Article 2.5. Juvenile Court Schools of California Education Code >> Division 4. >> Title 2. >> Part 27. >> Chapter 4. >> Article 2.5.

The purpose of this article is to provide for the administration and operation of public schools in juvenile halls, juvenile homes, day centers, juvenile ranches, juvenile camps, regional youth educational facilities, or Orange County youth correctional centers in existence and providing services prior to the effective date of the amendments to this section made by the Statutes of 1989, established pursuant to Article 23 (commencing with Section 850), Article 24 (commencing with Section 880), Article 24.5 (commencing with Section 894) of Chapter 2 of Division 2, or Article 9 (commencing with Section 1850) of Chapter 1 of Division 2.5, of the Welfare and Institutions Code or in any group home housing 25 or more children placed pursuant to Sections 362, 727, and 730, of the Welfare and Institutions Code or in any group home housing 25 or more children and operating one or more additional sites under a central administration for children placed pursuant to Section 362, 727, or 730 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, with acceptable school structures at one or more centrally located sites to serve the single or composite populations, and to provide the juvenile court school pupils therein detained with quality education and training. Nothing in this section shall be construed as indicating that it is the intent of the Legislature to prevent juvenile court school pupils who are housed in group homes from enrolling in regular public schools, or that it is the intent of the Legislature to transfer the responsibility for any costs associated with the operation of group homes to the counties. The Orange County Office of Education shall only provide educational services in youth correctional centers for individuals up to 19 years of age.

Public schools or classes in any juvenile hall, juvenile home, day center, juvenile ranch, juvenile camp, regional youth educational facility, or Orange County youth correctional center in existence and providing services prior to the effective date of the amendments to this section made by the Statutes of 1989, established in accordance with Article 23 (commencing with Section 850), Article 24 (commencing with Section 880), and Article 24.5 (commencing with Section 894) of Chapter 2 of Division 2, or Article 9 (commencing with Section 1850) of Chapter 1 of Division 2.5, of the Welfare and Institutions Code, or in any group home housing 25 or more children and operating one or more additional sites under a central administration, with acceptable school structures at one or more centrally located sites to serve the single or composite populations of juvenile court school pupils detained therein in accordance with the provisions of Section 362, 727, or 730 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, shall be known as juvenile court schools.

The county board of education shall provide for the administration and operation of juvenile court schools established pursuant to Section 48645.1:
  (a) By the county superintendent of schools, provided that, in any county in which the board of supervisors is establishing or maintaining juvenile court schools on January 1, 1978, the county superintendent of schools may contract with the board of supervisors for the administration and operation of such schools if agreed upon between the board of education and the board of supervisors. In any event, the county superintendent of schools may contract with other educational agencies for supporting services to the same extent that school districts may contract with other such agencies.
  (b) By contract with the respective governing boards of the elementary, high school, or unified school district in which the juvenile court school is located.

(a) Juvenile court schools shall be conducted in a manner as shall be prescribed by the county board of education to best accomplish the provisions of Section 48645. The minimum schoolday shall be 240 minutes. Minimum schooldays shall be calculated on the basis of the average number of minutes of attendance during not more than 10 consecutive days in which classes are conducted. The minimum schoolday for pupils in attendance in approved vocational education programs, work programs prescribed by the probation department pursuant to Section 883 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, and work experience programs shall be 180 minutes, which shall be calculated on the basis of the average number of minutes of attendance during not more than 10 consecutive days in which classes are conducted. The county board of education shall adopt and enforce a course of study and evaluate its program in accordance with Sections 51040, 51041, 51050, and 51054 and the provisions of Article 3 (commencing with Section 51200) of Chapter 2 of Part 28, except subdivision (c) of Section 51220.
  (b) Juvenile court schools shall not be closed on any weekday of the calendar year, except those weekdays adopted by the county board of education as school holidays or set aside by the county board of education for inservice purposes. However, the county board of education may close juvenile court schools when it deems the closing is necessary to accommodate contingencies.
  (c) (1) The county board of education may adopt and enforce a course of study that enhances instruction in mathematics and English language arts for pupils attending juvenile court schools, as determined by statewide assessments or objective local evaluations and assessments as approved by the county superintendent of schools.
  (2) The enhanced course of study adopted pursuant to paragraph (1) shall meet the standards adopted pursuant to Section 60605.8, as appropriate, and shall be tailored to meet the needs of the individual pupil to increase the pupil's academic literacy and reading fluency.

(a) Each public school district and county office of education shall accept for credit full or partial coursework satisfactorily completed by a pupil while attending a public school, juvenile court school, or nonpublic, nonsectarian school or agency. The coursework shall be transferred by means of the standard state transcript. If a pupil completes the graduation requirements of his or her school district of residence while being detained, the school district of residence shall issue to the pupil a diploma from the school the pupil last attended before detention or, in the alternative, the county superintendent of schools may issue the diploma.
  (b) A pupil shall not be denied enrollment or readmission to a public school solely on the basis that he or she has had contact with the juvenile justice system, including, but not limited to:
  (1) Arrest.
  (2) Adjudication by a juvenile court.
  (3) Formal or informal supervision by a probation officer.
  (4) Detention for any length of time in a juvenile facility or enrollment in a juvenile court school.
  (c) Pursuant to subparagraph (B) of paragraph (8) of subdivision (f) of Section 48853.5, a pupil who has had contact with the juvenile justice system shall be immediately enrolled in a public school.

