§ 72-3715 — Determining full-time equivalent enrollment; state aid; virtual school fund

(a) In order to be included in the full-time equivalent enrollment of a virtual school, a student shall be in attendance at the virtual school on:
(1) A single school day on or before September 19 of the school year; and
(2) on a single school day on or after September 20 but before October 4 of the school year.
(b) A school district that offers a virtual school shall determine the full-time equivalent enrollment of each student enrolled in the virtual school on September 20 of the school year as follows:
(1) Determine the number of hours the student was in attendance on a single school day on or before September 19 of the school year;
(2) determine the number of hours the student was in attendance on a single school day on or after September 20 but before October 4 of the school year;
(3) add the numbers obtained under subsections (b)(1) and (b)(2);
(4) divide the sum obtained under subsection (b)(3) by 12. The quotient is the full-time equivalent enrollment of the student.
(c) The school days on which a district determines the full-time equivalent enrollment of a student under subsections (b)(1) and (2) shall be the school days on which the student has the highest number of hours of attendance at the virtual school. Not more than six hours of attendance may be counted in a single school day. Attendance may be shown by a student's on-line activity or entries in the student's virtual school journal or log of activities.
(d) Subject to the availability of appropriations and within the limits of any such appropriations, each school year, a school district that offers a virtual school shall receive virtual school state aid. The state board of education shall determine the amount of virtual school state aid a school district is to receive as follows:
(1) Determine the full-time equivalent enrollment of students enrolled in virtual school, excluding those students who are over 19 years of age who qualify for virtual school state aid pursuant to paragraph (2) and those students who are 19 years of age or younger who qualify for virtual school state aid pursuant to paragraph (3), and multiply the total full-time equivalent enrollment of such students by $5,600;
(2) for students enrolled in a virtual school who are over 19 years of age on or before September 20, the state board of education shall:
(A) Determine the number of one-hour credit courses reported on the Kansas collection KCAN report that such students have passed to meet the minimum graduation requirements established by the state board of education or the local school district board of education;
(B) validate such course completion using official student transcripts; and
(C) multiply the total number of such courses by $709, not to exceed six credit courses per school year;
(3) for students who are 19 years of age or younger who enroll in a virtual school as a dropout diploma completion virtual student, the state board shall:
(A) Determine the number of one-hour credit courses reported on the Kansas collection KCAN report that such students have passed to meet the minimum graduation requirements established by the state board of education or the local school district board of education;
(B) validate such course completion using official student transcripts; and
(C) multiply the total number of such courses by $709, not to exceed six credit courses per school year; and
(4) add the amounts calculated under subsections (d)(1) through (d)(3). The resulting sum is the amount of virtual school state aid the school district shall receive.
(e) The state board shall not deduct any virtual school state aid that is otherwise due to a school district pursuant to subsection (d)(2) or (d)(3) for any courses that were completed by students in the school year that precedes the year in which virtual school state aid is determined pursuant to this section. If the state board of education deducts any virtual school state aid that is otherwise due to a school district pursuant to subsection (d)(2) or (d)(3), such deduction shall only be made with respect to individual courses completed.
(f) (1) There is hereby established in every school district the virtual school fund. Such fund shall consist of all moneys deposited therein or transferred thereto according to law. The expenses of a school district directly attributable to virtual schools offered by a school district may be paid from the virtual school fund. The cost of an advance placement course provided to a student by a virtual school shall be paid by the virtual school. Moneys deposited in or otherwise transferred to the virtual school fund shall only be expended for those costs directly attributable to the provision of virtual instruction.
(2) Any balance remaining in the virtual school fund at the end of the budget year shall be carried forward into the virtual school fund for succeeding budget years. Such fund shall not be subject to the provisions of K.S.A. 79-2925 through 79-2937, and amendments thereto.
(3) In preparing the budget of such school district, the amounts credited to, the amount on hand in and the amount expended from the virtual school fund shall be included in the annual budget for the information of the residents of the school district. Interest earned on the investment of moneys in any such fund shall be credited to that fund.
(g) For the purposes of this section, a student enrolled in a virtual school who is not a resident of the state of Kansas shall not be counted in the full-time equivalent enrollment of the virtual school. The virtual school shall record the permanent address of any student enrolled in such virtual school.
(h) The state board of education shall publish on the state board's website the audit methodology used to determine and verify virtual school state aid entitlements pursuant to subsection (d)(2) and (d)(3).
(i) As used in this section, "dropout diploma completion virtual student" means any student who is 19 years of age or younger who has:
(1) A ratio of earned credits to expected credits for the student's cohort year of less than 75% when enrolling in a virtual school;
(2) (A) dropped out of high school such that the student has not attended any school of a school district for 60 consecutive days or more during the current school year and is not reasonably anticipated to recommence enrollment or attendance at any school of a school district during the current school year;
(B) dropped out of high school such that the student has not attended any school of a school district for 60 consecutive days or more during the preceding school year, did not finish such preceding school year and is not reasonably anticipated to recommence enrollment or attendance at any school of a school district during the current school year; or
(C) been exempted from compulsory student attendance by written consent of the parent pursuant to K.S.A. 72-3120, and amendments thereto; and
(3) not been counted in the enrollment of a virtual school as a full-time or part-time virtual student during the school year in which such student enrolls as a dropout diploma completion virtual student.

Legislative History

L. 2008, ch. 147, § 5; L. 2011, ch. 107, § 5; L. 2012, ch. 155, § 6; L. 2013, ch. 121, § 5; L. 2015, ch. 4, § 36; L. 2015, ch. 92, § 6; L. 2017, ch. 95, § 66; L. 2022, ch. 94, § 20; L. 2024, ch. 111, § 15; July 1.