§ 3602-EE — Statewide universal full-day pre-kindergarten program

§ 3602-ee. Statewide universal full-day pre-kindergarten program. 1.\nThe purpose of the universal full-day pre-kindergarten program is to\nincentivize and fund state-of-the-art innovative pre-kindergarten\nprograms and to encourage program creativity through competition.\n 2. All universal full-day pre-kindergarten programs shall demonstrate\nquality on the following elements:\n (a) curriculum;\n (b) learning environment, materials and supplies;\n (c) family engagement;\n (d) staffing patterns;\n (e) teacher education and experience;\n (f) facility quality;\n (g) physical well-being, health and nutrition; and\n (h) partnerships with non-profit, community and educational\ninstitutions.\n 3. (a) The universal full-day pre-kindergarten program shall make\nawards to (i) consolidated applications submitted by school districts\nwhich include pre-kindergarten programs offered by schools, non-profit\norganizations, community-based organizations, charter schools, libraries\nand/or museums, which shall demonstrate geographic diversity within the\narea to be served as well as diversity of providers; and (ii) non-profit\norganizations, community-based organizations, charter schools, libraries\nand museums, which may apply individually to the extent allowed under\nparagraph (b) of this subdivision. Any consolidated application must\ninclude, but is not limited to, the names of individual locations and\nproviders, applicable licenses, facility lease information, and intended\nstaffing plans and certifications.\n (b) Prior to submission of a consolidated application, a school\ndistrict shall widely solicit non-profit organizations, community-based\norganizations, charter schools, libraries and museums located within the\nschool district to be included in its application. The school district\nshall notify any applicant who has been denied for inclusion in the\nconsolidated application no later than two weeks prior to submission of\nsuch application. Such eligible providers denied for inclusion may apply\nindividually as provided in paragraph (a) of this subdivision.\n (c) The department shall establish two application periods in advance\nof a school year.\n (d) Providers awarded slots under this section that they actually\nutilized would continue to have such slots renewed in subsequent years\nprovided the program meets quality standards and all applicable\nrequirements.\n 4. Programs that provide more stimulation, enhance child development\nand demonstrate creative approaches to improve early childhood education\nwill have a competitive advantage in the application process.\n 5. The department shall develop a scoring system, which it shall use\nto evaluate which applications shall be funded on a competitive basis\nbased on merit and factors including but not limited to the criteria\nlisted above and student and community need. Upon review of\napplications, if the program is oversubscribed in any region or regions\nof the state, the department shall notify the division of the budget,\nwhich shall develop a plan for distribution of available slots within\nany oversubscribed region. The subscription for the New York city region\nis three hundred million dollars. The department shall allocate full-day\npre-kindergarten conversion slots and new full-day pre-kindergarten\nslots based on available funding and shall make payments upon\ndocumentation of eligible expenditures in the base year, which shall be\nlimited to the actual number of slots operated and paid on a per-pupil\nbasis pursuant to subdivision fourteen of this section.\n 6. The department shall develop a statewide inspection protocol, which\nshall provide for annual inspections of all universal full-day\npre-kindergarten providers, and shall develop a quality assurance\nprotocol and physical plant review protocol for such reviews.\n 7. Statewide universal full-day pre-kindergarten slots shall only be\nawarded to support programs that provide instruction for at least five\nhours per school day for the full school year and that otherwise comply\nwith the rules and requirements pursuant to section thirty-six hundred\ntwo-e of this part except as otherwise provided in this section.