Plans for any juvenile court school classrooms, offices, or any other school structures in any juvenile hall, juvenile home, day center, juvenile ranch, or juvenile camp shall be approved by the county board of education. Upon approval of the board of supervisors and the county board of education, the cost of such structures shall be a required charge against the funds of the county. The cost of constructing or otherwise providing classrooms, offices, or other onsite school structures in group homes or other agencies housing children described in Sections 362, 727, and 730 of the Welfare and Institutions Code shall be the responsibility of the private agency. This contruction shall not entitle private agencies to an increase in the foster care reimbursement rates available from the State Department of Social Services or any other state agency. It is the intent of the Legislature that nothing in this section shall be construed to preclude the county boards of education or the governing boards of school districts from entering into a contractual agreement providing compensation to group homes for the use of classrooms, offices, or other onsite school structures.

(a) The Legislature encourages each county superintendent of schools or governing board of a school district, as determined by the county board of education pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 48645.2, and the county chief probation officer to enter into a memorandum of understanding or equivalent mutual agreement to support a collaborative process for meeting the needs of wards of the court who are receiving their education in juvenile court schools. The memorandum of understanding or equivalent mutual agreement may include, but is not limited to, a process for communication, decisionmaking, mutually established goals, and conflict resolution. The purpose of this memorandum of understanding or equivalent mutual agreement is to develop a collaborative model that will foster an educational and residential environment that nurtures the whole child and consistently supports services that will meet the educational needs of the pupils.
  (b) A memorandum of understanding or equivalent mutual agreement on providing educational and related services for juvenile court school pupils developed in accordance with this section may include, but is not limited to, the following provisions:
  (1) Mutually developed goals and objectives that are reviewed annually, including, but not limited to, the following:
  (A) Building resiliency and strengthening life skills.
  (B) Fostering prosocial attitudes and behaviors.
  (C) Assigning pupils to appropriate classrooms based on their educational needs.
  (D) Ensuring regular classroom attendance.
  (E) Providing clean, safe, and appropriate educational facilities.
  (F) Improving academic achievement and vocational preparation.
  (2) Clear delineation of responsibilities among the educational and residential or custodial service providers.
  (3) A process for communicating, collaborating, and resolving conflicts. Whenever possible, resolution of issues shall be reached by consensus through a collaborative process that would promote decisionmaking at the site where services are delivered. A working group charged with this responsibility may be appointed by the county superintendent of schools, or the superintendent of the school district with responsibility for providing juvenile court school services, and the county chief probation officer, or their designees. The working group is responsible for establishing and maintaining open communication, collaboration, and resolution of issues that arise.
  (4) A clearly identified mechanism for resolving conflicts.
  (5) A joint process for performing an intake evaluation for each ward to determine educational needs and ability to participate in all educational settings once the ward enters the local juvenile facility. The process shall recognize the limitations on academic evaluation and planning that can result from short-term placements. The evaluation team shall include staff from the responsible educational agency and the county probation department, and may include other participants as appropriate, and as mutually agreed upon by the education and probation members of the team. The evaluation process specified in the memorandum of understanding or equivalent mutual agreement may:
  (A) Include a timeline for evaluation once a ward is assigned to a local facility.
  (B) Result in an educational plan for a ward while assigned to a local juvenile facility that is integrated with other rehabilitative and behavioral management programs, and that supports the educational needs of the pupil. It is the intent that this shared information about each ward placed in a juvenile court school shall assist both the county superintendent of schools and the county chief probation officer in meeting the needs of wards in their care and promoting a system of comprehensive services.
  (c) The memorandum of understanding or equivalent mutual agreement shall not cede responsibility or authority prescribed by statute or regulation from one party to another party unless mutually agreed upon by both parties.

(a) Local educational agencies are strongly encouraged to enter into memoranda of understanding and create joint policies, systems, including data sharing systems, transition centers, and other joint structures that will allow for the immediate transfer of educational records, create uniform systems for calculating and awarding course credit, and allow for the immediate enrollment of pupils transferring from juvenile court schools.
  (b) As part of their existing responsibilities for coordinating education and services for youth in the juvenile justice system, the county office of education and county probation department shall have a joint transition planning policy that includes collaboration with relevant local educational agencies to improve communication regarding dates of release and the educational needs of pupils who have had contact with the juvenile justice system, to coordinate immediate school placement and enrollment, and to ensure that probation officers in the community have the information they need to support the return of pupils who are being transferred from juvenile court schools to public schools in their communities.

(a) Subject to an appropriation in the annual Budget Act for this purpose, the Superintendent, in consultation with the Board of State and Community Corrections, shall convene a statewide group with stakeholders from the community, advocacy organizations, and education and probation department leaders to develop a model and study existing successful county programs and policies for the immediate transfer of educational records, uniform systems for calculating and awarding credits, transition planning, and the immediate enrollment of pupils who are being transferred from juvenile court schools.
  (b) (1) On or before January 1, 2016, the statewide group shall report its findings and provide recommendations for state action to the Legislature and appropriate policy committees.
  (2) The report shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
  (c) Pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, this section is repealed on January 1, 2020.