Bill Text: NY S02859 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requires school districts to establish a language assistance program for limited English proficient parents of students; requires record keeping and annual reporting; permits districts to jointly establish such programs.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-03 - REFERRED TO EDUCATION [S02859 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-S02859-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          2859
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                    January 17, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  Sen.  PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Education
        AN ACT to amend the education  law,  in  relation  to  requiring  public
          school  districts  to  provide  language assistance to limited English
          proficient parents of students
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Section 305 of the education law is amended by adding a new
     2  subdivision 56 to read as follows:
     3    56.  a.  All  school districts shall establish   a language assistance
     4  program where limited English proficient parents  would  have  effective
     5  access  to communicate with teachers and school personnel.  This compre-
     6  hensive program shall include, but is not limited to:
     7    (1) Providing that all frequently used forms and other written materi-
     8  als that are sent home to limited English proficient  parents  in  their
     9  primary language;
    10    (2)  Providing  language  assistance  to  limited  English  proficient
    11  parents in their primary language who call  or  come  into  school  with
    12  concerns related to their child's schooling;
    13    (3)  Providing  language assistance services to limited English profi-
    14  cient parents in their primary language to facilitate parent  attendance
    15  at  school-sponsored  programs  designed  for communication with parents
    16  including, but not limited to, parent-teacher conferences, workshops and
    17  school fairs.
    18    b. A notice of the availability of the  language  assistance  programs
    19  for limited English proficient parents established pursuant to paragraph
    20  a  of  this  subdivision  shall  be  mailed to the homes of such limited
    21  English  proficient  parents  in  a  notice  written  in  their  primary
    22  language.
    23    c.  Each  school district shall keep a record documenting its language
    24  assistance program and shall submit a summary  report  annually  to  the
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00511-02-7
        S. 2859                             2
     1  commissioner.  Such  record and report shall include, but not be limited
     2  to:
     3    (1)  The number of limited English proficient parents who receive such
     4  assistance;
     5    (2) The number of limited  English  proficient  households  where  one
     6  parent is English language proficient; and
     7    (3)  The  number  of  complaints  filed  by limited English proficient
     8  parents; and
     9    (4) The number of bilingual personnel used to assist in  the  language
    10  assistance and translation services.
    11    d. The commissioner shall promulgate such rules and regulations as may
    12  be necessary and proper to implement the provisions of this subdivision,
    13  including  but not limited to, the methodology to be used by each school
    14  district to determine or assess the primary  languages,  the  number  of
    15  limited  English  proficient  parents, the percentage of limited English
    16  proficient parents to students and the native language of  such  limited
    17  English proficient parents, and a complaint procedure for any parent who
    18  alleges  a  school's non-compliance with the provisions of this subdivi-
    19  sion.
    20    e. For purposes of this subdivision:
    21    (1) "Primary language" means one of the five most common languages  in
    22  a  school  district, other than English, (i) spoken and used to communi-
    23  cate, by limited English proficient parents and (ii) non-English  speak-
    24  ing  residents  or  limited  English proficient parents constitutes more
    25  than five percent of the residents of a school district,  as  determined
    26  by data from the two most recent federal decennial censuses.
    27    (2)  "Limited English proficient parents" means parents or parent of a
    28  minor child who attends public school and  such  parents  or  parent  is
    29  unable  to  communicate  effectively in English with teachers and school
    30  personnel at the school attended by his or her child.
    31    f. Nothing in this subdivision shall prohibit a school  district  from
    32  entering  into  a  cooperative  agreement with other school districts to
    33  jointly establish such a language assistance program.
    34    § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
    35  it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition,  amend-
    36  ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
    37  tation  of  this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and
    38  completed on or before such effective date.