\n 8. All teachers in the universal full-day pre-kindergarten program\nshall meet the same teacher certification standards applicable to public\nschools. Pre-kindergarten teachers providing instruction through this\nsection shall possess:\n (a) a teaching license or certificate valid for service in the early\nchildhood grades; or\n (b) a teaching license or certificate for students with disabilities\nvalid for service in early childhood grades; or\n (c) for eligible agencies as defined in paragraph b of subdivision one\nof section thirty-six hundred two-e of this part that are not schools, a\nbachelor's degree in early childhood education. Provided however,\nbeginning with the two thousand twenty-two--two thousand twenty-three\nschool year, a school district may annually apply to the commissioner by\nSeptember first of the current school year for a waiver that would allow\npersonnel employed by an eligible agency that is collaborating with a\nschool district to provide prekindergarten services and licensed by an\nagency other than the department, to meet the staff qualifications\nprescribed by the licensing or registering agency. Provided further that\nthe commissioner shall annually submit a report by November first to the\nchairperson of the assembly ways and means committee, the chairperson of\nthe senate finance committee and the director of the budget which shall\ninclude but not be limited to the following: (a) a listing of the school\ndistricts receiving a waiver pursuant to this paragraph from the\ncommissioner for the current school year; (b) the number and proportion\nof students within each district receiving a waiver pursuant to this\nparagraph for the current school year that are receiving instruction\nfrom personnel employed by an eligible agency that is collaborating with\na school district to provide prekindergarten services and licensed by an\nagency other than the department; and (c) the number and proportion of\ntotal prekindergarten personnel for each school district that are\nproviding instructional services pursuant to this paragraph that are\nemployed by an eligible agency that is collaborating with a school\ndistrict to provide prekindergarten services and licensed by an agency\nother than the department, to meet the staff qualifications prescribed\nby the licensing or registering agency.\n 9. The process by which applicants submit proposals to collaborate\nwith the school district or individually to the department, and the\nrenewal process for such providers, shall take into account any record\nof violations of health and safety codes and/or licensure or\nregistration requirements. In addition, any agency that is cited for a\nviolation classified as an "imminent danger" by the office of children\nand family services or as a "public health hazard" by the New York city\ndepartment of health and mental hygiene which is not immediately\ncorrected and which is not of a life threatening or of a grave and\nserious nature shall be suspended from the program and, upon final\ndetermination of such violation by the regulating agency, suspended or\nterminated from participating in the program under this section based on\nthe severity of the violation. Provided further, that eligible agencies\nwith a record of other serious or critical and/or repeated violations\nthat pose a risk to health or safety shall, upon final determination of\nsuch violations, be suspended or terminated from participating in the\nprogram under this section, and the office of children and family\nservices shall establish statewide standards for determining such\ngrounds for such suspension or termination based on violations issued by\nthe applicable regulatory agency.\n 10. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, a universal\nfull-day pre-kindergarten provider shall be inspected by the department,\nthe school district with which it partners, if any, and its respective\nlicensing, permitting, regulatory, oversight, registration or enrolling\nagency or entity no fewer than two times per school year, at least one\ninspection of which shall be performed by the eligible agency's\nrespective licensing, permitting, regulatory, oversight, registration or\nenrolling agency, as applicable.\n 11. Facilities providing universal full-day pre-kindergarten under\nthis section shall meet all applicable fire safety and building codes\nand any applicable facility requirements of a state or local licensing\nor registering agency and at all times shall maintain building and\nclassroom space in a manner that ensures and protects the health and\nsafety of students in all programs statewide, notwithstanding any\nchanges in such applicable codes or requirements.\n 12. Notwithstanding paragraph (a) of subdivision one of section\ntwenty-eight hundred fifty-four of this chapter and paragraph (c) of\nsubdivision two of section twenty-eight hundred fifty-four of this\nchapter, charter schools shall be eligible to participate in universal\nfull-day pre-kindergarten programs under this section, provided that all\nsuch monitoring, programmatic review and operational requirements under\nthis section shall be the responsibility of the charter entity and shall\nbe consistent with the requirements under article fifty-six of this\nchapter. The provisions of paragraph (b) of subdivision two of section\ntwenty-eight hundred fifty-four of this chapter shall apply to the\nadmission of pre-kindergarten students, except parents of\npre-kindergarten children may submit applications for the two thousand\nfourteen--two thousand fifteen school year by a date to be determined by\nthe charter school upon selection to participate in the universal\nfull-day pre-kindergarten program. The limitations on the employment of\nuncertified teachers under paragraph (a-1) of subdivision three of\nsection twenty-eight hundred fifty-four of this chapter shall apply to\nall teachers from pre-kindergarten through grade twelve.