information from students for any of the above marketing, sales, or other distribution purposes; and
3. Instructional material used as part of the educational curriculum.
These rights transfer from the parents to a student who is 18 years old or an emancipated minor under State law.
Chariton Community School District has developed and adopted policies, in consultation with parents, regarding these rights, as well as arrangements to protect student privacy in the administration of protected information surveys and the collection, disclosure, or use of personal information for marketing, sales, or other distribution purposes. Chariton Community School District will directly notify parents of these policies at least annually at the start of each school year and after any substantive changes. Chariton Community School District will also directly notify, such as through U.S. Mail or email, parents of students who are scheduled to participate in the specific activities or surveys noted below and will provide an opportunity for the parent to opt his or her child out of participation of the specific activity or survey. Chariton Community School District will make this notification to parents at the beginning of the school year if the District has identified the specific or approximate dates of the activities or surveys at that time. For surveys and activities scheduled after the school year starts, parents will be provided reasonable notification of the planned activities and surveys listed below and be provided an opportunity to opt their child out of such activities and surveys. Parents will also be provided an opportunity to review any pertinent surveys. Following is a list of the specific activities and surveys covered under this requirement:
•Collection, disclosure, or use of personal information for marketing, sales, or other distribution.
•Administration of any protected information survey not funded in whole or in part by ED.
•Any non-emergency, invasive physical examination or screening as described above.
Parents who believe their rights have been violated may file a complaint with:
Student Privacy Policy Office
U.S. Department of Education
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20202