\n 13. Apportionments under this section shall only be used to supplement\nand not supplant current local expenditures of federal or local funds on\npre-kindergarten programs and the number of slots in such programs from\nsuch sources. Current local expenditures shall include any local\nexpenditures of federal or local funds used to supplement or extend\nservices provided directly or via contract to eligible children enrolled\nin a universal pre-kindergarten program pursuant to section thirty-six\nhundred two-e of this part.\n 14. (a) The award per pupil for an eligible entity pursuant to\nsubdivision three of this section shall equal: (i) for each new full-day\npre-kindergarten placement the lesser of the full-day pre-kindergarten\nper pupil amount or the total approved expenditures per pupil and (ii)\nfor each existing half-day pre-kindergarten placement converted into a\nfull-day pre-kindergarten placement the lesser of (A) the positive\ndifference of the full-day pre-kindergarten per pupil amount minus the\ndistrict's selected aid per pre-kindergarten pupil pursuant to\nsubparagraph (i) of paragraph b of subdivision ten of section thirty-six\nhundred two-e of this part or (B) the positive difference of the total\napproved expenditures per pupil minus the district's selected aid per\npre-kindergarten pupil pursuant to subparagraph (i) of paragraph b of\nsubdivision ten of section thirty-six hundred two-e of this part. Each\nparticipating eligible entity pursuant to subdivision three of this\nsection shall provide its expenses under this provision in a format\nprescribed by the commissioner.\n (b) For the purposes of this section, "full-day pre-kindergarten per\npupil amount" shall mean (i) for pupils enrolled in programs where the\nteacher of record for such pupil holds a teaching certificate issued by\nthe commissioner in an appropriate certificate title, ten thousand\ndollars, and (ii) for pupils enrolled in programs where the teacher of\nrecord for such pupil does not hold a teaching certificate issued by the\ncommissioner in an appropriate certificate title, seven thousand\ndollars.\n (c) For the purposes of this section, "teacher of record" shall mean\nthe teacher who is primarily and directly responsible for a student's\nlearning activities, as reported to the department in a manner\nprescribed by the commissioner.\n 15. Definitions. For the purpose of this section, the following\ndefinitions shall apply:\n (a) "regions of the state" shall mean:\n (i) Capital Region: Includes Albany, Columbia, Greene, Rensselaer,\nSaratoga, Schenectady, Warren, and Washington counties.\n (ii) Central New York Region: Includes Cayuga, Cortland, Madison,\nOnondaga and Oswego counties.\n (iii) Finger Lakes Region: Includes Genesee, Livingston, Monroe,\nOntario, Orleans, Seneca, Wayne, Wyoming and Yates counties.\n (iv) Long Island Region: Includes Nassau and Suffolk counties.\n (v) Mid-Hudson Region: Includes Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland,\nSullivan, Ulster and Westchester counties.\n (vi) Mohawk Valley Region: Includes Fulton, Herkimer, Montgomery,\nOneida, Otsego and Schoharie counties.\n (vii) New York City Region: Includes Bronx, Kings, New York, Queens\nand Richmond counties.\n (viii) North Country Region: Includes Clinton, Essex, Franklin,\nHamilton, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties.\n (ix) Southern Tier Region: Includes Broome, Chemung, Chenango,\nDelaware, Schuyler, Steuben, Tioga and Tompkins counties.\n (x) Western New York Region: Includes Allegany, Cattaraugus,\nChautauqua, Erie and Niagara counties.\n (b) "community-based organization" shall mean a provider of child care\nand early education, a day care provider, early childhood program or\ncenter, approved preschool special education program, Head Start or\nother such community-based organization.\n 16. The authority of the department to administer the universal\nfull-day pre-kindergarten program shall expire June thirtieth, two\nthousand twenty-six; provided that the program shall continue and remain\nin full effect.\n 17. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of law to the contrary,\nfor the purposes of determining the prekindergarten allocation on the\nelectronic data file prepared by the commissioner pursuant to\nsubdivision twenty-one of section three hundred five of this chapter for\nthe two thousand nineteen--two thousand twenty school year and\nthereafter, the commissioner is directed to include the grant amounts\nawarded pursuant to this section in the amount set forth for such school\ndistrict as "UNIVERSAL PRE-KINDERGARTEN."\n